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NINETEEN; TRAINING

     "ALICE, YOU know how I feel about Paul fighting! I won't be able to forgive myself if he got hurt on our account," Amelia hissed to her sister.

The whole Cullen family had gathered in a clearing in the woods after the graduation party, even though Amelia was still adamant on Paul not joining in on the fight. He seemed to fight against her wishes as well, leaving the party to talk to Sam about the logistics of what they were up against.

"Mia, what did you want me to do?" Alice frowned. "The whole town is in danger because of these newborns and if we don't take action now, more people will end up hurt. And you know that if the battle narrows down to just us, we'll lose some of our family."

"Hey, Edward," Emmett greeted, refocusing Alice and Amelia's attention to the approaching couple. "Hey, Bella. Is he going to let you practice, too?"

Edward groaned. "Please, Emmett, don't give her any ideas."

"When will our guests arrive?" Carlisle asked Edward.

Edward paused for a moment, concentrating before sighing. "A minute and a half. But I'm going to have to translate. They don't trust us enough to use their human forms."

Carlisle nodded. "This is hard for them. I'm grateful they're coming at all."

Bella stared at Edward with wide eyes. "They're coming as wolves?"

Edward nodded, and Amelia could tell Bella was nervous by the fact. The last time she had seen all of the pack in their wolf form was when Laurent came to attack her on Victoria's behalf.

Suddenly, something came over Edward, and he turned away from Bella to speak to his family. "Prepare yourselves — they've been holding out on us."

"What do you mean?" Alice questioned.

"Shh," he cautioned, staring into the darkness of the woods.

The Cullens formed themselves into a loose line with Jasper and Emmett in front while Edward stood in the back, hovering over Bella.

Amelia could finally identify what Edward was talking about, and her shoulders immediately relaxed.

"Damn," Emmett muttered under his breath. "Did you ever see anything like it?"

"What is it?" Bella whispered to Edward. "I can't see."

"The pack has grown," Edward murmured in response.

As her family was counting the number of wolves silently in their heads, Amelia wasn't phased by the tremendous growth in the pack. Paul had mentioned it before, but she didn't think it was much of a threat for her to tell her family.

Amelia smiled softly at Paul's wolf, and she guessed he said something cheesy because Embry's wolf nudged his in discomfort.

Carlisle took a slow step forward. It was a sign of reassurance — that they were present on their best interests. "Welcome," he greeted the invisible wolves.

"Thank you," Edward responded in a flat tone, communicating Sam's thoughts. "We will watch and listen, but no more. That is the most we can ask of our self-control."

"That is more than enough," Carlisle answered.

"My son, Jasper, has experience in this area. He will teach us how they fight, how they are to be defeated. I'm sure you can apply this to your own hunting style."

"They are different from you?" Edward voiced Sam's question.

Carlisle nodded. "They are all very new — only months old to this life. Children, in a way. They will have no skill or strategy, only brute strength. Tonight their numbers stand at twenty. Ten for us, ten for you — it shouldn't be difficult. The numbers may go down. The new ones fight amongst themselves."

The wolves suddenly rumbled in excitement, and Amelia exchanged a knowing glance with Rosalie.

"We are willing to take more than our share, if necessary," Edward translated.

Carlisle smiled. "We'll see how it plays out."

"Do you know when and how they'll arrive?"

"They'll come across the mountains in four days, in the late morning. As they approach, Alice will help us intercept their path."

"Thank you for the information. We will watch."

The eyes of the wolves darted to the ground as a sign of courtesy. There was a brief pause before Jasper stepped up, checking with Edward to ensure that everything was running smoothly. After his confirmation, he turned his back against the wolves. Amelia frowned at his small act of defiance. Jasper may have loved Paul, but he surely wasn't very happy about the other wolves around Alice.

"Carlisle's right." Jasper spoke to his family, ignoring the presence behind him. Amelia sent him a glare, and Jasper ignored it. "They'll fight like children. The two most important things you'll need to remember are, first, don't let them get their arms around you and, second, don't go for the obvious kill. That's all they'll be prepared for. As long as you come at them from the side and keep moving, they'll be too confused to respond effectively. Emmett?"

Emmett smiled at the sound of his name, stepping out of the line. Jasper backed away before waving Emmett forward.

"Okay, Emmett first. He's the best example of a newborn attack."

