Ready for today's chapter? Things are getting complicated and vampires have important things to tell the werewolves. Thanks to everyone for reading this fic and I send a big hug for all the ones who are sending me reviews and are helping me to write the story. Enjoy!

I don't own Twilight.

8 Invitation

Leah's point of view

I was in the clear of a forest with my pack, Sam, Jared and Paul trying to recover my breath while Seth was explaining me everything; Jacob was doing the same with Sam.

"So Alice had a vision?" I asked in my mind.

"Yes, she saw Aro talking with someone, she is not sure who they are, but he told them to greet the new couple and give her something after the explanation," Seth explained.

"What?"

"Well, those weren't his exact words, I wasn't there, but from what everyone understood, Aro wants to send his congratulations to Emily and Sam, and he also wants the messenger to deliver something to her after he or she explains something," Seth said.

Sam started to growl and walk anxiously around the clear, Jacob probably already told him everything and he doesn't like the idea of vampires meeting his fiancée.

"Why Aro is doing this?" I asked? "I thought we were mortal enemies."

"Edward told me on the phone that Aro has always like the idea of having us like guardian dogs; he is probably trying to buy our trust," Jacob explained.

"He could have call or send a letter," Embry thought. "Why did he send his guards all the way here?"

"Yeah, and how do they know we are here?" Quil asked.

"Demetri," Jacob answered. "He can find anyone anywhere. Oh no, I think we have company."

Jacob turned to look at Sam and we all knew they were using the alpha connection to talk between them.

"Company?"Embry asked.

"The Makah pack," we all thought at the same time.

"Talking about that…" Quil said looking at Seth. "Why don't you tell her?"

"I don't think this is the best moment," Seth said trying to look anything but me.

"Tell me what?" I asked confuse. "What is it? Seth… don't force me to invade every thought of yours."

"A, B, C, D, E, F, G…"

"Seth! Not the alphabet song!" Embry asked disgusted.

"Thinking in something else is not going to protect you forever little brother, now tell me!"

Before he could say something, we heard a lot of steps coming from the west side of the forest and a few minutes later five wolves entered the clear.

"Is that Neal?" I asked looking at the giant, black wolf that was leading the others.

"Yes, that's him," Jacob said.

Then a disgusting scent burned our noses and we knew what was coming; the Volturi guard. We all got in our attack positions forming three disorganized lines in the clear and we waited. After a while, we were able to see three shadows at the distance; two of them were running towards us and the other one was jumping from one tree to another. They finally reached the clear and they stopped in front of us.

Neal's point of view

"Well, look at this, the whole reservation came to welcome us," a blond, male vampire said smiling at us.

"Take a good look Felix, we have new friends here," a male vampire with black hair said looking at my pack.

"Let me handle this Afton," the last vampire said sitting on the branch of a tree. "Well, long time no see, is it too much to ask one of you to shift to your human form? It would be easier to speak with you."

We all growled lowering our heads.

"I'll take that as a no," the vampire said without changing the serious expression of his white face. "Master Aro sends his sincere congratulations to you Sam," he said looking at the big wolf. "Is it his wish that you and your future wife have a great and long life together. He sends his blessing to you and your family, along with Caius and Marcus' greetings."

"We should attack now?" I asked to Sam.

"If we kill them, then we'll be dealing with fifty others like them, just let him talk and he'll get out of here, until that, don't move a muscle," Sam said.

How can he be so calm with all of this? A crazy vampire is sending him greetings from his king and he wants us to do nothing? What is he thinking?

"They don't have powers, not important ones," Jake suddenly told me. "They are not dangerous, not with thirteen of us to stop them."

"With that said, I'll like to talk to a very special lady, someone you all know," the vampire said smiling mischievously. "Can I have a moment alone with Leah?"

What? We all growled immediately, like some kind of strange reflex. There is no way he is staying alone with my imprint! She is mine! What does this freak want with her anyway?

"I think that's another no," Felix pointed out.

Sam and the others calmed down faster than I did, but I don't care, she is my imprint, there is no way I am letting her talk with this leeches! I just hope she is in a very far land, safe from all kind of creatures.

