Disclaimer - I do not own Twilight, The Vampire Diaries, or any of its characters.

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The Vampire Diaries

Part 2

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Previously...

"And I meant," she looked back up, "what are you doing here?"

He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out an envelope. "I've been tasked to give this to you," Klaus said somewhat irritably.

"'Tasked'? The great Klaus Mikaelson has been tasked to deliver something to little old me?" Bella couldn't resist teasing him. Here was a vampire, an original vampire, over a thousand years old, giving her something because he was 'tasked' to do so. She snorted at the absurdity of it.

"Well, that's interesting," Carlisle muttered.

"What is?" Jasper asked.

The doctor pointed at Klaus on the screen. "He may be a few thousand years younger than the kings, but he's one of the original vampires of that specific species."

"She certainly does attract the supernatural. Even as one herself," Emmett chuckled, shaking his head.

Rosalie sat quietly next to her husband. Something didn't make sense. "Why would Klaus, 'an original vampire', kill little Bella? What was she to him?" she groaned, pulling her hands down her face.

"Yes, yes. Very funny. Get on with it," he gestured to the envelope that was now in her hands.

He didn't leave like she expected him to. She raised an eyebrow at him. "Do you want to know what's in here?"

"No," he denied, but his voice was slightly higher so she saw through his lie. "Alright, yes! I do."

Bella chuckled and looked at the envelope.

Isabella Marie Swan

There was nothing on the front except for her name. No return or delivery address, and since Klaus hand-delivered it, she wasn't expecting a stamp anyways.

Her name was written in an elegant script that she would recognize anywhere. Edward.

Present...

"Yes!" Alice cheered, glad at least one of them was making an appearance.

"Are we in all recordings?" Rosalie wondered aloud.

"Most of them, yes," Calista said through the speakers. The Cullens had all but forgotten her.

Bella carefully opened it and pulled out a piece of paper that smelled strongly of not just Edward- but of them all. She didn't dare tell Klaus how uncomfortable she was with him right there, because if she did, he'd become a million times more insistent.

She unfolded the paper and read through the letter once, then twice. Bella's voice could be heard reading the words, but it faded into Edward's.

Bella,

I can't even begin to atone for my grievous actions against you.

Over these last years, I've come to realize that my leaving has been a mistake. And I now know that you need to know the truth.

I lied, Bella. That day, in the forest, I lied.

The disastrous party was a prime example of the inevitability of our leaving. Humans and vampires simply don't mix. It hurts, but it is the truth.

That simple papercut was enough to shine a spotlight on our naivety. I was wrong - we were wrong - to bring you into this world and assume nothing would happen.

After Jasper attacked, the only option I saw was to protect you. Protect you from potential threats - others like James and Victoria, and from us.

So I lied.

I hurt you in unimaginable ways just so you would let me go.

The truth is, I'm not the one good enough for you. Every part of my being was fighting against my decision to leave, I wanted nothing more than for you to come with me. And I did want you, so much more than I thought you knew.

As always, I underestimated you and your feelings, and for that, I apologize.

When I told you I didn't want you, I saw it. In your eyes, I saw that you'd lost all hope. I watched as the light went out, and it killed me to know that I was the one who did that. Still, I walked away.

Before I came to you, I talked with the family - rather demanded, actually - that we leave. They didn't want to go, but since it was a matter of mates, they had to.

"Way to simplify things, Edward," growled Alice, still miffed about the whole debate that took place months ago.

This leads me to another realization. We are not mates, we never were. I was drawn in by the pull of your blood and your silent mind. I had mistaken that for the bond of mates. While we do not share that connection, I did grow to love you. My love for you was quite intense. Now I've found that that love has morphed into that of a friend.

No one said it out loud, but everyone was wondering if this was what happened. Were Bella and Edward mates? Or was it the same as in the vision?

Even without his gift, Edward had a feeling his family was thinking this. He, himself, was wondering if this was the case. No, not possible. I love Bella more than anything. We. Are. Mates. But there was a voice in the back of his head repeating his alternate self's words. 'My love for you was quite intense…' he shook away the voice, irritated that the letter had planted seeds of doubt in his own mind.

