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Chpt 2

"What?!" I yelped, throwing myself back, away from her. How could I not have noticed? I wailed to myself. Images of punishments inflicted by the Volturi when a guard violated the law ran through my head, reinforced by Evelyn's wide eyed fear. I let my instinct take over, and I shielded Evelyn, snarls ripping through my throat. I could smell her now; I recognized the scent and harsh aftertaste.

"Jane," I whispered, dismayed and furious at myself, and at her for destroying our lives. She was about a mile off, but closing in fast. She could smell me, but she could smell Evelyn as well. We were trapped.

She was closing in faster now, scarcely one fourth of a mile away. I could feel Evelyn shuddering into my back beside me; she'd heard tales of Jane's skill. Before my lover's heart could beat 20 times, Jane was there.

"D-Demetri," my colleague said in a hushed tone. She was shocked. Indeed, I had been expecting rage, perhaps disbelief, but not shock. And shocked she was. Evelyn was statue still behind me, in fear or panic, I didn't know.

"How? You... You've never loved anyone. Ever. And now you've been seduced by a.... a mortal." I said nothing. Evelyn hissed softly behind me in the objection of the word.

She continued, oblivious to Evelyn's reaction. "Heidi.... Reneta.... They had no effect on you. And now, some human has you in the palm of her hand. Or is she just a paid whore?"

"And that, my little friend, was your last chance," an unexpected voice seethed from beside me. Evelyn? But that doesn't make sense! She should be terrified, or panicked, not mad. The only thing that would make her mad like this is if she saw her use her gift on me.... I froze in astonishment and horror, realizing what I had just acknowledged. How? The word loitered about in my head, demanding to know its own answer.

"Call me a mortal one more time, and you will be dead afore you can even turn to look at either of us," she continued.

"What have you told her?" Jane cried, exasperated now. Again, I had no answer. Besides, this was the biggest reaction I'd seen in a long time from her. Jane glared, livid with rage. "Demetri has no effect on me, I assure you, human."

That was the straw that broke the fox's back. She snarled in fury, and it echoed around the woods, bouncing off the trees. Jane tottered back a step, uncertain for once. Evelyn was no more; the vixen inside of her was free to fight. She leapt toward Jane, changing in the process. What was left of her clothes, her skirt in this case, exploded into tattered scraps and swirled into a fiery storm.

She stood directly in front of Jane, daring her to continue. Her upper lip pulled back, exposing long, white incisors. Jane never had the chance. Her beautiful scarlet tail swishing aggressively and she lunged, pulling Jane down to the ground. Her jaws fastened on Jane's thin shoulder, waiting for her to utter one more offense.

"Evelyn," I whispered. If she killed Jane, Aro, Caius, and Marcus would know that something was capable of killing a murderous vampire, and of leaving me alive. They would either stalk the whole of Europe to track down and kill Evelyn, or they would accuse and kill me. I could not live again if she died; nor could she. I shuddered at the thought, and told her my reasons.

Jane listened quietly the whole time, her eyes growing wider at every new discovery. Evelyn released her, and motioned to her and me again with her snout, whining softly.

"She is a problem," I sighed, guessing her thoughts. "Sorry to say to you didn't help much, my fox." She ducked her head apologetically, but snapped it up again to glare at Jane, who was starting to speak. Jane winced again, and curled into a ball. Evelyn pushed her flat on her back, and placed one black paw on her chest, fastening her to the snowy ground.

I shook my head, "Eve, let her talk." She grumbled something in disagreement, but took off her massive but slender paw. I crawled over to Evelyn, placing a comforting hand on her shoulders. She butted me with her head affectionately, and nestled into my chest to lay her front half on my lap. Our other charge sat up carefully, wiping snow off her shoulders.

I eyed her warily, ready to slay her at the first sign of her gift on Evelyn. If Jane thinks Evelyn would deliver a painful death.... I wasn't known just as the Volturi's tracker, and I could quite easily prove it. Jane did nothing though, shaking as she stared in fear at the colossal but lithe fox in my lap. Evelyn pulled at my pant pockets, oblivious to Jane's fear.

