A/N: Congratulations catspector is the 200th reviewer for this story xx Alexis
Bella couldn't seem to catch a break, everywhere she turned was one guard or another trying to apologise or gain her favour. Felix and Demetri had been first to bend the knee and offer up abject apologies for the things they'd said to her as a human. She was inclined to let them off with it. Because rude as they had been it wasn't what they'd said as much as the situation she was in that frightened her. Jane and Alec on the other hand were getting no such easy way out. He had pushed and shoved her around while his sister tried incessantly to hurt her, while verbally berating her.
Granted it hadn't worked, but Bella felt they deserved to be worried about their status. To their mortification the person they trampled over, turned out to have way more clout than them nowadays. This was a life lesson they really needed to learn. Bella assured them all she would be watching them closely. Any more infractions like that or superior behaviour to lesser beings would not be tolerated by her. It wasn't as if vampires weren't inherently scary to most humans, did they need to be childish and petty too. The Elite guard were just a little up themselves and could seriously do with a dose of humility.
Maybe a reshuffling and name change might help, maybe instead of Elite, it could be the Senior guard for the longest-serving, no matter the position you held. Caius had mentioned the vampire that ran the dungeons had been here for more years than most, including the elite guard. Then outwith that would be, Commander of the Guard and Superintendent of the Citadel Staff, suchlike positions, but going to the deserving, not the loudest complainers. She wondered if it was just because she was seeing this all with a fresh eye that it was glaringly obvious.
Plus Aro's prevalence for men in high positions just rankled with her. Bella was beginning to feel like a super spy, her shield had begun evolving to the point she could block her own scent and sounds, thus giving her an insight into things not often seen. The bullying, the self-importance and the callousness of some members and she was sickened by it. But boredom also played a major part here. Aro's lack of defined structure let the unworthy gain power, whereas the more deserving were thrust aside. Santiago for instance, Caius trusted him more than most but he held no real position in the Elite guard, why? Time to have a heart to heart with her mate, well, after this morning's briefing, she hoped.
EIM
"You seem uncommonly happy Aro, what's the occasion?" Marcus asked his brother as they entered the throne room together,
"I'm planning a grand and outlandishly lavish wedding" was his reply,
"Oh, Oh! Would this be for Caius and Bella? Have you spoken to them about it?" he quizzed, knowing the new Queens thoughts on marriage,
"No need it's all in hand," Aro said waving Marcus' objection off,
"She doesn't like surprises or lavish anything! You're making a mistake Aro" Marcus tried to explain,
"Nonsense all women want a fuss made of them and an over the top show on their big day!" he replied breezily,
"Dear God Aro listen to yourself, you know nothing about women and especially not this one, she's not Sulpicia. Mark my words it will blow up in your face and she won't attend. Actually, I don't even think he's asked her yet!" Marcus growled as he took his seat.
Marcus leant in and spoke quietly to Sulpicia who was seated behind Aro's shoulder. She hissed and shook her head, but nodded as Caius and Bella entered the room.
"So Bella what's your plans for the future now you are one of us?" Pica asked her newest friend as she took her seat next to her,
"Well, not much really. I want to settle in and learn the ropes as it were" Bella replied smiling, glad to have made friends with the Volturi Queen,
"But on a more personal note?" Pica hinted,
"Ah, yes Caius wishes us to marry eventually, but I'm easy either way. I will be taking his name married or not. Isabella Dunamis -Volturi, it has a nice ring to it doesn't it?" Bella said blithely, not seeing Aro stiffen or Marcus' smile,
"You don't want a wedding? No pomp and ceremony?" Pica asked now, knowing the answer already from knowing the girl only a month.
"Hell no, small maybe. A trip to the registrar's office would be fine by me. I hate extravagance for no reason. It smacks of 'Look at me I've got a bigger dick than you' syndrome, but for women. I would have bent to a small church wedding for my father's sake, but now he thinks I'm dead there is no point. No, a civil arranged marriage will do nicely one day, but not yet. Hell, I don't even have an engagement ring yet!" she laughed wiggling her fingers under Caius' nose,
"I will rectify that very soon little one. I wasn't rushing knowing your stance on marriage" Caius said kissing her hand.
"So no big wedding then?" Marcus smirked know he had been correct,
"How about a grand ball to introduce you as the newest member of the council? You arrive, smile nicely, then receive your Volturi pendant and tiara. You can leave or mingle with the guests and dance with your mate" Aro decided to say something at last.
"Meanwhile Aro gets to schmooze the guests, read a few minds etc. How does that sound?" Pica says smiling at Aro, thankful he got it at last.
