Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight.

Chapter 51- Hello- Bella POV

"It's to take you with us. You didn't think that after hearing of your power, Aro would just let you go. Did you? He wants you to join us. He's willing to let these five die in order to have you."

"What makes you think I would go with you?" I asked.

"We will leave your family alone. Let them live. Perhaps, we can even find a place for them in the Volturi as well."

"None of us want to join you." I told him honestly.

"Aro is not going to like that answer. Not at all. Bella, you see, Aro likes to have total control."

"Let's talk about something else, Jonathan. Ah, how about you tell me why you are part of the Volturi? What is so special about you?"

"Me? The Volturi took me in, oh, a few years ago. You see, my power is quite simple. It's nothing too special, but it helps me in battles."

"What would your power be?"

"I can't die. Ever. Nothing can kill me. That's why I was the one to survive. The only drawback of my power is I can't use it to protect anyone else. My power only works on myself. The Volturi have tried to get me to use it on other people in our clan, but it can't be extended passed myself." Jonathan explained.

"That's why they made me their messenger." He finished.

"So, I guess I can't kill you then. So, what is your decision? Do you want to stay here, or go back to Italy?"

"Give me a moment more to consider it." Jonathan responded.

"Alright. While you do that, I have other business to attend to."

I took the pieces of body and lit the fire. I threw them all in and watched them burn for a moment. After a few minutes, I put the fire out. Every shred of their bodies had been disposed of.

I walked back to Jonathan who was still on the steps.

"Did you make up your mind yet, Jonathan?" I asked.

"How's Edward doing?" He asked suddenly.

"He's good." I replied.

"Bella, you know who I am don't you?" Jonathan, or rather Aiden, asked.

"Of course I do, Aiden. Why do you think I didn't even try to kill you this time?" I told him.

"I figured you had figured it out. When I came the first time, I didn't know. I didn't know that it was them." Aiden replied.

"When you went home though. You figured it out? You put it all together?" I questioned lightly.

"I knew of you. I had heard stories from Edward. You never came with them though. Always, staying home with your dad. I'm sorry about your dad, by the way. He shouldn't have been killed."

"It's alright." I responded. I looked back at the house for a moment. I stared at Aiden and thought over what had happened.

"Aiden, what is your decision?" I asked again.

"I don't know. I don't want to be a part of the Volturi anymore, Bella. You have to believe me. It's just that they will come after me if I stay."

"I'm not going to believe you that easily." I replied.

I added, "I'll be right back. Stay here."

I watched to make sure he stayed while I got Alice. I told her to go get Edward. I walked back outside and saw him still sitting there.

I sat back down and waited for Alice and Edward. Edward walked out first. I looked back for Alice, but I didn't see her coming.

"Edward?" I questioned.

He shrugged and looked at Aiden. Aiden stood up at Edward's presence and said hello. He shook Edward's hand.

I kept a close eye on him.

"Edward, it's good to see you again. I'm sorry about all of this."

"It's alright, Aiden. Do you mind repeating what you told Bella? The part about wanting to leave the Volturi and staying here." Edward asked of him.

Aiden repeated what he had said to me. Edward nodded to me. He was telling me that he was telling the truth. His thoughts had said the same thing.

"Aiden, would you like to come in for a moment?" I asked.

"Sure." He replied.

Edward lead him into the living room. He had him sit in the chair that had no view of the secret door. I opened the door to go look for Alice.

When I got downstairs, I saw Alice sitting on a chair.

"Alice, what are you doing? Aiden's sitting in the living room."

"I don't know if I want to see him." Alice stated.

"Give it a shot. What's the worst that could happen?" I asked.

"I could fall for him again." Alice replied.

"Isn't that what this was all about. Seeing if you wanted to be with him?"

"Yes, but Bella...I don't know what I want." Alice answered.

"You never will know what you want if you don't give it a chance. Just go out there and talk to him." I told her.

Alice finally stood up, and we walked back out to the living room together. Aiden turned around when he heard more footsteps coming in.

His jaw fell open slightly when he saw her. I smiled to myself. Alice stood next to me motionless. She wasn't sure what to do next.

"Alice?" Aiden asked lightly.

