AN: I'll only make this one disclaimer, as it's obvious I don't own Twilight or the recognizable characters in this fanfiction. I hope you enjoy and feel free to criticize or otherwise comment. Oh and I don't own any of the songs either :p

Chapter 1: My skin – Natalie Merchant

Five years after dad's suicide, mom finally decided it was time for a change in scenery. Trevor was 20 and already found a job as joiner back in the states, so that left me to go with her, not that I minded and either way; I wasn't old enough to live on my own for another 3 years.

So now we're here; in Saline, Italy. Well, actually, we've been here for a few weeks and it seemed like a wonderful place, not that I had had much time to explore yet and there was this really beautiful place only 10 km away called Volterra, which I wanted to visit, but hadn't got the time to do so yet.

We have mostly spend the time setting up the new place and figuring out the nearest place to go grocery shopping, which – quite frankly – hadn't been easy. The city – despite being small – was like an effing maze! Awesome, I know, but mom was worried about me getting lost. I had made a habit of taking afternoon walks with my precious Nikon camera of course. I admit, I could be kind of an airhead sometimes, which Trevor used to tease me for – actually, he still did… hmm, I guess, some things just doesn't change, huh? Not that I minded. It was all friendly, brother-to-sister banter. The usual stuff, you know.

I was going to get a spare time job here to help my mom – even though she said she'd be fine on her own. Mom didn't seem to handle the two years Trevor and I spend at the boarding school so well, which was why I decided to follow her. She needed me even though she wouldn't admit it to anyone.

"Noel, look, this is the last box. Now we've officially moved in" mom smiled brightly and I giggled.

"Mom, we have been here for almost two weeks already"

"Shush, child, you know one hasn't moved in before the last box has been unpacked" mom lectured me teasingly and I giggled yet again.

"I think I will visit Volterra today. The weather is perfect for a little adventure. You want to come?" I proclaimed while grabbing my most beloved possession: my Nikon SLR. I quickly put on a pair of flatts and looked at mom.

"No, I have some errands to run, but you have fun and be home for dinner" mom gave me a look as if making sure I got it.

"Yes, ma'am" I smiled jokingly and kissed her cheek before almost running out the door.

"Eyes on the clock, sweetie!" she yelled after me with humor in her voice. I smiled to myself. It was good to have the real mom back. She was a mess after dad's suicide and I had feared she was too lost to come back to us. Trevor took over taking care of me, while mom was being consumed by sorrow.

I shook my head as if I could shake the unwelcome thoughts out of my head. I couldn't dwell on the past. I rolled my bicycle out from our tiny and overstuffed shed and sat up when I reached the street.

"Ciao, where you going, bella?" our neighbor, Mrs. Ditta asked with her best English and a thick accent. She was an old widower with an extraordinary fresh and cheerful view on life. She was the first to welcome us to this tiny Italian town and I had helped her in her garden. She had managed to squish a countless amount of roses, fruits, vegetables and herbs into a rather small space, but it was well-kept and she had generously offered me to keep helping her for some of her crops.

"Oh, good day. I'm going to Volterra today, Mrs. Ditta. I'll see you tomorrow morning" I smiled to her, but her face fell a bit and she quickly made a sign to ward off evil.

"Mio caro, you cannot go there. It is un… posto maledetto" she said in a frightened voice, all color drained from her wrinkled cheeks and started saying a lot in Italian really fast. I looked at her with my head slightly tilted in confusion. All I really got from her sudden ramblings, was that she apparently thought Volterra was cursed or something and she didn't want me to go there, but I didn't quite understand what made her say that.

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Ditta, my Italian is not very good, but I promise I'll be careful" I assured her and took off with a happy wave. It didn't take long for me to let Saline behind me and have nothing but open space a few kilometers ahead.

..:-:..

Volterra really was an entrancing place. A wall surrounded the town and walking through the streets made me feel as if I just stepped back in time. I snapped a few pictures as I walked towards the plaza were I've been told there was a great fountain and a clock tower. I had left my bicycles in some bushes just out of town, as I didn't want to pull it through the streets. I felt my excitement grow as I reached the plaza. There was so much to see, I found myself walking in a daze. A dog rested in the shadows of a barrel beside a florist. A bunch of little kids ran after each other laughing, without even looking where they were going. I smiled to myself as I quickly took a few pictures. Some women were chatting away besides the fountain. Two men sat outside a café of sorts, playing chess and drinking red wine. People were doing there grocery shopping in the surrounding shops that looked like they haven't evolved much since the town was erected – except of a few modern details like electricity and the sort.

