ELSA'S POV

As I drove home, I wasn't paying much attention to the road that shimmered wetly in the sun. I was thinking about the flood of information Honeymaren had shared with me, trying to sort it out, trying to reconcile it all. Despite the overload, I felt lighter. Seeing Honeymaren smile, having all the secrets thrashed out… it didn't make things perfect, but it made them better. I was right to have gone. Honeymaren needed me. And obviously, I thought as I squinted into the glare, there was no danger.

It came out of nowhere. One minute there was nothing but bright highway in my rearview mirror. The next minute, the sun was glinting off a silver Volvo right on my tail.

"Aw, crap," I whimpered.

I considered pulling over. But I was too much of a coward to face her right away. I'd been counting on some prep time… and having Agnarr nearby as a buffer. At least that would force her to keep her voice down.

The Volvo followed inches behind me. I kept my eyes on the road ahead.

She followed me until I pulled up to the curb in front of the Weber's house. She didn't stop, and I didn't look up as she passed. I didn't want to see the expression on her face. I ran up the short concrete walk to Angela's door as soon as she was out of sight.

Ben answered the door before I could finish knocking, like he'd been standing right behind it.

"Hey, Elsa!" he said, surprised.

"Hi, Ben. Er, is Angela here?" I wondered if Angela had forgotten our plans, and cringed at the thought of going home early.

"Sure," Ben said just as Angela called, "Elsa!" and appeared at the top of the stairs.

Ben peered around me as we both heard the sound of a car on the road; the sound didn't scare me—this engine sputtered to a stop, followed by the loud pop of a backfire. Nothing like the purr of the Volvo. This must be the visitor Ben had been waiting for.

"Austin's here," Ben said as Angela reached his side.

A horn honked on the street.

"I'll see you later," Ben promised. "Miss you already."

He threw his arms around Angela's neck and pulled her face down to his height so that he could kiss her enthusiastically. After a second of this, Austin honked again.

"Bye, Ang! Love you!" Ben shouted as he dashed past me.

Angela swayed, her face slightly pink, then recovered herself and waved until Ben and Austin were out of sight. Then she turned to me and grinned ruefully.

"Thank you for doing this, Elsa," she said. "From the bottom of my heart. Not only are you saving my hands from permanent injury, you also just spared me two long hours of plot-less, badly dubbed marital arts film." She sighed in relief.

"Happy to be of service." I was feeling a bit less panicked, able to breathe a little more evenly. It felt so ordinary here. Angela's easy human life was oddly reassuring. It was nice to know that life was normal somewhere.

I followed Angela up the stairs to her room. She kicked toys out of the way as she went. The house was unusually quiet.

"Where's your family?"

"My parents took the twins to a birthday party in Port Angeles. I can't believe you're really going to help me with this. Ben's pretending he has tendonitis." She made a face.

"I don't mind at all," I said, and then I walked into Angela's room and saw the stacks of waiting envelopes.

"Oh!" I gasped. Angela turned to look at me, apologies in her eyes. I could see why she'd been putting this off, and why Ben had weaseled out.

"I thought you were exaggerating," I admitted.

"I wish. Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Put me to work. I've got all day."

Angela divided a pile in half and put her mother's address book between us on her desk.

"Jeremy wanted to come help, too, but he's still not done with his speech and he's freaking out." Angela chuckled softly.

"No worries, we've got this." I smiled.

For a while we concentrated, and there was just the sound of our pens scratching quietly across the paper.

"What's Anna doing tonight?" she asked after a few minutes.

My pen dug into the envelope I was working on. "Cassandra's home for the weekend. They'resupposedto be hiking."

"You say that like you're not sure."

I shrugged.

"You're lucky Anna has her Sisters and Brother for all the hiking and camping. I don't know what I'd do if Ben didn't have Austin for the guy stuff."

"Yeah, the outdoors thing is not really for me. And there's no way I'd ever be able to keep up."

Angela laughed. "I prefer the indoors myself."

She focused on her pile for a minute. I wrote out four more addresses. There was never any pressure to fill a pause with meaningless chatter around Angela. Like Agnarr, she was comfortable with silence.

