"I like characters who aren't typically heroic and come to some sort of epiphany about themselves."

Brad Andersen

Bella sunk to the floor. She was vaguely aware that her head was in her hands and that she had collapsed, but found that she couldn't do anything about it. That she couldn't care less.

A knock sounded on her door. "Bella?" Jasper's voice called out in concern. "I can feel you- your emotions. I'm not wearing the Inhibitor."

The door opened.

"Bella-!" panicking, Jasper ran towards Bella, taking her by the arms and pulling her up.

"'m fine," Bella mumbled as he helped her get back onto the bed. He pulled her to lie down and propped the pillows behind her. "It's alright, Jazz, you don't have to-"

But instinctively, Bella felt slightly better with her head propped against the pillows. It brought back vague memories of how Gran used to prop her up against the pillows when she was sick and how she'd given Bella her own homemade tomato soup.

Jasper peered down at her in concern. "You're not okay," he said slowly. "And it's okay."

Bella took a shuddering breath. "I-I've been an idiot," she whispered, her voice quavering. "I… I've messed up." She croaked. Bella gave a hiccupping sob.

"We all have." Jasper said evenly. "You no worse than others."

Bella shook her head. Not every idiot grew up listening to stories about how teenage whirlwind romances and shotgun weddings to someone you barely knew could ruin someone's life only to do just that. Not every idiot had been born into the twenty-first century only to fly into marriage and eternity without considering the other options available, and agree to be an eternal student, moving from place to place, trying to stay hidden. Not everyone laid down and allowed everyone to walk over them, like a mat. Just Bella.

"Did you know I'd planned on being a teacher once I'd gotten my degree?" Bella croaked.

Jasper blinked. "I never knew that."

Bella took a shuddering breath. "Now you do."

Jasper immediately understood the implications. "You stopped…" He paused.

Bella nodded, numbly. "Renée's teaching profession was the only thing about her that I'd respected." She mumbled. "I hoped to emulate her, only on the high school level, but I'd abandoned that goal." She laughed thinly. "Not that I'd have done a good job: I'm not good with people, or kids, teenagers or adults, and I was dead clumsy. But still…"

Jasper stared down at her. "Did Edward know that about you?" He asked, suspicious.

Bella shook his head. "I never told him. I guess I'd been so caught up in romance and all that happened that I'd… I'd forgotten completely all about it."

Bella gave a hiccupping, bitter laugh. "What does that make me, Jazz? Edward didn't know me, I didn't know him… I thought I knew him; I thought he was the first person who'd gone the extra mile for me to- to… to keep me safe. To look after me the way Renée never did, or Charlie because he was so far away. To love me." Bella hiccupped.

Jasper looked alarmed. "Bella, Edward loves you-"

"I know," Bella said, turning away. "I know." She had to stop this train of thought. "We turned out well. That's all we have to focus on: that and going home together with Nessie.

"I guess," Bella mumbled after a long while. "I just regret being an idiot because it could've turned out badly- and I didn't even realise it." She looked up at Jasper.

"What did Edward say about his parents?"

Jasper was at a loss for words. "That, uh, his father Edward Anthony Masen Senior was a prominent lawyer, though they were never close. He'd paid for Edward to attend private school and music lessons- that's where he learned to play piano from. His mother was at home more: she'd practically raised Edward herself. He had no siblings, apart from a baby sister who died young." Bella's eyes widened as she heard this pronouncement. She sat up.

"He never told me that," Bella said quietly. "He never told me he had a sister."

Jasper shrugged. "He wouldn't have known her. Edward only mentioned it in passing when he came to Chicago. He goes there about every fifty years to 'inherit' his house and property from his parents and himself. This included all the jewellery he gave to you and Alice. I saw the pictures at one point, and there was a baby in Elizabeth Masen's arms, with Edward by her knee."

