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"What do you want, Alice?" Tashikah didn't look up from her piano as she spoke, already hearing the footsteps of her pseudo-sister. Alice sighs and pushed the door open, her eyes landing on Tashi, the woman sitting on the piano stool as always. Ever since the situation with Victoria and the wolves, she was holed up in her room, only leaving to hunt or meet Leah in secret. "You got mail." Alice walked over and set a black velvet box on the piano, it had a red bow tied over it and a card under it. It was shut over with a Volturi wax stamp.

"I don't want it." She mumbled, not even looking up from the tiles.

"Yes, you do. It's from your mate." Alice says, pushing the box towards her.

"Stop saying that. He is not my mate." She muttered in disdain, her fingers hovering over the tiles, a certain song always on her mind. Alice huffed, she had been doing everything to convince Tashi otherwise. But it was no use. She either denied it, or she just didn't speak at all. "Can I at least open it for you?" She begged. "Do whatever you want. I don't care." Tashi mumbled, showing zero interest in the box.

Alice took the card first and set it down for Tashi to read herself. Then she unwrapped the box and pulled the top off. She gasped, pulling out a long elegant black dress adorned with gold jewels on the seams. "Oh my gosh, this is so gorgeous. You can wear it for graduation! It's gonna look perfect on you!" She expressed. Tashi still didn't show interest, she hadn't even shown interest in graduation. "I'm not going. Just burn it or give it to Rose."

"Oh no, you are going, I will literally make Jasper change your mood, do not test me. You are going and you are wearing this dress. That's final, Tashi." Alice said sternly, not leaving room for argument as she folded the dress back up into the box.

She huffs in annoyance as Alice walks out. She returned to her music, noting things in her book before playing them out. She lived for music. It was her last connection to her human self. Her mother used to sing lullabies to her and her brother to help them fall asleep. As she got older, she started to sing herself, her mother taught her. And then she taught herself to play sorts of instruments. They weren't rich, so her brother would make them for her with scraps he found around the village. But the piano was her favorite. Her brother made a mini one for her as a gift when they turned 18.

As her mind wandered, her eye caught the letter beside the box. She rolled her eyes and hesitantly reached for it, picking it up and opening it.

The letter read: you should wear something to draw people away from your face, it's not very pretty to look at

~ signed, the man you're meant to hate but fated to love

Her eye twitched at his mocking words and she scowled, her hands ripping up the paper in anger. "Prick." She stood up and grabbed the trash can, tossing the ripped up paper into it. She lit a match and tossed it into the bin, setting fire to the letter. She lifted the dress from the box and as she was about to toss it into the bin, she paused, her eyes softening when caught of a whiff of the scent. His scent. It lingered on the dress, and suddenly the urge to burn it diminished along with her hateful desires.

With an annoyed expression, she tossed the dress onto her bed and picked up the black box on the piano. As she was about to toss it, there was a rectangular card sitting in the corner. She picked it up and then tossed the box into the bin of fire. She flipped the card over and it had a number on the back, it was a phone number. After minutes of contemplating it, she walked out to the balcony and dialed the number. After three agonizingly long seconds, the call lifted. She didn't speak, no words processing in her mind yet.

"How'd you like the dress, darling?" There it was, his annoyingly perfect and enchanting voice that she hated, even if her body felt otherwise.

"I burned it," she stated, a look of irritation covering her features.

"No, you didn't. You couldn't. In fact, you're going to wear it." She clenched her jaw, he was already getting under her skin. "Where are you? Stalking me now? Going to kidnap me when I'm alone?" She spoke, glancing around her, the house was surrounded by forest so it's not like someone couldn't be hiding. "Don't flatter yourself. I don't leave the castle, not for anyone. Though, I do have Demetri keeping a close eye on you. Can't be too careful."

