Chapter Forty: A Flair for the Dramatic

A/N: Hey again, everyone! Not gonna lie, I'm really enjoying getting all of these chapters out. I don't want to ruin any surprises but I'm super excited for what's coming up! Every time I start to lose inspiration I try to power through because I'm so close and ladkjfdkl- I'm not spoiling it! Honestly with all this quarantine crap this is what I'm living for right now. Also I somehow pulled my sternum? I don't know but there's definitely a bone sticking out where there shouldn't be. I'm sure that'll take care of itself.

Anyway, thank you to my lovely readers! Without you guys I probably would have shelved this story idea by now. Your encouragement keeps me going.

ShaeeahS: I'm glad you're enjoying them! Sometimes I feel like I should just stick with weekly updates but like? How boring is that?

fandomsbrokeme: Thank you! Hopefully this fixes your craving.

Luna Lightblade: Thanks! It's just not a full chapter if Asteria isn't pulling some sort of nonsense. She makes it really easy to slip some comic relief into just about anything.

luvielle: Thank you! I've read some of the other fanfics that include witches and I love them all for different reasons, but I feel like a lot of them focused on magic being mystical and ethereal. I thought I'd go for a more straight forward and modern twist to it, because to be honest I was more focused on Asteria's personality and I don't think anyone would mistake her for being "ethereal". You have so many great questions! I hope a few of them get answered for you soon. Not saying which ones, though!

ZileRacer: I know! I'm so excited for her to just go full Robin Hood one of these days. That was another last second brain child that just fit so perfectly into the story. We'll see where this journey takes Alice. And I figured it out! The italics thing had been bugging me because I always include them when I write, but I know what happened now: I write this story in a word document and when I copy and paste it over it loses it's italics. I never noticed because I always preview and edit before I flip it over. Only took me 4 chapters to realize it! Oh well, better late than never. Oh man, I really think you're going to like where this goes. Also, why would they warn Asteria there are other things that go bump in the night? She'd be entirely too prepared for life. ;)

Stoic's Dream: I laughed so hard when I read that review because I had already written this chapter and, uh...

eeeeaud: That is honestly the nicest compliment I've received in a while, so thanks! I always thought it was funny that Alice is portrayed as the most head-in-the-clouds vampire there is, but she's also equally practical. It's like she's a dreamer where she can be and a realist when it calls for it. I really didn't know how well Asteria and Bella would get along at the start, but I feel like they grew on each other. It's also nice for Asteria to have someone like Bella who knows what's going on now but is more like a peer than a mentor. As nice as Asteria's interactions with the Cullens are, I think it would benefit Asteria to have somone on the same footing as her.

Phoenixgurl13: Thank you! I always think it's such a compliment when people binge read this. It's been a lot of fun to develop the characters and how they interact with each other. I get why people don't like Bella, and I also see why people like her. For me, I really wanted to show how different this story would be with Asteria's involvement, especially where Bella is concerned. Whether or not that means good things or bad, I won't say. ;) Interesting times lie ahead.

Guest: Thank you! Hope you enjoy!

fanfic addict o.0: Ah don't feel so bad for Charlie, their sass is a family trait.

: Haha, isn't it just so much? I keep thinking "wow, maybe Asteria should calm down a bit" but honestly it's too much fun so I just let it happen.

lily042004: Thank you! Hope you like this chapter!

ReadingRainbow7: Haha, get ready to get shaken then! Shaken? Shook? Anyway, this is where the road gets bumpy.

MooNOrchiD: Haha, that was my first thought too! In Emmett's defense, he was raised in the Appalachian Mountains and they have some wicked cool ghost stories. I'm gonna go off on a tangent but it's really neat info so I'm gonna do it anyway. There's actually a subset of Appalachian folk witchcraft or Granny witchcraft and it's this blend of Scots-Irish settlers, Native American tribes, German immigrants, and slaves of African descent escaping from slavery. Each group brought their own history and traditions and created this really interesting mix up of ideology that absorbed into their main culture. It wasn't uncommon for people from that area to be more superstitious. Anyway, really interesting stuff if you ever want to look into it. In some ways I think it was more of a melting pot than New York City, at least back in the day.

