Chapter Thirteen: All I Ever Wanted

La Push - January 29th

They walked in silence for a while, neither sure how to start. Eliza was feeling awkward and self conscious about everything. Next to her was someone who would always be there for her, protect her without question and love her without qualification. Yet Leah Clearwater was a complete stranger in almost every way. Eliza's interpretation of Isabella's memories of Leah were not flattering, she had been sullen and angry back then. It made her worried that she had found a copy of her mother.

Eventuality Eliza spoke, more to break the silence than anything. "So, I'm your imprint huh?" She immediately cringed at how daft she sounded though Leah didn't seem to notice, and then gave her a guilty look, though Eliza could not imagine why.

"You are…" Leah trailed off, unsure how to say it out loud. An imprint. It was something she thought was impossible.

"Does this conversation make the top five list of most awkward you've ever had?" Eliza asked with a grin. She was rewarded as Leah chuckled in spite of the terror she was feeling.

"I have to admit this is not a conversation I ever expected to have." Leah shrugged trying to push away all the awkwardness and fear. Eliza frowned and then looked around at the forest locking on to an exceptionally large fallen log, and then started moving towards it before continuing.

"What do you mean?" Eliza asked simply while they made their way over.

Leah kept pace with Eliza and replied, "I sort of gave up on the idea of imprinting. I've been focused on the pack for most of my life. Watching pup after pup find their mate. Even Jacob at long last found Tekali. I just thought it wasn't something that would happen to me. Since everyone only gets one imprint, I assumed I must have missed mine or something."

Eliza turned and hopped up and gave her a thoughtful look, "so you had totally given up on it?"

Leah blushed and looked away, choosing to pace in front of the log for the moment, "well, I just came back from walkabout, my first real attempt to give up the wolf. I mean I've thought from time to time about becoming mortal again, but I could never bring myself to abandon Jacob or Seth. I also have a small anger problem, and that isn't great when trying to stop the wolf from emerging. It's not like there is a twelve step program to avoid shifting when something pisses you off. You know, I've fantasized about imprinting a thousand times… but I never pictured you."

Eliza tilted her head, she was curious, "how did you imagine it happening? That is, if you don't mind me asking."

Leah chuckled, "well definitely not at a council meeting." Leah laughed at the absurdity of the situation for a second. Before she stopped and immediately felt stupid.

"What's funny?" Eliza gave her a look, although she was aware of the awkwardness she didn't know many who would find humor in it. She felt her breath catch waiting to hear if Leah found it just as hilarious as she did.

"I'm not the most socially graceful person, and I honestly find awkward shit like that funny. Well when it happens to other people. I try not to laugh though. Does that make me a bad person?" Leah bit her lip, worried that she had just pushed away the one person that mattered.

"Well, if you hadn't noticed during the meeting. I don't really have a tact filter, and I find awkward situations absolutely hilarious, and deeply uncomfortable." Eliza admitted holding back the big smile of relief that Leah might actually understand her someday.

"Alright, then I was laughing at myself. After a freaking century I finally met my someone, and it's in front of everyone I know." Leah frowned, shaking her head a few times in frustration.

"Yeah, you're right, that was awkward." Leah's eyes shot up to meet Eliza's, and found nothing but playful mirth in them. "But, does it matter? No matter how things pan out between us, you'll always have Robert Preston who was amazing."

Leah blinked at her before beginning to chuckle, "you know the Music Man?" She asked incredulously.

Eliza's eyes widened and a big smile brightened her features, "of course, I have watched most of Preston's movies. I'm partial to The Last Starfighter, but I love Victor/Victoria."

"How old are you?" Leah blurted out without thinking of tact or manners. Eliza almost lost it, as her grin grew even wider.

"I'm honestly not sure, roughly eighty-seven." The math was awkward because it was an extrapolation from a rough theory she had worked through with Isabella years earlier.

"I guess we're a couple of old ladies. I'm about a year older than your mom." Leah frowned slightly, but couldn't help but smile when she saw Eliza's reaction. Her eyes were wide and accepting the fact of her age, a truth that no human would ever understand.

"That's actually pretty young, well in relation to the rest of the Volturi. New recruits aside, almost everyone is like, at least three hundred years old." Eliza said, trying to be bright, but unintentionally made a slightly pouty face.

Leah knew exactly what she meant, "you can't relate to them." It wasn't a question, but Eliza treated it like one.

"Not really. Old vampires are kind of creepy and weird. And none of them, even Mele would join me in a binge watch. I mean seriously, what the hell were they doing? Training? Hardly, most of them could barely last ten seconds with me or mom." Eliza sounded frustrated, and Leah got the hint about what she liked. Eliza liked to watch things, and from the comments during the council meeting it was television and movies from the twentieth century.

