Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight
Chapter Thirty-Six
*Lily's POV*
The last few days had been hectic enough and now we were here, wherever here was. My cousins were gone, Dru was gone, and Lucas was gone...Again. Besides that, Grace died and came back from the dead. So I guess you can say the past few days have been nothing but eventful.
I sighed as I walked over to see Ethan. He was sitting by the window, fiddling with his hands. He lost Lucas again and I could tell it was taking a toll on him.
"He feels like a failure." I turn around to see Violet. I look at her a bit spooked which automatically causes her to wince, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."
"It's okay," I said, "but how do you know this?"
Violet shrugged, "Look, I control the weather but doesn't mean I can't have a good idea on how to read people. Especially other Lux Lamia. I know a thing or too being around for a few centuries."
"I wish he didn't feel this way," I muttered.
"You need to help him out," Violet told me truthfully. "He needs you. You're his anchor. I picked that up by the way you two interact with one another."
"Really?" I mused. "How exactly?"
Violet shrugged, "Just your mannerisms. You move, he moves. It's quite poetic. I wish I could meet my mate already. Momma said I wouldn't meet him for a long time. I'm praying that is soon."
"You're lonely?" I asked her curiously.
Violet shrugged, "No. I have Hazel and Daniel. Danny and I are buddies. We love to hang out, but none the less he's my little brother. Hazel's always off busy doing her own thing. I want someone who wants to love me like the way Ethan loves you. I've been without a mate for almost three centuries, more than anyone in your coven has ever gone. It can be a lonely life when you don't have a lover to share it with."
"Does Hazel feel the same way?" I asked curiously.
"Hazel has had multiple lovers over the years," Violet explained to me dramatically. "She gets by like that, but I think she's lonely. Daniel too at times...Momma told us before she was killed that we were destined to find you one day. That our destiny lied with you."
"With the Cullen's?" I questioned.
"No," Violet said, shaking her head. "With you, Lily."
"Me?" I asked, wide eyed. "Why me?"
"Your family," Violet explained like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Don't you know the Williams stem from Meredith?"
"What are you talking about?" I asked slowly.
"Well, it goes like this. Meredith has had children besides Daniel. Ones with human lovers. She's an ancestor of yours. Why do you think the Volturi targeted your father? You have magical blood, Lily. It may not be active like the Sanders, but the magic is always there even if it's been completely strained out by humans."
"So are you saying, my father and his brothers were changed because of Meredith?" I asked slowly.
Violet nodded, "Correct. Those secrets your parents hid in your head and that book, where do you think your parents got that book which saved your cousin last year? It was passed down from generation to generation. Your father held all of Meredith's secrets, including how to find a magia piscina. Before he died, they placed that information into you with the help from Daniel."
"Me?" I asked slowly.
"Yeah," Violet answered.
"Are you telling her everything Vi?" I turned around to see Daniel.
"I don't see why not," Violet said to her brother. "She does have a lot of power."
"She does, but we promised to keep her safe. Her and Aidan, and now this family," Violet declared. "Anyway, she should know more about her ability."
"Necromancy?" I asked curiously.
"Yes," Daniel answered. "Your parents had magic, complex magic, performed. I was surprised I even did it, but long story short it slowed your ability. You weren't able to develop it until you touched Meredith's book. Since then, you've been able to communicate with the dead."
"Okay then," I said. "Is this ability something I can control?"
"Eventually," Daniel told me. "But for now, it might be spontaneous. Your body is still adjusting. It won't be long, but keep practicing."
"How?" I questioned.
"I'll teach you," Hazel said, coming over.
"Are you all here?" I asked.
"Now we are," Hazel quipped. "I can control the subconscious. If we work together I'm sure we'll figure something out."
"Alright," I said in agreement. "But that'll have to wait. Right now we need to figure out what to do about the others that were kidnapped."
"We need to talk about that." I look to see my grandfather and Elaine, our leaders, approaching. "Sorry to interrupt, but it's time for a family meeting," he said.
"Alright," I said, nodding at him before looking back at my boyfriend.
A few moments later, most of the family were gathered in the living room. I took a seat besides Ethan, taking a seat on his lap. He wrapped his arms around my body and pulled me close to him. His head laid on my shoulder as he just relaxed with having me in his embrace. I looked around. The only people not here were Grace, Masen, and baby Tyler. It was best they get a break. Lexie, Tommy, and Lucia were also all asleep upstairs leaving me.
