CHAPTER THIRY-SIX:

Hermione's POV:

We were all gathered around the mahogany table; the Cullens, the wolves, Harry, George, Bill and Fleur. The atmosphere was grim with the threat hovering above us.

The Volturi... vampire royalty. Watched closely by the Italian Ministry. Tolerated only because they kept the other vampires in line.

"The witnesses are a good idea," I said, my mind racing, making and disregarding plans in the span of several seconds. We'll need to show that she's growing."

"Aro can read our minds," offers Carlisle, "that will tell him everything he'll need to know."

"No," I said immediately, "absolutely not."

"Why not?" Edward asks, frowning."

"Zee Volturi cannot find out about zee Wizarding World," Fleur spoke up, her eyes narrowed, "Zis must not 'appen."

Harry, Bill and I all shuddered at the thought.

"Well what do we do?" Asked Edward. "He'll want to see the memories of Elizabeth, of the pregnancy, the birth-"

"Memory charms?" Suggests Harry.
"No- there's too much we'd have to wipe." Bill said, shaking his head. "And there's no reversal."

"The witnesses," Alice speaks up, suddenly, "Tanya, maybe, or Kate. We know too much to let Aro read us, but what if he reads one of them."

"That... that sounds safer." Harry nodded.

"What if the proof that Elizabeth is growing, that she can control herself, isn't enough, though?" Jasper spoke up, grim and pragmatic. "Alec's Gift... do we know if Occlumency can protect us from that? The risk if it can't is..." He didn't need to finish his sentence.

Alec... while Jane made a person feel the worst pain imaginable, Alec made a person feel nothing. Complete sensory deprivation. He can selectively or completely block the senses of many people at the same time, allowing the Volturi to easily execute their opponents.

There was complete silence again, as everyone traded helpless looks.

"Bella's Gift," Jacob said, suddenly. "What if she can cover more people with it- that would protect us, right?"

"It... it could," Edward nodded, deep in thought.

"I don't want my daughter there," Bella says, suddenly, her face bone-white. "I don't want her anywhere near those monsters."

"Bella, my love, I don't see how we can keep her away." Edward says, gently.

"What about- what about polyjuice?" Bella spins around to face me, crimson irises wide and pleading. "They don't know about you, Hermione- could you disguise yourself as Elizabeth?"

"I don't know if polyjuice will work on her anymore." Interjects Bill.

"But glamours will," Harry says, slowly. "And we can make Elizabeth grow even faster if we use Hermione in her place- gradually making her older, so by the time the Volturi arrive she looks at least ten or eleven."

"So we can keep her away from the fight?" Bella asks, relief clear on her perfect features.

"We weell get 'er out of zee country. Take 'er to England and put 'er behind strong wards." Fleur assures Bella.

"My parents would be happy to look after her," George adds.

"Rose, Emmett; Teddy will need to be kept away- I think we should send him to England," I tell them. "And..." I hesitate for a moment, "and one of you needs to go with him. He's lost so many people, he can't lose any more." Emmett and Rosalie shared one long look before Rosalie nodded.

"I'll stay with my son." She said, softly.

Everything was moving quickly, and looking across at my sister I could see that she seemed swept up by the rapidly forming plans.

But there was a problem, a flaw in our plan, in our reasoning, one which I wanted to point out, yet at the same time desperately didn't want to, in the wild hope that it wasn't true, it wasn't real.

Because if this wasn't really about Elizabeth, if my screaming instincts are true, and Elizabeth is just an excuse... how can we save ourselves? How can this end in anything other then an all out battle? A battle that not everyone would survive?

-

While Leah and Seth went to talk to Sam; the Cullens started contacting their various 'friends', while Fleur and I worked on my glamour. An illusion wouldn't work, not with the keenness of a vampire's eyesight- the distortion created would be far too easy to see through. Instead, Fleur had to

painstakingly transfigure my features, Elizabeth sitting beside me, posing and giggling.

We kept my eyes, but subtly changed my bone structure, giving me the same higher cheekbones that both Elizabeth and Edward shared, as well as turning my chestnut curls bronze.

The final touch was to make me appear younger. It wasn't physically possible to change my height, even with magic, though, so instead Fleur attached a strong compulsion charm, interwoven with a confundus charm, to make anyone looking at me see me as shorter.

"I weell 'ave to reapply zee charms every few days," she said, "but zis weell do."

