Stephenie Meyer stated in an interview that Gianna is killed to sustain the Volturi. Who is her replacement? Does the replacement meet the same dreadful end? Written for a contest; this is Andrea's story.
Sometime in the not-so-distant future:
I threw my clipboard onto my swiveling chair as I leaned over to grab the ringing phone. Gasping for a quick breath, I picked up the handset, and put it to my ear.
"Buon pomeriggio, this is Andrea," I greeted, hoping that I didn't sound too breathless.
"Andrea, bella…" A smooth and seductive voice said on the other end. I felt the hairs of my neck stand up; knowing whom the voice belonged to immediately.
Aro…
"Hello, Master. What can I do for you?" I responded, suddenly feeling more breathless than I had a moment before.
"Andrea, I have a small favor to ask of you," he sang, pausing for a moment.
"…yes, Master?"
"Alec, Renata, and I will be returning shortly, and we will need the sitting room to be unoccupied; could you straighten it up, and prepare some…refreshments? I am expecting guests later."
I didn't need telling twice.
"Yes, Master; it will be done." I replied obediently. "Is there any preference on the refreshments?"
"AB negative, if you can manage." His knee-buckling voice chimed. Of course, I mentally smacked myself, it's his favorite.
Coincidentally, AB negative was also my blood type.
"Yes, Master. It will be ready for you."
"Thank you, dear one."
And with that, the line went dead. I put down the handset with shaking hands. No matter how many times I spoke to Aro, I could never get my nerves to stand still…
I scooted out from behind my large, mahogany desk, and shuffled off towards the sitting room; which was situated behind the spacious throne room. I walked to the enormous wrought-iron doors, and opened them; stepping into the throne room cautiously. Something about this room was chilling…and horrifying.
Perhaps it was the things that occurred underneath the rotunda, or maybe it was just the terrifying memory I had of the first time I met la Volturi…
A widely-built vampire pushed me along the corridor, and into a large, domed room, where three dangerous-looking men sat in elegant thrones raised up on a small grotto sat; ruling the room with their very presence. I was shoved roughly to the middle of the rotunda, where I stood alone, and vulnerable.
An onyx-haired man in the middle stood; smiling brightly, and walking towards me.
"Hello, dear human," he said jovially. Something about his tone set my hair on-edge—yet, at the same time, soothed my fears. "Welcome to Volterra."
He paused, and waited for me to reply, but I could find no voice to speak with. A lump rose in my throat; threatening to cut off my oxygen.
"And who might you be?" the man almost sang.
"…A-Andrea…" I choked. My knees shook violently; distorting my normally confident voice.
The man's smile faded into a less brilliant—but equally kind—smile. I tightened the corners of my mouth in an attempt to return his smile, but it came across more like a grimace.
"How old are you?"
"…s-s-sixteen,"
The man walked down the stairs evenly, and stopped in front of me; close enough that he could reach out and touch me. My mind screamed for me to run, but something was holding me in place. What was it? Curiosity? Awe? No…
Fear.
He was far too close…
Sure enough, the man reached out, and took my hand gently. The first thing I noticed was how incredibly cold his hand was. It was rare for me to touch someone who was colder than I was. Being incredibly tall and skinny gave me a biologically low blood pressure, and I was always used to touching the burning skin of others.
But this man's skin was ice-cold; and pale like the winter lily.
A disposition only attainable by death.
He dropped his fiery-red gaze to the floor as he held my hand gently. I was confused; and slightly disoriented from standing this close to a gorgeous man.
His eyes unfocused and he fell silent for exactly four seconds. Four agonizing, painfully slow, seconds.
He chuckled quietly once, before releasing my hand. He looked into my eyes; and I felt as if they were peering into my very soul. But they way he looked at me…was like he knew me, and knew EVERYTHING about me…
It was unnerving.
"I am so very sorry, my dear, for the loss of your parents. I apologize, on behalf of my entire species."
My mouth fell into a shocked gape.
How the hell does he know about them?
Anger welled up within me as I suddenly felt intruded upon.
