I tried to remember the last time I had seen Alec this upset: or if I ever had at all. Over the centuries, he had mastered the art of controlling his emotions: but in my presence alone that perfect control had started to slip. He was fighting it hard of course: I wouldn’t have expected anything less.

         We stopped as soon as we were sure we awre out of earshot of our gracious hosts: no need to involve them in our mess any more than necessary.

         It was times such as this that really made me appreciate what a perfect weapon he truly was: how dangerous and lethal he could choose to be in the fraction of a second. He looked like the caged lions Caius used years ago: pacing wildly, eyes darting, searching for any excuse or opportunity to attack.

         “Alec…” I murmured gently and then immediately found myself pinned against the trunk of a tree behind me: not very unlike where I had been an hour ago, trapped in Anthony’s embrace. The only difference between then and now I began to realize was that now I wasn’t afraid.

         The wind rushed out of my lungs from the impact of his body against mine and still I was not afraid. Here in his arms was where I had always felt safest.

         “I could let you live without me.” He growled, from deep in his throat like he did when he was really angry. “You know that I would… If that was what you wanted. I would do anything that you asked me to…” He continued, forcing himself to control his fury: tracing the curves of her collar bone with his trembling fingers as firmly as he dared.

         Kali was anything but fragile, but there was always the truth in the back off his mind that she was half mortal: and that that part of her would always be in some degree of danger in his presence.

         “I would do anything for you, Kali.” He repeated. “But I cannot allow you to be hurt, by anyone: intentionally or not.”

         “He’s not the same, Alec.” I gasped, his cold fingers making me shiver in the winter air. “He’s changed…and I’m afraid of him. I’m afraid of what he might do.” I gathered what courage I had left and focused on the memory of less than an hour ago, my pupils dilating as I shared the images I was scared for Alec to see: his worst fears come true.

         Silence: and then, “He doesn’t love you, Kali.” He whispered coldly, deliberately. “He doesn’t. He loves the fantasy he’s created of you… It’s the only thing that’s kept him going all these years: and that is what makes him dangerous.”

         “He has nothing left to lose.” I added quietly, agreeing with him, my breath rapid with adrenaline. We were both clinging to each other now, minds racing. “I love you, Alec.”

         My words seemed to surprise him and I felt my heart ache. “Alec, I love you.” I repeated, reaching up to cup his face in my hands. “I love you and I know what I want. I want you, Alec: I always have.”

         Everything else seemed to fade away after that, all the fear and uncertainty forgotten when his lips pressed against mine. “Can you ever forgive me?” I asked him, this last anxiety lingering in my mind.

         I think I actually smiled when he replied simply, “There is nothing to forgive.”

         We were insatiable: frenzied and impatient in the snow around us, ignoring the twigs and leaves that tangled in our hair, the dirt that stained our skin from the forest floor.

         There was nothing but us now: him and me, our bodies twisted together.

         His weight on top of me was intoxicating and I let myself become drunk with the sensation of his breath on my neck, the burning cool of his hands on my bare skin.

         “Oh god, Alec… I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you!”

~ ~ ~

         She didn’t know I was there, but he did.

         He’d probably known I’d been following them for miles: but this was what he wanted.

         I didn’t want to look: but I didn’t have a choice. I needed to see this, to remember and commit every detail of this betrayal to memory.

         She had lied to me, lied to my face. Had she ever even considered the possibility of leaving him for me? Really truly considered it? From where I was standing, it certainly didn’t look like it.

         She bent to his will, melting under his touch just as easily as she had mine an hour ago. Now, I couldn’t see anything but red.

         He’d made sure I’d gotten a perfect view, and it wasn’t until he looked up and locked eyes with me that I found the will to turn and leave: running as fast as I ever had.

         This was what she wanted: she had made this abundantly clear. I could still hear her voice ringing in my ears as I ran, in no direction in particular.

         I ran and I didn’t stop until I reached the outskirts of what I now knew to be Seattle’s city limits.

