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

Chapter 27- The day before-part 2

I stood with the other members of the Volturi, my seat barely touching the back of my legs. Aro had told me we all had to stand until every member had gotten to their place at the table. Then we would all sit as one, as a unit. I had to hold back my laughter, it all just seemed so funny. I glanced around the room at the other Volturi members. The men, with the exception of two, had hair to their shoulders or to the middle of their back. Their skin was transparently pale skin and seemed to float when they walked. The women had their hair in a tight bun with loose curls framing their face. They screamed elegance and grace. I peered at my hair and scowled, I could use a few Victorian fashion tips from them. The room reeked of power and the kind of presence only Volturi members had. Aro learned towards me a little, still watching the rest of the Volturi members get settled. It amazed me at how tiny the amount of Volturi members there were. The diversity in the room was fairly big. The countries the other Volturi members had come from were England, Germany, Russia, Egypt and Ireland. Based on the clothing I could tell who came from where. I couldn't believe that there were only twenty six of us to rule over all the vampires in the world. " What do you think?" Aro asked me quietly. I glanced at him and smiled.

" Mitchell doesn't stand a chance." I replied. He laughed and then noticed all the members were present and poised at their seats. We all sat at the same time. Not one person was too early or too late.

" You must be Isabella, our newest member." A woman said to me. I studied her as I nodded my head. Her crimson eyes looked quite odd against her pale skin and white blonde hair. I would bet any money that she'd been an albino before being changed. The lack of color in her appearance didn't make her any less beautiful, it just made her appear slightly ghostly.

" I am." I answered her strongly. I didn't want them thinking I was weak or that Aro was wrong about asking me to turn.

" Is it true that you're a guardian?" A man asked. I looked at him and noted that he was one of the few men with short hair.

" I am." I said again, might as well stick to the response that worked. I felt like I was in the hot seat by the way everyone was looking at me.

" Show us." The albino woman instructed me. Not asked, instructed. I knew right away that I didn't like her. Well, not her per say. I just didn't like anyone who ordered me around. I went to stand but Aro cleared his throat and gave me a look. I wasn't supposed to stand. I rolled my eyes and scooted forward in my seat.

" Well, what do you want to see?" I questioned her politely. She gave me a small smirk and waved her hand. I guessed that meant anything would do. It was going to take me a while to get used to all the looks and gestures the Volturi had. Maybe I would make up a few of my own. Just to throw them off. I held my hand out and watched a flame sprout from the palm of my hand. While they were watching the flame grow larger, I took my knife out of its sheath and peeked at Aro. He was watching me intensely. He knew I was going to do something. He bent his head once and then I struck. I stood up and stabbed the knife right into Aro's heart. He winced and let out a small cry. I turned around and watched as he dropped to the floor, holding his chest. The Volturi members darted from their chairs in a hurry.

" What did you do to him!" The man yelled. I knelt beside Aro and put my hand on his chest. I concentrated and watched as the light flowed from my hand. His wound was healed instantly. I helped him up and gave him a small kiss on his cheek.

" Thanks." I whispered. He shook his head and fell back in his chair. I smiled and turned my attention back to the other members. Marcus, Caius and Jane were still in their seats. They already knew what my powers enabled me to do. " Still doubt me?" I asked the members. They slowly sat, shaking their heads no. I stayed standing and started to walk around the table. " I'm only one person, there is only so many people I can heal. So there will be causalities in this fight. Some of our troops will die from Mitchell's hand. I'm leading a small troop tomorrow. We're going to scout out the land and get rid of all the traps we can."

" What is the main plan of attack? For the whole of us?" A woman asked me quietly. I faced her and straightened a pin in her dark brown hair. She looked to be from England. She smiled and lowered her head slightly. It seemed like she was embarrassed. I arched an eyebrow and shrugged it off.

" Get rid of Mitchell. Once he's gone his troops should fall apart. Who will lead them if their leader is dead?"

" He could have a second in charge, in case something happens to him." A man pointed out, from the looks of it he was from Russia. I smirked and kept walking.

" Mitchell is proud and cocky. He thinks he is going to be the death of the Volturi. He isn't going to have a second in command. Now, are you all sure you want to be there? That you want to be on the battlefield? It isn't safe-"

" We know the risks. We're willing to take them." He told me sternly. I stopped and looped my fingers through my belt holes on my jeans.

" We've thought it through. We want to be there, to show him we aren't scared." A woman from Egypt spoke up. I looked at them, making it known that I was studying each of them. Finally, I licked my lips and cleared my throat. Man, my opinion was going to get me in trouble one of these days.

" If you step foot on that battlefield, you're idiots." I replied to them simply. That caused quite an uproar. Only my members remained calm. Well, except Jane, but Aro was holding her back.

" How dare you insult us!" A blonde man from Germany spat. I waited, then hurled a fire ball at the table. It left a scorch mark on the table.

