"Allow me to reintroduce myself on even standing."

Leah watched from the window upstairs, hiding behind the curtain, as Xavier became something…different. That seemed so trivial in comparison to what happened just outside her window. Leah held her breath as Xavier's body transformed. For the time that she'd known her, Leah believed Xavier to be in her final form, but she was so, so wrong. It made sense though in hindsight, as Bella kept her natural state close to her chest for multiple reasons, so why wouldn't Xavier do the same? Xavier's hair, initially long and brunette, lengthened until it brushed against the soil, and the brown bled into a color so dark that it looked like a starless night sky fell and draped itself over Xavier like a cloak. The hair hid the right side of her face and body, and Leah shuddered when the left eye, once translucent, turned solid red. Xavier's hand twitched, and a thick hilt appeared in her palm. The two vampires – and Leah – were frozen in shock – and awe – when a blade, long and curved at the end, materialized. It was as if the entire reservation fell silent, not even the wolves still held upright in the roots made a sound. Xavier was a force, and Leah had forgotten what it was like to be friends with the Princess and the King's Guardian.

"I am the Killer of Men, the Protector of Gods, and Hell's Champion," Xavier said coldly. "And you will return to Aro with a message that only he will understand."

Xavier flicked her wrist in an 'x' motion toward the vampire closest, and Leah's eyes widened when the vampire fell to its knees. He - the one Xavier called Kai – wavered back and forth before his body separated from itself. The blade sliced through him with ease, leaving him in pieces. Yet Kai's head remained attached to his body. When Xavier stepped forward, the second vampire – Felix – tried to mimic the action but couldn't.

"What the hell?" Felix exclaimed.

Xavier chuckled but ignored him otherwise. Felix struggled to free himself, but it was useless. The ground was his prison, roots and hard soil crawling up his legs and binding him to the Earth. Xavier stepped over Kai's legs and torso. She stood over his head, the vampire still alive with his eyes blinking rapidly. No sound came out of his mouth, but Leah knew he was begging for his life.

"Magic can be so fickle. And you depend on yours far too much." Xavier swung her blade downward, and even Leah's enhanced sight couldn't catch the glint as it struck the vampire once more. Xavier flicked the tip of the blade, and Kai's head balanced on the edge as Xavier held it out. She wiggled her fingers in a sarcastic greeting. "But I find the art of the sword more enchanting," Xavier finished. "Do send Aro my regards."

Xavier waved her hand, and the head vanished. Sue came up behind Leah, seen only in the reflection, and she placed her hands on Leah's shoulders.

"I forgot how dangerous she can be," Leah whispered.

Sue said nothing, but through the mirror, Leah saw the grimace that her comment earned. Xavier glanced briefly at the house, a ghost of a smirk on her face, before returning her attention to Felix. His makeshift bindings made their way up to his torso, trapping his hands against his thighs, and Xavier kept her pace steady as she walked toward him. She stuck her sword into the ground and placed her hands on Felix's shoulders. She leaned forward, and if you were on the outside looking in, it seemed intimate. Yet Leah felt the suffocating rage flowing from Xavier out into the world.

"You claimed me as yours. Had your way with me as if we were destined for one another." Felix's lips began to fuse, and his screams were cut off before he ever had a chance to speak. She released him as the Earth made its way up to his neck "I will never know love the way I was meant to because you poisoned it with every touch. I begged. You laughed. I screamed. You laughed. I cried. You laughed. But now…"

Xavier stepped away and picked up her sword. She flicked her wrist again, and the blade went back to wherever it came from. It felt as if Leah blinked once before Felix was swallowed whole. He was a statue made of roots and dirt and rocks. Xavier cocked her head and smiled. She reached forward and tapped where Felix's forehead would be, and the former vampire exploded, showering their backyard with ash and dirt. Leah flinched away from the window when several rocks cracked against the glass, and she and Sue listened as Xavier's laughter echoed long and joyously.

"You know what? Scratch that," Leah said. "She's not dangerous. She's fucking terrifying."

"Language."

"Mom, come on. I think I earned that one."

Sue kissed the top of Leah's head and squeezed her shoulders before leaving the room. Leah stayed where she was, watching Xavier with curiosity and no small amount of fear. But both of their attention was captured by something in the distance, and their heads snapped to the side. Leah opened the window and jumped out, shifting mid-jump and landing on her hind legs to avoid running into Xavier. Xavier rolled her neck around and went back to her usual form, idly rubbing the top of Leah's head.

"It would appear your mate has arrived," she teased. "Shall I go and greet her first?"

