#demitir

I was more than ready for Christmas. Christmas had always been my favorite holiday, even as a kid. And I loved it all the more that it would be my kids first Christmas. My first Christmas that I would get to spend with Carlisle.

But of course, there were a few things that would come along with that.

The first was that after Bella came back from taking Renesmee to Charlie's, she came back looking disoriented.

No one else seemed to notice. Edward was to busy talking to Renesmee in his arms. Carlisle was sitting on the couch, wearing a hoodie again as he talked to Eleazar, perched on the arm of the sofa. Garrett and Kate were in the background, talking in a corner. Marcel and I were talking strategy in another corner, Emmett listening in, but not contributing.

As Bella left the room I waited a few minutes before making an excuse to go and check on my kids, finding Bella in an almost empty room.

She was sitting at the loveseat, writing hurriedly on a piece of stationary. A manila envelope was by her side. I realized I probably shouldn't be seeing this, something that she wanted to hide from Aro, and even knowing that she wanted to hide it from Aro was dangerous for me to know.

I quickly darted back out of the hallway, nearly bumping into Alistair, who I realized had also seen Bella writing at the table.

Alistair remained leaning against the wall as Bella continued to write, watching her. I lingered in the hallway to overhear.

"It's a romantic notion, isn't it? That a right just few can defy a great evil." Alistair spoke. "I must admit you. . . even had me believing. . . for a moment. Well, good luck. You gonna need it." I heard him set something down, a clink of metal on metal and then he said, "Cheers."

He walked out of the hallway, giving me a glance over as he stopped walking to stand in front of me. "You ought to get out too it looks like. I care about Carlisle a lot. Take him and your kids and get out."

And with that, he was gone.

I closed my eyes, feeling a faint pressure of annoyance. Why hadn't Bella done the letter in her bedroom? Somewhere private? Why out in the open where anyone could've come along and seen that she had given up hope?

I went upstairs to the kids room, watching them all sleep. I counted mentally in my head.

Marcel, Esme, Carlisle, Emmett, Bella, Edward, Bree, myself.

Because of all of the new vampires had come in we now had sixteen werewolves.

Zafrina and Senna.

Eleazar, Carmen, Kate, Tanya.

Amun, Kebi, Benjamin, and Tia. But if it came to a fight, Amun and Kebi would not.

Maggie, Siobhan, Liam.

Stefan and Vladimir.

Garrett, Mary, Peter, Charlotte, Randall, Charles, Makenna, and Toshiro.

We had forty-five fighters. Forty-seven witnesses. Surely we could make a stand against the Volturi?

There were only fifteen of them. Three of them including Caius, Aro, and Marcus. I couldn't imagine Marcus or Aro getting involved in a fight. Uncaring Marcus. Wacky Aro.

I knew that Alec would be more dangerous than Jane. Jane could only target one person with immense pain. Alec would incapacitate us all.

Then there was Felix and Santiago, both of them splendid fighters.

And then Demetri. I knew he would fight on the Volturi side, but did I have to worry about him attacking me?

Of course, there was also the witnesses. Exactly how many vampire witnesses would they be able to find? And how many others had they killed because they hadn't come to us in time? If only Alice and Jasper hadn't stolen Kachiri away from Zafrina and Senna. An extra hand would be helpful. Not to mention Jasper being an excellent fighter.

I missed Jasper and Alice with my whole being. My favorite, lovable son. And sweet Alice. . .

I wiped away a tear that had drifted down my face. Alright, forty-five fighters. Forty-five fighters. We were planning on them tracking Edward. Or myself possibly. Carlisle said we were going to wait in the same area that the newborns had attacked them in last time. That made Bree shiver.

On Christmas day, I got out of the house with my kids. We were meeting Seth, Leah, and Jacob at Charlie's house. I was going with Bella. Edward and Carlisle were coming as well. Sam, Jared, and Paul said they'd show up too. Which naturally meant Quil and Embry were there, resulting in Bree being there as well. Throw in Emily and Sue and the very small house was packed with barely enough room to breathe.

Charlie's tree was sparsely decorated, making the kids giggle as they ran around the living room. The rest of us attempted to avoid stepping on them. The werewolves attempted avoiding touching any vampires and vice versa.

Except me of course because I was both.

Of course, Emily, Sue, and I had pulled our punches, bringing enough food for four feasts. Just about nothing was left when the boys were done with it. Charlie didn't even blink.