"Ok Neal, listen up," Sam said. "Jake is talking with his pack and they are going to do something you won't like…"

"What…?"

"No matter what happens, don't move! Ok? We know what we are doing; we have fought against them before."

I didn't answer him and turned to look at Jacob's pack. One of the wolves, a grey one, is walking towards the forest again, he disappeared between the trees and he reappeared a few seconds later; he wasn't a werewolf anymore, and he wasn't a he either.

"Leah?"

Leah's point of view

Just when I thought my life couldn't get any worse. Destiny always finds the way to destroy my small, happy moments, but sending a vampire who wants to speak alone with me? Come on! That's exaggerating! It was tough enough to know that Neal is Emily's ex-boyfriend and that he still loves her, it wasn't necessary to bring the vampires here, did you hear that destiny? I got the message!

Everyone thought that the woman Demetri wanted to speak with was Emily, not me, I mean, why me? I haven't done anything, not that I know.

I walked out of the forest wearing only the green, short dress that Lina had chosen for me; she said I was supposed to wear something nice and formal for the rehearsal, because I was the maid of honor. Now I am really regretting the moment I decided to listen to her.

"What do you want Demetri?" I asked him stopping behind Jacob while the rest of my pack surrounded me.

"Wow, Leah you didn't have to dress like that for me," Demetri said taking a good look at me.

All my pack brothers growled at him angrily, but who really lost it was Neal; one of his pack members put in front of him blocking his way towards the vampires. What is wrong with him? Why does he care so much?

"Why are you here?" I asked Demetri crossing my arms over my chest.

"To have a few words with you of course, why else would I come all the way from Italy?" he answered; is he flirting with me?

"Whatever you need to say, you can say it in front of my pack and my friends," I said making clear that I was going nowhere without them.

"If that is what you want, ok then," Demetri said jumping to the floor and standing between Afton and Felix. "Leah Clearwater, as you are the only known shape-shifter female in the world and the only one in Quileute history, you have the honor of being the first outside creature that our master Aro, king of the Volturi and the vampire's world, has decided to recruit for the royal guard."

Say what? I just stood there in shock with my mouth half open trying to assimilate all the information. Nobody wants me, I mean, everyone always leave me behind or doesn't like to include me in any kind of project because I am a freak. And now Aro wants me to be his personal body guard? What kind of joke is this?

"Are you insane?" was the first thing I was able to say.

"Excuse me?"

"I think spending a lot of time in the dungeons of your castle dried your brain," I said looking at Jake who nodded at me. "Have you lost your mind? We are mortal enemies and there is no way I am leaving La Push to spend the rest of my life with you and your cold friends."

"You don't have to decide now Leah," Demetri said calmly as if he wasn't even listening to my words.

"I already decided and my answer is no," I said putting emphasis in the word.

"You don't sound very sure."

"What else do you need? A giant, fluorescent sign? I am not going to join you, not now and not in a million years," I assured him while I looked at Neal with the corner of my eye; he was very nervous.

"A million years is a lot of time," Demetri commented looking at his partners with a smile. "Master Aro will be disappointed; he really was expecting that you accepted his invitation."

"Don't make me repeat it Demetri."

"Well, is an open invitation, you can come in a hundred years if you want to, you know? It'll be perfect, you'll be alone, all your friends are going to be dead and you'll have nothing better to do."

My pack brothers started growling again and by Sam's expression I can tell that he is losing his patience. Neal… I just can't understand why he is so paranoid, is this the first time that he sees a vampire? I don't think so, then what is it?

"Leave," I ordered Demetri while I tried to kill him with my look.

"Here," he said throwing something at me very quickly.

Thanks to my good reflexes I caught it with my hands and I opened them to see a beautiful, silver, diamond necklace. It is very thin, delicate and elegant. What can I say? Is perfect in every possible way.

"I knew you were going to like it," Demetri said cockily.

"Now you are trying to buy me with this?" I asked looking at him.

