Hello everyone, I'd like to thank you all for the reviews and much appreciated support and enthusiasm, unbelievably amazing. A couple readers were confused with what's going on; if you happen to be on the same boat, please don't hesitate to ask me (in a review or PM). I will gladly clarify any misunderstandings/confusion to the best of my capabilities…because it was only a couple so far, I won't go back and rewrite any of the recent chapters, so if you're confused, now's the time to let me know! Lol, on another note, the trial is coming up—continuing next several chapters—and then the 'fun' will begin all over again hehe. And for the many, many of you that are desperate for Jake/Nessie's reunion, bear with me ;-) Thanks.

I do not own any of Stephanie Meyer's genius work, solely the plot and some new characters in this story.

****************************Nessie************************************

Morning.

I could hear Oliver's stomach growling uncontrollably despite the 'food' they'd given us last night. Jeanine's rations had been much better, by far—last night consisted of a 'salad' for us to share. I could've sworn Felix was laughing at us as if it were some kind of cruel joke when he'd presented us with our dinner. No one had come yet and so I assumed that would be it until…well, until after the trial…

Food was the last thing on my mind, really, but at this point, anything would serve as a distraction for what was to come.

"What a lovely morning to be convicted!" Felix exclaimed, throwing open the door with inflated enthusiasm. Demetri was silent as he approached Oliver with a pair of handcuffs, Felix following suit in my direction. I knew even before the cuffs were in place that breaking them was unmentionable; regular cuffs would be too easy to break off. These were tight and secure, made of an impenetrable metal: vampire proof.

I shot a wary glance at Oliver, a similar expression on his defeated face.

"Come along, then," Demetri spoke, grabbing hold of my friends arm. I felt Felix's iron hands around me and we hastily left the room and down the sinister hallway. Despite the discomfort of the cuffs, my thoughts were reeling. I couldn't possibly be convicted, could I? What would happen to me? What would happen to Oliver?

The latter made my heart ache, Jeanine's tragic story immediately jumping to mind. Whatever they had planned for me, I would take it, anything so long as no one else I loved came to be hurt.

We entered a different set of doors, these much larger, and I was momentarily blinded by the brilliance of light that hit our faces. The room was huge, a rectangular space with ceiling windows, elegant décor, and set up to resemble a sort of court room. I immediately recognized Aro, sitting higher than the other two leaders at the farther end of the room. A small group of vampires hovered close to the royal trinity, bodyguards perhaps. Jane, Jeanine, and Alec sat towards the front, slightly diagonal towards the rest of the room, an identical bench straight across. And finally, seated closer to the entrance, farther from where Oliver and I were undoubtedly being led to—

"Nessie!" mom called out, rising immediately to her feet as she made to move to my side. Daddy was already standing.

Another voice spoke at the same time. "Jeanine," Jane ordered, and much to my disappointment—

"I'm sorry, but the charged is not to be approached or contacted at this moment," she said robotically, blocking my mother from taking any step further. For a second, the entire room froze, watching my furious mother's fists ball up and teeth bare. Jeanine remained stoic, unchanged with the glowering eyes before her, completely ignoring daddy as well. Then—

"Bella, she'll be fine," daddy's quiet voice soothed, his eyes still the incredible hole of angst I'd never learn to forget. He wrapped his arms protectively around mom and lightly, but forcefully, pulled her away and back into her seat, completely avoiding any eye contact with Jeanine. I had the slightest inclination that maybe, just maybe, Jeanine was conveying some kind of message to him…

It could only be a good thing, right?

Felix suddenly shoved me forward, moving me towards the front of the room across Jane, Alec and Jeanine. I shot a nervous glance at my parents, grimacing with the fury raging in both their eyes, daddy eyeing Felix with an abrupt intense ire. He sat me onto the bench and suddenly I understood daddy's increased anger.