The boys were utterly pumped for the upcoming battle, but my insides were twisting. Emily seemed just as nervous and by the way Sue kept shooting glances at Seth and Leah- so was she.

I didn't blame them at all.

"The snow's sticking." I whispered, throwing a glance out the window. Carlisle gave me a slight nod. Sam caught my eye and gave me a reassuring glance. But I was not reassured. Not at all. I saw Emily swallow with difficulty. Sam put a hand over hers, squeezing tight.

"We still have today." Carlisle whispered.

"And tomorrow everything changes." I whispered. "One way or another."

As presents came around, I smirked as Sue settled herself on Charlie's lap with a can of beer and a smile.

Leah rolled her eyes and I kicked her lightly under the table, raising an eyebrow and then full out grinned.

Seth, bless his heart, looking utterly embarrassed to see his mother on Charlie's lap. Jared and Paul on the other hand- were thrilled- and I knew there would be endless teasing about it. Or maybe the teasing would end tomorrow.

"Seth!" Caroline squealed, leaping onto his lap, "Let's go build a snowman!"

"Ooh! I want to join in!" Samuel said, "Race you."

Caroline leaped from Seth's lap, racing after Samuel, keeping their pace human as Charlie was there. Leah and Seth quickly excused themselves from the table to hurry after them and I smirked.

"Nik." I called over my shoulder, "Do you want to go join them?"

"No, that's childish stuff." Nik responded.

I rolled my eyes, getting up from my seat and scooping him up into my arms. "To bad, we're going to go build one anyways."

Carlisle chuckled, turning to talk to Charlie and Sue as I carried Nik over my shoulder to place him gently in the snow. "Come on, let's have some fun!"

Emily and Sam came outside and the werewolves soon followed. Which naturally meant that a snowball fight ensued. Paul was extremely rude, hitting everyone he could until finally Jared and I tackled him down, rubbing snow in his face.

"Cold!" He complained.

"Liar. You don't get cold." Jared and I said together.

"Mom!" Paul complained. "You're supposed to be on my side."

I ruffled his hair, getting up off of him. "You did hit me with four or five snowballs last time I checked."

"Yeah well you're supposed to have super human reflexes." Paul complained as he got up off his ass.

"I'm not using them. I'm being a good sport and staying human." I boasted.

Paul rolled his eyes. "Boring."

I narrowed my eyes as he made another snowball, ready to throw it at me.

In another second, he was yelling out as the snow swirled around him in a sort of tornado. He flailed around and the others stopped to watch.

"Davina." Sam scolded me.

"Well Paul?" I questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Alright, being human is not boring."

I dropped him on his ass again. He sighed, hanging his head and calling defeat.

Carlisle came outside at that moment, "Hey, we're about to head home."

Niklaus was by Carlisle's side in an instant. Samuel and Caroline were much slower in leaving. I looked at all my werewolf children. "See you guys tomorrow." I whispered.

"We'll be there." Sam promised.

There were a few things I normally would've said. 'Show up and I'll kick your ass.' 'Wish you wouldn't.' 'Don't you dare.'

But now, I thought just maybe we had a chance.

So I gave Sam a small smile and said, "I know you will."

***

We were at the site now. Jacob was collecting wood, putting it together, while Benjamin lit his fingers up. Two at first, and then four. Jacob put the wood down and Benjamin exaggerated sending the flame into the fire. Tia was already sitting on a long, smirking.

"That's what I'm talking about. Little pre-battle bonfire." Jacob said, walking around as Benjamin settled himself next to Tia.

"Show off." I muttered in Benjamin's ear before vaulting over him to sit on a log close to them.

"Telling war stories." Jacob said as Benjamin grinned at me. He glanced up at the other vampires who were standing in groups, not even listening. "Or just standing there like a freaking statue."

I giggled.

Garrett was sitting next to me in an instant, "Name any American battle. I was there."

"The little big horn." Jacob said.

"I came this close to biting Custer. But the Indians got him first." Garrett said.

I shook my head in amusement.

"Try Alexis Sultan, Constantinople." Kate said, appearing suddenly to sit on his lap.

"He didn't do that one on his own." Was Garret's reply.

"If you're talking battles, you're taking eleven years war, no one does rebellion like the Irish." Liam said, the Irish coven now taking seats on the log as well.