"Really living up to the vampire stereotypes, aren't you? Tell me, where is your little protégé? I'd like to have a talk with him." Tashi's eyes scanned the forest, looking for any sign of the Volturi guard. "I'm sure you would, but I can't exactly give up all my tricks, can I?" She could only imagine the smirk on his face when he said that. "I suppose not. Don't fret, I'll find him out myself. For a tracker, he's not very good at concealing his scent. You should warn him to cover it up. You never know what could happen."

"Sure it's not just you? Your nose does look a touch too big for your face," Caius retorts.

"I hate you." Tashi sneered, hanging up the phone, resisting the urge to crumble it in her hand. Carlisle would not be pleased if she needed another phone for the fifth time this month.

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"It's disgusting." Tashi grimaced at herself, tugging the dress down just a touch more. Alice pouts, "you look beautiful." She glanced at the pixie girl with a blank expression, "I know I do. This dress is...ugh. Why am I even wearing it? It smells like him. It shows too much skin. It's...perfect. I hate it." She grumbled, sitting down on the bed and reaching for her platform boots. Alice smiled, no matter how much her sister tried to deny it, she loved the dress.

"Shall we do your makeup next?" Alice asked excitedly.

Tashi returned a glare, "do not put those dreadful chemicals on my face."

"Fine. But you have to wear some jewelry. I'll be right back." Alice left the room and then at that moment, Tashi's phone rang. She sighed, putting her hand out and using her abilities to bring to phone to her. She flipped it open and raised it to her ear. "What do you want?" She asked in a bored tone. "Well, that's no way to speak to your mate." She rolled her eyes at his teasing tone, choosing to not yell at him for calling himself her mate. He didn't deserve the pleasure of seeing her angry. "Whatever. Tell me what you want?"

"I want to see you." She would be lying to herself if she said that didn't give her butterflies. Luckily, she was an excellent liar.

"That sounds like your problem. I have no intention of ever seeing your face again." Tashi stood up, walking to her balcony doors, with one whoosh of her hand, they opened and she stepped out to the balcony. "Oh, come on, love. I know you miss me. You miss the way I smell. You miss the way I make you feel. You should come to Italy. Come to see me again. I promise I'll make it worth your while." She scoffed at his words, feigning disgust, "if you think I would ever sleep with you, you're stupider than I thought."

"Ah, but I didn't say that. Are you thinking of sleeping with me? Cause if you are, I'm quite flattered. Although, I do think we should take our time. Rushing into things can be bad for a relationship." He smirked, able to hear the way she gripped onto the wooden wall and clenched her fist around it, the wood splintering at her strength. "Stop calling me. I don't want to talk to you. I don't want to think of you. We are not in a relationship. I am not your girlfriend. If you want a relationship, go tend to that wife you have locked up in a tower like Rapunzel." She sneered, slamming the phone shut.

"Everything okay?" Tashi turned around, faced with Alice staring right at her with some jewelry dangling from her fingers. "Everything's fine." She tucked the phone in her boot and walked back into the room, her pseudo-sister following behind her. "Who was that on the phone?" She asked. "Nobody you need to concern yourself with. Let's just get this over with. I'm sick of playing high-schooler." Tashi muttered, crossing her legs as Alice sat next to her.

"I-I have something to confess," Alice said, rubbing her neck nervously.

Tashi glanced at her, her eyes squinted in suspicion. "What did you do, Alice?"

She sighed heavily, "I may have sent an invite to Caius," she admits.

"You did what?" Tashi breathed out, not that breathing was necessary but it still shocked her that Alice would do such a thing. "I'm sorry, I thought you'd have accepted it by now. But, I'm pretty sure he's not coming. I just wanted him to know that it would be nice of him to be there for you." Alice said, nervousness filling her cold heart as she looked at the girl who remained still, processing the information.

"Alice...stop meddling in my life. I haven't made it more clear. I want nothing to do with him. So please, stop trying to make something happen. It will never happen." Tashi stated, standing to her feet and walking towards the balcony. "I'm going out for a run. Don't bother sending anyone after me. I'll see you at the graduation." Alice watched hopelessly as the girl jumped off the balcony and ran into the forest to do God knows what.

