Rating/Warning(s)/Note(s): T, Shadows
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Prompt: Pierce


Edward stared at me for a minute, then gave a sigh and ran his hand through his hair. Looking around I could tell he was listening for others that might be near. With a grimace he held his hand out to me and said, "Come on, let's go for a ride."

I held firm for a second, but decided he was most likely right. We wouldn't want the things he told me getting back to Italy.

After only a minute in the car is phone rang. A quick glance and he answered it. "What do you see?" he asked. It was easy to assume Alice was on the other end. "Mmhmm. I see." He looked at me and smiled. "I'll let her know."

We drove for another couple minutes in silence. I couldn't wait any longer. "Are you going to tell me or not?" I asked.

"I am. I just thought some dinner might be a good idea. Somewhere quiet where we can't be overheard or bothered." He kept driving, smiling when I looked at him and patting my knee when I huffed in annoyance. "Trust me," he said.

He drove us to Lake Champlain, stopping at a McDonald's in Waterbury along the way when he heard my stomach growl. "Don't we have a flight to catch?" I asked.

"Alice is changing the ticket to tomorrow," he replied as he helped me out of the car. It should have taken us nearly three hours to get here, but Edward was driving, so it wasn't quite two. One thing about his speeding, it kept my mind off of our impending discussion. "She also rented us a boat." He pointed to a marina where many sailboats were lined up.

"Of course you know how to sail," I said.

"Well, yes, but it requires wind. It's too calm for that, so we're getting one that's powered." He grinned as he said this, rushing around to cast off. As I looked back to the parking lot I could see the reason for his haste when two vampires I'd seen around quite frequently on campus stepped out of a car.

With a flick of a switch Edward had the engines humming and was steering us out onto the lake. "I thought we could talk in private out here."

"Good idea," I replied, waving to the other vampires who looked rather annoyed. "Start when it's safe."

He gave me a nod, and watched the buoys. As soon as we were out of the slow water zone he floored the engines. Wind blew through my hair and my jacket. The day was warm, but with the falling of the sun so went the temperature. A minute after my first shiver I felt Edward's shirt come around me. It wasn't much, but it helped.

"Sorry, I didn't have time to plan this out. When we get to the middle of the lake I'll stop the boat." I nodded, clenching my teeth to keep them from shivering. "Why don't you go below?"

I wanted to see the scenery, but turning into an icicle probably wasn't a great idea, so I took his advice. The boat was small, but well-equipped. I noticed a tiny galley, with two burners for a stove next to the smallest sink probably ever made. Beyond that was a bed with a bathroom across from it. It had been a long day, and the bed was inviting, so I climbed under the covers.

Cool fingers tracing over my face woke me. "We're stopped," Edward said, "and the others have secured a boat, so we don't have much time." He helped me sit up, pulled me into his lap until we were both comfortable and began.

"We actually don't know much, which is why I didn't tell you anything. Alice doesn't see anything happening, and that's another reason. However, we think there's a gathering of vampires, for and against the Volturri."

"What does this have to do with me?" I asked.

"Those against the Volturri are using you as their rallying point, or so it seems. It's impossible for Alice to watch the entire vampire world, especially those she's never met, like Garrett. If she watches too much, holes appear in her vision, so she's been focusing on Aro and Jane." He shifted slightly and seemed sheepish. "When she called it was to tell me that the movement might be bigger than she realized. I swear we only thought it was a couple covens and Carlisle was trying to convince them not to revolt."

"Would it be that bad if people revolted? It's not like the Volturri are even nice." I shifted some, he was hard so not very comfortable. In a flash he moved me so I was lying down on the mattress again.

"The Volturri are more than bullies. They're also like the vampire police. Jasper's afraid that without them there will be wars again." He looked at me closely. "If there are wars people will die, human and vampire."

His words pierced through my heart. I didn't want a war or even a battle. All I wanted was to live eternity in peace with Edward. The thought of others losing their lives in my name made me somewhat queasy. The thought of losing any of the Cullens, of losing Edward, made me downright sick.

"We've got to stop them," I said, trying to sit up again, but he kept me pinned down. His face turned to the side of the boat for half a second and then his lips were on mine. In seconds my clothes were cast aside, joined shortly by his own. It took all my willpower to stop him. I put both hands on his chest and pushed. "Edward…"

"We will, Bella," he said, pulling my hands away. "But first we have to figure out what we're dealing with. For now, I'm dealing with you." It probably should have bothered me that he was making love to me to keep the other vampires from listening to our conversation, knowing they could hear what we were doing, but I couldn't find it in me to care.


It's snowing like crazy here. I'm gonna go get some hot lemon tea and crawl under a blanket until it's warm again.