But, like Agnarr, she was also too observant sometimes.

"Is something wrong?" she asked in a low voice now. "You seem… anxious."

I smiled sheepishly. "Is it that obvious?"

"Not really."

She was probably lying to make me feel better.

"You don't have to talk about it unless you want to," she assured me. "I'll listen if you think it will help."

I was about to saythanks, but no thanks. After all, there were just too many secrets I was bound to keep. I really couldn't discuss my problems with someone human. That was against the rules.

And yet, with a strange, sudden intensity, that's exactly what I wanted. I wanted to talk to a normal human friend. I wanted to moan a little bit, like any other teenager. I wanted my problems to be that simple. It would also be nice to have someone outside the whole vampire-werewolf mess to put things into perspective. Someone unbiased.

"I'll mind my own business," Angela promised, smiling down at the address she was working on.

"No," I said. "You're right. I am anxious. It's… it's Anna."

"What's wrong?"

It was so easy to talk to Angela. When she asked a question like that, I could tell that she wasn't just morbidly curious or looking for gossip, like someone else would have been. She cared that I was upset.

"Oh, she's mad at me."

"That's hard to imagine," she said. "What's she mad about?"

I sighed. "Do you remember Honeymaren Black?"

"Ah," she said.

"Yeah."

"She's jealous."

"No, notjealous…" I should have kept my mouth shut. There was no way to explain this right. But I wanted to keep talking anyway. I hadn't realized I was so starved for human conversation. "Anna thinks Honeymaren is… a bad influence, I guess. Sort of… dangerous. You know how much trouble I got in a few months back… It's ridiculous, though."

I was surprised to see Angela shaking her head.

"What?" I asked.

"Elsa, I've seen how Honeymaren Black looks at you. I'd bet the real problem is jealousy."

"It's not like that with Honeymaren. I mean, it almost was, I guess, but it's not now."

"But it was almost that way."

I frowned. "Almost… yeah…"

"Anna's only human, Elsa. She's going to react like any other girl."

I grimaced. I didn't have a response to that.

She patted my hand. "She'll get over it."

"I hope so. Honeymaren's going through kind of a tough time. She needs me."

"You and Honeymaren are pretty close, aren't you?"

"Yeah, we are," I agreed.

"And Anna doesn't like her… That must be hard. I wonder how Ben would handle that?" she mused.

I half-smiled. "Probably just like any other person."

She grinned. "Probably."

Then she changed the subject. Angela wasn't one to pry, and she seemed to sense I wouldn't—couldn't—say anymore.

"I got my dorm assignment yesterday. The farthest building from campus, naturally."

"Does Ben know where he's staying yet?"

"The closest dorm to campus. He's got all the luck. How about you? Did you decide where you're going?"

I stared down, concentrating on the clumsy scrawl of my handwriting. For a second I was distracted by the thought of Angela and Ben at the University of Washington. They would be off to Seattle in just a few months. Would it be safe then? Would the wild young vampire menace have moved elsewhere? Would there be a new place by then, some other city flinching from horror-movie headlines?

I tried to shake it off and answered her question a beat late. "Alaska, I think. The university there in Juneau."

I could hear the surprise in her voice. "Alaska? Oh. Really? I mean, that's great. I just figured you'd go somewhere… warmer."

I laughed a little, still staring at the envelope. "Yeah. Forks has really changed my perspective on life."

"And Anna?"

Though her name set butterflies fluttering in my stomach, I looked up and grinned at her. "Alaska's not too cold for Anna, either."

She grinned back. "Of course not." And then she sighed. "It's so far. You won't be able to come home very often. I'll miss you. Will you text me?"

A swell of quiet sadness crashed over me; maybe it was a mistake to get even closer to Angela now. But wouldn't it be sadder still to miss these last chances? I shook off the unhappy thoughts, so that I could answer her teasingly.

"If I can type again after this." I nodded toward the stack of envelopes I'd done.

We laughed, and it was easy then to chat cheerfully about classes and majors while we finished the rest—all I had to do was not think about it. Anyway, there were more urgent things to worry about today.

