Solstice

Chapter 13: Pounce

"Bella wait. STOP!" I could barely register that Edward wanted me to not attack Demetri. What? Was he serious? I stumbled as I tried to halt myself from hurling myself on top of the intruder. I knew instantly that I had made a mistake and that I was never going to hear the end of it.

A booming laugh sounded from Emmett. "Oh I thought I'd never see Bella be clumsy again! That was great!" I shot him a look that would've killed him if it was possible. But not before Rosalie slapped him upside the head. "Dude, it was totally worth it," he said, then very wisely shut up.

Edward came up behind me and spun me behind him. He was now in between me and Demetri. I peered around Edwards arms and saw Demetri in a defensive manner, wearing regular clothes. I had never seen him without the traditional black robe of the Volturi. His eyes were bright red which meant he was very thirsty. I couldn't help but growl when I thought of him hunting in Forks.

"What are you doing here?" I demanded. I couldn't understand why no one but me wanted to attack him. I looked around and noticed that everyone was waiting for Edward to explain the same thing.

"Demetri isn't here under the orders of the Volturi," Edward started. "He came to warn us. But why?" Demetri looked shocked for a moment that Edward spoke for him, as if he seemed to forget what he was capable of.

"Young Edward is right, I told Aro that I wanted to take an extended hunting trip. I will need to be back soon. As you may be in knowledge of by now," he looked over to Alice to confirm, "Aro and Caius are planning on coming here to kill all of you. Excepting Edward, Renesmee, Alice, Jasper, and of course, Bella." Demetri looked at us as he said our names, lingering on mine. He also stopped for dramatic effect which I found to be quite annoying. It was so not necessary. "The new vampire, Charlene can detect the gifts of vampires and also the gifts of humans that would bring powers over. With that knowledge, along Bella's new gift, Aro has devised an awful plan."

Again, Demetri took a moment to let this new piece of information sit with us. I looked up to Edward as I came out from behind him. His jaw was locked and I knew he was reading Demetri's mind. "What's the plan, Demetri?" I asked for the benefit of my family.

"Aro wants to eradicate the vampires in the world. Kill them, so that he can start over with a new race. He saw how quickly and cunning you all were to gather witnesses the last time we visited with you." Renesmee shuddered beside me. She was a baby still when the Volturi came to kill us, but she remembered the day just as well as any one of us. "He wants to implement some new regime and is in the thinking that with such a huge coven, you will reorganize once again, to over throw him before this can happen."

I could see out the corner of my eye that Carlisle was pondering the words that were being spoken by someone that was once our enemy. "I noticed, Demetri, that you said Aro and Caius, where is Marcus on this?"

"Marcus has always been detached from the plans of Caius and especially Aro. He has never betrayed them until as of a decade ago, when he found out that Aro was the one who killed his wife. A little known fact is that Marcus is my father. Of course not biologically, but he is my vampire father, he made me. Like him, I am appalled at the very notion that Aro and Caius now believe they are above the law that they swear they protect. You are an odd lot, but an innocent one. Marcus has confided in me and we are now the only ones that you may consider friends within the enemy."

"Demetri, if you are here for Marcus you must leave then. I had a vision prior to your arrival that Aro is sending someone in advance. I don't know who or when they will arrive." I had forgotten about Alice's vision. I looked to my sister and saw that she was only slightly relieved that her visions weren't screwed up after all.