|| You, Me and Penny Green ||

| Being forewarned, this can be gruesome |

| Chapter Twenty Seven |

Snow.

It fell heavily that very morning and stuck to the moistened ground exactly like Alice had predicted. The freezing water crunched under her boots, which usually would be satisfying, not today. Unfortunately, this prophecy did not wither away as Iris, and a lot of them, had hoped it would. No, this was a day in epiphany.

The trees seemed to sing a chilling tune in the recesses of Iris's mind, haunting yet melodic nonetheless. She glanced to the left and right of her and found the familiar; friends, strangers and endless love's alike, all willing to risk their nomadic paradise for an odd supernatural pairing in the small town of Forks. She wanted to weep with gratitude and wail with anguish at the same time. However, she kept her blank composure for the sake of appearances. If the fearless redhead could stare in the eyes of death and danger, than of what were they to fear.

Donny. Her sweet, wide eyed and attentive little boy standing beside a friendly four legged beast. His fluttering heart skipping beats every now and again with the slightest movement of the group. He was anxious, heart wrenchingly so. From what his parents had confessed to them in preparation for the day, stayed with him, and he dreaded the thought of never seeing his family again if thing went sour. Iris wouldn't even have him here, in the comfort of Emily's with Morgan and Penelope, if his presence wasn't the main reason for the debacle that ensued.

Embry, standing way past her height she'd have to crane her neck just to stare the ferocious wolf in the eyes. They were spread out in the offensive positions, for now. The lines tiered off in a diamond shape for a clear visual of everyone on their side. The wind howled, whipping Iris free wisps, from her fishtail braid, back and forth. She inhaled, practically tasting the essence of war in the air. It was bitter, frigid and saturated with fear.  

She just briefly felt a ghost of a stroke against her palm, Edward's fingertips. The delicate strum against her skin reassured her in multiple ways than just his presence. It affirmed their bond, their decision to be a team in all things; through their very existence and death.

It took her that much closer to breaking down in the middle of the silent, cloudy field.

She swallowed, a deep pit in her stomach reminding her of her supernaturally bizarre gut feelings. It was an omen she wished to look over yet to no success. The words tickled the tip of her tongue as she spoke them with well hidden restlessness. "Their closing in," She echoed the whispers in her mind, catching everyone's attention in the worst way.

"The Redcoats are coming... The Redcoats are coming!" Garrett muttered lowly, though everyone heard him just fine.

Iris clenched her fist to try and relive the tension. It didn't help in the slightest, even with the nails digging into her palms. In the corner of her eye, she met Edward's gaze. They swirled with endless, overwhelming emotions, just for her. Something she always had the gift of reading were those golden orbs, and they did not disappoint. They seemed to be proclaiming undying devotions and heart felt endearments one could not simply express with words, and she gladly returned them with her own. After all, she didn't know what would lie ahead for them, this could be it.

It started in slow motion for Iris yet in reality they came very swiftly, here to carry out their execution and be done with it. Inky black cloaks with blood red underlining was fitting and dramatic. The three Kings stood center, as chalk-like and terrorizing as Iris remembered them from a dark time. They outnumbered them easily by the hundreds, Iris could blatantly see it and chose to eye them strategically instead of staying on the fact for too long. With intimidation came an influx of hopelessness and she wouldn't let that capture her thoughts.

"Aro... he's looking for Alice," Edward informed the group, slipping into the thoughts of the shrill King.

Which is why she isn't here, Iris thought to herself. Of course it was perfectly planned this way. Alice would be used as an asset to the Volturi and the rest would be slaughtered by the seconds. It was something they discussed previously, the Volturi's wicked tactics to overthrow a coven.

Suddenly, a growl rumbles throughout the clearing. Iris didn't even have to glance behind her to know the rest of the pack had arrived, and fashionably late might she add. The beasts prowled out from the depths of the forest, gargantuan in size and vicious in stature. Their sharp, canine teeth bared all as they licked them, eager for a kill. Iris sensed three elemental energies not too far from her enter the clearing, her veins humming in recognition she simply knew was Arthur, Ava and Eugene. This seemed to surprise the Volturi, disgusting most, and Iris found a satisfaction in the accomplishment.