"You lost the eleven years war." Garrett and I said together.

"Right, but it was one hell of a rebellion."

Vladimir and Stefan were next. "When we ruled, everything came to us. Prey, diplomats, favor seekers. . .Such was our power." Vladimir spoke. By now, everyone was surrounding the fire, listening in.

"But we never put on white hats and call ourselves saints."

"We were honest about what we were." Stefan said.

"We sit still for a very long time. We didn't notice that we were beginning to petrify."

"Perhaps the Volturi did us a favor when they burned our castles."

"We've been waiting fifteen hundred years to return that favor." Vladimir finished.

"Cute how they finish each other's sentences, eh?" I muttered into Garrett's ear.

There was some laughter around the fire. I looked over my shoulder. Bella was setting up Renesmee in one tent, mine and Carlisle's kids in one right next to it. Carlisle and Edward were standing a few feet away from the camp fire, not taking part of the conversation.

I listened in, hearing Carlisle say, "Everyone here has something to fight for. I certainly do."

I swallowed hard, knowing he was talking about me and his family and our kids. Everyone here did have something to fight for.

Toshiro was now talking about the World Wars, making Garrett very jittery. He was a very patriotic American and hearing about Pearl Harbor blew his engines. I was afraid that he'd take Toshiro on for a fight right there when he talked about the bombing of Japan.

Marcel talked about Iraq and Afghanistan. Being on the frontlines of war as a human first. He mentioned the terrorist attack on Fort Knox, but didn't give specifics. Most of the American nomads had heard about it though and Garrett nudged my shoulder in a comforting way.

"Will you share the story?" Randall was the one to ask me.

And so I did. It had been a long time since I could even think about the event without crying. But now, I was glad for the ability to turn my tears off, keep my voice emotionless as I told them the story about an Iranian boy who believed in the wrong things.

Morning came much to quickly for my liking.

Benjamin and I had prepared the field of course. He had stones moved around randomly. I had brought gallons and gallons of water- Emmett had helped me- so that I had a good amount of water nearby.

I wasn't entirely sure what I could do with the water. It wasn't like vampires could drown. But I supposed if I could sweep them off their feet with a powerful wave, then maybe the others would be able to take them down easier- especially if they were already off their feet.

I had practiced of course, mostly with Emmett in secret in case it was an embarrassing fail. I could contain a person in the water and no matter how badly they tried to shoot out- even using vampire speed and strength- I could manipulate the water to change so that they just shot into more water.

Like an ant walking along a human hand. Just put the hand they aren't walking on in front of the one they are. And they'll just keep walking and walking until you get tired enough to put them down on the ground.

I just hoped nothing came to a fight.

We made our way out onto the piece of land. It seemed bigger than the last time I was here. But a few trees had been cleared out of the way and it really was the same.

Edward, Bella, and Renesmee stood in the very front of our triangular sort of formation. Emmett and Rosalie stood together on their right and behind. Carlisle, Samuel, Caroline, Nik, and I were to their left. Esme and Marcel were just a few feet away from us on our side.

Bree stood by herself near Emmett and Rosalie. I knew she was extremely nervous and also that Embry would join her side the moment he got here.

Near Bree was the Denali clan plus Garrett. I had no doubts that if we survived this, he would go with them and he would become just like them.

The Amazonians were behind Rose and Emmett, the Egyptian clan behind Edward, and the nomads were behind myself, slightly to the left. The Irish stood behind them. And between the space behind the Denali's and the Amazonians were Vladimir and Stefan.

It was silent. I had a hand on Samuel and Caroline's shoulders. Carlisle had both his hands on Niklaus'.

"If we live through this, I'll follow you anywhere woman." Garrett muttered to Kate.

I smiled.

"Now you tell me." Kate said, sounding almost amused.

Carlisle slipped his hand to place it on mine and our fingers interlaced together, clutching each other.

We stared ahead of ourselves at the sound of footsteps crunching on the snow. I tried to count, but there were so many that I couldn't.

"The Redcoats are coming! The Redcoats are coming!" Garrett muttered and I almost laughed. As it was, I heard Marcel's chuckle.

And then the laughter stopped as they appeared through the snow and mist. There had to be two or three hundred of them. Maybe one-hundred and fifty if we were lucky.

I swallowed hard, Carlisle's hand becoming tighter.