Now comes the reason for this letter. I wish it were simply me reaching out to reconnect. Sadly, that is not the case.

I've written this letter to inform you of the Volturi. They've found out about you through Irina, our cousin from Denali. She blamed us for the death of her mate, Laurent. We found out he was killed by wolves - yes, they are real - but we do not know why. Anyways, he was killed in Forks, and since it was our territory, the blame befell us.

As revenge, she sold us out to Aro, one of the three kings.

The most important law in our world is to not let humans know of our secret. While I did not directly tell you my truth, we left you with this knowledge. We trusted you not to tell, but they do not want to take any chances.

While we will pay for our crime, they will want to eliminate the threat, which in their case, is you. I thought it fair to warn you in advance.

The Volturi have a tracker who is called Demetri. I pray he cannot track you, just as I cannot read your mind. Even without him, they still have significant means to find you.

I'm sorry for uprooting your life once again, but if you do not stay on the move, they will find you.

Be careful. Be safe. Be well.

Edward.

"Do we need to worry about Irina?" Esme asked.

"Maybe. Many are willing to do anything to avenge the loss of their mate," Jasper said with a firm grip on Alice's hand.

Bella looked up from the letter with a tear-stained face. Klaus looked genuinely concerned. At least he didn't read it without her permission.

"How do you know Edward?"

"I don't. Elijah told me to bring this letter to you since he's...preoccupied," he answered with a slight chuckle.

She wiped the tears from her face and stared at the letter blankly. Irina, Aro, Demetri, Laurent, so many vampires have been affected just because she knew of their secret. Her mind stuck on one specific part of the letter: While we will pay for our crime... What crime did they commit? It wasn't their fault she practically forced herself on them. Edward left without thinking, but that can't be a crime, can it?

No, she decided. If anyone should pay the price for this mistake, it should be me. The Cullens are not at fault. I will not let them be hurt just because I came into their life.

"Of course," Edward groaned. He should've known this was what she would focus on.

She stood up from the chair, and it spun in circles as she walked around the desk. "Klaus," she said, approaching him. "Where was Elijah when he was given this letter?" Bella had a feeling she already knew the answer but asked in the hopes she was wrong.

"New York. It was not given to him directly. Edward had left it in their home. When he called Elijah, he said they were headed to Italy first thing the next morning."

Her stomach dropped, but she nodded, steeling herself. "And when did Elijah pass it on to you?" she asked, her voice an octave higher.

Instead of answering her question, he narrowed his eyes on her. "Bella, they are already on their way. You won't be able to beat them there."

"No," she agreed. "But I sure as hell can try."

"Bella," Carlisle whispered, part incredulous and partly horrified. He knew the likely outcome of this.

"Don't do it," Rose whimpered. Seeing how determined Bella was to save them - even knowing how ruthless the Volturi were - had formed a strong connection between them. She respected Bella and loved her.

The others were just as terrified as Carlisle. They all, except for Jasper and Alice, had met the Volturi. Their fears were not unfounded.

Bella marched past him and to the entrance with nothing but her phone and wallet. She stopped short at the sight of Damon leaning against a wall, his features twisted into one of pain.

"You heard that, huh," she stated.

"Please," he said, reaching for her hand. "Don't go. I love you."

She gulped and closed her eyes briefly. When she opened them, he saw he wouldn't be able to change her mind. "I love you too," she admitted with a small smile. "But I also love them. Edward may have sugar-coated it, but I can read between the lines. I can't let them get killed because of me."

"So you're going to sacrifice yourself for them," he spat.

"I'm not choosing them over you. I want nothing more than to hide in our little bubble till the end of time. But it isn't their crime to pay, so I have to go."

"Then let me come with you," he pleaded.

"Damon- you can't. The Volturi, they're dangerous people."

Damon snorted. "No, they're vampires. And they can still be killed."

"That's why you can't come. If Aro touches you, he'll see your intentions, and then they'll kill you."

"He'll touch you and he'll see this conversation anyway!" he shouted.

Bella sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "You're not coming with me," she said with an air of finality.

"If I can't come, then you're not going either," he muttered. "Sorry." Damon pulled his hand out of his pocket holding a syringe. He raised it toward her neck with vampire speed.

