Disclame: I don't own Twilight
Chapter 1
Isn't victory beautiful? A simple touch was all it took for Aro to know his brother's thoughts.
"Yes, indeed it is", he answered Caius' question, a childish grin painting his face. Nothing pleased him more then to know that he would soon be having everything he ever dreamed off. Everything he ever wanted, ever desired. Each day, each victory brought him closer. Soon, he would be holding all the power in his hands.
The smoke was thick in the air, painting it coal black, disguising the three brothers, and their army. They were all grinning as their eyes roamed over the once powerful coven, now diminished to only heaps of burning flesh. They had yet again destroyed a powerful enemy, a ''obstacle'' as Aro called it.
He wanted power so badly, it overtook his every thought. He could see it so clearly when he closed his eyes. Him, standing in the middle of a grand castle, his brothers at his sides, and their empire at their feet.
"Daydreaming again, dear brother?" Marcus asked, amused by the sight of Aro smiling like a child.
"One day, Marcus, there will not be a reason for me to dream, I will have it all." Aro answered polite, though irritated by his brother's question. Why did he always have to ruin the moment? While the rest of the guard became curious of what the subject of their discussion was, Marcus just nodded. They've had this talk so many times, the subject had lost it's interest fro Marcus.
"As much as I would like to stay and watch the rest of this show," Aro said, gesturing towards the clearing where the remains burned "I believe we have some business to attend."
And on that note the mass of dark cloaks, the darkest ones in the lead, turned around and began their run towards the city.
* * *
It was about noon when the brothers arrived their destination. A huge, white house at the hillside.
"One can't complain about the view now, can one?" Marcus let his eyes fall to the glorious city, down in the valley. "Rome," he mused "it will leave a great mark in human history."
Aro followed his brother's train of thought, and found himself daydreaming again. But it didn't last very long, as a servant made her way over to the brothers.
"May I take your horses?" she asked in a fragile voice, extending her hand. As a matter of fact, the whole girl looked so fragile, as if one might break her by simply exhaling her way.
"Where is your master?" Caius asked in a harsh manner, the slowness of the human servant getting on his nerves. The girl jumped, frightened by the pale man.
"Master is waiting for you in his library" she answered before taking the horses, and practically running away in fear. Why did they have to look so scary, Aro wondered. For a moment there, he felt bad for the poor girl. They meant her no harm... at least not at this moment.
* * *
Every wall in the library was covered by books, from the floor to the ceiling, which was unusually high. The room was dark and gloomy, and the air had a high amount of dust, not that a human would notice it. Besides the books, the room contained a sitting area with several different sitting options, a grand wooden desk with a gem-covered chair behind it.
"Welcome back, my friends." A elderly man entered the room.
"It's good to be back, dear Aldo."
The gray-haired man made his round and greeted every brother, before gesturing for them to sit down. '
"So Marcus, may I ask where your lovely wife is, and why she's avoiding me?" laughed the old man.
"Avoiding you, she most definitely isn't, you are very dear to her. Didyme had to run some errands, but told me to pass on her greetings."
Aldo smiled, something that irritated Aro to the bones. He knew very well that Aldo's thoughts about his sister were highly unappropriate, and that if Marcus knew, he wouldn't be so nice towards this old man.
Caius slammed his fist on the table. Not hard, but enough to get the attention he wanted, and to scare the maids in the corner a little.
"As much as I find the topic of your wife very interesting, I assume that's not why we are here." Caius pulled out a big, brown, leather bag, and dropped it on the table, then leaning back in his chair and smiling devilish. Aldo opened the bag, happy to find out its content.
"So lets clarify this one last time, just so there isn't any confusion."
"Yes," Aro answered, glad to know this meeting was soon coming to an end "we give you a nice monthly payment, and in exchange we expect to have your vote in every meeting."
"That's what I thought." Aldo said, somehow feeling a little guilty for selling out his vote.
At one point during their lives, the brothers had decided the best way to maneuver their way through life, without the humans noticing, was to have a few men high up on the political latter. So if they should be so unlucky and catch notice, they would have someone to cover up their tracks. Because killing every human in a city like Rome would be highly unpractical. The threat of expose was higher now than ever, as the fight for conquest had escalated.
"Now, I'm glad this is finished. May I offer you something to eat or drink?" Aldo asked, off course not knowing what kind of liquid the brothers preferred. All he knew and cared about was his money.
"No thank you, Aldo. We'd better get home before the dark settles." Marcus answered, eager to get home to his wife.
"Oh you should not worry about that. We are friends, right? My home is open at any time of the day for you."
Aro wondered what made this man so much more different from the others. Why didn't his senses tell him to run away? He had read his mind enough times to know that Aldo didn't fear them. Did money really make him that blind?
"We appreciate your hospitality, but we have to get home" Caius said sternly. Obviously he liked the man as much as Aro did.
"Too bad, I guess we'll have to catch up on another occation. I'll follow you out." The four men made their way outside.
* * *
The sun was just setting, giving the sky a nice purple color. Aro walked in the back of the group, suddenly curious of his surroundings. Aldo did have a nice home, huge for the normal standards, and one could clearly see he paid a lot of affection for his garden. Exotic flowers painted the land in different colors, and white statues of gods and creatures graced the garden. In the middle, there was a massive fountain covered in gold.
Aro's eyes could have traveled across the landscape forever, finding new details everywhere, but all his focus was suddenly directed towards this woman, sitting on a bench. No, goddess was a more appropriate word. Even tough her body was covered in layers and layers of the finest silk,you could not avoid seeing the beauty she posessedd. Her face was that of an angel. Her wavy, golden hair reached to her waist, surrounding her face like a halo.
Aro couldn't see the color of her eyes, as her gaze was directed towards her own hands. He didn't understad his own curiousity for this womans eyecolor, but he felt disappointmen when he couldn't see. He wondered if they were optimistic-blue like the sky or a warm-brown like the earth, or anything in between. Seeing as Aro always was a stubborn person, he couldn't help himself.
"Aldo, may I ask who that lovely lady over there is?" Aldo turned around, his eyes searched for this lady Aro asked about.
"I see you have found my daughter, Aro" he answered, fatherly love filling his features. Aro was not pleased with his answer, because it didn't say why he couldn't see her eyes.
"Ah, you have a daughter, I didn't know that." He said, building up to his real question, not wanting for it to sound to rushed or desperate.
"Yes, I do. The only one of my children that hasn't passed away, and I thank the Gods every day for saving her." Aro nodded. He knew very well Aldo had several children, but they had all died due to the plague.
"Aldo, I can't seem to see what's catching her interest. It looks as if she's having an intense conversation with her hands" he asked, hoping to add some humor to the situation. It worked very well with the old man, he laught a little, but it only seemed to aggravate Caius, who was more then eager to get away from the smell of forbidden fruit that is Aldo. The old man chuckled again befor answering.
"Don't even try to get your head wrapped around Sulpicia. It's impossible. Believe me, I have tried."
As if her name had been shouted out loud, Sulpicia's head snapped up, And Aro finnaly got the answer to his question.
Ice-cold gray.
Author's Note: So, this is the first chapter of my first (and hopefully not the last) several-chapters story...
It's basicly an introduction to the story, with some info which you need to understand whats happening further on...
I want to excuse it there are any spelling errors (and I believe there are quite many of them). I would love to hear your opinions on the start, so don't forget to push the button that says review, and tell me what you think.