Leah's bark was both a warning and indignant, and Xavier cackled as she took off. Leah barked again and ran after her, not even close to catching up.

"Fuck, that was hot." Bella slowly turned, and she arched an eyebrow at Kate, who smiled sheepishly. "I am so sorry. When I'm nervous, I say things I shouldn't."

"And you are?" Bella asked.

Tanya stepped forward before Kate could say anything else, and she said, "My name is Tanya Denali, and these are my mates, Kate and Irina." At Bella's look, Tanya added, "We're the vampires that Charlie hopefully mentioned to you."

"Emphasis on hopefully," Kate muttered under her breath.

Bella chuckled and eyed the three of them, curious.

"It is nice to officially meet you," she said.

"Same to you," Tanya said.

Bella turned back to Rosalie. She reached out and wiped the remaining blood away from under her nose. She paused and looked at the blood, frowning at the color. It was red, but there were specks of gold mixed in. It gave credence to the end of her father's letter. Bella met Rosalie's eyes and licked the blood off her thumb, taking great pleasure in the way Rosalie's eyes darkened.

"Hello, my love."

"Hi. You have," she paused, "incredible timing. How did you know?"

"You are mine."

Rosalie smiled and stepped forward, grabbing at her shirt.

"I guess I should thank you then."

"For what?"

"Being mine."

"That will never change."

"I believe you."

Bella nodded once and sighed, wiping away more blood as it dripped from Rosalie's nose.

"What did she do to you?" she asked.

Rosalie sighed and said, "Jane's gift was to cause pain. It was mental, and I think she might have," she paused, "unlocked something. I have had headaches before, but not this bad."

Bella lifted her hands and placed them on Rosalie's head. She pushed her thumbs into her temples and added pressure. Rosalie's eyes fluttered close, and Bella searched the depths of her subconscious for their bond. When she found it, Bella took on as much of the pain as she could until Rosalie could stand straight without wavering. The headache was minuscule to Bella, a minor inconvenience, and she dropped her hands. Rosalie's eyes opened, and she frowned.

"What did –

"Nothing for you to worry about," Bella interrupted softly. "Do you feel better?"

"Yes."

"Good. Then we should be on our way."

"Where are we going?" Tanya asked, making their presence known again.

"Forks. I-" Bella stopped and looked over her shoulder at the vampire still on the ground. She held up her finger, and the four fell silent. Bella jumped into the tree above him, and she never took her eyes off him as she continued, "I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but Charlie is dead," she said.

"He is?" Kate exclaimed. "But we – we just spoke with him!"

"Yes." Bella ground her teeth for a moment. "He informed me it was someone in the Volturi before he passed. But his injuries were too severe," she said.

"There must have been more than Jane and Alec," Irina sighed. "Demetri was just our distraction."

"Clearly," Bella drawled. "But if they ran into my sister, then they are no longer an issue."

"You are that confident in her skills? If I know Aro, he didn't send any of the lower guards."

"Do you know who I am?" Bella asked. "Truly?"

"You're the Princess."

Bella sat down on the branch, one eye on Demetri, and the other on Irina. Her eyes drifted to Rosalie for a moment before she answered, "I am the Daughter of Hell, the Queen of the Damned, and Darkness Personified. I am what nightmares are born from, and I feed on the blood of my enemies, not unlike the Volturi. Except I do not need a guard to protect me. I do not need a throne to have power. I do not need to fear what I do not know as I am greater than the unknown. I am my Father's child in every way that matters." Bella's subsequent smile held no warmth but it was affectionate in tone. "Yet while I am the darkness that cannot be swallowed by the light, my sister is the gate between life and death. Believe me when I say that any creature that goes against her will die a painful death."

Kate awkwardly cleared her throat and said, "You're, uh, you are far more intense than I expected."

"And to think, this is me on a good day," Bella joked. "With that said, there is a vampire who can give us the answers that we need. If only he ceases this ridiculous charade of pretending to be dead."

No sooner than she finished speaking, Demetri jumped up and tried to make a run for it, but Bella cut him off. She landed in front of him, and he ran into her chest. Stone met flesh yet only one was unyielding. Demetri cursed as he was knocked down, and Bella picked him up. He struggled in her grip, and she clicked her teeth.

"Relax," she said. "I will not kill you. But you will give me the answers that I need."

"I will not betray my Kings," he spat.

"Aw, your loyalty is cute." Demetri glared at her, and Bella brought him down so they were at eye level. "But you will break," she whispered. "And you will beg me for mercy."

