First off, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE REVIEWS! I was so happy this morning to wake up to several emails announcing reviews; that day was so tiring for me, and the reviews kept coming in, really you all kept me going lol, so thank you so much, I love you, mwuah! Ok, so getting back to the story lol, I bet everyone's wondering where our favorite wolfpack and family are, huh? This chapter will backtrack a little, just to see what they have been up to all this time, a little fun perhaps? Remember that these scenes are happening BEFORE and DURING the trial you all have just witnessed, so just so there's no confusion. Ok, read, review, and enjoy!

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

**************************Carlisle***************************

A mixture of opposing scents circulated the enclosed area, the background aroma of human blood and flesh, my families individual sweet smell and…the earthy yet acerbic waft of thirteen shape-shifting wolves…I closed my eyes in frustration and for the second time in any discussion with Jacob, took a deep breath.

"Jacob," I began again, "I understand your worry for Nessie, and your immediate protective instincts, but—"

"But nothing!" Jacob hissed back at me. "They're just looking for a fight and you know it, we—"

"Are now the ones initiating a fight by bringing along the wolves!" I retorted back hotly, with as much discretion as possible. We still had several hours to go on the plane and I didn't want to cause any kind of stir, especially since we were so close already. Much to my dismay, however, Jacob merely grinned.

"Ah, relax, Carlisle, you'll be thanking me once we get there and find Bella and Edward surrounded—"

"Did it ever occur to you that maybe, just MAYBE, the Volturi is doing its job and that Nessie is already home-free? And if we arrive with thirteen shape-shifting wolves they're just going to let her leave—"

"Actually, Carlisle," cut in Alice, "before my visions disappeared, I did happen to catch something in Jane's mind, something instant but quite leading nonetheless."

I frowned, knowing it could only be bad news. "What, pray, Alice, would that be?"

"She was thinking about some kind of negotiation involving Edward. That's all I caught, but I think it would be reasonable to assume any negotiation with the Volturi can only be a bad thing…what if they find Nessie guilty?"

Esme shook her head beside me. "No, Nessie didn't do anything but rescue another life, two actually, if—"

But I was already shaking my head in opposition, Alice's vision clear in every light and my own blindness illuminated by false hope. "Would the Volturi deem the life of a shape-shifter to be of any importance? I think not. There is a great possibility that she may indeed be found guilty—"

"See! I told you! We're going to have to fight," put in Jacob, but I continued frowning.

"I apologize for my hasty assumptions earlier, Jacob. I suppose a small part of me was still hoping the Volturi capable of some human decency, but it doesn't change my thoughts on the pack. A fight will only give them more reason to implicate us all—"

Jacob looked at me with stubborn black eyes. "Well then so be it, I don't know about you, grandpa, but I'm not letting them have Nessie."

I made to respond but decided against it. Jacob was dead set when it came to the safety of our granddaughter; no time for compromising or planning…he was NOT going to change his mind.

I sighed. I hope you're right about this, Jacob…

********************************Emmett*******************************

"I still don't get it though, Jazz, how come I can't kill anyone?" I whined.

Jasper gave me a small, sympathetic smile. "Because, we need to avoid any further implications. Carlisle is right in that respect, fighting to kill is only going to cause more trouble so instead—"

"We do the killing, and you focus on the 'beating the crap out of them' part," cut in another voice, bright with excitement. I narrowed my eyes despite his cheer.

"You know, if there weren't so many humans around I'd take you on right now," I said. Seth just rolled his eyes at me. His sister coughed beside him, though it sounded unusually similar to 'idiots.'

"Who would've thought, eh? Your plane gets delayed, and even though we waited, we still ended up on the same one!" Seth continued happily.

I heard Rosalie's hiss from beside me, an almost inaudible 'and then we had to trade our first class to economy, ugh!' I couldn't help but chuckle, Rose always had a way for making me laugh, in her own self-preserving manner. Behind me Seth continued ranting a series of self-congratulation on their 'sneaky' boarding.

Yeah, sneaky in the sense that Carlisle insisted not to cause a scene at the airport…still though, if the pack came with us, then there was definitely going to be a fight, and that was just—

"—totally awesome!" Seth was suddenly too close for comfort, but I didn't care: he took the words right out of my mouth. "I mean," he said enthusiastically, "can you imagine all the screaming vampires? 'Run little bloodsucker run!'"

I laughed aloud, causing an elder couple up front to turn around with a scowl. When I flashed a dazzling smile their way, they blinked, confused with the general conflicting emotions of irritation and awe. Jasper rolled his eyes at me.

"I guess beating them up is still fun," I chortled, grinning widely at Seth's intoxicating eagerness. I didn't blame him; I was so ready to kick some Volturi butt!

"Definitely," Jasper agreed across the aisle, "just so long as you don't get ahead of yourself, Emmett, you—"

"Geez! I know, I know, tear apart but don't kill, I get it, I get it, I'm not stu—"

"Darling," Rose suddenly chirped in, "we know you're not stupid, but you do have a tendency to over do any kind of fighting, killing by accident isn't too far out of your league so just—"

"Try not to be so reckless." Leah finished her sentence from behind us, never once glancing in our direction. Rose's eyes widened fractionally, and for a terrifying second her beautiful face gone livid as she focused on the dark skinned female pack member sitting behind us. Seth and I exchanged glances, a silent agreement for immediate 'girl restraining' should the need arise.

