(This is a prequel to the "True Mate" series!)

You never thought this would be your life. Or rather your...afterlife? You weren't even sure anymore, it had been so long. Caius had taken you in when you were near death. He had been with Eleazar who had seen that you had a gift that would be extremely powerful as an immortal. So, Caius turned you and you instantly became like a child to him and Athenodora. They taught you everything you needed to know, except one thing. The mate pull.

The first time you'd felt it was when you and a few of the guard had come to check in on the Denali Coven. You didn't like leaving Volterra if you could help it, but Aro insisted on checking in on Eleazar every once in a while since his "children" had been part of a an immortal child problem many years before.

As you sat around waiting for Felix and Jane to finish up what they were doing, you smelt something. Something homey. Something peaceful. Not blood, but something more powerful. When you glanced around and no one else seemed to smell it, you decided not to say anything. They would probably think you were crazy. So you stayed silent and the scent disappeared after a while.

The next time you felt it was nearly three decades later. You were in Egypt for Benjamin and Tia's commitment ceremony. By that point, you knew about mates, but Caius still hadn't told you what it felt like it. You simply went about your life minding your own business unless it was otherwise necessary. But in Egypt, you met Carlisle again and there was a scent that lingered around him. The same scent you'd smelled in Denali. That scent of home. Carlisle made his apologies that, other than Esme, the rest of his family had been unable to attend. If you hadn't known that Esme was Carlisle's mate, you would have thought you were. Instead, you realized that it was someone in his coven.

You didn't have the chance to find out who it was until many, many years later. No matter how many times you traveled. No matter how many countries you visited or how many covens you were introduced to you had yet to meet your mate. The only thing you knew for sure was that they were in the Olympic Coven. However, you never had the time to just travel to Washington. Being part of the Volturi Elite Guard and the "child" of one of the masters kept you pretty busy all the time.

But each time you missed meeting you mate by only a little while, your heart sank a bit more. What if you were destined to never meet them? Or what if they hated you when you finally did? You knew you couldn't talk to Caius about these things so you talked to the one person you trusted most. Athenodora.

"Nonsense, Y/N!" she scolded you when you brought up your concerns. Her blonde brows were scrunched in disapproval. You were working your fingers through her tresses, fixing them into a braid. It was tradition when you had your heart-to-heart talks with her.

"For someone who can control fear, who typically fears nothing, you are certainly petrified about this." You glared at her half-heartedly in the mirror. She laughed and your worries melted away. Athenodora was good at that. "Truly though, whoever your mate is, they are going to adore you, just as I adore Caius and Sulpicia loves Aro. and Didyme loves Marcus."

"Thank you, Mother. That makes me-" you cut yourself off when a scent hit your nose. You knew that scent. Even though you'd only smelled traces of it before, you knew it. Your mate was in the castle! Without a word to Athenodora, you were gone, speeding through the halls. "Y/N?!" you heard several voices ask, including Didyme's. You didn't listen. The call of your mate's scent was too strong.

You stopped just outside the throne room. If you were human, your heart would have been beating a mile a minute. This was it. The moment you had been waiting centuries for. With that in mind, you pushed open the doors and entered the room.

The auburn-haired vampire in the middle of the room looked up at you in surprise. His brows furrowed over topaz eyes. The color you once thought odd in vampires was now one of the most beautiful colors in the world to you. The scent was nearly overpowering now, but not in a bad way. In a way that felt safe. Protected.

Your father said your name, and you greeted him shortly even though you hardly heard him. You couldn't tear your eyes away from your mate's. You stared at him, willing your mouth to form words, ANY words, to express what was happening. It was a staring match between you until Aro spoke again. "Well, this is a happy turn of events. It seems young Edward has found his true mate after all."

Edward. The name sounded lovely in your head. You'd heard of him of course. The mind-reading Cullen. "I'm Y/N," you introduced silently. Edward smiled and you swore you'd swoon if you could. It was as if everything had finally slotted into place. You had your family, friends, a life you loved, and now your mate. You only hoped this would be the beginning of a happily ever after.