AN: Not much left of Part 2, then it's on to Part 3.

S. Meyer owns twilight

CHAPTER 17

JPOV

I didn't know what Alistair wanted when he asked to speak to us. He was feeling determination, sadness and anxiety. He looked so frail; thin and brittle. He carried himself like an old man although he looked like he'd been turned when he was in his early to mid twenties. His voice was strong and bitterness colored his emotions as he told us his story. No wonder he was thin.

It was a miracle he'd survived. I had no knowledge of the English Royal family, but I understood perfectly when he urged us to be careful. Bella leaned over and touched Aro's hand. He smiled and said "yes, you can trust him." He turned to Alistair and asked him to keep our secret.

I watched Bella move her hood back and lift off her mask. She held out her hand for him to shake and introduced herself. "Hi Alistair, my name's Bella, but outside these quarters I'm known as Death." Alistair gaped "are you Bella Swan?" She nodded "I was, but I took my uncle's surname, so now I'm Bella Crow, although I'll soon be Bella Whitlock." She was babbling, Alistair stared at her in shock.

Pete's laughter burst out of him. "Damnit Bells, I wanted to make a kickarse reveal!" He groused as he lifted his mask off and poked his tongue out at her. He turned back to Alistair and introduced himself. "Peter Whitlock" He said. Alistair gasped. Pete laughed lightly, thoroughly amused at Alistair's reaction.

"Actually, I was born Peter Crow, but I changed it to honor this grumpy bastard" he explained and pointed at me. I rolled my eyes and took off my hood and mask "I'm not grumpy, arsehole."
"The Major" Alistair breathed. I shook my head "the Major doesn't exist anymore, I'm Jasper Whitlock. My friends call me J although outside these quarters I answer to War." I had to admit this was a little fun. "I'm Bella's mate and fiancé and Pete over there is her Uncle by blood."
"Seriously?" He asked. I nodded. Char scoffed "what about me?" She took her mask off and glared playfully at Alistair. He didn't disappoint, his eyes widened in surprise. "You're all dead!" He squeaked.

Aro laughed from his seat in the corner, but soon composed himself and spoke softly "we spread a rumor about their death so they could live in peace. You more than anyone can appreciate the need for their disguise. We had to fake Jasper's death a few times, his former coven didn't appreciate the need for secrecy. Carlisle and Edward thought that by telling others the Major was part of their coven they'd avoid attack."

"So what are your code names?" Alistair asked Pete and Char. Char pointed to herself "Famine" Alistair grinned and turned to Pete "that makes you Pestilence?" Pete nodded, his irritation rising. "Now who's the grumpy bastard?" I teased, he pouted.

"This is fucking surreal. Last week I was coming to Volterra to stand up for Carlisle and his son against the evil Volturi leaders. Now I'm sitting in Aro's room talking to people who are supposed to be dead and I hate Carlisle and his mate. You're turning me into a royalist, Aro." Alistair snarked, although there was some amusement in his voice.

Aro chuckled "it's a weird and wonderful world, Alistair." He turned serious "we've lived in darkness for a long time. Marcus and I started the Volturi to create a fair system with justice and protection. Caius joined us and became co-ruler when his drive and values mirrored our own. Believe it or not, the future will be a happy one. I meant it when I said I'd like you to head an anti-corruption committee, from what I've seen of your history you are incorruptible-"
"I fell for Carlisle's lies" Alistair lamented. Aro sighed "we all did. Many of us have suffered for it, but none more so than Bella, Jasper, Esme, Alice, Emmett and Rose."

Alistair seemed to remember something and looked at me "you really went through all that didn't you, Jasper?" He asked, I knew he believed what he'd seen in Rosalie's memories, but it was different asking the source. I explained. "My memories are patchy, when I get caught up in the past I can't seem to find reality. There's a reason for my reputation, Alistair.

"I was completely broken, I had Dissociative Identity Disorder, otherwise known as Multiple Personality Disorder. I was split in three; there was my human side, Jasper. My vampire side, the Major and the primal demon born out of violence and abuse, it doesn't have a name, but it was responsible for the worst of my history. Thankfully I had Char and Pete. When I was kicked out of the Cullen Coven I moved back in with them and they started to heal me. Then I was reunited with Bella and healed a lot more. I was lucky enough to be healed by the Healer and I've been whole ever since." I finished.

