A Witch and her Vampire Chapter 4, a twilight fanfic

AN1: This is by far the longest chapter yet coming in at almost 7k words. I had to stop in the middle of everything I thought would be in this chapter because it was getting too long. Never the less I'm happy with how this turned out.

AN2: One last change with the wizard/witch thing and this is the last one I swear. For women the terms wizard and witch will from now on be used interchangeably. They are the same thing in this world. For males only the term wizard will apply.

Enjoy!

Bella arrived home still in a post stress haze from her little meeting with the male Fey in the library. She was still shaking like a cold Chihuahua and felt a desperate need to be held, to be comforted. In a pinch Bella had always been able to perform and thankfully choking under pressure had never been one of Bella's problems when things inevitably went sideways. The aftermath however was a different story. Coming off an adrenaline high Bella always felt weak and shaky as all the fear and tension seemed to catch up to her all at once. If anyone was to poke her or shake her too hard she thought for sure she would just fall apart in pieces right on the living room floor. In times like those Bella only had Victoria to help her through it. Unfortunately they were on the outs right now and it didn't take Bella long to figure out that the vampire wasn't home.

The young witch went straight to the bathroom and got into the shower. She turned the water as hot as she could stand it and used copious amounts of the watermelon scented body wash she preferred. Bella knew it wasn't a very grown up scent to be using but she didn't care. It was a reminder from her childhood when she was a little girl and her mother had washed her hair with watermelon scented kid's shampoo. There was very little Bella had left from that life and she would take any reminders she could of better times.

After a very long shower she felt like she was almost back to normal and realized she needed to get out and get going before it got too late. Bella wrapped a towel around herself and wrapped one around her hair and went to her room. Inside she sat down on her bed and grabbed her cell phone. She pushed the button for the only number on her speed dial and made a call with a little bit of apprehension fluttering in her stomach.

On the first ring the line was picked up. "Yeah?" came Victoria's voice, flat and devoid of the teasing and good humor Bella had gotten used to.

"Tori," Bella began, suddenly feeling unsure of herself "Um… where are you?"

"Out. Is there something you want?" she said in an unfriendly voice bordering on hostile.

Bella winced at her tone. After her screw up the night before she had expected this sort of treatment but that didn't make it any less unpleasant for her. It hurt and made her a little panicked whenever things were bad with Victoria.

If there was one thing Victoria hated more than anything it was being reminded that she was a prisoner who at any time could have her free will taken away. The witch had used her power over Victoria in a frivolous fashion because in reality she had never been in any danger. Bella had screwed up badly. She had no idea how she was going to make this right.

Instead of worrying about her heartache Bella got to business. "We have a situation. Turns out there is a cadre of Fey posing as teenagers at the school, probably Winter Unseelie. One of them approached me after school and said they want to talk to us tonight. I don't know how much they know but I'm pretty sure they at least know neither of us are exactly vanilla humans."

There was a pause. "Are you sure about what they are?" Victoria asked, some of the hostility leaving her tone and being replaced with professional caution.

"Sure as I can be. Nothing else I can think of takes the form of inhumanly beautiful young humans, stinks of magic and avoids sunny days. It all screams Winter to me."

"That sounds like vampires too."

Bella shook her head even though Victoria couldn't see it. "Trust me. It's not vampires."

There was a long pause before Victoria spoke again. "All right. I guess we better pack some iron just in case then. As long as you're sure they promised safe passage without any loopholes."

"I'm sure."

"What exactly did they say?"

They talked for another half hour, Victoria sliding into her bodyguard mode and making Bella tell her absolutely everything that happened three times, word for word. Bella endured it with good grace both because she trusted Victoria and she was willing to take any little opportunity to earn points with her protector. It sort of reminded Bella of police dramas where the cops would always make people tell the same story over and over again hoping to jog any additional details loose. Eventually Victoria seemed satisfied she had gotten everything she was going to out of Bella though she still sounded wary and suspicious. No surprise there. The day Victoria was remotely open and welcoming to anything dangerous around her would be a cold day in hell indeed.