I helped her put the stamps on, too. I was afraid to leave.

"How's your hand?" she asked.

I flexed my fingers. "I think I'll recover the full use of it… someday."

The door banged downstairs, and we both looked up.

"Ang?" Ben called.

I tried to smile, but my lips trembled. "I guess that's my cue to leave."

"You don't have to go. Though he's probably going to describe the movie for me… in detail."

"Agnarr will be wondering where I am anyway."

"Thanks for helping me."

"I had a good time, actually. We should do something like this again. It was nice to have some friend time."

"Definitely."

There was a light knock on the bedroom door.

"Come in, Ben," Angela said.

I got up and stretched.

"Hey, Elsa! You survived," Ben greeted me quickly before going to take my place by Angela. He eyed our work. "Nice job. Too bad there's nothing left to do, I would have…" He let the thought trail off, and then restarted excitedly. "Ang, I can't believe you missed this one! It was awesome. There was this final fight sequence—the choreography was unbelievable! This one guy—well, you're going to have to see it to know what I'm talking about—"

Angela rolled her eyes at me.

"See you at school," I said with a nervous laugh.

She sighed. "See you."

I was jumpy on the way out to my truck, but the street was empty. I spent the whole drive glancing anxiously in all my mirrors, but there was never any sign of the silver car.

Her car was not in front of the house, either, though that meant little.

"Elsa?" Agnarr called when I opened the front door.

"Hey, Dad."

I found him in the living room, in front of the TV.

"So, how was your day?"

"Good," I said. Might as well tell him everything—he'd hear it from Billy soon enough. Besides, it would make him happy. "They didn't need me at work, so I went down to La Push."

There wasn't enough surprise in his face. Billy had already talked to him.

"How's Honeymaren? Agnarr asked, attempting to sound indifferent.

"Good," I said, just as casual.

"You get over to the Webers'?"

"Yep. We got all her announcements addressed."

"That's nice." Agnarr smiled a wide smile. He was strangely focused, considering that there was a game on. "I'm glad you spent some time with your friends today."

"Me, too."

I ambled toward the kitchen, looking for busy work. Unfortunately, Agnarr had already cleaned up his lunch. I stood there for a few minutes, staring at the bright patch of light the sun made on the floor. But I knew I couldn't delay forever.

"I'm going to go study," I announced glumly as I headed up the stairs.

"See you later," Agnarr called after me.

If I survive, I thought to myself.

I shut my bedroom door carefully before I turned to face my room.

Of course she was there. She stood against the wall across from me, in the shadow beside the open window. Her face was hard and her posture tense. She glared at me wordlessly.

I cringed, waiting for the torrent, but it didn't come. She just continued to glare, possibly too angry to speak.

"Hi," I finally said.

Her face could have been carved from stone. I counted to a hundred in my head, but there was no change.

"Er… so, I'm still alive," I began.

A growl rumbled low in her chest, but her expression didn't change.

"No harm done," I insisted with a shrug.

She moved. Her eyes closed, and she pinched the bridge of het nose between the fingers of her right hand.

"Elsa," she whispered. "Do you have any idea how close I came to crossing the line today? To breaking the treaty and coming after you? Do you know what that would have meant?"

I gasped and her eyes opened. They were as cold and hard as night.

"You can't!" I said too loudly. I worked to modulate the volume of my voice so Agnarr wouldn't hear, but I wanted to shout the words. "Anna, they'd use any excuse for a fight. They'd love that. You can't ever break the rules!"

"Maybe they aren't the only ones who would enjoy a fight."

"Don't you start," I snapped. "You made the treaty—you stick to it."

"If she'd hurt you—"

"Enough!" I cut her off. "There's nothing to worry about. Honeymaren isn't dangerous."

"Elsa." She rolled her eyes. "You aren't exactly the best judge of what is or isn't dangerous."

"I know I don't have to worry about Honeymaren. And neither do you."

She ground her teeth together. Her hands were balled up in fists at her sides. She was still standing against the wall, and I hated the space between us.

