Butterflies Again
We hear of Alec's suicide form Marcus. He and Natalia finally visit us a couple of week later and bring these news.
"I'm so sorry. Yet, I think it was the only way left for him. You see, he had been going to the castle every day, in hopes of finding his sister. Well, he did. In the room you and Aro shared he found two piles of ashes. Hidden in one of them was a ring Jane always, always wore, since she was human. It was a gift from Alec himself, for her fifteenth birthday. Then he knew beyond doubt that his sister was lost." Marcus stops and looks down; now I can see how it hurts him to talk about this. Natalia puts an arm around his shoulders, caresses his cheek, and continues.
"After he found the ring he kept to himself. He wouldn't talk to anyone. Oh, I forgot to tell you, we've taken one of the manors in Sicilia, I hope you don't mind, now that it's yours. But most of the survivors are there while they decide what they'll do next. Anyway, so Alec was quiet and reserved. And just a week ago, in the morning, we smelled smoke and heard flames. We ran, but arrived too late. Alec had prepared a pyre, and he was gone. Beside the fire, we found a note for you."
Marcus reaches into his pocket and takes out a piece of paper he hands to me. When I unfold it, I recognize Alec's handwriting:
Alice,
By the time you get this, I'll be finally resting. Please forgive me, but now that I have lost the two loves of my life, that is, you and Janette, I have no more reasons to stay alive. I'm tired of it all, and I know you will understand my choice.
I hope you and Jasper find the happiness you fought so hard for. Enjoy the blessing of your new baby and may many more come.
Give my love to Sebastian
Goodbye
Alec.
It is, as Marcus said, the only way that was left for him, but that doesn't make it any less painful. I can't shake off the feeling that this is all my fault, the result of all the mistakes I've made from the second I lit that match. Not even Jaspe's talent and his soothing hands through my hair can relieve this horrible guilt. Marcus only confirms what Alec said the other time, about the ones who decided to die with their Master.
"Renata… always so kind to me… Afton and Chelsea, they had so many plans for a future together… Heidi… Heidi! And now they're dead because of me."
"No, Alice, don't ever think that," says Natalia. "That's anything but your fault. Each one of us is free to make any decision. No one forced them to stay, moreover, we evacuated them, remember? If their loyalty was stronger than everything else, well, we're not the ones to judge them."
I sighed and tried to let myself be comforted by Marcus and Natalia's kind words. When I felt better, I saw Marcus's face turn into the stern mask that he wore when he had to touch a delicate matter and he didn't want to. He seemed to weigh his words before speaking.
"There's something very important we have to talk about. Alec told me you discussed this when he was here. I mean the matter of who is going to take over the Volturi's place. Alice, you realize you're in a very fragile position, with the matters of government and politics surrounding us. Strictly speaking, Sebastian is the one official heir to our throne."
"What! No!"
"Yes. He's Aro's natural, legitimate child, his own blood, his son. He has all the rights in the world to take over. Of course, he's too young. Then the responsibility would fall in you, or someone of this family. You Cullens have everything to claim the power: you, Carlisle, are a most capable man; talented ones among your numbers; an enormous fortune; Aro's son and a new one on its way. Do you realize what this means? How mighty you could be? No one in this world has more right to the throne than you. You have Sebastian, for God's sake!"
"I will not make my son live all that again. I never will, no matter what. Marcus, have you thought of you assuming this control? You ruling us?"
"Actually I have, but I decided against it. I guess that since I was a former Volturi I could do with almost no opposition, but truth is, I'm tired of it. All I want is some peace and quiet, not having the entire weight of our world and its secrets on my shoulders. I want time to spend with Natalia. And also, I don't think I would be able to do it. I mean, we all know that the actual, real power was in Aro's hands. He was always the schemer, the politician, the negotiator. Without him I'm afraid I wouldn't know what to do. If I at least had Caius, maybe we could try together. But he isn't here anymore, and so it has become obvious that what our society needs is a fresh pair of hands and a new brain. Your family has it all; you should give yourselves a chance. Carlisle?"
"I really don't know if I should…"
"Oh, c'mon! See it like this: if you don't take this place, then someone else will, and who knows what we'll turn into then. Please, you are more than able to do this. Think about it, will you?"