"Jane, I believe you were saying something?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. She didn't answer, just stared transfixed as Evelyn pulled a plastic bag from my pocket, and began eating whatever was in it. It really wasn't fair for me to be surprised with Jane; it wasn't everyday you almost get killed by a fox the size of a wolf.

"I... Yes. H-how did this happen?" She asked shakily. Evelyn pulled her head from the bag, apparently done, and licked my chin with a long, rough, chocolate covered tongue. Finished, she proceeded into unsuccessfully tried to clean her snout, but only achieved in getting milk chocolate smeared along the side of her face, staining scarlet fur a dirty ochre color.

I smiled, and started to wipe both our faces clear of brown. It was amazing how at ease she was near Jane, when nearly every night she writhed in bed, sobbing my name in terror as she dreamt of my colleagues.

"Evelyn?" She looked up at me, cocked her head, and gave me the puppy dog eyes. I laughed, and continued.

"You have more to tell than me. Carry on?" She sighed, and looked at my cloak, and then down at her rounded shape. I leaned over, careful not to dislodge her, and picked up the cloak to wrap it around her body. She exhaled in relief, and changed.

Her curvy figure pressed tight against my build, and she blushed as Jane's eyes widened in astonishment. I sighed in relief, and pulled her head up for a quick kiss. Her naked skin pressed against my torso, an invitation impossible to ignore. Evelyn shook her head, flushing again.

"Not now," She whispered, her words only for me. God, what am I? A perverted old man? Is that what I am?! I thought, aghast. But now wasn't the time for this, for Evelyn was telling her tale.

"It was the year of 1918, during the Spanish influenza. My mother, father, and brother had all died, leaving me on my own at age 14. I was supporting myself as a fire eater at the time, though I fetched a fair amount of attention from the men and boys, much to my regret. I supported myself for two years afterward the influenza as a singer in Chicago, and the men grew more and more persistent as I filled out and grew.

One night, a little after my seventeenth birthday in fact, one man decided he had had enough of my mild flirting, and he wanted to teach me how a real woman plays. Against my will of course. That's were Felix comes in." I heard Jane gasp quietly at mention of the name, but Evelyn continued on.

"Felix smelt the blood whilst hunting, and decided to investigate. Besides, what's one dying person to someone who has a shot at livelihood?" Evelyn laughed without humor, and carried on.

"I don't know what Felix saw in me that night. There were probably hundreds of other pretty girls in Chicago about to get raped; what difference did I make? I never did ask, as it only matters he saved me. How he did it, I have no knowledge either. But he did, and managed to lug me back to Dom, broken, bleeding and unconscious. All I know is that the first person I saw was Demetri," she said with a happy sigh. "I'll never forget that first time." Neither will I, I grinned to myself. Who could have ever guessed our reaction?

We were both grinning now, reliving the memory. "Felix had rested me on a satin couch; he had rented quarters in some sort of posh hotel until I was well enough to travel with you two boys. Both of you were already 'in the palm of my hand' as Jane so charmingly put it. I half slid off the stupid thing when I saw you, but if I'm remembering correctly, you caught me."

"Of course I caught you! I wasn't going to let you maim yourself again after we just patched you up!" I cut in with a chuckle. She mock-punched me from her position on my lap, and continued on telling our story, this time to Jane.

"Anyways, after he caught me up, I twisted around and we wasted no time in getting to know each other. Dom never asked my name, I never asked his. It just felt right. It waslike we were meant for each other. Looking back now, that was probably the truth head on. Felix found us like that, kissing and gasping for air. You should have seen his face!" Evelyn laughed.

"I was always a little sister to Felix, I loved him, he loved me, but nothing more. Felix was like my lost brother, but much, much more dangerous, and minus the manners. Demetri.... was the lover I never had. And what a lover he is! My mother would have been devastated if she was still alive, but she had always prayed I would find the right person.

Felix still teases us about back then, but he has quite a collection to choose from nowadays," she said with a laugh. Even Jane was starting to smile.

"I never left their sides," she continued. "It was always Felix, Dom, or both. I was nearly always with Demetri, but he would never let me see him hunt. I never objected, as I knew I might always have looked at him and seen a vampire if I did, not a lover unsuitable for an archangel."

