Ever since she was born, Renesmee Cullen knew she was unique. She grew and advanced rapidly. It was almost like her own biological clock realised that she was constantly in danger and needed to mature faster to survive in this world. She loved her family dearly and they were her entire world. Literally, her entire world. For her own safety she wasn't allowed to mingle with other vampires and she couldn't attend school for obvious reasons. While she truly treasured her family, she was starting to feel lonely. Everything she did, one of her family members had already done or were doing at the moment. Nessie felt that there was nothing she could do that was hers. She was walking around Grandpa Charlie's house when she saw a photo of her mum and a woman who looked almost identical. It was how she came to discover Charlotte Swan, her mum's deceased twin. Nessie couldn't even begin to explain why but she felt a connection to the deceased woman…maybe because she saw so much of herself in the smiling woman's face or from the many stories Grandpa Charlie told her about Charlotte. It made Nessie quite upset that she would never get to meet the woman who was such a large part of the Swan household.
It was also one afternoon in the Swan household that Nessie discovered a well-loved cookbook. She delicately took the book in her hands and flipped through the pages. She noticed that there was writing in the margins of some of the pages with some steps in the recipes having been crossed out and replaced with other directions. Out of curiosity, Nessie turned to the first page and started reading the recipe – how to bake a chocolate cake. She scurried to the pantry and saw that somehow, she had all the ingredients but self-raising flour and cocoa powder. She figured she could substitute those ingredients for others. It was safe to say that her first baking attempt didn't go so well but it was that moment that created her love for baking. When Grandpa Charlie walked in and saw her baking, she vividly remembered how his eyes filled with tears but he was so happy at the same time. Nessie made it a weekly occurrence that she would visit Grandpa Charlie and they would explore a new baking recipe together. Even when the threat of the Volturi loomed overhead and other vampires came to stay with her family, baking with her Grandpa became her escape. It also made her fill close to the Aunt she would never know. Her hand-written notes filled with such knowledge and wisdom would sometimes make Nessie mourn over the loss of the relationship she never had with her Aunt.
However, that all changed during the confrontation with the Volturi. Her mother's twin was alive. She was a vampire and one that Nessie had met before but looked vastly different to the blonde-haired vampire she presented herself as. In the back of Nessie's mind, it made sense to her though. When she met the mysterious vampire, something told her that the vampire wouldn't hurt her. Nessie didn't know how at the time she knew this but she did. Now it made sense, her vampire side somehow recognised this woman, despite her disguise, to be family. Unlike the rest of her family, Nessie was beyond excited at the revelation that her Aunt was alive! That was until her mum became consumed by anger and hurt. Before she could even properly meet her Aunt, she was whisked away by her family. The first few days after the confrontation with the Volturi, her mother refused to speak on the topic and was in denial about everything. Despite Nessie wanting to be involved, her family shielded her from everything. It wasn't until one day that Nessie by chance overheard her families plan to travel to Italy that Nessie pleaded she come along. Her parents shot her request down multiple times and as Nessie was unable to talk to Grandpa Charlie about the situation (after a very long conversation with her parents about why it was kinder for Grandpa Charlie not to know that Lottie was alive), Nessie began to feel isolated with no one to turn too. Her beloved Jake also sided with her parents on this topic further making Nessie feel alone. It was only after much begging and a very, very long discussion with the entire family that they finally agreed to take her along – with Jake coming too of course.
Her first day in Volturi was filled with uncontrollable excitement! Her parents had just left their guest room in the Volturi to speak with her Aunt and before they left, Nessie once again reminded her mum about her desire to meet with her Aunt. Her mum smiled softly at her and said she wouldn't forget before her parents disappeared. It wasn't long after that that Aunt Rosy offered to take her to Jake and they could spend the day sightseeing around the city. Since it was a bright day, Aunt Rosy would take an umbrella to shield herself from the sun. Being a shapeshifter, Jake was unable to stay with them and was staying at a hotel nearby. Her Aunt shielded her from the curious gazes of the Volturi coven members as they made their way through the coven before Aunt Rosy relaxed as they made it outside, away from the prying eyes of the coven members.
