Chapter Five: Dance of Shadows

Cullen Residence, February 6th

"I'm claiming today as my new birthday." Zoey said looking down at her watch as it clicked over to midnight. Then she checked the local news, the latest headline was still about the mysterious explosion.

"Your birthday is July twelfth." Angela corrected with a note of irritation in her voice.

"You just want two celebrations." Charlie said with a short somber chuckle.

"Who wouldn't?" Zoey frowned when both of them shut down almost immediately, it took her a moment but she quickly realized she hadn't considered how horrible and violent their transformation stories were, even the sanitized versions she was told.

Zoey sat in thought as they entered a clearing with a massive house that seemed to blend into the forest. There was a lot of movement inside, partially seen through the tinted front glass wrapping around the left side. A large deep porch was off center to the right, and led up to the front door, where a lone figure was waiting to welcome the unexpected visitors.

"Carlisle Cullen, good someone I know that I can yell at." Charlie got out as soon as he put the car into park and flashed over to the blond patriarch. Carlisle's expression fell from a pleasant welcome to one of pure shock. Then realized what was about to happen and held up a finger to stop Charlie from starting his rant.

"Isabella, there is someone here for you." Carlisle said her name with a slight edge and then stepped back. Charlie felt fragile as he turned towards the door, waiting.

Isabella reluctantly pulled away from Alice's embrace and glared downward towards the front door and Carlisle's summons. She wasn't entirely sure what she wanted to do with Alice, but held out her hand and started towards the bedroom door. Alice didn't budge.

"I'm kind of naked." Alice said, and Isabella realized she was still holding her towel up with one hand.

"Oh, yeah." Isabella said, trying not to look too hard at Alice who would have blushed if she were human. Alice stared back at her, and opened her mouth slightly with nervous energy before dropping the towel.

Alice's breath caught in her throat as Isabella's eyes widened in surprise. Isabella smiled widely exposing her slightly parted teeth, then glanced down and ran her tongue along the edge of her bottom lip before Alice giggled awkwardly and spun around towards her closet. Isabella watched until she disappeared, and then reluctantly started downstairs.

"Carlisle this had better be good, I just…" Isabella started as she yanked open the door coming face to face with her father.

"Bella." Charlie said, his whole body shivering from emotion. Isabella froze, her mind starting to spiral down into madness at the vision in front of her. Had she lost her mind? Was this just a ghost?

No, this was an imposter, it had to be.

Isabella snarled and flashed forward, throwing herself into a vicious attack. Charlie managed to dodge out of the way of the first punch, and then he jumped back trying to disengage. She didn't stop and met him as he hit the ground, landing a blow to his midsection.

"Bella, please it's me." Charlie begged, but she kept up the assault. Within seconds he knew he was completely out of his depth and wouldn't last much longer. Dodging and weaving as best as he could, but still getting hit several times. He ended up on the ground, and looking up he found himself staring at her fist that was coming directly for his face. Until it stopped in mid-motion.

Angela had grabbed ahold of Isabella's forearm, and immediately threw her into their car. Isabella landed hard and fell back pinning one arm underneath her. Angela followed up with a knee pressed into Isabella's chest and leverage on Isabella's free arm, effectively pinning her in place against the dented fiberglass. Isabella glared at her with a rage that only grew as her eyes started to blacken. Angela was unfazed as she leveled Isabella with a glare of her own.

"If he were a fraud or an imposter, would whoever orchestrated such a deception include me in that plan? I beg you to listen to reason, my sister." Angela was trying to touch Isabella's thoughts, but found a wall unlike anything she had ever encountered before, reasoning that it was why she hadn't felt her mind when they approached the house. Isabella flinched at the term sister, and stared at the strange woman in front of her. It took several seconds to filter through her memories, until she realized who she was looking at.

"Angela?" Isabella shifted her gaze between Angela and Charlie several times before the darkness left her eyes.

"Yes it's me." Angela's voice and expression softened. Isabella turned towards Charlie, her entire sense of self collapsing as the rage fell away. Angela, noting the expression shift, stood back and Isabella got to her feet immediately. Isabella stared at her father for several long seconds, as the rest of the world fell away. She didn't even notice the warm tears beginning to stream down her face.

"Daddy…" For a second she was lost in time, reaching out towards the one person that she trusted implicitly. Except he wasn't that anymore, and she had others who filled that role now. Not a father, she no longer needed such a figure in her life. Then the realization that she nearly killed him sunk in, "oh god Charlie I'm sorry." She shuffled forward and pulled him into a hug so tight that he grunted in pain. She ignored it and kept ahold of him, burying her face in his shoulder.

They held onto each other for over a minute before Charlie had to push her away, but kept a hold of her upper arms so he could look at her fully.

"I've been hoping for days to find you. I braced myself for the worst, but you're whole and here. It's more than I could've ever hoped for." Charlie tried to explain, he was better with words than he had been as a human, but he still felt inadequate for this particular moment.

Isabella shook her head, "I'm not whole, not by a long shot. I am here though, and I've missed you." Isabella gave him a hesitant smile, then her focus was drawn towards Eliza who was moving towards them very quickly.

"Mom!" Eliza called out as she broke the tree line, Leah right behind her in wolf form. Charlie let go of Isabella and turned to look at what seemed to be an identical copy of his daughter run up towards them. "Who is this a new… oh my fucking god!" Eliza came to a stop, frozen in place like she had encountered a ghost and was too terrified to move.

"Mom?" Charlie looked at Isabella with a questioning look.

"Eliza, this is Charlie Swan, my father. Your grandfather. How are you here?" Isabella was struggling with what to think, what to say, how it was even possible.

"That's a long story, and best told by Angela." He motioned over his shoulder, and Isabella looked back at her old friend hardly believing what she was seeing. At least the third person with them wasn't familiar.