Bella was stunned. She couldn't imagine it: Edward as a young child. She wanted to ask him about the pictures. Heck, she'd never even seen any images of Elizabeth Masen or Edward as a young boy. "Were the two of them close?" She asked Jasper. She sat up. "You mentioned that he and his father-"

Jasper nodded. "It seems so. After her daughter died, Elizabeth must've been naturally very protective of her son. I overheard Edward mention to Esme, Carlisle and Rosalie that she'd had a number of stillbirths and miscarriages, before and after he was born."

Bella's eyes widened. "That's so sad."

"Yeah," Jasper agreed. "But it was normal at the time. People tended to have a lot of kids, because the majority of them tended to die young. It was the same for my parents before and after I was born: only my sister and I survived in the end. I had an older brother who died of tuberculosis over a year before I left home and joined the army."

Bella was at a loss for words. She'd never imagined…

"Why did you leave home?" Bella wanted to know.

"Because I couldn't stand it," Jasper sighed. "I had no life, no future. No prospects for a good life, apart from being a tailor's son, and with a war coming, like Edward, I was caught up in the wave and enthusiasm. At home, I was just another mouth to feed for my parents; in the army I could earn a living, bring home some money, gain some status that would make our lives easier and do some good in the world- or so I thought." He laughed bitterly. "I was a fool.

"It was normal to me," he admitted. "The slavery. My family were too poor to own any, but all we saw was that the Yankees were coming from the north and they were going to destroy and take everything that we had. We couldn't afford that. Maybe that's why the Germans were so eager to listen to Hitler's propaganda: that's exactly what ended up happening after World War One, and they feared it would happen again if they lost World War Two." He mused.

"Edward's parents were more prosperous than mine were, but he was born around World War One. Like all the other kids, he grew restless, eager to join the army, earn some glory and be a hero. Nobody knew about the realities of war back then, not unless you've lived it. Back before the Great War, everyone talked about how heroic and dashing they were, and what an honour it was to serve one's country, and that there was no greater honour than to die in battle for it." He shook his head. "Those were the times, Bella. Those were the times we were all born in. We all thought that way."

Bella absorbed this in silence. "But Elizabeth was no fool: she knew about the realities of war. That's why she convinced Edward not to do as I did: to run away, lie about his age and join the armed forces. And it's probably a good thing," Jasper admitted sighing. "Edward has never been the best at combat or strategy."

Bella shuddered and remembered how Edward had refused to continue teaching her fighting after it made it 'all too real' for him. She'd thought about how he'd confronted James but had only been able to defeat him once the other Cullens had arrived. How his battle with Victoria and Riley was almost lost until Seth appeared out of nowhere. He'd needed his help.

This wasn't what Edward had imagined and put himself out to be, Bella admitted.

"She loved him." Jasper looked at Bella. "That's why he felt so much guilt, I think. What drove him to do all the things he did, to go as far as he did: because she'd died trying to save him. She had a chance of surviving but she didn't because she was so desperate not to lose her last child." Bella winced at the thought. "And why he didn't want you to suffer and die when you were pregnant."

"But Jasper," Bella said softly. "I had a plan. We were going to make things work. I was always going to be a vampire in the end."

Jasper nodded. "I know that- we all knew that. But Edward wasn't thinking rationally- that's why he tried to convince Carlisle to trick and knock you out before aborting Renesmee.

Bella flinched violently at the reminder, what she'd never wanted to remember. A small part of her understood. But for the most part…

"But Edward should've understood if his mother did what Carlisle said and she sacrificed all her chances of surviving to keep him alive." Bella said slowly, looking up. "And that he would've understood, since he's so close to Esme. How she'd thrown herself off her cliff after losing her baby." Jasper winced. "He should've known how I'd feel."

Jasper sighed. "That… didn't seem so important to him at the time."

That statement did something Edward had never done before: it angered her. "After what happened when he left?" Bella said, in a deadly voice. "After he broke my heart, left me in the woods, abandoned me to pick up the pieces of my life and esteem in myself, after months as a zombie?" Inwardly, she cringed at the reminder: another sign of her own stupidity. Jasper's eyes were wide.

"He used you," Bella realised, eyes wide. "He knew you would feel guilty about that incident- he used your feelings of guilt to make you guys move."

"Bella-" Jasper tried to say.