You know what? I may just have to include Appalachian folk magic more in the story some more because I just love the history of it so much. While I work on that, here's the song inspiration for this chapter: "Young and Menace" by Fall Out Boy. Flair for the Dramatic, indeed. Enjoy!

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"I always clean my guns on Saturday," Charlie said as he sat down at the kitchen table and proceeded to wipe them down.

"Huh, must have missed that every Saturday since I've been here," Asteria grinned. She was all for it.

"Just please behave," Bella said with a shake of her head as she went to grab the door.

"Make sure they behave," Charlie told Asteria with a stern point of his finger.

"Scout's honor," Asteria said.

"You were never a scout," Charlie said.

"Caught me there," Asteria laughed as Bella and Edward entered the room.

"Chief Swan, it's a pleasure to meet you again," Edward said politely.

"Uh huh. So, what do you have planned for the day? Asteria said something about baseball," Charlie said flatly.

"That's the plan, sir. I thought I'd introduce Bella to my family, I know Esme is excited to meet her," Edward said.

"I will also be there. So, there's that," Asteria added in.

"Of course," Edward said with a small smile at her. "I think Alice has been waiting for us to play baseball today. It's been a while."

"You really think you're gonna get these two to play baseball," Charlie asked, pointing at Bella and Asteria. He chuckled. "These two? Good luck."

Asteria put a hand to her heart and made an outraged noise of protest. "I can't believe you're going senile this early in life, Charlie."

Charlie scowled at her. "Just be home at a reasonable hour tonight."

"Sure thing, Charlie," Bella said while motioning Asteria out of the door before she could continue.

Bella fretted the whole car ride. Asteria was glad she was by herself in the backseat; it gave Edward a chance to answer all of her questions instead. It was another reason she was glad Bella took Edward up on his offer to drive them.

"You'll be fine," Edward told Bella. "They've learned to put up with Asteria, I'm sure it'll be easier for you."

"Hey," Asteria said indignantly from the back seat. "I'm a national treasure."

Edward rolled his eyes but smiled, which Asteria returned. As much as he annoyed her sometimes, she was getting used to his personality. She didn't really have a choice in the matter at this point anyway.

"You said Rosalie wouldn't be too happy about me though," Bella said.

"Yeah, but Rosalie isn't that scary. Besides, I get along with her," Asteria told her.

"Which is an oddity in itself," Edward muttered. He caught Bella's look. "Relax, they'll all be on their best behavior."

Bella didn't have a whole lot of time to work herself up further with how fast Edward drove. They were pulling up the driveway before Asteria knew it. She saw Alice eagerly waiting at the front door with Jasper just behind her.

"Asteria," Alice called out cheerfully and gave her a hug. "And Bella, it's so nice to see you again!" She gave Bella a quick hug that clearly threw the other girl off. Bella looked at Asteria who simply shrugged. That was Alice.

"So, what did you want to do first," Alice asked them. "I was thinking it would be nice to introduce Bella to everyone and then give her a tour around the house. Esme is making lunch for you both, it should be ready in about an hour and a half, which will give you just enough time to make it throu-,"

"Alice," Asteria laughed. "I have a plan. How about we go in kitchen so I can practice and leave poor Bella and Edward alone?"

Alice grumbled, but she heard Edward's laugh behind her. "Oh, fine. Be sure to show her Carlisle's office though. And you can show her our bedroom, Jasper just surprised me with the most adorable antique mirror."

"Come on," Asteria said with a roll of her eyes as she grabbed Alice by the hand and literally dragged her towards the kitchen. Esme was already in the kitchen wiping down the cabinets. To her surprise Rosalie and Emmett were also there.

"Good morning," Asteria said cheerfully.

"Hello sweetheart, how are you," Esme asked her.

"I'm good," Asteria said. "I'll be better as soon as I've had your cooking. What are you making today?"

