I'd gotten dressed, lacking the cloak this time, when there was a knock on my door. It wasn't Alec, that was for damn sure. He'd barge on in whether or not I was okay with it.
"Come in." I turned from the mirror and called to them. The door opened hesitantly, revealing the blonde man from yesterday. I felt a grimace appear as I took him in, turning to put on the cloak as quickly as I could. I wanted it to shield Alec's attempt at a mark from him. For some reason it felt wrong to let him see it. I didn't spend much time to thinking about it.
"You look lovely." He grinned at me. The compliment gave me a wave of warm fuzzy somethings in the bottom of my stomach, rendering me unable to do anything but nod at him.
"I'm on me-my. I'm on my way to the Throne Room. " I explained as I went past him, catching my slang and improper English before I could be punished for it.
"You know...I actually like your accent quite a bit." He confessed after a moment of trailing behind me. His own turned a slight English before leveling out to the accent I'd come to know as 'American'.
"It's illiterate." I detested with little emotion in my voice as I pushed the door open.
"Its beautiful." His voice was lower this time, the sounds of humans in the center of the room drowning out our discussion. I tried to force his words out of my head. I had to hold on to the emptiness to keep above the surface.
"Ah! Lovely! Charlotte, you're just in time for the main course and you've brought Carlisle. How are you finding it dear friend?" Aro greeted, friendly as he kissed my hand quickly and switching his focus to the blonde vampire. I turned to watch the exchange.
"I think I'm putting the pieces together. Faster than I expected, actually." He nodded to Aro with a small smile. He still had the crinkles but they were minuscule.
"Wonderful news! How would you like to join us for lunch?" Aro invited. I took in Carlisle's expression of sudden distaste as he politely declined with some curiousity.
"Thank you but I think not. I'll check outside the limits for something." He held a hand up as he nodded to the crowd. It just occurred to me that his eyes were the colour of wheat, I wasn't sure how I didn't realise it before. He must be drinking something else if not human, but...I didn't understand what. Sure, the experience was a little on the depressing side especially for me when I got smacked with a happy memory from when they were 3. But what else could we eat?
"Of course. Charlotte will show you the way out." Aro nodded as he smiled awkwardly. He didn't understand the reasoning either. I snapped into action at the mention of my name and nodded. Motioning to the large set of doors at the far end of the throne room. Carlisle followed me pleasantly, taking slower steps than I was.
"What do you eat?" I asked after a few passages were winding together. The question had been gnawing at me for a while.
"Animals. I drink the blood of Animals. I'm a doctor, it wouldn't do to kill my patients after I help them." He explained goodnaturedly.
I thought over it. I couldn't read the memories of animals...or at least not that I know of. I don't think they had the same intensity in their minds as humans or vampires. Human memories were more chaotic, emotionally driven, and displaced. New born vampires were a tad clearer than a human, driven by bloodlust, but a mature vampire's memories were well put together and often crystal clear. Every emotion was appropriate to the situation.
"...C-could I try it with you one day, maybe?" I asked softly in a mousy voice as I glanced over at Carlisle. Aro would never have tolerated the idea of one of his guard's eating the same time as him or even the same meals. He was given the freshest, younger blood first.
"I'd love for you to try it with me, Charlotte." His face blossomed into a grin as he nodded quickly.
"Lottie." I wanted him to call me by my real name. The one I'd identified with for ages before Alec and the Volturi.
"I'd love for you to try it with me, Lottie." He seemed to almost hug the name as he spoke it with immediate acceptance. I felt like I had a part of my personality back. Something that I'd missed for years.
It confused me but also gave me a small smile which I hid to turn around and open the doors to the outside world. It was close to midnight I believe. I led him past the guards who glanced at my crest before automatically raising the bar and letting us out. He took my hand and led me towards the woods in a run.
I followed with the slightest bit of hesitance. Carlisle had never done anything to mark him untrustworthy but I was skittish and paranoid when I left the caverns, things felt louder and faster up above. My thoughts flowed together more up here leaving me to deal with a rush of emotions and doubts and fears but...this time it was different. I was focused on how his hand felt over mine. It was a loose grip, I could easily pull away if I wanted too.
"What now?" I asked, looking around at the dense foliage.
"Now just let your instincts run." He announced as we stopped running.
"I can't kill in Volterra. Aro would have me executed." I scoffed at his simple command. I wasn't planning on dying so soon.
"I made sure we're far enough out. I'm right here, I won't let you hurt anyone." He squeezed my hand ever so slightly as I stared at him, completely bewildered.
"You're actually serious right now?" I checked as I motioned to the area. It was silent except for the occasional rustle or bit of bird song.
"I am. It'll be okay, I promise." He nodded with an earnest face.
"Well...Alright I guess. I did ask to try it." I raised both of my brows as I shook my head.
I took in a deep breath awkwardly looking around for something to focus on. Sometimes I forgot to breath when I didn't really need to anymore, it felt weird to now. I paused as I heard something moving behind us. It was moving primarily on two legs. I could hear it hopping. It was a rabbit. I wanted it. I moved out of his reach and dived for the animal sinking my teeth into its back and draining it. I could hear the squeaks of panic and pain then silence. It stopped fighting back as I regained some semblance of ethics.
I sat down on my hind legs as I realised I just killed a bunny rabbit. It was almost a little sad. I felt actual depression at the fact that I'd just killed a little bunny rabbit. It was just hopping around and I ripped into it. I heard him kneel down next to me.
