Warning!: This chapter will have triggers, I mean a stories of self harm, child abuse, and mentions of sucidal thoughts and attempts. If any of you struggle with this, please know you are not alone.
A few days had gone by, Venus had started to gain some of her previous weight back up. Which was a great thing, as she walked through the corridors of the castle. She had become quite comfortable with everyone around her, that she forgot to put on more than a tank top today. Which turned out to be her worst mistake since Demetri saw her injuries. Especially as she entered the Library, and three distinct gasps could be heard.
"What has happened to you, child?!" Marcus called out first, as the two other kings were frozen. She looked up at them, before her eyes went wide in realization.
Instantly Venus tried to cover herself more, wincing as her shoulder was still quite tender as she did. A gust of wind could be felt upon her cheeks, before she looked up and saw the red eyes of Caius looking into her dark ones. She felt broken, and no doubt he saw that as well.
"You need to tell us the truth." He told her calmly, his hand gently moving to touch her cheek; but she flinched away. She wasn't ready for that, she didn't know if she would ever be ready to reveal all of her secrets.
Shaking her head, Venus let out her first sob. "Please don't make me relive it." She whispered, making them all look at her.
"The only way for you to get better, is for you to tell someone." Marcus whispered, walking up to her slowly. He knelt down to her eye level. "We won't judge you."
"I only want to say it once." She whispered in response, looking absolutely terrified.
"I will get the guard and we will go to the throne room." Aro whispered.
Caius gently took her right hand, as Marcus was gentle with her left. This kept her from running away any longer.
Venus trembled, before wincing as Caius's fingers brushed over an even fresher cut. She had found a place in the gardens to do the deeds to herself, something told her that they knew.
"Are you alright?" Caius asked.
"Your touching a new scar." She whispered, and instantly he let go enough, so he could turn her wrist up to his gaze.
"When and where did you do this?" The question was more of a demand.
Venus trembled, tears falling from her eyes. "Yesterday." She finally managed out, pain filling her voice as shame took over.
"Where?" Marcus asked in shocked horror.
"The garden." She replied.
"No more, you won't go unsupervised." He said instantly, as Caius picked her up then.
"One of us will be with you at all times." The blonde agreed, now normally she would joke about and play; but not today. Today she was facing her greatest fear, and hoping they wouldn't throw her away.
Her face hid suddenly in the king's chest as they moved, and once she heard several gasps. She realized they were in the throne room, upon turning slowly. She saw all four of her closest friends in the guard. Jane held a look of absolute horror, shock, anger, so much so that venom began streaking from her eyes. Alec began shaking in rage, but he also had tears streaming from his own red gaze. Demetri eyed her sadly, he having already seen all this did not make it any less traumatic for her. However, to say he wasn't angry like the rest would be a lie. It was Felix who grabbed everyone's attention, his hand entering the wall before anyone could comprehend.
"I hope this lets you know the true impact you have had on all of us." Aro suddenly said, his own eyes glistening as he fully gazed that the broken girl. She looked up at him, gasping herself when she took note of how the great coven leader let a tear of his own fall. Something inside, made her want to run to him, comfort and take all that pain away.
Caius moved slowly, gently placing her on Aro's throne. Surprising the girl, as she was allowed to adjust to get comfortable. Aro ran a hand through her hair soon after. "Take your time." The blonde whispered.
She sat there, wanting nothing more than to run; but knew she wouldn't get far. Slowly her mouth began to open and close, before finally words began to form. "When I was born, the first few years were great. I completed what I thought to be a family constellation, Bella was two then when I came. It was when I turned her toddler age and she became four, that everything changed." Her words were slow. "My mother, Renee, she wasn't happy in Forks. She missed the sun, and the heat. My father thought because I had been born, that I was to blame for her unhappiness and marital problems."
"What did your mother think?" Jane asked softly.
Venus turned to the girl slowly. "She reassured me that I was not to blame, and kept telling him repeatedly. However, it didn't seem to matter. I can still remember him pulling me to the side. Worthless, stupid, foolish, spawn of Satan, You should have never been born. All of those words ringing through my ears as he yelled. He smacked me for the first time then."
"Why didn't you say anything?" Alec asked.
"You have a sister, standing right next to you. Is there anything you won't do to insure she is safe?" Venus asked in response, and he shook his head in understanding. "If my silence protected Bella, than I held my tongue." She began trembling slowly. "Mom never knew, but she still packed Bella and I up one night, and we moved."