"How do you know that?" I said in a deadly whisper.
The man smirked smugly. "Let's just say that I have my ways,"
By merely mentioning my parents, I felt anguish, and sorrow creep back into what I thought was healed emotions. Tears welled up, and heat flushed through my body as I resisted the urge to cry out.
"It was a rash action, and believe me; they will pay for it with their heads." The onyx-haired man said, stepping backwards a few times, and giving me desperately-needed space. I wrung my hands together, trying to subdue the horrible image in my head of their mutilated and blood-deprived bodies.
But it was no use; the image was burnt into my memory. How could I possibly forget the day of my sixteenth birthday? Coming home from school to find my parents lying in the front yard like that—
My heart leapt as I heard a small whimper escape from me. I felt incredibly embarrassed as every pair of eyes in the room re-focused on me.
"Who do you think you are?" I asked in a broken voice; working furiously to re-build it back up to its normal strength.
The man looked surprised. "Forgive me!" the man bowed deeply in front of me, "My name is Aro,"
I rolled my lips inwards in an attempt to keep my emotions in check. "Why have I been brought here?"
My question was aimed at the entire room, but the one called 'Aro' answered it. He tone turned suddenly serious.
"Mio cara, you have been brought here because you have broken one of our elementary laws-"
"I have broken-?"
"—and thus, you cannot be allowed to live."
…WHAT?
"Live…?" I repeated weakly; feeling my knees beginning to give out, "But why?"
Aro merely shrugged. "I'm sorry, Andrea, but this is how it has always been; for thousands of years…You see, you cannot know of us, and obviously," he gestured around the room elegantly with one hand, "you do."
"Please!" I begged, "Please, no!"
I didn't even care what he was talking about; all I knew was that I was going to DIE.
Aro advanced on me slowly; a smile growing across his face. A smile that made me more horrified than I already was.
What a feat.
"And what defense could you possibly have to keep yourself alive?" He asked.
I scrambled desperately in my mind for something that could be of use; but I could see, that I might as well just accept my death peacefully.
"You know, never mind."
Aro raised his eyebrows. "Excuse me?"
"You're right; there is NOTHING special about me. Nothing; there's absolutely no reason to keep me alive. I am worthless, and have no potential to grow to be anything of value. So please, just do me a favor, and end my pointless life." I finished; surprised that my voice had gained its strength back.
Aro's mouth fell into a small gape. He began to walk in a circle around me; his footsteps echoing through the room ominously.
"How…extraordinary," he breathed.
My heart slammed against my rib cage as the seconds ticked by. My eyes darted around the room to the vampires scattered along the walls. My eyes rested for two seconds on the large one that brought me into the room. His crimson eyes met mine, and I dropped my gaze to the floor immediately.
Chillingly-cold breath rippled across the tender skin of my neck; sending gooseflesh across it.
"And what makes you so sure that your life is 'worthless', Andrea?"
His voice was rich and seductive; reducing my knees to gelatin. I almost sunk into his chest; but what little dignity I had left kept me from doing so.
"…well…I'm an orphan."
"Yes, I know that…"
"I'm not whatever you are,"
"Obviously,"
"And…as you said before, I've 'broken a law', whatever that means."
Aro re-circled around the front of me; nodding his head slowly and pressing his palms together underneath his chin.
"Your words are logical,"
"Enough of this, Aro!" a voice sneered from the grotto.
I leaned slightly sideways to look at the snowy-haired blonde who'd just spoken.
"She knows of us, she's ungifted, and annoying. DISPOSE of her, and stop playing with your food. It's repulsive!"
A paralyzing chill ran down my spine at the tone of the man's voice.
"Hush, Caius! You're frightening her," Aro replied, keeping his eyes on me through the entire exchange.
"…well? What are you going to do?" The blonde snapped.
"Hmm," Aro hummed quietly. "Caius, seeing as we've already eaten today, what say you to keeping her for a future date? Surely you can see the logic of that."
The man named 'Caius' spluttered. "What does this solve? Keeping her prisoner here is not an option!"