"So, now that Grace is back it's time to discuss how we're going to get our other family back," Carlisle announced.
"There has to be some way to get them back," Jasper said, his voice hard. I looked at my uncle and aunt. They were devastated. Their only daughter was gone. I knew also know someone as determined as them were not going to give up on getting Abby back.
"Will we be waiting?" Renesmee asked softly. "Is it true that we won't be going for them any time soon?"
My grandfather sighed, sharing a look with Elaine.
"We decided it's too dangerous right now," Elaine explained. "We're not ready."
"There has to be some other way," Aunt Bella pleaded, grasping at straws.
"Bargaining isn't going to work anymore," Grandpa said.
"Could we strike a deal again?" Uncle Edward asked. "I'll gladly go in the place of Lizzy."
"As will I in place of Abby," Aunt Alice chirped. "He's been dying to have Edward and I for decades. Might as well give him what he wants."
"Me too," Aunt Bella added. Uncle Jasper stood up as well. "Well go in the place of our children."
"No. No one is going to the Volturi and selling themselves over," Grandma said, putting her foot down. "I hate what's happened to my grandchildren, Dru, and Lucas, but who says they'll follow through. We could lose you as well."
"Grandma's right. Lizzy gave herself over thinking they would leave us alone and look what they did to Grace," Aidan piped up. "Lizzy made him swear to leave Grace and the baby alone, but he stilled had his guard kill her."
"I know my father," Cordelia said, shaking her head. "And if you do something like that, he's already one step ahead of you. He's an evil, twisted man, but he's not stupid."
"What about invading the palace?" Uncle Jasper suggested.
"Trying to escape that castle is extremely hard," Robert mentioned. He looked towards his wife and placed a hand on her shoulder, "Cordelia, Dru, Lucas, and I tried. We really did, but it only got us in more trouble. Knowing how close we got last time, I'm sure they've increased security."
Elaine's eyes shut tight with this, "Plus we don't have the numbers either. Grace just came back and doesn't even know how to fully use her powers. She's a full witch now thanks to my mother transforming all her powers over. Maybe even more than most of us..."
"What does that mean?" I asked.
"It means that since Grace already had power to begin with, Carolyn transferred even more of that power," Ava pipped up.
"Grace was already powerful to begin with as a half witch," Robert said. "She could do spells that no one of her kind has ever done, but she did them. Now she's even more powerful and who knows what'll happen. She could end up being as powerful as...I don't know..."
"Our mother," Daniel spoke up. "I could train her, maybe even get my father's help wherever he is."
"See, we need to train. We need to prepare and this is something that is going to take a long time. I hate to admit it but it's our only option," My grandfather stated sadly.
"No! We have to do something!" Aunt Bella cried out.
"Please, Carlisle. There needs to be another way," Uncle Edward added.
Carlisle sighed, "Son, I wish there was. I truly do."
"I don't have any visions of them," Aunt Alice whispered. "Something is interfering with my visions of them there."
"Probably Meredith," Ethan said. I could feel his chest rumble as he spoke, "She is vastly powerful. She can screw over with any of our abilities."
"Why is she like that though?" Renesmee asked. "Like a zombie."
"It's because the Volturi brought her back to life and gained control over her with the help of other witches. Coming back from the dead can really mess you up," Violet explained. "Our mother's made her mistakes. She's the reason our biological parents are dead, but she's not an evil person. I can promise you that. She wouldn't do what she did...Even if I haven't seen her in decades."
"So what, we just sit here and wait for them to be brainwashed by the Volturi?" Renesmee asked bitterly.
"Unfortunately, yes," Grandpa answered. "We go about our daily lives, but prepare. Grace needs to train, Tyler needs to grow, Lily needs to learn her ability and even Jen. Plus, we need to gather an army or something at least. Find people who are willing to go to the Volturi with us. This isn't going to be some quick visit to Volterra. This is actual war now. We're going to have to prepare for this. Until then though, Lily, Aidan, and Jen, you will finish up your last year of high school and Renesmee you will go to college. I understand we're worried, but you'll all be notified if something does. We'll get ready for the day."
"Carlisle our children could be in danger right now!" Uncle Jasper cried out.