"Tell me the truth." Bella demanded. "He did, didn't he?"

Jasper's silence was answer enough.

Bella froze, trying to think back. It wasn't easy with all these blurry human memories. "What did Edward tell you? That made you want to leave? Rosalie didn't want to throw me a birthday party- she didn't like me-" and how Bella couldn't blame her "-so how did he manage to convince her to leave?"

Jasper grimaced. "He didn't. She wasn't too happy about that."

"And Alice?" Bella demanded, sitting up straighter. "What did Alice think?"

"She… she tried to persuade Edward," Jasper admitted. "She'd already seen the vision, and she wanted to say goodbye to you, at least, but Edward... persuaded her not to."

Bella's eyes widened as a long-buried memory resurfaced.

"She wanted to say goodbye, but I convinced her that a clean break would be better for you."

Bella squeezed her eyes shut in a futile attempt to stop the incoming wave of guilt, knowledge and realisation that she... that she'd...

"Hey, hey, hey now," Jasper's voice warned, as he reached out an arm, warm to a vampire's touch, and stopped Bella from curling up into a ball.

"Oh, God," Bella sobbed. She buried herself into Jasper's shoulder. She couldn't help herself. "Oh, God, what have I done?"

Jasper no doubt couldn't understand or hear what she was thinking, even if she didn't have a shield. But he could feel her emotions and, as puzzled as he might have been, he simply embraced her and made soothing noises, stroking her hair.

Bella's body wracked with sobs as she tried desperately, futilely, to stop the incoming wave of knowledge and memories.

"Most of the time, women believe that what lies ahead is a precipice. Whereas, if you continue to drive and stay on the path, the road will open up in front of you, and you will reach your destination. You don't need to turn around and abandon the journey."

Arundhati Bhattacharya

Bella

How do you figure out the truth? Is it when you open your eyes and see that it's been there, in front of you the whole time? Or do you go on a journey, and finally arrive at a destination where you are forced to look back and see how badly things were from far away, and just how far you've come?

I didn't know. I didn't want to consider it. I didn't want to consider the idea that my whole life had been built on mistakes and lies. That I'd traded my humanity and my life for something I didn't even know I was getting into.

That revelation had not yet come.

"I'm a good liar, Bella. I have to be… I lied to save you and it didn't work. I'm sorry."

He thought he could save me and he was willing to do whatever it took to do it. Even at the expense of lying to me and blinding me to the other truths that were out there.

When Gabrielle returned, she entered the living room, her eyes grave.

"The regent of this Coven wishes to meet with you." She told us, violet-blue eyes on me. "I've told him that you requested a meeting with Lady Laima and he wishes to see you first."

I took a deep breath. Never mind the revelations I'd had since coming here, never mind what had happened, what everyone said. I had to save Edward's life. For Nessie's sake, his and all of us.

I nodded. Gabrielle nodded, and led us out of the room.

I bit my lip. We went down the tower's spiralling staircase and entered another stone corridor, hung with iron wall sconces and torches and tapestries depicting scenes of battles and wars.

"I thought we were being deliberately kept apart from the other witnesses and people at these trials," Emmett said slowly.

"You are," Gabrielle agreed. "But if there's one person whom everybody trusts to be impartial," she turned back around to look at them. "It's Lady Laima. Trust me, you're no different from any other individual of any species in her race or the wizards'.

"Let me make this clear, this isn't an agreement to see her," Gabrielle warned. "The regent, Radu, merely wishes to see you and to weigh the options of passing on the message. It's up to the Lady to see you in person, if she so wishes."

I bit my lip and nodded. Esme closed her eyes briefly and inhaled, then sighed. "Very well." She said. "But we would be eternally grateful if she could listen to us."

Gabrielle nodded, understanding. She turned and led us into another room. That's when we saw a group of people. They looked up when we entered, and I was stunned to see that a number of them were human; wizards, I presumed.

