Bella and Edward had gotten married three years ago, and Bella had been a vampire for a little under three years. To others, they looked like the perfect couple. Bella had given up everything to be with Edward, but he just threw it back in her face, three times.

The first time was when he left her human. He claimed he had only left her so she could be human and not be in danger anymore. Then she risked her life to stop him killing himself when he thought she was dead. She went all the way to Italy. She forgave him for leaving because she loved him, and they got back together again.

The second time was after they had gotten married. Bella and Edward had spent nearly two weeks on an island off the coast of Brazil when Bella discovered she was pregnant. They went back to Forks immediately, and Bella asked Rosalie to help her keep the baby. Bella knew that it was dangerous for her, but she couldn't bear to kill the person growing inside her. Edward didn't listen, even though Carlisle advised him not to. As soon as Bella's pelvis and a couple of her ribs broke, Edward operated to save Bella's life. The baby didn't survive (mainly because Edward didn't care if it did), and Bella was so weak that she had to be changed. Edward bit her.

The third time and final time was after he had changed her. He had been seeing Tanya Denali behind Bella's back, just like he had been doing when he left Bella as a human. Bella had found this all out, and her heart was finally crushed. It had taken beatings over the five years they had been together, but now was the final one. She had even forgiven him for killing her baby girl, but that was the last straw.

The Cullen's had witnessed Bella's broken state for weeks already, with Edward in Alaska with Tanya. He had run off when Bella threatened to castrate him and blow up his head with her shield. The Cullen's were trying to comfort Bella, but she didn't want it. She felt alone. They were all his family first and they had left the first time he left her.

Bella had left her family to be with Edward. Her parents thought she was dead, and she had nowhere to go. The Cullen's wanted her to stay with them, but they knew she needed to be on her own – she needed to go somewhere different. She was angry and hurt, and no amount of comforting was going to help.

Bella sat in Aro's throne in Italy. He was away on business, and so she was just trying it out. It had been a year since she found out about Edward and Tanya. She had left the Cullen's after realising that she would never get over Edward with all the memories surrounding her. Alice and Rosalie still called her every couple of weeks, checking in, and Bella often wrote to Jasper. She and he had become close since she had married Edward.

The Volturi were known to be ruthless and not very good company, but everyone except Jane loved Bella and told her she was welcome to stay as long as she wanted. The only reason Jane didn't like Bella was because Jane's gift didn't work on her, and Jane wasn't Aro's favourite now. Bella was.

Marcus and Caius walked into the throne room and smiled, shaking their heads when they saw Bella. She could pretty much get away with anything. If anyone else had sat in Aro's, or their thrones, they would be dead within seconds.

"Aro's coming back in a minute. It seems he was just catching up with a friend." Marcus told her.

"Who...?" Bella asked.

"A vampire named Damon. We met him when he used to stay in Italy. It seems his father was Italian, and so he owns a house not far from Volterra." Caius replied.

"He's not our kind, though." Marcus said.

"One of those sun-burns-them vampires...?" Bella asked.

Marcus and Caius smiled. "Yes," Marcus replied.

The wooden doors opened and in walked Aro, followed by a dark haired, blue eyed man – Damon. As soon as he saw Bella, he became almost entranced. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Her long, pale legs; her pink, full lips; her thick, dark hair with a hint of red; and her bright, golden eyes – all of it was perfect and just added to her beauty.

Marcus, Caius, and Aro all noticed Damon's staring and rolled their eyes. Bella noticed, and she seemed to like it, much to her surprise. He was pretty handsome, with dark, brooding looks. He looked dangerous, and that's what she seemed to like. Maybe a little danger was what she needed; some excitement.

"Isabella, this is Damon Salvatore. I'm sure Marcus and Caius have told you." Aro said, walking up the steps and to her.

She stood up, letting Aro sit in his throne. He sat down and she walked down the steps, so she was standing on the same level as Damon. She gave him a mischievous smile, and he gave her his famous smirk back.

"Are you staying for the party tonight, Damon?" Aro asked.

Damon looked to him, "Of course. I wouldn't miss it."

Aro nodded, "Good."

"Will you be joining us, Isabella...?" Damon trailed off when he looked around to find Bella was no longer there.

Marcus chuckled, "She does that a lot. You'll have to get used to it."

"Is she part of your coven?" Damon asked.

Aro shook his head, "No, she refuses. But she is a good friend. And she also has one of the most powerful and unique gifts any of us have ever seen."

"More so than Jane and Alec...?"

All three nodded, and Aro continued speaking. "Yes. Their gifts do not affect her at all, even when she was human. Her mind was completely inaccessible, and now that she is a vampire, her gift has intensified and not any part of her is susceptible to any of our gifts. Jane cannot cause her pain, and Alec cannot cut off her senses."