"Wait," Jane gasped. You knew he was a vampire even human?"

"Sure. Felix would never have just waited until I guessed! If Demetri and Felix were both vampires, what's the problem? They were perfect for me; would being human have made much of a difference? It's not what they eat, it's what they do," Evelyn said simply, as if it settled the matter.

I pondered this to myself, musing over it. Is it really that simple? Very, very few people ever would even consider standing close to our type. Most animals wouldn't even stray within a five mile radius of us, with a few exceptions. Foxes, for one, I thought with a grin.

"Now then, back to the story! I stuck to their sides like a bur on a horse's tail, never leaving them unless worked free by very, very, lithe fingers. Aro's fingers, for example." Evelyn paused to take a deep breath, her eyes hollow with the memory.

"In 1920, Caius decided he needed his tracker and strongman back. Aro agreed, and sent Santiago, Eleazar, Corin, and Afton to fetch his boy toys back. Jane, you and Alec weren't with the Volturi back then, but that made them no less powerful. Demetri and Felix were originally sent to meet the covens in North America, when they found me. They stayed with me and America for far longer than necessary, and Caius was getting more suspicious by the day.

Being without a tracker slowed the hunt down considerably, and gave us just enough time to escape from the hunters. But not in together," She sighed, deep with sorrow. I hadn't forgotten about back then, indeed the reminiscence often boiled in the back of my thoughts, demanding attention.

"Felix and I escaped, but Dom was 'restored'. I never questioned him about what they did to him, nor will I. He never said one word though, and his thoughts too, revealed nothing."

Jane yelped. "How?! It's impossible! No one, no one, has ever hidden something from Aro!" I shrugged, as if I really didn't know. Of course, I would have to tell her eventually, seeing as she'd met Evey now. Why not?

"Maybe it's just being a half-breed, but no one can mentally affect her. When Felix and I report to Aro, the time spent with her is blank, unreadable, and almost static," I answered, wary of her reaction.

She met my eyes, horrified, as she realized the price I had paid. She had not suffered, but had often enough helped inflict those poor souls who had disobeyed our masters. But her talent was nothing, nothing, compared to the price I had had to pay. I burrowed my face in Evelyn's hair, breathing in her scent, calming me.

Evelyn shook her hair, continuing again.

`"Felix and I traveled for half a year, avoiding big cities and sticking to the woods, where we where less noticeable. That meant less hunting possibilities, and Felix began to depend on animal blood, much to his dismay." She smiled then, remembering some inside joke.

"We began to meet other immortal creatures other than ourselves, such as other vampires, nixies, kelpies, kitsune .... and werewolves." I froze again, reliving the moment that had changed it all. How she had twisted in agony, her breath coming in sharp screams, and how she had cried my name in terror. Her fingers had twined into mine, her tears cascading down her rosy cheeks. I shuddered, forcing myself to stick to the present.

"We were in British Columbia at the time, hunting again. Felix let me watch him hunt as long as he was hunting animals, so I was with him. He- it came out of nowhere. Ever seen a true werewolf? They're about the size of a Clydesdale, but a lot stronger. And with daggers for teeth.

Felix... couldn't do anything. One moment he was hunting, the next fangs the size of my hand were burying themselves into my waist. I still have the scars now; some things even vampire venom can't fix. The pain was excruciating. I don't remember much of what happened next, the world could have been in flames and I wouldn't have noticed. Nor would I have cared.

I didn't realize it until later, but the bastard had already released me. What I felt then was venom, plain and simple. I have never felt vampire venom alone, only combined with werewolf taint, so I cannot compare to anything you might know. I can only tell you that the agony is worse than anything, anything your venom or your gift can produce." Jane's ashen face paled visibly and her voice shook.

"When? When have you seen me use my gift? I... there's no way... I mean.... the Volturi. How do you see the Volturi?" If I hadn't been curious too, I would have laughed at the way Jane,the most sadistic being I knew besides Marcus, as she stuttered along.

"Another story for a different time," Evelyn replied. She avoided my questioning look, and continued.

