"Will you tell me what's troubling you, my love?" Anne wondered as she walked side by side with her guardian along the now familiar halls, her eyes on his features as if she expected them alone to reply.
His fingers remained laced with hers as they dotted along the ancient corridor. "I think you, of all people, would know the answer to that." He replied, knowing well he could probably be more nervous upon entering the area. Sure, he knew that due to the fact that he was of a higher rank no one but the Masters, or those who ranked higher than he (which were only four people), would dare bother him and his beloved. But that didn't mean he didn't hold onto her for dear life while they meandered elsewhere; God only knew what could be going on in Aro or Caius' minds.
Of course, his admittance forced upon a lower of Anne's hues with a sorrowful tone that had gone as quickly as it had come whilst her mind so wistfully attempted to push such matters back, to be broken by the same grin that cracked against her lips. "So we share the same troubles." She noted, squeezing her guardian's hand shortly in hopes of conveying her understanding; an emotion hidden within the mask he was never happy to recognise across her features. "What must we do about that?"
Alec paused only half a second in his stride; mostly because it had taken him that long to think of a proper reply to his once Queen's inquiry. What were they to do? He knew what he was going to have to do, regardless of Chelsea's gift causing him more mock loyalty than he had ever anticipated needing, but them? Together? "About which, my love?" He replied with his admitted doubt. "That's the problem." Where to start?
For a short instance Anne's nearly black hues lowered to look at the contact between their hands, wondering upon the strength with which they both seemed to deem proper to hold onto one another as her lashes brushed against the porcelain of her cheeks, looking forth as the weight of Alec's inquiry rested upon her shoulders, thus, making the proximity to his own frame shift closer. "Well, the smallest problem, of course." She heard herself saying, a short breath getting caught in the middle of her throat that didn't clear away even when she spoke once again. "If there is such a thing." It nearly caught her by surprise to hear the boy by her side huffing out a laugh; it only made her smile.
"I'm afraid not." Alec admitted, eyes twitching towards her watching features and back to the stone floor they both passed over without a care for it. "Problems, it seems, don't come in different sizes;" He stated, allowing a pause in which his eyes lifted to meet Anne's questioning orbs with hopes to clear the gentle frown that invaded her forehead. "They come in the form of different people."
Understanding fell upon his once Queen's features with the slow bob of a nod that led her eyes to the floor under her. "Of course."
He attempted a smile for her benefit; one she did not see and fell heavy when the silence remained broken only by the echo of their steps upon the ground. A silence in which he thought upon the subject she deemed to think too much about; nearly as much as he did. Enough to already know the inevitable truth about the solution to most of their problems. "We should probably..." He started carefully, because he knew that she would like it much less than he already did. "...talk to someone." He swallowed absently, slowing their pace down enough so the words he spoke didn't seem so... hurried. "Probably."
Almost instantly Anne's gaze shifted in his direction once again; frame standing tall and straight as if no fear ruled inside her even as she walked, even as her mind reeled in the many endless scenarios of which end forever remained her demise. "Oh?" It was a simple echo of a word accompanied by the smallest tilts of her head. "Do you really think it wise?" She asked; curious, careful, maybe even a little scared; though the latter emotion remained hidden... at least for everyone except Alec. "Or... you know..." A grin forced onto her parted lips. "...necessary?"
Of course, Alec couldn't simply do as he wanted and go straight into the throne room with Anne by his side and say, 'Hey, fucktards. She's here, I'm here; have something to say? Say it now 'cause I don't want to be stalked or fucked over like some common criminal. And I won't let her be touched without her expressed permission.' Because if he did, he would only get reprimanded for it (and pose Anne's safety at risk). "I think it a bit of both." He finally admitted, brows crunching together as his eyes slanted toward her. "I'm not saying we should present you to the castle." He nodded. "But perhaps... send a messenger." He lifted both his hands until he could press a young kiss against the back of her hand. "Lord knows what sort of reaction we'd find in front of everyone."
"Not a pretty one, I'm sure. It seems our lords like spectacle." The press of his lips against her skin, however short, as always made the grin on Anne's lips shine genuine whilst her frame stepped closer, and the very mocking tone she pressed upon the mighty word was enough to relax her guardian some. Her mind's wheels turned swiftly upon themselves with the wonder of cowardice; would it be considered so if such an action was taken? If they sent a messenger instead of facing everything themselves? Would it truly be so horrible if, for once, she allowed herself and Alec to take the easy solution to an otherwise overwhelmingly big problem? "I suppose we could." Because he was right, and she was sure that there were bigger things the Volturi had to worry about than an escapist ex-Queen and her irrevocably beloved guardian. "But it can't be that easy, can it?"