I felt Samuel recoil into me. There were more than we had thought. I had thought forty-five was a lot of vampires. . . I was a fool.

Slowly, the actual Volturi broke slightly away from the witnesses. Aro forming his own sort of triangle formation. Marcus and Caius on either side of him. Jane and Alec on one side. Demetri and Felix on the other. There was also a female who I was pretty sure might be Chelsea and another male who must be Santiago.

Compared to the crowd of witnesses we had, they seemed to have a much higher advantage.

"Aro's looking for Alice." Edward whispered, quiet enough so that only our side could hear.

I could see Aro's red eyes searching, moving amongst them. I could feel them settle on me for a slight period of time before moving again.

I noticed now that Santiago was walking next to a familiar blond and felt my gut wrench at the sight of Irina. I shot a nervous glance at the Denali's and saw their faces become slightly horrified. Especially Kate and Tanya who were holding each others arms.

Irina looked equally horrified, looking between her sisters and Aro, realizing that she had made some sort of mistake.

And that was when the wolf howled. I smiled, even if it was just for a second.

I could hear the wolves moving in behind us, Seth and Leah being the ones that came closest to us while Sam made all the others wait back. Embry took his place next to Bree. Jacob came to stand with Edward and Bella.

When the wolves finally stopped moving, that was when the Volturi stopped.

The Volturi threw their hoods back as one in that dramatic fashion that I hated. I wished I could find Demetri's eyes, but I also didn't want Aro to know I was searching him out.

A silence was over the clearing and Carlisle took advantage of it, moving away from us to speak to Aro.

I grew more nervous as he situated himself at the very front of our group. My hands tightened on my kids. Seth nudged me slightly for reassurance.

"Aro, let us discuss things as we used to. In a civilized manner." His voice was barely above that of a normal tone, and yet everyone could hear him perfectly.

"Fair words, Carlisle. But a little out of place, give the battalion you've assembled against us." Aro said.

I snorted. What about his battalion.

"I can promise you, that was never my intent." Carlisle said earnestly. "No laws have been broken."

"We see the children." Caius spat. "Three of them are yours! Do not treat us as fools."

"They are not immortal!" Carlisle said, his voice rising to make sure that everyone heard him. "These witnesses can attest to that. Or you can look. See the flush of human blood in their cheeks."

"Artifice." Caius declared and I growled, Leah growling with me.

"I will collect every facet of the truth." Aro said, raising his hand to calm Caius. "But from someone more central to the story. Davina darling."

Him saying my name sent a jolt to my heart. Carlisle's fists clenched. Sam growled in warning.

I let go of my children's shoulders, moving past them, past Carlisle, striding across the open ground towards Aro. Aro came forward, meeting me half-way. Like back in Italy, he took my face in his hands, kissing my lips. I closed my eyes, waiting.

Finally, Aro released me, "You still have one of the most fascinating histories of a human I've ever met."

"Fantastic, do I get a trophy for that?" I quipped.

Being close to them, I saw Jane roll her eyes. Demetri and Felix smirked as one.

"Fascinating." Was all he said, moving past me. "Edward?"

Edward touched Renesmee's' head, looked at Bella, and then crossed to come stand next to me. Edward met his touch, waiting. Aro grew excited again before looking out past us towards our children.

"I'd like to meet them." Was all he said when he let go of Edward's hand.

A spike of fear went through me, but Edward and I both turned. I nodded to Carlisle. But Caroline was there in an instant, holding her brother's hands as she teleported to stand next to me, looking at Aro with defiant blue eyes.

Bella, Renesmee, Jacob, Carlisle, and Emmett moved much slower than Caroline, not using their vampire sense to cross the gap.

"Interesting company you keep." Demetri said and I turned my gaze to him.

"Yes." I muttered as they approached. "Just so happens one of them is my brother."

Demetri smirked, winking at me. Aro and Caius ignored our interactions. Jane however, seemed rather jealous, scowling at the back of Demetri's head.

Aro was instead focused, not only on my kids, but on Renesmee's. He was looking back and forth between them and I realized he was comparing them.

Carlisle came to stand by me, our hands inches apart, but not touching.

"I hear their strange hearts. I smell their strange scents. These three are scentless, like you were, but she has a sweet scent." Aro declared, moving from our children to Bella's. Aro's eyes shifted to Bella and said, "In truth, young Bella, immortality does become you most extraordinarily. It is as if you were designed for this life."