Rose turned back to me, a strange light in her golden eyes. "Yes, exactly."

My mouth dropped a second quicker than Seth's, our eyes bulging in shock. Rose…agreeing…with...Leah?

"Shut your mouth before you start drooling little brother," Leah snapped impatiently, turning around ever so slightly to frown at her younger brother. For a split second their eyes met, brown with golden, the heated cores of each of our families…silent allies. Rosalie smirked and quickly broke the contact.

"Luckily we don't drool, but still, Emmett, do close your mouth, it's not attractive," she said, the corners of her lips curling upward as she returned towards the façade of reading a magazine. I looked at Seth, utter bewilderment mirrored per square inch on his face.

"What the—"

"How did—"

Seth leaned in closer, speaking just above a whisper. "Dude, that was scary."

I nodded, making sure to keep my voice as low as possible. "Tell me about it. That's the first time they've ever even made eye contact!"

"Pretty soon they'll be best friends!" Seth chimed in.

I nodded eagerly, chuckling lightly with our wild imaginations. "And shopping together! I bet Alice would have a field day with Leah, she's about the same size as her don't you think—"

Seth suddenly lost a shade of color, glancing nervously at his sister. "Let's not mention shopping, Leah's a bit sensitive about—oof!"

I stared at her in surprise. "What was that for, Leah?"

Leah only glanced at me once, before retorting matter-of-factly, "Seth knows not to be talking about my wardrobe, no matter how discreet."

"But he only sai—ow!"

"Emmett, turn around and sit down. You two are causing a scene. Leah's right, a girl's wardrobe is nobody's business but her own." Before I could blink she'd pulled me down into the seat beside her. Behind us I could hear Seth whining where Leah had hit him. I shot him a quick glance of 'what the hell?' but only managed to catch a glimmer of Leah's face.

She was smiling.

************************Jacob******************************

One more hour, one more hour…I wonder what Nessie's doing…I hope you're alright, Ness…

Beside me Sam shot me a quick nod, short but supportive, a look that said 'don't worry, we'll get those bastards.' I looked away in response. We were sitting behind Carlisle and Esme and I repeatedly told myself that he was wrong, that the Volturi was only after one thing, and ultimately it would come to a fight. Why else would they be implicating Nessie anyway?

Alice's earlier words crossed my mind…

"The Volturi has always been interested in several of us. Myself, Edward, and recently Bella have been the pinnacle of wanting what you can never have, some more so than the rest," she said, suddenly looking away. I knew why, of course…Alice was the vampire wanted 'more so than the rest.'

"Nessie's gift, though not as defensive, may be used as a means of attacking. Think about it, in a hand-to-hand fight, what could she show vampires that might completely throw them off guard?"

I'd thought about that for a second, cringing whilst making a face as I answered her. "Blood."

Alice nodded. "Yes, so, if trained properly, Nessie could also be a coveted member—"

"Wait a second," I interrupted, my voice suddenly gone up an octave, "you're saying that maybe they'll try to keep her? For her stupid gift?"

Alice made a face at me. "It's not a stupid gif—"

"It is if they want her for it!" I cut in hotly.

She sighed. "Look, Jacob, none of us want that to be true. I'm just working with all the possible outcomes here. It's kind of hard to see anything without my visions, you know…"

That only made me feel worse, of course. "Oh…yeah, sorry about that—"

But she quickly shook her head and smiled at me. "Don't be. The pack has always been supportive of us, whether forced or not," she laughed softly, "so as much as it sucks for my visions, I can't think of anyone better to be fighting with."

I fought the urge to hug her into my chest. Alice was, aside from Nessie and Bella, the only Cullen that I'd found myself able to REALLY warm up to—with Edward there would always be some kind of awkwardness after.

But the thought of Nessie becoming one of them, a Volturi bloodsucker…I forced myself to calm down. Sam placed his hand on my shaking shoulder, a gentle warning that I quickly overcame. I took a deep breath and gave my pack a final look, an expression without words that conveyed just how dangerous and how important our near battle was going to be.

Nessie, my love, I'm almost there...

Ooooohhh! They're almost to Volterra! And the trial just ended, right? Well, sort of…I do recall I left you all with some kind of cliffy there, hmmm…hehehe. Coming up next is the after math of 'Bella's decision.' I know this chapter wasn't too great, but I needed some humor—even if it included a VERY odd pair, Rose and Leah lol—and I really needed to include a Jake POV, since most everyone here seems to be a 'team Jacob' fan…*team Edward all the way whoo!*…but anyway, I'm just ranting now. Next chapter should be up sometime Monday. Till then, check out my new poll on my profile page, as well as—if you haven't already—read and review my oneshots. Oh and of course please review this one, the next chapter will be quite exciting, I promise, and the more reviews I get, the quicker I will send it out :) thank you all, love you!