Wow, hey sorry guys that it's been so long… I just got caught up in all this school stuff and life and I couldn't find any inspiration to write anything. I guess that'd I'd rather update more sparsely than update everyday with crap I don't actually like. Well anyways, after a few good days of brainstorming as to where I wanted this all to go, I came up with this… Hope you guys like it.

Warning! (well sorta) This will contain "darker" themes. Not like dark dark, just vampires being vampires! So, don't expect to Aro all bubbly and like "hey bella, you're so pretty, lets get married and i love you 5eva!" I mean eventually maybe, but I never really thought that the Volturi were all that nice and family like (Aro did kill his own sister to retain his power), perhaps with the actual coven, but not with the guards, and that is kind of what Bella is to him at the moment, a potential guard. Actually I've often teetered between two different images of the Volturi, are they blood crazy vampires with absolutely no care for life or are they simply more practical people who overindulge a bit? I think it's really hard to get into the mindset of a 3000 year old plus vampire so yeah…. I'm torn between what I want them to be and what they actually might be. Hey, um review and tell me what you think about that!

My eyes were sticky and dry when I tried to open them and I had to blink profusely to make the world come into focus. Slowly, but surely it did and after a few moments of confusion, I found myself looking straight into a pair of bright red eyes. Letting out a little yelp, I attempted to shove myself backwards causing the owner of the red eyes to snicker.

The vampire looked young, turned at something around thirteen with dark blonde hair pulled into a ponytail at the base of her neck, an innocent face ruined by demonic red eyes glared down at me and a smile that was more of a sneer than an expression of delight.

"Good, you're awake. The masters wish to speak to you," she said in a harsh voice, the distasteful look never leaving her face. I recognized her as the vampire from before who had attempted to "distract" me at Aro's request. Jane.

"Masters?" I choked out, pulling myself up into a sitting position and taking in the room around me. I was lying on an old fashion looking couch, something that clearly spoke of times past, with intricately carved wooden legs and covered in rich red velvet that was impossibly soft at the touch. It was seated in front of several other chairs and a table that matched, creating a cozy, sitting room feel. The room itself was round, as if a part of a tower and the walls were broken up by several floor to ceiling windows letting in the pale light of evening. Gold curtains framed them and swayed with the incoming breezes, slowly fluttering about and creating a calming, soothing effect that was kin to the undulating movement of waves. Despite the room being done completely in dark burgundy and gold, the honey colored marble of the floor and the lighter tan stone colorings of the wall made the room seem bright and comforting, even in the fading light. "Where am I? What happened?"

"The masters will explain things momentarily. As for where you are, you are in the castle of Volterra." Without another word, she turned and began walking toward the large oak doors at the opposite end of the room. Castle in Volterra. Yeah, no shit. Couldn't have figured that one out myself. I shook my head at her rudeness, partially annoyed, but mainly scared shitless and watched her walk away, unsure if I was supposed to follow or not.

Apparently I wasn't because the moment she reached the doors, they burst open and Aro sauntered through in a rather flamboyant manner. As he swept into the room, I swung my legs off the couch, attempting to arrange myself into a more proper sitting position.

"Ah, our young guest awakens!" He smiled broadly and clasped his hands together as if he was actually delighted to see me, approaching me at a slow, human pace as if not to frighten me off. It wasn't really working.

Taking a seat across from me on the couch, much closer than I really wanted him to be, he reached forward grasping my hand in both of his and closing his eyes, his head tilting slightly back. "Extraordinary," it came out as whisper, his eyes sliding slowly open, darkening so that the color was more burgundy than red, with an intense gaze that reminded me of a cat stalking its prey, eyes boring straight into mine. I suppressed the urge to shudder. That gaze was offering so, so much, hidden secrets and surprises and limitless power. It was utterly enthralling and at the same time equally terrifying. I drew back a bit, trying to pull my hand away with no avail.

After a few moments, he seemed to realize my struggle and stared down at my hand in mock surprise, finally releasing my hand and leaning back from me, giving me some personal space. I pulled my hand back, rubbing it slightly, the freezing temperature of his fingers still lingering on my skin. "My apologies, dearest," he murmured, continuing to stare at me as if I was the most fascinating creature he had ever seen, "The silence of your mind is just exquisite and I could not resist myself. It is just as captivating as the sweet smell of your blood. Simply divine." His smile grew, once again lighting up his features, though his eyes remained dark and menacing. This time I couldn't stop the shiver that raced along my body as he mentioned my blood. It reminded me of exactly how much danger I was in at the moment, causing me to slide back a bit on the couch, putting as much distance between us as I could. He, of course, noticed my movements, but said nothing. I gulped and stared back him, not sure how I was supposed to respond, scared even more than before, especially by the silent mind bit. Could he read minds like Edward?