Victoria returned to their home about an hour before they were supposed to show up at the home of the Fey. Bella tried to engage her in conversation but unless it was about the business at hand Victoria only gave short terse answers or ignored her altogether. If Bella had been doing that she would have felt petulant but with Victoria it came across as a dignified snub and it hurt Bella. She was a sensitive girl and there was no one in the world who mattered more to her than Victoria, she had no one else left. Before too long she resigned herself to work in silence as they got ready for their meeting.

Victoria secured two daggers with high iron content, one in her boot and the other in her lower back. Bella herself took iron shavings she might use in a shield and made sure her bracelet foci and rings were in place. Another focus she didn't normally take with her was her wand which looked more like a wooden rod than something you would see in Harry Potter. It was as thick as the thumb and carved with all sorts of arcane symbols and runes that would make it dramatically easier to focus her magic. It was a general purpose focus that wasn't especially good at any one thing but could help her work just about any kind of magic.

Bella secured it up the sleeve of her long leather coat that was the last magical item she would take with her. It went down to her knees and in addition to being stylish had all sorts of spells sewn on the inside with silver thread. While it was by no means invincible it was designed to dissipate kinetic energy in addition to being extremely strong and durable. While a punch from a vampire would normally cave her chest in like an old beer can with the coat she might be able to get away with just some ugly bruising. The enchanted coat had saved her life more than once.

When it was time to go they exchanged a look and Bella knew that for now they had a truce even though their problems weren't resolved yet. While she was only seventeen years old Bella had been involved in an alarming number of fights for her life since everything had changed four years prior. Only Victoria and her own ability to keep her head in a crisis had saved her so far. They had fought mercenaries hired to come after them and even the Volturi guard once not to mention the occasional supernatural predator who thought they would be easy pickings. When going into possible danger both knew there was no room for ego and grudges.

Victoria led them out of the house and got into the driver seat while Bella followed and got in opposite. There was a tense silence while Victoria drove out of Forks and into the wild areas surrounding the quiet town. Night had already fallen and Bella strained her eyes and magical senses to try and locate anything that might be lurking outside in the woods, waiting for them. Victoria drove at a sedate pace for a vampire. While she had the ability to drive at any speed safely the fact was not even vampire senses could offset the reality of physics. Faster reflexes won't change forward momentum on a dime if something ugly jumped out of the woods in front of them. It had happened before.

They came to a turn that left the road and went up a dirt driveway. Victoria took it slowly and both of them strained their senses just in case there was any kind of ambush or unpleasant surprise waiting for them. They found nothing and eventually came up to a clearing with a large house when they emerged through the woods.

The house was very modern, large and covered in panes of glass. Bella thought it was quite beautiful if a little too modern for her tastes. She had always had a taste for the type of architecture where she grew up, older style European architecture primarily from the Victorian era. Never the less it was still an impressive and gorgeous home. Not surprising since anything that lived more than a few centuries tended to accumulate massive amounts of wealth with little effort.

Victoria brought the car to a halt a distance from the house and killed the engine. The lights were on inside. Bella unfastened her seatbelt and went to open the door. Victoria's hand on her arm stopped her.

"Don't be hasty. Let me see what I can pick up," she said.

Victoria opened her window and she took several deep breaths while listening intently. Bella saw severe alarm appear on her face all of a sudden. The vampire breathed in and out for a solid minute in silence while Bella watched. With a grimace the vampire rolled up the window leaving the two of them in the silence of the car.

"I don't know what the hell you were thinking, but you were wrong," Victoria snapped turning to Bella. Her brown eyes bore into Bella pinning her in place. "They are not Fey. They are vampires."

Bella's eyes widened at that. "What? No… no way. I told you they all have yellow eyes not red. I only saw one but everyone I talked to confirmed that about them. They can't be vampires, they have to be something else" she insisted, but it was more a denial out of reflex than actually trying to insist she was right.

