Hello Hello Hello!

I'm back with another chapter!

OK, so first off, I have a couple of good news! I passed my Finals with good marks and hopefully I will be enrolling to College this year. So I AM HAPPY. K Thanks.

How have you all been?

Reviewers:

GraceEllingson - My heart is dedicated to Edika too. I don't know if I will inculcate Alec in her life completely because well...sorry spoilers! Enjoy!

M - OH MY GOD YOU DO? WHAT HAPPENED TO ALEC VOLTURI BEING A COLD BLOODED KILLER?

Kat Smith - Thank You! Thank You! Thank You! Hows your precious cuddle fluffs? I miss listening about them! Also TEAR IS AMAZING. BTS IS AMAZING. FESTA IS COMING. ON VLIVE+ I CAN'T WATCH SO I WILL PROBABLY BE WRITING ANGST THAT DAY. THANKS FOR COMING TO MY TED TALK. OH AND DID YOU WATCH THE BBMAS? THEY ROCKED IT. ALSO AIRPLANE 2 AND ANPANMAN! *PTERODACTYL SCREECH*

Also, for all the Army readers out there, (I know only Kat Smith) this chapter was hard to write because when I said picture them as Tae and Jungkook I didn't realize that most of the targeted horrible things would be happening to my two fluff babies. (Althought Jeon Jungkook has been making it difficult more me to breathe since the start of 2018. He deserves to suffer.)

So, when I write yelling at Edward, it becomes yelling at Tae. I had to go back and change Edward's scenes a lot in this chapter because I constantly felt that I was being too harsh. But then I wasn't being the harsh that T needed to be so Damn, I had to change things again. Basically, this chapter was a mess.

To be very honest, I was expecting him.

I don't how and why, but he'd somehow managed to sneak into my room, sitting on my bed with shoulders hunched and head bowed as he tangled his fingers among themselves.

I exhaled loudly once I reached my doorway and he looked up quickly when he heard me and my thoughts.

"Hey," he said, standing up but staying where he was.

"Hi," I said, closing the door and folding my arms across my chest, moving inside the room, "How did you get in? I locked the door." I said.

He pursed his lips. "Gina let me in."

I took a sharp breath. Great, I was going to have a talk with the girl.

"Don't blame her, we were worried and wanted to look for you." he said, hearing the thought.

"I didn't leave the castle. I was right here. No need to be worried about me."

"On the contrary, there was all the more need to be worried about you right now. I heard what you said." He said taking a single step towards me.

"Well, you do have vampire hearing and I wasn't exactly mumbling. I wouldn't wonder." I said, my tongue sneering around the words as I hissed at him.

He sighed, clearly seeing the streak of non cooperation in my tone. "Can we talk about this? Please? Like mature people," he said.

"No, Edward, I've been mature. I've been patient with you, understanding, downright submissive! You just can't seem to trust me enough to tell me things." I said.

"I do trust you. You know that."

"Then why do you always want to keep me in the dark? Why do you insist that I go through life not knowing things? And don't give me that 'keeping you safe' crap; because it has clearly not worked – be it fiction or whatever form of reality this is."

Edward's face had hardened, watching me with dark eyes.

"What do you want me to say, Tulika? I am sorry, ok? I can try not to keep things from you, but telling you things haven't exactly helped you either, now, has it?"

"Still,"

He cut me off.

"Still, we can have this fight time and time again but it isn't going to change the fact that we have been through a lot of things where you haven't told me things either – until of course something happens that makes you come running to me." he said.

"At least, I told you instead of you finding out from someone else!"

"Which makes it better? All those times when you could've been hurt,"

"But I wasn't, because I'm better than that. I don't charge into things like a blind bull, Edward."

"And I do?"

I shook my head, knowing I was not going to get anywhere with his pigheadedness.

"When you said that Alec and Jane were blocking your powers, did you know that it had to be something to do with me and Alec?" I asked.

He tensed at 'me and Alec' but remained stoic faced. "No, it wasn't until we came here and Alice had her vision that I found out but by that time you were already set on staying."

"Did you ever think that if you told me I would want to leave?" I asked.

He smiled slowly, sardonic and mocking. "Knowing you, my love, you'd find ten more reasons to stay if I did tell you."

I huffed up at him, dropping my hands in defeat about to turn from him when he was suddenly at my shoulder, hand clasping over my arm as he turned me back. "What's that?" he asked, his eyes fixed on my neck.

It wasn't until I had reached up to touch my neck till I realized that Alec's necklace still hung from my throat.

"It's just a gift." I said swiftly.