"Who is that?" Eliza said, asking for both her and Isabella.

"My daughter, this is Zoey." Angela answered, pulling the girl close, from the color of her eyes it was clear she was a newborn, but wasn't acting like one at all.

"Why did you call me sister?" Isabella demanded, looking between Charlie and Angela as if trying to fathom the connection.

"We found each other, and I was very broken. Charlie helped put me back together emotionally, and became my father in every way that matters." Angela gave Charlie a grateful look and managed a warm smile.

Eliza was watching the exchange with a big grin, then she flashed over next to her mother and held out a hand. "It is unbelievably awesome to meet you. I know you don't like to hug…"

Charlie took her hand and pulled her into a hug anyway, Eliza made a squeaking noise but melted into his embrace. When she finally pulled away she swished her lips across her teeth a few times in contemplation.

"Hmmm, what should I call you, Granddad… no, pops… no… poppy… no. Hmmm. I'll have to think about it." She tapped her temple a few times and let out a happy sigh.

"I call him Poppop." Zoey said as she separated from Angela and moved over holding out a hand.

"I like that. Alright, if Angela is Charlie's adopted daughter, and you are her daughter that makes us cousins. That's soooo cool! An aunt, grandfather, baby sister and a cousin in as many days. Mom, we are up to our ears with family now… mom?" Eliza realized something was wrong with Isabella who had been silent for nearly a minute. She looked over and felt the emotional dam was starting to break inside of Isabella, and a second too late she tried to reach out to calm her.

"No, not this. Why are you doing this to me!" Isabella started to shake her head, curled forward to grab at her head. She shrieked in pain which echoed out through shadows more forcefully than ever before, her eyes flew open and she extended out her arms. The wings of shadow that had been briefly seen when she rose from the ashes of her house extended out and she shot up into the air startling everyone who watched in awe as she disappeared into the cloud cover.

Charlie looked at Eliza, "she can fly?"

"I guess so, that's new." Eliza said incredulously, then she looked over at the house to see Alice had come to the front door. She was staring at the sky in abject shock, the entire pack, and both covens behind her trying to sneak views outside or through the front window. From the right side of the clearing a large black wolf carrying Brianna and a slightly frustrated looking Rosalie appeared from the nighttime shadows of the forest. Brianna's eyes widened in surprise, and jumped off of Michelle's back and raced over to join her sister and the strangers. Given their proximity she felt they were important, and something tickled at the back of her mind.

Eliza wanted to welcome her and introduce her, or let her mom do the honors. Instead she was trying to figure out what to do. She reached into her mother's mind, hoping to find some purchase on her sanity, but everything was fractured. Images of Charlie in pain, her own torture and of a strange almost demonic goddess were spinning around in Isabella's head on a loop. An echo chamber of pain and recrimination.

"I'm gonna try something, Alice come here." Eliza said, holding out her arm. Alice looked over and nodded, then ran and wrapped her arms around Eliza's waist. "This will be bumpy…" She said with a heavy frown, "god I hate this." Eliza muttered and then reached upon Isabella power and felt the shadows extend out propelling her upward. It was a heady experience, and would've been exhilarating if she wasn't bogged down with the darkness of the power. They quickly gained speed and broke through cloud cover to find Isabella hovering in place, her head tilted up towards the almost limitless night sky above them.

"You're up." Eliza managed through gritted teeth, "no pun intended." Alice nodded, and then she looked between herself and Isabella, and moved into an odd almost unbalanced position. Eliza wasn't entirely sure what Alice was about to do, but braced herself for anything. "What're you doing?"

"Improvising." Alice said, taking a deep breath, and then she jumped, just clearing the distance and almost tackling Isabella. Eliza expected them to drop like a rock, but instead they just hung in the air like a floating sculpture. Alice wrapped her legs around Isabella's thighs, and then snaked around her body so that they were face to face. Alice brought her hands up to cup Isabella's cheeks and gripped them gently. Then she forced Isabella to face her.

"I'm here." Alice tried, but Isabella was staring blankly, her eyes entirely black. "Isabella!" She shouted, but again there was no response. She gritted her teeth and looked over at Eliza, then turned back and pressed her lips to Isabella's roughly, putting a hand behind her head. For a second there was nothing, and then the lips began to respond as the inky blackness covering Isabella's eyes faded, then she pressed into Alice fully, her mouth opening and deepening the kiss. Isabella could feel her daughter leave, trusting Alice to handle the situation. Alice moved her arms up and over Isabella's shoulders as she pressed her forehead to Isabella's.

"Where are we?" Isabella asked, while conscious of the fact they were somehow hovering high above the ground, she wasn't really sure how she had gotten there.

"I think it was too much, you just woke up and then they arrived." Alice guessed, but couldn't know everything that happened in Isabella's mind.

"Dad, oh my god." Isabella said in disbelief, filtering through the last thirty minutes of her life as if someone else had lived it.

"Yeah, I'm still having trouble wrapping my head around it. Angela too, it is a lot for anyone and you already have so much on your shoulders." Alice ran her fingers through Isabella's hair, then caressed her hand over her cheekbones and jaw. Isabella moaned slightly and pressed into her touch.

"Like you." Glancing at Alice's arms on top of her shoulders. Alice started to laugh, and Isabella kissed her.

When they finally pulled away Isabella looked around somewhat startled at their height, "I didn't know I could do this." Isabella said with a small smile and a light chuckle. Then she looked back and could almost make out the shape of ephemeral wings made entirely of shadow extending from her back.

"It's neat, and way more private than I ever could hope for." Alice tried looking at the bright side, although in truth she was a little terrified. They were thousands of feet in the air, although even at terminal velocity they were in no danger of actually getting hurt from falling.

"Alice, thank you." Isabella said unexpectedly, pressing her cheek against Alice's.