Lauren stared up at the Shifters still hanging in the air. It was the sole thing keeping her from thinking about Leah pressed against her back. Leah's height meant that Lauren felt soft puffs of air against the side of her head, the only sign that Leah was as anxious from the proximity as Lauren was. Her thoughts weren't in the best place, spiraling into how Leah would look tangled in her sheets and covered in –

"Lauren," Xavier sighed. "Please, for my sanity, stop."

"Stop what?" Leah asked.

No one answered, and Leah huffed, folding her arms. They brushed against Lauren's back, and she could feel the heat through her clothes. Lauren puffed out her cheeks and glanced down at her brother. Marx sat on the ground eating a sandwich (he made them stop on their way to the reservation despite the urgency), and Emmett stood behind him. Emmett shifted, uncomfortable, but Marx leaned back and rested his head on his thigh. Emmett relaxed, and Lauren smiled at the interaction. A wolf growled, capturing their attention, and Leah sighed behind her.

"Are you going to let them down?" Leah asked.

"I will," Xavier said. "When they agree to my terms."

"What terms? You've been glaring at them for the last ten minutes."

Xavier smirked, and Lauren knew what was coming before she ever said it.

"I'm telepathic."

"Since when?!" Leah screeched. Lauren winced and rubbed her ear, looking back at Leah. Her mate coughed and added sheepishly, "My bad."

"I'd say around birth."

"How come I didn't know this?"

"Why would you?" Xavier deadpanned. "You don't know everything about me nor do you know everything about Isabella. It's called self-preservation."

Leah grumbled something under her breath but asked, "Can you control it?"

"Obviously."

"Wait. Have – have you ever-

"Yes," Xavier interrupted, smirking. "I have heard your thoughts, Leah."

"Oh, God," Leah muttered. "That's so embarrassing."

"None more so than Lauren's," Xavier snorted.

Lauren stiffened, ignoring the eyes suddenly boring into the side of her head, and Xavier cackled at the look on Lauren's face.

"Yeah, but you don't need telepathy to know what Lauren's thinking – hey!"

Marx yelped and covered his sandwich when she kicked dirt at him. He stuck out his tongue in retaliation and went back to his food. Lauren glared at Xavier for bringing it up, but the demon had all but moved on, glancing at the wolves.

"I will let you down when you promise not to attack."

"Guys, this isn't a game," Leah added. "This falls into the category of protecting more than Forks."

The biggest wolf in black fur snapped his teeth at Leah, but a brown wolf close to the size of the black wolf snarled in response. Eventually, the black wolf conceded with a huff. Xavier smirked in satisfaction and snapped her fingers. The roots returned to the Earth, causing the wolves to yelp and fall as they hit the ground. Leah moved in front of Lauren when a specific wolf stepped toward her, and she started shaking. The anger was palatable, and Lauren had to hold her breath not to react.

"You move another inch, and I'll tear out your fucking throat," Leah said coldly. The wolf didn't back down, and Leah clenched her fists. "Do not fuck with me, Paul. You are not as important to me as you think you are."

The black wolf bodied the one Leah called Paul to the side, but even with the threat neutralized, Leah remained in front of Lauren. Lauren was tempted to tell her that a mutt wasn't an issue, but the words wouldn't come. The black wolf glanced at Leah, then the woods, and she nodded. The wolves took off, and she watched them go until they were gone.

"They have bags stashed all over the reservation," she explained.

"Why?" Xavier asked.

"Because they don't have a mother capable of making sure they're not naked when they shift back into their human form," Leah said dryly. "I learned that lesson once and never felt like going through it again. It's weird as hell having a bunch of guys seeing me…"

Leah trailed off when she saw the look on Lauren's face.

"They've all seen you naked?" Lauren asked.

"Well, I mean – yes. But it was – I'm not sure how to answer that. Why are you upset?"

"Because they've seen you naked!"

"I've seen them naked too, and okay, I realize that doesn't help the situation –

"Please stop while you are ahead," Xavier sighed.

Leah pouted and folded her arms, and Lauren couldn't shake the possessiveness crawling under her skin. Marx finished his sandwich and stood up, brushing his hands off his clothes.

"Listen, Lauren's not nearly as possessive as Bella is, so. Count your blessings." Everyone looked at Marx, who added, "What? I'm just saying she's lucky that Lauren's her mate and not Bella."

"You say that like you're not as bad or worse!" Lauren exclaimed.