         She had betrayed me: taken my life and thrown it away without a second thought. She had decided to save my life, with no intention of sharing it with me.

         I decided to show her what a mistake that decision truly was.

~ ~ ~

          Meeting new people wasn’t exactly Tatiana’s favorite thing to do: in fact she’d spent the majority of her life avoiding it, but she figured she could make an exception. After all, any friend of Edward’s couldn’t be that bad: and if Alice liked him enough to marry him he had to be great.

         Reassuring herself with these thoughts she let Edward lead her back down the staircase and out onto the front porch.

         The first thing she noticed was his height: he looked particularly tall next to Alice she thought: but then again so did most people. The second thing she noticed were his scars. Bite marks of all different sizes covered his skin like some kind of elaborate tattoo. Clearly this was someone who had fought many battles, and lived to tell about them all. Even Felix and Demetri didn’t have scars like that and they were older than the actual dirt on the ground.

         Alice appeared to be physically forcing him to approach the house, dragging him slightly behind her in a way that made Tati think that he probably wasn’t that excited to meet her either.

         “Jasper is the newest vegetarian in our family.” Edward whispered, just loud enough so only she could hear. “He had an….accident in September last year. He hasn’t trusted himself since.”

         “Tatiana!” Alice grinned once they reached the bottom of the stairs.

         “Hi, Alice.” Tati smiled in return.

         “This is my husband, Jasper.”

         Tatiana thought she saw him nod at her but she couldn’t be sure: he looked to be somewhere between anxiety and actual physical pain.

         “Hello.” She greeted, deciding to remain where she was: obviously if he wanted to be any closer to her he would. She had never met a vampire who had been tempted by her blood, but Jasper didn’t look the type to take chances ever.

         “It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He said suddenly, surprising only Tatiana she supposed. “Edward has told us all about you.”

         “Oh… Great.” She muttered, fighting the blush she felt rising to her cheeks.

         “As if there were anything but good things to say.” Edward chuckled, giving her hand a squeeze.

         Alice started to speak again, likely to confirm her brother’s claim, but before she even uttered the first syllable a strange glassy look overcame her, and Tatiana got the impression that she wasn’t standing there with them anymore.

         The vision probably only lasted a few seconds, but it felt like hours.    

         Tatiana hadn’t been blessed with the ability to read minds or see the future, but even she was able to sense the distinct and sudden shift in mood.

         “What is it?” She asked, growing more anxious by the second. “Is it Kali?” She continued, assuming the worst. “Is she-“

         “She’s fine.” Edward interrupted her before she could get worked up any further.

         “It’s not her…” Alice echoed her brother as she came back to earth, the clouded look fading from her eyes. “It’s Anthony. He… He saw Kali and Alec in the woods. They were… He’s very upset.” She summarized, exchanging a glance with Jasper.

         Tatiana wasn’t sure if this information made her feel better or worse: worse she decided. “Where is he?” She demanded.

         “He hasn’t decided where he’s going…but he’s headed back toward Seattle.”

         “What do we do?” Demetri asked, Tati suddenly aware of his and Felix’ sudden appearance among them.

         “Nothing.” Lokey replied, emerging from the glass house. “He’s unstable right now, unpredictable. He’s not thinking clearly… Kali is out first and only priority here: and I will not expose her to any more risk than she has been already.”

         “So we just let him wreak havoc on the good people of Seattle?” Tati asked, insulted and disturbed by the idea.

         “If Anthony chooses to draw that kind of attention to himself, we’ll have no choice but to put him down: it’s the just the chance that we’ve been waiting for.” Lokey shrugged and Tati found herself shocked by his nonchalance.

         “Don’t you think that Kali will notice that he’s gone?” Tati grumbled, running out of both arguments and steam. With Alec and Kali gone, Lokey was in charge, and she got the feeling that he’d been preparing for this exact opportunity for a while now.

         “That doesn’t matter anymore.” He brushed her off. “Before we left, I spoke with Aro, and he made it very clear. The threat Anthony poses to Kali now is more important than her desire to save him. We’ve let this little experiment go on long enough.”