"From Alec?" he asked.

"Does it matter?" I asked, watching his expression melt from confused anger to hurt. He let go of my hand, still staring at the necklace. "It doesn't matter that you're wearing something a man you know is in love with you gave you to wear?" he asked.

"You're forgetting I don't love him. Besides," I raised my hands to show him the bracelet he'd given me firmly clasped on my left wrist while the wolf charm Jacob had given me on graduation on my right wrist, along with a silver ring Stephen had given me on my birthday on my finger. "I have all the gifts you all gave me. It's just my thing."

He didn't even glance at the other pieces of jewelry, instead just closed his eyes and sighed.

"I don't want to lose you." he whispered.

I let my hands down as I frowned at him. "I don't know him, Edward. Don't look for things that aren't there. I can do the same with you and Bella."

He scoffed. "Me and Bella…? In what conceivable universe do you see that happening?"

I lifted furious eyes at him. "You and she were one of the most talked about couples in my world when your story hit the shelves, Cullen. Don't patronize me. I know what I'm talking about. If I hadn't arrived early in that godforsaken class that day and the teacher didn't make you sit with me, you would've been next to her. You wouldn't have looked twice at me. If I hadn't shown up, you would be coddling a monstrous freak with her." I snapped in a single breath.

Edward and I glared heavily at each other before his lips were smashed against mine; hands flinging out to curl around my elbows as he tugged me flush against his chest.

I caved under the pressure immediately, feeling him walk us back before pressing me against the stone wall, one hand over my head and the other fumbling with the hem of my shirt, sliding cool fingers over my hot skin.

"You stupid little fool," he snarled against my jaw as he nipped at the skin there, small pinpricks of pain making me jump as he pushed me up against the smooth stones harder.

"What do you think I've been doing all this time?" he asked, his fingers digging into my skin as he panted against my mouth, returning to kiss me again aggressively.

I pushed against him, trying to get free but with each struggle his hold grew tighter until he was almost bruising me.

I sagged against the wall for a second before with one final push, shoved him off of me.

It was a mark of how much Edward had been caught off guard as he stumbled back several steps, just like a human boy. His perfect hair was crumpled, shirt askew while his eyes glowed. He ran his tongue over swollen lips as he watched me with hooded eyes.

"I don't know what you've been doing, Edward. That's exactly the point." I gasped out, taking in deep breaths before spinning about to open the door and rush out, escaping from my boyfriend yet again.

My first thought to hide was Sulpicia's library but I quickly dismissed that idea. I didn't want her to somehow coax ideas of Alec into my mind. Edward and I were already on a rocky path, I didn't want more trouble. Besides, Alec might be intriguing as the man meant for me but he was certainly nowhere close to getting my heart. I loved Edward, wholly.

His lips still burning on mine I hiked up to the main lobby, hoping to catch Gina to tell her not to just let anyone in my room, even if it was Edward or Alice when I heard her talking in a low tone to Demetri and Felix.

Felix's Emmett like huge figure hunched over Gina's desk with Demetri's slighter frame next to him was cause enough for me to back away but I determinedly walked up to her, waving to catch her attention.

She glanced at me, a small smile gracing her dark pink lips and nodded, her eyes telling me to wait a second but by then Demetri had already turned to look at me.

"Oh look, it's the la principessa di Alec." He murmured.

I only caught Alec's name and saw Gina frown at her, mumbling something to him at which the vampire shrugged.

"So what?"

"If you have something to say to me, say it to my face…or take it up with Aro." I said firmly, moving to stand between him and Felix.

"Gina, do me a favor and in the future, if anybody asks, don't just let them have the spare keys to my room, ok?"

Gina's eyes widened just a little before she quickly nodded, looking remorseful. "I wouldn't have but Mr. Cullen was insistent." She murmured.

"Did he threaten you?" I asked, urgently.

She smiled at that. "No one here can threaten me," she said, her eyes roving over the two vampires still at her table. I shrugged at that. "Good, I'd have kicked his ass if he said anything to you." I said, straightening to turn away when I saw Demetri watching me with a calculative look in his eyes.

"What?" I snapped harshly at the man; he quirked an eyebrow at my tone.

"I suppose we were wrong about you. You have more fire than we originally thought."

I twisted my mouth at his words before he was tilting his head, a wicked smile on his face. "Care to join us on a little expedition?"

I heard Gina take in a sharp breath.

"What are you doing?" Felix asked, his deep voice confused and irritated.

"Aro wants her inculcated, doesn't he? Why not show her what we do? Nothing is a better teacher than firsthand experience."

