Chapter Seven
The room doesn't look much different than it did before—but, this time, the room is set up like a school auditorium; a stage, and seats for the "audience." The stage makes the room smaller, though, because Aro, Marcus, and Caius's chairs are behind it. The seats are full; the members of the Volturi are all there, the front rows filled with the most important people: Renata, Corin, Heidi, Demitri, Felix, Jane, Chelsea, and—of course—Alec. Alec is sitting between Demitri and Felix, looking unbearably stressed.
"I hope you like the new set up," Aro says cheerfully. "For better viewing purposes, you see. Now, just follow me up here . . ." He leads me up the stairs of the stage, where he has me stand in the center, in front of everyone. The room grows silent, and the nervous feeling in the pit of my stomach triples. It's Alec that I'm drawn to, though. He looks pained, watching me up there. Felix and Demitri are sitting rim-rod straight, and Alec's hunched over, looking like he's trying to disappear.
"This is just lovely," Aro says, looking out into the crowd of about thirty vampires. "All of us together, in this room, to admire our darling Renesmee Cullen! Last time, of course, things didn't go as fantastically as we'd hoped, but . . . what can one do. Now, I'm sure you are all very curious as to what will be happening today! Tonight will be a night of . . . experiments of sorts, I think it is safe to say." Everyone is waiting for him to explain further but, after a pause, he turns to me. "Now, Renesmee, dear, let us start by having you tell us what, exactly, it is that you can do. We'd all love to hear it."
I look at him, wide-eyed. "Oh. Wow. Um, okay. Fine." I swallow hard, and face everyone. I move toward the edge of the stage, where I sit down, legs hanging down, hoping to feel less like I'm back in my Speech class at school. "Wow, this is awkward. Well, to be short and sweet, I'm an illusionist empath with a physical shield." I tuck my hair behind my ears. "I can project images, emotions, and thoughts, and my shield is . . ." I swallow. "I can block physical attacks."
"My, my," Aro says, clapping. "How fascinating. Does my friend Carlisle know where these powers came from?"
Suddenly, my grandfather is walking out from behind the stage, coming to stand on the stage by Aro, behind me. I stand up. "Grandpa?" I exclaim. He looks pained, staring at me, but nods in my direction, before facing Aro. His blonde hair is tousled, dark circles under his eyes. His tie is loose, the first two buttons of his shirt undone. He looks like a wreck.
"Yes," he says, and his voice is like music to my ears. "Her mother—as most of you know—has a mental shield, so this is another type of that, I suppose. And her father is a mind reader, so her power of projection most likely stems from that; it is, essentially, the opposite of that. Instead of receiving, she sends out."
Aro pretends to look thoughtful, although I'm sure he's heard all of this before. "So it is, fundamentally, the process of inheritance in genetics. Correct?"
"Fundamentally, yes, I suppose," my grandfather says, looking extremely out of place and uncomfortable.
"Thank you, Carlisle. That will be all."
My grandfather hesitates, looking at me, but then rushes off the stage and down the stairs, stopping to stand on the side, eyes trained on me.
"Now, Renesmee, I think we'd all love it if you could demonstrate your powers for us. First, I'd like it if you could stand right here." He points to the center of the stage. "Thank you. Now, please put up your shield." I do so, and he smiles. "It's up?" I nod. "Fantastic. Now, Felix, could you please come here." Felix stands up and walks up on the stage, standing about ten feet away from me. "Closer." Felix takes a few steps. "Closer." Again. "Closer." He seems to freeze in his tracks after another step.
"I can't," he says, looking surprised.
"Take a step back." He does. "Hold out a hand."
Felix does, and his hand hits the same wall. He shakes his head. "I can't."
"Wonderful. That's all, Felix." Felix goes back down the steps, and sits down at his seat. Aro turns to me again. "Drop it, please." I do. "Thank you. Now, illusions. Renesmee, dear, can you project to more than one person?"
I nod, slowly. "Yes. I've only done it with nine people, though."
"Lovely. Could you try projecting an image—not a painful one, I hope—to the first row down there?"