"Relax, daddy," Felix smirked, as he settled closer to me, his thick legs on either side of my own as he straddled me from behind and held me securely into his chest. I turned slightly towards Oliver; Demetri had him in a similar 'embrace' but nothing as close or inappropriate as Felix had me. It was more than uncomfortable, terrifying even, as his legs tightened their squeeze around my body.

"We can't have your pretty little wifey shielding any of our little prisoners. This is just a precaution—"he continued.

But daddy was already on his feet, his eyes bulging and his nostrils flaring dangerously.

"You get your disgusting body the hell away from my daughter," he ordered, no hesitance in the soft but lethal tone of his voice. I hadn't realized the tears streaming down my face; I'd never in my life been sexually harassed but this definitely felt like something along those lines. Abruptly, the taste of blood came to lips as I unknowingly bit into them; I was trembling.

"Come now, Edward, I mean her no—" Felix rolled his eyes, nuzzling 'affectionately' into my hair. I let out a whimper.

"ARO!" daddy yelled. Beside him mom stood up again, eyes blazing. Aro, who'd been watching the scene with mild interest, seemed to perk up, and simply smiled in my direction.

"Felix," he said, a polite tone, "perhaps standing would be more appropriate, yes? No need to unsettle our guests with any further implications."

Behind me Felix shifted once more before nodding and easing himself away from me, slowly. He settled for holding me upright, his hands wrapped securely around my elbows. Daddy slowly sat back down, his glare burning a hole into Felix's disgusting face. Mom only shot fire with her eyes as she took her place again.

"Alright then, now that we are all comfortable," Aro said, smiling tauntingly with the last word, "I'll need to ask Isabella to refrain from shielding any of the charged-"

Mom growled. "Why? So SHE can torture my daughter to her liking!" She motioned towards Jane;Jane smiled back in mock hurt.

Aro let out a musical laugh. "No, of course not my dear. This is only in case any further investigation is required," he said, gesturing to himself. Mom stiffly nodded, her eyes glaring with the additional silent order. Aro smiled again, "Let's begin, shall we?"

He made his way down three steps and stood before me, his voice a soft lilt amidst the ever vivid tension billowing throughout the large room. "Renesmee Cullen, you are charged here today with the murder of guard member, Gianna Mendez. We, that is myself and the elder leaders, will consult on your innocence once we are through here," he paused, a small smile playing amusedly on his lips, "I would like to notify you that, unlike human trials, this one will be quick and to the point. No lawyers, or bibles, or juries, or any such nonsense. When asked a question, you will respond, and if you have more to add on any one else's statements, you will address not the witness but the one asking the questions. Do I make myself clear, Miss Cullen?"

I nodded my head, shakily but determined to keep my head high. He only smiled pleasantly in return. "Ah, very good. Same goes for you all," he continued, turning towards the bench opposite us, "is that understood?"

"Yes master," Jane, Alec, and Jeanine chorused. It was disgusting…though as she looked up, I noticed the complete lack of emotion in Jeanine's dark face, an outrageous perpendicular to the adoring faces of Jane and Alec.

Aro nodded, smiled once more, and turned back towards his seat. "Caius, the floor is yours."

The light haired vampire stood up slowly, a small but almost unnoticeable smile playing on his lips. He glided down and brought his hands forward as he approached me, an odd but glimmering light in his red eyes.

"Renesmee Cullen, first of all, do you admit to committing said charge today, that is, killing Gianna Mendez?" he asked, a resonant but quiet voice.

I hesitated, trying to choose my words carefully. Despite my actions I had a feeling things were already against my favor. "In self-defense sir—"

"Yes or no Miss Cullen," he briefly cut in. I narrowed my eyes in response before feeling an added pressure against the skin Felix held firmly. Wincing only slightly, I raised my chin and answered.

"Yes."

"And who, Miss Cullen, attacked first, you or Gianna?"

"Well she was fighting—"

"You or her?" he cut in again. I felt my nostrils flare as I responded again, biting into each word.

"I did."