"We won't know until we try it." Ending the sentence in a questioning tone wasn't how he had intended to, but he had forced himself into the present by encouraging himself to focus on where they had both travelled to; it made him stop in his tracks due to the fact that he was sure, by his shift in vision – from Anne to the path behind him – that he knew where they should go.
"Is that your motto?" She wondered; it was a short laugh, a breathed one, the one that escaped through her lips.
One that was only retaliated by a short and sly grin crossing her guardian's intrepid features, allowing for a more fun, less serious face to take shape. "I have a lot of mottos." He admitted, his hands moulded around both of Anne's and tugged her a few meters from the way they had come, and out of one of the arching doorways. "Come on." He said, smiling.
She could almost pretend she had absolutely no worries to weight over her shoulders as her feet led her forward quite hurriedly to match Alec's own demeanour. But, as her eyes wondered upon their short journey with curiosity about their destination, landing in many familiar features surrounding her, she realised just where they both were. A near nostalgia illuminated her at the memory, at the understanding that only a couple of days prior she had pretended to be okay with the idea of never being in such a place with him again, that she had said goodbye in more ways than one; but now she was there, she was back, en route to one of the two places she had shared only with her beloved, and within which safety easily wrapped around her with a familiar taint: the fountain on which she had shared her first true bond-free kiss with Alec Greco.
His hands slipped from her grasp after a minute wink in her direction, and he moved towards the fountain in order to quietly hop onto the concrete surface with the echo of a chuckle escaping from his lips, letting a hand move swiftly through the water pouring out of it and into the air, freely, enjoying the sound of a short laugh in his beloved's voice as he carefully leaned down to her level once again. "Care to share?" She asked, eyes lifting to watch the skylight glistening on the drops that gravity was claiming once again as her steps led her in his direction; when her eyes lowered, the expression on Alec's hues was as much curious as much as confused, watching her as she leaned closer in his direction, as if she were to kiss him. "Your many mottos." She answered his unvoiced question in a whisper whilst her eyes focused on the softness of his lips, but instead of doing as her actions implied she would, the once Queen moved away with a grin across hers and a rather playful motion of her frame to run along the ratio of the fountain, gaze almost inviting for the boy when she stopped at a place almost opposite him.
Alec's surprised features rose in a disbelieving manner before the playfully unamused smirk crossed his lips, eyes narrowing while he turned around in order to see her and her dallying motions. He didn't even think twice about it before blurring the distance she had only ran until his arms had wrapped around her frame, surprising her enough to make her laugh as he pressed a kiss to her dimpling cheek. "Perhaps the only ones I dare to share are 'Vires Acquirit Eund'." He finally replied, reversing his steps until he could stand a couple of inches in front of her with his hands on her back. "Or 'Remember the Alamo.'" He smirked. "Because I honestly make this shit up as I go." He admitted; letting out a short breathed laughter and threading a gentle hand amongst the strands of hair framing his once Queen's face in order to thread it behind her ear.
A nod of her head bobbed in sardonic understanding of his words; ever playful of course, eyes curious over his own as they gazed at him from behind her lashes. "Mm, how terribly honest of you." She echoed his laugh while her palms lifted to rest against his chest and allowed her head to lean shortly against his touch regardless of how short it might be. The grin remained for a few more moments until one of her hands lifted to rest against his own, turning her head to press a kiss against his palm before lowering them both and gifting him with a smile as she leaned closer to him. What Alec didn't expect, due to the manner in which her eyes fell to his eyes and the space slowly disappeared between them, was the surprise of fresh drops of water falling against his side, led by Anne's free digits.
He gasped and flinched away from the water without letting go of her hand, hearing her laugh echo in a manner that forbid him from not smiling as his head shook and he brushed the droplets away from his suit's jacket, gaining nearly nothing but letting the liquid thread into the fabric deeper. "You may have to repay for this, your majesty." He spoke, and not even a second later he had flicked some water in her direction, wetting the material of her skirt and shirt and watching her hair fly in a curtain as she turned away and laughed.
Of course it didn't take long for her to retaliate the motion, and before long the two were laughing, flicking water in each other's direction, running around the fountain as if they were two lovers lost in a private moment without a care in the world; until without a warning, with both their frames almost soaked completely with the water they had played with, Alec reached for her hand, tugging upon it until she crashed against him and allowed his senses to wrap on the tones of her melodic laughter. Even in such a heinous place as was the Volturi castle, he felt just as at home with her there as he did with her back in Venice; somehow, he knew that held a special meaning, one he couldn't exactly place. And he nearly feared such a reverie to be written across his features and Anne, who was looking at him with adoring eyes and was the only one who knew him as well as he knew himself (if not more), to decipher it and have words over it. So, instead of letting her have a manner of figuring it all out, he spoke. "I love you, Anne." And then his lips were pressing against her water sparkled brims with the meaning of all the words he thought placed only in the ones he'd spoken.