"They're probably okay." We all look towards Cordelia who was timidly speaking up, "He wants their power. If you raised them right, they won't be swayed towards his ways. Trust me. He'll just blackmail them maybe but it's highly unlikely as long as he has control of their power. I know you all want your family members back. I want my sister back as well, but until then we need to hold it together. My father has been planning this for awhile. I wish I could've found out exactly what, but he's been so elusive about it he past couple of years there was no possible way. We just have to hold in there. If we don't find a way, they will. We'll be reunited with them. I promise."
"I hope so," Aunt Alice said quietly before getting up. "Dad's right. We need to just go about our lives...It's going to be the only way to benefit us. If we attack the Volturi now, we'll all die before we even have a chance to lay our eyes on the children."
"I promise, we'll get them back," Carlisle vowed to us. "I promise."
We all dispersed after this. I got up from Ethan's lap while he walked outside. I followed him there and watched as he took a seat on the bench.
"I keep failing him," Ethan said softly. "Second time in his entire life I let him get taken away like that."
"We'll get him back," I insisted. "Until then, don't shut me out like last time. Please don't baby. I can help you."
Ethan nodded, "I know that now, I just...God, Lily. How could I be the worst brother in the history of brothers?"
"Dramatic much?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.
My brother shrugged, "I could've-"
"Stop," I told him fiercely. "You are not the only one who lost a sibling. They're all feeling the same as you and heck, I feel responsible. I wish we got there sooner and told our parents, but then the witches came. We couldn't have stopped that, Ethan. I wish we could've, but they attacked us and we can't go back and change time. They were my cousins too..."
"I'm sorry," Ethan apologized.
"Don't be," I said, cupping his cheek. "Just know that this will be resolved. I have a year left of high school, after this we'll move somewhere away from all of this. We'll get the others back and hopefully defeat the Volturi once in for all."
"I hope so," Ethan murmured.
"We will," I insisted, keeping his face firm in my hands.
Ethan smiled meekly at me, "I love you."
"I love you too," I replied, pressing my lips firmly to his.
*Lizzy's POV*
I woke up with a heavy head the next day. My throat was burning like crazy. I haven't had any blood in a week. I was supposed to go hunting right before this but then the Volturi kidnapped me and the rest is history. Now, I'm on a damn hunger strike.
That's when the door opened up wide. My eyes fell on the figure of Felix marching into the room with a bag of what I could make our the scent of blood. My eyes fixated on it and my throat felt like it was on fire now. An hot iron being pressed to the back of it.
"Here," Felix stated, placing it on the dresser. "I hope you enjoy it"
I quickly got up and without thinking chugged the blood down. My eyes then met with Felix's. Once the burning in my throat died down and I felt myself gaining my voice again. "Thank you," I whispered.
"Let's just go," Felix ordered gruffly, pushing me forward.
We went to go train after that. I immediately saw Abby and went to my cousin. Our hands interlocking as the boys stuck around us. I was surprised to see that Wesley and Stefano were taking a liking to us.
"Alright, let's go," Demetri declared. His eyes immediately narrowed on me, "How about you, Mind Reader Jr."
"Alright," I muttered unenthusiastically. We were fighting, but I noticed he was being harder than usual on me. It got to the point where he knocked the wind out of me. I coughed as my body hit the floor.
"Liz!" Abby cried out, rushing to my side. She then looked up at Demetri, "Was that necessary?"
He shrugged while Felix growled, "Demetri!"
"What!" the vampire exclaimed, looking at his friend innocently. "She needed to learn a lesson."
"No, she didn't," Felix shot back bitterly. "Now stop it."
"Your needs have consequences, kid," Demetri told me via mind as our eyes met. I frowned, but before I could speak Abby was already trying to kick his ass for me.
I sighed as I went to go lean against the stone wall. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes tightly.
"I'm sorry about that." I opened my eyes up to see a new face. She was definitely a beautiful woman, one that reminded me of Aunt Rosalie. Though nothing alike, she had long legs, mahogany hair, and her bright red eyes even seemed to be warm despite the fact I knew they were the sign of someone who takes life.
I bit my lip, "Um..."
"Sorry, the name's Heidi," She explained, leaning against the wall with me. "And I was talking about Demetri, I mean. He is protective of his friends, especially Felix and myself."
"I don't understand," I replied. "I didn't do anything-"
"The fact you needed animal blood. Felix took a beating for it last night from Aro. He had Jane torture him until Demo and I had to drag him out of there," muttered Heidi.