I nod again. "Yes." I take a deep breath, clench my fists, and project an image. It's of the meadow back in Washington, my favorite place on earth, in the springtime, when the flowers are in bloom. It's gorgeous. I pick some sounds, too—the wind in the trees, the birds, the bugs. I hold it for a minute or two, before letting it fall. The entire first row looks dazed. I smile.
Aro is grinning widely next to me. "Fantastic! Sulpicia, my darling wife, would you please tell me what it is you saw?"
Sulpicia is fair haired and pale and very, very pretty. "A meadow," she says, in a cheerful voice.
Everyone in the row nods.
I project it briefly to Aro, whose smile grows even wider. "Stunning," he whispers, when I let it drop. "Thank you, Renesmee. Now, an emotion. The second row, please."
I project the emotion of exhaustion, drowsiness. Everyone in the row seems to sag, eyelids drooping. I smile again, and let it drop. My parents and family loved that one, because they never could, truly, sleep, so it was an interesting sensation for most of them.
"Santiago," Aro calls. "What was that?"
Santiago is large, like Emmett and Felix, with darker skin. "I felt . . . tired, almost. Sleepy. It was . . . peculiar, sir."
"Oh, this is wonderful. Thank you. A sound, please. To the last row."
I project the sound carefully, because sounds are always the hardest—it's difficult to picture a sound without associating an image with it. I decide on a car horn honking, and when I project it, a few of the vampires jump.
"Afton!" Aro exclaims.
Afton smiles. "A car horn. Honking three times."
"Thank you, Afton." Aro smiles at me. "Now, my dear. A thought, to all three rows, and myself." He slips a piece of paper in my hand. It's nothing terrible—just a simple, Hello, my name is Renesmee Carlie Cullen. I project it easily, and everyone is silent. "Fascinating," Aro breathes. It's almost like reading something, isn't it? It just appears, in your mind. That's all. Everyone is dismissed." Most of the guard looks very confused, but everyone gets up to leave. Aro grasps my arm. "Not you. You come with me." He pulls me, rather roughly, down the makeshift stage stairs, where my grandfather is waiting. My grandfather doesn't hesitate to throw his arms around me, hug me to his chest, and kiss the crown of my head.
"Grandpa," I breathe, into his chest. This is the most I've felt at home in weeks, aside from the times I've been with Alec. My grandfather rests his chin on my head, and holds me there. Tears are streaming from my eyes before I know what to do with them.
"Let's not create a scene," Aro says. "Carlisle, please take her to the library. You have twenty minutes."
Grandpa takes my hand, and leads me out the door with the rest of the crowd. We hurry down the hall, and into what I assume is the library. "Are you okay?" he asks. "Have they harmed you in any way?" He lifts up my chin, studies both sides of my face.
I shake my head. "I'm fine, Grandpa. I swear." I wipe my tears. "Why . . . . how are you here?"
"Aro sent for me. He wanted to talk to me about you, and of course I came. I had to make sure you were alright. Your parents would have . . . well, I had to." He puts his hands on either side of my neck. "So you're fine? Everything's okay?"
I swallow and nod. "Where is everyone else? Is Dad freaking out? You'll tell him I love him, right? And I miss him? Jake is probably dying, too, isn't he? Oh, gosh. Just tell everyone I'm okay, and I love them and miss them."
Grandpa nods. "Yes, of course, Ness. Of course I will. So they're being nice to you? Aro says you have your own room and everything."
"Yeah, it's fine. Everyone's fine." Alec. "But Grandpa . . . can I tell you something? You can't tell Mom and Dad. They'd freak. And Aro can't know."
Grandpa looks confused but he takes my hands and shakes his head. "No. You can't tell me. You can't. Aro will want to read my mind before I leave, and I can't know anything that he can't find out about."
I nod, biting on my lip. "Yeah, okay. I guess."
"Ness," Grandpa whispers, brushing my hair back from my face. "Oh, Ness. You'll be okay, I hope. The whole family is here—not in Volterra, but in Santa Luce. It's less than an hour away, honey, and you know how fast us Cullens can drive."
I can't help but crack a smile. "Yeah, I know."
Grandpa leans over and kisses my forehead. "I feel like I'm saying goodbye, Ness, and I don't like it."