"That must've been kind of lonely." Leah said sympathetically, and Eliza could tell there was nothing false in the sentiment.

"Sounds like we have that in common." Eliza gave her a warm smile, but Leah could only sigh.

"I can feel alone in a crowded room." Leah said, not looking up. "I've been Jacob's second for most of my life. The pack fluctuates but I'm always busy, and most of the time I don't even think about it. Yet sometimes I'm out there and suddenly I realize that no one really gets me. Except maybe Seth. I mean we still live together in our family home. It's weird but I see my mom and dad in every nook and cranny of that house. Their relationship was solid until the day he died, and not a day goes by that I don't think about the fact the Clearwater clan will never grow."

"Seth never found anyone?" Eliza furrowed her brow in concern, the idea of both of them going for a century without any intimacy or happiness caused a shudder of sympathetic pain to run up her spine.

"He married a woman named Elena, but they never had kids and she died almost sixty years ago in a freak accident." Leah tried to suppress a tear from forming, she had loved Elena as a sister and those five years that Elena was a part of their lives were some of the best in Leah's memory.

"God poor Seth, and then he never imprinted?" Eliza looked up, and had to suppress tears. She felt for the two of them, almost as if they were kindred spirits.

"Nope." Leah said with a sad chuckle, it was laughable that neither of them had found a mate. Which made her sit back as she realized that the love of her life was sitting next to her. How could that be? How had she imprinted on an immortal? Did that mean she would never give up the wolf? When Jacob retired eventually, would she take over as Alpha? Or was Eliza and Isabella her new pack now? There were far too many questions, and she doubted there would be any answers for a while.

"Such a sweet kid, he deserves all the love." Eliza said thinking about Isabella's fond memories of Seth, of how sweet and optimistic he was. How he had always made Isabella feel included, even when the rest of the pack was busy talking pack business.

Leah widened her eyes slightly, and gave Eliza an appreciative smile, "we completely agree on that one."

Things settled into another uncomfortable silence for almost a minute before Eliza randomly started again, "so, how did you imagine this going?"

Leah thought about it for a second before laughing softly, "something along the lines of - 'Things have been great honey, but we have to talk. Don't freak out, this is a good thing. But, I have to be honest, I'm a lot older than I look. I sort of, well, turn into a wolf at will. There's a whole pack of us. When does it happen? Oh, well usually when I'm upset or if I encounter a vampire. Yes, those are real too. But see, there is this almost magical gift us wolves are given once in a lifetime, and you are it. We call it imprinting, it means that you are essentially my soulmate.' Or something like that. I told you I'm not the most eloquent person. Although I bet most people most would have left a human shaped hole in the nearest wall before I finished."

Eliza's breath had caught in her chest, for a moment Leah hadn't realized she was actually saying that to her real imprint. Eliza tried not to show how much the sentiment affected her and burst out laughing to hide her emotional turmoil. "You know my life totem is Bugs Bunny." Eliza kept her tone high and didn't let the nervousness she was suddenly feeling creep into her voice. She hadn't been waiting for her someone for quite as long as Leah, but just the idea that the wait was over felt humbling. She felt her stomach quiver and her eyes were threatening to tear up. It was silly and human, but she couldn't help it.

Thankfully Leah shut her eyes trying to hold in the burst of laughter, after a few seconds she looked over with a wide smile, "that explains a lot."

"You know, that's really the best case scenario, I bet it would've gone way worse." Leah tilted her head to the side, inviting Eliza to continue, "alright so the first part was great; 'Things have been great honey, but we have to talk. Don't freak out, this is a good thing. But, I have to be honest, I'm a lot older than I look. I sort of, well, turn into a wolf at will. I said don't freak out! No, put down the phone, there's no need to call for an ambulance. I haven't gone crazy. No no, don't do that! Honey, put down the knife, it wouldn't hurt me much anyway. I'm not going to hurt you!' And it probably would have gone downhill from there." Eliza trailed off with an impish grin

Leah finally burst out laughing, "Bugs Bunny indeed, but yeah that's probably closer to the truth. I probably would just blurted out that I was a wolf then shifted to prove it."

Eliza shrugged, "I never even looked at a human before, mostly because the conversation is a lot more dire."

"How so?" Leah asked curiously, wondering if maybe Isabella's experience colored her daughter's perceptions.