"I can smell them from here. Vampires live here their smell is literally all over the place. It's hard to tell but I think there are more than five. Going by what you told me there are probably seven," said Victoria. She shook her head, a disbelieving gesture, "What a fuck up. We didn't prepare for this."

Bella was getting scared. Even one vampire was insanely dangerous. The one time they'd had to fight two members of the Volturi guard Bella knew it had been in no small part due to luck that they had both escaped in one piece. Having to defend against seven vampires? The fight would be over before it even started.

"We should just leave," said Bella quietly. The beautiful house suddenly looked about a million times more intimidating and foreboding.

"We can't," said Victoria with an unhappy turn on her lips "they already know we're here. Even if they don't stop us leaving they won't leave us alone. We're a potential security breach to them. We're going to have to talk to them sooner or later no matter what."

Bella's heart started beating faster, terrified of the idea of going into a house filled with vampires. Aside from Victoria her whole life vampires had meant danger and death. "Is going in there really a good idea? I mean what if they are in with the Vol-"

Victoria's hand snapped up and quicker than the eye could follow covered Bella's mouth before she could finish that sentence. "Let's assume they can hear us. We might be too far from the house but I don't want to take the chance."

Bella's eyes widened at that having failed to consider it. She nodded her understanding and Victoria removed her hand from her mouth. "So… what do we do?" asked Bella nervously.

Victoria turned to look Bella in the eyes. The teenager could see the vampire was unnerved even though she tried to hide it. That didn't do much to reassure her of the situation. Victoria held her gaze while she spoke.

"Our best bet is to go inside," she said clearly unhappy with that insight "just let me do the talking. And follow my lead" she said giving Bella a significant look. Bella got the message.

Don't say anything because we don't have our story together. I have a plan so don't screw it up. I'm about to lie my ass off.

"It's not as bad as it seems," said Victoria "a vampire's word isn't literally unbreakable like the Fey but they still offered safe passage. The old customs and traditions of hospitality are the closest thing to an iron clad law for vampires. There is also no faster way to become a universal pariah amongst our kind than to be known as someone who goes back on their word. Unless they are completely uncivilized the fact they invited us as guests should offer us some degree of protection." Though she said that the redheaded vampire still looked like she would rather set herself on fire than walk into that house.

Bella nodded but said nothing as she felt strangely exposed at the thought of the vampires in the house being able to hear what she said.

"Come on let's get this over with," said Victoria before opening the door and stepping out. After a moment's hesitation Bella opened her door and followed suit.

Victoria knocked on the door while Bella stood slightly behind her and to the right. She fingered the wooden rod shaped wand holstered up her sleeve for reassurance. Though she was feeling near hysterical on the inside Bella forced her outside to look calm and relaxed. The mental discipline necessary for the shaping and expression of magic served her well in situations such as these. Through she was terrible at poker she had a pretty good poker face when it counted.

The door opened and Bella forced herself to keep her face carefully neutral. Standing on the other side of the door was a vampire of the likes which Bella had never seen before.

The vampires that Bella had seen had always exuded an aura of danger and restrained violence. They had all been to the last flinty eyed predators who looked at her with the clear desire to inflict violence or they had been cool, emotionless customers who went about the business of violence with efficiency and precision. Even Victoria gave Bella the impression that if the situation changed enough anyone might be fair game for her violence or might become her next meal.

The vampire that stood before them was nothing like that. She was taller than Bella but still shorter than Victoria with long caramel colored hair and an extremely appealing maternal sort of beauty. Her eyes were the same unusual non-vampire yellow color that Edward had. The female vampire greeted them with a radiant smile that was warmer and more inviting than any Bella had ever seen before. The only thing that Bella could think as the vampire looked the both of them over was what a kind and compassionate aura she seemed to give off. Bella was so enraptured by the unexpected sight that she almost jumped when the vampire spoke.