Bella nodded once.

"May I greet your daughter, lovely Bella? Beloved Davina?" Aro questioned, holding his hand out for one or the other to give them their thoughts.

Renesmee and Caroline moved as one, and then Niklaus was there. Samuel stayed put.

I knew exactly what Niklaus wanted. Niklaus wanted to touch Aro and gain his power.

"But they are exquisite. Hello, Renesmee, hello Caroline. Hello Niklaus."

"Hello, Aro." They all said together in unison. Caroline and Renesmee's voices were light and airy. Niklaus was deeper, more political.

"What is it?" Caius hissed.

"Half mortal, half immortal." Aro said gesturing to Renesmee, "And these other three are part mortal, part immortal, and part. . . beast."

Jacob growled warningly. I could hear Seth and Leah back in the lines, growling as well. I stiffened slightly.

"Conceived so, and carried by Bella and Davina while they were still human." Aro said.

"Impossible." Caius snarled.

"Do you think they've fooled me, then, brother? Are the heartbeats you hear trickery as well? Calmly and carefully, brother. I know well how you love your justice, but there is no justice in acting against these unique little ones for their parentage. And so much to learn, so much to learn! I know you don't have my enthusiasm for collecting histories, but be tolerant with me, brother, as I add a chapter or two that stuns me with its improbability. We came expecting only justice and the sadness of false friends, but look what we have gained indeed! A new, bright knowledge of ourselves, our possibilities."

His hand was still held out and Niklaus and Renesmee moved in unison. Niklaus put his hand in Aro's. Renesmee put her hand against Aro's cheek.

It lasted only a second before Niklaus and Renesmee pulled back as one.

"Brilliant." Aro whispered, smiling.

"Please?" Renesmee asked.

"Of course I have no desire to harm your loved ones, precious Renesmee." Aro said.

I didn't believe him for a second, my fears confirmed when I heard Maggie- our lie detector- hiss slightly behind me.

"I wonder. . ." Aro drifted off, his gaze lingering slightly on Jacob before moving to the other wolves that were standing out behind us.

"It doesn't work that way." Edward said and there was a sudden harshness to his tone.

"Just an errant thought." Aro said.

"They don't belong to us, Aro. They don't follow our commands that way. They're here because they want to be." Edward said.

Jacob growled.

"They seem quite attached to you, though. And your young mate and your. . . family. Loyal."

"They're family. And family protects family." I said firmly.

"They're committed to protecting human life, Aro. That makes them able to coexist with us, but hardly with you. Unless you're rethinking your lifestyle." Edward added.

Aro laughed, "Just an errant thought. You well know how that is. We none of us can entirely control our subconscious desires."

Edward grimaced but still answered, "I do know how that is. And I also know the difference between that kind of thought and the kind with a purpose behind it. It could never work, Aro."

Jacob and I looked at Edward, wanting to know what he was talking about.

"He's intrigued with the idea of. . . guard dogs." Edward murmured.

One second of dead silence before howls ripped through the forest, furious snarls from the pack. I almost snarled too and Caroline jerked in my hands, probably to punch Aro in the face for insulting Seth. I heard Sam bark a command, even though I knew he was probably just as furious as the others.

"I suppose that answers that questions. This lot has picked its side." Aro said with a delighted laugh.

Edward hissed.

"So much to discuss. So much to decide. If you and your furry protector will excuse me, my dear Cullens, I must confer with my brothers."

But he did not return to his brothers, instead, they moved forward and we took that as a sign to get back to our group. I gripped Carlisle's hand tightly as we walked back to the ground, quicker than we had approached.

I relaxed only slightly once we were close to our group again.

"Bring the informer forward." Caius demanded once we were out of the way.

Irina moved with Santiago and quite a few of the witnesses. He looked kind've like if Squidward was humanized and given hair.

"Is that the child you saw?" Caius asked, pointing towards Renesmee.

Irina looked towards us. "I'm not sure." Her voice was broken as she spoke and I felt tingles shoot up my spine.

"Jane." Caius said.

"She's changed." Irina said quickly. "This child is bigger."

"Then your allegations were false." Caius said, almost smiling.

"The Cullens are innocent." Irina said. "I take full responsibility for my mistake." She mouthed 'I'm sorry' at her sisters.

Were they going to kill her simply for having told them a mistake? Were they that. . . corrupted? A small piece of misinformation and all of a sudden it warrants the death sentence?