"What happened next, I can recall perfectly, for it was both the beginning and end of my life. How could I not? Over my screams, I was faintly aware of a pitched battle taking place. Snarls, whimpers, none of them mattered to me. But Demetri still did.

He was all I saw, but he was there. With me. And then, he was gone. I don't know how I managed it, but I had to see what was happening so I crawled out of the pool of my blood, and into the surrounding brush. What I saw..." She took a deep breath, and started again.

"I saw hell. Felix had a vice grip on the werewolf's back; Demetri was sinking his teeth into it's neck. Blood was... everywhere. It streamed off the werewolf's back, off me, and into a rising tide of liquid pain. I was hanging by a thumbnail on life, its venom and my fear the only thing keeping me alive."

What she had described was the truth, but there was more to it than that.
It was my turn to tell the story.

"Felix was close to losing it. He was slipping, and his blows were getting more and more astray. Seeing as I was hanging from the beast's neck, I was closest to its heart. Our venom is deadly to werewolves; but with them so big, it can take more than a few hours to set in. Unless the venom was instilled directly to it's heart. How lucky I was!" I laughed sarcastically.

"It did the trick, and you could hardly hear Evelyn's screams over the beast's. Of course it still wasn't dead yet, as their hearts are about the size of your head, but it writhed enough that it would be dead by noon, and dawn was close already.

But there was still Evelyn," I said, my voice barely louder than the wind as it rattled through the pines.

"I got there as soon as I could; I left Felix to polish off the dog. But Evelyn was still too far gone in the venom to do much. If I let the venom change her, I might someday have to kill her by the order of Caius. I cannot live without her, and she cannot do the latter.

What choice did I have? To go to my masters and beg for death like the Cullen did? I didn't know what would happen if I bit her; would she die like the pathetic thrashing mutt behind me? Or would she hate me forever even if she did survive? If there was even the slightest chance she might survive, I was willing to take it," I laughed, a hard, bitter sound.

"And so I bit her, praying the while she would not die. She only took a day to change, but even as the dog behind me stilled, I could do not but worry. And when she did..." I could feel myself stupidly grinning, as I recalled the first time she opened her new eyes to the old world. Jane stared at me, probably wondering why an idiotic smile had taken over my normally somber features.

"When she first opened her eyes, we were both shocked. Not that she was alive, even though that was the biggest blessing itself. No, we were shocked by her eyes. Not the ruby color of a newborn's, nor the color of ours, mild crimson. They were a beautiful shade of amber, as they still are now. They were the color of a wild animal's. A cougar's eyes, or perhaps a wolf's. Or... a fox's." A wry smile curled my lips, but Jane was beyond being surprised by anything now.

"It was like the first time all over again. Surprise after surprise hurtled our way, testing us to the bane of our existence. We both had been steeling ourselves, preparing for the worst. I had been holding her, cradling against me, and thus I felt it when she awoke. 'Felt' wouldn't be a very apt description for anyone else, but seeing as a giant fox isn't hard to ignore..." I trailed off, meeting the gaze of the woman I would die for.

"You... changed? The moment you opened your eyes?" Jane questioned, a trifle shocked.

"Yerp," Evelyn chirped.

"Yes," I answered, ignoring my lover.

"That's... amazing. Gifts normally don't make themselves apparent until two weeks after rebirth, and when they do..."

"That's not my gift," Evelyn sighed, "I discovered my gift a few days later." Jane was staring in raw, staggering bewilderment, growing more and more insecure at each new story.

"Your... gift?" she stuttered.

"I'm a fire dancer. I guess playing with the inferno in Chicago rubbed off on me," Evelyn chuckled wryly. "It dances for me, shapes at my touch, or in other words, it loves me. There is nothing, nothing fire can't accomplish. Of course, many a person could say much the same thing about pain. But people never realize, fire is pain. A master of fire is a master of pain. So really, we're not all that different," Evelyn smiled disarmingly.

Jane gaped openly, frozen in shock and terror. This was fast turning into a hopeless fight for dominance, like a runt puppy challenging the battle-worn Alpha. It really wasn't fair to laugh at her; she'd always been in control, never before at the receiving end of fear. So why was I just as terrified as her?