"I promise your secrets are safe with me. May I ask how no one's recognized your scent?" Alistair asked. Pete answered him. "The Healer is able to make a mix of blood with herbs to disguise our scent. He uses human blood so our eyes turn red, having golden eyes would kind of stand out a bit too much. The Healer makes the mixture taste foul, J and Bella wish to keep the vegetarian diet. It acts as a taste aversion, making it easier to drink animal blood."

"That animal blood we all drank yesterday was incredible." Alistair said. We nodded, Aro spoke "the Healer has shown us that blood is palatable even when mixed with other ingredients. The Wives are extremely happy, they cook dishes and experiment with flavors. They like the domesticity of it."

Bella let out a happy sigh "they're wonderful cooks." Aro agreed "I know, I haven't fed on human blood in a while. I enjoy the variety of animal too much" he smiled sheepishly and removed red contacts from his eyes. His irises had turned gold "they look weird on me so I hide them when on duty." He added. I was surprised, but realized I had only ever seen him feed on blood supplied by Charlie and the wives. "Holy shit, Aro. Better not let Carlisle see them" Pete blurted out. Aro nodded "I won't let him take credit, the credit belongs only to the healers and the wives."

There was a knock on the door, Picia poked her head in "dinners ready" she announced. She saw Alistair and smiled "would you like to join us? There's plenty to go around."
"Thank you madam." His curiosity was through the roof. She laughed "please, call me Picia, everyone else does" she rolled her eyes in amusement. Hers irises were gold too. "I appreciate it, Picia." He replied.

We got up and headed to the foyer where the table had been set up. Aro walked beside Alistair "you'll be learning another secret Alistair. This is vital, nothing can be told to another person outside these quarters." He said. Alistair nodded. "You have my word, Aro." He vowed.

"Our Healer isn't a vampire, nor is he human." Aro explained. Alistair nodded, he was surprised but not in a negative way. "He is actually Bella's biological father." Aro said. "Was he at the trial?" Alistair asked.
"No, he's been attending to Alice." I said. Alistair nodded in understanding. "It's fortunate he wasn't there. I can't imagine what it'd be like to hear the details of how your daughters ex had treated her." He said. "I agree. He's been briefed on the content of the trial and he's helped us cope with the emotional fall out after testifying." Aro said.

The dining table was full except for seats meant for us. A dinner setting had been placed at the head of the table for Alistair. Bella sat next to Charlie. "Dad, this is Alistair. Alistair, this is my dad, Charlie Crow."
"You look just like Emmett." He whispered in shock. Bella and Charlie smiled. Charlie explained the family history briefly including Em and Pete as their uncles. "You have one powerful bloodline, I'm glad you're protected as fiercely as you are." Alistair said. Charlie agreed.

The courses were brought out, Alistair ate like a starving man. I felt his enjoyment and smiled, I wondered if he'd remember the good parts of his human life. He was full of bliss as the jelly course came out, followed by desert.

We gave him a tour of the rooms, lab and healing room. I was surprised to see almost fifteen full bottles of darkness on the top of a bookshelf. They were labeled, Pete's hand writing listing their destination. There was almost an even split between bottles labeled Carlisle, Edward and Romanians. Alistair noticed them and asked about them.

"Part of the sentence for Carlisle and Edward will be for them to absorb the darkness they created in others." Charlie explained. Alistair nodded "I had wondered what sort of justice we could deliver, death seems necessary, but also not enough. This sounds acceptable."

Alistair's eyes turned to Alice and he gasped. Marcus spun around and gawked at them before smiling widely. He approached Alistair and spoke softly "she has a hard road ahead of her and, while we care about her, she'll need you too."
"I don't know how I can help her, Marcus." Alistair stuttered. "Listen to your instincts. Love her and care for her. We'll help you. Something tells me you'll be able to show her a life she's never known before. One without confinement." Marcus said.

Alistair dropped to his knees. Pain and love warred within him as he looked at her lifeless body. He looked up at Aro "I cannot continue on the Jury. There's a conflict of interest."
"You don't have to do anything you don't want to. You've come this far, we appreciate your willingness to listen and accept the truth. It's been a horrific trial and I understand completely. I'd do the same thing if it was Picia who lay there." Charlie walked towards us "I need to attend to Alistair, could we have some privacy?" He asked. We nodded and exited.

Charlie POV

I had been developing a mental list of remedies I needed to administer to Alistair ever since I saw him. There were a lot of similarities between him and Alice; their emaciation, physical and psychological trauma, betrayal. All of it. I pulled over a chair and put it beside Alice's bed for him to sit in. "I know Vampires can be in any position for days and not get tired, but if you sit up you can be closer to her." I offered. He unfolded himself and sat down.