Suddenly I bumped into something hard as stone… or rather… someone.

"Gosh, I'm so sorry" I said and almost gasped. The woman I had just so rudely walked into was stunning. I almost grabbed for my camera, but luckily stopped myself before snapping a picture. I didn't think she would appreciate me taking her picture right after bumping into her.

"That's quite alright. I was the one standing in the middle of the street" she smiled kindly. Her eyes were a strange purple, but beautiful none the less. My fingers itched to take her picture, but I remembered how my brother once told me that most of the time people don't like you taking their pictures unless they ask.

"It was my fault for having my thoughts in the clouds" I smiled with a slight blush and she smiled brightly.

"Well, aren't you the sweet one? My name is Heidi by the way" she greeted and shook my hand. She was wearing leather gloves – the kind bikers often wear – and I couldn't help but wonder if it wasn't hot for her.

"I'm Noel" I answered politely.

"You're here on holiday? I'm a tour guide if you and your family want to see the sights here," she said with that bell-like voice of hers.

"That sounds great, but my mom is at home. We just moved to Saline not long ago" I explained. A tour didn't sound all that bad, but mom just finished unpacking the last box and she had been stressed out since before we moved here. We could always go on a tour together later.

"Oh, that's nice. How are you liking things here so far?" she asked as we walked towards a great fountain, where a group of tourist stood waiting.

"Volterra is a beautiful place. It's almost like a fairy tale" I said in a dreamy voice, and she giggled.

"It is, isn't it?" we reached the tourist and she clapped her hands together in order to get everyone's attention.

"All right, everyone, if you could follow me, please" she didn't need to yell or shout, and her voice could still be easily heard over the clamor of the Piazza san Marcos.

I drifted into the back of the group when it started to move. I wanted to take picture for Trevor to see. I'd promised him to take a lot of pictures so he wouldn't feel left out. I listened interestedly when Heidi told us about places and spots as we went, but it wasn't easy to hear her. A blond, young man kept talking to me and I didn't want to be rude by telling him to stop even though I had no interest in talking to him. I just wanted to hear what our guide was telling us.

"So where are you from? What's a pretty little thing like yourself doing here in Italy alone? Would you like to get a drink with me and some guys later? What's your name? Are you single?" questions like that kept spilling out of his mouth and I couldn't figure out what his interest was in me, when we were shown centuries old buildings and beautiful paintings and statues from times long lost. Wasn't he aware of the history this city held?

We were in a great castle which was built over a millennia ago and the blond just wouldn't stop asking me questions that wasn't related to the tour in the slightest! Not that I would be able to answer questions about this place, but Heidi would and I couldn't hear her properly!

He started touching my arm and shoulder to get my attention, and I had to really stop myself from telling him to keep his mouth shut! Ok, maybe I could just tell him politely.

"Would you please be quiet? It's rather disrespectful to the guide that you keep talking" I whispered a bit shyly. I never were one to put people on their place, but sometimes you just had to suck it up and tell them straight out. People could be so rude!

I saw Heidi sending me a small smile, but she couldn't possibly have heard me, right? The blond just looked at me in surprise, before looking a little irritated.

"Talking about disrespectful, bitch. I was only trying to be polite" he snorted and walked a bit faster in order to get away from me. It seemed he wasn't that mad, because he quickly found another girl to pester. I sighed. I wouldn't let his rude comment bring me down. I snapped a picture of a grand entrance before slowing down my pace.

"Holy moly" I couldn't help but utter in awe. We walked into a circular room with pillars and three stone thrones – occupied by three men who resembled statues more than human. There were others like them along the wall; looking at us like my brother would look at a good steak, but that wasn't the weird part. The weird part was that they all had crimson eyes and black cloaks. Maybe it was a fashion thing. I really knew nothing at all about fashion so it was a possibility, right? Or maybe they worked here and it was some sort of live exhibit showing a fashion trend from centuries ago. I don't know.