Emmett's eyes narrowed at the small insult. "I'll try not to break anything," he muttered.

Jasper grinned. "What I meant is that Emmett relies on his strength. He's very straightforward about the attack. The newborns won't be trying anything subtle, either. Just go for the easy kill, Emmett." Jasper backed up a few more paces and nodded. "Okay, Emmett — try to catch me."

Emmett grinned, charging towards Jasper at a high speed. Amelia watched her siblings with amusement, one eyebrow raised at the determination in Emmett's eyes.

They battled with one another for a moment before Jasper's arm locked around his neck from behind, teeth dangerously close to his neck. Emmett immediately cussed as Jasper released him.

A rumble of appreciation echoed from the wolves.

"Again," Emmett demanded, his smile gone.

"It's my turn," Edward protested.

"In a minute." Jasper grinned. "I want to show Bella something first."

Jasper waved Alice forward. "I know you worry about her," Jasper addressed Bella's concern. "I want to show you why that's not necessary."

Alice and Jasper stood against each other. Jasper shifted forward and then moved to her left. Alice closed her eyes and moved, avoiding his attack. Bella was amazed by Alice's fast nature. Alice managed to make the duel look like a choreographed dance as she danced around Jasper's rapid movements.

Finally, after numerous failed attempts, Alice laughed. She suddenly jumped on Jasper's back, lips close to his neck. "Gotcha," she teased, kissing his throat.

Jasper chuckled, unfazed. "You truly are one frightening little monster."

The wolves muttered once again, not as impressed as last time.

"It's good for them to learn some respect," Edward murmured. "My turn."

Edward left Bella and Alice replaced his spot. Amelia watched as Edward glided towards Jasper noiselessly. Amelia knew Edward was faster than Jasper, but there were moves Jasper possessed that were unfamiliar to Edward. They were moving incredibly fast as they both closed in on one another.

After a while of moving back and forth, Carlisle cleared his throat. Jasper laughed and took a step back. Edward grinned.

"Back to work," Jasper said. "We'll call it a draw." He turned and smiled. "Mia, you ready?"

There was suddenly a loud grumble from Paul. "He's worried Amelia's going to be hurt," Edward translated.

The comment caused Amelia to snicker, and she waved Paul off. "If anything, Jasper is the one who will have to worry about me."

Jasper smirked. "Very confident of you, Mia. Let's see how far your skills can go."

"Oh, how dare you challenge her like that," Edward teased, causing Amelia to narrow her eyes.

She angled herself into a fighting stance, standing yards away from Jasper. As soon as she recognized the nod of his head, she took off, her feet moving at a rapid pace. She could hear Emmett hollering in her favor and Paul's low grumbles from the other side.

As soon as she came into contact with Jasper, she punched his chest, flying him backwards. He was quick to stand with a small smirk on his face, grabbing Amelia's shoulder and hauling her down into the ground.

"Remember to use every power to your advantage, Lia," Emmett reminded. Jasper's head flew up, giving his brother a nasty look.

His eyes darted back to his sister's figure on the ground. "Now, let's not cheat-"

Amelia grabbed Jasper's ankle, smiling as he fell under her spell. "Jazz, why don't you entertain me by slapping yourself in the face until I tell you to stop?"

He groaned as Amelia hauled herself off of the ground and he began slapping himself across the face. The whole Cullen family exploded in laughter, and Amelia smirked as she returned to her spot next to Alice.

"You never said anything about using our powers, Jazz! If Edward gets to use his, then I get to use mine."

"Well, I can't control mine-"

"Oh, hush," Amelia spoke to her brother, rolling her eyes.

Alice nudged Amelia with a concerned look on her face as Jasper continued to hurt himself. Amelia sighed and conceded, allowing Jasper to stop his punishment. Carlisle, Rosalie and Esme went after Amelia — all showing their tricks in combat and Jasper continuing to educate the wolves on what they should be looking out for.

Once it grew late in the night and Bella was getting weary, Jasper ended the training session and turned back to the wolves. His expression turned uncomfortable again, and Amelia exhaled at his hesitancy. "We'll be doing this tomorrow. Please feel welcome to observe again."

"Yes," Edward answered once more for Sam. "We'll be here." Edward paused, reading another train of Sam's thoughts. He turned to his family. "The pack thinks it would be helpful to be familiar with each of our scents — so they don't make mistakes later. If we could hold very still, it will make it easier for them."