"Hello. Thank the both of you for coming. I hope it wasn't an inconvenience to ask you to come here on such short notice. If I had known I would have insisted my son allow you to come in your own time. However I assure you we are very glad that you were able to make it," she said. Her voice was warm and nurturing and Bella felt a pang of pain in her chest as it made her miss her own mother. This vampire was nothing like what she had expected and it was making her feel a little off balance.

"It's quite all right," said Victoria in a polite but strangely formal tone, "we thank you for your invitation and your offer of hospitality."

Esme's smile grew wider at that and it made it seem more genuine and made her more beautiful at the same time. "You are our guests and we will honor you while under our roof and until you are safely beyond our lands. Please, won't you come in?" she said stepping aside and holding the door open for them.

The whole exchange had been bizarre but Bella deduced the strangely formal words they had spoken to each other meant something in vampire society. While she knew a great deal about vampires the social niceties of their kind wasn't something she had any knowledge of.

As Victoria stepped inside she gave Bella a quick look. It was amazing how much they had learned to communicate with just a glance over the years.

Keep your guard up. Victoria was warning her not to get taken in by the vampire's warm and motherly appearance.

It made sense even though Bella's first instinct was bizarrely enough for her to trust the strange vampire. That was enough to make her cautious. Every vampire had a gift, talent, power, whatever you wanted to call it and they came in an incredibly wide variety. For all she knew giving off extreme mothering 'I'm nice trust me' vibes was the strange vampire's ability. It certainly wouldn't be the strangest one she had ever heard of.

Bella followed the two vampires inside and stepped into a large living room. Seated and standing in a rough semi-circle in front of them were six golden eyed visions of otherworldly beauty. The vampire who had opened the door went to stand by the physically oldest of the males who looked to be somewhere in his twenties. By the casual way she put a hand on his shoulder as she stood behind him Bella deduced that they were together.

"Welcome," began the same male vampire, his voice warm and friendly but still with what Bella would call an old fashioned formality, "and thank you for coming. May you and yours have safety, blood, and fulfillment in eternal life."

"We thank you for your generous hospitality. May you and yours also prosper. May safety, blood and fulfillment be plentiful for you all in the long years of your immortality," replied Victoria.

"I, as the head of this Coven, take on the responsibilities of a host to provide for your needs and not allow you to come to harm."

"And I, as the acknowledged leader of our congregation, take on the responsibilities of a guest, to respect our hosts and follow their requests within reason."

"So mote it be."

Bella wasn't the only one surprised and confused by the exchange. Several of the other vampires were looking between the male who spoke and Victoria questioningly. Not that there had ever been any question but Bella was very glad Victoria was taking the lead. If and when they got out of this Bella was going to have to learn about vampire etiquette. It seemed there was a great deal she didn't know about.

The female who had opened the door smiled happily at them. "It's been so long since I've seen the old ways used. Usually those who come see us are either family or friends who are so close they don't see the point in it. I've always been somewhat partial to them."

"It's a shame when good things become less used over time," said Victoria. She sounded cordial but Bella knew her enough to know she hadn't been put at ease by the friendly reception they had received so far.

"Well, I believe introductions are in order" said the man who had spoken. "I am Carlisle Cullen and this is my wife Esme,"

"On the end over there is Rosalie Hale," he said. Bella took a moment to examine her. She only had time to notice that A) she was possibly the most perfectly beautiful person she had ever seen and B) she looked extremely unhappy for some reason. Then Carlisle was moving on.

"… next to her is her husband Emmett Cullen," he said referring to an extremely tall and burly male who gave her a good natured smile when she looked at him. Bella instantly wanted to like him but wasn't about to suddenly trust a strange vampire based on a spur of the moment feeling.

"Then we have Alice Cullen and Jasper Hale who are also mates," he said. Jasper was a male with honey blonde hair who had a slightly pained look on his face. Alice was a very short petite girl with short dark hair. She was smiling her and seemed to be almost vibrating with contained energy. It was so un-vampire that Bella didn't know what to make of her.