Alice was pacing around restlessly, looking frustrated, running her hands through her hair. "I can't See anything!" she said, "I need- I need to get away!" I pull our house key out of my pocket, mutter 'portus' and throw it to her. She catches it, and gives me a questioning look.

"That will take you to our house," I tell her, and she gives me a thankful look, before activating the Portkey and disappearing.

"When do I leave?" Rosalie asks. Rosalie looks like a mess- a hot mess, but a mess. She's holding Teddy to her, and her eyes are swimming with tears she can't shed as she leans into Emmett, who has his arm wrapped around her waist.

"Before the Denalis get here," Carlisle says, quietly, "I can't imagine Teddy will be well accepted."

Yes, a human baby being raised by vampires wouldn't be looked on positively by the rule-abiding Denali coven.

"Emmett should go with you, at least until we need him," Harry says, and Rosalie and Emmett trade looks, before both of them nodding as one.

"I'll go pack now," Rosalie says, handing Teddy to Emmett, then flitting up the stairs. Elizabeth tugs on my cloak.

"You look like me," she says, and I bend down and scoop her up.

"I do look like you," I agree. She giggles. "You're dressed funny, though." I blink.

"Oh. Right." I say, looking down at the black dress-robe I'm wearing, the traditional robe made of heavy black material, and the black, silver-clasped cloak. "I should probably go change." I say, creating myself a portkey. I still can't apparate, but wandless magic seems to be coming to me with more ease then I thought.

I place Elizabeth back on the ground, and activate my Portkey. The sensation of spinning through space is even more nauseating as a vampire then it was as a human.

I land in the bedroom I share with my wife, and change quickly out of my robes and cloak, into a soft pink, fluffy dress. It's not my style, but seeing as I'm going with the whole 'little girl' look, it's suitable.

"You look adorable," Alice says, as she enters the room. I pull a face. "I feel positively daft," I admit. She laughs and kisses my cheek.

"I can't kiss you on the mouth while you look like that," she says, seeing my questioning look. I blanch and nod.

"Oh Merlin, no!"
"What are we going to do about your British accent?" Alice asks.

"I can speak with an American accent." I tell her, my accent now clearly American. Alice's eyes are wide and I laugh. "Does that really surprise you, treasure? After all, I've already learnt four new languages after being Turned, changing my accent was no trouble at all- I just prefer my English accent."

Alice huffed, but her eyes glazed over before she could reply, and when they cleared again she was frowning.

"The Denalis should be here in three hours and forty seven minutes." She said. "We should return."

We Portkey back to the Cullens, and send all the humans, Harry, Fleur, George and Bill, away, and Rosalie and Emmett say their goodbyes.

A sudden realization hits me then, one that makes me feel sick, and I clear my throat, causing the attention of the room to turn to me.

"We... Alice needs to go." I say, ignoring the way my heart aches at the sound of that.

"What?" Everyone in the room looks at me.

"The Denalis know about Alice having a mate. What will they think if she's here, but her mate isn't? Besides," I forge on, determinedly, "Alice can't See properly with all the shape-shifters, witches and wizards. It makes sense for her to be away from us all. She can help better that way."

"Hermione-" Alice says, looking frightened, flitting over to grasp my hands in her own. "Alice, I hate this, I truly do, but it makes sense." I tell her.
"It does make sense," Harry said, quietly.
"No!" Alice protested, shaking her head.

"It's not like we won't see each other," I tell her, strongly, "we can see each other every night. But the Denalis can't see you, they have to think you and your mate are gone. That way when Aro reads one of them, he won't be suspicious."

"I hate this!" Alice exploded, "I hate them! Those motherfu-"

"ALICE!" shout Esme, Bella and Rosalie at the same time, Bella's hands clapping over Elizabeth's ears, while Rosalie does the same to Teddy.

"I'm not going to apologize," Alice says, stubbornly, "they are-" seeing the stern look Esme is giving her, Alice rolls her eyes, "Sohn von einem Weibchen!" She says, cursing them in German instead of English.

I wrap my arms around Alice, inhaling the sweet scent of my mate. "I love you." I tell her. She rests her head on my shoulder, burying her face in the crook of my neck.

"I love you too," she says, her voice muffled. We kiss, and then I watch, my heart aching, as she leaves, with Rosalie, Elizabeth and Teddy.