Heidi let us walk first into the room, but when I was to walk past her, she put out a hand. She looked at me as if she wanted to say something, but nothing came out and she dropped her hand with an almost apologetic smile. The doors closed and I was taken aback that it was even possible, because they looked ancient, but they didn't even creak as they closed with a heavy sigh. Suddenly there was movement in the room and people started to scream. I whipped my head around, but Heidi had gone from my side and was grapping the blond from earlier. He struggled against her grasp, but she didn't even seem fazed as he fought to get away. I watched in frozen horror as she sank her teeth into his neck. His scream was as piercing as all the other tourists', but I still seemed to hear him clearer. I didn't understand what was happening around me. The tourists was dropping to the ground as they came in contact with those red eyed beauties, because they really were all beautiful – even the men could be describes as beautiful. They were terrifying, yes! But so angelic beautiful…

I backed up until my back was against one of the pillars. My legs felt weak. No one seemed to have noticed me, but I knew they would eventually. It was only a matter of time. And I would drop with empty eyes like those tourists. I wouldn't see my mom again or Trevor. I was more sure of this being the end of me than I had ever been sure of anything before. These Angels of Death did not know of mercy, for that I was certain. I slid down the pillar as the dark haired one that had previously occupied the middle-throne moved towards me. He was smiling as one would smile to a child, but it did not give me any hope of escape. He pulled me up by the hand and pushed my auburn hair away from my pale neck. I trembled in fear and tears escaped my eyes even though I had closed them. I couldn't look death in the eyes. Was that cowardice of me?

"Oh my" the dark haired angel breathed in delight and I looked at him in surprise. Wasn't he about to kill me? I looked up at his face. His skin was oddly thin like papyrus in an ancient scroll, but there was nothing fragile about him. His cold grip around my wrist felt as if a statue had grabbed me.

"Oh my, I like what you could become. Such potential" he breathed cryptically, which only confused me more. He pulled me to the center of the room. Moving as if he didn't even touch the ground. I had to jump and stride over many of the tourists, and almost fell over a few of them, because I didn't dare to look down. Tears streamed silently down my cheeks. Had any of them known it would be their last day? I certainly didn't. If I had known, I would've called Trevor and not rushed out the door leaving my mom behind. Oh, mom, what would she think when I didn't return? She would worry sick. I couldn't believe I could do something like this to her! She had already been through so much after dad; she didn't need to lose a child too! But what could I do? There was no fighting my fate, I was as already dead when I walked through those door – or maybe even before that? Maybe my fate had already been sealed when I chose to follow Heidi. Heidi?! She was one of these Death Angels too! But hadn't she wanted to warn me? Wasn't that why she held me back at the doorway? But why warn me, when there was a dozen others? I didn't stand out.

"This one is not to be harmed" the dark haired one announced to the entire room and they all looked at us.

I wanted to hide from the scrutinizing red eyes. I never liked getting attention. And what did he mean; not to be harmed? Was I going to live?

"Why, brother, what makes her so special? What did you see in her?" the blonde man who had sat in the right throne asked in annoyance. He didn't seem to approve much.

"Possibilities" was the only reply. A blond girl stepped up behind the black haired one with an expressionless face and a boy who looked like her followed. They looked so innocent and young, but their eyes were anything but. I knew they should be feared more than the others, but if true should be told, I was much more frightened by the dark haired one, who seemed to be some kind of leader. The boys gaze grazed me uninterestedly, but then seemed to freeze momentarily as our eyes met. He seemed both confused and slightly frightened at the same time. I could do nothing but stare into his red eyes. I felt trapped, but not in the claustrophobic, I'm-going-to-panic way. I felt my mouth form a small "O" and my heart sped up the slightest. There was something heavy and unfamiliar about those eyes.

"Heidi, she seems to like you. Could you take her to an available room – maybe in the west wing - and get her cleaned up?" it wasn't a question one could say no to. The blonde girl behind him looked taken aback, as did many others as Heidi walked to my side.

"But, Master, that's near…" she started, but was cut off by a wave of the hand.

"Felix, you are to make sure no one accidently harms her. She smells quite… appetizing" he continued and I was lead out the room by a huge man – who I assumed was Felix - and Heidi.

"Oh, and Noel?" I turned to look at the dark haired one with shock. How did he know my name?

"I'm Aro, not the dark haired one" he smiled in slight amusement.