"You'll come around. I know you will." She mumbled to herself, trying to convince herself she was doing the right thing.

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It was graduation day. Tashikah sat next to Jasper, he was using his abilities to calm her down considering the amount of people around her, they were too close and she hated it. Jessica Stanley was valedictorian, therefore why she was currently on stage giving a speech. Tashi never liked her. "When we were five, they asked us what we want to be when we grew up. Our answers were things like astronaut, president, or, in my case, a princess." They all chuckled, minus Tashi, before Jessica continued. "When we were 10, they asked again. We answered rock star, cowboy, or, in my case, a gold medalist."

"But now that we've grown up, they want a serious answer. Well, how about this? Who the hell knows?" Everyone clapped, Tashi tensing at the loudness. "This isn't the time to make hard-and-fast decisions. This is the time to make mistakes. Take the wrong train amd get stuck somewhere. Fall in love, a lot." She looked down, her eyes averting to the floor as her mind was clouded with him. For some reason, him not being there, hurt. That part in her that craved him, wished he was there, even if she didn't care for graduation.

"Major in philosophy, because there's no way to make a career out of that. Change your mind amd change it again, because nothings permanent. So make as many mistakes as you can. That way, someday, when they ask what you want to be, we won't have to guess. We'll know." The speech ended, then went on to call up names in alphabetical order, giving the students their diplomas. Jasper used his abilities to calm her, making her relax before she went on stage and accepted her 100th diploma.

They took pictures, everyone smiling, except for her. She had that same consuming expressionless look on her face. Nothing could make her smile in this moment. She walked to her car, opting to meet them back at the house for the after party that Alice was hosting. Her presence was unfortunately mandatory. Even though she much preferred to be alone. Stopping at her car, she heard her name being called, and she knew it was Tyler. She went to prom with him once and he would not stop bothering her after that.

Turning on her heel, she raised a brow, "yes?"

"Are you going to the after party?" He asked, a toothy grin adorning his features.

"It's at my house, I kinda have to go," she deadpanned. He nods awkwardly, her intimidating gaze making him flustered. "Right, right, yeah I figured. I was thinking, maybe we could hang out there, maybe after the party if you're feelin' it?" Tashi glanced behind him, a familiar scent filling her nose. "Sure. I'll see you there. I have to go. Excuse me." She pulled open the door to her car and climbed in, not giving him a chance to respond before she was speeding out of the parking lot.

She followed the scent, driving towards an abandoned building surrounded by forest, no signs of human existence. Broken glass crunched under her heels as she walked into the building, slowly descending up the stairs. Her eyes landed on the figure, a thick coat hanging over his shoulders as he looked out of the broken window, admiring the view he got from the building. She tilt her head, a scoff escaping her cold lips, "dramatic much?"

"We're vampires. Dramatics is in our nature, no?" He smirked, turning on his heel to face her.

She scowled at his face, "what do you want, Demetri?"

"That's no way to greet someone. I really don't understand what master sees in you. I mean, yes, you're hot, but that attitude is such a mood killer." He comments, turning back around to the view. She rolled her eyes, walking to stand at his side, her hands crossed in front of her, black gloves adorning them. "I really couldn't care less what you think of you. Just tell me why you're here. You wanted me to find you for a reason, so tell what that is."

"Smart girl," he smirked. Ignoring her glare, he pulled out a velvet box from his coat and outstretched his hand. She took it from him, squinting her eyes as she examined it. "Master says I must see your reaction before I leave, so please open it. I have things to do that are far more important than your love hate relationship with the King." He said boredly. She rolls her eyes and pulled open the box, her eyes landing on a very familiar gold bracelet, jewels coating it in a beautiful pattern. "...this was my mum's...she gave it to my brother, for his future wife. I spent years searching for it."