I shake my head. "Just don't say it, alright, Grandpa? Just say . . ."
"See you later," he says.
I nod, wiping my eyes again. "Right. See you later. Has it really already been twenty minutes?"
Grandpa nods, and pulls me to his chest. "Everything's going to be fine," he whispers. "We'll get you out, Ness. I promise."
"I know you will," I say, because I never had a doubt that they would.
Aro pops his head in then. "Time's up," he says. Grandpa and I jump apart. "Renesmee, please go to your room now."
"Wait," I say. "I just have a request. One."
Aro looks interested. "Yes?"
"Could I please get some fresh animal blood? I need to feed."
"In your refrigerator as of an hour ago, courtesy of our friend Carlisle."
I bite my lip and look at grandpa. "Thank you," I whisper.
My grandfather nods. "I love you, Ness," he whispers.
"I love you, too."
"Aro, it would be wonderful if you could possibly let my granddaughter go in the sun—she's beginning to look awfully pale."
"No sparkle?" Aro asks him, curiously.
"A slight glow."
"Then yes, of course. I'll arrange for it."
"And sunscreen," my grandfather adds.
"Sunscreen?"
"Yes. SPF 45, please."
"I'll arrange for it."
"Wonderful, Aro. Thank you."
"Renesmee, please go to your room now. I'll send your . . . grandfather to say goodbye before he leaves."
I nod, and share a look with my grandfather before turning away and leaving the room. The hallways are empty, and quiet. It's pretty cold, too, and the walk back to my room is long. When I finally get there, I slip into the room and throw myself onto my bed. I'm determined to stay awake until Alec comes. It takes about an hour of trying not to fall asleep, but he finally shows up, collapsing on the bed next to me. I turn my head to the side, looking at him.
"So?" I say. "How did it go? Did you talk to him?"
"Yes."
I sit up. "And? Are we in trouble?"
Alec sits up, too, and takes my hands in his. "We're fine. Marcus and I talked."
I look at him, disbelieving. "Honestly, Alec. Give me more to work on than that. We've been stressing about this all day long, and I need more than that to go off of."
Alec rubs his eyes. "We talked about it—Didyme, and you. He told me that Caius told him about Didyme years ago; he just hasn't gathered the means to go against Aro for it. He's not going to say anything about us to anyone, so we don't have to worry about that, but he said to hope that we can keep this a secret for as long as possible. And he said there have been rumors going around, about rebellion. I don't know if it is those ridiculous Vladimir and Stefan characters, or within the guard even; Marcus wouldn't say."
"So we're safe?" I whisper.
"For now, yes," Alec murmurs, squeezing my hands. He stands up, and goes to lock the door with the key that only he and Aro have in their possession. "Get changed for bed, alright?" he says.
"Something's bothering you," I say, sliding off the bed and stopping to stand in front of him. I put my hands on either side of his face. "Look at me," I say.
"That was the first thing you ever said to me," he whispers, looking distraught.
"I know," I say. "Look at me, Al. Come on. What is it? What's going on?"
"I'm just worried. It's fine, angel. Everything's fine." He kisses me on the forehead. "Get changed, alright? I'm not going anywhere."
I sigh. "Fine. Turn around, then." He does. I pull a t-shirt and boxers out of my closet, and get changed quickly. "I'm done!" Alec turns back around, watching me with those sad eyes. He pulls me to him, and kisses my shoulder.
"I like you better like this," he says. "In your pajamas. Felix and Demitri wouldn't stop talking about how 'hot' you looked in your dress tonight. Not that I disagree, of course—it's just different, for me, when I see you in your pajamas or sweatpants every day." He smiles a little. "You look gorgeous in them, anyways."
I just shake my head and smile. "Such a charmer, aren't you?" I kiss him on the cheek, and climb up onto my bed. Alec follows after, getting under the covers next to me. I lay my head on his chest, and he kisses me on the forehead. "This is the best," I say. Alec laughs quietly. "No, I'm serious. I think about the fact that Felix finally got me, and I'm not even mad at myself for being caught, because if I hadn't been brought here, I wouldn't have you."