"Hi, Aiden." Alice responded.

Aiden stood up and walked over to her. He paused right in front of her and looked her over a few times.

"I can't believe it's actually you." Aiden whispered.

He lifted her left hand into his own and looked at it for a second. When he didn't find what he was looking for he looked at her other hand. There he saw the ring he had left for her. He lifted that hand in his own instead.

"I see you found my present." Aiden said casually. I could hear a slight pain in his voice though.

"I only found it on Friday. We went back to our summer house to get Bella ready for her wedding." Alice explained.

"I'm glad you found it." Aiden replied.

"Look Aiden. After everything you put me through, I wasn't ready to accept it all so easily." Alice told him.

Both of them knew it wasn't worth leaving the room because we would hear them anyway.

"Alice, I'm so sorry for what I did to you. It was the most idiotic thing I have ever done in my lifetime. I'll regret it for the rest of my existence. If you still want to be friends, I'd love to be at least that."

"You give up very easily. I never said I wouldn't give it a chance. I only said that I wasn't willing to accept it so easily. Meaning if you still want to, we can see where this goes. I didn't give up yet. However, if you'd like to just be friends, or if you found someone else,. I would understand." Alice replied.

"I haven't looked for anyone else. In the few years we've been apart no one has offered me the enjoyment that you gave me. I miss you, Alice. Are you saying that a beautiful, intelligent girl like yourself didn't find another man though?" Aiden questioned.

"I do have a boyfriend, but I still want to see what happens here between us. He has been informed that you were coming. He is willing to just be friends with me if that's what makes me happier." Alice explained.

"Who is he?" Aiden asked quietly.

"Jasper. He came with us for summer vacations sometimes. Maybe you remember him?"

"Oh, Jasper. You two were always good friends." Aiden said in remembrance.

"So, what do you say? Are you going to stay here, or are you going back to the Volturi?" Alice asked him.

She acted calm, but I could see underneath the facade that she was drowning in her own fears. She wanted him to stay, but at the same time she didn't.

"I don't want to put you and your family in any more danger, Alice." Aiden told her honestly.

"It won't be a problem." Alice said knowingly.

"The Volturi will come after me." Aiden said.

"No, they won't. When you don't come home they will know why. They aren't going to send anyone here. They would just get killed." Alice replied.

"How can you be sure?" Aiden asked her.

"I can see the future," Alice said, "Didn't the Volturi inform you of that?"

"No, they didn't. It may have been a helpful tidbit of information though. I was wondering how Bella knew exactly where to meet us." Aiden replied.

"And Edward, what is your power? I already know Bella's. Perhaps, I know Bella's a little too well." Aiden continued.

"I read minds." Edward stated before Aiden even finished.

"Bella, you know you killed a lot of my close friends." Aiden said looking at me.

"Sorry. I did what I had to in order to protect my family. If the Volturi had been nicer, I wouldn't have been forced to. I am sorry about your friends though." I replied.

"It's okay. It's part of being a member of the Volturi. They knew what they were sending us into. Otherwise, they wouldn't have sent me." Aiden said.

"It's good to see you again Aiden. From the color of your eyes though, I see that you feed on humans. We on the other hand, don't. That's going to be a problem." Edward told him.

"Why is that a problem?" Aiden asked.

"Bella, Alice, and I are the only ones in our family that are vampires. The rest of them are human. You are going to have to stay a good distance from them." Edward explained.

"I can control myself." Aiden replied.

"You are going to control yourself around our whole family? Do you know how many humans we have under our roof right now?"

"How many people?" Aiden asked quietly.

"8 humans, and there is only the three of us to protect all of them." Edward said carefully.

"Eight? I thought it was just Jasper, Rose, Emmett, your mom, and your dad? That's only five?" Aiden questioned.

"We also have Jacob, Bella's friend, and my two daughters." Edward told him.

"You and Bella had kids before you were changed?" Aiden asked.

"No. We adopted them after we were changed."

"You take care of two kids, and you don't have the urge to attack them?"

"Of course we have the urge. We just ignore it. We keep ourselves well fed so that we don't have so much of a desire to fed on them. It helps that Bella can control our thirst with her power as well." Edward explained.