Demetri cleared his throat, "when you're brother...Caius took it from him, and we put it in the archives, but one of the guards, he had taken it for himself, which is not allowed. Therefore, he was dealt with. Caius had me return it to you, because he knew you didn't have anything left of your brother accept for your memories. I know this is hard for you, but you should give him a chance. Happy graduation, Tashikah." She watched, still processing as he left the building in a quick second.

Carefully pulling the bracelet from the box, a smile reached it's way to her lips, and it was the first genuine smile she had in centuries. The smile that was taken away by him, was also returned to her...by him. Oh, the irony. She slid the bracelet onto her wrist, a shaky breath escaping her lips as it fit perfectly. If she could cry, she would probably be sobbing right now. For centuries she thought she was the only thing left of her family. But this bracelet...it was a connection to her brother, the only connection she had left. And it was him he gave that to her. He took her last connection, and he gave it back. Like I said, the irony.

After an hour to herself, reminiscing all the memories she shared with her brother that contained this bracelet, she returned to the Cullen house. Cars were parked outside, music played from the inside, drinks and food passing around amongst the newly graduating class. She walked into the house, the amount of people making her uncomfortable. "Tashi!" Speak of uncomfortable. She turned around, Tyler walking over to her, she could smell the alcohol off his lips. Gross.

It wasn't even him that disgusted her. Honestly, the idea of high school students in general just grossed her out. They were all either 16/17 or freshly 18. She was 21 years old, at least that's what she was when she died. She could pass for a teenager, but that didn't mean she had any intentions of getting with one. That was just disgusting. They were mostly minors with hardly any life experience. That's why she turned down anyone who even remotely showed interest in her. She was an adult. She wasn't gonna date a child who didn't know any better.

Tyler just could not take a hint for the life of it.

"Look, Tyler, you're a nice kid, but I have zero romantic interest in you, and honestly, I just have zero interest in general. I didn't sleep with you at prom, and I'm not sleeping with you tonight. There's plenty of other girls who I'm sure would love to sleep with you, but I am not one of them, so please, stop trying. Congratulations on graduating. I wish you the best." She bowed her head before turning back around and leaving him. Thankfully he didn't dwell on it too long and just returned to his friends.

She sat on the stairs, a cup in her hand to blend in, as Alice would say it. A familiar scent filled her nose and she smirked, walking down the stairs, her eyes landed on the group of wolves, she scowled, not seeing Leah with them, but they were accompanied with Paul, unfortunately. The group contained Jacob, Paul, Embry, and Quill. She scowled, standing at Bella's side with a protective stance. "Here to kiss more girl's without their permission?"

"Back off, Tashi," Paul says, stepping in front of Jacob.

"Oh, you want me to back off? How 'bout you keep your little buddy there in check?" She smirked, his jaw clenching in anger, eyes flickering down to her lips and back up at her golden irises. "How's the pretty Leah doing?" He glared at her, "go to hell." She chuckles in amusement, "you first." Bella took Tashi's hand and pulled her back, the vampire going willingly as no human contained the strength to pull her away. "Tashi, it's okay, I promise."

"What are you doing here?" Bella re-questions Jacob in a nicer manner, rather than how Tashi would put it. "You invited me, remember?" Jacob explained. "Was my right hook too subtle for you? That was me uninviting you." Tashi nods proudly with the human, taking slightly unnecessary breaths to calm herself down before she threw a left hook at him. But Paul's glare was keeping her concentrated and amused.

"Look, Bella, I'm sorry. About, you know, the kiss and your hand. I'd blame it on the whole inner animal thing, but it was really just me being an ass. I'm really sorry." Tashi scrunched her brows seeing Bella smile, she scoffs. "You're seriously gonna forgive him over that half ass apology? Where's your backbone?" Bella glanced at her, "Tashi, please. It's okay. He didn't mean it. He's really sorry."

Tashi clenched her jaw, crossing her arms, she glared at the werewolf. He ignored her deadly stares. "I brought you something. A graduation present. I made it myself." Bella gently took it from his hand, it was a bracelet with a wolf on it. "Wow. You made this?" Jacob nods. "It's really pretty. Thanks."