"You knew her when she was human?"

Aro nodded, "Yes, we met her once when she was human, and once more after she was changed. Now she maintains a temporary residence with us, in between travelling. She has only been a vampire for four years."

"But she seems so...mature."

"Of course she is," Marcus replied. "But that is just her nature. She has always been older than her years. She was only eighteen when she was changed."

"Come in," Bella said and turned around, seeing her door open and Damon stand there. His eyes widened slightly when he realised she was wearing nothing but a towel, fresh from the shower. Oh fuck, he thought.

She smirked. "Can I help you, Damon?"

"I...I...Um...Never mind." he replied and left swiftly, a giggle slipping from her lips. She was enjoying this too much. It was worrying her. Before her change, and even some time after, she was very self-conscious. She thought she was plain and not very beautiful – even if she was beautiful. But ever since she had left Edward, gotten rid of him for good, her confidence had increased. She wondered if that was half her problem. He was always making her feel weak and human, not worthy to be with him.

But now, with the help of the Volturi, she realised how she was worthy. He was the one not worthy. He was the one not good enough for her. No-one deserved to be treated the way he had treated her.

"Isabella, I want you to keep an eye on Damon. Some of the other guests might not be aware of his kind and think he's human. I'd rather keep this party peaceful."

Bella nodded to Aro. "Sure."

"Thank you, and may I say you look very beautiful tonight."

Bella smiled, "Thanks."

She scanned the room, currently filling with vampires from all over the world, and found Damon. He was standing by the bar, drinking.

The Volturi had several parties/balls over the year; this was one of their less formal gatherings. Only close friends and acquaintances were invited, and those that turned up uninvited were not welcomed warmly.

Bella headed for Damon, wearing a bright red dress that clung to all the right places. Aro had given it to Bella as a gift, and she decided to wear it tonight. She paired it with some black heels, and had her hair curled and up, with some ringlets down around her face.

"Wow...You look...amazing."

Bella smiled, "You don't look too bad yourself."

"Where are you from originally?" Damon asked once they settled into a normal conversation.

"I was born in a small town in Washington, but after my parents split up...my mom and I moved around a lot. What about you?"

"A small town in Virginia – it's where I've been before I came here. I decided to go and annoy my little brother for a while."

Bella smiled slightly, "Is he a vampire too?"

Damon nodded, "But he's like you, all animal blood and rabbits."

"I don't eat rabbits." Bella replied.

"Would you like to dance?" Damon offered his hand to her, seeing other people dancing. She took his hand and they moved in between all of the other dancers.

Damon twirled Bella around and then back to him, making her giggle. Everyone could see how happy Bella looked, and it made them wonder who this Damon was. No-one had seen her laugh so much before.

"So, Miss Isabella, what's your story...? Left any poor guys with broken hearts?"

Bella's smile dropped slightly, "No, not me. Generally I'm the one that gets the broken heart."

Damon saw her uncomfortable-ness with his question. "Sorry, I didn't mean to pry. But whoever he is, he's a dick."

Bella nodded, "Yep. But I'm over him; at least, I'm trying. I just...I don't want to talk about it, sorry."

"It's okay. I know what it's like."

Bella looked up at him, "You've been hurt before?"

He nodded, "When I was human, my brother and I fought for the affections of a girl. We just didn't know she was a vampire till after we had fallen in love. It didn't matter so much, but back then...people were more aware of vampires, at least our kind. Our father was part of a vampire hunting council, so you can imagine how well it turned out."

"What happened?"

Damon sighed, "The vampires were being rounded up, and when Stefan and I tried to help them, our father shot us. We both had Katherine's blood in our bodies, so we didn't die; we just started transforming into a vampire. All we had to do then was drink human blood. Katherine left, and I didn't want to become a vampire. It had all been for her, you know? There wasn't much point anymore. But Stefan was the first to change completely, and he forced me to change as well. I've resented him ever since."

After his confession, she felt she owed to tell him her story. Well, the short version. She led him out to the balcony and looked out over the trees. He stood next to her.

"I met Edward when I was human. We went through so much together, and I wanted him to change me so I could spend forever with him. We even got married. But about three years after I was changed, I found out he had been seeing another vampire – Tanya. All his extended hunting trips had actually been him going to see her. My entire family think I'm dead, my best friend hates me...I gave up everything to be with him. And there was no point to it at all. He just wanted someone that would stay by him, some kind of security I guess, whilst he had his own fun."

Damon wrapped his arm around Bella's shoulder and hugged her to him. "You're very brave, Isabella."

"You can call me Bella, you know, its only Aro and Marcus that call me by my full name."

"Bella, then," Damon replied, smiling slightly.