The wolves filled in the spaces between the undead, broadening their numbers greatly. Now, everyone was present and the trial could officially begin. Carlisle seemed to take this as a cue and took a step forward, meeting the eyes of an old friend, whom was far from it now.

"Aro, let us discuss things as we used to. In a civilized manner." Caius seemed to sneer at his words yet Aro remained frighteningly whimsical, waving his hand to gesture to the rallied witnesses. "Fair words, Carlisle. But a little out of place, given the battalion you've assembled against us." *AVENgers asSEMBLE! hehe*

"I can promise you, that was never my intent. No laws have been broken," He belted for the whole clearing to hear.

Caius leered towards Donny and Iris fought her self control. This was not the time to attack. Her shoulders relaxed the tiniest bit, but she didn't hold back the menacing glare sent towards the blonde King. "We see the child. Do not treat us as fools."

"He is not an immortal! These witnesses can attest to that. Or you can look for yourself. See the flush of the human blood in his cheeks."

"Artifice!"

Aro gracefully leant out a arm to stop his brother from speaking any further. His expression was childlike – curious as he settled them on Donny's form. "I will collect every facet of the truth. But from someone more central to the story. Edward, as the child clings to your newborn mate, I assume you are involved."

Iris stiffened, meeting the eyes of her husband. His expression told her not to worry, but how could she not. The Volturi was known for enacting the unexpected time and time again. Nevertheless, she let him go with her intense stare, steadily on his back. With each step he took, her heart went with him.

Stopping in front of Aro, he extends his hand forward. Aro, eager to see, snatches the palm within his own, his blood red eyes seeing something Iris could not. A look of awe washed over his features and he was back to the present. His next words caused Iris to tug Donny quickly to her side to shield him from any potential threat. "I'd like to meet him," He breathed like a venomous snake.

Iris and Edward held some stern eye contact when he turned to face her. Her mind screamed no, yet her body had a mind of its own. She clutched Donny's hand in her own, asking Embry and Ava to follow her as they made their way across the clearing. They were a united front, a strong line of unlikely supernaturals. The guards eyes seemed to widen when they took in a new elemental they haven't seen before. In the corner of her eye, she could've sworn she saw Ava smirk.

Iris sucked in a breath as she stood a couple feet in front of Aro. His feature obviously had not changed, that same greedy glint in his eyes as he glanced over her figure. "Ah. Iris my dear, immortality has treated you well."

She sent him a strained smile, running her slightly shaking fingers through her son's hair. As if just noticing Donny, he smiled maniacally, releasing the most terrifying, shrill laugh she's ever heard. Iris would say the times where Aro was at his most frightening would be when he was happy.

"I hear his strange heart." Iris put her hands on his shoulders, moving him in front of her so he could introduce himself.

"This is Anthony, say hello dear." Iris nudged him, the little boy nervous as he touched his hand.

"Hello, Aro," A shy voice spoke as he reached out to show him exactly what he showed everyone else who came to witness for them. The dream-like image was in Iris's point of view. The shockingly horrid scene of her birth, playing before Aro's eyes. The ancient immortal abruptly leant back.

"Magnifico! A fourth elemental and three fourths immortal. Conceived and carried by this hybrid."

"Impossible!" Caius sneered.

Aro snapped his head towards the blonde, narrowing his eyes dangerously. "Do you think they fooled me, brother" Taking the opportunity, Iris and Edward walked back to the line, the protection detail following behind.

This was it, this was the moment that would decide everything. Would they engage in a battle, she hoped not, but she just knew they wouldn't be that lucky. The pit in her stomach grew and twisted severely. She knew, even their proof wouldn't be enough.