Tashi's eyes shot up quickly, noticing Alice stop on the stairs, her eyes glazed off. She immediately ran over, pushing past Paul and Jacob. Bella was quick to follow her. "What'd you see, Alice?" She placed a hand on the pixie girl's shoulder. "The decision's been made." She states. Jacob came over, Embry, Paul, and Quill accompanying him. "What's going on?"

"We're not going to Seattle, are we?" Tashi questioned, tilting her head. Alice shook her head merely, her eyes trained on Tashi's. "No. They're coming here." Tashi ran a hand over her hair, taking Alice's hand with her free one. "Come on. We need to inform Carlisle."

They walked into a private room, everyone gathered together, including the pack of wolves. Tashikah leaned up against the wall as Alice explained to Carlisle. "They'll be here in four days." Carlisle leaned against the table, a bit stressed out. "Who's behind it?" Edward questions, as if she wouldn't have already told him if she knew who the person was. Tashi had her theories, and Victoria was at the top of her list. It would make sense. They killed James, her mate, so of course she'd want revenge.

"I didn't see anyone I recognized. Maybe one." Edward read Alice's mind, "I know his face. He's local. Riley Biers. He didn't start this." Tashi hums in thought, recalling seeing him on some posters around town. "Whoever did is staying out of the action, at least for now." Tashi added knowingly, it's what she would do. It was smart. It had to be Victoria. She was one of the smartest vampires Tashi came across. But sometimes, she could be stupid, and sloppy. "They must be playing with the blind spots in your vision," Carlisle guessed.

"Either way, the army is coming and there aren't enough of us to protect the town," Jasper said. Though Tashi highly doubted that they were going to do anything to the townsfolk. They were being trained to track and kill Bella, so she was their only target, and anyone else who got in the crossfire, which could only be the Cullens. "Hold up. What damn army?" Jacob asked, confused about the whole thing.

"Newborns. Our kind." Tashi answered. "What are they after?" Paul asked, looking to Tashi who ignored his stare. Alice goes to answer instead, "they were passing around Bella's scent. A red blouse." Jacob looked at them with concerned eyes, "they're after Bella? What the hell does this mean?" He asks, looking at Carlisle for an answer. "It means an ugly fight. With lives lost." Jacob looks at Embry, Quill, and Paul, all of them sharing knowing looks. He looks at Carlisle with his answer. "All right. We're in."

Bella immediately objected to this. "No. You'd get yourselves killed. No way."

"I wasn't asking for permission." Tashi raised her brows, pursing her lips, "you seem to be doing that a lot lately." Jacob glanced at her with a slight glare, Tashi making a bite motion at him in response. "Edward?" Bella looks to him for help. "It means more protection for you." Bella looks at him in disbelief, Tashi can't help but make a snide comment under her breath, "looks like the puppy dog eyes and begging only goes so far." She still hated how much Bella depended on Edward as if she wasn't her own person. It was pathetic to her.

"Jacob, do you think Sam would agree to..an understanding?" Carlisle pitched.
"As long as we get to kill some vampires." Tashi rolled her eyes at his words, Carlisle turning to Jasper. "Jasper?" He glanced at Jacob. "They'll give us the numbers. Newborns won't know they even exist. That'll give us an edge." Tashi hums under her breath, a part of her kind of excited to kill some vampires. She hadn't done that in quite some time. It was long overdue.

"We'll need to coordinate," Carlisle states. Bella, once again is in heavy objection. "Carlisle, they're gonna get hurt." Tashi huffed in irritation, "girl, sit back down, before I break your other hand. It's not your choice." Bella huffs, sitting back down next to Edward, who made no attempt to do anything about Tashi's small threat at Bella. He knew she wouldn't actually do anything. She cared about Edward too much to do anything to hurt his blood-singer.

"We'll all need some training. Fighting newborns requires knowledge that Jasper has. You're welcome to join us." Tashi smirks, she loved to train.