The vampires were conversing with the wizards, but had stopped their conversations in order to look at us. There was a crowd of them, but most of them seemed to be centred around three people: all who looked to be in their late twenties or early thirties. One was a woman with bushy brown hair and fair skin. The man next to her was tall with red hair that had begun to thin; it was barely noticeable but still there, a face full of freckles and a long thin nose. The third man was of medium height with a mop of untidy black hair. His green eyes shone like emeralds from behind a pair of round spectacles and there was a hint of a pale, jagged, white line- a scar- on his forehead, partially hidden by his fall of hair. But it was the way he held himself which made him stand out; he wasn't the tallest but he stood straight and at attention, like a soldier or a commanding officer. The woman looked purposeful, like she was all business. She was dressed in a skirt suit as well, and I assumed she was from either the ICW, or one of the Ministries.

Whoever they were, they seemed to be very important, prominent figures.

"Harry," Gabrielle spoke. "Ron. Hermione." She nodded to the black-haired man, the red-haired one and the woman in turn. Gabrielle blinked. She seemed vaguely surprised. "I didn't think any of you would come in person."

"It was on short notice," the woman named Hermione confessed. She spoke with a British accent, so I assumed that she came from the ICW.

"But why did you come?" Gabrielle asked, seemingly astonished. "You all work for the British Ministry of Magic-" she looked at the three of them. "And um, your children…" she trailed off. "Aren't your daughter and your youngest son-" she looked between Hermione and Ron, and the one called Harry. "Aren't they only ten months old by now?"

Hermione winced, Harry and Ron grimaced. "We've left them at Mum's," the wizard named Ron spoke. "She, Dad, Fleur and Ginny are with the kids at the Burrow. But the Ministry sent us."

Gabrielle's eyebrows shot up. "Every single Ministry or Council of Magic within the ICW sent a representative," Hermione admitted, brown eyes meeting Gabrielle's violet-blue ones. Astonishment was slowly being replaced by a dawning understanding of sorts in them.

"Is there any chance that the treaty will be broken?" She looked between them and the vampires.

A vampire stepped forwards. He was an incredibly handsome male with flawless white skin like polished alabaster, auburn hair that almost the same shade as Edward's but more copper than bronze. Tall in stature, his clothes were an austere black that was tailored to his form which looked as if it could be a Renaissance sculpture. His chiselled regal features were striking and his eyes were a similar blue to Selene's. I wondered if they changed colour, just as she did. Everybody drew back when he stepped forwards. His aura was was that of power. I fought the urge to shrink back. Gabrielle was right: this was not Aro or Caius, or Marcus. This was a true leader.

His eyes scanned us, when they rested on me, I fought the urge to shiver.

"That has yet to be determined." The vampire said.

His statement made the atmosphere grimmer than it already was.

I wanted to hide my face. The knowledge that I- and Edward- inadvertently, potentially caused a violent, world-wide, magical conflict- or a curse upon every single vampire, including the ones I knew and came to our rescue on New Year's Eve- slammed back into me with the force of a level five hurricane. I squeezed my eyes shut. I wanted to scream in horror and despair.

What had I done? What had I- we caused to happen? Overwhelmed by the horror of what had happened, I mentally recounted everything which had led us to this place: the incident in Volterra, where a two-year-old girl had seen us and been killed for it along with her father. All the stupid things that I- we did. Edward breaking into my house before he had my permission, and again when my father made it explicitly clear that he was to leave and not to enter again until daylight hours. All of these things had sort of melded together in my brain along with the other things that we did, including Edward's dubious proposal, his pressuring me into a teenage marriage, my surname, his nonchalant responses and lack of consideration towards Charlie, Charlie's bitterness over all that… all of those blended together resulting in a mountain of frustration and stress that made me want to scream.

Apparently amidst my own internal turmoil with all the stress, the pain, the worry and the fear, I'd forgotten that there were other people affected by everything we'd done- and that exactly was why we'd ended up here in the first place. This was proof that I hadn't changed one bit; that I hadn't learned my lesson.

And if I didn't, Edward would pay the price. I would never see him again.

And it struck me: something more momentous than lightning and just as illuminating.

Would that be so bad?

I instantly recoiled at the thought. Edward was my husband, the man I loved! It didn't matter if he was a criminal guilty of doing terrible things! He wasn't a monster.