"Really? Did Gianna provoke you in any way, that is to say, your person, with any kind of physical or verbal gesture, I believe you might even call it bullying?"

"Well, no not to me exactly but—"

"Yes or no only, this is the third time I must remind you of satisfactory answers. Do not try my patience, Miss Cullen."

"But I—"

"You'll have your chance to better explain when all the evidence has been reported." He cut in once again. I was fuming by this point; how was I ever going to prove myself innocent if they kept asking these one-sided questions! It wasn't fair at all, it—

"So, let's see, you admit to attacking her first, quite interesting. And why, Miss Cullen did you so willingly attack her?"

Finally! A question in my favor!

"She was attacking my friend, Oliver, almost to the brink of death." I stated triumphantly. Much to my surprise, however, Caius only sneered at me.

"Your little friend? You are referring, of course to the boy beside you, yes?"

Despite my gathered confidence, I frowned. "Yes…"

"And he is a shape-shifter, correct? One of the wolves from La Push?"

I didn't like the expression on his face, it was too content…"Yes."

"And it is common knowledge, is it not, that these shape-shifters hold a deep grudge against our kind, that is, vampires, yes?"

"Yes but she came—"

"I'm going to let that one slip, another reminder, Miss Cullen, answer only what I'm asking, really, I thought you more intelligent than this," he waved his hand impatiently. I felt my shoulders heaving slightly with the indescribable hatred and annoyance I was feeling for the loathsome vampire before me.

"So we've established the reason behind your attacking Miss Gianna in the first place. Did it ever occur to you, Miss Cullen, that, given these hostile creatures' background, Gianna was merely defending herself from its wrath?"

I felt my eyes widen and my mouth drop in astonishment. "But she attacked him first!"

"Did she really? Hmm, well considering she is no longer here, let me turn, briefly, to the creature itself—"

I was getting angrier and angrier with every idiotic word that came out of his mouth. A creature? Oliver was no creature! The thing in front of me now, however, I doubt even 'creature' overstated what it was!

"You," he said, his voice stealing into a darker, fiercer voice, "did Gianna indeed attack you first?"

Oliver, heart racing and sweat building, hardened his dark eyes and answered. "Yes."

"And, you're quite sure about this? There is no need for lies, one touch and Aro will know the truth. This is our mere attempt to allow our dear Cullens a fair trial, you see. So let me try this again: did Gianna, in fact, attack head on?"

Oliver blinked, unnerved somewhat with Caius' threatening words, but responded nonetheless. "Yes, well, I heard my brother yell so I jumped up and she tackled me down until—"

"So then you did attack her first?" Caius pressed.

Oliver looked confused. "What? Wait, no, that's not what I said—"

"But you just admitted that you jumped up towards her, did you not? Tell me, if I were to punch you what would your retaliation be?"

Another perplexed blink. "I—huh?"

Caius sighed audibly, rubbing his temple in annoyance. "Block me, yes?"

Oliver simply nodded. Caius grinned. "So then, wouldn't it be justified to say, on Gianna's part at least, that you jumping towards her like you did, merited some form of defense?"

"But Tom yell—"

"Bottom line, dog, you initiated her fighting at all, jumping directly at her. Miss Cullen," he continued, turning back towards me, "when he jumped up, tell me, was he phased into his wolf form?"

I felt my throat tightening, the cave incident jumping clearly to mind. I glanced at Oliver through wet eyes, knowing already how bad things were looking. "Well, yes but—"

"Yes? Hmmm, that is interesting, isn't it? So let us recap. You claim you fought Gianna on the pretense of defending your little friend, who it turns out not only started the fight, but went at it in full force, in his wolf form. Oliver," he turned back towards him, "what does your pack specialize in? That is, what is the main reason you phase into a slobbering beast?"