Jacob steps forward, "All right. Name the time and place."

"Jake, you don't know what you're getting yourself into," Bella said, trying her hardest to convince him to back out. "Bella, this is what we do. You should be happy. Look at us, working together. You are the one who wanted us to get along. Remember?" He said in a sarcastic tone. Tashi cleared her throat, walking over to him, "don't speak to her like she's a child. She's probably got more balls than you." Jacob glared at her, a scoff escaping his lips, "you're not even worth the breath I'd waste on you."

"And you're not worth my time, but you should be grateful that I'm in a good enough mood to not kill you for that. So, speak to her in that way again and it's not gonna be Edward who does something about it. It's gonna be me. You've already got one strike. Don't get to three." Tashi backed up, glancing over her shoulder at Carlisle, "are we done here? I have things to do." He nods, and she hums, pushing a shoulder past Jacob, causing him to wince at the contact.

"Where's she going?" Paul questioned, looking to where she had left.

"She likes to be alone," Alice says, taking Jasper's hand and pulling him out of the room.

Heels clicked against the tiles of her stairs, she acsends up them and pulls off the gloves adorning her hands. She smiled at the bracelet that hung around her wrist, her mind subconsciously flashing to Caius. Wondering what she'd do if he was there with her right now. Would she thank him? Hug him? Kiss him? God no. Never. She'd probably just yell at him for taking it in the first place. She couldn't think about it for much longer when arms and legs wrapped around her body. A smile flashed across her face as Leah pulled her into a kiss.

"There's my beautiful girl," she grinned, holding up Leah as the girl's legs were wrapped around her waist. "My favorite graduate," Leah said, pressing another peck to the girl's cold lips. "Sorry, I'm late." She set Leah down and pulled off her coat, tossing it on the rack. "We got caught up. There's a pack of newborns that are headed to Forks, they're after the human girl and my clan. Jacob is gonna get Sam and the pack to get in on the action. I know you have to do what he says, but if you don't wanna do this, you don't need to, I can make some kind of arrangement with him."

"No, no, I'll do it. If they're after you, I want in on this. I want to protect you." Leah said, completely sure of herself as Tashi's hands rested on her waist.

"I don't need your protection. I can handle myself. You shouldn't put yourself on the line for me." Tashi said, and even if she tried to deny it, there was no way she didn't have some kind of feelings for Leah. She cared about her. She'd kill for her. That wasn't something that came by naturally. But it came, for them. And Tashi had nobody to blame but herself. She let her guard down with Leah. She let herself care. She let herself feel. And that unknowingly put a target on Leah's back. But it was a target Leah was willing to accept.

"You would put yourself on the line for me. There's no way I can just turn away when there's a pack of vampires after you. I won't. I'm fighting with you, whether you like it or not, Tash." Leah said stubbornly, crossing her arms over her chest, leaving no room for argument.

A smirk crept on her cold lips, "well then, I guess you made yourself clear. Now, I think, as I have graduated for the 100th time. I deserve a little prize." Leah smiled, tugging her shirt off and connecting their lips in a searing kiss. As she went to tear off the dress, Tashi stopped her. "It was a gift. I'll take it off. Take off your clothes. Wait in the bedroom for me." Tashi pressed a peck to her cheek and Leah nodded with a smile, retreating off to the bedroom.

Tashi walked over to kitchen, taking a glass and pouring some animal blood into it. She took her phone from her boot and opened it up. She clicked onto a contact.

MESSAGES
"caius & tashikah"

Tashi Kachingwe
Thank you.

Caius
You're welcome.
Have a good night.

Tashi Kachingwe
You as well.

She closed the phone and sighed, drinking the rest of the blood. "Just a second darling."

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a/n: closer and closer to seeing caius again 🤭 rlly feel bad for leah tho bc she doesn't know tashi is going behind her back 😔

caius returning her brother's bracelet bc he knows she had nothing left of him 💔 he cares sm 😭

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