One of her hands pressed against his chest while the other rested softly against the wet skin of his cheek, dripping droplets of water onto the ground into a small pool that formed at their feet; water from their hair, their clothes, all falling and leaving only a phantom of their presence along the materials covering their frames and specks of frizzy hair. All of it ignored by the gentleness with which they pressed against one another; at least until Anne pulled away in order to look into the many shades of red in her guardian's orbs. "As I love you, my dear, dear, Alec."
His arm swept around her waist and a smile broke against his lips; she was beautiful, and if he could, he wouldn't ever stop kissing those lips, he'd never stop holding her, he'd never stop gracing the porcelain of her skin, he'd never... "Then marry me." The words were out before he could even think them, this time, unlike the many others he had attempted to think before daring to speak. He didn't regret them, but in his mind an alerting question echoed with surprise at his own utterance. What the fuck?! There had only been two times he had imagined asking such a thing, and each time the scenario ended with her hitting him or saying it was the dumbest idea ever. And this time? There was absolutely no way for him to cover it up, not with a kiss, not with a hug, because he knew Anne, and he knew she wouldn't un-hear such words.
Thus was the proof when her eyes continued dancing on his own with a questioning demeanour. She'd heard his words, so sudden, so calm and so unexpected that at first she started wondering if she had completely imagined them. If she was truly so distressed that pushing it all back had twisted about in her mind to make her imagine such utterance. But no, she hadn't; she'd heard it, clearly and completely, he'd heard Alec's words, and if she had a heart it would have most likely stopped from the surprise of the inquiry. "Alec, wha—"
But she couldn't even finish speaking; she was going to; what she was going to say remained a mystery even to her, but the words had been interrupted by another voice coming from a few feet away. "Lady Anne Boleyn?" It asked, making her eyes, which had been frozen upon her guardian, blink a couple of times before looking in the direction of the intruding tones.
Her hands didn't lower, nor did she move away; in fact, her whole frame remained heavy with the shock of what she had heard before the intrusion. "Y-yes?" She wasn't completely sure if she was replying to Alec or the voice that called for her; but whichever it had been, it echoed confused and didn't truly matter the moment she realised the voice belonged to a guard.
He was standing at the entrance of what both Alec and Anne thought to be their private garden; and it was his next words that made a deeper shock travel within Anne's being and the wonder upon her reply dissipate from Alec's mind; six words that made whatever dread they had both momentarily forgotten about in those few moments together, return with a crippling vengeance and made Anne's fingers discretely hold onto the fabric of Alec's jacket a little righter. "Master Caius is requesting your presence."
It didn't exactly take longer than those words for Alec's frame to shift instinctively in order to stand protectively over hers for a fraction. "Now?" The guard nodded, his hands behind his back while his eyes danced between Alec and the once Queen. "Very well." Reluctantly, Alec pulled away from Anne, keeping one of her hands in his with means of reassurance.
"Alone, Alec." The guard said, making the boy's eyes lift from where they'd fallen on Anne's with as much shock as anger; such a feat that made whatever confidence the guard had walked with waver slightly. "Master Caius specifically told me to—"
"I don't care what he told you." Alec interrupted, ignoring the manner with which Anne's free hand rested on his arm warningly. "If Master Caius wants to speak with her, he'll have to talk to me as well." He stated. "She was appointed my ward by Master Aro when she arrived, and that has not changed. Unless Master Aro himself has told you he has relieved me from such a post, she remains my charge, and I will not let you take her without my company." He paused, holding Anne's hand a little tighter in hoped reassurance. "So if Caius wants her to go to him, you better start leading the way; we'll both follow."
The guard's eyes stayed on Alec, almost challenging, but mostly scared. He knew, as much as Alec did, that if he fought in any sense of the word, then he would lose; so he simply forced himself to nod before motioning to the side with his head and turning away with hopes of the two behind him to follow along as the other had promised. "It is my crime to answer to, you didn't have to—" Anne started in a low tone meant only for her guardian, eyes focused on him while she forced her steps to lead her forward.
"I did." He interrupted her words, using both of his hands to encase hers shortly after. "I know you don't need protecting, I do, and I don't doubt upon it in the outside world; but here, in this castle, I can protect you, and I will do my damnest to do it." He told her, his eyes focusing on hers even as they walked away from the garden. "I told you I would protect you with my life." He said, frowning. "I meant it, Anne."
There was a small part of her that felt grateful to the boy, but in the most part she was scared. Worried because of what the master she was en route to meeting might tell her, or condemn her to; but scared because she did not want her life to cost that of her beloved's as well; every word spoken prior to the guard's arrival did not hold weight in any of the two vampire's minds any longer.
To Be Continued.