Just as Damon and Bella started dancing again, a shriek of "Bella!" interrupted them. Bella looked around to see an excited Alice bouncing over and pulling her into a tight hug.

"Oh, I missed you so much!" Alice giggled, happy. She pulled back so she could look at Bella, "I see my persistence paid off." Alice smiled smugly, looking at Bella's outfit.

Bella rolled her eyes, "Aro bought it for me."

"Well, at least someone has good fashion sense." Alice replied.

"Leave her alone, Alice." Jasper's Texan drawl was easily recognised and Bella looked up, seeing Jasper standing behind Alice. Bella smiled. She hugged Jasper and then introduced Damon to the two of them.

"Damon, this is Alice and Jasper, guys, this is Damon. He's a friend of Aro's."

Jasper took Alice off dancing, and Bella was dragged away from Damon by Felix, a Volturi guard member. He was very tall and intimidating; the reason Aro wanted him as part of the Volturi.

"Aro wants to speak to you, in private." He told Bella and she nodded, walking up to the thrones and to Aro, both of them going out to his office.

"What is it?" Bella asked, slightly worried. He never normally wanted to speak to her in private unless it was serious.

Aro turned to her, looking solemn. "I've got news that Edward is coming, and bringing Tanya. I'll have them removed as soon as they arrive, but I just thought that you should know in advance in case you see them."

Bella nodded, "Thank you. But you don't need to remove them. I just...I'd rather not see them, so I'll go."

"No, Isabella, they were not invited, you were. They should not be here. And they were in the wrong, so they must suffer the consequences."

"Are you okay?" Damon asked Bella, finding her standing and watching the others dance.

Bella sighed and nodded. "I'm fine."

He held his hand out, "Then get that fine body dancing."

She smiled and a laugh escaped. "Whatever you say." She took his hand and they continued dancing.

As it neared the end of the party, the music turned softer and the couples were slow dancing. Bella and Damon were too, but she wasn't really aware of how it looked, she was too busy listening to Damon telling her stories of his past – places he had been, people he had met.

"May I cut in?"

That voice... Bella stiffened instantly in Damon's arms. She knew exactly who it was; she didn't even need to look behind her. Damon looked though, and stared straight at Edward. Damon had no idea who he was, but Bella's reaction was enough for him to know she didn't want to dance with him.

"No, you may not. Go find someone else."

"Bella, can I talk with you then?"

Bella was frozen. She didn't want to look around. She knew she would either break down or grow extremely angry.

"Bella?" he asked again.

She looked up at Damon, "Thank you for a lovely evening, Damon." she then turned around and faced Edward for the first time in a year. "Why don't you dance and talk with Tanya? She was obviously better than me at everything else." Bella snapped at him and swiftly walked out of the hall and up the stairs to her room, but Edward was close behind her.

"Bella, will you just let me explain?" he called as she stood at the top of the large stair case. She turned around and saw him standing on the second step from the bottom, and the Cullen's and Damon just appearing though the door.

"Explain what? It's been a year, Edward! You've had a year! But there is nothing that you can do to make me listen to you. I hate you. I gave up everything to be with you! And you just threw it back in my face!"

"I'm not with Tanya! I never was! She was just..."

"What? A mistake...?"

"No, but you were human...I didn't want to hurt you."

Bella realised what he was trying to say. He was only sleeping with Tanya to get his frustrations out on. "That's no excuse. You don't get to blame my humanity."

"I'm not. But you have to understand."

"Understand what? That just because you wouldn't sleep with a human, you decided cheating on me to save me from possibly being hurt was better? I'd rather you killed me than sleeping with someone else!"

"It wasn't an easy decision."

"Oh no, I'm sure it was horrible for you." Bella replied sarcastically. "And it's not like that was all of it. You still went up there after I was changed. Clearly that wasn't because I was human. You were just acting like a regular guy that can't keep it in his pants! So no, I don't have any sympathy, and I'll never forgive you or listen to all your twisted reasoning's for everything you've done."

She turned and continued walking to her room, but definitely heard his last words. "I love you, Bella!"

Anger poured through her body. He did not have the right to say that. She turned and walked back, looking down at him. "Loving someone means doing everything you can to keep them happy; loving someone involves actually caring about them. But you don't care that much about me if you were able to kill the one person that might have actually kept me with you. I'll never forgive you for doing that. She was innocent, Edward. And you took her away from me. A mother should never have to mourn her daughter."

Felix came and removed Edward quickly, so he didn't even get to reply. Bella was glad. She was done. Telling him all those things had allowed her to get some closure, but she knew she would never be able to get over him. He would always be the scar that marked her heart.

It's my first FanFic. I hope you liked it. Reviews are welcome.