"For what?" Alice asked, pulling back and looking into Isabella's eyes. The affection held within them was different from before and it gave Alice some hope that they might actually pull through all of this and be together.

"Being there. For me, for Eliza and Brianna." Isabella's voice and expression were very soft along with a happy smile that hit Alice with a powerful emotional kick. This was what she could look forward to, this was her lover happy and content, if even for a second.

"I love you." Alice couldn't express herself any other way.

"I know." Isabella kept her face straight for a couple of seconds, and then one side of her mouth curled into a lopsided smile. Alice kissed her a couple of times, totally forgetting they were high above the clouds. Then she rested her head on Isabella's shoulder.

"You know, If Eliza heard that she would be jumping up and down in absolute joy."

"Han Solo is her spirit animal." Isabella said with a light chuckle. "Alice… I think you're my soulmate. If I can take Death's word on the matter."

"I'd be lying if I didn't agree. I pined for you for a century. I know that wasn't healthy or natural, you're it for me." Alice pressed even harder into Isabella, wondering if this was a dream somehow. It didn't quite seem real.

"Then kiss me again before we fall back to Earth." Isabella asked, and Alice obliged. They both lost themselves in each other's taste for a while, spinning slowly as if they were dancing in eternity.

In the Sky Above the Cullen Residence - February 6th

Eliza let go of Isabella's power and dropped, landing as gracefully as possible. Then she looked up and sighed. "She'll be okay. We just need to give her some time. Brianna, this is Charlie, our grandfather. Charlie, this is Brianna, my sister."

He gave her a slightly strained look, but then attempted a smile, although it came across a little forced.

"You mentioned a baby sister." Angela said now having moved close to Charlie, the rest of the Cullens and most of the pack and Denali had moved outside.

"Nice to meet you, can I call you Bree?" Charlie asked with an honestly bewildered voice, he couldn't quite believe how much his life had changed in a matter of minutes.

"No, but you can call me Anna." Brianna smiled warmly at him, and then looked back to find Michelle in human form. She was staring at Charlie, along with Leah who had kept back as the drama unfolded.

Eliza shook her head slightly feeling a touch overwhelmed. "This is all too much, we just got here two weeks ago."

"Interesting, why are your names associated with the Volturi?" Zoey asked with no accusation in her tone, just curiosity.

"We were a part of the coven." Eliza answered simply, hoping that her tone meant she honestly didn't care. Which would be a nice change.

"An actual member of the coven?" Zoey pressed, and Eliza nodded. "I didn't think they let anyone into their inner circle, save for Eleazar and that was a special situation." Zoey gave her a confused look, from all of her research she had never heard of the Volturi treating their newer recruits as anything other than a guard dog.

"You are quite well informed. I am Eleazar." Eleazar stepped forward, his eyes alight. Zoey let out a slight blast of a nervous laugh in recognition. She knew he was a member of the Denali but she hadn't put the knowledge of his possible proximity with the man in front of her. "And I must say your gift is quite extraordinary."

"So you can confirm she has telekinesis?" Angela pressed, the rumors of Eleazar's gift of identification of vampire abilities was legendary.

Eleazar shook his head. "No, that is Brianna's gift. Zoey here has something somewhat similar, but altogether different."

"I have telekinesis?" Brianna balked, looking to Eliza with worry that it was some kind of disease.

"That's the ability to move things with your mind." Eliza explained, pulling Brianna close. "It's kind of incredible, and we'll help you figure out how to use it."

"Okay neat, so what can I do?" Zoey asked, because the way her power manifested seemed to contradict that assertion.

"From what I can feel, it is tied directly to technology. Not just manipulation, but a level of attunement that I would generally associate with a soul reader like Aro, Edward or… you." Eleazar turned his attention towards Angela.

"Do not associate me with the likes of them." Angela scowled, she hadn't liked Edward since he abandoned Bella, then after what happened with Victoria, she always assumed Edward was the cause of all that horrible fallout, not Bella, no matter what Victoria had said to her.

"At least you're in good company." Kate chuckled, "pretty much everyone here is on the Volturi hate wagon, except for Isabella and Eliza… and Talia… and Henry. Shit, we have a lot of Volturi here or I guess ex Volturi, and it's probably not a great idea to bring up Edward."

"Were? The Volturi don't let people… shit the explosion. Was that the Volturi?" Zoey asked, making an educated guess, looking around at the massive gathering of people.

"Yes, Aro and Caius decided that my lover wasn't good enough to suit their priggishness, intolerance and bigotry. So they broke the alliance we formed with the Quileute and demanded we betray it. We said no." She looked over at Leah who was in front of the crowd along with Seth who had been lingering in the back with Amy.

"You had the authority to form an alliance?" Angela asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Marcus had sponsored us as full Volturi royalty, claiming us as his kin. Their betrayal was against him as well as us." Eliza explained, feeling a touch defensive even though they were reasonable questions.

"And me." Talia said as she stepped up to stand next to Eliza.

"Who is your lover? It doesn't make sense to…" Angela started as Leah stepped forward and walked with confidence towards Eliza, taking her hand as she got close.

"Leah, my god." Charlie said, his breath catching.

"Hey Charlie. Seth and Jacob are here too, and a lot of others." Leah said, giving him a warm but slightly awkward smile. She knew him by acquaintance, her father was his best friend, but that was a long time ago and mostly when she was a kid.

"Actually my husband, Jacob, is down in La Push, but one of the pack was sent down to fetch him." Tekali stepped forward, along with Seth and Michelle. "My name is Tekali, and this is my daughter Michelle."

Charlie shut his eyes tightly and then sighed and a big smile transformed his face. "I was hoping he found someone, after Abigail he looked so broken."

"How do you know about Aunt Abby?" Michelle asked, stepping forward. She had only heard stories since her aunt had died thirty years before she was born.

