Aro left me the moment we got back to his quarters. I went to sit on the sofa and got comfortable until Demetri came down to be with me while Aro was away. I didn't so much like being alone, but every now and then, it was a welcome reprieve. Short moments like this were nice.
I had become so used to having Aro's eyes on me or one of the Guard with me whether they watched me or not. Chelsea was the exception with her dressing me up like her own personal doll, or Aro's personal doll I suppose, while Demetri would entertain himself most often with a book. Tonight, however, was a bit different.
When he finally arrived, he looked over at me and smiled. It wasn't unusual, but there was something more behind it this time, nothing sinister, just mysterious. He was carrying some sort of leather bag which he sat down on the floor before walking over to one of the tables in the room and pulling it to the middle so it was on top of the rug that blanketed the floor and a few feet away from where I was sitting. He then opened the bag he had brought and took out a laptop.
I raised my eyebrows out of curiosity, and he chuckled. "I thought it might be interesting to watch a movie or a television show. Aro isn't too keen on them, but modern technology hasn't completely evaded us."
"And here I thought all everyone did was read books, play music and paint," I said with a slight hint of polite sarcasm.
"To be honest, this was actually Aro's idea, something about trying to normalize your stay here." Demetri shrugged as he set up the laptop and logged in. "Even we get bored sometimes, and mindless entertainment eases that boredom. We don't sleep after all, so days and nights run into each other unless we keep ourselves busy. Besides, doesn't everyone in America watch television every day?"
I sighed. "If you have one. We did for a while, but my mom's boyfriend got angry one night, punched the screen. No more TV."
Demetri glanced over at me for a mere second only before turning his attention back to his task of loading up some sort of video service. I wondered what he was thinking when I said what I did. It wasn't something that I had ever brought up to any of them before. All Aro knew about my past was whatever he had heard from Demetri and of course little bits and pieces that I told him or he found out about from the nightmares I consistently had.
"Was he like that a lot?"
"What?" I asked, distracted by my own thoughts when he had spoken.
"Your mother's boyfriend. Was he like that a lot?"
"Yeah, but I'd rather not talk about it."
Demetri had finally set up the video service and began to scroll through the selections available. He decided on some show about knights and the making of armor. It didn't sound remotely interesting to me, even if I did enjoy history, but as he had said earlier, television was mindless entertainment. It would at least pass the time.
"This show is fairly good. It talks about the history of weaponsmithing and how people fought in the middle ages. For the most part, it's accurate. Much of it is assumption based off of texts written in that era, but there are a few things they miss."
I bit my lip. At least he was enjoying himself. The show was actually interesting, and if anything, I was learning stuff. Aro did say he would help me learn just as if I were still back in high school. It was part of our little arrangement.
Every day that passed felt like I was getting closer to the edge. I was always ready, every morning when I woke up, for it to be the last morning I would have. Even if I was more trusting of Aro at this point, he was keeping his word, after all, he had blatantly told me his game, and it played in my head constantly. I feared that the moment I let my guard down, that was when he would drink me dry. It was a terrifying thought, but not as terrifying as what could have and would have happened otherwise if Demetri hadn't interfered when he had back in Seattle.
Demetri looked over at me and frowned. "Are you even paying attention?"
I nodded my head. "Yeah. I was just thinking of how much work they would have had to do to create all of those weapons. Just one sword is taking them six hours, and back then, they didn't have the equipment we do now. It would probably have taken them the better part of a day or two."
"You lie smoothly. I'll say that for you."
"You know he's going to kill me, right?" I wasn't sure why I said it. After it was out of my mouth, I gave myself a sort of mental slap for evening mentioning it. Of course Demetri probably already knew. Why talk about it?
"I don't really know all of Aro's plans for you. You should just be happy that you're still alive right now," he replied. "I was originally meant to kill you back in Washington, but Aro changed his mind quickly after he said it."
"I'm not his first one." Demetri gave me a strange sort of look, maybe questioning what I was referring to, so I added, "It was something he said a while back. I didn't ask, and he didn't answer. I just knew I wasn't."
He nodded slowly. "You're right. You're not the first one, but you are the first one Aro has taken such an interest in. It's surprising actually."
"You said that before, too."
We were quiet, and Demetri went back to watching the show. My eyes were on it, but my mind was always elsewhere. Before I realized it, a tear slipped down my cheek, and I quickly wiped it away. Demetri, keenly aware due to his sense of smell, looked back at me and frowned. "What is it?"
Shaking my head, I brought my legs up closer, my knees up by my chest, and I wrapped my arms around them, curling up into my own little ball. So many times I felt this way, the way I did now. So many times I wanted to do something to make it go away. I was scared, yes, but I was also sad and angry with myself. There were so many feelings, and I knew what I wanted to do to make them stop.
I felt completely hopeless. This whole thing of me being here was a mere mirage. I was Aro's little experiment. Everything he was giving me was fake. My whole life felt fake. I was just here for other people's amusement after all. At least, that's what it felt like. First, my dad, until he was locked up. Then my mom's boyfriend because somehow she always attracted the same kind of men. Somehow, maybe I did, too.
The thoughts kept spiraling, and I couldn't pretend to pay attention anymore. Demetri watched me carefully, although I couldn't imagine it being because he was worried about me or anything stupid like that. He was just doing his job as my babysitter until Aro got back. I wondered how much longer he would be gone.
