They came together. Slowly, steadily, all clad in hooded cloaks spanning from stormy grey to dark black, they formed a confident and united mass of darkness as they entered a dully green clearing beneath thick grey clouds. Underneath shadowing hoods, shockingly red eyes and stark pale skin made for a stunning contrast; inside flowing, perfectly smooth robes, they moved with such tranquility and soundlessness that it seemed almost impossible.
As they broke free of the cover of the surrounding trees, those in the front split apart from the main group, shattering off and flanking them on the sides even as they continued forward. The formation bloomed open; all movement seized as it came to an absolute stop; and its innermost part lay revealed, the stone in the very middle of the fruit.
There stood two men. In many respects, they were similar to those surrounding them; pale skin, red eyes, dark cloaks. And yet simultaneously, everything about them set them apart; their skin, on the others seeming as hard and unyielding as stone, looked powderlike and almost weak. Their eyes, on the others holding such a clear and unwavering shade, were milky and lacked intensity. And their robes, on the others ranging between various levels of dark grey – they were the color of the deepest, most unforgiving night.
Everyone remained frozen where they were for a moment, still to the point that they weren't even blinking. Then a voice called out, "Mmm, not quite, let's try it again!"
Immediately, the sinister mood the group had managed to build up collapsed into exasperation as they broke away from their positions. Some people huffed while others shuffled around impatiently.
"Now, don't give me that! This is all something we can do if we just dedicate ourselves and work together!" the voice continued as the owner of it entered the clearing after the others. He shared the traits and clothes of the two men at the center of the bunch, and usually stood alongside them; the three of them were great leaders and friends, united in all things.
"Just think of it as a team-building exercise," he added enthusiastically.
"Aro!" snapped the second of the three great leaders and friends who were united in all things. "In case you have forgotten, time is of the essence! There is an immortal child on the loose! This foolish endeavor is pointless!"
"On the contrary, my dear Caius, this foolish endeavor is not pointless at all," said Aro blithely. "Presentation is everything, and if we can polish ours sufficiently before we reach Forks, we have already half-won. Besides, uncouth behavior is so… uncouth. Don't you agree, Marcus?"
Marcus, the third of the three great leaders and friends who were united in all things, said nothing. He looked bored.
There was a pause.
"…Well, like I was saying," Aro said, recovering quickly. "We'll have to try again. Remember what I instructed? When we open up, it's supposed to be like a fan, graceful but still angular. This wasn't stiff enough."
"What difference is it going to make?" someone said a bit crossly.
Aro looked at the offender.
"Demetri. If we show up at the battle and start it out by unfolding like a rose, I do believe our opposition would find it just a tiny bit hard to take us seriously, don't you?" he said sardonically.
"But a fan will do the job?"
"Obviously," Aro sniffed. "Now, take it from the top!"
Frustrated sounds came from the group, and one girl in particular groaned loudly.
"Now, now, Jane," Aro said, "there's no need for theatrics."
Jane made a strangled sound.
"But Aro," Caius said insistently, looking just a tiny bit pissed off, "what about reaching the immortal child before it slaughters half a city?"
Aro seemed to contemplate this for a moment.
"The faster you master The Unfolding Fan, as I like to call it, the faster we'll get there," he said finally. "So there. I should hope that will motivate you into action!"
"It will surely take us a month to manage it perfectly!" Caius said. A few others nodded despondently.
"So it will," said Aro, waving a hand carelessly. "But on the other hand, can you imagine the looks on the Cullens' faces when we do show up with those moves? They'll be dead impressed, I'm telling you."
He turned to the group at large. "Alright, everyone, gather up again! By the way, if you could increase the strength of that confident, intense death stare we're trying to give off, that would be great. And maybe make it kind of cold and disconnected too? … I'm not sure how you'd manage to combine those two, but anyone who figures it out gets an enormous, priceless piece of jewelry from me – I seem to be giving those out pretty freely – or alternatively a shoe shop from a country of choice. Okay then, let's go!"