"Is it working?" I smiled and then sighed; I can't deny it had an effect on me. I think they all noticed because Seth gave me a little push with his head.

"Thanks, but I don't want to keep it," I said preparing to throw it back at him.

"Don't," Demetri said to stop me. "It's from master Aro, and by giving it back to me you are going to offend him, you don't want to offend the king of the vampires, do you?"

"No, but…"

"A unique piece for a unique woman."

After hearing Demetri's words Neal lost control. He started growling and he tried to move forward, if it wasn't for Sam, who was now blocking his way, he would have succeeded.

"Looks like someone needs a leash," Felix commented.

"Leave," I told Demetri again. "And don't ever come back."

"You know I can find you whenever I want to," Demetri said. "It doesn't matter where you hide."

"I am not talking about me, this is not our territory, leave now or my pack brothers are going to rip your head off!"

That kind of had an effect on them, and after Afton and Felix had left, Demetri just turned around once to tell me one more thing before leaving.

"I'll see you again Leah, I am sure about it."

When they finally left and their scent was no longer in the air, everyone relaxed; well everyone except Neal who came running at me at full speed.

"What is wrong with you?" I asked him while, unconsciously, I put my hand on his head. That seemed to help him relaxed and he lowered his ears. "See? Everything is fine now."

His green eyes trapped me again with an inexplicable charm and I wasn't able to look away from them. Then Jacob ended the magic by pushing me apart with his head and I noticed that everyone was leaving. I wasn't in the mood to hear everyone's thoughts about my conversation with the vampires, so I decided to run in my human form. I am not as fast as the rest of the werewolves in my human body, but I am fast enough to chase them around, so that's what I did. Don't ask me why, but Neal stayed by my side in his wolf form all the way till Emily's house. When we finally got there, my pack and Sam's had already shifted and Neal's pack was waiting his leader in their wolf form.

"Good job Leah," Jacob told me patting my back; they all know I don't like hugs.

"Yeah, you handle it pretty well," Embry commented.

"You are not going to keep that, are you?" Seth asked me pointing at the necklace on my hand.

"Maybe, it can be useful in the future," I answered and everyone looked at me. "What? I was serious guys, I am not going to leave you, but this can be helpful in the middle of a war or something."

"Girls and jewelry, I'll never understand that connection," Paul said.

"So, what now?" I asked.

"Neal's pack volunteered to patrol till six am, my pack will switch with them and after that it will be Jake's pack turn," Sam explained.

"Can I… can I go with Neal's pack now?" I asked and they all turned to look at me again; I hate to be the center of attention. "Just look at me! I am a mess and I don't want to enter a house full of people, at 2 am, with seven half naked men. I know I don't have a very good reputation, but I still have some dignity."

"Well, she does have a point," Embry said taking a look at my dress. Lina is going to kill me when she sees it all covered in mud and leafs.

"You enter the house first Leah," Sam said. "We will wait half an hour and then we will go in."

"Yeah, you can tell them we were attacked by a bear and we sent you for help, then we will appear like heroes just before they go out to help us, it will be like a miracle!" Quil said.

"That's the worst idea ever," I told him shaking my head.

"They will believe anything you tell them, now go!" Sam told me a little bit too serious, so I just obeyed and left.

"See you all tomorrow," I said turning around before starting to run towards the house.

Sam's point of view

"One more thing Neal," I said to him before they left to start patrolling. "We all know Leah is your imprint, but she doesn't have a clue yet."

He couldn't tell me anything in his wolf form, but soon we will have a lot of time to talk about it.

"Let's meet after breakfast in the same spot where we met the vampires," I proposed him. "Jacob and I will explain you everything that we know and after that you can talk to her if you want."

Neal nodded and then they disappeared between the trees of the forest.

"Tough night," Jacob commented.

"And this is just the beginning," I said.

Did you expect that? The three packs are going to have a long talk in the next chapter and the truth will finally be reveal, how will Leah react? Keep alert and don't forget to REVIEW! It won't take you more than a minute and it helps to inspire, see ya!

Ishii Sen Ling