I took a deep breath, and crossed the room. She didn't move when I wrapped my arms around her. Next to the warmth of the last of the afternoon sun streaming through the window, her skin felt especially icy. She seemed like ice, too, frozen the way she was.

"I'm sorry I made you anxious," I muttered.

She sighed, and relaxed a little. Her arms wound around my waist.

"Anxiousis a bit of an understatement," she murmured. "It was a very long day."

"You weren't supposed to know about it," I reminded her. "I thought you'd be hunting longer."

I looked up at her face, at her defensive eyes; I hadn't noticed in the stress of the moment, but they were too dark. The rings under them were deep purple. I frowned in disapproval.

"When Alice saw you disappear, I came back," she explained.

"You shouldn't have done that. Now you'll have to go away again." My frown intensified.

"I can wait."

"That's ridiculous. I mean, I know she couldn't see me with Honeymaren, but you should have known—"

"But I didn't," she broke in. "And you can't expect me to let you—"

"Oh, yes, I can," I interrupted her. "That's exactly what I expect—"

"This won't happen again."

"That's right! Because you're not going to overreact next time."

"Because there isn't going to be a next time."

"I understand when you have to leave, even if I don't like it—"

"That's not the same. I'm not risking my life."

"Neither am I."

"Werewolves constitute a risk."

"So do vampires."

"I'm not negotiating this, Elsa."

"Neither am I."

Her hands were in fists gain. I could feel them against my back.

The words popped out thoughtlessly. "Is this really just about my safety?"

"What do you mean?" she demanded.

"You aren't…" Angela's theory seemed plausible, even given the supernatural circumstances of the situation. "I mean, you know better than to be jealous, right?"

She raised one eyebrow. "Do I?"

"Be serious."

"Easily—there's nothing remotely humorous about this."

I frowned suspiciously. "Or… is this something else altogether? Some vampires-and-werewolves-are-always-enemies-nonsense? Is this just a testosterone-fueled—"

Her eyes blazed. "This is only about you. All I care is that you're safe."

The black fire in her eyes was persuasive, but I had my doubts.

"Okay," I sighed. "I want you to know something—when it comes to all thisenemiesnonsense, I'm out. I am a neutral country. I am Switzerland. I refuse to be affected by territorial disputes between mythical creatures. Honeymaren is my best friend. You are my girlfriend. I don't care who's a werewolf and who's a vampire. If Angela turns out to be a witch, and Jeremy is actually a banshee, they can join the party, too."

She stared at me silently through narrowed eyes.

"Switzerland," I repeated again for emphasis.

She frowned at me, and then sighed. "Elsa…," she began, but she paused, and her nose wrinkled in disgust.

"What now?"

"Well… don't be offended, but you smell like a dog," she told me.

And then she smiled crookedly, so I knew the fight was over. For now.

Anna had to make up for the missed hunting trip, and so she was leaving Friday night with Jasper, Cassandra, and Frederic to hit some reserve in Northern California with a mountain lion problem.

We'd come to no agreement on the werewolf issue, but I didn't feel guilty calling Honeymaren during my brief window of opportunity when Anna took the Volvo home before climbing back in through my window—to let him know I'd be coming over on Saturday again. It wasn't sneaking around. Anna knew how I felt. And if she broke my truck again, then I'd have Honeymaren pick me up. Forks was neutral, just like Switzerland—just like me.

So when I got off work Thursday and it was Alice rather than Anna waiting for me in the Volvo, I was not suspicious at first. The passenger door was open, and music I didn't recognize was shaking the frame when the bass played.

"Hey, Alice," I shouted over the wailing as I climbed in. "Where's your sister?"

She was singing along to the song, her beautiful voice weaving through it with a complicated harmony. She nodded at me, ignoring my question as she concentrated on the music.

I shut my door and put my hands over my ears. She grinned, and turned the volume down until it was just background. Then she hit the locks and the gas in the same second.

"What's going on?" I asked, starting to feel uneasy. "Where is Anna?"

She shrugged. "They left early."

"Oh." I felt a sting of disappointment. I was looking forward to seeing her today. But, if she left early, that meant she'd be back sooner, I supposed.