His hand twitched, I smiled "it'll really help her if you hold her hand." I said quietly. I boiled the kettle and added the calming mixture of herbs. I gave him some privacy to build up his courage and touch his mate. When I turned I saw his hand resting on the bed, the side of his hand in light contact with hers. I smiled and put the cup on a table within reach of his free hand. "It's safe to drink this, it helps calm nerves without clouding the mind, Char swears by it." I chuckled at the memories where she'd become overwhelmed with irritation at Pete.

He relaxed a little more when I moved to the other side of the bed to check on Alice. He didn't like to be touched, it was written all over his tense posture. "Would you like to stay here while I heal her?" I asked. He nodded and whispered "thank you." He watched me warily as I felt the light move from my core and drift down my hands. It was like a magnet causing a pull towards the person I healed. I watched the glow light her forehead from within, small bursts of light appeared with each healed connection.

She was so close to waking up. I withdrew my power and moved to heat up the bear blood. This was the last of it. Rose had ordered a large shipment of Kangaroo blood, she had enjoyed it on her last honeymoon in Australia and found out many of the 'roos had to be culled. She back ordered the blood a month ago and was going to pick it up tomorrow.

I poured the warm bear blood into a thermos and slowly approached Alistair. "Would you mind feeding her?" I asked. He nodded, his eyes had lost their fear. I sat the thermos next to his cup and moved back to the other side of the room. "Do you know why she's my mate?" He asked softly. "I have no idea, her first mate was killed before she was turned decades ago. We have recently discovered that it's possible for a vampire to have more than one true mate. Marcus has found another. Maybe the vampire who turned her had a weaker mating bond, or fate knew he wouldn't survive so it joined her with you."

He nodded at my fumbled explanation and opened the thermos. I gently tilted Alice's mouth open for him to pour the blood. He nodded his thanks and I turned to make another batch of feeding tonic. I grabbed a small jar, picking up and smelling herbs before adding them and covering them in water. There were small jars lining most of the windowsill, I sat this one down at the end and wrote the date. In two weeks it would be ready. It should add weight to Alice and her mate.

I looked at the other jars, two were ready for bottling. I pulled out a strainer, funnel and small bottles with suction lids. Rose has already written labels for them, I strained the tinctures into bottles and added the labels. I saw that Alistair had finished feeding her and was sipping on his tea "this is delicious, thank you." He murmured, I smiled at him.

"It won't be long before her physical injuries are healed." I told Alistair. "We don't know how she'll be when she wakes up."
"You knew her when the Cullens lived in your town?" He asked. I nodded and replied. "Believe it or not, I was the Police Chief. I got on well with Carlisle and respected him. It was a small town and doctors tend to prefer the cities where they're paid more. We were grateful to have a world class surgeon join our town. I got to know Alice when Bells dated Edward. Bella was injured in a vampire attack and Alice helped her; bathing, brushing her hair, dressing. She was an angel. I had no idea what was going on. I blamed myself for not seeing through the facade, I knew they were vampires, but I didn't know the truth behind all their actions." I shook my head.

"J told me that she would have moved away to ensure he and Bells would get together sooner." I added. He nodded and I continued. "Underneath all the manipulation she is still a good person, she tried to do the right thing. She was so bubbly and cheerful, energetic and charismatic. Her gift broke her, the coven leader broke her, but she was still strong." I said. I wanted him to appreciate the Alice behind the abuse.

"How have you treated her since she came here?" He asked. I knew he was curious about the healing process. "The first thing I did was heal the initial mental illness, she wasn't born with it, she developed it while human and getting visions. Given how her life turned out I can understand how she became ill. She's lived with so much. The depression and delusional state she had from her human life lifted easily."

I paused, hoping the next thing wouldn't set him off "we removed her gift." I braced myself. Alistair nodded and smiled. "Emmett told me, he explained how it hurt her." He said.
"She'll be able to focus on healing, unburdened by what could happen." I said in relief. He continued. "Aro enlightened us on how badly her gift has been manipulated. Power is dangerous, knowledge is dangerous. She deserves to be free." I smiled at him "I'm glad to hear it, Alistair. I'm not her father but I care for her as one."
"Thank you for helping her."
"You'll help her too, I know the healing powers of mates. I've seen it with my daughter and J."
"You like him" he observed. I nodded "he's a great man. Strong, fiercely loyal, he cherishes her."
"I know how he feels." He murmured absent mindedly. "Alice deserves to be cherished too, she doesn't deserve to live in isolation. I'm glad you're the right man for the job." I told him.