"It's a red sauce with homemade meatballs," Esme laughed. "I even convinced Rosalie and Emmett to help with the salad."

"Oh," Asteria said as she paused. "Emmett didn't…like, touch the salad did he?"

"Hey," Emmett said. "Do you think I'd try to poison you or something?"

"Or something," Asteria said as casually as she could, which earned her a hair ruffle from Emmett. She mock glared at him in response.

"He made it expertly," Esme told her, amused at their interaction. "Besides, I think Rosalie did most of the work."

"Ah, so it is safe," Asteria said.

Rosalie made a noncommittal sound. "I'm still not happy about this."

"The salad," Asteria asked with feigned innocence. "It looks great."

"You know what I meant," Rosalie told her. "You said your cousin wouldn't be a problem."

"Ooh, I don't know if I ever specifically said she wouldn't be one," Asteria said. "Besides, it's not really a problem yet."

"Yet," Rosalie said.

"Rosalie," Alice sighed. It sounded like they had been having this argument all morning. "Would it physically harm you to let it go for five minutes?"

"Preferably the five minutes when you're meeting Bella," Asteria said as she heard Bella and Edward round the corner into the kitchen.

"You already know most of my family," Edward said as he looked around. He gave Rosalie a hard look, which let Asteria know he'd heard their spat. "I'd like to introduce you to our mother, Esme."

"It's lovely to meet you, dear," Esme said. "We were just putting together some lunch, it'll be ready in a bit. I hope you like Italian food."

"It smells amazing," Bella said politely. Asteria had already warned her that Esme would try to feed her at every available opportunity, but it would be more than worth it. "I can't wait."

"We're going to tour around the house," Edward said.

"Stay out of my room," Rosalie told him darkly.

"Wasn't going to be part of the tour," Edward told her waspishly.

"Okay, you kids have fun," Asteria told them as she made a shooing motion to get them out of the room. "Don't get lost."

"I think that went well," Asteria said as she heard them ascend up the staircase.

"Try to behave, please," Esme asked Rosalie.

"I have valid concerns," Rosalie told her evenly before disappearing from the room and heading outside. Emmett gave Asteria an apologetic shrug and then followed her out.

"Honestly, I was expecting worse," Jasper commented.

"All things considered I think it went okay," Asteria said. "Good job, team."

"Don't celebrate just yet," Jasper told her. "We still have the whole afternoon to get through."

"Ah man. I thought your superpower was raising people's moods, not lowering them," Asteria told him.

"Technically I can do both," Jasper responded with a grin.

"And what trouble are the three of you going to get into while we wait for lunch," Esme asked them.

"I was going to quiz Asteria on her tarot card meanings," Alice informed her brightly.

"Oh, god damn it," Asteria muttered. She normally tried not to curse in front of Esme, which is why she earned herself a disapproving look from the motherly vampire. "Only you can take something cool and mystical and turn it into homework."

Alice rolled her eyes. "You're supposed to be learning them, and Cynthia asked me to help you."

"Yeah, yeah," Asteria said as they went into the dining room and she pulled out her tarot cards. She had gotten into the habit of taking a little spiritual "go" bag with her, especially when she went over to the Cullens. It had her smaller book of shadows, which she had translated into Gaelic, as well as a spare tarot deck, candles, herbs and a few other odds and ends. Just in case.

"I have been practicing some other things," Asteria informed Alice as they began sifting through the cards. She didn't want to explain too much because it would be a hell of a surprise, but she had gone out every afternoon and worked on her pyromancy talent until she could hit her target about ninety percent of the time. "Not to brag, or anything."

"Are you just trying to get out of doing this," Alice asked her.

"I mean, technically you're not wrong," Asteria said.

"Of course," Alice said. "You're not getting out of this, though."

"Ugh," Asteria said, resigned to her fate. They worked on it until Edward and Bella had finished their tour, which was also conveniently when lunch was ready.

"This house is amazing, Esme," Bella said as she sat down at the kitchen table. "Everything is so beautiful."