"Yes, but,"

"Ok,"

Both men fell silent as they turned to look at me. Felix looked more frustrated while Demetri's smirk had increased to a full blown grin.

"You will come with us?" he asked.

I shrugged. I had nothing better to do and I was feeling impulsive and rebellious. The two traits never worked out for me combined but I had to work off the adrenaline somehow and what better way to do it than battle something ten times stronger and faster than me?

Yeah, I mentally snorted at myself, smartest decision ever.

Demetri and Felix planned to sneak me out of the Castle covertly, even giving me clothes from one of the female guard's to put on so I would blend outside easily.

"These are Chelsea's." Demetri said handing me the all black ensemble. "Heidi and Renata are both too tall for you and Jane would just go tattle tale to Alec and Aro, these are the best I could find." He said.

"That's fine," I mumbled, weighing the clothes in my arms.

It was strange. The clothes held an aura of power, of authority, something I wasn't used to with the Cullens. If I borrowed something from Rosalie or Alice, it didn't feel as if I was actively participating into something, even if I was Edward's girlfriend but with these clothes…it almost felt like putting them on made me a part of them.

Shrugging the feeling off, I retired to a spare room to change into the black top, pants and long coat, putting the hood up and tucking in my hair so Chelsea's scent would mask mine.

Even as Felix and Demetri led me out of the castle through a series of secret passageways, Demetri turned to look at me. "So, who do you want to ride?" he asked.

I gave him a disgusted look. "Excuse me?" I snapped.

"Well, principessa, we won't be taking the limo. We'll be running and you're going to have to be running with us. Since you can't exactly keep up, one of us will have to carry you." he said.

I glanced at Felix who was watching me with a stony expression, almost as if he was warning me against choosing him.

I squeaked out Demetri's name and he smiled, glancing at the bigger man knowingly before reaching out to grasp my hands, tugging me closer to him before he was latching them around his neck tightly, giving a jerk so I jumped on his back, legs wrapped around his torso.

It was graceless and uncomfortable as I clung onto the unfamiliar man but then they both suddenly crouched, not even bothering to exchange words as with a mighty push forward they were running, leaving dust flying behind from their shoes.

The air of Italy was a lot hotter than the shaded and rainy forks, and the speed of the vampires made it no better as blazing winds wafted against my face, whipping the hood of the cloak off, and my hair flying. I gripped onto Demetri's shoulders as tightly as I could, even though the gathering sweat was making my hold loosen with each few dozen miles they covered.

Once they reached woodlands, they slowed down to a brisk walk, me still on Demetri's back. It wasn't until he spoke up that I registered they'd stopped already.

"Do you feel fine?" he asked.

I nodded.

"Well, then get off me, Principessa, I have work to do." He said.

I dropped down unceremoniously to the ground, feeling my boots hit the foliage dully as Felix marched around us.

"It's a small shelter. They probably won't be leaving until sundown anyway." He ruffed.

"That's too bad. We came all this way and brought a guest. How rude of them," Demetri spoke with a streak of malice in his tone.

"What are we even doing?" I asked.

Felix looked at me but didn't answer, letting the smaller man do the honors.

"Well, your Edward might've told you about how some vampires go rogue, right? It's our job to control the rogue ones so the one who are smart don't get into trouble. This particular coven is…very troublesome. They are good at hiding and running too but I'm just better." He laughed derisively.

"We still can't attack without knowing what we're walking into however," Felix said suddenly.

"True," Demetri said thoughtfully.

"Why didn't you bring Alec then? Or Jane," I said.

"Because we're proud and egotistical," Demetri said, waving my question off before turning to his partner, his voice garbled as he conversed quickly in Italian.

He finally turned to me.

"Well, beautiful, this is where you get to be useful."

"Say what," I said.

"You wanted to come with, didn't you? To learn," he asked, slowing his speech as if he was talking to a child. Which compared to him…of course, I was.

"Yeah but you didn't say I was going to have to become bait." I argued.

Felix and Demetri both let out identical sighs. "We don't have time for this. We need you to lure them out. That's it. Once they're out of their hole, Felix and I can take them out. All you have to do once they come out is run off. We will find you later." He said.

I turned to Felix. "He's freaking joking right?" I asked.

"You made your bed. You must lie in it now." He grumbled, folding tree trunk arms across a boulder chest as Demetri spread his arms with a smile.

"What if they hurt me?" I asked.

"I have a reputation, you know. I think I can keep a single human safe." He said before turning me and giving me a light push towards the clearing.