A flame went up behind Aro's back. Santiago and Felix started to move in.

"Caius, no!" Edward shouted.

I clapped hands over Samuel and Caroline's eyes, turning Niklaus into Carlisle's chest just in time as her arms were yanked off.

"IRINA!" Kate and Tanya screamed hoarsely as her body was set on fire.

I let out a shaky breath. Carlisle pulled me into his side.

Eleazar, Carmen, Garrett, and Emmett were there, trying to keep them from charging Aro, which is what they wanted. I quickly used the snow to bring the ground out from underneath them, landing them both of their backs as the others did their best to restrain them.

"Blind them." Edward commanded as Kate used her electricity to incapacitate first Eleazar, and slowly Garrett.

Zafrina took control at that moment.

"Give me my sight back." Tanya demanded.

Meanwhile, I noticed that Bella had lifted Renesmee, Caroline, and Samuel onto Jacob's back. I closed my eyes. This is what she had planned. Seth and Leah were both looking over at Jacob.

"Niklaus, you too." Bella whispered.

"No." Niklaus said stubbornly.

"Please?" I begged. Carlisle kissed the top of my head, "Go son."

Niklaus settled himself down, wrapping his arms around Caroline. They were all small enough to fit completely on Jacob. I was glad.

I took Carlisle's hand. Edward came to stand next to Bella. "Jane's trying to get to Carlisle. But she can't."

Bella must have the shield up then.

Bella smirked at Jane. Jane lost it, stepping forward to advance before Alec threw an arm out to get her.

I heard Sam growl somewhere behind me and the wolves tensed up.

"Aro, you see there's no law broken here." Carlisle said, trying his hardest to make peace.

"Agreed." Aro said. "But does it then follow that there is no danger? For the first time in our history humans pose a threat to our kind."

With what? The Atomic bomb?

"Their modern technology has given birth to weapons that could destroy us. Maintaining our secret has never been more imperative. In such perilous times, only the known is safe. Only the known is tolerable. And we know nothing of what these children could be. And even- no offense beloved Davina- but a half vampire, half werewolf is unknown."

Sam growled even lower. Carlisle's arms tightened around me. Marcel and Esme were at my side in an instant. Even across the field, I saw Demetri frown just slightly.

"Can we live with such uncertainty? Spare ourselves a fight today, only to die tomorrow." Aro finished.

He hadn't just come to kill- or take possession- of the children. The children I knew he didn't want to destroy, but study. But also me. The one and only hybrid in existence.

"You're reaching Aro." Carlisle said in a bleak voice.

"Peace, friend. Let us not be hasty. Let us look at this from every side." Aro said.

"May I offer a side to be considered?" Garrett petitioned.

"Nomad." Aro said with a slight nod.

"I came here at Carlisle's request, as the others, to witness. That is certainly no longer necessary, with regard to the child. We all see what she is." Garrett said.

"I stayed to witness something else. You. Two of you I know- Viktor and Ileana- and I can see that many of you others are also wanderers, roamers like myself. Answering to none. Think carefully on what I tell you now. These ancient ones did not come here for justice as they told you. We suspected as much, and now it has been proved. They came, misled, but with a valid excuse for their action. Witness now as they seek flimsy excuses to continue their true mission. Witness them struggle to find a justification for their true purpose- to destroy this family here."

He gestured to both our family and also the Denali clan. Our yellow eyes.

"The Volturi come to erase what they perceive as the competition. Perhaps, like me, you look at this clan's golden eyes and marvel. They are difficult to understand, it's true. But the ancient ones look and see something besides their strange choice. They see power. I have witnessed the bonds within this family- I say family and not coven. These strange golden-eyed ones deny their very natures. But in return have they found something worth even more, perhaps, than mere gratification of desire? I've made a little study of them in my time here, and it seems to me that intrinsic to this intense family binding- that which makes them possible at all- is the peaceful character of this life of sacrifice. There is no aggression here like we al saw in the large southern clans that grew and diminished so quickly in their wild feuds. There is no thought for domination. And Aro knows this better than I do."

I was impressed. I knew Garrett liked to talk, but I never realized he could do so so eloquently.