Alec presses his cheek to the top of my head, and lets out a breath. "I'm going to get us out of here," he says. "I promise you, Renesmee. If it's the last thing I do, I'll get you out."
I sigh, and refrain from arguing like I usually do. If I do, I know the conversation will never end. Instead of responding, I take Alec's hand into my own and play with his fingers. After a moment, he laces his fingers through mine, and brings our joint hands to his lips.
"How did things go, with Carlisle? Everyone was surprised by him showing up."
I bite my lip and squeeze his hand. "I don't really know how I feel about him being here yet. He told me that everyone's here, in Tuscany—an hour away, in another town, but still. It's weird, that they're so close." I turn my head so I can look at him. "And—this probably seems weird—but I can't stop thinking about how, if I could talk to my mom and my aunts right now, the only thing I'd want to talk about would be you."
Alec grins at me, and kisses my forehead. "I never thought I'd have a girl who'd introduce me to her parents," he says.
"Oh, well, you should be pretty nervous about that."
He actually looks it. "What? Really?"
I laugh. "No. Well, actually, come to think of it, maybe. At least of meeting my dad. My mom . . . she'll just be happy I found someone." Someone who's not Jacob, I think, but I don't say that. There's a better time and place for that conversation.
"Really?"
"Really, really. I stopped growing last year—so I'll be like this forever. I am a vampire in that way. So I'm sure my family hoped I would fall for a vampire, especially my dad. I mean, of course he's grateful for me and my mom, and I know he loves me more than anything, but I also know that he thinks things would have been so much easier for everyone if he'd fallen in love with a vampire." Alec's watching me, eyes brimming with questions. "Well, they had a lot of problems, him and my mom. And my mom's pregnancy wasn't exactly the easiest thing. And . . . my life hasn't exactly sucked so far, but I never really had a childhood, you know? Even you, or Aro, or my dad—you all got to be kids before you turned. I never got that. And I think my dad understands that, and respects it, and loves me for it. But I also think that he blames himself for all of that, and that's not fair."
Alec looks sad. He kisses me softly on the lips. "I'm sorry, angel."
I frown. "What for?"
"Everything. I'm sure that if we hadn't been after you, it would've been at least a little bit easier for you."
I nod. "Thank you. I'm not going to deny that—it's probably true. We wouldn't have had to move that much, or be on the run. But that's not your fault, and, honestly, it would have sucked anyways." Alec just hugs me tighter. "You know what I really want to do, when we get out of here?"
"No, angel. What?"
"Go to high school."
Alec shrugs. "I've never been."
"What? In six hundred years, you've never been to high school?" He shakes his head. I smile, laying my head on his chest. "Alright, then. We'll do it together."
"Alright," he says. "When we're out of here, and all of this is done, we'll go to high school."
I smile. "Sounds like a plan. So, I definitely am going to crash but, if you want, my grandfather brought fresh animal blood for me—it's in the fridge. Knock yourself out, alright?"
"Angel, I couldn't. He brought that for you, not me. You need it more."
I bite my lip, reaching up to trace the purplish circles under his eyes. "I don't think so, honey," I say, the endearment slipping on its own. "I'm worried about you. You still haven't fed. I know you haven't. And we both know what could happen if you don't feed soon. So please, Al. At least have one bottle?"
He sighs dramatically. "Fine. One bottle is all I'm promising right now. And you better not make me get out of this bed, angel." He hugs me closer, snuggling into my hair. "I'm enjoying this way too much. When you fall asleep, okay?"
I nod happily. "I think I can agree to that."
"Good. Go to sleep." He kisses my hair.
And so I did.
Sorry for the delay. Things are pretty crazy, packing for camp and everything. Also, I am done with my application to study abroad! AH! Scariest thing of my entire life, basically. I'll let you all know how things go on that front. Anyway, I leave for camp on the 23rd-next Thursday-so (DONT KILL ME) but unfortunately, at camp, I will not have internet access. At all. Never. So . . . no updates until August fifth at least. I'm really sorry! It sucks, but it also means that I can take this summer to write all of my stories, and then when I come back I'll just type them up and upload like crazy. Hope you liked this chapter; expect another update before I leave. I love you all! REVIEW!