"Ok, Marcus, we will. Promise."
We spend a while weighing our options. I absolutely want my children out of this mess, but if we do take the power I won't be able to help it, at least in Sebastian's case. Luckily, someone arrives that helps me clear my mind.
"Paloma!" I exclaim one morning, when I see her standing in the garden.
"Alice!"
"Oh my God, look at you! No way!" we cry out at the same time. She must be totally confused, last thing she knew I was enslaved and hopeless, and now I know that my dress shows the soft curve of my stomach, barely visible but definitely there. As for me, I'm just flabbergasted and speechless. Because now, under the sunlight, I see the rainbows thrown by her skin and the ruby gleam of her eyes.
"Tell me everything! No details spared!"
"You first!"
"You first!"
We go into the house and finally manage to tell each other everything. She lets out a guffaw when I tell her how I cheated on Aro for a whole year and he never realized. She can barely believe that I killed him and that yes, he's completely dead. She' sorry for the innocents that perished but agrees with Natalia; it was their free choice. Then she tells me her own tale.
"I guess I was too used to vampires now. The same way you fell in love with one of them and not a human man. Those things can't be helped. I decided that this is the world where I belong, and so I convinced one of Natalia's friends to change me. She agreed and I became this. Oh, was it painful! But totally worth it, because now I have… wait…"
She opens a window and makes a gesture. A microsecond later a young man comes in. He's in is twenties, or at least he was when he was changed, for he's clearly a vampire.
"Hello, my name is Laurent," he greets politely.
He looks at Paloma and the flow of devotion is such that I understand they've finally found their true place, with each other.
"We met in Spain and we could never be separated from each other again. Then we heard the news of Aro's death, that it had been his human wife who destroyed him. It was too good to believe, so we decided to come and check for ourselves. And just look at you! You're a new woman! You're radiant! And this little thing here," she places a hand on my belly. Now that I've started the fourth month my pregnancy is evident, which makes my terribly happy. Just because of that I've been wearing tight clothes, so I can shout to the world that I'm having a baby.
And it's the world indeed. Paloma and Laurent aren't the only ones who have come to see for themselves if the rumors are true. It's a fair over here, curious people that just cannot comprehend how an insignificant human could kill Aro. Some are happy, some aren't, but the general feeling is relief. Relief like the one Paloma has brought to me; though now an immortal she's one of my best friends, and it's great to have people like she and Marcus and Natalia with me.
And finally the biggest of changes comes. One evening, Carlisle calls for a family meeting in the dining room. He looks at each one of us and thinks for a while before holding Esme's hand and speaking.
"Esme and I have talked about this, and we have made a choice. I would like you all to express your opinion, and vote. Here's the point."
Ah, the discussion that follows. Yet, in the end, we vote unanimously. The decision has been made. We're taking over.
Hello, people. OMG, THEY'VE STARTED FILMING BREAKING DAAAAAWWWN! I NEED THE DRESS KRISTEN WORE IN LAPA, I NEED IT !
Ahem, sorry about that. In other things, today I want to discuss The Scandal, The Awful Thing We Definitley Did Not Need. I'm going to talk about the Jashley situation and the triangle LoJoGree (Lovato-Jonas-Greene):
I suppose you've all heard of the situation we're facing in Twitter. In case you don't, for the last weeks Ashley has been terribly attacked by the Demi Lovato fans. They're calling her ugly names and bullying her in the cruelest way. Twilight Lexicon has said that cyberbullying is an act of cowardice, and I totally agree. Some other Twilight fan sites and Twilighters on their own (including this your vampire writer) are already reacting to defend Ashley.
This attack should not (and will not) remain unpunished. I ask you, those of you who have a Twitter account, show your love and support for our Ashley. If you find a Coward Tweet, don't' be afraid to reply and show Demi's fans who rules here.
I've never approved of Jashley (Joe + Ashley) because I love Jackson and Kellan and I think Ashley would be happier with either of them. In my opinion, Joe does not deserve her; she's too much for him. But they were happy, and that's what counts. No one else has the right to intervene.
Let's just make clear to the world that Ashley is not alone, and show the world what Twilight fans are made of !
Well, 12:09 am, gotta go!
War!
XOXO