"Certainly," Carlisle said with no hesitation. "Whatever you need."

The wolf pack began trudging their way towards the vampires, and Amelia could feel Bella's anxiousness from her own place. Sam controlled the lead while everyone else followed after him. They began with Carlisle, and once each of the wolves had reached Amelia, they quickly sniffed her before moving on. They were already used to her scent due to her frequent visits at Emily's.

Once every wolf went down the line, with Jacob being last because he stayed to tease Bella, Amelia informed Carlisle that she would be going back with Paul. He nodded approvingly and Paul motioned for her to run beside him.

The pack and Amelia left, leaving Jacob to converse with Bella and Edward. After they reached the boundaries of La Push, they all departed with silent nods and Amelia followed Paul back to his house.

He shifted back before they entered, and Amelia began whining to him. "Paul, you can't fight! No matter how well Jasper will teach you, you won't understand how strong a newborn really is. Trust me!"

He chuckled at her concerns and entered the kitchen, grabbing a soda from the fridge and popping it open. He took a swig of it before pulling his imprint close and placing a kiss on her lips.

"You worry too much. I'll be fine. I'm the strongest in the pack anyways," he boasted, trying to lighten the situation.

Amelia was having none of it, a frown still stretched across her face. "Paul, you're not listening to me."

"Yes, I am," he said, kissing her nose. "Besides, are you really going to ask me to sit out on this fight when the rest of my brothers get to rip some vampires to shreds? C'mon, Mia. Don't do that to me."

"As long as you promise to be safe, and if a situation looks dangerous, then don't approach it," she warned.

He rolled his eyes. "Yes, mom. Now, how about we go to bed and you can watch me sleep like a weirdo?"

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"Oh, you shouldn't worry, Mia. We're stronger than any of your kind."

Amelia rolled her eyes at Jared's words, leaning over from her spot on Paul's lap to flick his forehead. "You're just like Paul. Your ego is flooding whatever coherent thoughts you manage to possess."

"Ouch," Jared said, rubbing his forehead.

Sam walked into Emily's kitchen, frowning as he held a letter in his hands. "Mia, did you change your mailing address to Emily's place? Why are we suddenly getting your mail here?"

Amelia's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. The only people who knew of her address were fashion magazines, and she would never send them to Emily's place. "Let me see," she insisted. Sam handed over the letter, and Amelia felt her heart stop when she saw the calligraphy.

The black ink was prominent through the envelope, and Paul glanced over Amelia's shoulder to read the address.

It was from the Volturi. She looked at Paul with a worried expression before excusing herself from the table. She walked outside, opening the envelope and grasping the letter in her hands.

Our dearest Amelia,

We recognize that you have not been available to make a trip to Volterra with your mate. However, I will be expecting your company soon and hopefully, we will get to meet this shapeshifter that angers Demetri so greatly.

We look forward to your presence.

-Aro

Amelia sighed at the words that were glaring back at her. Aro may have been speaking too kindly in the letter — he was obviously growing impatient by Amelia's silence on her end. Once she heard footsteps approaching, she quickly stuffed the letter back into the envelope.

"What is it?" Paul asked, standing behind his imprint.

She turned to face him with a glimmering smile. "Nothing. Just a check-in."

"Mia," Paul said, one eyebrow raised.

Her phone suddenly rang and she quickly answered it. "Hello?"

"Mia, can you come watch Bella with Alice for a little bit? I have to speak to Jasper about something regarding the fight," Edward's voice filtered through the phone.

"Yes, Edward. You have the most perfect timing," she complimented, relaxing at his request. She hung up and focused her attention back on Paul. "I have to go. Edward needs me."

"We shouldn't keep secrets from one another," Paul said. He looked genuinely hurt, and Amelia felt a pang in her heart. "Secrets tear couples apart, you know that."

"I know," she whispered, stepping towards him and pressing a kiss to his lips. She kept the letter tucked behind her back, away from his sight. "I'll see you later and explain, okay? I need to go take care of Bella."

"Be safe," he reminded.

Amelia silently cursed Paul for being too sweet with her — she didn't deserve his kindness. She kissed him again and smiled. She was going to ruin Aro if he attempted to hurt this perfect man.

"I will."

i am currently taking any offers if someone wants to make a new dangerous woman cover, i don't have time to do that anymore lol