She knew Damon though and had predicted this. She stopped his hand with ease and turned the syringe around. Bella pushed it toward his neck with strength she didn't know she possessed. Must be similar to a mother saving her child, she concluded. I have to save them.

Damon was losing and he knew it, but that didn't stop him from fighting. It was pointless, though, because a few seconds later, he was unconscious on the ground. She looked up when she heard footsteps coming closer. "When he wakes up, don't let him follow me. Please," she begged Klaus.

With an expression that was unusually solemn, he nodded and picked up Damon's foot and dragged him to the cellar.

The journey to Volterra passed by at lightning speed, but at the same time, agonizingly slow. That's how it is when you're a vampire. Time becomes a mystery.

She fiddled with the daylight ring Bonnie had made her. Not once did she think about her friends or her father. If things were to go wrong...they wouldn't know what happened. She'd have to rely on Klaus to fill them in, Klaus, he was as unreliable as it gets. Bella could only hope he'd repay that unofficial debt - from when he killed her - by telling her friends.

In what felt like seconds, yet also hours, the plane landed in Florence. She ran the distance from Florence to Volterra in less than ten minutes.

And suddenly, she was standing outside of the Volturi castle.

No one said anything as they watched, waiting with anticipation and horror for what would happen.

There was the main entrance, but she knew it was for show. It served as the jaws that would swallow the humans whole. No, there was another entrance, but she didn't know where.

As if on cue, a vampire clad in a dark grey cloak emerged from the shadows. Bella knew immediately that this was one of the more valued members of the Volturi. She tried to remember what Edward had told her so long ago.

The Volturi was made up of three kings: Marcus, Caius, and Aro. There was also the guard. She could only remember a handful of names: Jane and Alec, Chelsea, Felix, and Demetri.

The vampire did not say a word as he walked forward and grabbed her wrist. He led her through the streets and soon enough, she was in the halls of the castle.

He walked in front of her and she listened to the rhythmic clack of his shoes on the polished granite. As they walked, the scent of a human grew stronger. She was concerned to see that the human was a receptionist. Did she know what they were, that she was likely to die?

They passed the girl and finally stopped in front of a set of huge doors.

"Wait here," the vampire muttered and opened the door. He slipped in and it closed behind him.

"She's terrified," Jasper said quietly, hoping she could but - also knowing - she wouldn't be able to leave.

She waited only a few seconds before both doors opened wide and she walked in. In the back of the room sat three thrones, and there was a man in each. On the left sat Marcus, and on the right, Caius. In the middle sat Aro. The vampire who brought her stood just to the right of Caius, and she knew he was Alec and the girl next to him was Jane.

The Cullens were nowhere to be seen, and she didn't know if this was good or bad. Either they hadn't arrived yet, or they'd already been...Please don't let me be too late. Please don't let me be too late.

She looked at the three men as a whole and saw that their eyes were solely on her. Bella didn't know what to say, but she grew uncomfortable with their piercing stares.

Luckily, Aro spoke before she had to. "Welcome to Volterra! What brings you to us?"

"I believe it might be better if I show you," she said in a sudden boost of confidence and held her hand out.

Aro rose from his throne and walked up to Bella. He looked at her curiously before gently taking her hand and his eyes fluttered closed.

She knew there was a slight chance he wouldn't be able to see her thoughts, but she focused completely on letting him in, on letting him see.

Seconds went by and the silence was deafening.

There was a loud bang as the same doors she had entered through were thrown open. Her head whipped around and her eyes widened at the sight of the seven people she hadn't seen in four years.

But it was the man standing next to them that had her stumbling backward. "Damon," she breathed. She wasn't too surprised to see him, but she had hoped Klaus would at least try to stop him from coming.

Bella didn't know she was still backing away from them until she hit a chest of marble. She froze and her breathing stilled.

"Isabella," Aro tsked from behind her. "You have come a very long way to see me and my brothers." She felt him lean in and saw the tip of his nose from the corner of her eye. "You got what you came for," he whispered.

Two hands grabbed her neck and twisted.

Though they knew Bella wasn't dead, Esme and Alice let out a frightened gasp.

She tumbled toward the ground, but Aro caught her halfway.