There was comfortable silence for a bit. I broke it "she can hear you when you speak to her, I'll give you privacy if you want to talk to your mate." He shook his head and offered; "I've told the others my story, you and Alice should hear it too."
"I'd be honored to hear it, if you're comfortable." I said. He agreed, "I haven't spoken this much in centuries" he admitted before beginning his story.

JPOV

Alistair hadn't left Alice all night, the sun had risen in the sky and we were headed to the throne room for the judgment and sentencing of Carlisle and Edward. Jane approached the Masters, she was worried. "Where is Alistair?"
"He's found his mate, he's with her now." Marcus explained. Jane turned to Aro. "Aro, the others are speculating about his wellbeing." She said as she held out her hand for Aro to touch, he sighed "Amun. Damnit." He turned to me "War, could you speak to Alistair? We'll need to ensure his fellow jury members understand we haven't harmed him. They won't believe it until they see him for themselves. I hate to do this to him, he should be tending to his mate." Aro said. I nodded and headed to the healing room.

I knocked and heard Charlie's muffled 'come in'. Alistair was sitting in a chair by the bed, his hand barely touched Alice's. Charlie looked like he'd just woken up, I waved at him and turned to Alistair "Aro sends his apologies, there is suspicion amongst the jury that we've harmed you." I was surprised to feel a spike of amusement "Amun?" He asked. I nodded. He stood and whispered to Alice "I'll be back, I promise" I felt a wisp of emotion from Alice; loneliness. I recoiled in shock, Charlie and Alistair's heads shot to mine. "I felt her emotions, she felt loneliness." I looked at them "wait here, I'll get Rose" there was a wisp of fear from Alice. I spoke softly sending her calm "she won't hurt you, she's been helping Charlie heal you. You're safe and I promise no one hates you." I turned and ran to the throne room.

I held out my hand for Aro, he nodded and gestured for Rose to join us. "Rosalie, it appears that Alice requires your assistance." Her eyes bugged out and she ran. I bowed and stood with my fellow Horsemen. "Alistair will be here shortly." I whispered to them. Carlisle and Edward hadn't arrived. When Alistair opened the door, Aro stood and gestured for us and the guard to leave the room so Alistair could speak to the others privately, the Masters filed out behind us.

"We'll give them a few minutes" Aro said. Caius turned to me "is Alice okay?" He asked. I nodded "I felt her emotions come through, she's almost ready to wake up. Charlie has stopped the sleeping draught, she'll wake up soon."
"Alistair should be with her" Marcus said. I nodded "she'll need him there. Will he be able to go back to her?"
"He will, whether the others like it or not. What are the emotions in the room?"
"Their suspicion has lowered significantly, there's a lot of sympathy and anger but it's not directed to us or Alistair-" I stopped as Alistair opened the door "I told them Alice is my true mate. They asked about how I've been treated and I told them of your kindness, thankfully Maggie confirmed my truth." Alistair reported. Aro nodded, "thank you. You should return to her, she'll wake up soon."
"Thank you, I've never been happier to be proved wrong" he said. Aro chuckled at Alistair's parting words and smiled. "Let's head back in" he said when Rose had returned.

The jury and audience were ready and waiting, we took our positions and Aro began "we'd like to thank each of you for your participation. This has been a difficult time." He paused and looked at the jury as Jane and Alec lead Carlisle and Edward to their position next to the stage. Out the corner of my eye I saw Emmett take Esme and Rose's hand in his.

Aro walked up to the jury "have you reached a verdict?" He kept his face neutral, his emotions were hopeful. One by one they stood up and said "guilty" they looked directly at their old friend and his mate as they said it. Aro nodded sadly "do you have any recommendations regarding his sentence?" Siobhan stood up, the others had appointed her spokesperson. "We have been unable to decide on their punishment, we will defer to our leaders to deliver retribution. We only ask that they not be set free and ensure that Carlisle is unable to practice his 'medicine.'"

There was sadness around the audience and jury. Edward was livid, Carlisle was swimming in despair. Edward roared, his eyes were black and venom trickled down his chin. "TRAITORS! FOOLS! Can you see the Volturi have deceived you? Their Healer is a master manipulator, a witch able to alter your perception. They took my gift! They drugged you! You drank their poison and now you condemn us?"