"For me, it would go something like, 'Now you know the truth about what I am, you have a very important choice to make. You will have to decide if you want to be like me, and if you don't, I will have to kill you. If I fail to obey this law, I will be sentenced to death as well." Eliza made her voice deeper and sounded almost too formal, but at the same time she was clearly upset by the prospect.

Leah frowned sympathetically, "that's rough. Kill or convert. I'll admit my pool of options was limited to the members of the Tribe and a few extended family members in the know. Or on the random chance I imprinted."

"I guess it was never looking great for either of us." Eliza said, nodding softly in agreement.

"No, but that's why imprinting was always on my mind. Most of the time when one of the others imprinted on someone outside the pack, they seemed to take it okay and it almost always worked out. Even for Quil, although that was a minefield of expectation and self recrimination. He hated the idea of grooming the poor girl, but at times it was very hard for him to keep away. Eventually she grew up and he told her the truth. She was pissed for almost a year before giving them a chance." Eliza sat forward listening intently, the story was one she had been curious about since hearing it in distant fuzzy memories of Isabella's time with the pack as a human.

"That answers that question, so what about you?" Eliza asked pointedly, trying to suss out how Leah felt about it all.

At first Leah began to shake her head, but stopped and let out a heavy sigh, "I'm a hundred and fourteen years old, my birthday is in a month and the last man I loved betrayed me. After a while I started to believe it wasn't meant to be, but even when I allowed myself to dream about my forever love I never expected…" Leah trailed off, looking down, not quite able to explain her feelings.

"To imprint on a vampire, or on another woman?" There was no accusation in Eliza's tone, trying to sound polite and curious.

Leah frowned but looked up and met Eliza gaze, "I am way more thrown by the vampire part. I've always been more attracted to a person's personality, and I've found myself attracted to both men and women. I've had a few, brief, relationships with both genders. But I have an intimacy issue, I've never really gotten past my anger regarding Sam and Emily. Although I guess I sort of assumed in the unlikely event I did happen to imprint it would be a guy. The only other person to ever imprint on their same gender was Rita." Leah searched Eliza's face, half fearfully. "What about you? How do you, I mean are you…?" She trailed off with obvious uncertainty.

"Gay?" Eliza asked bluntly, causing Leah to look down and nod in embarrassment. "I'm honestly not sure." Eliza confessed, her voice softening as she looked down at her feet.

Leah frowned at that and blurted out, "what do you mean?" She seemed puzzled rather than accusatory.

Eliza blushed and looked away, "I mean that, while yes I'm physically attracted to women, I've never been in a relationship of any sort before, ever." Seeing Leah's frown, she felt a need to explain. "I have my Mom and I have some, I hesitate to call them friends, especially since my closest friend died recently. So beyond movies, I don't have a vast amount of personal experience when it comes to relationships."

"Sorry about your friend." Eliza didn't really respond, but Leah could see some pain in her expression. So she changed the subject. "What about before you were turned into a vampire?" Leah immediately regretted the question, as Eliza flinched.

"I didn't have any relationships before I was a vampire." Eliza said with a sad distant smile. She then patted the log beside her. "You might as well sit down, this may take a while to explain, and when I'm done you'll know what kind of monster you've imprinted on."

Leah frowned, but didn't hesitate in turning and hopping easily up on the fallen log, sitting next to Eliza so that their shoulders were touching, Leah's dress ending up a bit shorter than expected exposing some thigh which she inadvertently rested against Eliza's leg. Leah felt her heart start to beat a little harder when Eliza didn't shy away from the contact, but was afraid of pulling away.

Eliza wasn't paying much attention to the contact, though she did feel it. "I am probably the most unique vampire in the entire world. At least as far as anyone knows. I was never human." Leah frowned, but didn't say anything, letting Eliza tell her story…

Brazil - 82 Years Ago

"Father?" S17 called to the ancient vampire, afraid to call him by name. She wanted only one thing, to see outside. The glorious place that some of the mothers had spoken about in whispers in the dead of night. Heard between growls from the overgrown mongrels she shared a room with.

"Yes. How are you feeling today, Subject Seventeen?" He moved over and stood fully upright, his hands clasped together almost as if he were praying.

She didn't want to admit her belly ached and every inch of her body was on fire. The last treatment had been excruciating and she could barely sit up. "Fine." She lied.

"Now now, be truthful, child. That is the only way we learn." He gave her an almost friendly smile, which encouraged her to confess her inferred weakness.

"My body hurts and I'm hungry." She said meekly, terrified he would get angry with her.

"Good, perhaps you will know next time to tell the truth." He said with a coldness she had expected. She relaxed back against the wall feeling defeated and exhausted. He sighed, "Alright, I have a treatment set for later and I want you at your best. Would you like a green pill?"