He chuckled a bit before continuing, "Don't worry, little one, I always give warning before I do something violent. If I decide to eat you, you will know well in advance." He gave me a quick smile, as it that was meant to be a comforting statement. Not. I just nodded, my heart racing even faster.

"I am Aro, leader of the Volturi, enforcer of the laws that I uphold my kind to," he announced as if it was a title that he had said many times before," But you already seem to know that." Aro's eyes narrowed a bit at his last statement, I finally regained enough sense to remember why exactly he was talking to me. Because someone had leaked the secret about them, and told a whole large bit of it if I knew who the Volturi were, and Aro wanted to know who.

Edward.

Shit, I had no idea what to say. I couldn't betray the Cullens, yet I knew that Aro would do anything to get the information out of me and I don't think I could take torture all that well.

Why, why, why, did I have to be so stupid? Why couldn't I just have kept my mouth shut or better yet, not have even come here in the first place? Damn it.

Edward.

My heart constricted as I thought about him, and all the danger I put him in by just being stupid and I fought to choke back the tears that were threatening to form and run my face. I could feel my panic rising as I waited for the question that I knew was to follow, dreading it immensely.

"How do you know about us, child?"

I opened my mouth to say something, say anything really, whatever came to mind, but no sound came out and I gasped for air, my breathing quickening as my chest tightened. I swallowed and closed my eyes, trying to slow my racing heart.

"I can't, oh god, please, I can't. They didn't do anything. I'm sorry, I'm sorry," I muttered, shaking my head, my thoughts flying faster and faster about my head, tears starting to fall as I imagined the red-eyed monster in front of me ripping them apart. Edward, I'm so sorry.

Suddenly, I felt cool hands on either side of my face and looked up to see Aro extremely close to me. Frightened, I quickly averted my eyes and tried to stop my sobbing which had been gradually increasing in volume.

"Shh, shh," the monster in front me whispered, his thumbs brushing the tears away from beneath by eyes. I slowly looked up to meet his gaze and found it filled with both concern and disgust. "It's alright, little one. Speak."

He leaned forward and pressed his lips to my forehead, pulling me into him and stroking my back, whispering soothing words in something that I figured to be Italian, as I continued to sob. Despite my fears, I found his demeanor comforting and leaned into him, burying myself against the soft material of his cloak.

After a bit, I pulled away from him, trying to clear my face of the tear-stained tracks and stared at him, unwilling to answer his earlier question and now, feeling a bit embarrassed. He held my gaze for a moment, that strange swirl of emotion and yet lack of it still hidden in the shades of red, before repeating his early question, "How do you know of us?"

I just shook my head again and looked away, wishing that I was anywhere, but here. "I can't betray them, they did nothing wrong," I finally whispered.

He let out a soft sigh and once again reaching out to cup my face in his icy hands, but this time his thumbs pressed harshly into my cheekbones, causing me to whimper in pain. "You see, cara mia, they, whomever they be, did in fact do something wrong and you will tell me who they are. Do you understand? I will slowly, bit by bit, break you until you do so. Do not think that your human status and silent mind will give you escape from my wrath, I will get my answers. Now, tell me."

His eyes darkened to almost pure black, rage in them, as he said this and I felt my heart skip a beat, that constricting feeling coming back as I began to panic and I tried to pull away, out of his grasp, but he only tightened his grip and I knew that he pressed any harder things were going to break.

"Please, look, I love him, don't hurt him, no one told me, I guessed, I figured it out! Please!" I pleaded, once again crying and I felt my hope slowly drain away as I saw no change in his face.

"Last chance, little one. Tell me their names," Aro replied, his tone dark and full of warning. He was kidding around.

Edward, I'm so, so, so sorry. This is all my fault, forgive me.

"The Cullens," I whispered, averting my eyes from his gaze, already able to feel the waves of self-loathing that washed over me as I betrayed him. Stupid, stupid, stupid, Bella. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

The demon in front of me smiled, his grasp lightening on my face. "Well thank you, dearest. That wasn't so hard, was it?" I wanted nothing more than to slap that stupid smile off of his face.

"They didn't do anything wrong," I said, glaring at him.

