Where the Hellebores Bloom

Stop, Rewind

The Cullens knew it was just a matter of time before the Volturi and other vampires heard about what was happening in their house. The Volturi were quieter than expected, but others were already agitated. Such a familiar situation to the one that marked the history of vampires forever feels like it's about to repeat itself.

Alice saw Tanya and two other women coming to the house that night. Carlisle gathered everyone immediately, but the girl needed to be oblivious to all this.

—What does she want, Alice? Esme asks, worried.

—They want to talk. I don't think they are here to fight, but things can get out of hand quickly, you know that.

—What do we do? Emmett feels anxious too. No one wants to see history repeat itself. They might not be as lucky this time.

—We act like nothing is wrong. We laugh, talk, and wait until Anne goes back to her room, and then we lock her inside, just to make sure she won't come downstairs while they're still here. After that, we... make our case to them.

His plan sounded good to everyone, but Tanya might not be so easily convinced.

They talk for many hours. To Anne, the conversation is about everything and nothing. She can't hear the real questions under their whispers. Finally, she goes upstairs to sleep. Tanya and the others will arrive at any moment, so Alice locks her door and window and activates movent sensors around her room. Nothing can scape their eyes today.

When Tanya approaches the door, Alice hears the bell sounds coming from Anne's room and curses through her teeth. She forgot to shut off her robot. Esme glares at her, and she whispers an "I'm sorry." Now there's no fixing it; Anne knows they got visitors.

Tanya goes inside, and as always, she looks displeased with everything. Since what happened with Renesmee, she hasn't been in touch with the Cullens. Their alliance was temporary, and so were the pleasantries. She looks to all five vampires in the room, and before even saying hello, she tells Emmett to leave and stay at an "appropriate distance" away from the house.

—Let's keep the numbers even, shall we? She's cold and analytical like Jasper.

Emmett and Rosalie look at Carlisle; he nods his head, asking him to leave.

—Now... what the hell is happening here, Carlisle? Tanya was never the type to talk first, and Carlisle doesn't think she'll fight them but never say never.

—Always good to see you, Tanya. He answers, greeting her and the other two women.

—It's a mistake to keep a human here. Her anger grows at every word.

—She's my mistake. Esme says, stepping forward. —And she's not going anywhere.

—Why is that? Why must she stay? Tanya asks.

Esme doesn't answer her question, and she can see Tanya starting to lose it.

—Perfect. She says, running her hands through her hair, trying to control her anger, but her voice comes out way too loud anyway. —Isn't it enough what happened last time? Are you really that naive, or just dense?

—Tanya, let's keep things civil, please. Alice tries to keep everyone calm. She can hear Anne's heart beating out of control upstairs. She's listening.

—You really think you can handle this? No one is safe! One of the women with Tanya steps forward too. Her voice is also too loud, and things are getting tense. Tanya puts her arm in front of her, and she looks away from Esme and to the second floor, where Anne is. Esme walks forward like she's about to attack the woman, and Carlisle holds her back. All of a sudden, everyone looks ready to fight.