"When I touch something I get visions of the past." Charlie

"Fascinating, psychometry. I don't believe I have ever heard of a vampire with that gift before." Eleazar said, scanning the collection of remarkable talents in front of him. The sheer number of gifted vampires would make even the Volturi guard hesitate.

"It comes in handy, but one thing I don't know is what happened to my daughter. You and your family abandoned her to misery for months." Charlie directed towards Carlisle, "then she found some solace down in La Push with Jacob only to disappear. I know she came back to Forks ten years later, but after that."

"Edward forced them to leave, it's complicated." Eliza interjected before things could get heated. "She went to the Volturi and joined them. Then she found me, and together we worked as enforcers for the coven."

"You're leaving out her disappearance." Charlie argued, feeling a flash of anger. Although he turned towards the Cullens briefly to make sure Eliza knew it wasn't directed at her.

"She was taken by…" Eliza started.

"Victoria." Angela interrupted, spitting out the name almost as a curse word.

"You know about Victoria?" Rosalie said from Emmett's side.

"She is the reason I'm like this. But it was never about me, I was just a tool for her. She just wanted to inflict pain, I was just her audience." Angela's voice wavered slightly, and Zoey pulled her close. She shut her eyes and Eliza could see a familiar pain cross Angela's face.

"So you know everything?" Eliza asked, her expression nearly as dark as his own.

"No. While Victoria was very clear about why she hurt us, she was adamant that Bella was at fault. Yet her cruelty was petty and vindictive, so it was clear to me that whatever perceived injury she felt had been done to her, was completely out of proportion." Angela explained, her voice monotone.

"We killed her mate, so she wanted Isabella to suffer. To our everlasting shame we left her to that fate." Esme couldn't quite look up as she spoke, still reeling from the emotional toll the situation was causing, knowing she had a hand in it. Worse, how much damage had Edward done to everyone, to her, to Isabella… even to Angela and Charlie. His actions caused a ripple that caused desolation and devastation in its wake.

"Did you intentionally leave her to be a lamb to the slaughter?" Angela asked aggressively, stepping forward with fury in her eyes.

"No, if anything we thought we were protecting her by leaving." Carlisle stepped in front of Esme, in a token attempt to defend her. Although he knew there was little he could do to someone that managed to best Isabella, even if only for a few seconds.

"I don't understand. Victoria promised to kill you and everyone close to mom." Eliza began to shake her head, the warning Victoria leveled was one of the defining memories for her mother. A linchpin of pain that had informed most of her life. But it was clearly a lie, just like the truth behind the Cullen family leaving.

"She did kill a lot of them, Angel and I were turned because… I still don't have a good answer to that. I think she wanted us to suffer a different way, something that lasted longer. I know Mike, Tyler and Ben were killed, and… Renee. Lauren was driven mad, I don't know what happened to the rest." Charlie tried, but he really didn't fully grasp the reasons.

"It was our torture, she knew how much I cared about others and valued life. Charlie was a protector, tasked with bringing others to justice. Turning us into 'monsters' was the perfect way to inflict pain on us. As newborns we would be unable to stop ourselves from slaughtering our way through dozens of victims before the Volturi would step in and take our heads." Angela added, her voice full of rage and disgust. "She just didn't account for me."

"Your gift?" Eleazar guessed.

"Exactly, then Charlie found me…" Angela started, but Eliza held up a hand to stop her from continuing.

"We should probably save the stories until mom is here." Eliza suggested, even though she was worried that it might be too much for her mother to hear. Then as if on cue, a strange whistling sound could be heard directly above them, growing louder almost immediately. A few seconds later two figures broke through the cloud cover in a very fast but obviously controlled fall. They both landed easily, with Isabella creating a small crater and Alice landing as though she was barely falling at all.

"I heard. Victoria is a topic for another day. Now we need to figure out a few things. Mainly what to do with this…" Isabella waved her arm around the entire gathering and looked pointedly at Carlisle. "You have not stated whether you are supporting your son. I give you that choice now, but understand this, I will not hesitate to sever ties with you forever if you choose him."

"I do not appreciate the ultimatum." Carlisle scowled, which looked strange on his usually kind face. "I understand your grievances with him, but I must talk to him first." Carlisle managed to meet her eyes, but felt a pang of shame in rejecting her.

"So be it." Isabella looked to her own family. "My house is destroyed, but there is a nice gathering spot there."

"Probably not a great idea, there are still investigators going there daily." Zoey warned. "We have a house now and I'm sure you are absolutely welcome there."

"Where?" Eliza asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Where do you think? Angela bought the house built where ours used to be." Charlie said with a big shrug.

"You're also welcome down in La Push." Leah offered, looking to Tekali who also nodded with a welcoming smile.

"If Carlisle is too much of a coward to reject Edward, then I for one am done with this 'family'." Rosalie said, stepping forward. "If you have room, I would be honored to join your coven."

"Me too." Emmett said, stepping up to stand next to Rosalie.

"I am as well, I cannot abide Edward any longer. I'm sorry Jasper, but I stand with Isabella on this." Adara stepped up to stand alongside Rosalie and Emmett.

Isabella held up a hand before Jasper could respond. "I don't know if a coven makes sense. This is my family, which includes my father, sister and niece."

"A new coven might prove to be advantageous." Talia added. "It would establish legitimacy and may force the Volturi to back off if we had the numbers."

Isabella nodded slowly, "alright, then I guess I'll put it out there formally, who would want to join our coven if that were to happen?"

One by one each of her own family quickly raised their hands, including Charlie, Angela and Zoey. Talia smiled at her as Isabella's attention settled on her confirming her choice. They were followed by Rosalie, Emmett, Adara and finally Jasper who stepped up to stand with his wife. Esme shut her eyes and lowered her head shaking her head in shame, unable to break with her husband. Tanya also shook her head slightly, and so did her coven although a few of them clearly were not sure which side to take.