"Bella, your power goes beyond what the Volturi imagined. Controlling people to fight...that's one thing. Being able to control a vampire's thirst...that's a completely different ballpark." Aiden told me with a shocked expression.

"It's quite a simple power actually. I can control anyone I want and make them do whatever ever I ask them to do." I responded.

"You make it sound a lot less powerful than it actually is." Aiden replied with a smile.

"I don't use it unless it's necessary." I informed him.

"That's a shame. It'd be a great hunting tactic. I mean, not only do you have beauty to lure people in, but with that power you can get anyone you want to come to you. Feeding would be a breeze. Have you ever tried it for that purpose?" Aiden questioned curiously. I stared at him for a second before responding.

"I've never killed a human if that's what you are asking."

"What about animals? Does it work on animals?" Aiden asked.

"Now, you don't think I'm really going to tell you ever detail of my power do you? Edward might have heard that your thoughts were telling the truth, and you may be a family friend of my family's...but you don't honestly think I can trust you just yet. Do you?" I asked.

Edward shot me a warning glance. I was crossing into guarded territory. I knew I was even as I said the words. I knew Alice would not appreciate me talking like I was to Aiden. Alice gave me the same warning glance.

"Relax Alice. I understand why she doesn't trust me. She doesn't even know me." Aiden responded after seeing Alice's tensed face.

"I'm sorry. That was rude of me. It's just that I don't care to tell you everything about it right now. Not only do I not know you, but you never know who could be listening." I said in return.

"I understand, Bella. Do you think I could meet your family? I haven't seen them all in so long." Aiden answered.

"We will bring them in individually. It will be easier for us to protect them one at a time." Edward responded.

I volunteered to be the one to bring them each in. I ran downstairs and found Esme, Carlisle, Jake, Jasper, Rose, and Emmett all sitting around the living room. Rose had gotten Alicia for me. Elizabeth was still sleeping apparently.

"Mom, do you want to come upstairs. It's safe. Someone wants to see you." I said to Esme. I had called her mom ever since the wedding. To me, she truly was my mom.

"Are you sure it's safe, Bella?" Carlisle asked cautiously. I understood his concern.

"I'm positive. I'm taking everyone up individually though." I told him.

Carlisle nodded his head. Esme stood up and followed me up the stairs and out the door. I warned her before we went out not to try and get close to the vampire.

When we came out the door though. All of that was lost. She looked up at Aiden who was standing over by the living room entry way, and she ran over to him.

I made her stop right before she got to close to him. I let out an angry breath.

"Sorry, Bella." Esme said turning around to look at me.

I nodded my head and allowed her to control her own body. I didn't think about it though. I really should have been controlling Aiden's thirst too.

Surprisingly, he didn't lunge at her. He walked closer to her and gave her a hug. He pulled away quickly, but it was amazing control for a vampire.

I hadn't even helped him. Aiden smiled lightly.

"Esme, it's nice to see you again." Aiden said.

As if she suddenly remembered, Esme backed up a few steps. Aiden was supposed to be dead.

"You're a vampire too?" Esme questioned.

"Yes. I was changed in Italy." Aiden explained.

She looked him in the eyes and backed away even more. "You're eyes." Esme stated fearfully.

"Don't worry about it, Mom." I told her.

"Why are they that color?" Esme asked.

"I'm working on that." Aiden explained. I smiled lightly. I didn't realize Aiden was going to try and switch over to animal blood.

It was a start. I could feel myself slowly beginning to trust him more and more. I looked up at Edward, who was smiling after hearing that thought. I rolled my eyes at him and smiled as well.

"It was good seeing you, Aiden. I think I'm going to let Carlisle come say hello though." Esme replied. She was trying to be nice, but I go see the fear in her eyes.

Aiden said, "Alright. I'm sorry I frightened you, Esme."

Esme walked away, and I told her she could go back downstairs. I turned around and saw Edward standing behind me.

"You left Alice alone with him?" I questioned. I was questioning his sanity right now.

"They'll be okay. I needed to be alone with you for a second. You did a great job, Bella. I love you." Edward answered.

He pushed me gently against the wall and kissed me tenderly at first. Then the kiss became more intense. He licked my lip and bit down on it gently. He pulled away from me slowly.

