TITLE: Fair Verona

SUMMARY: Juliet Swan was a tragedy in the making. What happens in Italy does not always stay in Italy.

A/N: Thank you for the reviews, favourites and follows! I know this took a while but meh, we got there in the end. Just in time for spooky season! Happy Halloween folks, hope you have a mischievous night and keep safe!

Ooh! There was a question about whether Bella and Jules are identical - they are fraternal twins. I see Juliet as either Alice Englert or maybe Emmy Rossum, not entirely sure just yet. Let me know what you guys think!

Edit: Second time posting it - I don't know what happened but despite it saying that I updated, it didn't display the chapter. Weird.

The day started with Bella almost falling down the stairs.

It didn't get much better from there.

"C'mon," Juliet murmured quietly, ushering her sister out of the house. "You're riding with me today."

She gave Bella no room to argue, as well-intentioned as their dad was, he'd essentially given Bella a big red rusty target on her back. Thankfully Juliet's car was a little more inconspicuous. Battered and bruised, at least Mabel was second-hand rather than ancient. Billy had that truck for as long as Jules could remember.

Charlie waved them off from the porch as Bella clambered in.

They'd gotten up earlier that morning to try and avoid the crowds, the stares and whispers. Even knowing that, Bella could feel the dread knot and churn in her stomach. It was safe to say that she really hated this. She'd been in Forks for a few nights but she already missed the sun and the heat. Her friends from school, Clara and Danielle. It was weird to think how she'd probably never get the bus with them again or how they weren't just a ten-minute walk away. It was her own choice to move to Forks but… she was beginning to question whether it was the right one or not.

Pro's didn't always outweigh the cons, it was great to have Juliet back in her life and to see Charlie more. It was also a lot more difficult than she initially thought, leaving everything behind in Arizona. No strange wake up calls by her mom, no more baseball talk over the dinner table which flew over her head. She never thought she'd miss baseball.

Bella turned on the radio and listened to whatever indie band was playing, hoping to distract herself.

Juliet didn't seem to mind, her eyes focused on the roads ahead of them. She only turned the radio down when they were around the corner from school, thankfully the lack of traffic meant there were plenty of spaces to choose from. "Just a heads up."

Bella glanced up, seeing her own dread reflected in their similar features.

"Everyone's really nosy and dad's been bragging about you for a while," Juliet said, thinking back to the vague and slightly ominous warning which Brett had delivered alongside their pizzas. "We don't get a lot of new faces full stop around here, so… be prepared ."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"No," Juliet shrugged. "It's just a heads up."

Of course, she knew it didn't really help.

By the time Ms Cope had sorted the paperwork and schedules out, there were enough people to realise that there was an unfamiliar face amongst them. Their stares were piercing, no one bothered with subtlety or tact. Juliet showed Bella to her first class but despite a small school and student population, they had very few classes shared.

It was only a few hours, she reminded both herself and Bella. It'd be break and lunch before they knew it. The weather wasn't great but it wasn't unbearable either, so if it came down to it - they could sit outside to avoid the rest of their classmates.

Was this how Renée felt? Juliet could've sworn she was laidback, had been told multiple times that was a key aspect of her personality. Apparently, that went out of the window when it came to her family, she felt like a mother-hen. She checked her phone enough times that the teacher caught her, Leona couldn't even grab her attention, no doubt trying to ask about the homework she'd messaged her about on the weekend.

It felt like a miracle that, for once, classes were relatively painless. Jules was out the door as soon as the bell rang.

Finding Bella was like finding Waldo.

If Waldo had a big flashing sign above them that everyone stared at.

"Hey, how was-"

"I hit someone with a volleyball," Bella almost wailed, her head thrown back in sheer despair and by the looks of it, she wanted to sink into the floor. Whatever Juliet had been expecting, it definitely wasn't that. She choked on her own laughter and leant against Bella, almost toppling them both with their weight. "I'm serious, I got them right on the head. Mike said it was fine but -"

"Mike? Newton ?" Juliet wheezed as she tried to control herself, standing on her own two feet and resisting the urge the wipe away the tear from the corner of her eye. "Don't worry about him, his head might as well be made out'ta rock - that's all he's got from brains I'm sure. I mean he's harmless, stupid and annoying but…"

There was a too-long pause and Juliet pursed her lips.

"But?" Bella asked, her mouth slowly curved into a small smirk.

"I'm… sure he has some redeeming qualities?" Juliet murmured unsurely and Bella couldn't help but laugh, both of them pretending not to notice the stares which had been following them ever since they arrived.

It was like a searing heat on the back of her neck.

Juliet liked to stay away from whatever spotlights there were. A master at blending into the lockers most days and it was how she wanted it to stay. It'd fade with time and until then, she'd cope for Bella.

"You can't think of any of them?"

"Ask me tomorrow? I might have something by then."

"A whole day to try and think of something nice ?"

"You're right… maybe two," Juliet grimaced but it made Bella smile, shoulders shaking ever so slightly. It was better than that lost doe-eyed look she'd sported when they'd parted ways for their first lessons. Their shoulders knocked together as they leant against the lockers. "Hey, it could be worse!"