The Cullens, who had no idea she was a vampire and not actually dead, screamed in terror.

"What did you do?" Edward roared.

"I've taken care of one problem," Aro said, fine with letting them believe Isabella was dead. He motioned to Felix and the vampire plucked her from Aro's arms. "Now for the other."

"What game are you playing, Aro?" Carlisle whispered, leaning forward.

"You didn't have to kill her," Rosalie said, stepping away from Emmett's side.

Emmett held Rose tighter and pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

Aro sighed. "But it was a must. She knew too much. A lot has happened to your human since you abandoned her," he smiled when they flinched. "Not long after you left, she moved to a different town. Her father remarried, and she gained a step-sister.

"The new people she surrounded herself with...well, they were not human. Can you guess what the step-sister is?"

They didn't respond, but by their faces, he could tell that they knew. He continued, enjoying the game he was playing. He'd drag it out just a littleeee longer. "Her new sister is a vampire, and her best friend is a witch. But fate wasn't done with Miss Swan, no, not yet."

Aro giggled, giggled, "She had an original vampire feeding from her. But Fate was still not done because it just wasn't enough. He killed her, too!"

The Cullens each wore an expression of blatant confusion.

Right on cue, Bella awoke with a sharp gasp and promptly fell from Felix's arms. She stood up and brushed off her clothes. Bringing a hand to her neck, she rubbed it and moved it around to get rid of the stiffness.

"What?"

"How-"

"She was-"

"Bella?"

She looked to the group of seven and noticed Damon was no longer there. He appeared at her side and he pulled her away from the king. Now they stood in a triangle formation. Aro and his brothers, the Cullens, and then Bella and Damon.

Now that she was actually seeing them, she didn't know what to say.

"Well, now this is all very dramatic. Can we get on with this?" Caius said with a sneer that seemed permanent on his face. "The Cullens broke our most sacred law. They should be disposed of, plain and simple."

"Let's not be so hasty, brother," Marcus said gently. "The bonds in this room are strong. There is no threat here."

"But it is a broken law!" Caius retorted. "They must be punished. I see no reason why they should-"

"Calm yourselves," Aro interrupted calmly, a hand held to placate. "This needs to be thought through. Yes, they did break the law. Normally, we would have the punishment fit the crime. But circumstances are...unusual."

This only served to confuse everyone further. "Isabella is no longer a human. The secret is in no danger since it is now hers to protect."

Bella felt the eyes of the Cullens snap to her curiously. Damon sighed impatiently. "What king-fang here is skirting around is the fact that Bella is a vampire." He continued over the gasps, "There is another vampire species different to yours. We feed on blood bags, humans, animals, and each other. We burn in the sunlight, we can be staked, and if bitten by a werewolf, we will die.

"If we live without blood for too long we desiccate. A human can be turned by the consumption of our blood. Our blood also heals people. We have twenty-four hours after our death to drink blood or we die. We can slip into one's dreams and get into people's heads. We can also compel people to forget or remember certain memories. Vervain makes humans and other vampires immune. Vervain also burns us, but we can build a tolerance to it." He looked around the room. "There. Happy?"

"They have your speed and strength. Also, they can eat human food, though it is less appetizing. One more super neat ability is the humanity switch, which Damon knows all about," Aro continued, oblivious to the glare the aforementioned vampire was sending him.

"That about covers it," Damon said dryly.

"Woah," Emmett breathed. "That's...a lot."

"Indeed it is," Carlisle agreed, filing away the information to write about on a later date.

"If we ever get to punishing them, I say Isabella is innocent," Caius said. He glanced at her and Bella could've sworn she saw his eyes soften.

"She doesn't seem to think so," Aro looked back at Caius for a moment, before turning to Bella. "Go on."

She squared her shoulders and took a calming breath in. "The Cullens are not at fault. You say it is against the law for them to tell a human their secret, but they didn't tell me. It's a loophole, one they shouldn't be punished for. It is not their fault that I saw what other humans didn't." She turned to them and gave them a small smile. When she turned back, she looked Aro in the eyes. "Did they move on and leave me behind with knowledge of their kind? Yes, they did. That was a poor choice on their part, but they are not perfect. No one is, not even you."