"Carlisle assured us all, when he told us what was coming, that he did not call us here to fight. These witnesses agreed to give evidence, to slow the Volturi advance with their presence so that Carlisle would get the chance to present his case. But some of us wondered if Carlisle having truth on his side would be enough to stop the so-called justice. Are the Volturi here to protect the safety of our secrecy, or to protect their own power? Did they come to destroy an illegal creation, or a way of life? Could they be satisfied when the danger turned out to be no more than a misunderstanding? Or would they push the issue without the excuse of justice?"

Had he taken a single breath?

"We have the answer to all these questions. We heard it in Aro's lying words- we have one with a gift of knowing such things for certain- and we see it now in Caius's eager smile. Even the way he reached with calling Davina a dangerous hybrid. There is nothing dangerous about her at all. She is just like you and me and so are the children. Their guard is just a mindless weapon, a tool in their masters' quest for domination. So now there are more questions, questions that you must answer. Who rules you, nomads? Do you answer to someone's will besides your own? Are you free to choose your path, or will the Volturi decide how you will live?"

He could be a politician, seriously.

"I came to witness. I stay to fight. The Volturi care nothing for the death of the children! They seek the death of our free will. So come, I say! Let's hear no more lying rationalizations. Be honest in your intents as we will be honest in ours. We will defend our freedom. You will or will not attack it. Choose now, and let these witnesses see the true issue debated here."

He paused for just a moment to gauge the witnesses reactions. I could see that a few of them were seriously considering Garrett's words. That was a relief. If some of them left, it was one less vampire to fight. Or if they turned and fought on our side, we had gained someone.

"You might consider joining us. If you think the Volturi will let you live to tell this tale, you are mistaken. We may all be destroyed, but then again, maybe not. Perhaps we are on more equal footing than they know. Perhaps the Volturi have finally met their match. I promise you this, though- if we fall, so do you."

He stepped back to Kate's side, slipping into a slight crouch as though he thought someone would spring at that moment.

"A very pretty speech, my revolutionary friend."

"Revolutionary? Who am I revolting against, might I ask? Are you my king? Do you wish me to call you master, too, like your sycophantic guard?"

"Peace, Garrett. I meant only to refer to your time of birth. Still a patriot, I see."

"Won't even listen to the Beatles." I quipped under my breath.

Aro moved away from our group, moving back to the Volturi. That was when Bella started whispering in Jacob's ear about going to Rio.

Carlisle and I exchanged a look. Edward told us that Chelsea was trying to break our bonds, but couldn't find them. That Jane was trying to stab as us with pain, but couldn't reach.

"Good job Bella." I murmured quietly.

"I'm going to have to concentrate." Bella whispered, letting all of us know her plan. "When it comes to hand to hand, it's going to be harder to keep the shield around the right people."

I was actually quite pleased. Amun and Kebi were still here. Siobhan and Liam hadn't broken away and neither had Toshiro.

"I'll keep them off you." Edward said.

"No. You have to get to Demetri. Zafrina will keep them away from me." Bella said.

I swallowed. I didn't particularly relish Demetri dying. But he was a tracker and if we were ever going to be safe- if we scattered to the wind- we had to kill Demetri. If Edward was the one to do it. . . at least it wasn't me.

"No one will touch this young one." Zafrina said to Edward.

"I'd go after Jane and Alec myself, but I can do more good here." Bella said.

"Jane's mine. She needs a taste of her own medicine." Kate hissed.

"And Alec owes me many lives, but I will settle for his, He's mine." Vladimir snarled.

"I just want Caius." Tanya said.

"I'll take Aro." I offered. Carlisle stiffened next to me, but said nothing.

"I will help." Marcel said, eyes narrowed in extreme dislike at Aro's personage.

"Before we vote." Aro said suddenly, cutting off the splitting up of all of the vampires. "Let me remind you, whatever the council's decision, there need be no violence here."

Edward snarled and Aro looked at him sadly, "It will be a regrettable waste to our kind to lose any of you. But you especially, young Edward, and your newborn mate. The Volturi would be glad to welcome many of you into our ranks. Bella, Benjamin, Davina, Zafrina, Kate. There are many choices before you. Consider them."

I wished I could think of a really good quote.

Vladimir and Stefan were getting excited and I whispered for Vladimir's benefit, "The best revenge is patient, cultivated. Nobody sees it until it's too late."

Vladimir grinned at me but Garrett was the one who asked, "Who said that?"

I winked, "A really hot British guy."

Garrett rolled his eyes.