"Given the choice that would be preferred thanks, but I'd rather do neither" Bella huffs out loudly.
"You're a Volturi Queen now little one, you will have to attend all of these functions and help us to show our unity. It comes with the job or in your case, the mate" Caius said slightly apologetically.
"Okay, I see that now. But I'm not one for the limelight really, so I'm happy to stand behind you Aro. I'll smile and say nothing, do we have a deal?" Bella asked and Aro nodded, this might not be as bad as he previously thought.
In truth, Bella never intended to call Aro out in public, that was more his style. But during council meetings, oh yes, she would take him to task. She had so many other things to attend to, like really getting to know Dora better. She also needed to be around to inject some colour into Esme's obsessively pale palette of choice. The Citadel needs warmth, not stark angular lines. She also wanted the placement of furniture and accessories to be her and Sulpicia's choice, not Esme's.
EIM
The two Cullens needed still to learn a little more humility, this was not their coven or home and they tended to forget this major detail. Yes, Dora liked them and was honestly happy to have them look after her. So Bella's first task was to pull Esme up on the decor of Dora's rooms. Did she even ask the girl before making it devoid of atmosphere?
"Dora, Poio eínai to agapiméno sou chróma, glykiá mou? Aftí ítan i epilogí sas?" Bella asked, in her heart knowing the answer,
"Prásino, san ta déntra kai to grasídi éxo apó to paráthyró mou" that small voice of Dora's replied and Bella's anger rose,
"Esme, a word please!" Bella said rising from Dora's side and patting the young woman's arm, before entering the next room,
"I'm a little busy here Bella dear, can't it wait?" came the distracted reply,
"No Esme now! You forget yourself" Bella said loudly and with a little steel in her tone.
The ensuing gulp would have been funny under any other circumstance. Esme seemed to think doing things her way was correct and going by the debacle of her last coven she was wrong. It seemed that she just slipped back into the half-hearted way of doing things just as she'd always done and this time it was Dora suffering, not able-bodied vampires who could express their annoyance.
"Esme you were employed primarily as Dora's caregiver and yet you don't seem to be doing that at all! Did you ask Dora for an opinion before turning her rooms into a hospital wing? This place is so clinical it sets my teeth on edge. Green, Dora likes green in case you didn't know!
Don't make Caius and I regret giving you this position. You're making the mistake of thinking you are guests here Esme. You're not, you work for us and Carlisle is here to be punished for his crimes against me. This is not your old life and I never want it to be for Dora's sake!
Now obviously you can't seem to manage to do both jobs, so you are relieved of anything pertaining to the decor of the Citadel once you fix Dora's apartment to her liking and not yours that is. "Bella stated,
"I..., but..., she said white, assured me she knew better than me! Oh god, I've done it again" Esme muttered,
"Who told you what Esme? Not Dora, the one person you should have asked that's for sure" Bella demanded,
"Corin. She said she knew Dora better than anyone, even Caius. She insisted the girl hated all colours and would not say otherwise. I listened to her and never asked Dora! I listened and didn't confirm it with Caius or you. I just didn't stop to think it wasn't true!" Esme said sobbing,
"I can't believe you just followed along blindly yet again. Vampire's lie Esme all the time, none as much as Edward, but most do! This is not a family Esme, the guard does not tell anyone what to do or know the ruling house better than they themselves do.
This will be your only warning, get you head in the game. You come to us first or Marcus. No guard or anyone else, who works here, knows Dora better than Caius himself. You do things our way or not at all, no guard with an axe to grind should have swayed you! So why did it?"Bella spat angrily, looking less than amused, spinning on her heel she left before she did something rash.
Leaving Esme to think over the past month and realise yes! She was just slipping back into her complacent attitude from before and she is disgusted with herself. The fault it would seem was within her and never the situation she was in as she had believed in Carlisle's coven. Just letting everything happen around her and then saying it wasn't her fault because she didn't know what was happening when it clearly was, because she did! This was a serious wake-up call for Esme, Bella was right, she was heading down the same old path and shame-filled the older woman, she should have known better. She should have learned!
EIM
So Corin thought to punish Dora, but why, for what? What would make her do that? Bella sought out Marcus first, she wanted facts, not gossip.
"Marcus? Do you know of any reason why Corin doesn't like Dora?" Bella asked, cutting straight to the matter,
"Ah! Showed her hand already has she? Jealousy, plain and simple. She hated the fact that Dora was Caius' supposed mate, even though she wasn't. Especially when it was obvious she couldn't carry out any wifely duties, so too speak.