"No?" his features twisted in confusion, "Surely if you know who we are, then you know the rules we enforce. The answer is simply, humans who learn of our existence either become one of us or die. You are neither dead nor undead and therefore, laws were broken."

"But they would have," I stammered out, fairly certain that was a true statement. Edward may have wanted to save my soul and everything, but they would have eventually, I know it. "They're just nice, very nice. They were letting me finish high school, that way I could disappear when I went off for college and it wouldn't be as noticeable. They didn't do anything wrong!" I was almost yelling at the end and he looked merely amused at my outburst.

"That may be, but still, all outcomes must be assessed. Do not fret, I will find the truth as it is. However, as a human you still pose a threat to our kind. I'm afraid that we will not give you the same leisurely time that they were willing to give." I gulped again in fear, catching the meaning in his words; I would not be leaving here as I was. Shit.

He smirked at my once again racing heartbeat. "For now though, you may rest and remain an esteemed guest of Volterra! Our receptionist will be responsible for you over the next day or so, however long it takes, and you may ask her for anything that you may need. I will be sure to order her to purchase you some new attire." His gaze ran over my form and my now wrinkled sundress that was splattered with bloodstains that were definitely not mine. Ew. I shivered, not liking the feel of his eyes on me. There was just something too intense in that stare.

"However long what takes?" I asked, unsure of what he meant.

Aro frowned slightly as if it were obvious, "The trial, darling."

"Trial?" I managed to squeak out. A trial sounded serious, very, very serious. Oh, shit, what have I gotten myself into? His frown increased.

"Yes, although I suppose that's not the best term… meeting, perhaps, although that is much too informal. The Cullens will be summoned here and I shall see the truth of what has occurred and if the law has been upheld or broken. Either way, actions will be taken to ensure that is stays upheld. That is the purpose of the Volturi."

"Does that mean you're going to kill me?" I asked, although I wasn't quite sure I wanted to know the answer.

"Yes, in some way or another," he murmured, reaching out to tuck a loose strand of hair behind my ear. I froze, afraid to pull away, scared by the news. Did that mean that he would force Edward to turn me? Or would he do it himself? Or would he just kill me out right? The dead dead kind. The six feet under kind.

"Oh the potential," he said in a lost whisper so quiet that I almost didn't hear it and I didn't think I was really meant to. Potential? Potential for what? I stared into his clouded red eyes, searching for an answer, but I had never been good at reading people and he had been wearing the mask of a ruler for millennia. The only thing I could get out of him was that he had a lost, forlorn look about him and he seemed to be longing for something, something which I highly doubted was me.

I opened my mouth to ask some of the slew of questions that was mounting inside my head as my worry grew, but he cut me off, "I'm sure you have many questions, most of which will be answered in time, but that time is not now. I have many things to take care of in order to prepare for our guests. Gianna will take you to your room."

I nodded, too scared to actually speak for the fear that I might cause him to once again threaten to break me. He smiled then, so suddenly bright that I blinked, utterly confused by his bi-polar behavior. Aro seemed almost… insane. Although if I was over three thousand years old, I'd probably be a little nuts too.

He stood up then, and turned to leave, pausing, before spinning back to face me, once again perilously close. "You never told me your name, little one."

"Isabella," I stuttered out, "Isabella Swan."

"Isabella," he whispered in that liquid accent of his, eyes fixed on mine, and he reached out, trailing a single finger along my face, "How fitting." Aro smiled then and leaned closer, brushing his lips against my forehead before he was gone, leaving so quickly that I only heard the soft click of the door as it closed behind him.

Well there you guys go! Hope you liked it!

Also, I apologize that I'm not great about updating all the time, but I won't quit, so keep checking for updates if you're interested.

Anyways… REVIEW PLEASE! Seriously though, how am I supposed to know how people feel about this if you don't leave behind what you think? I'd love to hear where you guys want to see this going and what you think might happen! Also, I'm going to start leaving my song inspiration list for each chapter behind, in case you were interested or something. These songs aren't really like exactly about anything, they just give off a good mood while I write, so yeah. Review and tell me how ya feel! :)))

Songs:
Post Blue- Placebo
Summertime- The Zombies

Side note, this is a hardcore Aro/Bella fic so yeah the action will be focused around them and I'm not going to start a love triangle between them and Edward, it's just that Bella still loves him (even though their relationship is not nearly advanced as it gets in the second and third books which will make the eventual break easier) and Aro's kinda creepy, so it's not like she's into both of them or anything like that… it's sort of complicated, but you'll see in the upcoming chapters!

Peace, Love, and Disneyworld,

Evey Claire