"Oh god," I whispered, feeling regret take over me. "I didn't- If I knew-"
"Look, I understand. Felix is the closest thing Demetri has to a brother, and I love Felix too. You didn't know, but know you do," said Heidi, her eyes glazing towards the others. "That things around here come with consequences. This isn't fairytale land back with your family. This is something a lot more darker and you need to abide by those rules, or someone will get hurt."
"Okay," I agreed meekly. "But in my defense, I had my right."
Heidi laughed and shook her head, "Look here, princess. No one has rights here. You do what Aro says or you don't. Just like I said, is that clear?"
"Yes," I answered quietly, turning away.
"Good, now let's go get you a new wardrobe. You've been sporting the same ghastly few outfits for the last few days," mumbled Heidi. "It's time you and Abby have some proper Volturi clothing."
"Did I hear shopping trip?" Abby asked, walking over.
"Exactly, carina," chimed Heidi, smiling at the two of us jovially. "And of course what better place to shop than Italy!"
Abby snorted, "That is if Aro let's us out."
"Oh he will," Demetri said, coming over. "Look, you may think your prisoners but you're also members of our coven now. We're not complete barbarians."
"That's hard to believe," Abby replied dryly.
Demetri rolled his eyes, "Look, we're bringing you shopping. We'll be going of course so you two don't run off, but we'll be going. No funny business and then you might have more respect from our masters."
"Come on girls," Lucas coaxed. "It'll be fine, really. You two need to get out of here anyway."
"Fine," agreed Abby, shrugging. She then smirked and walked over to Heidi, "I could use some shopping."
"Oh boy," I said, wondering where this would be heading for us.
It was Abby, Felix, Demetri, Heidi, Lucas, and I. All of us piled up in some fancy Italian sports cars Aunt Rosalie would've swoon seeing. On the car ride there, Abby and I spotted a yellow Porsche and our hearts grew heavy. Aunt Alice. I missed them so much. It wasn't fair we were here, not to mention Grace is dead. My gut started to twist at the image of Grace. She didn't deserve any of that. The last memory of her I'll ever have is her slit throat. Not even the beautiful child she gave birth to. I don't even know my own nephew's name.
When we got to the shopping center, Heidi was all over the place. She and Abby immediately clicked over the fashion part. I think it reminded Abby of home and I could tell it was making her feel more comfortable. Demetri and Lucas were both fooling around as they followed. It was surprising to see Lucas in this new element. I forget that he spent a lot of time with the Volturi.
That left me and Felix. I felt awkward as the two of us walked slowly behind the others. It was amusing to see him in normal twenty first century clothing and not those robes he's always wearing. Heidi was the only one who wore something different, but they always seemed to be over the top fancy dresses. Anyway, Felix was in a black leather jacket, jeans, and a tight navy blue top. His figure towered over me tremendously. I was average height, but standing next to him made me feel like an ant. Sometimes I felt that way with Uncle Emmett, but Felix was a lot bigger.
"What's the matter?" muttered Felix, raising his eyebrows at me.
"What do you mean?" I asked, crossing my arms over my chest.
"You seem...Perplexed?" his statement coming out more like a question.
I bit my lip, "I'm not perplexed...I just..."
"What? You're killing me here, Little Cullen," he quipped.
"I heard what happened last night," I stated softly. Felix stiffened at this as the two of us began to walk slower than the others. He then placed his hands in his pockets and sighed.
"Well, you got your blood-"
"I didn't want you to get hurt," I confessed. "I'm sorry."
"Don't, you didn't know-"
"But still," I insisted, looking down at the ground. "Thank you, from me and my cousin. I'm in your debt, Felix."
"That's a dangerous thing to be saying," He mused, his lips quirking into a smile.
"Still, I owe you," I replied.
"Don't worry about it, Little Cullen," he said, smirking. "Let's just get you some more clothes. I know Heidi is dying for you to try on a ton of things."
"Oh boy." I laughed, "Nothing new."
"I assume you deal with this a lot at home?" Felix quipped.
"Yeah," I told him. My smile faltered though, "My aunt likes shopping."
"Oh," Felix responded, noticing me drifting off. Suddenly I felt his hand rest against my shoulder. I sent him a weary smile before turning my attention to Abby. Guilt surged through me that I'm even considering having a good time while my family back home is suffering because of these same people.
My gut twisted. I then forced a smile on while we entered the nearest shop. I just wanted to be home.
A/N: Hope you guys enjoyed! Thanks for reading and reviewing and keep a look out for the next update :)