"Bring the informer forward." Irina was dragged to the front of the line, the guards grasp tight until she jerked the off her. "Is that the child you saw?" Caius pointed, quit rudely, towards Donny, practically breathing harshly in her personal space.

"I-I'm not sure," She stuttered nervously. Iris instantly felt pity for her, even though she sold out her son, she didn't deserve what she just knew was about to come.

"Jane."

"He's changed! This child is bigger," She pleaded and Iris reached to shield her son from the grotesque scene, nuzzling his head to her side.

"Then your allegations were false," He grinned but it was anywhere near kind or merciful. Iris's eyes watered and she fought the instinct to cry, she needed to remain strong. "The Cullens are innocent. I take full responsibility for my mistake," Irina turned to Iris with a heartbreaking expression, as If pleading for the ginger to forgive her mistake. "I-I'm sorry," She shuttered, closing her eyes for she knew what was coming.

"Caius, no!" Edward yelled but it fell on deaf ears. Felix stepped forward and sliced his hand in the air, leaving her head to fall to the ground in his wake, rolling forward before Caius burned it with a torch. Kate and Tanya's screams pierced through the frosty air, fiercely running to enact their vengeance on the Volturi.

Garrett acts quickly to grab a hold of Kate, restraining her with a torturous yell. Kate was using her gift to electrocute the man, gritting her teeth. It was Eugene who strapped Tanya down, holding her back with his thick vines, springing from the snow.

Edward turned to Zafrina, "Blind them." With the command, the two stopped struggling, staring blankly into space.

"Give me my sight back," Tanya gritted.

"Tanya, this is what they want. Please, if you attack now, we'll all die." Iris tried to persuade them, though she knew the pain the two were experiencing. She knew this wasn't the way it was suppose to start. Once she was sure they were calm enough, Iris nodded towards Zafrina to un-impair their vision.

Just as quickly as Zafrina released them, Edward was on the icy ground, groaning in pain as he clutched his head. Jane. Iris sucked in a sharp breath, kneeled down towards her husband to try to take the pain away, somehow. Bella focused on her own gift, expanding her shield-like fortress around the group like an elastic band. The ginger helped her husband stand, tightly taking his hand in her own.

"It's working," He grunted. Iris glanced to her best friend gratefully, receiving a closemouthed grin in response.

Jane's frustration had to be the most satisfying thing to ever see exist. She took a step forward, but Alec catches her wrist to pull her back, unleashing his own inky black mist to scurry against the white snow. Fortunately, Aro stopped him with only a raise of his palm.

"Aro, you see there's no law broken here." Carlisle tried to reason, spreading his arms wide as if to showcase their innocence.

"Agree... But does it then follow that there is no danger? For the first time in our history, different species of the supernatural pose a threat to our kind. Their modern technology has given birth to weapons that could destroy us. Maintaining our secret has never been more imperative... In such perilous times, only the known is safe. Only the known is tolerable, and we know nothing of what this child will become. Can we live with such uncertainty? Spare ourselves a fight today, only to die tomorrow."

Iris gritted her sharp teeth, glaring heatedly towards the, so called, righteous Kings. If she had blood in her veins, it would surely boil below the surface of her flesh. She wore her speckled gaze saw red, a deep rooted growl on the verge of escaping. Maybe the Volturi were right, the vampiric species could easily be eliminated by her bare hands and she'd have no problem carrying out the task. She wasn't necessarily a violent person, but for her family, everything was on the table.

The murmurs of the Volturi guard irked her. Their plotting to exterminate the Olympian clan on the tips of their tongues. Edward squeezed her hand for comfort.

Suddenly, two figures emerge from the woods. Hand and hand she recognized the immortals the instant their breached the tree line. Alice and Jasper padded along the snow gracefully, skipping to Aro's side with blank expressions.

"Alice," Iris breathed the same time Aro exclaimed with far more excitement. Before the pair could move any closer, the guard stops them short with a blunt hand to the shoulder. "My dear, dear Alice. We're so glad to see you here, after all."

