Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I don't own the Twilight Saga.

BPOV

After seeing Aro again I knew that I had never truly moved on. I was still very much in love with him. The years I hadn't seen him and the months I had spent with Edward had done nothing to change that. But no matter what it was him who broke the engagement, it was him who called me a weakness.

'But he has called you love multiple time since you have been her,' my heart said.

'It doesn't matter,' my head replied.

I had been wondering the castle, after spending some time with Jane, Felix, Demetri and Alec, not caring where I was going when I stopped at a very familiar door.

Aro's Bedroom.

My head was telling me to leave but my heart won out.

I knocked.

After a few seconds the door opened to reveal Aro's sad face and when he saw me his expression turned to one of confusion.

"You never did give me a proper explanation as to why you called me a weakness. I think you own me at least that much," I whisper dropping my eyes, becoming very interested in the floor all of a sudden.

APOV

"You are right," I replied to her as I moved aside to let her into the room, "I owe you much more than just an explanation. I also owe you an apology."

I had spent every moment I had, since first seeing Bella again; trying to figure out a way to explain to here I had to leave her and make her hate and that it was the biggest mistake of my existence. Now that she was actually standing in front of me everything I had planned to say flew from my mind never to be seen or heard from again.

"Why would you owe me an apology? You didn't love me anymore Aro so you ended it. I wasn't good enough for you Aro, I knew that from the start, it just took you a little longer to realise it," Bella mumbles as she walked into the room, with her eyes still fixated on the floor.

"That's not true, mia bella," I replied, "That isn't true at all." Bella was about to interrupt me but I held up my hand to stop her. I had to tell her now before my mind could talk me out of my heart's decision. "I love you Bella, I always have. I told you I was breaking the engagement in order to protect you. I had to make sure you were safe and you weren't when you were with me at the time. Over the years I have tried to get rid of the threat. I have done everything I can to get her to leave me alone but..."

"What the hell are you rambling about?" Bella demanded to know with a confused expression gracing her beautiful face. "You're saying that you left me to protect me?"

"Yes," I replied ashamed of the decision, "It may have protected you but it broke us apart. My heart is no longer whole because you are no longer a part of my life. You, my light, have disappeared and I am constantly looking at a world that has a constant cloud of regret over it. No longer seeing..."

"Ok, shut up for a second," Bella demanded, "My heart has been through a little too much tonight to deal with this sudden declaration of your love and affections. I can however deal with the easy stuff, the reason you felt you had to protect me. Who were you protecting me from? What was the danger? WHY DID YOU HAVE TO PROTECT ME IN THE FIRST PLACE?"

"My maker. She found out about you and she started to threaten you. She was jealous of the power you were about to gain from marrying me and she had started to threaten your life. One night when I was at your place for the night I thought I caught a glimpse of her out your bedroom window but I thought nothing of it, thinking it was just a trick of the light or my mind was playing tricks on me. I had not seen my maker in years and thought she was dead. Once you moved into the castle, the first attempt to kill you occurred. She didn't get anywhere near you but it made me start to wonder if it was safe for you to stay in Italy. This happened a few more times and we always stopped her. One night I was out in the main square of the city when she told me that I either had to end things with you or she would start killing those you loved before finally ending with you." Bella gasped at that, hearing that there was a possible danger to her family and she didn't know it until a few years later. I knew that she wasn't going to like this. I probably should have left it alone but I couldn't continue my existence anymore if she was no longer a part of it. "I knew you would hate me if that were to happen so I ended it. I made it so that you would never want to be with me again and that you wouldn't try to persuade me otherwise because I knew if you tried to change my mind, even just a little, my resolve would break and I would have swept you into my arms and taken you away, hiding you and then your family."

"Oh my God," She whispered. The look of shock and panic was crossing her face and I could see and hear her breathing start to shallow and speed up. "What about now? Is she still a threat? Oh MY GOD!" She started to sway and was just about to collapse when I grabbed and lifted her into my arms, bridal style, and carried her to the bed.

"Calm down Bella, calm down," I whispered into her hair after sitting on the bed, with her on my lap and started rocking back and forth. "It's ok Bella, no one will hurt you. I promise."

After calming down she lifted her head until her eyes met mine. She asked, "Is she still a threat?"

"Yes," I replied, "But after seeing you here once again I couldn't let you go. Not again. I am not complete unless you are a part of my live. Without you I am only a shadow of myself. I love you Isabella Marie Swan. I always have and I always will."

"I love you too, Aro."