" Now that I have you attention." I smiled. " Let me finish. It doesn't matter if Aro only kills one of you, that'll be all it takes to show the other vampires that we are weak. That we are defenseless. That we can be defeated. Who will listen to us if someone lower kills an equal of ours? Yes, you will prove that you aren't scared. But you will also create a hole in the Volturi. Eventually we'll fall apart and even if Mitchell is dead, he'll have gotten what he wanted." The room was silent for a few moments. Finally, the meek brunette spoke again.

" What about you? You're going on the front line and you're one of us." She whispered.

" I'm only known as a Volturi to our troops and this group. None of the other vampire population knows. So, if I die, nothing will be changed. But none of you can afford to fall at the hands of Mitchell. That is why you should stay in this castle, and we can update you daily."

" How are we going to decide what to do?" The man from Russia asked. I smiled and looked at Aro, time for him to take over. He stood as I walked back over to my seat.

" We vote." He responded simply. In the end, it was voted that the Volturi stay in the castle. Far away from the harm of Mitchell. Caius and Jane led them to their rooms so they could rest. I leaned back in my chair and sighed. Aro laughed and patted my shoulder. " You did very well Isabella, we've taken to your position well."

" Thanks. I'm glad I got you stubborn asses to stay." I teased, even Marcus laughed. He had battle plans laid out on the table to show me. He was quietly marking things so Aro and I could talk. " Who's going to tell Alex?" I questioned him.

" Alec." Marcus replied with a laugh. " His name is Alec, why do you insist on calling him Alex?"

" He looks more like an Alex to me. Besides, Alec is a weird name."

" I'm sure he loves that." Aro joked. I shrugged my shoulders and crossed my legs on the chair, Indian style.

" Am I really good at this?" I asked him. He nodded his head and walked behind my chair. I didn't turn to see him, I didn't need to.

" Very. You remind me of someone." He answered me quietly. That grabbed my attention. I looked over my shoulder, right into his eyes. He stared me down and I understood. The woman he'd told me about. " She had a leadership about her quite like you. It's partly what made me fall so hard for her."

" Does Marcus know? I mean, because it must be weird for-" I stopped as soon as I saw Marcus was gone. I scoffed and stood up. " Where the hell did he go? How do you people do that? I mean, I'm fast but you guys are like the wind. Poof, you're just gone!" He laughed and brushed a stray strand of my hair behind my ear.

" Old age Bella my dear. You should go plan with your troop. Seeing as how you leave in six hours." I glanced at the clock and groaned. How had it gotten so late? " Plus, I think you should try to sleep. Get more energy in you. You're going to need it." I shook my head in agreement and was about to walk out of the room when I stopped and turned back to Aro.

" What was her name?" I asked him. He tapped his fingers against the table and whispered her name so quietly, not even I could hear. " I couldn't hear you Aro." I admitted. He smirked weakly and looked at me. I could see the sorrow in his eyes.

" Emma. Emma Lynn Jacobs." He told me in a louder voice. I smiled and put my hand on the doorknob.

" Pretty name." I replied before I walked out to find my troops.

I watched as my tiny troop walked into the garden. I was sitting beside the pool, memories of Edward's and mine little rendez vous making me smile. They all sat down on the white cement besides me. I picked up a flower and tossed it into the pool, creating a little ripple of water around it. " Tomorrow is going to be dangerous. Thank you all for coming with me," I started. I felt a hand around my waist and leaned into the person. Edward kissed the top of my head and murmured in my ear.

" I told you I'll go with you anywhere." He said. I let him rub my back as I faced the rest of my friends.

" I'm not a Volturi member around you guys, I'm a friend. And, as a friend, I'm thanking you for risking your life with me. You don't know what it means in my book. Each and every one of you, I'd trust with my life."

" And we trust you with ours. You're a great leader Bella, we'll be fine as will you." Carlisle assured me warmly. I grinned and took his hand, giving it a small squeeze. " And you're not a friend to me Bella, you're a daughter. You are a part of my family. You also have been and always will be."

" Thank you." I whispered. " So much." We planned for well on two hours. I told them to follow my lead, to not go anywhere without me and to be safe. Then Edward and me headed up to our room so I could get some much needed rest. I laid down, my hair spilling over the pillow and the blankets pulled around me. He was softly kissing my neck, murmuring words of love in my ear. The last thing I heard was him singing my lullaby, then I was off in never never land, preparing for the beginning of what could be the end. . .

A/N: Well I hope you liked this chapter! There's about six chapters left give or take. I finally figured out the title for the 3rd story in this, and it is Everlasting Love! So, yay for that lol. Thank you all for reading and reviewing! Keep it up! Haha. I think that's about it for now, the next chapter will be posted in a day or so. LOVE YOU ALL! MWAH! haha.

Until next time,

Faith