They were almost at Jake's hotel when two women started walking towards them. Initially, nothing seemed off about them. Two humans wondering around the city. It was only when Nessie made eye contact with one of them that she sensed their not so good intentions. The woman seemed to realise this as well as they both suddenly pounced on her and her Aunt. Nessie and her Aunt fought nail and tooth but were easily overpowered by the two as they were so thoroughly caught off guard. Nessie tried to strike at them but the women kept easily evading her, not seemingly worried about her and more about her Aunt. Her Aunt was taking an absolute beating and screamed at Nessie to run. Nessie knew better then to question her but before she could even start running, one of the women suddenly grabbed her arm and Nessie felt something small prick her skin. Almost instantaneously, her body froze. However, she felt another small prick somewhere on her arm and then Nessie really began to freak out as her eyesight started to disappear.
'They injected something into me,' Nessie panicked.
She heard her Aunt roar before felt herself be picked up and the wind rapidly pounding on her face. Despite her best efforts to fight back, her body simply wasn't obeying. She knew she was being kidnapped and to her great distress, there was nothing she could do.
"Quickly Maysun," one of her kidnappers ordered, "We have to get her to father! It won't be long before the Volturi are on our tails!". The two women seemed to pick up the pace and what felt like hours later, though Nessie wasn't really sure how much time had really passed, they arrived at whatever destination she had been taken too.
"You're late," a mysterious man greeted.
"Our sincere apologies Father," one of the woman apologised, "There was a minor complication but please rest assured, we dealt with it and brought you the hybrid". Nessie heard some shifting before she felt something – a hand perhaps? – on her cheek.
"She's perfect," the man said in a way that made Nessie's skin crawl. It was almost considered a small mercy to the young hybrid that she couldn't see whoever this man was. Every fibre of her being was screaming to get away from him.
The man hummed, "Why is she injured?".
No one spoke.
"She was in the company of another vampire and was momentarily caught in the cross-" whoever speaking was cut off by a violent noise. The sound reminded Nessie of the noise when Uncle Emmett and Uncle Jasper were wrestling – stone hitting stone.
'Did he…did he hit her?' Nessie thought in horror as she was starting to really become aware of what a dangerous situation she was in.
"S-Sorry Fath-," another violent noise.
"Be more careful next time," the man spat, "How much poison did you give her?".
"Two!" one of the women quickly responded, "Two just like you said Father".
The man huffed, "At least you can follow some orders. Take my specimen to the allocated guest room and alert me once the poison wears off". Nessie felt herself being moved to wherever it was, though it strangely took quite a bit of time to get there, and placed on a bed of some sorts.
"I'm so sorry," she heard a woman whisper, "I'm so, so, so sorry".
Nessie laid there on the bed. Her vision blinded, her body unable to move, kidnapped from her family. She was in a panicked state but could do nothing about it. She wasn't sure how much time had passed but ever so slowly, she was getting feeling back in her fingers and toes. After this revelation though, she quickly stilled herself. She wasn't sure if another vampire was present. It wasn't long after that that Nessie's vision slowly started to return. While her vision was definitely still hazy, she found herself in a simple room that had cream coloured walls with a matching carpeted floor. Nessie was thoroughly put off by so much of the same bland colour. It made her skin crawl and she started to think there was a much darker purpose of this room with such an easily stained colour being everywhere. However, her thoughts quickly halted as to her absolute horror, her arms had been chained to the bed.
"A precaution I'm afraid," a very familiar voice answered her unspoken thoughts. While her body movements weren't completely back yet, she had enough movement to slightly turn her head and see who was talking. Finally, she was able to see one of her kidnappers. A young woman, probably in her early twenties, was sitting on a chair in the corner of the room. She had long blonde hair that was tied back in a beautiful braid and her eyes were a unique shade that appeared to be a very diluted looking red, almost brown if not for Nessie's advanced eyesight.
"You're a hybrid," Nessie stated.
The woman gave a tight-lipped smile, "I am".
"Is my Aunt Rosy alive?".
"Yes".
"How long have I been out for?".
"Several hours".
"What is going to happen to me?".
"That's for Father to decide".
"Are you going to kill me?".
"That's for Father to decide".