"How?"

"...I wasn't expecting to have to provide an example. I was just trying to lift your spirits."

" You're the worst."

"I'm really not, this is me being nice. If you asked someone else-" namely Lauren Mallory "-then they would tell you he's got no redeeming qualities whatsoever," Juliet was quick to defend herself. As much as she hated Lauren with a burning passion, they had firm solidarity on the fact that Mike was terrible and not worth Jessica's time.

Juliet wouldn't say it when Jessica was in earshot but she hated Mike Newton with a passion. Something about him and his smarmy attitude rubbed her the wrong way, which Lauren could definitely get on board with.

Bella looked well on her way joining their small club as he caught sight of her in the cafeteria. They were both ushered over in a big song and dance, he even pulled out a chair for her. It made it only sweeter when he realised that, in his chivalry, Juliet had stolen the seat next to Bella which left the only seat next to Jess.

Juliet didn't really take into account how crowded it would get when her own friends wandered over, the table feeling tight and cramped as Leona pulled up a chair, still going on about that goddamn Spanish homework which she didn't even realise they had. Brett was quietly talking with Ben and Angela whilst Georgia struck up a conversation with Lauren about their volleyball team.

Bella looked more than a little overwhelmed.

"Who're they?" she eventually asked, looking for a distraction mostly.

Everyone knew who she was referring to, without looking up.

"The Cullens, the last new kids," Juliet reminded Bella who could only vaguely recall their skype conversation. They'd been there for a year… or was it two? The mystery of them admittedly intrigued her but they weren't any of her business. As much as Jessica gossiped or Lauren spoke about them, they'd done nothing but kept to themselves their entire time in Forks. Not that Juliet could really blame them. "They're nice."

"I forget your on good terms with a few of them," Lauren scoffed like it was something she needed to hide or be ashamed of.

" Yeah, being decent and not calling them freaks behind their back," Juliet rolled her eyes, popping a grape into her mouth to try and mask the sour look she wanted to send her way. God, as great as Lauren could be to have on your side, she was still such a bitch. "Good terms."

Georgia was quick to pipe up. "That's not what she meant."

Angela stepped in before their snipes and jibes could get any worse, talking to Bella and distracting their whole table at the same time. Juliet thanked her silently and promised to buy her a mountain of fries the next time they got Mcdonalds in Port Angeles. A sacred tradition they had once a month, at least.

"They're Dr Cullens kids," Angela smiled. "They're all adopted except Rosalie and Jasper. They're his wife's niece and nephew. Twins."

"Y'think they're taking applications?" Leona asked.

"We'll make badges saying adopt me," Angela agreed.

"I mean, it's still weird, right? They're all together," Jessica continued, more than happy to have a new audience for some gossip. "The blonde girl? That's Rosalie and she's with the dark-haired guy, Emmett-"

"Rosalie's nice," Juliet piped up again with a reassuring look in Bella's direction.

"Yeah, to you and that's just because you told Ray Núñez off for harassing her, I'm pretty sure if I said hello to her, her glare would turn me to stone" Jessica scoffed but lit up as soon as another victim strolled past. "Oh, the little one is Alice and she's with Jasper, the one who looks like he's always in pain ."

(Juliet couldn't argue with that one.)

"And him?"

Ooh, Edward was a bit of a sore spot for Jess.

Juliet winced and watched in horror as the salad in front of Jess was stabbed multiple times. Brett shared her grimace, as her ex-boyfriend, he was unfortunately privy to all of Jess' rants about Edward Cullen.

Of course, if he'd been dumped for Edward Cullen then maybe it wouldn't have been too bad.

Instead, it was for Mike Newton… Mike Newton.

"-apparently nobody's good enough for him!"

"Bitter much," Lauren seemed to snigger in Georgia's ear.

"What do you have next?" Angela asked Bella, leaning forward and trying to get a glimpse of her schedule.

As they all parted ways, Juliet tried to reassure Bella that everything would be fine… even if she did share yet another class with Mike Newton. His affections and attempts to get her attention was becoming borderline ridiculous and she had no shame in hightailing it out of there before she laughed in his face.

( Bella would remember this betrayal .)

Juliet didn't blink as Edward Cullen stormed past her.

She didn't even look up from her phone when Bella eventually emerged.

"I think I pissed him off," Bella looked confused. It was only then that Juliet tore her attention away from her texts, ignoring the buzz of her phone in her hands. She'd spent most of their last hour trying to reassure Leona about their Spanish homework because either way it didn't matter, Mrs Goff hated her whether or not she completed it.

"Who? Edward ?" Juliet said.

"Yeah," Bella sighed, running a hand through her hair. "Do I smell?"

Juliet frowned and leaned over; neither of them bothered about space as she took a whiff. "I mean, a little damp and I don't like your perfume but other than that? No."

"You don't like my-?" Bella started before she realized the distraction, shaking her head and dodging out of the way when someone ran past her. The entire school was eager to leave. Even Juliet had a bounce in her step as they weaved through the thinning crowds, her arm linked with Bella's to make sure they didn't lose one another. "He just… he looked like he was disgusted. Like I stank ."