Emmett stood up, he hadn't said a word during the trial. "I took your gift." He announced. "I lived with you, saw how you abused your gift, manipulating us and spilling our secrets. You betrayed Rose and Esme's thoughts and painted them as feeble, weak creatures that are inferior to you. I couldn't let you continue to hurt others with your gift. I asked the Masters' permission, they granted it."
"Truth" Maggie confirmed.

"You're lying! You aren't gifted, you're just an oaf, a simpleton." Edward's words went from angry to smug. He was feeling a sick pleasure at tearing into Em. Emmett just shook his head "you underestimate everyone, tapping into any weakness you perceive. I have watched our mentor, the Healer, pull the darkness you created from my mate and my mother. I have watched him heal the damage Carlisle has done to Alice and treat the underlying illness. You were right all those times you said you were a monster, I loved Bella as a little sister and I will never forgive you for abandoning her and coercing us to leave." Em's voice was strong, his eyes filled with venom.

Marcus took the opportunity to step forward. "Do you know what I see?" He asked Edward. "Bonds" Edward spat. Marcus nodded "I see the ripped bond you had with Bella Swan; it was never a mating bond, only a bond between predator and pray. I see the blackened bonds between you and your former coven, you considered yourself their master. You begged us for death when you learnt of Ms. Swan's death, you will beg for it again before we're done with you. I recommend the darkness the Healer has pulled from your former coven members be transferred to you. You will remain in our cells and experience the consequences of your actions."

I felt shock from the audience and jury, Marcus rarely spoke and, before he'd healed, he hadn't taken part in any trials. The emotions swirled around the room, the general one being approval. Aro turned to the jury "do you agree with Marcus' sentence for the convicted?" There were sharp nods from each of them.

"When will the sentence be carried out?" Amun asked. "When Alice is physically healed our Healer will pull the darkness from her. It will be channeled and siphoned into the darkness the Healer collected from Ms. Platt, Ms. Hale and Mr. McCarthy. Those of you who wish to witness the sentence be carried our will be able to. The rest of you are free to leave. We ask that the content of the trial not be discussed outside this room. You have all heard deeply personal testimony, we ask that you respect the privacy of the witnesses and survivors of their cruelty." Aro said. They were all dismissed. I could tell by the emotions of the crowd that they would put the events of the last few days behind them, the shock of the proceedings had hit them hard. They wouldn't want to revisit it.

The Masters left to check on Alice. We, the Horsemen and the Guard, stayed in our positions. Amun was the first to leave. Siobhan and Liam left soon after. Maggie opted to stay, the Denali's joining her. Caius returned shortly after "could the four Horsemen escort the prisoners to the dungeon? Marcus has requested they be kept in separate cells." He asked. We nodded and headed to Carlisle and Edward. I amped up their fear. Pete and Char lead in front while Bella and I guarded them from behind. Edward walked stiffly, trying to hide his fear. Carlisle was a mess; fear, dread, anxiety and hopelessness emanated from him.

We reached the dungeon and guided them into neighboring cells, Carlisle started to panic. An epiphany seemed to strike Edward, his fear dwindled and he turned smug as Carlisle spoke "you can't separate us! Please!" Edward rolled his eyes, "they're just trying to scare us into submission, Aro's too fascinated by our lifestyle. I mean really, Emmett doesn't have a gift, the Healer probably drugged my blood so I couldn't read his mind. When I first arrived they gave me pig's blood, there was something in it, their thoughts faded slowly. If I don't feed my gift will return and Aro will offer me a place on in the guard."

"Edward, there's no hope." Carlisle insisted. "Oh please, Carlisle. Aro feels threatened by us. He just wants mine and Alice's gifts. You'll be freed soon, as soon as those traitorous friends of yours leave the bonds Chelsea messed with will return. There will be an uproar, the Volturi will have to let us go or our kind will mutiny." He truly believed that shit.

Pete nudged Carlisle towards his cell, Carlisle shouted in desperation "I'm sorry Edward. I love you." Edward rolled his eyes and swaggered into his cell "you're not my mate, Carlisle, it's a trick. Get over it. Bella was my mate." We closed the cells and left them. Carlisle's emotions were full of sadness and hopeless. His mate wouldn't even acknowledge their bond. Edward made himself comfortable, smugness radiated off him.