"Thank you dear," Esme beamed. "I'm glad you enjoyed your tour."

They ate lunch rather quickly, mainly because Alice was doing everything she could to hurry them along without getting chastised by Esme. Asteria ate deliberately slower just to annoy her.

"Ugh, finally," Alice said as she sat up in her chair.

"I'm still not done," Asteria objected.

"No, but I can finally see the end in sight," Alice told her. Asteria stuck her tongue out at her. "I'll go tell the others to get ready to play."

"You weren't kidding, she really is excited," Bella told Edward.

"We don't get the chance very often," Esme explained. "And my children, talented though they are, are terribly competitive."

"Why don't you play more," Bella asked.

"We have to wait for a thunderstorm," Edward replied.

"Why," Bella asked.

"You'll see," was the only cryptic response Edward would give.

"I gave up trying to understand," Asteria said. "At this point I just go with it."

Apparently the only way to get to the baseball field was in Emmett's giant murder Jeep, as Asteria called it. Alice rolled her eyes and corrected her that it was a Hummer, as if that would be any better. There were so many straps and belts to put on that Asteria finally gave up and tried to tie them in a loose knot around her. Jasper snickered as Alice untied the knot and redid the straps properly.

"Zero out of ten, would not recommend so far," Asteria grumbled. Bella was next to her in the middle seat with Edward on the other side. Alice drove with Jasper in the front passenger seat.

Alice rolled her eyes. "You'll have to be patient."

"She's not capable," Bella said. Asteria very subtly elbowed her in the ribs.

"Any car that requires strapping into a parachute is not one that I want a ride in," Asteria grumbled.

Edward rolled his eyes. "It's an off road harness, not a parachute."

"I'm sorry, you mean to tell me there's no parachute and Alice is driving," Asteria asked incredulously.

"Hush back there," Alice said as she veered them off the dirt path onto bumpier terrain with a little too much enjoyment. It was several minutes before they parked and Asteria spent the whole time reviewing her life choices.

"We'll have to run from here," Edward said.

"Uh…no," Asteria said. "Well, this has been a fun adventure, I'll walk home."

Alice rolled her eyes. "You're not running, we are. Come on, I'll carry you."

"Yeah, no, I got that part. Still objecting," Asteria said. Alice shook her head and then sped over to Asteria and picked her up before running off into the woods.

"See? You made it," Alice told her as she set Asteria down next to Esme.

"That was child abuse," Asteria grumbled at her. Alice just smiled sweetly and went to help mark out their baseball field.

Bella came out of the tree line with Edward holding hands, both of them notably walking on their own two feet. At least Edward cared about her dignity.

"Was there a bear choking out there," Emmett asked them.

"That was Edward," Bella said with a satisfied expression.

"Bella was being funny," Edward teased as he looped an arm over her shoulder.

Asteria rolled her eyes but kept herself from commenting. She had a feeling that if she made a teasing comment about them Rosalie would make one too, but without the teasing.

"Aren't the bases a little far apart," Bella asked.

Emmett grinned. "Not for us."

"Show off," Asteria muttered. Emmett heard it anyway.

"That's why I'm glad we have you both with us," Esme said, cutting him off before he could respond. "I was hoping you girls could help umpire. It might keep them honest."

"She thinks we cheat," Emmett said.

"I know you cheat, Emmett," Asteria called back. She still remembered that snowball he hit her with in the parking lot.

Jasper snickered. "You're not getting away with anything today, Em."

"That goes for you too," Asteria said. "I'm calling everyone out."

"If she has even the slightest bit of power she'll let it go to her head," Bella teased.

"I have power," Asteria said exasperatedly.

Bella grinned at her. Asteria had missed their easy camaraderie.

"But yes, we'll help umpire," Bella said to answer Esme. "Real quick though, how?"

Esme went over the rules quickly before Alice ran to the center of the field. "It's time," she announced before thunder echoed in the background ominously. Apparently theatrics ran in the family.

