By the Light of the Moon I Will Always Love You

Ariel refused to look back as she ran away from Jacob, she couldn’t see the look of betrayal and hurt upon his face. She didn’t want to see the pain she was causing him to feel…but this was the only way. If Ariel could find out if she could really live in peace once more, she could be together with Jacob once again.

But then she looked up, her silver eyes meeting the familiar ones of William and her heart did a strange flip. William had been her first everything, her first love, her mate…he had experienced things with her, that she would never be able to do with Jacob. William and Ariel had been together in a time of fear and destruction for their kind and if it wasn’t for William, Ariel would most surely be dead by now.

He smiled at her, and reached out his hand which she took. His grip was tighter than it used to be, almost possessive but Ariel shrugged the thoughts off. After all their years apart and finding her living a life with another, he had the right to be a little jealous, possessive and demanding…right?

He began to run then, flying through the forest of Forks, and as he dragged Ariel after him, her hair whipping around her and snagging on low branches, she barely had time to say goodbye to a place that had been her haven for so long.

She could smell the salty air of the beach in la Push and she closed her eyes for a moment, bidding it all farewell. She’d come back again…someday she’d be back for them all.

“How many of us are there left?” she asked William quietly, looking up at him. His face was very serious, his eyebrows bunched together and he glanced down at the girl, his eyes flashing for a moment.

He gripped her hand tighter, and it was beginning to hurt, “There are four of us, five including you. But we’re trying to round up as many as we can.”

Ariel nodded, her feet barely touching the soft ground as she ran faster than she had ever run in her long lifetime. It reminded her of when they had tried to flee the Volturi angel hunts, the frantic run to safety. Why was William like this again? What was he running from? Things weren’t making sense in Ariel’s head…but so much had happened that day to even start figuring it out.

“Do you really think we can live in peace again William?” she asked, her voice low but lined with a desperate hope. Could she really begin living without the constant fear of the Volturi, would they finally be able to understand that the angels came in peace and did not want power or rule...they just wanted to live in love, with their friends and family.

William’s hand jerked in hers and he growled softly under his breath. Ariel stopped running and looked at him, “what is it William? You’re…different.”

William glanced at her, his gaze softening and he held her hands in his, kissing them, the edge of his teeth brushing her skin. “I’m sorry Ariel…I just want this to work out. I want us to be able to live again…I’ve missed you baby.”

Ariel smiled and allowed him to wrap his arms around her and hug her gently. He still seemed anxious though.

“Where were you all those years William? Why couldn’t you have brought me as you searched for others…why did you leave me alone like that? I lived in fear and solitude for all those years. You let ne believe you were dead.”

William pulled away from her, and grasped her face in both of his hands, directing her eyes to meet his brilliant shining ones. The moon was lowering in the sky as dawn approached, and the red and pinks of the horizon reflected in his eyes. As a shadow passed the sky, and the sun changed colour, they appeared red and a chill ran through Ariel’s body.

William took in a deep breath as he stared at her, as if trying to control himself, “Ariel…I’ve been living in hell without you these past years. I’ve watched you, I’ve known you were safe but until I knew we had a chance of peace, I couldn’t approach you. I allowed the Volturi to destroy part of me, to live me for dead so you could have a chance of escape. And I was right, because you are here now, aren’t you? I love you so much Ariel…don’t chastise me for creating a better future for our kind!”

Ariel flinched away from his harsh tones and looked down at the ground, feeling shamefaced. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, “but I really thought you were dead and now you’re back, and…it’s so hard to take in.”

William kissed her gently on the lips, and tugged at her hand, “Come, they are waiting for us.”

Ariel sighed, and stifled a yawn. She was tired, she hadn’t slept in almost two days. She was surprised William wasn’t dropping from lack of sleep either. He had always needed a decent night’s rest for running…but perhaps the years apart had made him more resilient to tiredness.

It was another three hours of constant running when they reached a clearing far far away from Forks. The trees here were dark and twisted, haunting almost. Nothing smelled familiar, and chills ran through Ariel’s spine. Something wasn’t right.