"Actually…" a deep and rusted-sounding voice sounded from Caius' left, "We could use a new secretary. What of Gianna's tragic demise and all…"
"A wonderful idea, Marcus!" Aro commented, beaming once again. "She does have wonderful organizational skills!"
…and he knows this how?
I shook my questions off; listening intently to the three men discussing my fate.
"Just a moment, my dear,"
Aro turned around gracefully, and floated back up the grotto; speaking to Marcus and Caius quickly and quietly. I marveled at the grace of all of their movement, and facial expressions.
These men CANNOT be human…
Aro turned around a few moments later, with a smirk on his face.
"It is settled, dear Andrea. You are to be the new secretary to the Volturi. Welcome to our family."
So here I am; three years later—still human—working for the Volturi. I'm alive, with my thanks to the grace of Aro, Marcus, and maybe Caius.
My heels clacked loudly against the marble floors as I walked as fast as I could through the middle of the rotunda; trying desperately not to let the memory back into my head. But alas, it was too late.
My palms became suddenly sweaty as the familiar emotion of fear washed over me.
I worked on getting my emotions back together as I entered the luscious sitting room, adorned with rugs, plushy armchairs, and stuffed bookshelves. The room was already spotless, but I decided to do a little touch-up vacuuming and dusting.
I turned from the room, and fetched the cleaning materials from a neighboring closet; beginning my work.
I fluffed the pillows in the sofa once; stepping away from it to admire my work. While I was vacuuming, I noticed that one of the light-bulbs had burned out, the wood on the leg of the sofa had been chipped, and the flowers in the vases had died. So, I replaced the bulb, softened the roughened wood with sandpaper, and replaced the dead roses with fresh orchids.
I inhaled deeply, and sighed; smiling proudly upon my work. The room looked absolutely exceptional. I turned from the room, and walked briskly back towards my desk; ready to retrieve any messages that I had missed, and finish my daily doings.
Just as I sat down in my chair, the elevator indicator beeped. My heart leapt in my chest.
Aro has returned…
Foolishly, I reached up and smoothed my hair; self-consciously adjusting myself to be 'presentable' in front of Aro.
A few moments later, the elevator lights lit up, and the indicator beeped again. The metal doors slid backwards, to reveal Aro standing in the center of the elevator; closely flanked by Renata and Alec.
I stood, and bowed my head respectfully as he exited the elevator.
"Master, welcome back," I said as cheerfully as I could.
Aro smiled, stopping in front of my desk.
"Has everything been prepared?" he asked.
"Yes, Master. I was unable to obtain the AB negative, but I have a source in mind, and I promise that I'll have it by the time your guests arrive."
I half-expected Aro to be disappointed, but instead, his smile fell into a mischievous smirk.
"Do not fret, Andrea; everything will fall into place."
I crinkled my brows slightly at his surprising reaction, but said nothing else. Aro flashed another smile before sweeping gracefully from the room. I waited for the throne room doors to close before collapsing into my chair; taking a moment to collect myself.
I went back to my phone; listening to the messages I'd forwarded to the machine, and obeying their requests. One of them was to arrange a meeting with Aro, Caius, and Marcus to discuss a newborn, another was a giggly girl, requesting for Felix to call her as soon as he was available.
I rolled my eyes at the annoying nasally voice of the caller. Too bad she'll just be dinner…
I set down the handset just as the throne room door opened. My head shot up to see Demetri and Felix standing in the doorway.
"Hello," I said.
They both bowed their heads shortly; Felix pulling up faster than Demetri to speak.
"Aro wishes to speak with you,"
"…Aro?"
Felix nodded once. I stood up from my chair slowly, pulling my pencil skirt down, and walked toward the throne room nervously. I didn't dare speak again, because I knew full-well that every vampire in the throne room could hear me. I wiped my hands on my hips, and proceeded into the throne room.
Felix and Demetri did not follow me in, but closed the doors securely behind me.
My stomach did a back-flip. What could Aro possibly want?