He was to me, a treacherous, treasonous voice sounded inside my head. And to my family. How much do you truly know and love him? The way Bill loved Fleur?

Or was it Rosalie with Royce?

That made me freeze. Thankfully, the vampire broke my thoughts and addressed us.

"I am Radu, the regent of this coven." He said carefully. His blue eyes met mine. "I understand you wish to speak with the Progenitor Lady Laima."

I swallowed.

"Yes." I barely managed.

Radu nodded. "Follow me." He excused himself to the wizards. I turned when I saw Gabrielle stay back. She shook her head. "Go," she said. "I will see you later. This is coven business."

He led us to a wall hanging, a tapestry with some hunting scene. I blinked when I saw that some of the figures depicted, which I thought to be medieval knights based on their armour, were fanged. The beasts that were being impaled on long pikes and swords were somewhere between bear-like and wolf-like, with long snouts, snarling fangs and foaming mouths. I froze as I realised what this was:

Vampires fighting werewolves.

Radu didn't give me time to absorb this, however, as he pushed open a door and led us through a stone corridor with torches mounted on the walls. "This way," he called back.

Eventually, we came across a wooden door. Radu opened it and led us into a spacious-looking office.

Apart from the huge oak desk, which was ornate, with a computer, the office was relatively spartan. Radu gestured towards the seven chairs which had been arranged in front of the desk and sat himself behind it. Behind him, the windows were covered in thick, plush crimson drapes.

"I understand you wish to speak with the Lady Progenitor." That statement wasn't a question. He was looking right at me with his brilliant blue eyes.

I swallowed. "Yes."

"You do realise that the trial has not begun? That none of the trials have a date set yet?"

I winced. Esme took a deep breath.

"Please." It was Carlisle who spoke. "I know... I understand how imperative it is that justice is done, even without the consequences of breaking a magical treaty between vampires- all vampires- and wizards- and none of us have anything to say against it-" Not even me, I thought numbly "-but he is my son. Our son. And our brother." Radu watched him silently, his face understanding yet unreadable.

Radu regarded him for a long moment. Then, he sighed and stood. I could see the outline of his classical nose and the rest of his regal features. He was a handsome man, even by a vampire's standards. Yet he never seemed to be... flashy or flamboyant in his looks than the other vampires of our species. Including Edward.

That thought took me back, but before I could blink, Radu had turned. "What are you hoping for?" He questioned. "That your son be pardoned? He must go to trial and we have already insurmountable proof of his crimes. It is not even a matter of whether he is guilty or innocent; he has already confessed. It wasn't hard, considering the amount of proof we had of his crimes, when we questioned him about the list of charges and the evidence to support them." Emmett groaned. "It will be a matter of whether he intended to do what he did, and just how guilty he is which determines the level of punishment that he will be given. The Lady Progenitor or the First Progenitor may choose to grant him some leniency- if they so feel him deserving- but only after the trial. And even without the treaty, they will not intervene in justice. That is not what leaders are supposed to do."

Esme pressed her lips to keep from crying. Rosalie's eyes flashed with something that looked like tears and Alice gave a stifled sob. Emmett looked disturbed and Jasper absorbed it all in silence.

Carlisle sighed deeply.

"If he is found guilty, justice must be served. It will not brutal or merciless, but it must be done." He paused. "I understand that this is your son. Yet if he had been one of the victims we would have pursued justice for him. And would you not support us if that was the case?"

The last question made me wince. "Yes, you're right, we would." I said, barely realising that I'd spoken aloud. Everyone turned towards me, Emmett's jaw dropped, and even Jasper looked surprised. I understood why: I had never been the first to speak- not in front of a crowd, or an important person. Not as a human.

And apparently, not as a vampire.

I pushed aside my own feelings of inferiority, which was compounded by the fact that Edward wasn't here to reassure me that would've been the only thing that could. If I had to start speaking up, it was best to do it now.