Alice was apparently already at the pitcher's mound, which left Edward and Carlisle to take their positions on the field. Asteria watched them spread out across the wide field and felt suddenly way more interested in watching; it looked like it was going to be way different than her gym class experience.

Alice pitched out a throw to Emmett, who missed the ball completely. Asteria had to hold back the urge to heckle. It would make her look far too biased. The second pitch came blindingly fast, but somehow Emmett managed to hit it.

"That has to be a home run, right," Bella asked as it sailed out into the trees.

"Wait for it," Esme said with a hand up. "Edward's very fast."

"I can't believe I have to root for Edward," Asteria said.

"Out," Esme called as Edward ran into the field with the ball raised up high in triumph.

The rest of the game flew by similarly. Rosalie and Jasper each managed to earn some points for their team before the inning was over…or something like that, Asteria hadn't actually paid attention to Esme's explanation of the game. What did come as a shock was Carlisle and Jasper colliding together by second base. The booming noise was exactly why they needed a thunderstorm; if Asteria hadn't been paying attention she would have assumed lightning had struck nearby.

Edward raced over to them as the teams were switching positions. "What do you think?"

"Major League Baseball is dull now," Bella said. "I don't think I can watch it anymore."

"You did so much of that before," Edward laughed.

"I can't believe no one mentioned super-powered baseball to me before now," Asteria said. "I thought we were friends."

"I can't believe vampires play baseball," Bella said.

"Oooh, remind me bring up paint ball at some point," Asteria said.

"Absolutely not," Rosalie called out firmly while flicking her hair behind her. Asteria could only imagine what would happen if someone got paint in her golden locks.

The game continued on and Asteria eventually began her heckling, which signaled the end of her umpire responsibilities. Well, that and calling against Emmett every time she could. Totally worth it, in her opinion. Towards the end of the second inning though, Asteria began to feel a tight ball of anxiety in her stomach that she couldn't ignore. Her intuition was pricking up. She scanned the rows of trees and moved closer to Bella, just to be on the safe side.

They were about three innings deep when Alice let the ball slip from her hand. It rolled away from her slowly as her body went rigid. Edward was over to Bella and Asteria in a second.

"Alice what's wrong," Jasper asked as he stood beside his wife. The rest of the family was slower to react, but they all gathered together somewhere between the pitcher's mound and where Esme stood as umpire.

"I couldn't tell," Alice said quietly, almost to quickly for Asteria to catch. "I couldn't see; my perspective was off. They're so much closer than I thought. They must have been moving quickly."

"What happened," Carlisle asked her calmly.

"They heard us playing," Alice said as she looked up at him. "They want to join."

Nervous glances flew towards Asteria and Bella before Carlisle looked to Edward. "Do you have time to get them away?"

"We only have five minutes, it won't be enough if we have to carry-," Edward cut himself off as he shook his head. "Besides that, we don't need them catching the scent. They might start hunting."

Asteria glanced over at Bella worriedly. It was clear the nomads were coming. She cursed herself for putting Bella in this position, and for not stopping the game earlier. There was clearly nothing to be done about it at that point though.

"How many are there," Jasper asked.

"Three," Alice responded quietly.

"Three," Emmett scoffed. "Let them come. I'll take one, Jasper can take the other, and our little pyromaniac can take the last one."

Alice growled fiercely at him. Emmett flashed a repentant expression before winking at Asteria, who returned a hollow smile. They all turned to Carlisle as he seemed to weight the options silently.

"We should continue our game," he eventually decided. "If they're simply curious, they might leave quickly."

"Sinnsearan a bhith còmhla rinn," Asteria whispered as she watched them all take their positions on the field. It roughly translated to "ancestors be with us" in Gaelic, as she hoped this was one of those times where they were lurking out of sight.

"You should catch now Esme," Edward said. "Let me be umpire." They switched positions quickly and he came to stand directly in front of Bella and Asteria.

"Let your hair down," he told them both. Asteria slid her hair further in front of her face and pulled the hood of her jacket up.

"I can't imagine this is going to help," Asteria said quietly.