"You are all insane, to join her is to court death." Irina almost shouted in frustration, watching her extended family turn against Carlisle and join a Volturi traitor. They were signing their own death sentence.

"That is true, we are enemies of the Volturi, and we must stop whatever Joham is trying to achieve with his newborn armies." Isabella said with mock brightness, but there was a warning layered underneath her voice and expression.

"So, you know about the covens being destroyed?" Zoey said with excitement, looking at Charlie and Angela who both stood a bit straighter.

Isabella gave them a strange look, "how do you know of it?"

"We were in Chicago and watched first hand as that coven was destroyed. Zoey and her sister were almost forcibly recruited into it too." Angela explained, and Eliza nodded slowly. Getting the impression that perhaps Angela and Charlie were the reason the Caravelli family were so good at keeping the peace.

"Sounds like we have a lot to talk about." Eliza said with a small laugh of disbelief. There was a moment of quiet as everyone tried to figure out what to say next. As the most relevant topics were also incredibly sensitive. Without warning there was the sound of breaking glass from the back of the house.

"Henry." Eliza said frantically, as she took off.

Angela looked over at Isabella, "is that the newborn?"

"Yes." Isabella started to move after her daughter, but Angela placed a hand atop her forearm without touching her then pulled back.

"I'll go, I can help clear his mind, but I'll need a couple of volunteers who can help restrain him."

"I'll go." Talia offered.

"Me too." Kate said with a smile.

"I'm with her." Garrett said as he joined the group.

"That's enough, the three of you work with Eliza to calm him then once he is no longer running I can open a door." Angela directed, and they all nodded in understanding. She gave Isabella a small nod of her own, and Isabella relaxed her posture and moved out of the way. They all started to move, quickly catching up to Eliza who had cornered Henry in the alcove of a massive tree.

"Henry, please hear me, you don't want this." Eliza held out her hand slowly, fingers extended to show she meant no threat. He growled low and threatening, his bright red eyes flicking between her, Kate, Garrett and Talia who were equidistant apart and slowly creeping around him to make sure he had no way to escape.

"I can give you a moment of clarity." Angela's voice was monotone as she entered the clearing, meant to impart information without any emotion. Henry was frantically looking around, but upon hearing the words his panicked eyes focused on her and a quick jerky bow of his head gave her permission. Angela immediately lowered her head, leveling her eyes at him and pushing into his thoughts. The suggestion was simple but spread out through his addled mind like a firework.

His eyes rolled up and then a second later focused on the world around him. He looked around at the surrounding forest captivated for a couple of seconds before lowering his gaze and staring at Eliza. "I didn't want this." His voice was difficult to decipher, a mix of awe and anger and a deep sadness. "But it happened."

Eliza nodded, "So what do you want?"

"My mind, I cannot live like this for months." He looked around at the three of them in desperation.

"I can help, but it takes some time. Your mind is unfamiliar to me." Angela offered, and he examined her curiously.

"I do not know you." He said with a touch of fear and instinctual distrust of a potential enemy.

"Angela Swan, I'm basically Eliza's long lost Aunt." The words sunk into Henry's mind like an anvil and he started to feel like himself. He let out a breath, and then sniffed in another one. Then he cracked his neck and straightened his shoulders before pulling down his shirt trying to flatten out wrinkles from three days of laying prone.

He cocked his head as if fully absorbing what Angela said, and then raised an eyebrow, "interesting, whatever you are proposing, will it hurt?"

"No, but it is invasive. I can create a series of mental barriers that your mind will destroy as you move through the various levels of control a newborn grows into, as a side effect I will know your mind completely by the end of the process." Angela kept her voice as detached and clinical as possible, using experience gained when she dabbled in medicine decades earlier.

"Is there another way?" Henry asked, hoping there were more options.

"Talia is now like us because Brianna bit her in an attempt to help. It might work, although she is a mature vampire so there is no telling what effect it will have on you." Eliza suggested, although she hoped they could test Talia some before resorting to adding anyone else. Why was she separated from the link? It was a question that needed answers before experimenting… and just the thought of such a trial gave her the shudders as it conjured up Joham's voice as he dictated his experiments into a voice recorder.

"I would rather one learn all my secrets than risk another transformation. Ms Swan, please help if you can." Henry said after a few seconds of thought.

"Let's get you back to the house and I'll get started." Angela confirmed with a small head nod.

"I trust you have done this before?" Henry asked, walking alongside Angela who had already set up the first wall using her suggestion as a starting point. This seemed to calm him even more, and she found an active mind was somewhat easier to work with.

"I completed the same process with my daughter earlier tonight as she completed transition. That took days, but it was on an unconscious mind that could not provide feedback and I was trying to mitigate her pain as well. It should be faster this time, and perhaps easier with your direct input." Henry bobbed his head a few times as she confirmed her experience, and was slightly worried but had a good impression so far of the woman. It helped that she was family, and trusted the process enough to use it on her own child.

Henry felt a touch more confident about the prospects of controlling his own mind as he turned towards Eliza, "am I mistaken or am I like this because of Alice?"

"She thought you wanted to be turned." Talia confirmed, "Brianna wasn't even awake yet."

"Figures when a vampire saves your life. That and the Volturi kill or convert law. Understandable, although regrettable. I will have to convey no ill feelings towards her, she was only trying to do the right thing." Henry said, working out his feelings aloud.

Eliza frowned, "are you sure? I know how much you disagreed with life as a vampire."

"I have no wish to be immortal. The release of death always held a fascination for me rather than fear. While I have no wish to die anytime soon, I would like to know that when I am ready I will go into that great unknown. Can I trust you will help when the time comes Eliza?"

"Yes, we'll do it if you wish." Eliza gave him a less than confident look, but she couldn't deny him at this point.