She nodded, even though she knew what it meant. The pill always took the pain away, but it also knocked her unconscious. That meant another session on the table, and more pain injected into her body. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a silver case, opening it slowly and deliberately before pulling out a large capsule filled with an unnatural looking bright green powder. He reached out with it, waiting for her to move over to the bars and hold her hand out. She climbed off the threadbare cot and hit the ground hard, her legs unable to hold her weight. Then she crawled towards the bars until she could reach through them and open her hand.

"What do you say?" He prodded, an overly wide smile on his face.

"Please." She begged, and he smiled even more widely before dropping the pill into her dirty palm. She started to bring it to her mouth, but stopped and bowed her head to him first. "Thank you."

"You are very welcome Seventeen." He turned without another word and was out of the room before she could think to ask for water. She shoved the pill into her mouth and choked it down. Laying back onto the cold concrete and closing her eyes. The dream pulled her in right away, the dark woman had come again. Her angry growls, scaring the man who claimed to be her father. They fought hard, until he tore a handful of flesh from her side and in turn she pulled off one of his hands.

Then he ran away.

Except it wasn't a dream. She was really there, turning towards her. Her dark savior was actually there. After dreaming about her so many times. She wanted to hold her arms out, but instead of reaching down to pick her up, the stranger leaned over and bit into her wrist. She started to shake her head in terror, she had no idea what would happen if this vampire drank her blood. She tried to speak but her throat was raw and only a coarse murmur passed through her lips. She had no strength, no way to move to warn her. All that was left was to lean over and bite, maybe that would work.

The world instantly turned upside down and went black.

She was surrounded by darkness. But it was warm, and she felt pure contentment and joy. Then there was pain and bright light. Strange voices, then her own cry and a pair of warm hands lifting her onto a table. People with kind eyes looking down and checking her over. Examining everything, making sure she was okay. Then she was wrapped up in a pink blanket and handed to a woman, who looked tired but was smiling so wide. Renee, her mother… no not her mother, this was the mother of her dark savior. This was her first memory.

"Isabella." Renee said with such love in her eyes and voice.

Then the images began to speed forward. She was in her crib, a dark haired man looking down at Isabella with a conflicted smile.

"I can't let her go Renee. She's mine just as much as yours. You don't even know where you're going yet!" He begged, clearly devastated with the choice. A father who loved his child, and wanted to fight to keep her.

"I'll figure it out." She snapped back, hovering near the crib and almost leaning over to pick Isabella up to keep him away from her.

"She'll stay here then, we'll figure out the logistics later. I am not letting my baby go!" He sounded so resolute, but utterly broken at the same time.

"Charlie, if I don't get out of this place I'm going to suffocate." Renee said with a lot more calm, but there was clear desperation in her eyes and voice.

"What if I come with you? I can find another job somewhere, we can start fresh." While it was a legitimate offer, both knew it wasn't a real one. Charlie had too many ties to the area, and Renee was dead set on going with her daughter. She immediately began to shake her head, the separation was more than just needing to escape Forks. She wanted out of the marriage as well.

"This isn't just Forks, I need to get some distance from us too." Renee kept her face the same, but she did feel a twinge of regret going to that place. She had framed the entire argument as a need to leave, not a problem with their marriage.

"My life is with you, with Bella. I love you." Charlie spoke from his heart, he couldn't quite understand what was going on with his wife.

"It isn't your decision, and the courts will side with me. We're going." Renee took in a sharp breath, feeling her resolve slipping slightly after the threat which clearly left him reeling and broken. She knew this was it, the only chance she would get. Ahead would be a lifetime as a housewife in a small house in a town she hated. She craved freedom, to go somewhere warm and bright. S17 knew these things, because Isabella knew them.

S17 felt for Charlie, who saw his daughter once a year during summer vacations from that point on. Isabella's mother may have left for selfish reasons, but while she was a bit weird she was loving and had a great sense of humor. More importantly, Isabella's early years were full of joy, laughter and love… a real childhood. Then school, and feeling like an outsider as she grew into an awkward and clumsy teenager. Then years later Renee met Phil and settled down in Phoenix. The intervening memories sped by too quickly until a plane from Phoenix to Seattle ended with golden eyes dominating Isabella's remaining human life. Seven sets of them; Edward, Carlisle, Esme, Jasper, Emmett, Rosalie and Alice. The Cullens. Isabella's new family.