"I have evidence the child won't be a risk to our kind. Let me show you," Her honey sweet voice carried all the way to Iris's ears, causing her stomach to bloom some hope. Aro's face showed suspicion, but he allowed the pixie immortal to deglove her hand to give him. He took it eagerly, eyes glazing over at a glimpse of the future. After a moment, Alice jerked her hand back, a disgusted expression marring her porcelain features. 

"It doesn't matter what I show you. Even when you see, you still won't change your decision." Iris stiffened once Alice turned on her heel, golden eyes wide with terror as she mouthed the words that sprouted dread and loneliness in her heart.

Iris shifted to Embry with tears welling in her eyes, a weak smile wobbling on her lips. "Go Em, and... take care of them, please," Her voice cracked with her overwhelming emotions. Donny was perched on top of the shapeshifter's back, already crying for his parents. It broke her even more. "Be good, Donny. I love you," Then, Embry was racing into the trees with an impossible speed.

The following yell of 'Mommy' from her little boy, crushed her deeply. If only life had been different, she could protect him.

"Get them!" Caius yelled hoarsely, two vampires instantly chasing after the shapeshifter. Iris prayed to whatever was out there, that they'd make it okay.

As soon as Alice attacked Aro, all hell broke loose. Her roundhouse kick sent him flying through the air until he caught himself, expertly. Aro ordered his guards to hold her captive, the pixie frantically moving in their arms to get away.

"Let her go!" What happened next would scar every single one of them to the end of their days. Carlisle, sprinted forward to attack, leaping in the air as he met Aro in the middle. The ancient immortal landed on the ground with a crunch, a sickeningly sweet grin on his face as he revealed the horrid truth. Carlisle, his head clutched in Aro's grasp as his golden eyes rolled back into his decapitated skull. 

Iris and Esme's scream pierced through the air, causing the younger wolves to whimper from the frequency. Caius took pride in burning the Coven leaders corpse, practically reveling in the slaughter. 

It started all too quickly, once the first strike was made, everyone charged with reckless unabandon. The wolf packs launched into action, chaos everywhere you looked. Carlisle, their beloved leader, teacher, strong shoulder to rely on, was once within their reach and all too suddenly gone. Battle cries unleashed from the depths of everyone who he was close with. A dark growl mixed with unfathomable anguish. He was a friend, a brother, a father figure, and even more a grandfather.

Fierce tears streaked down Iris's face, flaming in their decent to her chin's edge. She made her feet work with a quickness, Edward speeding past her with a pained yet determined expression etched into his features.

The ground rumbled to Iris's will, her hand thrusted forward as she encountered her first obstacle. A pale hand nearly missed her neck as she bent backwards to evade it. Her vines were like whips, an extension of herself, yanking on the ankles of the immortal avidly trying to end her. Just as the slender vines rugged harshly on his ankles, Iris acted fast and swiped her hand in a circular motion, slicing the head on the attacker clean off his body.

She kept it moving, her mulitasking mind on many things at once; Donny and Embry getting away, hopefully, and her family fighting alongside her. However, when a distressed howl pierced throughout the field, Iris knew she failed in protecting everyone. Jasper.

Iris let out distressed cry as his head lulled to the white snow, eyes devoid of any emotion. Alice growled sharply, most likely one of the scariest sounds she'd ever heard. The pixie struck like a viper, her arms graceful and deadly as she swung them to flip out of her captives hold. Their limbs snapped on responce, eclicting short yells from them. Iris met her eyes briefly across the field, sending her devastation and love her sister's way before she was caught up in another fight.

"Dammit," Iris groaned as she was kicked squarely in the chest as soon as her attention averted to Alice. She flew across the snowy surface, digging up the ice as she went. Her nails dug into the ground to still herself, her head snapping up to witness another one of Aro's minons charging towards her.

