Disclaimer- All recognizable characters belong to Mrs. Stephenie Meyer, whereas all new characters belong to me.

Chapter 18- Thinking time

I handed Yuzria a glass of lemonade and sat down on the table. He wiped away the sweat that was lined across his forehead and took a swig. " Thanks." He said after it was gone. I nodded my head and tapped my hands against the wood. He set the empty glass in the sink and came over to me, putting his hand on my shoulder. " Are you alright?" He asked. I looked up and at him and shrugged my shoulders.

" Just thinking." I answered. He shook his head and sat next to me, his body warm from working out. I put my head on his shoulder and felt him rub my hair with his fingers. I smiled and gave his cheek a small kiss. " You spoil me." I said and watched him yawn with a giggle. He laughed softly and yawned again.

" Sorry, tad tired." He told me. I sat up and put my hands on his cheeks and pulled him to me. After the deep kiss, I stood up.

" Go get some sleep Yuzria." I said to him and walked over to the fridge for some blood.

" Are you sure you don't need me for anything else. I can last a couple more hours if need be."

" No, we're good. I'm just going to wait for some old. . . Friends to pop by and then I'll be up there." He smirked and stepped towards me.

" Promise?" I could see a small twinkle in those green eyes and chuckled.

" Promise." I gave him another small kiss then watched him walk up the stairs. The Cullens' had already went home and the rest of my tiny army were still in the backyard working. I opened the French doors and headed outside, the night spilled over me. I inhaled deeply, taking in the forest smells and the sounds of swords clinking. There was nothing like a good fight to get your body pumped. They all looked up, their faces strong despite the hours of practicing. " Come on in guys, you're all ready." I said, holding the door open. They trailed in one by one, putting their weapons in the small chest I'd found in the attic of the house. It was heavy duty and would stay together through a lot. Travis and Lanina sat at the table while Lisa and Laurent headed upstairs for a little down time. " Don't keep Yuzria awake!" I yelled when they were halfway up the steps. Laurent turned around, winked, then darted up the rest of the steps with Lisa. Travis tilted his head back with laughter. Whereas Lanina and me rolled our eyes. But, as the saying goes, boys will be boys. Suddenly a knock came from the door. Lanina's and my eyes met as I walked over to the door. They were finally here. I swung the door open and grinned. Ash, Mike, Flora and Manny walked in; grins wide on their faces. We all traded hugs and headed into the living room. Lanina and me knew them through Annebelle. We'd all been changed by her or someone close to her. So that meant we spent a lot of time together until I killed her. Ash, otherwise known as Ashley, sighed and kicked her feet up.

" I always knew you'd be trouble." She teased, pointing at me. " Starting wars, being a guardian. . . Annebelle picked a keeper didn't she?"

" That she did." Mike spoke up, his blonde hair almost falling over his eyes but not quite. Manny, or Emmanuel, laughed and sat next to Flora.

" So, what do you need us for?" He asked. " You look like you've been keeping yourself pretty damn fit." I nodded my head in agreement and stood in front of them.

" Yeah, I have. But the truth of the matter is, I need more people if I want to beat him completely. Sure, I'm strong. But he'll outnumber me if I keep who I've got know and don't add people." I told them. " I know it's a hell of a lot to ask, but I want you next to me. I trust each of you and want you to fight beside me." They all shook their heads, their crimson eyes inspecting mine. Lanina stuck out her lower lip in a pout, which earned a laugh from Manny and Ash. Flora merely sat there, her long chestnut hair brushing her arms. She was quiet but deadly.

" I'd be glad to." She said softly and stood, a small smile on her face. " You are very brave Noleen."

" Thank you Flora." She bent her head once and stepped beside me. Manny was the next to stand. He didn't look like your typical vampire. He had light olive skin instead of paper white. Most of our kind were envious. He put a hand on my shoulder and kissed my cheek.

" Of course I'll fight beside you baby girl. I always told you that you'd go far." He winked and stepped next to Flora. They turned and talked with Lanina while I waited for Ash's and Mike's decision. They looked at each other for a couple moments then stood.

" I'd be honored." Mike said and bowed slightly. He was the oldest of us. I smiled and gave him a quick hug. Ash stepped in front of me, her face blank.

" Noleen-" She began. " There is no way in hell I would miss this." A smile broke across her face and she wrapped me in a tight hug.

" Thank you all so much." I replied as we sat back down.

" No problem, now tell us all the details. We've got the time." Ash joked, her eyes gleaming in the light. I chuckled and started at the beginning.

I stepped into my room at quarter to three in the morning. After telling my newest recruits everything, I'd shown them to their rooms and Lanina took them hunting. I listened at the door to his quiet breathing. His chest rose and fell with each breath; it was so relaxing. I smiled and quietly closed the door. Then laid down next to him, making sure I didn't wake him with my cold touch. He shifted and opened his eyes slowly. With a small smile he scooted himself next to me and wrapped his arms around me. " Everything go okay?" He asked, still sleepy. I ran my hand down his back and watched him shiver slightly.