Caius placed a comforting cool hand on her shoulder when she paused. "You are okay." He whispered.
"We began to see him every summer, and it was hell. I remember hating myself when I turned seven, believing him. That everything was my fault, our family had split, and even when I was safe with my mother during the cold winter months for school..his voice rang clear I'm head. This is all your fault, you are the reason why this family was shattered! You deserve nothing, you are an ugly evil child, that will serve no purpose in the end!" Venus's voice begging to crack with each passing word. "I journals filled to the brim, by the time I turned eight. I had enough pages to possibly sew into wings. Hoping the fly to the sun and feel my tears turn to steam because no one heard them anyway."
Marcus eyed his mate, even if she did not know. She was his and his brothers world, and to know she had suffered so much pain as a child; it made him angry. "You are beautiful." He told her, trying to drown out the memories of her father with soothing words.
Venus looked up to him. "On my ninth birthday, everyone sang and laughed. As I waited to blow out the candles, and Bella told me to make a wish. My wish was to go to sleep that night, and never wake up. I was nine! And I wanted to DIE!" She began sobbing in front of everyone.
The entire guard, and the kings just stared in shock at her words. A small child at the time, to be made to feel so low and worthless. Jane stared, thinking her father was very cowardly..as she truly did not believe suicide itself was a cowards way. She found the person making another feel so low, that they believed the only solution was death..that was a coward.
"When I turned 11, mom started getting back in the dating scene..and one of the guys had a gun. I took it, and placed the barrel in my mouth and I stopped, knowing that if I left..then Bella could be attacked. Right as I was removing the barrel from my person, my sister walked and she tackled me for the gun quickly." Venus continued. "That night, I slept in the children's ward of a mental hospital. I was diagnosed with depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, ADD. I was a train wreck of the family."
Felix just began trembling, his sister had tried to take her own life..and the mere thought angered him.
"While in the hospital, the day I was released in fact. A therapist told me, it was ironic how much love I gave out to others, while I didn't give any to myself." Venus took a deep breath, tears still streaming as her voice went to a quiet whisper. "She laughed as if self love was some sort of sick joke, I chuckled..then I cried as soon as I got home. When I turned thirteen, I found a solution so that no one would know. A razor blade became my best friend, hoping that if I cut my legs enough that gravity would let me go. When that didn't work, I tied a pillowcase around my neck, twisting it like the ropes of a swing on a tree from childhood. I heard my heart pounding in warning in my ears, and the case. Almost convincing myself that I had done it..that I was dead."
Aro felt his venom pool into his mouth, as he moved to pick his Venus up. Placing her upon his lap for the remainder of the story.
"When I started writing again, I began cutting my wrist so that I could smear my blood on the pages." She whispered.
"Why?" Marcus asked.
"To remind myself that everything beautiful has a consequence. Now, I cut because it is the only pain I could ever control." She whispered.
"You moved into your father's house?" Caius pressed gently.
"Can I take a break?" She asked in turn, needing a moment to gather her thoughts. Aro rose instantly, speeding with her in his arms to his bedroom.
His strong, comforting cold arms held her close. Allowing her to cry into his chest, as she tried to calm down. "Shh."
"I'm sorry." She whispered softly.
"For?" He questioned.
"For being so weak." She replied.
Aro growled at that. "You are not weak." He hissed out the word. "How could you think that?"
"I let myself be abused. I didn't fight back." Venus whimpered.
"You didn't fight back for your sisters sake, that doesn't make you weak." Aro replied, while gently rubbing her arms. "These scars don't make you weak either, they are a sad reminder of a battle that you are fighting."
"Still, compared to everyone here I am we-"
"Don't you dare." With that he grabbed her hand, letting her in his deepest thoughts. "Would I let a weak girl in?" He asked after a few moments.
"No." She breathed, in awe at his thoughts of her strength.
"Everyone shares my thoughts." He whispered after a moment, as she released his hand. "You are not weak to the Volturi."
0.o.0
Aro and Venus had returned after a short hour, she ready as she could ever be to say all she was willing for the day. She sat once again in the coven leaders lap, when they reached the throne.
"Last year, my mother remarried." Venus began her story from where she left off. "Phil is his name, and I can safely say he is a great stepfather..however he plays professional baseball, so he travels a lot. Bella chose to move to Forks with our father, at this point I hadn't seen the man in six years, as therapy got in the way and if I didn't go Bella refused to go."