During that short year she was involved with them, Isabella knew deep in her heart that they were her future, and she would become a vampire like them. Their promised love and the expectation of immortality and eternal youth was empowering. It helped Isabella feel strong and able to overcome an overwhelming feeling of helplessness and frailty she had endured her entire life.

Then came James and… Victoria. The name conjured a flash of pain so intense S17 couldn't think straight until the memories were pulled back to the family, and that wonderful summer. Going out with Esme shopping and feeling the love of a real mother. Endless informative conversations with Carlisle. Hanging out with Emmett playing video games for the first time in her life. Spending afternoons and weekends with Alice, shopping or watching silly movies. Alice came over even when there wasn't a planned event, enough that Charlie started to like her. Even the standoffish Rosalie and addled Jasper took the effort on occasion to show they accepted Bella into the family. It was all good, until the birthday party. The blood, and Jasper losing his control and Edward overreacting like always.

The next day Edward said his goodbye, but it wasn't just him. It was all of them, including Alice. Why hadn't they said goodbye. Then pain and longing Isabella felt for months until Charlie couldn't take it anymore and threatened to send her away. The motorcycles with Jacob. Victoria… another flash of intense pain, only this one did not end. Capture and torture worse than anything S17 had endured from the misery inflicted by own monstrous father. Then an endless darkness, and the screams. Until there was light again, accompanied by pain. Meeting Aro, and the rest of the Volturi. Training, and those first violent missions. Then Marcus called her into his office.

"Isabella." The eldest council member greeted her by name. Something he had never done before.

"Master." Isabella bowed respectfully.

"Please close the door, and sit." He ordered, but it was so gently stated that Isabella obeyed without hesitation.

Isabella turned and moved to sit across from him, burning with curiosity. Marcus would be the kindest of the council if he conveyed any emotion. She wasn't even sure what he thought of her, and this summons had been totally unexpected.

"Master, why have I been summoned? Has my performance been inadequate?" She asked with more civility than usual, although she couldn't quite understand why she was offering more respect to him above even Aro and Caius.

"Not at all, we are very pleased with you. Aro has suggested that your abilities are uniquely suited to the guard. However, after hearing about your history I find myself considering an alternative." His voice lacked emotion and even intonation, but there was a warm sincere quality to it that set Isabella at ease, despite having no idea what Marcus had in mind.

"Oh?" Isabella's surprise was genuine.

"I have decided to sponsor you for admittance into the coven. I wish you to be my first daughter." Again his statement held no passion or engagement as if he were reading a technical journal out loud.

Isabella rubbed her teeth together trying to work through her own reaction, after a second she realized she didn't know how to respond and decided to use that as a response. "That is surprising. In truth, I have no idea how to respond to that."

"To be honest neither do I." Marcus let out a soft wry chuckle coupled with a small haunted smile.

"May I ask why?" Isabella asked with a bit of hesitation, she didn't want to overstep.

"Because I find you singular, unique among our kind. In a way your pain mirrors my own, and because of that I find you to be a kindred spirit. I have not felt that way about anyone in a very long time." His explanation struck Isabella deeply, and she nodded thoughtfully.

"It is true that I am dealing with pain. Whatever once made me passionate and loving was torn from me in the most violent way possible. Please understand that I cannot reciprocate anything more than respect and appreciation." She tried to impart the proper respect, stating it as a matter of fact rather than any implied warning.

"I would expect nothing more." Marcus's dull voice held no hint of affection or even base emotion, but the slight change in intonation said a lot when it came to his motivations. Isabella knew at that moment that he respected her.

"I am honored, and accept your gracious offer." She stood and bowed to him formally.

"Rise as a full member of the Volturi, my first daughter." The words were indelible, a moment of pride and relief. Isabella had been holding on to the possibility they would reject her and cast her out into the world. To have confirmation that she was valued, and given a permanent place in their coven meant more than she could express. So a bow was as much as she could do to express all the things her heart was incapable of saying.

The following memories were fleeting, as Isabella was elevated. Ceremony, moving rooms, jealousy from some of the other members of the guard and a few nasty fights. Then the mission to Brazil. S17 opened and Isabella was there, watching over her, protecting her. Not just her rescuer… something more. Then they left the room, out into the brightest light S17 had ever seen as it was falling below the edge of the sky.

La Push - January 29th

"I'm not sure I understand what you were, this ancient vampire was your father. Your mother was not a vampire?" Leah's question made Eliza smile, there was no judgement or horror in her eyes. If anything it was a profound sadness.