Nessie bit the inside of her lip at the woman's vague questions as a more pressing issue came to mind, "Are you going to report to your Father that I'm awake?".
The hybrid's eyes stared into Nessie's before she eventually answered, "I'll wait to the poison wears off. Consider it my mercy for what is to come".
Nessie felt all her hair stand up on edge before she once again asked, "What is going to happen to me?". Unlike last time, the hybrid didn't respond and simply turned her head away to break eye contact as she stared at the blank wall in the room.
"What is your name?" Nessie tried to prompt an answer from the hybrid but the hybrid refused to answer her.
Nessie frowned, "Were you the one he hit?".
The hybrid's attention snapped back to hers as she frowned, "How do you know about that?". Nessie hesitated for a moment, unsure whether she should say but eventually decided to do so. A part of her desperately hoping she could make a connection with this hybrid and it could be her key to safety…or prolong everything until her family came.
"I couldn't see but I could hear. It sounded like the noise when Uncle Emmett and Uncle Jasper wrestle each other," Nessie confessed as her eyes narrowed in on the woman's face trying to find any bruises.
The blonde-haired hybrid held her head up high, "I was but I deserved it. I let Father down".
Nessie further frowned at the woman's explanation, "My daddy would never do that no matter what I did".
An ugly scowl appeared on the hybrid's face, "You've been alive for what? A few months? You know nothing of the world".
"Perhaps," Nessie agreed with her, "But no man should hit a woman". Nessie's comment seemed to further irritate the vampire but before the hybrid could respond, a resounding bang rang through the area. The hybrid's eyes widened in fear as she cursed and ran from the room, slamming the door behind her. The room went eerily quiet. Her vision, while mostly returned, was still a bit hazy and while she strained her ears to see whether she could hear anything but she heard nothing…that was until the door to the room was ripped off.
"Mum!" Nessie cried in relief at the familiar brunette hair.
"Not quite sweetheart," her 'mum' responded. It was only after that comment that Nessie forced herself to focus her gaze on the woman. The woman's brunette hair was almost identical to her mother's but not at the same time with a similar facial structure as well. The most obvious difference was the fact that the look-a-like had bright red eyes and everything about her reminded her of a certain person from the many photos at Grandpa Charlie's.
"Aunt Lottie?" Nessie asked hesitantly. This was definitely not how she pictured meeting her Aunt.
The woman seemed to soften at Nessie's comment and quickly made her way over to her, smiling softly, "Indeed. Let's get you out of these chains". Nessie watched in amazement as her Aunt easily broke the chains keeping her restricted to the bed, though she did notice a frown appear on her Aunt's face as she studied the broken chains in her hands.
"Your majesty!"
Nessie's head snapped to the door and saw a hooded Volturi guard standing there. Though Nessie was more happy over the fact that whatever poison she was injected with had worn off and she could fully move.
"I must insist you don't run off! I can't protect you otherwise," the guard panicked, "The kings would have my head if something happened to you".
Her Aunt hummed but her eyes never left the chains, "My apologies Renata, I sensed something and thought we had an enemy afoot". Nessie could tell that the guard wanted to say more but decided not to.
"What is it Aunty?" Nessie asked as her Aunt continued to look at the chains in her hands.
Her Aunt smiled at her, "Nothing my sweet, let's get you back to your family. Renata, please hold onto these. The others should be done by now". Her Aunt and the hooded vampire started to make their way back down the hallway, talking quietly amongst themselves. Nessie wasn't sure what quite came over her, it could be that the stress of being kidnapped finally hit her, as she ran to her Aunt's side and held her hand. The two vampires immediately stopped talking and Nessie felt her Aunt's gaze on her.
Nessie shyly looked up at her, "Is this…okay?". Nessie lightly squeezed her Aunt's hand to further clarify her point.
Her Aunt looked taken aback by her actions but a warm smile quickly appeared on her face, "Of course it's okay". Nessie noted though that whatever discussion her Aunt and the guard was having previously did not resume. The trio walked down the seemingly never-ending hallway. Nessie guessed that the vampires chose to walk at normal pace for her own benefit more then anything else but she was getting a little freaked out by the endless hallway.
"You said my family was here?" Nessie eventually asked, trying to distract herself. The were rows and rows of doors on either side of her. Something wasn't right.