"All the of them except Rapunzel and me went, and we're having a slumber party!" she announced in a trilling, singsong voice.

"A slumber party?" I repeated, the suspicion settling in.

"Aren't you excited?" she crowed.

I met her animated gaze for a long second.

"You're kidnapping me, aren't you?"

She laughed and nodded. "Till Saturday. Arianna cleared it with Agnarr; you're staying with me two nights, and I will drive you to and from school tomorrow."

I huffed and slumped back into my seat.

"Sorry," Alice said, sounding only minutely penitent. "She paid me off."

"I'm not mad at you, Alice." I sighed. "Wait, how?"

"The Porsche. It's exactly like the one I stole in Italy." She sighed happily. "I'm not supposed to drive it around Forks, but if you want, we could see how long it takes to get from here to L.A.—I bet I could have you back by midnight."

I took a deep breath. "Tempting, but I'll pass," I sighed.

We wound, always too fast, down the long drive. Alice pulled around to the garage, and I quickly looked over the cars. Cassandra's big jeep was there, with a shiny canary yellow Porsche between it and Rapunzel's red convertible.

Alice hopped out gracefully and went to stroke her hand along the length of her bribe. "Pretty, isn't it?"

"It's gorgeous, Alice," I conceded, gawking. "She gave youthatjust for two days of holding me hostage?"

Alice made a face.

A second later, comprehension came and I gasped in horror. "It's for every time she's gone, isn't it?"

She nodded.

I slammed my door and stomped toward the house. She danced along next to me, still unrepentant.

"Alice, don't you think this is just a little bit controlling? Just a tiny bit psychotic, maybe?"

"Not really." She sniffed. "You don't seem to grasp how dangerous a young werewolf can be. Especially when I can't see them. Anna has no way to know if you're safe. You shouldn't be so reckless."

My voice turned cold. "Yes, because a vampire slumber party is the pinnacle of safety conscious behavior."

Alice laughed. "I'll give you a manicure and everything," she promised.

It wasn't so bad, except for the fact that I was being held against my will. Arianna brought Italian food—the good stuff, all the way from Port Angeles—and Alice was prepared with my favorite movies. Even Rapunzel was there, much to my surprise, quietly in the background. Alice did insist on the manicure, and I wondered if she was working from a list—maybe something she'd compiled from watching bad sitcoms.

"How late do you want to stay up?" she asked when my nails were glistening with a clear polish. Her enthusiasm remained untouched by my mood.

"I shouldn't stay up. We have school in the morning."

She pouted.

"Wait, where am I supposed to sleep, anyway?" I measured the couch with my eyes. It was little short. "Can't you just keep me under the surveillance at my house?"

"What kind of slumber party would that be?" Alice shook her head in exasperation. "You're sleeping in Anna's room."

I sighed. Her black leather sofawaslonger than this one. Actually, the gold carpet in her room was probably thick enough that the floor wouldn't be half bad either.

"Can I go back to my place to get my things, at least?"

She grinned. "Already taken care of."

"Am I allowed to make phone calls?"

"Agnarr knows where you are."

"I wasn't going to call Agnarr." I frowned. "Apparently, I have some plans to reschedule."

"Oh." She deliberated. "I'm not sure about that."

"Alice!" I glared. "I'm going to call Honeymaren."

"Okay, okay," she said, flitting from the room. She was back in half a second, my cell phone in hand. "She didn' tspecifically prohibit this…" she murmured to herself as she handed it to me.

"Alice, when did you take my phone?"

She grinned mischievously.

I rolled my eyes and dialed Honeymaren's number, hoping she wasn't out running with her friends tonight. Luck was with me—Honeymaren was the one to answer.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Honeymaren, it's me." Alice watched me with expressionless eyes for a second, before she turned and went to sit between Rapunzel and Arianna on the sofa.

"Hi, Elsa," Honeymaren said, suddenly cautious. "What's up?"

"Nothing good. I can't come over Saturday after all."

It was silent for a minute. "Stupid bloodsucker," she finally muttered. "Sorry, Elsa." She apologized, then she exhaled. "I thought she was leaving. Can't you have a life when she's gone? Or does she lock you in a coffin?"