"And finally we have Edward Cullen," said Carlisle. Bella had already met Edward. He was looking at her with what she could only describe as an interested look on his face. He was probably the most handsome of the males and it didn't escape her notice that he was the only single vampire in the strange Coven.

Victoria looked at each of them as they had been introduced. After they were done she waited a few moments before she spoke.

"My name is Andromeda; I stopped using my family name a long time ago. This here is Marie Harker. Obviously she knows about vampires and I don't want her to be killed. She'll have to be turned eventually to avoid breaking the law but I would prefer it if she was older."

Bella felt a surge of surprise. Marie was her middle name but Harker had been her mother's maiden name. She didn't even know Victoria knew what her mother's maiden name had been. Bella had no idea why she had given that as her name. More puzzling still was the name Andromeda. It wasn't a name she'd ever heard associated with the redhead before and at first Bella assumed it was a complete fabrication.

The rest of what she had said was sneaky and after thinking about it Bella thought she caught on to what Victoria was doing. She had not technically lied but still made it sound like she was just waiting to turn Bella. In reality she had never said anything of the sort. Bella only saw it because she knew that if Victoria turned her she will have 'died' enough that it would kill the vampire so there was no way Victoria would do that. It was also a stretch but it certainly wouldn't be an outright lie if Bella called herself Marie Harker. After all in many places in Europe it was common to include the mother's maiden name in one's full formal name. Bella herself was Isabella Marie Black Harker in many places around the world.

The mention of her being turned caused a definite negative reaction among some members in the room. Rosalie crossed her arms under her chest and her face took on a look of extreme distaste. Esme gave Bella a soft sympathetic look, like she wasn't being given a choice. Edward had the most extreme reaction of all. His yellow eyes darkened to almost black and his hands crushed the armrests of the chair he was seated in. Bella took a half step back fingering the wand in her coat sleeve.

"She shouldn't be turned into an abomination!" Edward said. Bella blinked her surprise at realizing he was outraged on her behalf. It was completely misplaced concern of course but somehow Bella was still grateful for it.

"Edward!" gasped Esme, sounding appalled at his outburst. Victoria regarded him evenly seemingly completely unfazed.

"The law is the law. It's foolish and dangerous to break it. The Volturi are not known for their forgiveness and understanding" she replied evenly.

"Quite so" said Carlisle cutting Edward off before he had another outburst. He looked at Carlisle and turned his head away and to Bella it seemed like he was pouting. It was kind of ridiculous and cute, a pouting vampire.

"We must all observe the law or face its consequences. Tell me how did you and young Marie come to be together?" Carlisle asked.

"I met her years ago when she was just a child. Of course as you know it is illegal to turn children into vampires. She already knew about vampires at the time. I could not kill her so we've been together ever since. It has been difficult but it has also had some unforeseen rewards."

That last line surprised Bella a great deal. She knew the Victoria was telling a great heap of lies by twisting the truth until it was unrecognizable and doing it as well as any Fey in her opinion. That also meant that she did in fact think at least a few good things had happened since her capture. Bella couldn't help but burn with curiosity to know what those things were.

Unknown to Bella two members of the Cullen family were looking at the two of them with increasing unease and suspicion.

"I think she's lying" Thought Jasper loudly knowing Edward would be able to hear him.

His ability to feel emotions had many uses one of which was that, on occasion, he could tell when someone was lying by the fluctuations of their emotions. Unless you had a century or two of emotional control a person's feelings were often enough for Jasper to parse truth from fiction.

"Andromeda" was steady as a rock, her emotions tightly controlled and only shifting in small amounts. He could tell she was dramatically more tense than she outwardly appeared to be but she was entirely too focused on what she was doing to let herself be distracted by too many emotions. As far as he could tell she was telling the truth.