"I was born as something I like to call a hybrid. The offspring of a vampire male and a human female. Hybrids are kind of ideal for a monster like him, the gestation of a hybrid is full term in a month, and we grow up in less than half the time it takes a human. It's a brutal process, as the fetus essentially feeds off the mother's blood until she's unable to give anything more, and then they… we… me… claw our way out of their bodies, ending their life. So you see, I killed my birth mother. What's worse is our instincts and mental development are all advanced enough that conscious thought begins in the womb." Eliza's voice was cold, even harsh as she outlined the clinical terms for Leah.

Leah nodded a couple of times before shaking her head. "You cannot blame yourself, even an intelligent infant cannot be held accountable for a moral action. You didn't know what you were doing."

"Perhaps. I'm not so sure. Anyway, mom was there for me. She defended me from her partner Felix, from Aro and the council, especially Caius. She claimed me as her daughter, and even offered me a choice afterwards to leave and make my own way in the world when I was mature enough to make that choice. Those first memories of her are so vivid. She was so beautiful, I would have thought she was an angel if I were capable of understanding the concept at the time. I had literally spent my entire life strapped to that table or shivering in a cage designed for monsters. I only learned language because of his endless dictation. He didn't seem to view me as anything other than a machine that he could poke and prod at." Eliza managed a very wan smile and chuckled. Leah was literally shaking, as if she might change to wolf any second her face twisted up in rage.

Eliza realized the state Leah was in and she murmured soothingly "It's okay Leah, I'm okay. This was all a very long time ago." She waited and watched for almost a full minute before Leah managed to calm herself.

"I'm sorry. I just… that really upsets me." Leah said bleakly when she had calmed somewhat. She was lying. It was a lie, but a sweet lie, a soothing one.

"You have to understand, although I'm not so sure even Isabella understands what she gave me. Sure I remember the torture she endured, but I also remember her childhood. Her parents, my grandparents. Their unconditional love filled me so completely that I understood what a real parent could be. Then that's exactly what Isabella has been. Even if she's taciturn and difficult and never actually says the words, I know that she loves me with her whole being, I'm literally her entire world."

"How do you know if she doesn't say it?" Leah was curious about the sharing of memories, if it was a more

"When we changed, our minds merged kinda. We can pass thoughts between us as easily as speaking."

Leah chuckled dryly and murmured, "pack mind, I'm very familiar with that concept."

Eliza nodded a little bit before continuing, "I'm told the physical changes were even more noticeable. I don't ever recall being shown a reflective surface before my change, but I have an image of me from her memories. The conversion apparently changed me so that I even look like her."

"Tell me about your life, about your mother? When I knew Isabella she was obsessed with becoming a vampire. Or at least with one vampire in particular.'" Leah asked curiously, she tentatively slid her hand down and intertwined her fingers with Eliza's gloved ones gently, careful to pull back at the first hint of rejection, thankful when there was none.

"Let's not discuss Edward, because that's generally a good way of getting hurt. Although you and Jacob might fare better than most." Eliza gave her a small smile, and Leah nodded easily.

"Good to know, and to be fair I never liked the Cullens to begin with." Leah said with a dismissive shrug.

"Well, mom is one of the best fighters in the world as far as I know. She has a very dark and dry sense of humor that comes out at strange moments. We work together enforcing the one law as official representatives of the Volturi when sending the guard would be improper." Eliza's explanation didn't really make sense to Leah, but she nodded slightly trying to work through it.

"What kind of work is that?" Leah asked hoping not to push to hard.

Eliza thought about for a second, "generally to sort out a violation of the law, but if we are sent it is almost always violent. So how do you feel about your imprint now?"

Leah looked in her eyes, "It doesn't change how I feel at all. Even if I wasn't imprinted; the circumstances of your birth isn't your fault. And you don't sound like you're killing random people for fun or entertainment either."

Eliza sighed, "killing is never easy, and I pray that it never will be. I do it because sometimes I don't have another choice."

Eliza gathered herself, and then after several minutes of silence between the two, she frowned and looked at Leah, "what do you want from me?" She asked very softly.

"I want to make you happy. However I can." Leah replied quietly, not looking away from the deep purple of Eliza's eyes.

Eliza frowned for a moment, her eyes searching Leah's face, "and if I'm not ready for a romantic relationship?"

"It's as simple or as complicated as you wish. We could be friends if that is what you need. But I won't lie and say I wouldn't like to explore something more." Leah said with absolute conviction.

"Is this you or the imprint talking?" Eliza asked with the utmost sincerity.

"That is… I might never have gotten close enough to get to know you without the imprint. But after this conversation I am so happy that it's you. I can see why it happened." Leah grinned widely, "the imprint isn't what I thought it would be. I've felt it over the wolf link but I'm not some lovesick fool, my mind is incredibly clear. It just pushed away any preconceived notions and racial prejudice I might've had."