" Yeah, everything went great. Go back to sleep." I whispered and kissed him gently. He murmured something I couldn't quite understand and then drifted back off. I studied him while he slept. He looked so innocent. Had I looked like that? So young and innocent? I knew he was far from young, but still. I closed my eyes and pretended to sleep. My mind wondered from Annebelle to Edward to Yuzria. It didn't stop once. As soon as the first ray of light started to come up, I opened my eyes and jumped in the shower. No need to lay there any longer. By the time I was done, Yuzria was just waking up. He rubbed his eyes and looked at me. I smiled and tugged my shirt over my head. " Mornin' sunshine." I said and sat on the bed. " Whatcha want for breakfast?" He smirked and put a finger to his lips in thought.

" Bacon-" He started. " Eggs and maybe a side of French toast.

" Ah, excellent choice!" I joked. He laughed and kissed my cheek. " How's Coco Pebbles sound?"

" Wonderful. I'm going to shower real quick and I'll be down." I shook my head and kissed him again before heading down the steps. Everyone was gathered around the table talking about our plans of action.

" I say we surprise them. Jump when they're not looking and scare the shit out of Mitchell." Ash suggested, her eyes wide at the thought. She loved a good fight more than I did. " Or maybe we can just torch their camp and listen to their screams." Her eyes shined in the light. She was the mad genius of the group.

" There will be no torching." I spoke up. " Too cowardly. We're going to fight and I'm going to have the pleasure of watching my sword remove Mitchell's head."

" I like the sounds of that." Manny said. " Watch their faces as we slice and dice them."

" But we can't slice and dice them. Only Noleen can." Mike pointed out.

" We can still do major damage. Besides, once Mitchell is dead his army will fall apart. They won't fight without their leader." Flora said softly.

" Flor's got a point." Ash put her head in her hands and sighed. " War makes me hungry."

" You just ate." Lanina laughed.

" Only two muggers! My body needs more than that. I'm a growing girl after all." I chuckled and took out the cereal from the cabinet. Ash giggled and picked up the box. " Why Noleen, something you want to tell us?" I grabbed the box from her hands and growled low.

" It's for Yuzria." I told her. She turned to me and batted her eyelashes.

" You love him and make his breakfasts for him. How sweet." She sang. I smacked her hand away when she went to take the box again and set it on the counter.

" Fuck off Ash." I sighed and watched Manny crack up and hold out his hand.

" Mike said that you softened because you're dating a witch. I said you didn't. He owes me." I watched Mike slap a hundred bucks in Manny's hand and growl.

" She looked soft." He mumbled. I smirked and sat at the table.

" I. . . Will never be fully soft thank you very much." I responded. Laurent and Travis shook their heads in agreement. " Now, you four should meet the Cullens' today. And no making fun of them because of their diet." Ash groaned and pushed her black and red hair aside.

"Oh come on! One joke? Little one? Please?" She stuck out her lower lip and gave me puppy dog eyes.

" It's not every day we meet vegetarians." Mike told me. " Give her one." I looked at him and then back at Ash. She knew before I did that I was going to give in because she started to clap.

" Yay! Thanks Nol!" She cried.

" I haven't said yes yet."

" Oh, but you thought it so whatever. I could see it on your face." They went back to planning our methods of attack while I drifted off to la-la land. I could hear what they were saying plainly, but didn't feel the need to reply. Soon I saw a pair of snapping fingers in front of my face and grabbed them. Manny jumped and pulled his fingers from my grip.

" What?" I asked calmly. He smiled and put a hand on my shoulder. When had he gotten behind me? How long had I been in my own little world?

" I was just asking you what you were thinking." He told me softly. I noticed Yuzria was by the counter eating, looking at me intently too. Man, I sure knew how to daydream.

" I was just wondering where his home base is. So to speak." I replied.

" Italy." Lisa spoke up, she hadn't been talking much either. " He's in Italy. He sends people here and comes here himself sometimes. But he stays in Italy."

" Close to Volterra?"

" Fairly, yes." Damn. He was staying close to his enemy. . . I sighed and stood up.

" I'm going to go for a walk. I'll be back in a few." Everybody nodded their heads and watched me walk out the door except Yuzria. He grabbed my arm to stop me. " I'm okay." I assured him before he could say anything. " I just need to think." We said a quick goodbye and I took off on Travis' bike. Sometimes I needed a little bit of thinking time all by myself. Surrounded only by nature. A place popped into my head and I cranked the bike to another gear. It was going to be a long drive.

A/N: First things first, thanks so much for reading and reviewing! Keep it up! lol. This is a longer chapter I think so that's good. Okay, second thing, I need to know if you guys would be happy with just this story and then the end of everything, or if you'd want a third one. I want to know, simply because I can go two ways with this. I can end it with Forever is a long time, or further another plot for a third one. Let me know what you think! Also, for those of you who read Silent Lucidity, I'm sorry the chapters are so short. It's just that was only meant to be a one-shot but people really liked it and wanted more. So, I'm kind of making things work as I go. So, I'm going to take a slight break, only like maybe two days, to outline my stories and get everything straightned in all my stories so hopefully I can make them longer! That's my plan anyways haha. I swear, it will NOT be a long break. Like I said, two days tops. Well, let me know your thoughts, etc and I will see you for chapter 19!

Until next time,

Faith