What led Jasper to think something was wrong were the emotions rolling off "Marie". While she was doing an admirable job keeping a calm exterior her emotions were broadcasting so loudly it was uncomfortable. He could almost taste her unease and fear at being there with them which to be honest Jasper couldn't exactly blame her for it. Her emotions also spiked while the redheaded vampire spoke. When she had said their names Marie's emotions were very clearly surprise and confusion. She had not been expecting that they would be introduced in such a way.

Then Edward had his outburst which first led to a spike of fear from the young human. Jasper didn't miss how she seemed to finger something up her jacket sleeve. Then her emotions turned to a reluctant gratitude when she realized Edward had been protesting on her behalf in his own unfortunate way.

When Andromeda began to explain how they had come to be together Jasper could feel realization and then amusement coming from the young human. If she thought what was being said was funny then it stood to reason it was because the story was a fabrication.

Jasper glanced at Edward who he could feel was becoming increasingly agitated and upset. The eldest Hale knew Edward was reading his thoughts and thus knew of his suspicion that they were being told a tall tale. His brother had been getting increasingly upset since their guests had arrived. It didn't take Jasper long to figure out that Edward couldn't read the redhead any more than he could 'Marie'.

Either that meant that two people just happened to be immune to Edward's power or the girl's abilities were more extensive than they had originally suspected. To be able to protect her own mind and the mind of others was an impressive gift.

The unexpected feelings of possessiveness rolling off Edward towards the girl Marie were a great surprise to Jasper and frankly unsettling. Her brother felt he had some sort of claim to the girl but why he thought so Jasper had no clue. It was frankly inappropriate and Jasper felt it was only a matter of time before Edward did something unfortunate.

Edward, they are guests. You may not know but that is something sacred amongst our kind and that girl is in no way yours. Calm yourself. You will shame us all if you do anything rash.

Jasper felt a flare of annoyance and stubbornness from Edward after hearing his thoughts. The eldest Hale had to suppress a sigh. Carlisle, Esme and himself were the only ones who had been forced to interact with vampire society at large and thus learned of their rules and culture. With a species as naturally inclined to violence as their own strict codes of behavior were necessary to keep the peace when different predators were forced to interact. If you lived it you easily saw the value in it. However none of the others had any real experience with vampires outside their own Coven. They might not have the proper context to understand the gravity of the situation.

He felt the temptation to calm the emotions in the room but it would both be a bad idea to reveal what he could do and poor form to use his power on guests without their permission, even if it was to help. Instead Jasper just braced himself against all the emotions in the room and settled in to get as much information as he could for his family.

"So you've been carting around a human with you for years? Wow that's kind of cool. Does that mean you're a vegetarian too then? Kind of hard to tell with those human looking brown eyes" said the muscular vampire Emmett sounding friendly and enthusiastic. Bella was puzzled by the term 'vegetarian vampire'.

Apparently she wasn't the only one. Victoria's brow furrowed as she looked at the tall vampire. "I'm not sure what you mean" she said.

"You know, vegetarian is what we call it, kind of our own little joke. I mean we're on a furry diet."

"Excuse me?"

"You know. We're animal drinkers."

Animal drinkers. The concept blew Bella's mind. Without thinking Bella blurted out "Wait, you guys survive by feeling off animals?" she asked sounding incredulous.

Everyone's eyes snapped to her and suddenly Bella wished she'd kept her mouth shut. Victoria didn't turn to look at her but by the sudden tightening in her shoulders Bella knew she was warning her to shut up and keep quiet. Bella thought that sounded like a mighty fine idea.

It was Carlisle who answered her. "Yes we do. We find it makes it possible for us to remain amongst humans for long periods of time and to live in such a large group with each other as it helps control some of our instincts. We also feel it is our moral imperative not to take human lives if at all possible. Our lifestyle is not without its challenges but ultimately we feel it is the right thing to do" he said, his voice carefully without judgment.

"And that," asked Victoria cautiously "is why your eyes are yellow?"

"Indeed. It is a side effect of our diet." There was a slight pause. "I take it that you follow the more… traditional vampire diet then?" asked Carlisle carefully.