"I killed it." I mumbled to explain why I was just staring at the rabbit. I was trying to keep my lip from puckering up, it hurt to cry when you couldn't produce anything but venom.
"Its in a better place now, darling." He answered. I looked at him from the corner of my eye, he was looking at me with a slight frown.
"Thats just some empty thing people say when theres really nothing to say." I looked back at the bloodstained animal and wrapped my arms around my knees. It was a little difficult. I was chubbier at 145 pounds than most of the females in my area, luckily. It opened up the dating pool much more for me than most.
"Fair enough. You've saved one human life however." He snorted evenly. I shrugged at that.
"Whats one human life? They'll die no matter what I do, I'm not a bloody doctor. " I mumbled into my knees.
"Thats not very fair." Carlisle's voice was lower. I peeked over at him and raised a brow but didn't say anything. After the silence passed between us I decided to bury the poor creature. It was the least I could do. I took off my cloak and gloves in case I got them dirty and set to digging a little hole nearby a large cypress tree. I patted the ground when I stood and looked back at Carlisle, he was smiling again.
"Why are you smiling this time?" I was continuously confused by the man as I took a few steps closer, inspecting the crinkles. He seemed so happy go lucky and cheerful I didn't know what to make of it. Or more that I didn't know what to make of the feelings and urges he gave me.
"You." His answer was cryptic. I squinted at him for some sort of sign as I leaned in, not touching him still. I really wanted to though. I wanted to run my fingers over the little lines again to see if they felt the same as I remembered.
"Care to tell me any more details?" I raised a brow as I tilted my head ever so slightly.
"You just buried a rabbit, love. Its something that you don't see very often and so I found it amusing." He decided, leaning a little closer to me as he motioned to the grave-site behind me.
"May I?" I asked as I raised my hand. I wasn't wearing the gloves so I wanted his express permission in case there was something personal. I'd assumed Aro had already explained my gift to the man and that he was making an informed decision.
"Go right ahead." He nodded earnestly, leaning a little closer.
"Did you know I could manipulate memories when you touched me in 1920?" I just barely touched the corner near his blonder lashes when I was hit with the most recent memories that I'd missed in the last graze, 10 years ago. It was odd as this time it seemed I wasn't the only living them, I was watching them from an outside perspective of snippets. Carlisle didn't understand how to organize his memories after centuries, he just let them run through.
A redheaded teenager was rebelling against his father, he wanted to give into the urges for blood while his father denied him. Edward. The boy's name was Edward. Edward had left him a year prior to...he didn't know really what he was going to do. He kept thinking about her...the feel of her skin, the smell of her hair...Lottie. Irish. Gifted with memory manipulation. Funny. Affectionate. Interesting. Mysterious. Mate. Loneliness. Loneliness for a year. Leaving his teaching position to go find her. Not going through another century of loneliness.
"I didn't. I'm sorry I gave you that scare." Carlisle whispered. I looked back up to meet his eyes. They were lidded now, looking down at me from his height to mine. Woah. He was bloody close, did I lean on him or did he lean on me? What was the protocol for knowing here? I was almost panicking at just how close he was, I was distracted as I absently ran my fingers back over the lines on each eye.
"Why did you come here?" His hand held onto mine as I traced the lines making me jerk back. I wasn't expecting him to touch me back.
"O-oh my gosh. I am so sorry." I didn't know why I'd done it and for a second I went into a panic mode expecting him to be angry I'd jerked back from him and went bug-eyed.
"You know why I came here." He answered honestly with a raised brow. I just turned and continued walking without speaking for fear I'd dig myself into a deeper hole. He didn't though, instead he just walked next to me until I paused by the tree again. Poor bunny.
"Lottie..." After a minute or two I felt fingers drift over Alec's wound on my neck and tried to moved away from them as far as I possibly could with a yelp.
"Lottie! I'm not going to hurt you! Its okay." Instead two arms wrapped themselves around my torso, I struggled in a panic as they tightened and his voice softened. Then I went entirely slack. I felt like possum with my head slumped over to the side, playing dead. It was absolutely cowardly but I felt like it was okay to do that around him...for whatever reason?
"Who did that?" He spoke softly as we slowly sunk to the ground. I felt like I had to respond.
"Why do you want to know?" I was practically sassing him.
"Why do you keep asking questions you already know the answer to?" He spoke into loose curls. I shrugged awkwardly as he shifted me to lay more in his lap.
"...Because I want to hear it." I muttered as an answer. I felt him smile into the side of my head and furrowed my brow at it.
"Very well. Its because it's an area of concern for me. Someone has tried to claim my mate, I don't appreciate it."
"You shouldn't have used that term. " I scrunched up my face at the term and pulled away from him. What did it really mean? I'd be his prisoner for whatever length of time I was alive? I was a bartering piece between him and Aro? If Aro ever found out, he'd never let me go.
"Lottie..." Carlisle caught my hand to stop me from walking away as he frowned down at me. I merely raised a brow in return.
"I can take you away from here. I can help you." He wrapped his hands around my forearms as he pressed his lips against my forehead.
"You just have to let me." The action made me pause, it was so simple yet it striked a strong chord with me. I frowned, my face still scrunched up at the thoughts of how Aro could use this all against him.
"Enough." I shook my head one more time as I pushed away from him and turned my back.
"Lottie...Please." He sounded almost depressed now. I forgot he'd spent centuries alone, trying to end his life.
"No." This was for the better. The less he knew, the less Aro could use. I picked up my cloak and left. This had been a bad idea from the beginning to the start.