"Ari." Demetri's voice held a sternness to it, and I turned to him immediately. "Stay here."
What did he mean to stay here? I hadn't gone anywhere. I was still sitting where I had been since before he entered the room. Confusion was evident on my face, and I watched as he lent me a soft smile.
"Stop drifting. Keep your mind in the room," he said, clarifying for me what he meant.
I nodded. That didn't stop me from wanting to do other things, but for now, I could keep my mind here. Couldn't I? I went back to the show on the laptop screen and focused on it, every detail I could catch. I tried to pretend that Aro would ask me questions about it later, and he would be expecting the right answers. For all I knew, maybe he would, but I doubted it.
After the episode was over, Demetri stood and closed out the video service program. He then picked up the laptop and brought it over to me. When he handed it to me, I took it from him carefully and looked at him wondering what he wanted me to do with it. Demetri shrugged. "There are some game programs on there. I like messing around with Solitaire, but take your pick."
Solitaire sounded as good as anything, so I navigated to it and opened the program. Thankfully it was the operating system we used at school, and not much appeared different. Demetri must have known what he was doing though because to win a game, I had to pay careful attention. There were also challenges, and that's what he had me doing.
He made a deal with me. If I beat the challenge, he would let me pick a movie to watch the next time he came to "hang out" with me while Aro was away. If I lost, he got to watch the next time Chelsea came to "dress me up." I blinked as I weighed my options. Wouldn't it be worse for him if I lost?
Ultimately accepting the deal, I made my way through the challenges. There was only one expert level and a hard level. The rest were easy, and I got through those simple enough. I had to restart the expert level multiple times, but I eventually figured it out. It took up the better part of an hour according to the computer clock.
"There. I completed them all," I told Demetri.
He chuckled. "Fine, you get to pick the movie next time."
Demetri took the laptop from me and moved to put it back in the bag he brought it out of. "Is he coming back?" I asked.
"He's on his way, yes."
"How do you always know?"
"Aro takes the elevator sometimes. He finds the mechanics enjoyable, and I'm able to hear it moving."
It was only a few seconds later when the door to Aro's study opened, and he entered. He smiled over at me before he met with Demetri outside, and they quickly spoke, I suppose, before he came back in and glided over to me. "Did you have a nice evening, Ariana?" I nodded. "Demetri says you began to slip again."
Frowning, I replied, "What all did he tell you?"
"All that was important for me to know which is everything."
"It wasn't his place to tell."
Aro came over and sat down beside me on the sofa before gathering me up in his arms so I was sitting almost on top of him. "Don't blame him, my pet. He didn't have much of a choice. I can be persuasive when there's something I want to know."
The way he worded what he said sent a shiver down my spine. "Persuasive how?"
He laughed. "All in good time, little one, but how are you feeling now?"
I shrugged, not really wanting to tell him, but he urged me on anyway. He did say he could be persuasive when there was something he wanted to know, and for who knows what reason, as much as I told Demetri that I didn't want to talk about any of it, the truth of the matter was, I really did want to tell someone.
I felt a hard pinch on my arm and quickly glanced up at Aro whose pointed stare gave for no-nonsense and trying to shrug it off. He had never actually hurt me before, outside of biting me to drink my blood which didn't hurt as much anymore, even if there was still that initial sting, so the pinch surprised me. Strangely enough, part of me felt like I needed it.
Aro sighed. "The human mind is more difficult than I remember it being."
"I'm just trying not to get too comfortable," I reluctantly replied.
"Ah. You continue to play the game." He chuckled. "Though you know you don't stand a chance at winning," he continued teasingly.
"Perhaps, but maybe I deserve to suffer."
"Whatever for? It is such a peculiar thing to say about yourself."
"That's all life has been. Maybe that's why I was put here, to amuse others."
Aro took my hand in his and held it tightly before placing a kiss on my head. "You unquestionably amuse me, but who is to say whether you're right or wrong? Do you not get to decide that?"
I shook my head. "I don't know."
We sat there a moment longer, Aro holding me as he was always so inclined to do before he decided it was near time for me to eat. I wasn't hungry, but he was adamant about me getting adequate nutrition. It wasn't something I was going to ever argue with him about though I still struggled on occasion with the thoughts surrounding all of it. At least, as Aro commented, I was looking more healthy. I didn't nearly pass out every time he drank my blood anymore either unless he took more than usual. He tended to veer on the side of caution when drinking, though it had been about a week since the last.
Before he stood, Aro moved his hand up my arm, and I watched as he dug a nail in sharply, almost like a knife, drawing the slightest beads of blood. I hissed slightly as he did so from the sharp, yet very quick pain it brought, and I wondered how anyone's nails were so sharp. He was a vampire, however, and everything about their biology was different than mine.
I watched as he lifted my arm up to his mouth and took his tongue to lick off the droplets. His eyes turned pitch immediately, but I was used to it now. Aro had told me before that it happened when they tasted blood, and their eyes would go back to normal soon after, if one could call blood-red eyes normal.
He didn't make a move to continue further, so I let myself relax slightly. He was just toying with me or himself right now. I wouldn't question it. My thoughts were dark, and I needed the pain because I deserved it.
"You intrigue me greatly, my pet," I heard Aro comment to me. Suddenly I was on my feet, and being led to the door. "Let's get you something to eat." I nodded, and quietly followed him out of the room.
A/N: Thanks for reading! Review, review, review!