She, I believe offered herself to Caius long ago and was demoted to the upper guard for her troubles. When the truth came to light, the Elite guard never told anyone else, the fear of Caius' wrath held their tongues. But when Aro blurted out he was returning to Volterra with his mate she was, shall we say less than amused" Marcus informed Bella and she shook her head,
"She's been after him for how long? If he didn't want her then, why would she think he would suddenly change his mind?" Bella asked dumbfounded,
"It's a sign of familiarity, ownership I suppose. I told Aro long ago we should rotate the guard, but no, he knows best. Watch Renata and you'll see what I mean; she even deflects Pica on occasion.
The guards have become far too familiar with their charges and up until a few years ago Caius lived beside Dora, but Corin's incessant flirting, hounding I believe Caius called it, drove him away. Plus she's not stupid enough to tackle you, so poor Dora will take the brunt of her ire against you" Marcus sighed,
"Well, we know what's next on the agenda don't we! Will, you back us, because once Sulpicia knows I'm sure she won't be happy" Bella asked and received an affirmative from Marcus,
Bella rushes off to find Caius, too many people had waylaid her today, now it was time to find out what he knew.
"Caius, tell me about Corin?" she said and he groaned,
"That woman and I are going to come to blows one day and I never hit women. But for her, I'll make an exception. What has she done now?" Caius asked exasperated,
Bella told him all about Dora's room, how she'd gone off at Esme or it only to find she'd been duped by a liar once again. But said she didn't feel bad because Esme needed to wake up and see what's going on around her. Then she mentioned what Marcus had said about Renata and Caius started to pace back and forth.
"Damnation, he's right you know! I've seen Pica go to say something to Aro and suddenly change direction and leave. It's only when she comes at him head-on that she stays, that has to be Renata's doing.
Now I think about it Heidi was always doing things behind everyone's back, supposedly for Aro, but was it. Was it more like for her in Aro's name? They are all getting too self-important, seeing themselves as more than just guards.
Hell, we pay them well, it's not like they no other outlets if they want them. Santiago fixes classic cars and sell them to the highest bidder, has done for years" Caius explains and Bella smiles, she likes that vampire, trusts him with her own life and Caius' too.
They spend the night discussing what Bella has seen and what they could do about it. Caius is all for the reform she has mentioned to him and thinks it's time for him to take charge of the whole guard once again. Not just the occasional training session with the Elite guard, but every one of the three levels and he really liked her idea about the Senior guard. Antonius would like that and Caius would pay good money to see Jane's reaction to being in the same guard as him. Bella also proposed Chelsea be the Superintendent of the Citadel Staff, not Jane because she was a bully.
Plus since no one needed Corin's services she should either train to fight, leave or be demoted to the lower guard. Renata was also redundant as Bella could keep everyone safe at the same time, not just Aro. They only needed her before when in the throne room, so Bella would just take her job, but not as Aro's personal guard. So she too would have to make a decision, fight, be demoted to the upper guard or return home to Malta. They knew they had to have all the information and a working plan before approaching the council about it, so the next task would be to speak to Sulpicia.
They had to be cautious, not wanting to seem to be changing things just for the sake of it. But for the betterment of the Volturi. It was a fine line like Bella would love to get rid of those ridiculous cloaks, but it was a minor thing and could be dealt with later. The shake-up of the guard was much more important, plus separating the group of Felix, Demetri, Alec and Jane would be more beneficial. Giving them their own teams to take on missions might work. Neither Caius nor Bella doubted their abilities, just their attitudes and methods of handling those missions. So they needed to answer to someone else, but who?
Maybe if Felix was Commander of the Guard, then Santiago and Afton could have their own teams. That would make it five instead of one and they had to answer to Felix, who in turn answered directly to Caius and ultimately the council. That way everyone could be watched and assessed on their performances. Surely Aro would see the benefit of a stronger guard presence out there in the world and not all of the best powers working together. It would be less of a huge target, with some left behind to protect the citadel. Caius promised to speak to Marcus tomorrow, while Bella spoke to Sulpicia.
EIM
"Sulpicia, would you care to join me in a walk around Didyme's garden?" Bella asked the following morning,
"It's Pica, Bella! Do you want me to start calling you Isabella?" the Queen replied taking her arm,
"Okay, sorry I didn't want to presume," Bella said smiling back at her,
"So what did you want to talk to me in private about?" Pica enquired as they reached the garden gate,
"Ah, you caught me, Let's sit, it's long and convoluted" Bella explained as they sat together, seen from the Citadel but not heard.