His eyes flashed with something...maybe anger, but he gestured for her to continue. "That is why if you insist on punishing someone, it should be me. They only accepted me because I was believed to be Edward's mate."

Alice gasped. "How could she think that?"

"I don't fault her for thinking that way," Jasper said softly. "Think about it this way, would you, or any of us for that matter, have approached her if she wasn't Edward's mate? No, she would've just been any other human."

"Bella-"

She held up a hand to cut off Edward. "I forced myself into their lives. If it weren't for me and my tendency for disaster, both Victoria and James would be alive, Laurent would be alive and with Irina or would have found her later on, and she wouldn't have put us all in danger.

"I'd unknowingly put them all at risk. Even now, after years of separation, they are still in trouble because of me. I'm the source of the danger." Bella raised a hand and put it on her heart. "What do you do when you find the source?" She breathed in deeply. "You remove it."

Aro brought his hands together and held them under his chin. He stared intensely at her for two long minutes. Finally, he sighed. "Very well."

Immediately there was a cacophony of noise, but all she heard was his voice on repeat. She did it. She didn't actually believe she could do it. But she did.

Through the hazy noise, she vaguely heard Aro order Felix to find a stake. Her mind snapped into place then, and she watched as he walked closer to her, wooden stake in hand. When he was inches away from her, she whispered, "Please. Don't let them watch me die."

He nodded minutely and waved his hand. Bella heard the doors open again - she didn't know when they'd been closed - and listened as they protested.

"Bella-" Rosalie.

"Aro, don't do this." Carlisle.

"Bella, please!" Alice.

"No! Bella!" Esme.

"No. God, I can't be here." Emmett.

"I'm sorry." Jasper.

"Bella- I'm sorry for bringing you into this." Edward.

The voices faded and the door closed with a resounding boom. Bella turned to the last remaining person. He looked furious and she would've believed he'd been truly angry had it not been for the tears running down his cheeks.

"I told myself it'd be fine," he sniffed, rubbing his nose. "From day one I knew who you were. You've always disregarded yourself to help others. Why wouldn't this be the same?" He laughed humorlessly.

Aro stepped in front of her, but her eyes were locked with Damon's.

Though she wasn't looking at him, she saw Aro's expression turn to one of sympathy. She gasped as she felt the tip of the stake press into her skin.

Bella didn't make a sound as the stake pierced her heart. She closed her eyes with resignation. For the second time in fifteen minutes, she fell to the ground. Again, she was caught, this time by familiar arms.

She looked up at Damon who was staring at Aro.

"Damon," she said weakly, drawing his attention to her. He gulped at the sight of her, just a breath away from death. "I love you," Bella brushed her hand over his cheek and smiled lightly.

Damon gasped, closing his eyes, and a tear fell. He wiped it away and put his hand over hers, which was still on his cheek. "I love you," he replied, opening his eyes. Her gaze was unseeing, glassy. She was dead.

"No!" Esme sobbed.

Alice turned her head into Jasper's shoulder, trying to erase that image of Bella.

Emmett stared open-mouthed at the screen. It doesn't matter that this didn't actually happen, I will not let Bella die. Ever. Not for us, not for anyone, he vowed silently.

I'm going to make an effort to get to know her this time, Rose promised herself.

Edward, like the rest of his family, silently vowed to protect Bella with everything he had, even if all he got to be when they went back was her friend.

He cradled Bella's body in his arms and wept. When Damon looked up at the closed doors that the Cullens had exited through, there was a murderous glint in his eye.

Emmett blinked. "What? I thought he accepted it."

"He put on an act," Alice said. "He didn't want her to know."

"I, for one, am glad that this is a potential future, and not her solid future," Carlisle stated.

It doesn't seem like a whole lot of sense for Bella to die just because she knew about vampires when she was human. But here's my logic when I was writing this: The law to not tell humans of their secret is highly valued by the Volturi and they are extremely sensitive about it. There was no doubt that the Cullens would be killed. And in Bella's eyes, she saw it as her fault, so she stepped up and sacrificed herself to prevent the deaths of the entire Cullen family.

15 - Written: 7/16/21 - 8/1/21

Posted - 8/4/21