Wait; perhaps this is it…
Today might be the day that I am made a member of the Volturi.
I remembered a conversation that Aro and I once had. He mentioned that not all members of the Volturi were gifted, and being 'ungifted' didn't mean that I couldn't be a part of the Volturi. He said something about 'loyalty going far in his book'.
I advanced on the three thrones; diverting my eyes downwards, and away from their crimson ones.
"Andrea! Wonderful to see you again…" Aro said, smiling once again.
"You as well, Aro," I replied.
I lifted my head, and glanced at Marcus and Caius. Both of them wore grim expressions. But this was not out of the usual, so I paid it no mind.
"Andrea, it has come to my attention that you have been faithful for the Volturi for three long years." Aro said, stepping down the marble steps rhythmically.
I nodded my head once. "Yes…"
Aro's smile faded into a gentle expression; the corners of his mouth turned upwards slightly. "And your loyalty has not gone unnoticed."
Excitement welled up within me as I listened to him.
"However…"
In those three syllables, my heart fell to the ground.
"…yes?"
"At the moment, the Volturi is not accepting new guard members."
"W-what do you mean?" I stuttered, watching him carefully.
Aro's lips fell downwards into a sympathetic frown. "Andrea, you have been a wonderful help to us over these past few years, but I'm afraid, that your 'usefulness' has come to an end."
"…what-? No! No, Aro, please! Can't I still be of service to you in some way?" My tone became frantic halfway through my sentence; begging Aro with all of my heart.
"I'm very sorry, dear Andrea…"
"I…no! Marcus! Please!" I looked pleadingly at Marcus, but his face continued to be stony and grim. "Caius…?" Caius' face turned smug; sending my heart to the floor once again.
Aro continued to walk towards me.
"Th-there are no guests coming, are there?" I whispered resignedly.
Aro chuckled, and shook his head three times. "You're brighter than that, Andrea. I must say, I'm slightly disappointed…"
Andrea shrank backwards; watching Aro with fear in her eyes. Aro's smile grew and grew as he inched nearer and nearer to her. For three long years, he'd smelled her intoxicating scent, and wanted nothing more than to taste a droplet of her precious blood. She was particularly delicious to him, his la tua Cantante…
And her blood type was just right…AB negative; his absolute favorite.
Andrea was now connecting the pieces: 'prepare AB negative', Aro's nonchalance when she couldn't locate any, but why did he want her to straighten the sitting room?
Easy: her blood was much more delicious when heated up. He knew that if he worked her slightly, and raised her heart rate, that he'd enjoy his meal that much more.
"Please…" Andrea sobbed as Aro stood one foot in front of her.
"Do not worry, mio cara…I'm giving you a marvelous gift." Aro said, reaching out and stroking her face with the back of his hand. He moved his hand down her cheek, and onto her neck; wrapping his fingers around it gently, and feeling the gentle beating of her heart.
Andrea shivered visibly; something that Aro enjoyed immensely. Aro had known for quite some time that she'd developed feelings for him.
As had all of his prey…
It was something he always enjoyed; the seduction before the meal. Unfortunately, he hadn't gotten as 'close' to Andrea as he would have liked, but nonetheless, he was pleased to see her mix of emotions has he touched her. Her skin was smooth…and warm. Ah, that's expected of any human.
She was nothing special.
"The gift…of silence."
With one jerk of his hand, Aro severed her spinal cord. Andrea was able to let out a single cry of surprise, before crumpling to the ground. Aro leaned down, and caught her easily; holding her dead-weight in his arms. With a triumphant smirk, he leaned down, and bit into her neck; sipping at first, but then advancing to ravenous gulps. Caius and Marcus soon wandered down from their thrones, and knelt next to Andrea's lifeless body; grabbing a wrist, and sucking her of every drop of blood.
Aro pulled away; wiping the corners of his lips with two fingers. He stood up, and looked down on her in a satisfied fashion.
She was nothing.
bella-'beautiful'
Buon pomeriggio-'Good afternoon'
mio cara-'my dear' (Term of endearment)