Oliver's expression was pained. "Well, to kill vampires but my brother—"

"To kill vampires! And there you have it, a confession of motive! So—"

"BUT YOU'RE NOT LISTENING!" Oliver suddenly bellowed, his face reddening with anger. "SHE HAD MY BROTHER, THEY ALL DID, THE BLOODSUCKERS!"

"Silence!" Caius bellowed, his red eyes crimson coals in a face of white. He leered at Oliver, edging his face closer to him as he continued his ridiculous investigation.

"So you say they had your brother, hmmm? Alright, let us analyze that. How is it you know they had him in the first place?"

"Because Renesmee and I heard him yell, and he was nowhere to be seen so—"

"You said 'heard' so that implies you did not actually see what your precious brother was actually getting himself into. Perhaps he was trying his hand at what it is you creatures do best, kill vampires, in which case we are led back to the same conclusion: ill will towards a single vampire, her demise brought about, yet, by one of her own kind—well, half of it anyway."

It was me who spoke up this time, a much different tone, however. "You can ask Tom though, he'll tell you! He was attacked first, so really—"

"No, that is unnecessary, I trust Jeanine will fill in that little mystery for us in a bit," he interrupted instantly, flashing a smug smile in my direction.

My heart was beating hard and fast, and I chanced a glance in my parents' direction, surprised they'd held their actions this long. Their expressions bore those of helpless pain and concern, uncontrollable anger. Felix swiftly turned me back around so that I was mere inches away from Caius' malicious face.

"Miss Cullen, I was just saying," he spoke carefully, "that thus far we are decided that your actions concerning the protection of your friend are unjustified, given a combination of his, er, pedigree, and violent manner towards our kind. You committed the murder, however, and so it almost seems you were aiding them in their little vampire extinction quest—"

"But you're leading everyth—"

"That is quite enough," he snapped at me, "you're either really forgetful or stupid, how many times must I remind you not to interrupt me and speak only when spoken to?"

I heard a rustle in the background and an audible snarl. Daddy, please calm down, I pleaded.

"That is all I have for you," he finished, turning tail and making his way to the opposite side of the wall, "remember, once all the evidence is in you may speak any explanation you find helpful."

Oh I was definitely going to be talking!

He approached the opposing bench and spoke. "Jeanine," he said softly, almost inaudibly, "I'm so sorry, dear, that you're caught up in the middle of all this, but you are a witness, after all. Tell me, what was Gianna to you?"

Jeanine looked startled by the question, and I stared at her with pleading eyes. "She was…a friend, of sorts," was her reply. Caius nodded, a pretentious gesture of sympathy.

"A friend? How tragic, horrible for you. So sorry for your more personal loss. As for yourself, though, Jeanine, what would you say your role is here in the Volturi?"

I felt my mouth drop slightly, as his words, the unspoken whispers between every vocal sound, suddenly jumped out at me: a reminder of what she had to lose should she not cooperate. My pulse quickened and I prayed for justice, for Jeanine to answer—somehow!—as ambivalently as she could, an answer that would secure her remaining family and our fate.

Jeanine stayed silent for a moment, her crimson eyes boring strangely into Caius intense gaze, focused yet almost confused, as if having to choose between two very right answers. Her gaze shifted briskly, meeting mine for the quickest of seconds, a look I deciphered without mistake, with increased dread and a falling heart.

"I am Jeanine, no one else, servant and faithful member of the Volturi guard, sworn to serve and live towards the better of our much respected and superior vampire race." She said.

A part of me died, my heart failing for the quickest yet longest of seconds, as the real trepidation began. This was not going to be good…

Alas, part one of the trial. Poor Nessie! Let me remind that in the books, SM defines the Voltuir to address these kind of issues quickly, however, I'm pretending that—given their previous 'misunderstanding' in Breaking Dawn with Renesmee—they are somewhat allowing this trial at all to give the Cullens (Renesmee) the benefit of the doubt. As you can see, however, even so things are not looking fair. What will Jeanine say? Where are the rest of the Cullens? Jake? The pack?...more to come, please review! Thanks.