"Then, would it be okay if we start by just trying to be friends? Then we can see what, if anything happens?" Eliza asked somewhat sheepishly.

Leah nodded firmly. "I'd like that a lot, so long as you don't mind me making occasionally sappy remarks and being protective of you."

Eliza laughed and grinned. "So long as you don't mind me doing the same."

Leah grinned back, and then her face fell and a look of nervousness twisted her face again.

"What's wrong?" Eliza asked, suddenly worried.

"I have one question, it is kind of embarrassing." Leah couldn't meet Eliza's eyes as she spoke, and Eliza frowned but nodded her head slowly.

Leah tried to voice it out loud a few times before getting out the question. "I know it's just vanity, but do you at least find me attractive?"

Eliza blinked as she looked at her and started to giggle a little bit, though before Leah could look hurt Eliza gave her a slight nudge with her shoulder. "You're beautiful, and don't you ever doubt it for a second." Eliza took in Leah's reaction with a bit of self satisfaction. She seemed to practically glow as a result of the compliment.

"So, in the interest of being friends, let me ask you an all important question" Eliza said solemnly. She waited for Leah to nod before continuing, her expression utterly serious "What is your favorite color?"

Several hours later Eliza returned home still smiling, and an extra bounce in her step. It was well past two in the morning when she entered and she heard the very faint sound of someone talking coming from the basement, so she headed down to the Batcave.

The security door was open, and she was surprised to find Henry listening to a local news report while also checking notifications on his web crawler. Across from him was her mother, staring at a chess board. The board state was complicated and Isabella had him in a defensive position. Yet Henry didn't seem nervous as he made move.

Eliza made sure to make some noise as she came down the stairs so as not to frighten Henry. "I'm home!" She announced brightly.

"Found a worthy competitor mom?" Eliza asked with a hopeful tone.

Isabella looked up from the chess board and gave her a slight smile, "hey sweetheart. Henry won game two."

"Impressive, she learned from Marcus." Eliza said with a big grin as Henry glared at her and blew out a frustrated breath through his nose.

"That explains your style." Henry said dryly with a raised eyebrow. Isabella shrugged. He looked over at Eliza, "your mother is ruthless, and one of the best I've ever played."

"Let me guess, you're a master." Eliza guessed.

"Yes, I never had a chance to challenge a grandmaster." He said without seeming to boast about his skill.

"Check." Isabella said, pulling Henry's attention back towards the board.

"You just took my queen." Henry said, pursing his lips.

"You left yourself open, I assume as bait." Isabella replied dryly.

"Quite." Henry said with a soft smile as he sent his Bishop in for the kill. "Check."

"Good play. Except, you forgot to cover your rook." She blocked the Bishop with her Knight, leaving his Rook vulnerable from her uncovered Queen.

"Damn." He muttered in frustration, and then stared at the board for several seconds. "You have me in three. Good game." He held out a hand.

Eliza tried to contain her grin with a solemn nod. "You have to be careful of those Knights, they're like ninjas." Henry snorted in amusement.

Isabella rolled her eyes and turned back to the board. "This has been a lovely distraction, we should play again soon."

"Of course. I would be honored." He said, bowing his head slightly as he began to clear the board. "I must say this set is exquisite, where did you acquire it?"

"Eliza got it for me sixty years ago. I never asked where she bought it from." Isabella said looking over at her daughter.

"Bought, no. This was commissioned, all the pieces are handcrafted." Henry said examining one of the pieces.

"I asked Kira if she knew someone that worked in stone after that mission." Eliza explained.

"You held onto this for a year?" Isabella gave her a look, then down at the set feeling the emotions related to getting such a thoughtful gift retroactively. She still hated gifts in general, but in this case she was touched.

Eliza shrugged, "more like six months but yeah, you love Chess."

"I didn't know, how did you conceal it for so long?" Isabella was at a loss, of course she would never have thought to look for a gift.

"Talent." Eliza chuckled and gave her mother a serious look, "How did things go with Aro?" she asked.

Isabella raised her eyes from the board to return her daughter's look. "It went... surprisingly smoothly." Eliza raised her eyebrow in disbelief. "No, I'm serious. I mean he obviously wasn't thrilled. I told him what I found in town, and how we contacted the Quileute."

Eliza nodded, "how did he react to the alliance?" she asked, nervously.