"They are. They are in a different section of this bloody big underground mansion," her Aunt replied.
Nessie looked at her Aunt in shock before turning her attention to the seemingly normal hallway, "We're underground?".
Her Aunt nodded, "Don't let the appearance fool you. We are several stories underground. The place is honestly a bit of a maze. Your Uncle Caius sent myself and Renata to investigate this section because he thought there wasn't going to be anything here. Won't he get quite a shock! Serves him right for trying to take me out of the action. Myself, Renata, Uncle Caius, your family, several of my guards and Jacob are also here". She noticed her Aunt's momentary hesitation over Jake's name but chose not to comment on it. Nessie didn't know the whole story but she knew from Grandpa Charlie that Aunt Lottie and Jake were once very close friends but something happened. She didn't know what exactly it was but she also guessed that her Aunt being a human blood drinking vampire, based on those very red eyes, didn't help mend the friendship either. She knew Jake only tolerated the Cullens because they were family. He had already made mention several times about how the Volturi leeches made his skin crawl and when the vampires came to act as witnesses for the Cullens, he always vocally made his displeasure known.
"Your majesty, Master Caius was just trying to protect you," Renata quickly defended.
"Of course he was," her Aunt easily agreed, "We both know Caius is nothing but protective but I can handle myself. The sooner he accepts that, the easier things will be".
Renata hummed, "It's because he loves you so much. He's completely going to freak when he finds out he sent you into danger".
Aunt Lottie chuckled, "Please Renata! You would have kicked ass long before anything dangerous would have occurred".
The easy-going conversation between her Aunt and the guard made Nessie curious about the dynamics. From her lessons with Grandpa Carlisle and what her parents explained of the situation, her Aunt and her Uncles were the royal family of the vampire world. However, her Aunt and the guard were acting like two friends that were going shopping as opposed to raiding a vampire's nest.
"Nessie close your eyes and don't move!" her Aunt suddenly ordered as she pushed her up against the wall, "Cover your ears!". Nessie quickly did as her Aunt asked as she closed her eyes and covered her ears. However, she was still able to hear a terrifying roar accompanied by a horrible smell. She heard several loud bangs before a pained whine. There were several more noises before everything stopped after a loud snap. It was the type of snap Nessie heard when Grandpa Charlie cracked his fingers, the snap of a bone.
The hallway went silent before she heard her Aunt and Renata softly talking, all but confirming that snap had belonged to whatever they had come across in the hallway. Whatever it was that her Aunt and the guard were talking about thought was far too soft for her to make out what they were saying.
"Nessie, sweetie," her Aunt said, "I'm going to need you to keep your eyes closed. I'm going to carry you for the time being okay? We need to move and we need to move fast".
"Okay," Nessie responded softly, "What was that roar?". She felt her Aunt's arms wrap around her waist before she was hoisted up into a bridal position within her Aunt's arms.
"I'm not too sure," her Aunt confessed, "But we need to move quickly and re-group with the others". Nessie kept her eyes closed as she felt the wind start to lightly brush against her face, signalling that her Aunt was running.
"Nessie!" she heard the very familiar voice of her Aunty Alice. Nessie opened her eyes and smiled in relief when she saw Aunty Alice, Uncle Jasper and an unknown hooded Volturi guard beside them.
"Demetri, do you know where the others are? We need to re-group and get out of here as soon as possible. I think we know why Alice's visions weren't working," her Aunt said in a serious voice which caused Aunty Alice and Uncle Jasper to look at Aunt Lottie in confusion.
"Why?" Aunty Alice asked, "I've never had this happen before. Only around the shapeshifter pack".
Nessie noticed that Aunt Lottie looked at the trio, more specifically Demetri, uncomfortably and hesitated for a moment before she sighed, "I'm pretty sure I just snapped a werewolf's neck".
Hello everyone and welcome to your weekly update!
I wasn't kidding last week when I said I got my time management sorted (though don't worry, I doubted whether my schedule would work as well)! I finally also had time to finish Midnight Sun and I'm curious to know what everyone's thoughts (for those who have read it) were!
Thank you as always for your support!
Stay safe xxx