"But, due to her not wishing to travel around or your mother being forced away from her husband. You and Bella moved to Forks?" Felix questioned.
"That's right. My father, at first seemed okay when we met him at the airport. He didn't speak to me, but made small comments about Bella's hair being longer than the last time he had seen her. I had already dyed my hair black, and cut it in the way it is now. He voiced his dislike, as the only quality he had liked me was the fact that I was born with blonde hair, just like his late mother was." She explained calmly.
"You are a natural blonde?" Caius asked in shock.
"Yes." She replied. "Anyway, his house is only two bedrooms so I was forced to sleep on the window ledge. There was a small cot on it, to which he gave me a blanket for warmth. Bella got a double bed, which at night she allowed me to climb in beside her." A sudden smile graced her lips. "Jacob and Billy brought an older orange Chevy pickup for Bella to drive us to school."
"You have a friend?" Alec smiled suddenly.
"Yeah, Jacob..he's a good guy. Kind of follows my sister like a lost puppy." She replied. "The three of us have been friends since we were kids..used to throw mud pies at each other, and cliff dived with him."
"Cliff dive?" Marcus asked.
"Yeah, it's where you jump off the side of a cliff into a large body of water." She replied.
"Bad ass." Felix replied, earning a giggle from it.
"You know it, BFG." She said simply, before returning to her story. "The next day, Bella and I were bombarded at our new school by a bunch of curious faces. Bella being Bella wanted nothing to do with it; but they liked her more."
"What of the Cullens?" Jane asked.
"I'm getting to them." Venus replied. "I actually met Rosalie first, she found me crying in the bathroom."
"Crying?" Demetri asked.
She nodded. "There is a Queen Bitch in our school, known as Lauren. She is pretty mean, and ready to put others down to make herself feel better." She explained calmly. "Lauren saw my scars, and made snippy comments on how I was emo, and a cutter. With my emotions running high after the mood, and high alert because of where I was living..I sadly allowed her to get to me."
"Shouldn't ever do that." Caius told her calmly.
"But, it does happen." Aro reassured.
Venus nodded softly. "Anyway, Rosalie heard me and she and I had a talk. I told her the things that had been said, and she took my hand and rolled up my sleeves. Her words, matched yours a lot Aro." She whispered, and he nodded calmly. "How these were battle scars would one day be a distant memory of what I won. After that, I began sitting with Cullens."
"Really, that was quick." Jane replied.
"Well I didn't know the big secret then, but as they were the only ones willing to give me the time of day." Venus replied. "Edward took off for about a week after Bella showed up, and I made news for being able to breach their circle at school."
Everyone watched as she suddenly went quiet, a frown reappearing on her face. "My dad did not like the fact that I was hanging around the Cullens, he started up his yelling again..and his,physical abuse began once he heard I was cutting." She whispered softly. "One day, he kicked me so hard that three of my ribs broke..and I passed out..right in front of Alice the next day." She whispered. "I woke in the hospital a few hours later, Carlisle over me assessing my injuries. It was the first time I had met him, and then later Esme as she came to make sure I had flowers and food that wasn't from the hospital." A soft smile coming to her lips. "I knew deep down, the moment I made friends with the Cullens everything would get better. In a way it did."
"When did you figure it out?" Jane asked.
Venus smiled. "I had gone out with Jake, just to walk around Forks as Carlisle wanted me to get more exercise..and we both separated...and I came upon Edward tackling a Mountain Lion...needless to say..they had some explaining to do."
"That all must have been quite a shock." Aro chuckled.
She continued to grin. "I told them everything as I am telling you now, and after that I was offered a room and a bed..whenever I wanted...someone would be there. I have to admit I took full advantage of a king size bed, Bella joined the secret squad a few months later. She was quite mad at me, for a while when she found out I knew."
"You were doing the right thing, for not telling her." Caius responded.
"She pulled the sister card on me." Venus replied, before continuing. "When the Cullens left, because again Edward is a fucking idiot. My Dad lost it with me, the beatings for worse, and you can see what he did to my shoulder right before I came here." She explained. "I had never been so glad to see Alice before she grabbed my hand and we ran."
"In conclusion, you came here..and now will be protected beyond your wildest dreams." Demetri said instantly, and it wasn't long before arms were wrapped around her everywhere.
"Damn straight." Felix agreed.
Tell me what you all think, as the Cullens will always play a big part. They protected her, so do you think she will protect them when the time comes? Or, will she take her new families side?
Nature Faustus
