Ta-da! A shiny new chapter with some Aro-ness. There's not much action, though. (It'll pick up next chapter.)
Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight.
I looked around my room in Volterra. It had a low couch, as a substitute for a bed, a mirror, a small washing basin, and a dresser. Red velvet curtains framed a small window overlooking the city. A few faded oil paintings hung on the wall. It was the perfect example of the Volturi's generic guest room. Edward and I had stayed in a room almost exactly like this last time we visited.
I fell onto the sofa, trying not to break it. The way here had been hectic- two changed flights and some grand theft auto. Evidently, the Roman car rental service had nothing speedy enough.
At least it wasn't a canary yellow Porsche.
Aro had, of course, greeted us with open arms. He was still fascinated by our diet, Carlisle, and my powers.
Edward sat down next to me. "Tired?" he said.
I glared at him. "Please tell me that was a joke, otherwise I'll be forced to reanalyze the fact that you're a vampire."
He laughed, which was still the most beautiful sound in my world. "Of course I was," he said, leaning down to kiss me.
Later, we went down for some talking time with Aro. He stood at the head of a table, which, absurdly, was set with shimmering silver plates. Not that we needed them or anything.
"Carlisle, it's a pleasure to see you and your family!" Aro declared happily.
The face Jane and quiet a few of the other Volturi wore said the opposite.
He sat down gracefully, extending a hand to me. "Still up to your old tricks, Bella?" he asked.
I let his fingers brush against my hand, and he shook his head.
"Amazing! Still nothing. And your walls?"
I concentrated for a moment, and then beckoned Jane forward. Scowling, she stepped forward, only to run into an invisible wall.
Aro laughed. "Wonderful! I say, Jane, I think the Cullens are growing on you."
Jane just glared daggers at me, probably trying for the hundredth time to make me writhe in pain.
Aro kept our mouths moving with questions about our general life among humans, our powers, and how the diet was going.
"So," he inquired, "What happens if you make a slip and kill a human?"
I groaned mentally. We didn't really go down this road. But, still, Volterra was the safest place for us at the moment.
Carlisle explained in a tired voice. "We do what we can for the family, then we move."
"Alice, can you see my future?" Aro demanded eagerly.
Alice nodded, then zoned out. She brushed her hand with Aro's, and he burst out laughing.
"That is so nice! I still can't believe humans thought of something like that…Marcus, Cauis, what do you think of adding a swimming pool in the basement?"
Esme saw we were verging onto dangerous territory. No one but Aro would want to talk about the wonders of pools for long.
"Aro?" she asked sweetly.
"Yes, Esme?" he replied.
I could almost see her searching her mind. "Do you ever…play board games around here?"
Board games?
Edward leaned over to my ear. "It was either switching the topic to board games or staying on pools."
"Board games are better, I guess." What were we going to do? Play Life or something?
Aro frowned. "Board games? Once in a while, guards get angry at each other and hit each other with wooden boards…the boards always shatter, but do those count?"
It was going to be one long night.
Finally, the other Volturi got hungry. We excused ourselves to wander about the city.
I dimly recognized the fountain I'd sloshed through to get to Edward in time, and the rest of my family recognized things from visits before I was with them.
"Hey, Rosalie, look." Edward pointed to an arch that was carved beautifully, except for one spot. "That's where you shoved Emmett, and the Volturi had to hack off the carvings to get rid of his imprint."
Rosalie smiled faintly. "I remember that."
Emmett touched the arch almost reverently. "They were pretty mad."
"We got to leave right away," Jasper added happily. "Aro was getting on my nerves. And the rest of the Volturi had wonderful emotions. As fun as getting torn up by a bear."
Emmett looked hurt. "I've gone through that, Jasper Whitlock Hale."
"Now now, don't get into a fight," Esme counseled. "We don't want to break another famous landmark and get chased out of Volterra."
"We need to give Bob and his coven a chance to fall apart," Carlisle added.
Later in the day, Edward and I were back in our generic room, lying together on the couch. His arms were wrapped around me, and we just sat in silence, enjoying each other's company.
Even though everything seemed perfect, I couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was going to happen.