Over the next hour, Bella explained everything and then what she and Caius had discussed and the Queen listened carefully only interjecting once,
"That bitch!"
"Which one" Bella quipped back to her,
"Both damn it!" Pica exclaimed sighing,
She vigilantly listened and nodded, seeing the sense in their ideas. Wow, new blood did help in stale situations. Bella saw their flaws and the little things let slip until they were much larger than needed. How the guard became entrenched in their positions not willing to give them up for anyone even the brother's mates.
"I wanted to run something else by you Pica. I don't want to be called the wives, we're on the council now, so we need a better title. I don't care for the title Queen either, couldn't we be the Volturi Sisters.
After all, they are the Brothers and not related, so we could be the Sisters. I would like to include Dora in this too, just in name only. But giving her the status, making her unassailable as it were. Getting her out of the reach of bitches like Corin.
I haven't said anything to Caius yet, I wanted your opinion first. Think about it and let us know" Bella said holding her breath, hoping Pica would be amenable to it,
"I will before the day is out you will have your answer. Now, are you really taking Caius' name as well as Volturi?" Pica said changing the subject,
"Yes, I think it's only right, I will be marrying him, not the Volturi one day. What's your real name and Marcus' too?"Bella quizzed Pica,
"Aro and I are Lathraía and Marcus is Ematha. I haven't thought about those names in years, but I think your right. How does Sulpicia Lathraía-Volturi sound?
But I suggest we break this to Aro later, say when you marry Caius. We don't want to push him too fast. He can and will change, it is just slower than us, unfortunately!" Pica said laughing loudly.
EIM
"Queen Bella, Queen Bella, eláte parakaló," Dora said when Bella stopped in to see her,
"No Dora, I'm your cousin now, well I will be. So it's just Bella to you. Now, what do you want me to see?" Bella enquired using English for once and was led to Dora's room,
Esme had outdone herself in reparation. The room was several blending shades of green with a beautiful mural of the distant forest on one wall. It had a fawn and a rabbit peeking out from within the foliage in the foreground and even a fox set back in the distance. It was both childlike and grown-up at the same time, a skilled blending of the two.
"Oh, Dora it's stunning, very pretty," Bella said quite impressed by Esme's skill,
"I wanted to give you a..., éna dóro! It's gone, klapeí!" Dora gasped out in half English, half Greek,
"Stolen, are you sure? Where was it last and did anyone see it?" Bella asked in hushed tones,
"A week ago and yes, Corin saw me looking at it" Dora replied stiffly, almost coldly in perfect English,
Bella quickly changed languages knowing very few here spoke Greek. Little by little she got the whole story from Dora. A bracelet, one Caius had given her years ago, which had belonged to his mother. It was so old Dora no longer wore it and when Bella arrived she thought she should have it as it was a wedding gift from Caius' mother and there was no wedding between him and Dora. Bella tried to sketch it but neither she nor Dora were artists.
"Esme can you draw something for us" Bella called and Esme appeared with a sketch pad,
It only took a couple of minutes for Esme to draw a lifelike replica of the bracelet,
"Oh, that's so pretty. Do you want one like that dear?" Esme asked Dora, proving she'd never seen it before,
"It appears Dora had one like that until a week ago. She said Corin saw her with it!" Bella explained, "I'm reinstating you Esme and your next task it the guards rooms, especially Corin's!"
Esme nodded, understanding fully. This would be part of her redemption and would help both Dora and Bella. All they would need was a distraction and she could search the woman's belongings. It would be close by, she would want to gloat over it constantly. Over the years she had become adept at finding hidden places, especially Emmett's, so this would be similar.
Poio eínai to agapiméno sou chróma, glykiá mou? Aftí ítan i epilogí sas? (Ποιο είναι το αγαπημένο σου χρώμα, γλυκιά μου; Αυτή ήταν η επιλογή σας;) (Greek) meaning What is your favourite colour, sweetie? Was this your choice?
Prásino, san ta déntra kai to grasídi éxo apó to paráthyró mou (Πράσινο, σαν τα δέντρα και το γρασίδι έξω από το παράθυρό μου) Greek meaning Green, like the trees and grass outside my window
Lathraía (Λαθραία) (Greek) meaning Stealth, cautious and surreptitious action or movement.
Ematha (Εμαθα) (Greek) meaning Erudite, Learned
eláte parakaló (ελάτε παρακαλώ) (Greek) meaning come please
éna dóro (ένα δώρο) (Greek) meaning a gift
klapeí (κλαπεί) (Greek) meaning stolen