"Good, well I suppose this is better than death. I will miss eating, although I have always hated sleep. Oh, is everyone okay? I assumed since you were both up and about… I hope Isabella is alive?" Henry winced, realizing the oversight.

"Yes, and she's awake already." Eliza said happily.

Henry sighed in relief, then looked towards Angela. "I imagine your arrival caused some conflict."

"You could say that." Angela said with a smirk.

"If it helps, we've been here for three days and we've seen more drama than in the last fifty years up in Denali." Kate offered with a playful grin.

Henry shook his head, "not really, but I understand your point. I hope it is not too presumptuous but I would request to join your coven Ms Eliza."

Eliza laughed softly with a tired shake of her head, "of course. We haven't figured out what the coven will be, but you are on the short list as far as I'm concerned. You too Talia."

"Good, well I imagine this night has really just begun." Henry said, glancing around those gathered.

"I can only imagine what's happening back at the house." Garrett said with a big grin, taking his wife's hand and kissing the back of it. "But I'm looking forward to the chaos."

Cullen Residence - February 6th

"I will not abandon my son without hearing him out!" Carlisle said with more anger than almost anyone present had seen from him before, as the argument over the division of the coven heated up.

"I have no wish to splinter your family Carlisle, but you have made your choice. I will not cast aside those who have chosen to be with me and my family, no matter what happened in the past." Isabella argued, her voice starting to show her impatience with the entire situation.

"Esme, do you agree with this?" Carlisle snapped his gaze towards his wife and practically shouted out the question.

"I don't want to talk about it." Esme looked incredibly upset, and immediately turned away to run into the house. Isabella felt a twinge of disappointment in her actions, the weakness it showed made her feel as though the small spark of love she was starting to feel towards Esme was perhaps best left to die.

"Why are you doing this?" Carlisle begged, trying to understand.

"She hasn't done anything!" Rosalie said sharply, crossing her arms and leveling an angry glare at Carlisle.

Carlisle's nostrils flared and his eyes widened in anger, "hasn't she? All I have heard are accusations without evidence. Isabella has been violent without sufficient provocation and even dismembered my son. Then she banished him, and all I have is Alice's word and Isabella version of events. To not give my son the benefit of the doubt is to throw away centuries of love and respect. While Isabella was once a part of us, she has been hostile from the moment of her return, and the only thing she has told us is that she wanted to go with us all those years ago which. That contradiction of events, accuses Edward of nothing more than making a choice lying to our family. I get she was upset with his choice, but it was his choice to make. He has personally expressed regret for his actions to me on multiple occasions. Alice, and please forgive me, has never been in her right mind, living outside of the here and now on the best of days. How can we know that this isn't all just a delusion of hers, compounded by a century of mourning?"

"I don't suppose Angela could be considered a third party?" Charlie suggested.

"You have mentioned that she is a daughter to you." Carlisle asked, somewhat rhetorically.

"Yes." Charlie replied simply, not really wanting to get in the middle of this situation as much as he wanted to scream at the Cullens, it was Isabella's call. She was grown, and clearly powerful, he was determined to show support when she needed it but not try to parent her after so long apart.

"Then no, that makes her biased." Carlisle frowned. "So I guess we're at an impasse. My entire family is leaving me because of what you have both accused Edward of doing, I hope you're happy. More to the point, you are no longer welcome in my home, neither is the pack. Tanya you and yours are welcome to join me and Esme permanently if it suits you."

"Of course brother, but I wonder if perhaps we should not be so hasty in creating such a divide." Tanya cautioned, and Carlisle immediately nodded in agreement.

"You're right, I'm angry, and that is no time to make such a choice. Of course all of you are welcome to return home whenever you feel it is right to do so. Except for you Alice, I fear that you will never be welcome by Edward again. Unfortunately, Isabella, the same goes for you and your daughters'." Carlisle leveled a glare towards Isabella, clearly placing the blame on her almost entirely.

"So be it. Goodbye Carlisle." Isabella said coldly, giving Carlisle one last look before turning to Charlie. "I think we'll take you up on that offer. Until our house has been rebuilt or another property is located."

"Mi casa es tu casa." Zoey said with a big smile. "We haven't really moved in yet, but there are enough rooms for almost everyone if I understand the couples dynamic properly. I might have to bunk with Brianna here though. Are you cool with that?"

"How old are you?" Alice asked, wondering how young she was, given her disposition and bearing she could be in her twenties, but her face and body gave the impression of someone in their late teens.

"Seventeen, I didn't quite make it to my eighteenth birthday." Zoey said in frustration, she had gotten what she wanted but hated how it happened.

"I didn't even make it to seventeen." Brianna said with a pout.

"All good, that means we can spend most of our lives together. Best friends slash sisters?" Zoey grinned widely, in truth the idea of spending her life with a big family that was full of almost unstoppable monsters was a major relief.

Brianna looked at her strangely for a second, "Um, sure." It was a weird idea to have someone that close. Not just a friend, but someone akin to a sister. She felt a tightness in her chest and then threw herself at Zoey, who was startled for a few seconds before she wrapped her arms around her new cousin and shared in the embrace.

They lingered in the space until the group helping Henry arrived back, and then they started towards Forks on foot leaving the mangled car in the middle of the driveway.

Cullen Residence - February 6th

Esme wasn't sure what she was looking for as she entered Edward's room. Perhaps something to exonerate him so that the sting of rejecting Isabella wouldn't hurt so much. She expected to find nothing, but was surprised to see Edward's laptop still on. She flipped it open and was surprised again that there was no password blocking her.

The desktop image was a picture of Isabella taken using a telescopic lens. It was clearly a candid shot, but more than that it was oddly framed. It took her a few seconds to absorb the reason why, but then she realized it wasn't the current Isabella, it was a picture taken when she was human. Her eyes were cast down, creating the illusion of someone demure and subservient.