Within a flash, she was up on her feet again. Her braid flew around as they fought hand to hand at lightning speed. He swiped at her abdomen, missing by a second before going for her face. Iris worked on the offensive, dodging the punches, watching as her opponent became frustrated. His slip up was the roundhouse kick he tried to inflict on her again, yet this time Iris was ready.

She caught his ankle mid-kick and reveled in the look of shook on his face. With a grunt, she twisted the limb and threw him behind her harshly, not even glancing back as she let her vines surround him like quicksand. The ginger walked on, hearing the signature snap echoing behind her.

Emmett had beheaded Alec.

Seth had unfortunately lost his life with a heart wrenching whimper of a pup. It burned Iris completely, another child lost to a war they had no business being in. She raced to his murder, jabbing her fist here and there at an inhuman speed to get the upper hand. Iris was punched once, twice, a third time but she didn't give up. Her chest rumbled with a growl as she conjured a venomous thorn, spinning on her heel just in the nick of time to lodge it in her opponents skull.

The solid texture of the vampire flesh was hard to penetrate but she shoved it further with a battle cry, tackling him with fire blazing in her eyes, and agony in her heart. The immortal stared lifelessly at her before she completely finished the job and separated his head from the body with the heel of her foot.

The ground shook as Benjamin slammed his fist into the terrain. The earth spilt in two, a chasm stretching across the expanse of the field. Screams could be heard all around her as one by one fell into the pit to a fiery death. It was biblical, in a sense.

Suddenly, Iris looked up from her next kill to witness Edward grasping on the side of the cliff, eyes wide with dread. Iris tried to run to his side, only to be grabbed by the waist and slammed to the ground, intercepting her advance. She reached her hand forward, helplessly, an unfathomable fear gripping her body as she struggled. The rock crumbled underneath his hand, dropping him into the chasm right before her eyes.

She swore her heart started only to stop dead in its tracks all over again. Tears burned as they sliced down her cheeks, blurring her vision as she still, steadily watched the cliff for a tiny glimpse of hope. She sucked in the largest breath of her life, expanding her chest, as Edward shot out from the dark depths and instantly moved to snap the neck of Felix fiercely.

Iris cried out in relief and grunted thereafter, remembering the weight she was struggling with on top of her body. The ginger glared viciously, flipping her next victim so she was on top. He leered and snapped his jaws at her, trying to get a hold of her neck. Suddenly, a rod-like vine whipped out and wrapped around her opponents neck. And with a sharp tug from a blood thirsty Arthur, it dislocated and flew into the air. Iris nodded at her father gratefully, standing from the, now dead, body to assist someone else.

From all that she could see, Caius was dead by the hands of Kate and Tanya, rightfully so. The top of his head was being torn by the seam of his mouth, Kate holding his steady with her electrifying hands.

Alice and Bella teamed together, effectively getting rid of Jane as they launched her to the mouth of a beast. Sam Uley's sharp teeth bit a chunk from her neck with ease, spitting it out like poison.

Marcus, who welcomed his death by Stefan and Vladimir with open arms, went down quickly. All around the Volturi were wasting away. The emperor the three Kings hand made, was being torn down brick by brick by their subjects. A rebellion of the ages.

Iris and Edward charged for their next victim, the two in sync as they swiftly move their bodies. Their opponent is skilled, meeting every throw and punch that meet his way. Iris is thrown away harshly, her body flying through the air before slamming into the ground, right by the edge of the cliff. Edward, momentarily distracted, is somehow caught off guard and he would forever pay for it. One moment, Iris was gathering her bearings to pull herself away from the chasm; and the next, her beloved was being beheaded as soon as she looked up.

"NO!" Iris shrieked, the whole field heard it, clear as day. Hell, even Donny, who was long past into La push, had heard his mother's torturous wail.

Her chest raised up and down as her eyes flamed with agony. Edward, laid before her, however he was not smiling and gazing at her with pure love and adoration. He was successfully separated from his body, limp and lifeless. That familiar golden glow in his eyes, no longer existed, and just as quickly, Iris felt the light within her dim till it was pitch black in her withered heart.