Marx's lip twitched, and he said, "I've never claimed to be anything but myself. However, I don't like it when people touch what belongs to me. What's mine is mine."

Emmett's eyes widened slightly, and Marx smirked at him.

"That's disgusting," Lauren sighed.

"Do you want me to tell Leah –

"Shut up!"

"Tell me what?" Leah asked.

"Nothing," Lauren grumbled. Over Leah's shoulder, her escape came in the form of a small wolf, and she breathed a sigh of relief. "I think your brother is coming over."

"Yeah, he usually senses when pack things are going on," Leah said, not taking her eyes off Lauren. "But you haven't answered my question."

"I am very aware of that," she muttered.

"Later," Xavier said. "The mutts are coming back."

The group turned in unison as a group of boys came out of the trees, and in her peripheral, Lauren watched Seth shift mid-run and stop next to Leah. He was in his gym clothes, but he wore the same cold look that Leah did. Lauren knew they grew up in Hell for the most part, and she knew the siblings were more human than demons, but when they looked like that, she saw Hell in their eyes.

"You better have a good reason for bringing these people onto our land."

Leah rolled her eyes and said, "Would you like to make introductions first, or should I?" When the boy didn't respond, Leah snorted and pointed at their side of the stand-off. "You already know Seth and Emmett, but this terrifying creature beside me is Xavier, the one next to her is Marx, and that is Lauren."

When Leah finished, a tense silence fell, and the one in front ground his teeth before turning and pointing at the boys behind him.

"Jacob, Embry, Quil, Paul, Jared, Colin, and I'm Sam."

"Sam?" Marx repeated. "As in like, the Son of Sam?"

"Who?"

"Never mind. Great guy, though. Amazing at poker despite the, you know, mental issues."

Emmett frowned and started to respond, but Lauren shook her head. Emmett took the hint and let it go. After an awkward silence, where Leah struggled not to laugh at the looks on the Shifters' faces, Sam cleared his throat and folded his arms.

"Why are you here?" Sam asked.

"Here as in La Push or like in general?" Marx responded.

"Both."

"Ah, well. One, we're only here in La Push because the Cullens have become psychopaths and tried to kill us. Two, Charlie is dead, and our parents are dead. Killed by the vicious bloodsuckers known as the Volturi. And lastly, we're here because Leah's here. And Seth. And like they're family. Good people."

"Charlie was killed by the Cullens?" Jacob exclaimed, his eyes going straight to Emmett.

"Did I not say that Charlie was killed by the Volturi?" Marx asked flatly. "Because I swear I said that."

"It doesn't matter! Charlie wouldn't have died if they hadn't of came back. We should've killed them when he had the chance-"

Jacob moved toward Emmett, and Marx snapped his fingers. Jacob screamed and grabbed his head, falling to the ground. Marx glared at him, his pupils a deep purple that told Lauren he was angrier than he let on, and Jacob's screams rose in volume.

"Enough," Xavier ordered.

Marx blinked, and his eyes were back to normal. Jacob whimpered and curled into a ball with his head cradled by his hands. Several of the wolves kneeled next to him, including Sam, and Paul turned on Marx.

"What did you do to him!" Paul roared.

"I gave the pup a nightmare," Marx said. "Why? Do you want one too? Because I quite liked hearing him scream for his Mommy. Who will you scream for, Paul?"

Lauren put her hand on Marx's arm and squeezed.

"Hey, Emmett is safe," she whispered, just for him to hear. "Go take a second."

Marx scowled and walked away with his hands shoved deep into his pockets. Emmett went after him, and Lauren glanced at Xavier. Xavier wasn't upset, if anything, she was impressed. But that wasn't clear unless you were looking for it.

"Leah, we need a word with you and Seth," Sam said, standing up.

"No chance," Lauren scoffed.

"It's fine," Leah said. "Pack rule."

"You are not of his pack."

Leah smiled and said, "For now, I am."

"Fine. But if you think my brother is scary…"

"Trust me. No one scares me more than you."

"Good."

Leah winked before walking off with Seth and the other pack members. Two helped Jacob to his feet, and his whimpers trailed after him as they headed to the beach. Lauren flexed her fingers and rolled her neck around.

"I don't trust them."

"Neither do I," Xavier said. "It's a good thing you can do things they cannot."

Lauren hummed and took her index finger, dragging it down the air in front of her. It rippled, and the very fabric of reality began to tear. Lauren took the edges and peeled them apart, revealing nothing but darkness inside. Stepping through, Lauren vanished from sight. Xavier chuckled to herself and headed over to Marx and Emmett.