"It won't," Rosalie said tersely.

"I know," Edward said, frustration clear in his tone.

Rosalie sighed before running over and handing her baseball cap to Asteria, who put it on quickly. Esme followed suit and switched jackets with Bella, hoping it was enough to confuse the scent. They restarted the game half heartedly, although Alice kept her eyes on Asteria every second she could. They were filled with worry.

"I'm so sorry," Edward told them. "You never should have been in this position. I didn't want either of you to be put in danger."

Asteria shut her eyes and blocked him out. Concentrating on that pit of anxiety she had felt earlier, she tried to use it to tap into her intuition. Breathing slowly and deeply, she started her grounding exercise of pulling energy from the earth and returning it. If they were going to come, she was going to be prepared. Butterflies filled her stomach and she could feel the anticipation in the tips of her fingers. If Carlisle was hoping for them to quietly leave…she could tell that wasn't going to happen.

It took longer for them to appear than Asteria had thought, but eventually the first one entered her line of sight. The other two followed on either side, spread meters apart. Something about them was numbingly familiar and made Asteria's blood run just a little bit colder. Her dream from Natalie's house was a little fuzzy, but she was still able to discern the figures clearly. Two of them had switched though; the pony tailed blonde was no longer in the center, instead choosing to stand off to the left.

Asteria debated on whether or not to undo her necklace to silently pass this information on to Edward, but ultimately passed. The movement might draw too much attention to herself and Bella. It wouldn't do much good at this point regardless.

They were altogether feral, looking like they could attack at any moment. The red eyes of the nomads flickered across each of them quickly before cycling over again, trying to find a person to focus on. Carlisle stepped forward to greet them, followed closely by Jasper and Emmett. Asteria wondered if it was only to take unwanted attention off of Bella and herself.

The dark haired vampire that had taken the lead stepped forward, with the other two following closer to form a tighter group. "We thought we heard something," he said, his words coming out lightly accented. "I am Laurent, and these are Victoria and James. I didn't expect to find a game."

"My name is Carlisle. This is my family, Jasper and Emmett, Rosalie and Esme, Alice and Asteria, and Edward and Bella," Carlisle said. Asteria didn't dare move too much, but she caught Alice standing a little off to her side. She must have moved over just before they nomads arrived; it didn't surprise her.

"Do you mind having a few more players," Laurent asked with a light tone and a smile that was meant to be sociable, but sent a small shiver down Asteria's spine.

"Of course," Carlisle said politely. "We had a few members leaving anyway. You can take their positions."

"We wouldn't want to cause anyone to leave on our account," Laurent said.

"They needed to return home anyway," Carlisle told them. He saw Laurent's curious expression and continued. "We have a permanent residence nearby."

"How do you manage that," Laurent asked curiously. The conversation seemed less tense, and Asteria assumed it was Jasper's doing.

"Why don't you join us at our home," Carlisle offered hospitably. "It's a long story. We usually don't get many visitors either. This area is largely empty except for us and an occasional nomad."

"I thought we were going to play," the blonde haired vampire, James, interrupted.

"Certainly," Carlisle said. "Edward, Bella, if you'll go back to get the Jeep with Alice and Asteria. We'll bring our guests to the house after the game."

"We're up to bat first," Emmett said as he tossed the baseball over to Laurent.

The wild red head, Victoria, intercepted it. "I'm the one with the wicked curveball."

"I think we'll see about that," Jasper said as they let out a good natured laugh.

Asteria flicked her gaze over the group one last time and locked eyes with James. His red eyes bored into hers and she couldn't escape. Looking away felt more dangerous than continuing their staring contest. Just then another dream memory surfaced; she was back in the woods looking for the dream version of Brigid, just before she found out about vampires, and instead found a blonde vampire with blood running down his face as he held a lifeless Brigid. Asteria knew instantly this was the same vampire, that he was the one that killed her ancestors. She felt it in her soul.