         “Our job is to keep her safe.” Felix added quietly. “Not to ensure she gets everything she wants.”

         Tati found herself torn between her duty and her friend. Of course she knew that Alec was a far better match for Kali than Anthony would ever be, but she also knew that Kali would never agree to the plan Lokey had suggested.

         Was there any chance for this to be resolved peacefully? Tatiana wasn’t feeling particularly optimistic…

~ ~ ~

         Kali was entirely exhausted. Alec had truly been in rare form tonight, and she struggled to gather the energy she had left to even consider making the trek back to the Cullen’s.

         Alec seemed more than happy to wait, stretched out in the withered grass around them, her head resting on his chest.

         “We should get back.” She sighed. “Anthony will be losing his mind by now...” She didn’t think twice when he didn’t respond: she was used to these one sided conversations in his company.

         When she finally managed to find the strength to stand again, she shrugged into her clothes trying her best to make herself look presentable. She hadn’t even taken ten steps back toward the Cullen house before she stopped again, frozen in her tracks by an all too familiar scent.

         “He was here.” She whispered. “Anthony was here. You don’t think that he saw-“

         She stopped when she turned to face Alec again, the expression on his face telling her everything she needed to know. She didn’t even need to look back where they had been laying, she knew that he had seen everything, she knew that Alec had let it happen.

         “What have you done?” She asked, her voice cracking, her heart sinking to her feet.

         “He would never have let you go if he thought you still loved him.” He replied simply, quietly. “You know he wouldn’t.”

         Kali didn’t know what to say. She felt like her brain had short circuited. She couldn’t seem to speak or even form a complete thought. She couldn’t seem to do anything but run. She turned and ran back toward the Cullen’s home, praying that Anthony would still be there, not looking back once to see if Alec was behind her.

~ ~ ~

A rustle in brush across from the Cullen’s front porch made them all stop momentarily: they were back.

Kali appeared first, and Tati knew immediately by the look on her face that she was well aware of the situation at hand, even if she didn’t have all the details.

Alec followed behind her, maintaining a distance Tatiana thought was unusual.

“Where is he?” Kali demanded, searching each and every one of their faces, her own turning to rage when no one offered any information. “Tell me where he is!” She hissed at Demetri, getting as close to in his face as she could considering their height difference.

Demetri glanced at Lokey briefly which only seemed to infuriate Kali more. “You do not answer to him, you answer to me. Now tell me where he is or I swear-“

“Kali.” Tati interrupted, moved to action by her friend’s clear distress. “Stop, just stop for a second ok? Please.” As ready as everyone seemed to keep Kali out of the loop, Tati couldn’t keep silent. She’d been meaning to speak with Kali since her first conversation with Anthony in the dungeon, and it was long overdue. The consensus seemed to be that it would be easier to control Kali by withholding information from her, and she couldn’t bring herself to agree. Kali deserved to know everything, to understand everything, then she might be able to make a decision with a clear mind. “Come with me.” She asked. “I’ll explain everything, I promise.”

Kali was furious, but it was quite obvious to her who was trying to help her here and who was not. She trusted Tatiana with her life, more than any of the men beside her at the moment all of whom would always bow down to her father before her. “Fine.” She conceded and turned back toward the woods, the only place one could have a private conversation around here it seemed.

Alec stepped toward her briefly, his mouth open as if to say something but he didn’t get a chance. “Don’t.” Kali snapped, avoiding him completely. She would deal with him later. “Let’s go.” She nodded toward Tati, and took off back into the forest, the last place she wanted to be.

Everyone was staring at Tati now, wondering what exactly she was trying to do. “I’ll be back soon.” She promised Edward, trying her best not to make eye contact with anyone else.

She started down the steps and after Kali but hesitated for a moment, stopping only to speak with Jasper briefly, “It was nice to meet you.” She smiled half-heartedly, hoping he would understand.

She was surprised when he smiled back, a genuine smile. “The pleasure was all mine.” He replied, a look of approval in his eyes that she didn’t really understand.