"Take the coat off. They won't come out if they smell a vampire. Especially not a Volturi," he said before both of them vanished.

I sighed, unlatching the coat clasps and slipping it off, dropping it on the ground.

With a bracing deep breath, I walked towards the clearing.

The first thing I noticed was the silence. There was pin drop silence in the clearing. No birds chirped, no insects buzzed, nothing was heard except the slight whistle of wind through the tree tops.

This scene was eerily familiar as I remembered the time Victoria had stalked me through the woods, the wildlife instinctively clearing out from the fear of predators. I closed my eyes tightly, fear pounding thick and unnerving through my veins. My hands shook as I froze in the middle of the small shelter, right in front of the wooden in growth.

My heart sped up as sweat collected on my forehead, this time nothing to do with the heat. I was breaking out in cold frightened sweat.

Victoria was dead. She was dead and ashes. She cannot hurt you anymore. I chanted to myself religiously. There was no way that even if she was here Felix and Demetri would let her hurt me. She would be dead before she lifted a finger.

"What do we have here?"

I blinked my eyes open, focusing on the pale man standing right in front of me. His rich blond hair was matted and long but his face was – as it seemed all vampires were – beyond perfect.

He had his head tilted to the side, watching me with vivid curiosity and growing glee when he saw I was alone and obviously unsettled. What better prey?

"Hello," I said in a knee jerk reaction, standing stupid and exposed in front of a vampire.

"Come look my friends, we have a guest." He said in a normal tone but then he didn't need to raise his voice. His 'friends' could hear him nice and loud as slowly, the mouth of the wooden tunnel rustled, three more men pouring out, watching me with the same expression as Vampire Dude 1.

"What have we here? A lost little flower?" The smallest man asked, his eyes, a bold red, glinting in the sun as he took a step towards me.

"Actually no, I was just walking by. It was nice to meet you. Goodbye," I said cheerfully, turning to walk away quickly. Demetri had told me to bring them out then run for it and I was going to do just that. They could find me later.

Even as I turned I felt wind shift from my right as one of them moved behind me, blocking my way.

"What's the hurry, love? Stay for a bit, chat with us; allow us to offer you a drink. You look parched."

I was parched but not out of thirst. I scoffed at him.

"Yeah, no thanks man, I think I'll pass." I said, moving back from him to stand in the middle of their closing circle. This was bad. This was a very bad idea. Where the hell were the two vampire guards?

The smallest man smiled at me again, revealing bright teeth against his dark coffee skin.

"You should have manners, young lady. We're older than you." he said as his brethren laughed at the poor joke.

"I have friends older than you." I said, as the man's eyes raked over my body leering…but his eyes paused at Alec's necklace. His dark skin, if possible, seemed to lose color as he recognized the Volturi crest.

"You," he sneered, the pleasant expression vanishing is a second as scorn and cruelty replaced it. "You're one of them!" he screeched, pointing with a finger at my throat.

His vampires looked panicked for a second before starting to jabber in Italian again.

"Well, where are your friends?" the leader growled.

"Around," I said dismissively and he grinned wildly. "Too bad they aren't close enough around you; hope they don't have anything against a mangled corpse."

Even as he crouched to pounce at me, he suddenly froze, eyes going wide and nostrils flaring as instead of moving forwards, he backed up, clawing at his face.

I flinched back as the other vampires crowded against their head.

They looked from me to him then behind me with matching, slightly comedic scared faces.

Without thinking, I turned my back on them, freezing again as I saw Alec standing there, a cold furious look on his sculpted face.

"She isn't the one who needs to be worried." He snarled walking towards us, passing me without a glance at me as he walked to the now howling leader.

In a split second I realized what was happening. Alec's power was sensory deprivation. He had taken away the leader's senses, leaving him blind, deaf, mute and unable to feel anything – completely directionless.

The rest of the vampires had backed away by now, watching as Alec moved swiftly to the leader and with one sharp move of his arm, knocked the vampire's head clean off. It rolled away a few inches and the vampire beat it, but it was too late for them.

One of them ran straight into Demetri and the other two into the large Felix who wasted no time in disposing of them. Demetri locked the vampires' arms behind his back, biting into his neck and ripping it off just as Felix wrestled the two vampires to the ground, his huge bulk making it easy for him to mangle the rogues.

Alec was breathing heavily as he moved the leader's body and head to the pile of vampires as Felix lit them aflame.

The three stayed in a triangle watching the skin and bones fade into dust before Alec spoke up.

"What were you thinking?" he asked, quiet and terrifying.

Nobody answered.