The violent revelation caused Asteria to flinch, which set several things into motion. James grinned deeply and crept down into a crouch as Alice snarled ferally and moved in front of Asteria. She sensed Edward moving similarly to protect Bella. Wind kicked up behind her and tugged Asteria's hair around as the breeze moved towards the nomads. The Cullens instantly formed a protective circle around Bella and Asteria as the other two feral vampire's picked up they were human.

"What's this," Laurent asked in surprise.

"They're with us," Carlisle said firmly.

"You brought snacks," James asked, his voice sounding almost sinister. He shifted to the left and Edward snarled at him.

"I said they're with us," Carlisle repeated.

"They're human," Victoria hissed at him.

"Well, at least one of them is," James said, his eyes never leaving Asteria.

"Ford, Kentucky. April 10th, 1862," Asteria said in a clear, toneless voice. She returned James' malevolent glare, although she could feel tears pricking at her eyes. Without focusing she took a deep breath and began to pull energy from the ground.

The look on James' face turned positively sinister as he grinned at her, suddenly catching her meaning. His eyes flicked to Alice where something seemed to register before landing back on Asteria. She heard Edward snarl in the background over whatever was in James' thoughts. "I couldn't be that lucky."

"You murdered my ancestors," Asteria said coldly. "Your friend wasn't so lucky though, was he?"

"He was my brother," James snarled. "I couldn't get close enough to get revenge, although maybe I will now."

Growls erupted around her as chaos descended. She was vaguely aware of Carlisle trying to instill order but Asteria blocked all of the words out as she focused on the task of absorbing energy from the earth. Seeing a tiny sense of reason, Asteria realized that drawing out fire would put the Cullens, Bella, and herself at risk if she wasn't one hundred percent sure she could control it. Furious and shaking with the amount of energy coursing through her veins, Asteria turned to her sense of intuition and let it guide her. Her mouth opened before she could register it.

"Creutairean dubhar, a tha airson coiseachd san t-solas seo," Asteria called out with a harsh voice she barely recognized as her own. A violent wind kicked up around her and a cloud of dread seemed to pass over the nomads. "Tha mi gad mhallachadh! Taghadh air an fhuil a dhòirt thu. Na leig seachad do bhilean tuilleadh gus am bi do bhodhaig a 'lobhadh mar a tha do spiorad."

Translated, her words meant 'Creatures of shadow, that dare to walk in this light. Choke on the blood you've spilt! May no more pass your lips until your bodies decay as does your spirit.' They didn't seem to be entirely her own, although Asteria didn't particularly care. She watched as James dropped to the ground clutching at his throat, Victoria doing the same. Laurent wasn't similarly affected, and Asteria idly wondered if he had conceded before her spell was finished.

"Please," Laurent called out with his hands raised in a symbol of surrender. "We'll go. I never meant for this to happen. We will leave now, in peace."

Laurent glanced at Carlisle before helping Victoria to her feet and pulling James along. Asteria glared daggers at him but could not move forward as Alice had a firm grip on her. They watched as the nomads disappear into the trees.

"Let me go," Asteria said irritably as she struggled against Alice. "He murdered my family! Let me go. I didn't agree to let them leave!"

"Asteria," Alice said gently. It was enough to knock her out of her blood lust. "What you just did…how did you do that?"

Asteria registered the worried expression on the other girl's face, and below that hidden deep down, the fear. She didn't want to look at anyone else, afraid of what she might see. "I…I don't know."

"Oh god, Bella," Asteria said as she reached out to the other girl. She was aware of Edward leaning more protectively into her cousin. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare-,"

"I'm alright," Bella said with a nod of her head, although her voice seemed slightly shaky. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, I think," Asteria responded.

Carlisle came over cautiously and took her pulse. "You used quite a bit of your energy. Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine," Asteria said with more strength as she pulled off Rosalie's hat and pushed her hair back. "But we can't just let them go, can we? They know I'm a witch now, and I highly doubt James will give up."

"She's right," Edward said tightly. His eyes looked dark as they burned with whatever he had seen in James' head.

"We should go back to the house," Carlisle decided. "We can decide what to do from there."