She sprinted towards his body, hands shaking terribly as she grasped his face and sobbed. Tears furiously ran down her face, she didn't feel them. For the first time, her speckled eyes glowed a frightening amber. Her fingers clutched the crumpled snow beneath her, jaw unbelievably tight as her nostrils flared. She saw a hazy fog of red, shoulders rising and falling with the amount of pain and grief she felt. It was like half of her innermost workings had vanished. Her other half, laid on the ground with a haunting hollowness in his form.

A scream so horrifying it caused the hairs on the wolves to stand on end. Arthur prevented Ava from approaching her, Iris was in another dimension right now. Standing in the line of her sight would be your end, Arthur knew it well.

She slammed her fists into the ground and awakening a colony of roots from their slumber. They breached from the shaking ground beneath them, shooting yards into the air with thorns the size of swords barbing from them. Iris looked up to meet Aro's gaze and he gasped, so quiet not even the left over guards beside him heard. She was determined, vicious, nightmarish to even the greatest terrors of the night.

She raised from her knees steadily, marching towards her last opponent no matter who stood in her way. The cat of nines, whip-like roots slayed everyone in her line of sight. Stabbing the Volturi witnesses and guards, decapitating them left and right. They fell like brick filled sacks. The vines, licking the remains of the immortals she left in her wake.

"You killed him," Her usually melodic voice was hoarse, stained with the lust for revenge. Aro narrowed his eyes despite his chances against her being slim to none. He was a King, fearsome ruler, he stared fear in the face and laughed. This was no different.

"And you shall follow him," He snarled, racing forward to tear out her throat. Iris allow him to pass her defenses, welcoming him into the void that was her embrace. Her glowing amber eyes were challenging, daunting for him to come closer.

Just as Aro grabbed a hold of the column of her neck, sneezing it harshly. Iris's eyes burned, growing lighter from the struggle. She hugged the pain to her chest like a newborn child, let it consumer her... until she had enough.

Aro's mouth fell out of it's devious, bloodthirsty grin into a hollow, jaw slacked, hole. He choke, despite Iris being the one physically being man handled. His grip loosening as his eyes rolled back lazily, the only thing holding up his body being the interwoven vines piercing his marbled flesh like a quilt. Their venomous poisons seeped into the holes in his back, starting from his ankles to the tendons in the back of his neck. Iris watched him with evil eyes, caressing his stoic face like a fragile china doll.

"No... no, unfortunately, I don't think I will," She whispered to him, eyeing him with fascination as his body decomposed right before her eyes. His face was the first to go, melting in on itself whilst the bones turned to ash. Iris absolutely hated that it didn't give her the satisfaction she desired. No, she desired her peace of mind and body back, and the only one who could grant her that was Edward... And he was gone.

When Aro's dust finally fell to the floor in a heap, Iris let her vines fall lifelessly to the floor. She stood, blank and empty as her eyes flickered and dimmed to their normal color. They lazily lulled to her victorious side, seeing the shocked and somewhat fearful expressions. She didn't blame them, without her love she was a frightening shell of a person.

"Kiddo... we won," Arthur spoke first into the silence, yet Iris didn't react. Majority of their side had survived. Even some of their intermediate family; Bree and Eugene, Rosalie and Emmett, Alice and Esme, Colton and Bella. Yet, it didn't make up for the servere losses they did, in fact, loose. Instead, Iris wiped the gathered tears at the end of her jaw, staring at the dampness of her fingertips.

She inhaled shakily, lower lip wobbling as she squeezed her open palm into a fist. "Then, how come it doesn't feel like it?"

Unedited.

Can I just say, I've been crying for a while now... This hurt so bad, you have no idea guys. Let me know in the comments what you were feeling in this chapter, I definitely want to read it and interact with you guys about this. Only the Epilogue left after this guys, its been a gruesome end.

Also, check out this fan art made by CheyenneVanhaur Thank you again for you amazing work! I love it💓