A bit horrified she began to browse through his documents. It was an invasion of privacy to be sure, but she had to know now. It was more than curiosity, it was starting to form a need for information. Buried in a maze of nested folders were hundreds of pictures of Isabella, and a few short videos. Although a few were taken by hand, using the camera still sitting on the shelf behind him, the rest were obviously not as high in quality. It was disturbing to see a whole progression of pictures of Isabella sleeping, or reading or talking with her father. Then several of her as a vampire sitting in class or riding her motorcycle. A few taken through windows including a couple of candid shots of her naked or getting dressed both as a human and a vampire. Even more creepy when she figured out that the pictures of her class room activities had come from the local high school's closed circuit security monitoring system. Edward had apparently managed to break in and make copies of her brief time in the school.

Esme slammed the cover closed, knowing that it was smashed beyond repair. She felt sick at Edward's voyeuristic obsession with Isabella that had crossed some fundamental lines. This was more than the burning for an old flame, or unrequited love. There was a level of fixation that was not only unhealthy, but potentially dangerous. That's when she spotted his back up phone, sitting on top of his electric piano that he used to compose.

She moved over and picked it up, no longer surprised at the lack of security. Another picture of Isabella was on the splash page, where there were only a few apps. There was no text or call history on this phone, but she opened up the account app hoping to draw on his records as a sinking feeling curled at her gut. The call history was buried under a number of folders, but she eventually found what she was looking for.

An hour later after the preverbal smoke had cleared and the Swan family had left Carlisle searched out his wife. He stepped up to the doorway of Esme's private studio. Despite the fact that they were married, both of them had long ago come to the mutual realization that they each just needed their own space at times. Whether it was to work, or indulge in a hobby, or just have time with their own thoughts. This room was her private area, and served as more than just a studio, it was also a gallery, and held all of her most prized possessions.

One part of the room was dominated by a drafting table with a large aged wooden top, stained a light tan. In the center of the wooden top was a plate of white backed glass, although it was currently covered by several large sheets of paper. The legs were wrought iron and finely detailed. It was clearly old, and very well maintained. The stool that usually sat next to it was instead placed next to the massive easel that dominated the other side of the room. Esme was sitting forward on the stool, painting furiously in harsh brush strokes. The canvas depressing with each swipe of her brush.

She beat the brush against the easel after dipping it in turpentine, then quickly mixed a new color on her palette from several blobs of oil paint. The speed and precision of her work always impressed Carlisle, even though she was supernatural, he marveled at her technique. Not that he could see her work from this angle, the easel was facing the far window, leaving whatever she was painting obscured from view.

He knew that Esme was aware of his presence, since he'd made no attempt to hide his approach. However she made no move to acknowledge him. He assumed she was painting a landscape portrait, letting her mind focus on a vista she'd seen, which was an outlet for her. A method that gave her a chance to calm down. It was something she did on the rare occasions when she got really upset, or angry.

Almost unconsciously his eyes drifted to the walls of the room, and the bigger than life size portraits that hung there above the chair rail. They almost always captured people's attention when they entered the room. Drawn to one or another, they almost inevitably drew compliments on their exquisite detail and haunting realistic quality. Very few humans had seen them, and those that had were convinced they were photographs, because they were so breathtakingly beautiful. Done with details far beyond what any human could hope to replicate. Even more, Esme didn't have to rely on someone holding a pose. Instead, she used the perfect memory that all vampires had, which allowed her to pick the pose and expression that best spoke to her.

Carlisle allowed his eyes to trail over each painting. They were so lifelike, they looked almost like the real person was sitting in the frame. In a lot of ways she had captured a split second of the past, as if these paintings were a window into each subject's very soul. For Carlisle they sent a shiver of pain up his spine, because almost every painting was of a member of their family. He let his gaze sweep across the room faster than usual, normally he would admire Esme's talent, but today he was in too much emotional turmoil to be reminded of the people they represented. Except something stopped him in mid-sweep.

Two large blank spaces stood out where portraits had once been.

One of them was the only image of Isabella the family possessed, save for Edward's illicit photographs which Carlisle was totally unaware of. After the events of the past few days, so many pieces fell into place. Little things that made no sense to him before, or things that didn't seem to connect, now stood out like glaring red flags. He had always been suspicious of the time that Alice spent in the gallery, despite how erratic it appeared. He could never find her there at a specific time or day of the week, but thinking back it suddenly made sense. Alice spent as much time staring at Isabella's portrait as was possible, when Edward was away for any reason.

It struck him that it might be the last remaining image of Isabella as a human.

It showed her as the nervous and shy girl they once knew. The awkward smile on her face, her chocolate brown eyes sparkling with mirth, and mild irritation. Esme had created the painting almost immediately after they left Forks all those years ago. She hung it with prominence, despite Edward's objections about having it displayed at all. Esme had told him in no uncertain terms that this was her private space, and that no matter what happened, Esme would always consider Isabella a daughter to her.

But now the picture was gone and in its space was nothing. Beneath the empty space, was the frame also quite empty. It took a few seconds of searching, but he noticed the canvas was carefully rolled up on top of her desk. The other portrait that she tore down was of Edward. Unlike the portrait of Isabella it was still in its frame, which had been torn to pieces along with the canvas which was absolutely shredded into pieces. The scraps of canvas were lying in a pile beneath the splintered frame, with tattered bits of fabric still clinging to the few sections of the frame left intact.

Carlisle stepped into the room and moved up until he could see his wife working on the canvas in front of her, though he still couldn't see the subject of the painting itself. Her expression didn't surprise him. He felt another stab of pain when he took in the look of unbearable hurt on Esme's face, a hurt that was mixed with a dreadful anger, mirrored in her frenzied brush strokes.

It was an emotion Esme rarely expressed so he didn't really know how to approach her. He wished he could reach out and take those negative emotions unto himself for her, to blot out her pain. Not that he was sure he could bear it himself, but if he could, he would, without a second's hesitation.