"I love you too. I'm sorry we had to lock you in there. I was just afraid that you would come out. I didn't want to be worrying about what you were doing." I told him.

"I would have done the same thing." Edward replied while leaning back in to kiss me.

I kissed him lightly and pulled away. As much as I wished I could just give in and let him have me right now, I knew that Aiden was waiting with Alice.

Edward heard my thoughts and turned around to go back out. I went and got Carlisle to bring him up. Esme was feeling better now that she was out of the presence of Aiden.

Rose and Jasper knew who was here. Everyone else probably found out when Esme came back down.

I warned Carlisle to stay back and not to be afraid of his eyes, like Esme had been.

When we went out, Carlisle stayed far enough away that I didn't worry about him.

"Aiden? Is that you? It's nice to see you again. What brings you here?" Carlisle asked.

"Yes, it's been a while Carlisle. It's always nice to see you and your family. I'm here on business..." Aiden replied.

"Business." I heard Carlisle mutter. I could practically hear him trying to put it together in his head. Finally, he did.

"You are one of them. You came here to fight." Carlisle said. His tone sounded slightly disgusted as he spoke the words disapprovingly.

"We weren't sent to fight. We were sent to ask Bella to join us. However, I've decided to stay. I do not wish to be a Volturi member any longer. Not after what I've seen them do." Aiden told Carlisle.

"I see. They have welcomed you?" Carlisle asked. He waved his hand at Edward, Alice, and I.

"Yes, we have." Alice responded immediately.

"Well, they seem to trust you. So, I guess I will have to as well." Carlisle replied.

"Thank you." Aiden returned.

"I believe Rose and Emmett wanted to see you." Carlisle told him.

"I'd love to see them." Aiden replied.

I led Carlisle back in. I took Rose and Emmett up together. I was trusting Aiden more. Plus, Emmett didn't want Rose out there to begin with. He said the only way she could go was if he went with her.

Aiden smiled at them when they walked in.

"How are you two doing?" Aiden asked.

"Good. How are you Aiden?" Rose returned.

"I'm doing well. I've miss seeing you guys during the summer." Aiden told her.

"I miss going as well." Emmett said. Emmett was much more formal than he normally was. I didn't quite no why, but I imagined it was for him to feel more in charge of the situation. Emmett looked at Alice and Aiden who were standing together.

"You two are expecting." Aiden said pointing to Rosalie's stomach.

"Yes. We are. You can hear the baby's heartbeat?" Rose asked. She knew that he could because she knew that I had heard it, but Rose was trying to keep the conversation off Alice and vacations. Emmett was very tense and unlike his normal, fun self.

"I can hear it very distinctly. That baby is going to be very healthy. Congratulations. Speaking of children. Edward, may I see your's?" Aiden questioned. He had turned around to look at Edward when he said it. Edward shrugged and pointed to me.

Aiden nodded and said, "If that's alright with you, Bella."

I opened the door again. Emmett was very quick to pull Rosalie through the door. I walked downstairs and saw that Elizabeth was still sleeping. I was kind of grateful for the fact. I wasn't worried that Aiden would hurt her, but rather that his eyes would bring back memories of Katie.

I took Alicia from Esme and cradled her lovingly in my arms. I walked back up the stairs at and opened the door with one hand.

"Elizabeth is still sleeping. This is Alicia." I informed him.

"Are they twins?" Aiden asked.

"No. They are sisters, but Elizabeth is older." I replied.

"Was Alicia named after Alice?" Aiden asked turning to look at Alice cutely.

"It was the name she was given by her parents. Although, I have always liked the idea that it was similar to Alice's name." I responded with a smile.

"She is gorgeous." Aiden told me.

"Thank you." I replied.

Edward walked over to me and looked lovingly at Alicia. I handed her to hi, and he walked closer to Aiden. I didn't know why Edward trusted him so much. I understood that they were old friends, but Aiden was a vampire. Edward, of all people, knew the struggle from the bloodlust. He had a difficult time controlling his own thirst.

Now that my daughter was close to Aiden, I did control his bloodlust. He looked up at me suddenly when I did.