She looked around, her hand grasping William’s in comfort. A branch snapped as people appeared from the trees. She looked around her, gazing at the three other people in the clearing. They made a circle around her, gazing at her curiously with crimson eyes.

Crimson eyes…blood red eyes.

Ariel gasped and began to back away but William’s strong hand on her back prevented an escape.

“William, what’s going on?” she asked breathlessly, gazing up at her first love.

She stopped talking, her already dead heart freezing in her chest as she looked up at a man that was not her William. His hair was a jet black, pushed back from his face, he had a strong jaw and nose, and his eyes…his eyes were as red as the others.

She felt her hands shake in fear. She had been so stupid, so so stupid. Of course her William wouldn’t have taken her away from her family, from the people who had helped her. He would never have been so insistent, cruel almost as he dragged her away…and he would never have called her baby. William was dead, he had always been dead and she had been tricked.

“How?” she whispered.

The man who was not William chuckled softly, and ran his hand through his hair. He looked down and then up at her again, a smirk painted across his cruel mouth. “Let me introduce myself…Ariel. I’m Vic…and erm, well…we’re going to kill you.”

Another girl shrieked with laughter, her skin a russet tone that would not have been out of place in la Push, she was beautiful, even with her flashing eyes. She walked over to Vic, and kissed him deeply, growling at him in lust as he groped her leg. She looked at Ariel, “And I’m Zania.”

Ariel began to take a step backwards when the other male grabbed her quickly, twisting her arms behind her back, ignoring her struggles. He smelled her, burying his face into her hair and laughed sweetly, “For an angel, you smell lovely my dear. Too bad.”

The last female walked forward, and curled a piece of Ariel’s hair around her finger, “He’s Ben, I’m Eliza…though introductions will do no good to you now. But perhaps your silly little brain would like to know what’s going on…you’re going to be out ticket back into the Volturi circle.”

Vic smiled, “you see…we’ve been a bit naughty I suppose. Messy with our meals…so we were kicked out. We’ve had to think real hard about how to get back in with dear Aro…and then it came to us.”

Ben began to speak, his breath shaky as he tried to control himself from ripping her neck open, “Eliza can read memories you see, not thoughts, just memories and she was with the Volturi when they killed off the last stragglers of your mangy breed. And she remembered the very last boy…”

Eliza giggled and crooned “And what a lovely boy he was…William. He was so very brave, standing up to everyone, and saying how he was the last angel. We killed him slowly, and watched as he burned…but what always got me was who was the blonde haired girl, that occupied his mind in those last minutes. All those memories of happiness, of love…”

Zania growled, “we didn’t want to go on another wild search so we left you. We had no idea where you were hiding, or indeed if you were still alive. But then came our chance. If we could find the last Angel vampire on this earth, and kill her…and show Aro with out thoughts, we’d be favoured.”

“So I morphed into your darling William, and well, it was just a bit too easy. I’m disappointed.” Vic simpered quietly, examining his nails.

Eliza laughed, her cackle causing birds in the nearby trees to fly away in panic, “Oh, this just gets better…when we kill you little Ariel. We’ll find Peter…and we’ll destroy him too.”

Ariel growled, and then screamed as Ben bit her, his teeth ripping into her face. Using all of her strength, she threw him backwards and away from her, and she stumbled, her sweet blood pouring into her eyes as she bled. Wounds from other vampires didn’t heal like other wounds…

She shifted, her body melted away to take on her wolf form and the others hissed, none of them expecting a shape shifter. Zania lunged for her, and Ariel dodged sideways, her teeth clamping onto her leg and ripping it. But she was out numbered, four to one…and the only thing she could do, was fight with every bit of energy she had left in her, before death would claim her.

Jacob’s face passed through her mind. She whimpered, and said a silent apology to him, before throwing her head back, and howling, high and pitiful.

The others began to advance and Ariel prepared herself to die.