"Do you know how close they came? If I had been a second late…"

"She was fine, we were about to take them," Felix said but Alec made a sharp motion and he quieted.

"We will discuss this later." He said, turning to walk back to me.

He didn't even ask, simply sliding his arms around my back and knees, lifting me up without a hitch and then he was running the same way back that we came.

Alec dropped me at the mouth of the passageway.

The sun had set by now, stars starting to twinkle as he paced back and forth, hand rubbing his head.

I stared at him, no idea what to say before finally he turned to me.

"Demetri and Felix are in trouble, I hope you know that but I also want you to know that you're not that easily let off. I don't what any of you were thinking? Especially you! You know the horrors outside of these walls and yet you willingly went with them. What was going through your mind?"

I frowned at him. What the hell, did everyone think they can just come and scold me and try to control my decisions?

"Look, Alec, I'm grateful and thankful that you came to save me. Really, thank you and I won't ever do it again because yeah that was a stupid and impulsive decision but I don't exactly owe you an explanation." I said.

"You don't think you should tell me why you left the castle?" he asked incredulous.

"No, I don't; you're not my boyfriend." I said, emphasizing the last part and his eyes blazed.

"This is more than just a term, Piccolina. It is your life." He said.

"Exactly, my life," I said, backing away to go up the passage when I felt his hand wraparound my wrist, pulling me back to him as he pressed me against the stone wall.

"What do you think you're doing?" I asked quickly.

Alec leaned in, his eyes still angry as his stare bored into mine.

"Do you really not see it?" he whispered.

I blinked against the haze his presence was putting me in, almost as if he was coloring everything in rose colored glass for me. "See what?"

He pulled back a teensy bit, trapping his lip between his teeth.

"We're more than just what a relationship can define, Mi Amore. We have a connection."

I huffed. "Edward has a connection to Bella too but he doesn't do what you're doing." I argued.

"He has never spent time with her. Or maybe he has, he did pay attention her, I know he did. No one is strong enough to resist their Blood Singer, not even Edward Cullen."

I paused at that.

Edward had spent a lot of time with Bella in the beginning, when we were still at school. He used to stare at her, talk to her, and eat with her. He had only taken an interest in me because I intrigued him but he had always had that connection with her.

I couldn't deny that.

Alec smile softly when he read the hesitation in my eyes.

"You know it, I know you do, you're just too loyal. You do realize that what we have goes deeper than just me calling you mine or you calling me yours."

"I…" stumbling over my words, I watched him lean in closer, fingers brushing against the necklace.

"Do you still deny it?" he whispered, his sweet breath wafting over me.

I was dazed. I knew what was happening and I knew it was wrong to some degree but at that point it was almost as if Alec had a spell on me, clearing out everything as he continued to lean in closer and closer…

MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

To be very honest, I think some of you are itching to throw things at me, but hold your werewolves! Things are going to sort themselves out soon...ish.

Like I said, I had to change a lot of this chapter, it wasn't supposed to originally go this way at all, but it did and I honestly am not responsible for this cliffhanger. I am literally blaming my characters right now.

Oh, I am sane, don't worry.

So, since it's been a while let's have questions!

1) What did you think of the Edward scene? (IMPORTANT: I need to know to write his parts in the future)

2) What did you think of Alec's scene? (Again, same reason. Reader review is IMPORTANT)

3) How do you feel about the tie in from the first book to this book? Hehe, that just sort of happened.

4) WHO DO YOU SHIP? (Mind you, this answer will NOT change the plot of the book whatsoever. But I'm just curious)

5) What do you think of the dynamics of relationship between BellaxEdwardxJacob and the difference in TulikaxEdwardxAlec? A couple of my friends gave me a lot of answers for this but I want to know what you think because you guys are the primary audience.

6) Not really a question, but I just wanted to clear up something my mother brought up: TULIKA IS IN NO WAY COMPARABLE TO BELLA. Her reactions and decisions are different, she is a completely different person. BELLA IS SHOWN AS THOROUGHLY REPRESSIVE in the books because well, she is a coward. She cannot go through the things her romance with Edward puts her through without that trait. She wouldn't last a day without it. Tulika doesn't repress. She knows exactly what she's gotten into and what consequences her actions will bring and she FACES them. She also has minor PTSD from the events from the last book due to Riley and Victoria repeatedly assaulting her. THIS IS SHOWN IN THIS CHAPTER AND WILL ALSO BE SHOWN IN FUTURE CHAPTERS. She's human, guys. Give her some love for it.

Thank you! Have a beautiful Day! Don't forget to let me know your answers!