Pacing
Chapter One
Rome
Remi
Serena jumped down from the carriage, her golden eyes gleaming in the Mediterranean sun. I smiled at her, my little ray of sun. It was her idea to only feed on animal blood; the darling thing never touched the human I killed on that first day. She just went straight for the cow. It gave me quite a start. So now I have brought her to Rome in hope that we may be able to readjust to human life. If anyone can, it will be her: Serena and her strange gift.
"Father, come and look at this!" Serena skipped ahead then stopped suddenly to admire a tiny flower by the roadside. Father, I like that name.
"What is it?" I humoured her short attention span.
"Look at all these people, oh!" she dropped to her knees again to stare at something only she could see.
"What?" I asked.
"There is a child, dying here, can you not see him?" Serena was still staring at the grass.
"There is nothing there, are you sure?" I grasped her shoulders to pull her back onto her feet. That was when I noticed that she was crying.
"Father, we have to do something, he is dying! He is just a child!" Serena sobbed.
"Dear, I can see nothing, come on, let us go," I pulled her up.
"Yes, yes, it has already passed," she sighed and looked up at the city. I realised that I would have to distract her quickly before she became too upset about the dead child.
The driver continued to a secluded villa in one of the nicer neighbourhoods. I had inherited a large sum of gold from my uncle about fifty years earlier. It was here that I decided to spend the next few decades if not centuries. The Mediterranean weather was not ideal but Rome was full enough of strangers for us to go unnoticed and interesting enough for Serena not to get bored. I had saved her whilst she was still young and, though I was only twenty-five when I was changed, I was old before my years. A century of wandering had aged me beyond counting. No, Rome held little interest for me but Serena had an eternity of youth to enjoy.
Immediately upon arrival Serena began exploring the villa. She chattered away about all of the past owners and even the builders. I was scarcely listening until she broke off mid-sentence and gasped.
"Serena?" I peered around the door frame. There she was, kneeling on the floor, staring at an invisible sight.
"He was here, the dead boy. He used to live here," her voice quivered slightly. This was a very disturbing coincidence. I decided to show her the city, in hope that her flighty mind would once again become distracted.
"Come, let me show you Rome," I led her out of the door. Serena hesitated then followed.
Dear Father,
I love Britannia. This little island is wonderful! I spent today by the river with Quintus. It is quite cold here, colder than home but that makes the trees smell nice. I should very much like for you to come and visit here with me because you would like it and I miss you. Please come, it rains a lot so we can go out almost every day. Quintus does not understand why I love the rain so much.
With all my love,
Serena
Dear Father,
I have been in Britannia before. I was born here. I have seen myself here. I am coming back to Rome at once.
With my love,
Serena
Remi
I should never have agreed for Serena to visit Britannia but Quintus wanted to show her the new conquest. I thought it would be nice for her, a change of scenery. I never thought that she might see herself there, back when she was human. I am a fool to let her go away. When she came back, she locked herself in the library and not one word has passed her lips. I have yet to get her to speak with me. I do worry about her.
"Serena? Are you alright?" I called through the door. There was nothing but silence behind it.
"Serena?" I pushed at the door, surprised to find that she had unlocked it. Stepping into the library I looked around for her. My little Serena was curled up behind the largest book I had ever seen, I was not even sure that I owned it.
"Serena?" I asked again. She did not lower the book.
"I... I saw them all, my old family. I saw their funerals. They are all dead. The plague," she stuttered. I understood she missed her living family. I walked over to her.
"What are you reading?" I peered at the book in her hands.
"Socrates," she said, pulling the book back. I thought it was best if I left her to it.
Serena
Years passed and we saw the Kings of Rome fall, the Republic rise and I was present at the assassination of Julius Cesar. That was a mistake; Remi lectured me for three months afterwards. He actually sat me down and told me off for three months without stop. That man is incredibly long winded although I did hold my breath for two weeks, just for fun. After that I went back to my books. I read every rambling those Greek philosophers wrote down. Remi never noticed the sudden increase in the amount of books in the villa or if he did he never mentioned it.
It was shortly after my one hundredth birthday that we met the Volturi. Well, I met Aro. He came to Rome on a rainy evening. Everyone else was inside, well protected from the winter chill, everyone except me. I was walking back from the library, with my cloak covering yet another scroll. It was wet and I was anxious that my scroll would not be damaged.
A carriage came round the corner, pulled by the finest horses I have ever seen. I stood aside to let it pass but to my surprise it stopped just a few paces from me. The door opened and I smelled something I never thought would appear on the streets of Rome. There was another vampire inside the carriage.
"Good day young madam, may I escort you home? It is such terrible weather this evening," a velvet voice floated out from the interior of the carriage. I was downwind of him so he probably thought I was human. Carefully I stepped towards it.
"Why thank you," I climbed into the carriage. There was, as I had sensed an extraordinarily pale and handsome man sitting on the bench. He jumped as he saw me; yes he was expecting a human girl. He recovered quickly, I will give him that.
"Well, this is an unexpected surprise, where shall the driver set you?" he smiled at me.
"XII-XIV," I told him. He passed the address on to the driver. He studied me for a moment and I let my barriers down. Suddenly my head was filled with images of this man's past: his human life, his re-birth, his second life as a vampire. Whilst I effectively filtered through his past he just smiled and examined me.
"My name is Aro, I am from Volterra," he held out a hand for me to shake. I did not take it. He had a gift, like mine. With one touch he would know everything I did, everything I had felt, thought, done and seen. I knew that for I had seen him discover it.
"I am Serena," I smiled back.
"Are there many others of our kind here?" he asked.
"No, just me and my creator, Remi," I should know for I had spent many years searching for any other immortals in Italia. I had even gone as far as Gaul to try and find some others. Our kind was good at hiding.
"In Volterra, I have two brothers, you are welcome to visit us," Aro offered. I was unsure as to how to answer for I had never met another of our kind before.
"Thank you, I would certainly enjoy that," I chose to accept his offer gracefully. He smiled again. The carriage stopped outside our villa and Aro held the door open for me.
"Will you not come and meet my father?" I asked.
"Please give him my regards but I have to feed, your eyes betray you Miss Serena, I have no wish to change my diet," with that he drove off into the night. I hurried home.