I laughed.

"I don't think that's funny."

"I'm only laughing because you're close," I told him. "But she's going to be here Saturday, so it doesn't matter."

"Will she be feeding there in Forks, then?" Honeymaren asked cuttingly.

"No." I wasn't even irritated. I wasn't that far from being as angry as he was. "She left early."

"Oh. Well, hey, come over now, then," she said with sudden enthusiasm. "It's not that late. Or I'll come up to Agnarr's."

"I wish. I'm not at Agnarr's," I said sourly. "I'm kind of being held prisoner."

She was silent as that sunk in, and then he growled. "We'll come and get you," she promised in a flat voice, slipping automatically into a plural.

A chill slide down my spine, but I answered in a light and teasing voice. "Tempting. Ihavebeen tortured—Alice painted my nails."

"I'm serious."

"Don't be. They're just trying to keep me safe."

She growled again.

"I know it's silly, but their hearts are in the right place."

"Their hearts!" she scoffed.

"I'm sorry about Saturday, Honeymaren," I apologized. "I've got to hit the sack"—the couch, I corrected mentally—"but I'll call you again soon."

"Are you sure they'll let you?" she asked in a scathing tone.

"They don't have a choice. You're too important, Honeymaren."

She sighed, "Thanks, Elsa."

"Night, Honeymaren."

"Goodnight, Elsa."

Alice was abruptly at my side, her hand held out for my phone, but I was already dialing. She saw the number.

"I don't think she'll have her phone on her," she said.

"I'll leave a message."

The phone rang four times, followed by a beep. There was no greeting.

"You are in trouble," I said slowly, emphasizing each word. "Enormous trouble. Angry grizzly bears are going to look tame next to what is waiting for you at home."

I hung up the phone and emphatically shoved it into my pocket. "I'm done."

Alice grinned. "This hostage stuff is fun."

"Alice, you're ridiculous." I shook my head. "You're just lucky I love you."

"I love you, too!" She kissed my cheek. "I see you're going to bed."

I chuckled darkly and headed for the stairs. Alice tagged along.

"Alice," I sighed. "I'm not going to sneak out. You would know if I was planning to, and you'd catch me if I tried."

"I'm just going to show you where your things are," she said innocently.

Anna's room was at the farthest end of the third floor hallway, hard to mistake even when the huge house had been less familiar. But when I switched the light on, I paused in confusion. Had I picked the wrong door?

Alice giggled.

It was the same room, I realized quickly; the furniture had just been rearranged. The couch was pushed to the north wall and the stereo shoved up against the vast shelves of CDs—to make room for the colossal bed that now dominated the central space.

The southern wall of glass reflected the scene back like a mirror, making it look twice as bad.

It matched. The coverlet was a dull gold, just lighter than the walls; the frame was black, made of intricately patterned wrought iron. Sculpted metal roses wound in vines up the tall posts and formed a bowery lattice overhead. My pajamas were folded neatly on the foot of the bed, my bag of toiletries to one side.

"What the hell is all this?" I spluttered.

"You didn't really think she would make you sleep on the couch, did you?"

I mumbled unintelligibly as I stalked forward to grab my things off the bed.

"I'll give you some privacy," Alice laughed. "See you in the morning."

After my teeth were brushed and I was dressed, I grabbed a puffy feather pillow off the huge bed and dragged the gold cover to the couch. I knew I was being stubborn, but I didn't care. Porsches as bribes and king-sized beds in houses where nobody slept—it was beyond irritating. I flipped off the lights and curled up on the sofa, wondering if I was too annoyed to sleep.

In the dark, the glass wall was no longer a black mirror, doubling the room. The light of the moon brightened the clouds outside the window. As my eyes adjusted, I could see diffused glow highlighting the tops of the trees, and glinting off a small slice of the river. I watched the silver light, waiting for my eyes get heavy.

There was a light knock on the door.

"What, Alice?" I groaned. I was on the defensive, imagining her amusement when she saw my makeshift bed.

"It's me," Rapunzel said softly, opening the door enough that I could see the silver glow touch her chiseled face. "Can I come in?