Author's Note: Sorry, it took so long. I just got back from summer camp (which was completely AWESOME) and had to get back into my writing. Which is also why this chapter is so short. You forgive me, right? But here's chapter eleven.

Previously:

"Can I have your number?" He was bold. I'll give him that. I turned when I responded.

"If we meet again, then yes." I smiled.

"Is that a promise?" He asked. I shrugged.

"Only one way to find out." I walked to the car, smiling more than I had in years. Something about him was … different. He was special.

Now:

The ride home was…weird. Everyone, with the exception of Edward, left and I got some peace on the way home. Though it was ended about twenty minutes into the drive.

"Isabella, did you notice anything, I don't know, strange about Dylan?" Edward asked. I turned to look at him, honestly confused but soon turned back to the windshield.

"What do you mean?" I asked, making a sharp right onto the expressway.

"He smelled weird. It wasn't a vampire's scent but it wasn't completely human either. It was almost like…" He trailed off, but I knew exactly what he meant.

"A mixture." I finished as we drove into the parking lot of the castle. I looked around for my parking spot which was somewhat close to the entrance. It wasn't marked or anything but everyone who lived in the castle knew that it was mine.

"Do you think he's some kind of incomplete transformation or something?" Edward inquired more to himself as we stepped out of the car.

"I don't know. But I'm going to find out." We left the conversation at that and went our separate ways. But I continued to ponder it. It was strange, no doubt, but how'd he get that way? My mind was deep in thought while I walked to my room. I looked at the clock. Three hours until the ball began. I walked to my closet to retrieve the materials that I'd need, but before I reached it there was a knock on my door. I used vampire speed to get it because I didn't exactly have an eternity to get ready. No pun intended.

"Hola, chica!" I opened the door to a smiling Heidi and an overexcited Jane. As always. She held up a black plastic bag, which I knew from experience contained her dress, and a small pink pouch that held all of her beauty products. I also noticed that Jane held the same thing, minus the make-up bag.

"After all of these years, you still haven't perfected Spanish? That must be some kind of record." I said as I walked back towards the closet. I heard them softly close the door and follow me there.

"Well, some of us have a life that doesn't involve going back to school. Speaking of school, do you think you'll be going back this year?" Heidi asked with true interest. It always amazed them the way that I still went to school despite my…condition.

"Maybe. It all depends on my dad and how long he expects me to protect the Cullens. There's still Victoria and her army trying to put an end to Melissa and I don't think that would go well on a college application. I let an army of vampires kill an innocent human because I was so interested in learning? No." I expressed my frustration by inserting my own little sarcastic phrase into my rant. Sighing at the end, I slouched slightly as I walked deeper into my seemingly endless closet. I felt one hand grab my right hand and another on my left shoulder.

"I know it's hard for you, Hun. Having to protect the ones that hurt you the most." Heidi began. "But I'm sure at the end of all of this, you'll be able to go back to Dartmouth and major in one of the very few subjects that you haven't already mastered." I smiled at her statement and she smiled back. Lowering my gaze to the shoe rack on the ground, I figured out the issue here.

"My problem is not that I won't be able to leave. It's that I wouldn't want to." Jane was about to respond but, yet again, there was a knock on my door. I journeyed back out of the closet and opened it to reveal Alice, Rose and Esme. They had their dresses in hand as well.

"Hi, would you mind if we joined you?" Esme asked with a hopeful smile. I didn't have the heart to turn her down.

"Not at all. Come on in." I smiled back and turned to see Jane tapping the left side of her head, signaling for me to read her thoughts. I opened my shield and let her in so that I'd be able to respond to her thoughts inside her head.

Are. You. CRAZY? It's a tradition that before every event, we get prepared TOGETHER. You, me and Heidi. This is NOT a girl's locker room. Okay? Why'd you let them in?

Well, I couldn't just leave them out there. It's not a big deal, Jane.

Says who? I'm sorry but I don't approve of this.

Well, get over it. It wouldn't be fair and I'm not exactly an expert at being a brat. So, suck it up and deal with it. This conversation is over.

I broke the connection and walked back to the closet. Grabbing my dress and the heels to match, I walked to the dresser to get my undergarments and then sat at the vanity. I changed into the white underwear and strapless bra set and sat back down to do my hair and make-up. It was dead silent in my room and that angered me to a new level. I spoke to Heidi in her head.

SAY SOMETHING! She jumped at my sudden request but quickly recovered.

"So…ummm…Alice. How about we start getting ready? You just have to see my dress. It's to die for." Alice looked like she had just won a free unlimited shopping spree.

"Rosalie, Esme. I'm sure you'd like to begin dressing as well." They nodded at Jane's poorly expressed attempt at friendliness. She took them to the closet and Heidi went into the bathroom with Alice but didn't close the door. Exactly forty-five minutes later Jane emerged from the closet with Rose and Esme and they all were absolutely gorgeous. Esme's dress was lavender and she matched it with a pair of white heels. Rose wore a red fitted dress with black pumps and Jane was dressed in a hot pink dress with ruffles going downward past the waistline. Her pink heels matched perfectly. I smiled and praised them for their choices of clothing.

"You guys look stunning!" I said as I finished the last curl in my hair. Just as I said this, Heidi and Alice exited the bathroom. Alice wore a strapless bright yellow number with heels of the same color. Heidi chose to wear a gray dress with alternating black and white stripes. Her heels wear white.

"Well, thank you." Heidi appreciated a compliment that wasn't meant for her but it fit regardless.

"But I think you got us all beat." She said a second later. I stood to reveal the entire set and Jane gasped. I wore a pure white dress that hugged my upper chest and flowed down my waist, stopping at my upper shin. It had a white belt around the waist and pearls were around my neck, glistening from the sunset that had began to settle in my window's view. My hair was in loose curls down my back and bounced with every step. White five-inchers were my choice of footwear and I put my ring from my father on my ring-finger. It had a capitalized "V" on it and was white diamond.

"We are all stunning. You ready to blow a few minds and drop a few jaws?" I asked with a slight giggle on the end.

"Let's do it, Hun." Heidi laughed and grabbed my right hand. Jane bounced to my side and grabbed my left one. The Cullen women linked arms with each other and laughed at all six of us. Together, we walked out of my room and strutted down the hallway, Volturi in the front and Cullen in the back. We stopped at the doors to the throne room, which is where the ball was and I could hear the conversations going underneath the band playing.

"Let's do this." I closed my eyes and sighed, opening them with a new mission. No more Cullens or Victoria or anything else to occupy my mind. Tonight, no worries, just smiles. I smiled brightly and walked through the doors just as the guards opened them for me.

Author's Note: So...what'd ya think? Review and let me know.