He stopped halfway across the room, without intruding on what she was working on. When it became apparent to Carlisle that she wasn't going to talk, he broke the silence, "Are you that angry with her, that you tore her portrait down from the wall?" His voice was soft and gentle as his focus was now completely on his wife.

Esme's response was not what he expected. Her head shot over to glare at him, and a sneer of pure rage passed over her face. For the first time in his life Carlisle was almost afraid of her.

"I'm not angry with Isabella." Esme practically spit out at him, though the movement of her brush didn't slow down for an instant as she repeated the process of cleaning the brush mixing a new color.

An expression of confusion crossed Carlisle's face, "Then why did you remove her portrait, rip it from the frame and roll it up like you were about to throw it in the trash or put it in storage?"

Esme's brush stopped moving the instant Carlisle's question left his lips. She froze for a moment, then she carefully set the brush down, then her head lowered and her shoulders slumped. "Because." She let out a heavy breath through her nose, "that's not her anymore. She's not that girl."

Her voice sounded so hurt that Carlisle immediately moved toward her and wrapped her gently in his arms. She didn't try to resist, instead her fingers curled into Carlisle's shirt and she squeezed the fabric tightly enough that he felt the seams start to give way under her grip.

Finally he let his eyes fall upon the portrait she had been painting. As always it was a masterpiece, even if she had only finished the face, neck, and hair, and none of the background. He couldn't deny that it was accurate. The image was of Isabella as she was now, ruby red eyes starting out intently with her relentless intensity captured perfectly. The expression on her face was one of mild anger and a hint of accusation. He could almost imagine the portrait beginning to move as it started an angry or biting tirade.

Carlisle wanted to tell her, to reassure her that Isabella would forgive, she would eventually let that anger go. He wanted to blot out his own words, take back the ultimatum he leveled at Isabella and Alice. He wanted to reassure his wife that they weren't shut out forever. That this woman she'd always thought of as a daughter would come back to her. He wanted to reassure her that what had happened was just a temporary disagreement. He wanted to say all of those things. But he didn't. He couldn't. He wasn't sure he could lie that well.

Instead he looked over at the remains of Edward's canvas and frowned. "And his?"

She suddenly pushed him away from her, with a hiss of anger. Carlisle stared at her a little stunned, she'd rarely expressed her vampire instincts vocally. That was a sign of pure fury. It was a measure beyond anger or even rage, it was deep and internal, primal. The kind of emotion reserved for only the deepest hurt, unadulterated burning hate, or the purest love.

Esme's hiss was loud enough to stir the rest of the house, and Tanya whispered a soft cry of concern. Esme shot a look down at the floor in her direction, but didn't say a word. Instead she looked back at Carlisle and fixed him with a glare that could level a mountain. She opened her mouth to speak, but she couldn't quite figure out how to modulate her tone so that the house wouldn't crumble from the power of it. After a few moments she lowered her voice to a harsh whisper. "That… that… thing is not my son. He's dead to me." She bit off into a long snarl as her rage got the best of her momentarily.

Carlisle kept his voice soothing. "Esme, I know you're upset but he's not entirely at fault for-"

"Don't. You. Dare!" Esme, although growling, managed to enunciate each word clearly as she cut off Carlisle's protest.

Carlisle started to object, but she held up a hand and calmed herself down enough to respond in a manner that was quite a bit closer to rational. "Whatever he is, that is not the man we helped to raise together. He isn't lost, he isn't demented. He's manipulated this family and concealed his true self from us. In return for two centuries of love, he's turned against us in the most vile way imaginable. Isabella was right to do what she did, knowing what he's done to my family."

"What has he done?" He asked gently, having no idea what she was talking about.

Her shoulders began to heave with rage, and she stared at Carlisle, his expression remaining passive and loving. "Don't you get it, he destroyed her life, all of our lives, for what? Spite, ignorance, intolerance, pure greed or hate or some combination of them all? I don't know. What I do know is he is directly responsible for what Isabella has become. His fault and ours. We... abandoned her. He forced me to abandon my daughter. Which is something I'll carry forever. A pain that can never be erased, even if she's gracious enough to accept us back into her life."

Carlisle opened his mouth to protest, but... there was nothing he could say because she had clearly believed the story told by Isabella and Alice. Esme's anger started to ebb away, and she slumped again, shaking her head. "I want to go to her. I want to beg her to forgive us. I want to hold her and tell her I love her. I want to take back the last century, I want... I want my Bella back. But she's gone isn't she? I'm never going to get her back am I? I should've known then, I should've known it was a lie. I knew what she wanted. I knew how stubborn she was. Now... we've lost our entire family to him, to his selfishness. God, what are we going to do?"

Carlisle shook his head slightly and pulled Esme into a tight hug. His voice was steady despite his own conflicted emotional state, "here's what we're going to do. We're going to stay here, with my sisters. We aren't going to chase after our children. They need a chance to live, without our shadows hanging above them, or our hands held out below them as a net to catch them if they fail. I know they aren't children, as much as I want to see them that way, but we can't be in charge anymore. We have to trust that they'll make the right choices, but we're not going to abandon them either. If they need us, and I think they will in the days to come, we'll be there. We'll always be family."

Esme looked up at him, a sad and lost expression on her face. She reached up and kissed him gently. Then slowly pulled away.

"I need some time alone." Her request was easy to accept, and Carlisle nodded, kissing her hand once before leaving the room. She turned to finish the painting, and then walked over to her window and thought about the past for the first time in nearly two hundred years.


Author's Note:

This was mostly what I had trouble with last week. The big romantic scene with Isabella and Alice was the hook I needed to make this work. As I was working on this I realized what the next chapter had to be. The good news is it will be up by mid-week next week (Wednesday) at the latest.

Until next week, thanks for reading!