Again, I was astounded with Evelyn. She spoke it so nonchalant, as if it was nothing. I knew better. I had seen her summon blazes taller than I and from bare ground. I had also seen her raise flames on water, and seen them feast on wayward boats.

I had never been afraid of her though, much like I was never afraid of many of my colleagues. This was the one exception. As I watched Jane cower, I too was shivering as Evelyn's amber eyes burned, smoldering like the blazes she loved so.

I bit my lip, forcing myself to lock away my fear in some long forgotten corner of my mind, in places only Aro could enter.

"Can your gift work on Corin? He's immune to fire." Jane asked. I was glad she asked since I had often wondered the same thing. She had never met Corin, for obvious reasons. Corin made you relive your worst memories, and physical pain, and Evelyn had many, many bad memories. Not that she had any other members of the Volturi anyway.

"There's an exception to everyone," Evelyn smiled sadly. "I don't know. He's just immune to normal fire from what I've heard from Felix, and mine isn't normal, but maybe. He's not a shield if it's mental, so who knows?"

"Now that that's aside, there is a little bit of the story left. If you'll shut up for a moment, I can tell you more." The role from a dominant Alpha about to whip the hell out of the foolish kit had changed almost instantly to caring mother scolding a child for ruining her dinner. Jane nodded quickly, her eyes wide. We must have made quite the picture; a pale, man with no shirt and blood red eyes with a beautiful copper haired girl in his lap who was enveloped only in a thick, gray cloak, who was telling off a wide eyed, pale girl in the new fallen snow. Yes, quite the picture, I thought wryly.

"Like I was saying before," Evelyn glared, "I changed the moment I opened my eyes, but that doesn't mean I was still your average newborn. I remembered every detail of my past life; I still do. But on the other hand, I have always been weaker than any other immortal aside from the kitsune and I sleep, also much like them. I'm faster than any vampire, but I have a heart and blood, so there are still limits. I also can't change if both my wrists are enclosed. Shackles, bracelets, even someone just holding my wrists together. I'm hoping you aren't stupid enough to try that. It doesn't bind my gift," Evelyn grimaced.

"Never dreamed of it," Jane answered with a shaky smile. "Is that your story? Or is there still more?"

"Nope. That's it. There's a few minor stories, but that's a good start for now," beneath the cheery demeanor, her eyes were guarded. I knew she had secrets, but I had always respected her space. Now though, the impulse to know was nearly overpowering. I traced designs on Evelyn's back to distract myself, but it worked only because she shivered into my chest.

"How-" My question was cut off by the deep chimes of the Palazzo dei Priori's bells. Jane and I froze. Had the time really flown by that fast? Damn...

"Eve, we have to go..." I said, anxiously glancing towards the city, though the woods made it easy to forget there was anything there. My lover sighed, and got off my lap, but still bending over me.

"Come back soon, 'k? And tell me if they send you anywhere," she pleaded, her fiery eyes huge.

"I will, I promise!" I smiled, my breath catching in my chest. I should have been used to it by now. How long had I watched her sleep, breath, and laugh? It felt like centuries, but every time she looked at me like this, my mouth would go dry and my heart ached, like I had just met her rather than having known her for decades. Nothing mattered in that moment. Not Jane, not the bells, and not the falling snow. I pulled her tight to me, tilting her head up to look at me, and kissed her. Any tension in us evaporated as we held each other, almost going limp in the other's arms. Her scent washed over me, like a toy boat in a hurricane.

Her hands wound into my hair, as everywhere she touched burned with an arcane fire.Jane was all but forgotten, at least, until she coughed, embarrassed.I unwillingly released Evelyn, the fire she had given me still burning me. "Dom.... We have to go," Jane said softly. I sighed, got up, and waited for Jane. Evelyn smiled, meeting my gaze. "C'mon Demetri, Caius won't be all too happy with you," Jane said. I closed my eyes regretfully, turned away, and walked away from Evelyn.

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Ouch. Don't think ol' Jane was expecting that. Sorry for editing so much peoplez! The people who subscribed to me are probably pounding their heads against walls right now, but I am workin' on chappie 3, I promise! Almost done!

-Long live the stupid Fox! ~Evelyn!