"Do I need to beat him up?" Juliet asked.

"...Could you even reach?" Bella asked, repressing her smile. Neither of them were exactly blessed with their dad's height, Bella barely skimmed 5"4' and Juliet was 5"6' at best. Renée comfortably took the blame for their shorter stature.

"I'd be offended if it wasn't a fair question," Jules nodded in reluctant agreement. "Plus I haven't thrown hands since fourth grade."

"I remember that," Bella grinned and it lit up her entire face, the two of them climbing into Mabel. "Lexie something, right? Mom was on the phone to Charlie for like an hour but most of it was the pair of them laughing ."

"Probably because I broke two knuckles doing it."

"What use are you?"

Their sniping continued all the way home, but Juliet could see it was still weighing on Bella's mind for some reason. She turned on the radio, listening to the host's chatter as white noise as they made their way through regular traffic, Bella in almost sombre silence.

It was okay, Bella would shrug it off.

In a few days, she'd have forgotten all about him.

( … Yeah. )

It was safe to say that Bella didn't forget about Edward Cullen.

If anything, she seemed strangely focused on him.

Maybe that wasn't the right word to use but Juliet didn't know how to describe it. He'd all but vanished after their small confrontation and part of her hoped that maybe he was ill… something, anything which would have explained his rude behaviour. Something to settle Bella's mind.

"What's her deal?" Georgia asked quietly.

Lauren was, mercifully, absent. Something about a hair appointment which Juliet didn't really care about. Without her supreme overlord, Georgia turned her attention towards her other friends - when she remembered that she had those.

"Huh?"

"Your sisters and the Cullens?" Her nose wrinkled ever so slightly.

There were times when Juliet wondered about her friends. Which ones she'd go to college with, which ones would stay in contact and the ones which would fade into oblivion. They usually fell into the same category as the ones who she still hung out with just because of how long they'd known one another. It was clear to her at times where Georgia fell in that respect.

"I don't know," it was easier to shrug and play stupid. Truth be told, she didn't know what was going on between them, especially the day Edward returned and the stares became even more intense.

Georgia didn't speak to her for the rest of lunch.

...Juliet couldn't have cared less.

Despite going to school together on occasion or even just the same school in general, Juliet rarely saw Bella outside of their breaks and lunches. At the end of the day, most of the time, they parted ways in separate cars. Juliet picked up a few extra shifts at the diner and by the time she made it home, Bella had already finished dinner and placed a plate in the microwave.

That day was supposed to be no different.

"Are you sure you can't even come over for a few hours?" Leona whined for the third time. "Not even after work?"

"Yeah, at ten o'clock when I've been on my feet for nearly five hours?" Juliet scoffed.

"It's not my fault you had to go and be an adult and get a job," she sneered the words like they were the vilest things in existence. It just made her laugh though. Leona was predictable and comforting, she knew her almost like the back of her hand. Once she was done complaining, she'd ask for a sticky- "At least pick up a sticky toffee pudding for me."

"Sure."

And that was it, that was supposed to be all she wrote. Juliet would go on with her day, work her shift and come home to a quiet house and cold leftovers.

...Of course, then Tyler ripped out of the parking lot at the speed of light and had to swerve to avoid a car reversing out. Was there a word for the horror curling in her throat? As she watched his van hurtle and skid towards Bella's truck, towards Bella.

It was like the world slowed. Everything went all too quickly but it was slow-motion in her eyes. It was like time paused and Juliet couldn't breathe.

By the time she blinked and the moment passed, she was shoving her way through the crowd of people. Some knew better than to get in her way but she was ready to put Mike Newton in a headlock if she couldn't get to her sister.

"- call nine-one-one !"

"Bella, I'm so sorry, I tried to stop."

"Are you okay?"

Bella didn't respond. It was like she was in another world, not that Jules could blame her. The shock, the adrenaline, whatever it was… she was just so pale. Her hands were shaking as Juliet held onto her, tightly, like she'd slip away at a moment's notice.

Bella wouldn't meet anyone's eyes either, her hands focused on a spot on the van and Juliet followed her gaze.

( She'd regret not questioning the strange dents. )

Incorrect quotes for the chapter;

Lauren: I don't sweat.
Mike: Everybody sweats.
Jessica: Not Lauren.
Angela: Lauren never sweats.
Eric: What do you mean she never sweats?
Lauren: Sweating is gross, so I don't do it.
Tyler: So what? You're just like... cold-blooded?
Juliet: Lauren? Cold-blooded? What a surprise.

...

Juliet: You know that compulsion to hit your sibling that you get whenever they walk into your room?
Juliet: Like they come in and you go "whoops looks like I gotta end you"
Bella [nodding]: The Cain Instinct
Juliet: . . .
Juliet: The WHAT

...

Juliet: Don't let anyone ruin your day!
Bella: Yeah, you gotta take matters into your own hands! Ruin your own day!
Juliet: What? No!