"That's right. I've never even heard of vampires feeding on anything but humans to be honest," said Victoria. Bella could tell she was genuinely surprised by the news.

Bella could almost see the ripple of discomfort go through the room at Victoria's admission that she fed on humans. Rosalie didn't bother to hide the distaste from her face and Alice's eyes flickered to her in concern. Edward looked to be silently fuming. Bella found herself inching ever so slightly towards Victoria. Though she didn't like that Victoria preyed on humans that didn't mean she was going to feel comfortable with other vampires directing their hostility towards her because of that.

"If I may ask, if you are a human drinker how have you managed to remain with Marie safely for so long?" asked Esme in a kind tone and Bella was relieved that at least she didn't seem to be acting any different towards them by the revelation.

Victoria shrugged casually, the picture of unconcerned nonchalance. "I feed when I get hungry and my control is very good. I don't want to accidentally harm her so that helps a great deal. It hasn't been as much of an issue as I had originally thought it would."

"You must have exceptional control then" said Carlisle with just a touch of respect in his voice. "A human drinker to be around a human for so long without killing them… it is quite an impressive feat."

"Thank you for your kind words. I must admit to feeling some admiration for you as well. Switching to an animal diet…" Victoria couldn't quite keep the look of distaste off her face, "it must have been quite a challenge."

"Many do find the change difficult but no one determined to do so has failed yet."

"So I have to ask, how come your eyes are brown instead of red?" asked the small vampire named Alice, tilting her head with a curious expression.

Victoria hesitated before answering. "I'd like to keep what I can do to myself. I'm sure you understand my reasoning."

"Why? You got something to hide?" said Edward belligerently.

"Edward," said Carlisle firmly before anyone could respond. Edward gave his adoptive 'father' a hurt look at the reprimand. Bella thought that in a lot of ways Edward seemed like an actual teenager.

After seeming to consider something for a few seconds Carlisle turned to Victoria. "Andromeda, would you be willing to engage in an exchange of trust?"

For the first time that evening Victoria looked genuinely taken aback. "With your whole Coven?" she asked.

Carlisle nodded. Bella had no idea what was going on now.

Victoria worried her lower lip in thought for a few moments before finally consenting. "I am willing."

Carlisle nodded before he began. "Carlisle Cullen, he who can heal any wound."

"Esme Cullen, she who can see the hearts and souls of others."

"Jasper Hale, he who can feel and influence emotions" he said somberly.

It was pretty clear to Bella that while those three knew exactly what to do the others had never seen or done this before if their bewildered looks were anything to go by. However they were quick enough to pick it up.

"Alice Cullen, she who can see some of the future, well mostly but not all the time. It's been a bit on the fritz lately but usually it's very reliable."

"Emmett Cullen, he who is a strong as the Hulk. Other vampires think they are strong but they can't bench press tractor trailers the way I can. We haven't been able to find a way to test out just how strong I really am" he said very proudly with a smile on his face.

"Rosalie Hale," she said and unlike the other vampires she sounded rather bitter. "I can manipulate people's lust and punish them with it. I'm not about to talk like an idiot and refer to myself in the third person."

Everyone turned to look at the last person, Edward. He looked like he really didn't want to have to say what his power was. Eventually under the combined stares of his family he caved and ground out his response.

"Edward Cullen. Mind reader."

Alarm went through both Victoria and Bella before Jasper felt the need to reassure them.

"Don't worry. For some reason his power isn't working on the two of you. I'd guess you'd know something about why that is," he said to them.

Bella almost sagged with relief at hearing that. But why couldn't Edward read their minds? Perhaps it was a side effect of all the precautions she'd taken so they couldn't be tracked using magic. Since vampire abilities were magical maybe it offered some kind of protection. Bella couldn't be sure but it was the best explanation she could come up with at the moment.

"Andromeda. She who always knows how to stay alive and safe."