"That's quite powerful, Bella." Aiden stated. His voice was almost fearful. He knew what I could do. I couldn't kill him, but I could stop him from doing anything I didn't want him to.

I smiled lightly. Aiden smiled lightly at the child in Edward's arms.

"How's it feel to be a father Edward?" Aiden asked lightly.

"It's a great feeling." Edward replied. He was staring at Alicia adoringly. He was too cute.

"Although Bella's powers are strong. I am still very thirsty. I am going to go hunting." Aiden notified us.

I eyed him suspiciously. It was odd that he had to go so suddenly. He hadn't been here for more than twenty minutes, and already he was picking a reason to leave. Aiden gave me a slight smile before turning on his heels and walking towards Alice.

"Would you like to come with me?" Aiden asked her.

I looked over at Edward, who was now completely focused on Aiden. Edward was skeptical of Aiden right now too. I wondered what Aiden was thinking about. Alice smiled and nodded. Before they could leave, Edward called Aiden over to him.

"Perhaps you should go with Bella and Alice." I heard Edward say.

"Well, I was kind of hoping to get a word alone with Alice."

"I assure you that anything you say to Alice can be said in front of Bella. She will probably get the whole story from Alice anyway. Correct?" Edward returned.

"I guess you are right. Bella, you wouldn't mind coming would you?" Aiden asked me sweetly.

"Of course not." I answered.

Alice huffed lightly in return. I was feeling so confused right now. I couldn't figure out what had just happened between the three of them.

Aiden, Alice, and I ran off into the forest. We followed Aiden's lead. Alice and I stayed a good distance behind Aiden. We didn't know what he was like when he was hunting. Aiden caught a scent and chased it down.

I caught the same scent a second later, as did Alice. The scent was not that of an animal. It was a human. I ran faster, as did Alice when we realized what was about to happen.

I reached out with my power, but Aiden was too far ahead of me. I kept running faster and faster. I needed to get closer to him to have my power work. I could see him ahead of us. He was closing in on the human.

I pushed myself to reach him. Finally I could feel that he was within my range. I stopped him dead in his tracks. He turned back to look at Alice and I. He growled loudly. I couldn't see the human, but I could smell it.

I ran up to Aiden, who was still standing still. Alice was a step behind me.

"Aiden, you are not hunting humans under our watch. If you want to do that...then you can't stay here." Alice whispered. It pained her to tell him that he couldn't stay, but she knew it was what she had to do.

Aiden shook his head. "No, I want to stay. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to. It's just that I am so used to it. I caught the scent, and I didn't have a choice but to chase it."

"Oddly, I believe you. Let's go." I said to him. I didn't know why I all of a sudden trusted his words, but I did. Maybe it was the fact that he wasn't even trying to fight me off, or maybe I was just going insane. For some reason or another, I did trust him right now.

Aiden followed behind Alice and I. I searched the area to find an animal. I smelt small game but if he was used to drinking human blood, he would want something bigger. Finally, I caught the scent of something bigger. I didn't smell anything other than the animal's blood so I let Aiden free of my control. He hunted it down and killed it.

When he finished it off he looked up at us. He cringed slightly at the taste. Then, he smiled at Alice.

"What I am willing to do for you." He muttered under his breath. Alice and I both laughed.

"Oh come on, it's not that bad." I stated.

"You don't drink human blood. You don't know the comparison." Aiden said convincingly.

"I've tasted human blood before. I did change Alice and Edward." I replied.

"That's true." Aiden responded lightly.

"Doesn't it feel better knowing that an innocent human doesn't have to be killed?" Alice asked hopefully.

"It's natural. Predators kill their prey." Aiden responded.

Alice and I both shook our heads at him. "It is not natural. Nothing about us is natural. Especially not the killing, blood-drinking part. What if you were the human that was being fed on. Don't you think that you would disagree then?" Alice questioned.

"I guess." Aiden said unwillingly.

"Come on. Let's find something else for you. This won't be enough." I said.

Alice and Aiden followed behind me. Aiden fed on a few more animals before we headed back. Alice and I didn't need to hunt. We were both fine.

We got back at around 4. We had been hunting for hours. I called Edward upstairs when we got home. He came upstairs immediately. He turned to look at us curiously.

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