I swallowed, but I couldn't afford to hesitate now. "I don't blame you for taking matters into your own hands with either the Volturi or Edward." My voice choked out at the end, but I didn't care. A part of me still felt like a sword had been driven into my heart and my gut, rending me in half when I heard, said or thought anything remotely negative about Edward, but now, for the most part, I knew what I had to do.

I took a deep breath. "But I don't want him to suffer." My voice choked up again. I forced myself to calm down.

"No one does." Radu responded without twitching an eyelid. "Not unless you're Viktor." He turned his gaze towards something on the wall, causing all of us to look.

There were three oil paintings- portraits, I recognised. One was a gaunt, pale man robed in ornate black velvet robes. He seemed older than any other vampire I'd seen, though unmistakably strong and fit. His eyes were an even eerier and vivid blue that seemed to stare out from the canvas. The other was a seemingly young and beautiful woman with a smooth and flawless milky complexion. Silky, lustrous black hair was bound in an elegant but old-fashioned coiffure on her graceful head and her shimmering green eyes were almost catlike. The third was an extremely handsome young man with coppery auburn hair, regal but striking features and fair skin. His blue eyes seemed to stare, like the other two, and he seemed to radiate a charisma and authority that seemed less cold and intimidating than the first man, but somehow more powerful.

"That's Viktor." Radu gestured to the first portrait.

"You're lucky he won't be awakened for another century."

"Everybody keeps saying that." I blurted before I realised what I said.

Radu smirked. "If only you knew. Even as a mortal, he was merciless, certainly brutal by the standards of this day and age. Of course, it was expected for leaders, such as kings, warlords and generals to be ruthless, even tyrannical by today's standards. But Viktor took it too far, even then. A few of the woodcuts depicting Vlad the Impaler, were actually made on an earlier date. They show Viktor dining amidst the hung and impaled corpses of his enemies." He sighed.

This statement took all of us aback. Inwardly, I shuddered. It sounded as if Gabrielle was right: not even Caius had been that bad. But this remark just served to remind me of how vampires came from all times and ages, and how this related to what Jasper and Gabrielle had said about values being different, people seeing the world through different lenses. "What may be acceptable to someone in your era might not necessarily be acceptable for someone in theirs. And what may be normal in their era might be considered morally questionable in yours."

It never struck me just how extreme this could be. Not until now when I came face to face and entered a world solely populated by vampires, with a few wizards, did I realise what this mean. All the things we had done, all the stuff that I did- they must've heard about them. If MACUSA had been thorough in their investigation, and had involved all the Wolves in their questioning, I had no doubt that they had heard all about me. I must've seemed like an idiot child in their worldview.

While I swallowed down my embarrassment, Radu spoke. "You wish to see the lady known as the Vampire Queen," he said slowly. "But you have no idea of the magnitude of what you are about to witness." His eyes seemed to bore into mine. "Are you prepared?"

I hesitated. I wondered if he could tell a lie.

"She knows you're here." Radu said, interrupting the silence. "She knows you wish to speak with her."

That got all our attentions. We snapped up, like we were electrocuted.

"She saw us?" I asked, breathlessly. Radu shrugged. "It wouldn't surprise me if she did, one way or another. She can see what's going on, even if she never leaves her tower. Either she sees using her Sight or she projects her own consciousness to go somewhere. Or she can transform and shapeshift. She also does that."

Carlisle's eyes widened. "Vampire Gothic literature in the Victorian era suggested that vampires can shapeshift."

Radu smirked. "I take it your species can't. But yes, it's true. She is more powerful than all the others, with the exception of Markus, the First Progenitor who equals her. But he, although present, is still under the earth. He will not awake and rise to walk and fly amongst us until it is time."

I tried not to shudder. Images of some skeletal wraith, with blood dripping from its fangs, a thing from the black lagoon, rose in my head. I imagined it rising from a stone crypt to walk among an unsuspecting mankind. Even me.

In hindsight, I should've known better. Vampires don't look like that. Not even the ones I've seen so far that came from a different species. I can only shake my head at how young and foolish I was- stupid even.

"Fly?" Rosalie whispered.