For a second Bella panicked wondering if she was expected to say something about herself. She looked to Victoria who almost imperceptibly shook her head. Good, because she had no idea what she would have said and revealing she was a wizard seemed like a terrible idea.

"Ironic, given how the mythical Andromeda was the original damsel in distress," said Jasper a small smile curling on his lips.

To Bella's surprise Victoria returned the smile. "Hey now, Andromeda is a nice strong name fit for a queen. After all the name means 'ruler of men'. I was made to be the boss" she joked.

"That still doesn't explain about your brown eyes," said Rosalie unamused.

"Come now, I honestly and in good faith shared the nature of my power. How I can camouflage my eyes has nothing to do with that. Let's just say I came into possession of an especially enchanted trinket and leave it at that."

"You shouldn't be around Marie," said Edward suddenly. "You're a filthy murderer and it's not safe. You are so used to killing humans who knows when you'll finally snap and kill her?"

"Edward!" said Esme scandalized. However this time Edward would not be stopped.

"You obviously don't think human life is sacred or you would have found a better way by now. If you really care about Marie you should think about what is best for her."

Victoria finally looked at Edward, really looked. The redhead had always had a gaze that was able to pierce straight through you, a look that was able to cut through all your defenses and make it's way deep down into your core. She let the weight of it fall on Edward, her eyes somehow burning and colder than ice at the same time. Her weight shifted subtly and though she looked deceptively relaxed she was ready to spring at a moment's notice. Her hands curled halfway into loose fists. Bella had seen her like this before. When Victoria was challenged, when she was ready to fight, this is what she looked like.

"And what, exactly, is it that you imagine is best for her?" said Victoria in a low dangerous voice.

Edward seemed to falter at the sudden unexpected change in the other vampire. However to his credit he quickly gathered himself and resumed his tirade.

"Getting away from you obviously. Since she knows about vampires and we can't just let her go because of the law but she would be better off with us instead of you. At least we've proven we can resist the temptations of human blood. You are unfit to take care of her."

"Oh. So you imagine you can just take her from me?" said Victoria in a chilly voice that sounded calm. Bella however knew better. Victoria was enraged. Something about what Edward was saying was really pushing her buttons. The only time Bella had ever heard Victoria sound like that was before things exploded into blood and violence. Bella subtly moved away and made sure her bracelets and wand were ready and in easy reach.

"You're dangerous. Marie would be safest that way. She would be much better off with us instead."

A low growl emanated from deep in Victoria's chest, an ominous rumbling sound that seemed to vibrate off the walls and in Bella's skull and in her very bones. The tension in the room skyrocketed, all the vampires suddenly focusing on Victoria with guarded and worried expressions on their faces. All except Edward who stood up and stood defiant in front of Victoria.

The brown of Victoria's eyes began to cloud over until they until they were a pitch solid black. Her emotions and instincts were going on overdrive. It frightened Bella. She had hardly ever seen Victoria get into that state and they were still in a precarious position.

"There is just one problem with your theory, mind reader" Victoria hissed in a voice that was almost unrecognizable as hers.

Edward's steady gaze faltered and Bella could tell he was intimidated but he refused to back down. "I don't see any problems with it."

"She would never go with you," said Victoria continuing on as if he had never spoken "And I would never allow her to."

Bella gasped at that, her heart beating even faster in her chest if that was possible. She had never heard Victoria speak like that before.

"It's not like you can stop her if she wants to go," he said flippantly.

Victoria's lips curled up showing her fully dropped fangs. She took a half a step towards Edward and he unconsciously took half a step back.

"Son," said Carlisle worriedly, "you really should-"

Both the vampires completely ignored him. Victoria interrupted him as if he hadn't even begun speaking.

"Yes I can. Because you are willfully ignoring a painfully obvious fact."

"Oh yeah? And what's that?" he said with a sneer.

"She belongs to me. BELLA. IS. MINE!"

With that, faster than the eye could follow, Victoria launched herself at Edward.

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