Four days, twenty three hours, forty-seven minutes and twenty seconds. That was how long his mate was in that room, and yet she still continued to be in that room, her pain-filled screams echoing throughout the castle. Alec wanted to be there for her; he wanted to take away her pain by taking away her senses, but Aro said that it wouldn't be necessary. He wanted to see how June took being transformed without Alec's help. She was on her own for now.

Besides, Aiden needed him. He was growing fast, and already, he was taking his first steps, speaking in small, barely comprehensible English. He was learning fast. Alec was genuinely surprised by how intelligent his son was. Aro remarked with great pride that Aiden was even smarter than Renesmee was when she was born, which obviously made Alec very proud as well.

But as time went on, Aiden showed no signs of having a gift. Aro began to grow impatient, but Marcus pointed out that it had only been four days. He also pointed out that perhaps Aiden was waiting for his mother to use his powers.

Despite the reassurance from Marcus, Alec could see Aro's patience running thin. He needed to know that the time and effort he invested in Aiden was worth it, and he needed to know quickly. If he didn't, Aro would kill Aiden.

The mere thought of his son dying made Alec growl. Aiden looked up at him inquisitively, but after a moment he looked away, returning to his toy. It was a teddy bear, a small, simple, brown one, but it was important to Aiden. Jane had made the journey into a more populated area of Italy to get it.

She hadn't spoken a single word when she got it. Aiden had begun getting restless, trying to hold into pillows, but found that they were much too large to hold. He'd cry, reaching out for something that wasn't there. Alec had no idea what to do; how could he?

That same day, Jane just waltzed into his room, handed Aiden a small, brown bear, and then left without a word, closing the door behind her.

He didn't need any words, nor did he need to speak about it with Jane. It would just embarrass her and drive her further away from his family.

"Alec."

It was Felix that entered his room at that moment, Heidi stepping in behind him. The latter mentioned vampire stepped forward, taking Aiden into her arms. Alec looked at her sharply, confused and not trusting her all the way with his child, but Felix caught his attention again.

"She's awake, Alec." Felix spoke up, making Alec direct his red eyes onto the vampire again. "And she's doing something... Something extraordinary. Aro's far beyond pleased. Come here."

Alec followed Felix, trying not to break out into a run to get to June. She was awake. She was alive. She wasn't in pain anymore. Alec checked a clock on the wall; they were twenty minutes into the next day.

June had gone five full days through a transformation. Her heart had been so strong and had fought that venom so hard that it lasted two days longer than it should have.

When Felix opened the door, Alec wasn't really sure what to expect. Sure, he knew that it most likely had to do with June displaying some sort of gift, but he definitely hadn't expected to see what he saw when he walked in.

Everyone looked up when he entered; Caius, Marcus, Demetri, Jane, who were all standing around the bed. Aro was the last to look, seeing as he was blocking Alec's view and was standing with his back facing the door. Aro slowly turned to face Alec, grinning as he did so. "Come meet your mate, Alec." With a sweeping motion of his arm, Aro stepped to the side, slowly revealing June to Alec.

He'd never seen anything more beautiful in his life.

June sat up in the bed, dressed in a fine, black, short-sleeved dress that Heidi most likely had picked out for her. The dress clung to her curves just right, ending at about mid-thigh. It was accompanied by heels of the same color. A Volturi necklace hung from her neck, he noticed, and it contrasted sharply with her now extremely pale skin. She gazed around the room wtih red eyes, a small smile forming on her red tinted lips. Her hair was a bit darker than it had been before, cascading in gentle waves to her waist.

June was still looking around in wonder, her eyes jumping from one object to the next, probably admiring how clear it was. Although Alec didn't remember much about his time right after he was transformed, he did remember how much clearer everything got, and how much all of his senses had improved upon becoming a vampire. He knew that his mate had to be going through the same thing.

The thing that really caught his attention, though, was what seemed to be around her. There was something that was nearly invisible around her. If it hadn't been for his enhanced sight as a vampire, he wouldn't have seen it, but as a vampire, he was able to see the slight colors showing, almost looking like a bubble of some sort, though it was barely there. He stepped forward, wanting to get to her, but Aro grabbed his arm to stop him.

"The forcefield will shock you if you get any closer." Aro explained, making Alec step back, his eyes wide . Aro looked beyond pleased. "She has a gift, Alec. An extraordinary one at that. She's an indesposable part of the Volturi now."

To say that he was relieved would be an understatement. If he still needed to breathe, he would have let out a huge gush of air at that moment. She was going to stay with them. She was going to be with him and she wouldn't be killed.