Radu nodded. "Yes, we can fly." He changed the subject. "If you want an audience, I'll have to-" he froze.

I blinked. Radu seemed to be astonished at something. His eyes blinked and then his striking face became oddly blank. His eyes flared blue, bluer than they already did, before dying down back to its normal shade.

"I see," he said calmly. He blinked. Staring at our bewildered faces, he spoke. "The Lady wishes to see you." He looked right at me.

I blinked in shock. "H-how-?"

"She told me." Radu closed his eyes momentarily and took a deep breath. "Just now."

Carlisle looked floored, so did Esme. Rosalie gasped. Emmett stared wide-eyed first at Radu and then me, while Alice darted her eyes around as if searching, afraid that the Vampire Queen might be there and would creep up on us. Jasper sat frozen on his seat.

"Just you." Radu said to me, before standing. He looked at the other Cullens. "Sirs and madams, I would request that you excuse the both of us. It appears the Lady Progenitor is also keen upon meeting with her." He looked at me.

Even though it couldn't move, my heart flew to my throat. "Please." Radu gestured to a door and personally showed them out of the room. "You will be able to return to the hall where you last saw Mademoiselle Delacour if you go to the left." He waited until everyone had left, before looking at me. Every one of them shot me concerned looks. Esme's brow furrowed and she looked slightly worried, but they all exited in silence when I nodded.

I took a deep breath. So it was time.

Radu looked right at me. "The Lady Progenitor asks 'Are you certain that this is what you wish? For you will have more answers than you thought to receive.'" His blue eyes pierced mine, and for a second, I imagined that if it was someone else looking right at me. If the First Vampire Markus could see through the eyes of his wife, then Lady Laima could surely see through anyone else's. In this moment, she could be looking straight at me.

I swallowed. I didn't know what to make of that statement, or of the fact that the creator and Queen of the Vampires was speaking to me through Radu's head. I suppressed a shudder.

I felt fear: I didn't know what to think.

But I also felt determination: I didn't want Edward to suffer a grisly death, like the ones Radu claimed the Elder Viktor handed out. Even though they said that Viktor was buried under the earth and wouldn't be awakened for another century, I had a feeling that, and despite our species' seeming invincibility, they would be able to think of ways to punish and kill us in grotesque, torturous manners. And I didn't want Edward to spend an eternity in vampire prison.

And I didn't want to be a pushover; too chicken to even stand up for myself. Not anymore. I remembered how I cowered in front of the Volturi when we first got there, how I never even said a word to Victoria. Whatever courage I had when facing James seemed to be a one-off thing. I couldn't even face Charlie when he got mad, and I could barely make myself face Renée when I had to give her the news of my upcoming wedding and I thought she'd be furious.

Besides, vampires adhered to strict laws of hospitality, right? I was a guest. They'd promised not to hurt me. To protect me, even, so long as I was here. And so far, they'd kept their word; even making sure that other vampires who did not approve of what Edward did, and would want to get revenge through me, didn't so much as bump into any of his family.

Edward wouldn't have wanted me to do this. Edward would have immediately pushed me behind his back or pressed me to his side. Even when he rationally knew that there would be no harm, like he did when Kate instinctively tried to shock my hand off when I'd grabbed it too hard, he still wouldn't like it.

But Edward wasn't here. And now, I had to face my own battles.

I took a deep breath. I looked Radu in the eye, and nodded.

He said nothing. Radu walked over to and opened a side door, leading to yet another hidden room or a corridor. This castle seemed to be an endless maze of hidden corridors, hallways and rooms. "Follow me please." He said quietly. He didn't wait for a response. I followed him through another narrow stone corridor which eventually widened.

We walked in silence. It seemed to take ages, but the corridor ended in a doorway. Radu lifted his hand. I nearly jumped when the door opened of its own free will. He stepped outside and I followed.

We were in a walkway of sorts. A mezzanine overlooking the stone courtyard we'd entered from. The moon had risen outside. It was dark otherwise. There were no stars in the night. Somewhere, I heard a wolf howl. Absently, I wondered if it was a werewolf.