"He wasn't ecstatic. But I reminded him that he gave us full Volturi authority. He asked if I was willing to bear the responsibility of the alliance. I told him I was. He was surprised but said to let him know if there were any issues, and the council would approve it." Isabella frowned, but didn't sound too worried either way.

Eliza chuckled, "I bet Caius was practically apoplectic." Henry couldn't help it and burst out in laughter at that, finally stifling his amusement with a cough.

Isabella shrugged, "Probably, you know how Caius can be with anything involving wolves."

Eliza nodded, "What did Aro say about the imprint?" she fidgeted as if she were afraid she might not like the answer.

Henry looked back at Eliza curiously, "What's this?" he asked

Eliza quirked an eyebrow up at her mother, "You didn't tell him?"

Isabella glanced at Henry before turning back to Eliza. "I didn't bring it up. It's personal and no one's business but yours, unless you choose to make it their business."

Eliza frowned and looked at Henry, "While we were at the council one of the members of the pack showed up and imprinted on me."

Henry nodded slowly, "Isabella was explaining to me what an imprint was but she didn't say that it had happened to you."

"How did the pact react to the imprint? And the wolf? How did he react?" Henry asked curiously

"It was a female wolf." Eliza responded with her voice holding a note of challenge.

"Oh, my apologies, how did she react to the imprint? And how did the pack react?" He repeated.

Eliza frowned at him, "The fact that it was a female doesn't bother you?"

Henry blinked at Eliza several times before breaking out in a deep full-bellied laugh. "Young lady, I exist in a world with the knowledge that supernatural beings like vampires and werewolves exist. Hell, I live in a house with two vampires. By comparison, a person's gender or sexual orientation seem rather, well, unimportant."

Eliza grinned at Henry. "Well she and the pack were both surprised as hell, though more by the fact that one of them imprinted on a vampire than on a female. At least there is precedence for same-gender imprinting. After they recovered, things went okay."

"After she called one of the council members arrogant, idiotic, ignorant and narcissistic." Isabella interjected

"Well he was, not just about Leah, but about the possibility of other wolf packs too, I just called him on it." Eliza huffed defensively. "Anyway, after we talked it out, and Mom offered them an alliance, Leah and I talked for a little while after the meeting."

"How did that go?" Isabella asked without trying to make it seem like she was prying too deeply for more information

Eliza grinned at her mother impishly for a few moments . "We talked for a while. I told her a bit more about me, my history and stuff." Eliza looked uncomfortable for a moment before continuing, "She told me about herself. She's really cool. We're going to try being friends, hang out a bunch and kind of see what happens from there." She stopped and looked at her mother nervously for a few moments. "Is that okay?"

Isabella stood up and gave her daughter a firm hug. "Sweetheart, I'm going to support you no matter what you decide, if she's your mate then I will fight anyone who tries to separate her from you. If not, I won't let anyone force you together. No matter what."

Eliza grinned and hugged her Mother back and said quietly, half to her mother and half to Henry, "She'll probably be here a lot, so if you could make sure we keep stocked in food and stuff so she doesn't have to run off every time she's hungry, I would appreciate it. Apparently wolves tend to have a hearty appetite."

Henry laughed, turning his attention back to the computer screens, "That'll make up for the food the two of you don't eat."

Isabella gave her daughter another firm squeeze before releasing the hug, "Just so you know, you'll be flying solo at school again tomorrow. I'm going to head back down to Seattle with some of the pack to hunt around a little bit."

"Are you sure you're not going to need me?" Eliza asked frowning

"No, I'll have Jacob, Leah and Paul with me at least, probably one or two others." Isabella shook her head and then grinned at Eliza, "I'll be sure to tell them that you were concerned about me anyway. That should make for a fun start to the day."

"She's their second, of course she's going. Please make sure she survives this." Eliza said feeling worry for both of them. Isabella realized this was an actual concern and placed a reassuring hand on Eliza's shoulder.

"I'm sure Jacob will be watching her back, but I'll make sure she comes through this unharmed." The look she gave her daughter was an unspoken vow, but Eliza needed to hear it.

"Promise." She couldn't keep the need out of her voice. This time felt oddly different. The whole thing with Leah was new, but the potential was there for so much that she couldn't fathom loosing it so soon.

"Promise." Isabella saying it out loud was all she needed, and Eliza nodded happily. She didn't know what was going to happen, but she was sure that Isabella would do everything to bring them both back alive.


Author's Note:

So this is the last of the council meeting chapters, and things will start moving forward again. This isn't the last time we'll see a flashback, but it might be a while until the next one.

Next Chapter: The Asshat... Er... Edward

Thank you for reading, if you have some thoughts on this or any other chapter please leave a comment!