Suddenly, she directed those scarlett colored eyes on his, her smile widening. In a split second, she was across the room and in front of him, the bed being pushed against the wall from the force of her getting up so suddenly. She cupped his cheeks in her hands and immediately kissed him, trying her hardest to be gentle with him. Alec assumed that she'd been told about her new strength as a newborn by the restraint she was currently showing.

Although he enjoyed the attention June was currently showing him, it was in poor taste to kiss your mate in front of your master and your sister. He pulled back, and when he saw the disappointed look on her face, he wrapped an arm around her waist. Seemingly satisfied for the moment, June settled in to his side.

"Your mate shows amazing restraint as a newborn." Aro explained with a smile. "Now, about that gift."

"Is it like Bella's shield then?" Felix questioned, leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed. "You know, expect with more of a shield aspect to it than hers."

"No, not really." Aro still looked beyond pleased with this discovery. "She can't block out people, meaning that Edward could still read her mind if he wanted to, and I could still see her thoughts if I touched her. But she can prevent people from coming anywhere near her because of her forcefield."

"So we have a shield, but it's more of a physical shield than a mental shield." Demetri concluded.

"Exactly!" Aro clapped once, smiling gleefully. "Which is a splendid addition to our team. Oh, June, I'm so glad that you're officially a part of the family."

June frowned at the word 'family,' looking around wildly before looking up at Alec, who looked down at her, puzzled as to why she was acting like this. "Aiden. Where is he? Is he okay?"

"Your son is fine." Heidi walked into the room just then, Aiden in her arms. The little boy seemed to instantly recognize his mother.

"Mommy!" He cried out, his cute, little face contorting, a telltale sign that he was about to cry if he didn't get his mother in time. He reached out, clenching and unclenching his tiny hands as if it would help get his mother over to him quicker.

June left Alec's side, going to Heidi in an instant and taking her son into her arms. She acted on instinct alone, seeing as she never had a younger brother or sister, and she'd never really held babies before in her life.

With Aiden, though, it was as natural and simple as breathing was. She held him comfortably in her arms, smiling down at him. "It's alright, sweetheart. Mommy's here now. Mommy won't ever leave you again."

Seemingly content with this promise, Aiden nestled his head in the crook in her neck, closing his eyes and releasing a small sigh. His thumb automatically went into his mouth, and in a moment, he was asleep.

"Aiden hasn't been displaying any gifts." Aro explained, making June tense and look at him.

"Well, let's see yours another time, princess." Felix spoke up, grinning at June, obviously challenging her. "Let's see if the newborn can actually control hers."

June glared at him, immedaitely trying to do her gift, but it didn't work. She frowned, trying again, only to fail. "It's not working. Something's blocking my power."

"Me." Aiden suddenly spoke up, not looking up, keeping his eyes closed. "I did. I want sleep."

"Aiden, sweetheart." June cooed softly. "What do you mean?"

"I can make the powers go away." He explained, opening his eyes slightly. "Whenever I want them gone, they go bye bye."

"So he is gifted." Heidi concluded.

"Let me see." Aro spoke up, immediatley coming over to Aiden. Aiden looked up at Aro and sighed, annoyed, before putting his smaller hand in Aro's. Aro closed his eyes and after a moment, he looked up, his eyes wide, dropping Aiden's hand. "He's right."

"So is he a mental shield?" Felix questioned.

"No, it wouldn't work like that." Aro quickly dismissed it. "I think he merely has the power to turn other peoples' gifts on or off. Granted, he can only do one at a time, but he has the power to do so."

"He'd be a valuable assett against the Cullens, especially if he's able to turn off Bella's shield." Demetri mentioned.

"An assett?" Growled June, hugging Aiden closer to her protectively. Alec was immediately by her side, a hand on her shoulder as he tried to calm her down. "My son isn't even fully grown yet and you're talking about using him as an assett to your army?"

"Now, June, let's not start a fight that you can't win." Demetri smirked.

June growled, handing Aiden off to Alec. Alec took their son wordlessly, though he gave Demetri a look that said it all; if you hurt her, I'll kill you.

"Come on, princess. What do you got?" He demanded, grinning.

June growled at the bigger vampire, cracking her knuckles. She ran at Demetri, making him think that she wasn't going to use her power, before she turned it on at the last second, sending a shock through Demetri that sent him flying out the door and into a wall. He fell to the ground, groaning in pain.

"Got any more bright ideas, Demetri?" June asked cockily, smirking as she returned to Alec's side.

"Cocky little newborn." Demetri grumbled as he stood up, dusting his clothing off.

"What was that, Demetri?"

"Uh, nothing, June."

"That's what I thought."