My biggest surprise, however, was that seeing the courtyard down below, it seemed to be populated by vampires. Dressed typically in dark colours, they weren't standing and chatting, or even staring up at me in silence, but they were going about they everyday- or night- business, and even though I knew nothing about life in a vampire castle or underground city, it seemed as if they weren't doing anything out of the ordinary- for them at least. We entered through another door and I followed Radu into a hall, one that was bare and not even furnished.

The castle seemed colder now, and if it could, my heart would be hammering a tattoo on the inside of my chest. It was a long way, and if I were human, I was sure I'd be panting. Or impatient. As it was, I was glad of the distance; it gave me time to resttle my nerves.

Radu went to a side room which had a massive tapestry completely covering the opposite wall. Pulling aside the tapestry, he opened a door and entered into another room. He held up the tapestry for me to get through and when I did, I noticed that the room I now entered had another tapestry behind a statue. The statue was of some knight or warrior in armour, holding a sword and with a wise gaze.

"Alexander Corvinus," Radu nodded towards the statue. "First and Father of Immortals."

He went around the statue and lifted the tapestry slightly. I heard a slight thump and a groan.

I jumped- only slightly. My nerves were on edge. The wall to our left had lowered to reveal... an elevator?

"Please." Radu gestured towards it. I shivered. Nervously, I stepped inside and he followed. The door closed. "Hold on." Radu said, nodding towards the railing.

I barely had time to grab onto it when the elevator jerked and pulled us backwards. We went to the left, and then backwards again, to the right, up, back, down slightly, up again and finally back.

It took a long while, even at the speed we were travelling. If I was a human, I was sure I would throw up and fallen.

Finally, the elevator stopped. The door slid open. Radu came out.

We were standing at the base of a high tower with a spiralling staircase rising above. The moon filtered from the skylights, glowing down and bathing us in silvery-white light.

I let out a breath. To my surprise, mist blew out. The temperature must have been freezing for a human.

"Please." Radu gestured to the stairs. He waited until I'd mounted a few steps. Cautiously, I turned back around him. "Just in case, please hold on." He pointed to the iron railings.

Swallowing, I gripped it. The metal was cold, but against my vampire skin, it felt fine. I heard a wolf owl. Overhead, an owl hooted.

Radu did not mount the stairs. There was a statue in the middle of the floor on the ground level, made of bronze. He went around and pulled something at the back.

Instantly, I felt the stairs beneath me jerk. A frightened hiss fled through my mouth. I gripped the railing as the stairs moved up of their own accord. Radu waited below, watching.

I realised that my breaths were shaking. Although I never needed to breathe as a vampire, I found that the reflex, a long-forgotten human habit, comforted me. The stairs kept moving upwards, like a spiralling escalator, and I passed through moonlight and shadows cast by the panes. I could barely hear the stone rumble behind the imaginary thunder of my frozen heart.

Suddenly, they stopped. I inhaled sharply.

Belatedly I realised that I had come face to face with a brass door, ornately embossed with scenes of battles. Vampires, no doubt. I stepped off the staircase. Looking to the left and then the right, I noticed I was in a dark corridor.

I bit my lip. Hand trembling, I turned the doorknob.

Inside wasn't just dark: it was pitch-black. Suddenly, torches sprang to life, bursting into flames in iron sconces mounted on the walls. I jumped, then shook.

It was still dark in the room. Peering, I saw that the sconces seemed to light my way forwards, and that I was in a corridor. Everything else seemed cloaked in shadow, even to my eyes. But at the other end, the hallway appeared to be lit with golden light. The flames on the walls seemed to magnify, dancing on their sconces.

Gulping, I walked forwards. My hands shook. In fact, my whole body was shaking, trembling violently with fear and dread... along with nerves and anticipation.

Everything was eerily silent. I missed the pounding of my human heart. At least that would have given me some comfort rather than the mind-numbing, defeaning silence that threatened to overwhelm me. My lips trembled. My hand shook as they reached the doorknob of the wooden door at the end.

I quivered. Taking a deep breath, I reminded myself of why I was here and twisted the knob. I pushed the door open.