A/N: Cameron tries to adjust to her life, now mated to not one, but three vampires. What's a girl to do?

Chapter Text

"How come you did not tell dearest Ophelia you three are her mates?"

Time freezes. My head starts to spin at her words, and suddenly I feel nauseous. Mates?!

"Mates?" I bring out, shocked. My eyes meet Aro's, then Caius', then Marcus', and my legs go weak. I wobble slightly, but Marcus is already supporting me by the waist, keeping me upright.

"We were looking for the right moment to tell you, Ophelia." Aro explains, but it's like his voice is coming from far away.

"We wish to divorce, as per our agreement. You have found your mate, now it is time for us to find ours." Athenodora says. Once again, I become dizzy at her words.

"Ophelia, darling, are you alright?" I hear Marcus asks me, and I slowly shake my head. No, I was not alright, everything was far from alright!

"Of course, it's the least we can do for you. Marcus, please take Ophelia to her room." Aro speaks up, clearly trying to be diplomatic about this. I barely realize what's going on anymore, as Marcus speeds towards my room. He gently puts me down on my bed and all I can do is stare at him as he stands in front of me, giving me a worried look.

"Did-Did she say all three of you?" I stutter, still in disbelief.

"She did. I'm so sorry, Ophelia, I had hoped there would be an easier way to break this to you." Marcus apologizes, moving to sit beside me.

"Then why were Athenodora and Sulpicia so nice to me? I'm basically stealing their husbands, I'm a relationship ruiner!" I exclaim, terribly upset by the idea.

"It's not like that, Ophelia. Aro and Caius made a deal with their wives. If one of them should find their mate, they would separate in peace. They do not resent you, they are simply glad that they are now able to live their own lives, and go find their own mates." Marcus explains gently.

"Are you… are you not mad at me?" He then asks, making me look up at him. He had a really uncertain look in his eyes.

"Oh Marcus, how could I be mad at you? They told me about Didyme, I feel terrible for you." I bring out, tearing up a little. He smiles sadly at that, but pulls me into a hug nonetheless.

"I think she would be happy for you." I whisper, and his hold on me tightens at that.

"Thank you, darling." He whispers back. We remain like that for a while, and I slowly calm down.

After a while, the door opens. When I look up, Caius and Aro walk inside, their gazes immediately focusing on me, in Marcus' arms. Aro smiles at it.

"How are you feeling, Ophelia?" Caius asks, sitting down beside us. I let go of Marcus, looking at the blonde haired vampire.

"I-I have no idea, honestly. I don't even know what having a mate means." I manage to bring out, the reality of it all still overwhelming.

"That's completely understandable, cara mia." Aro assures, walking over to me, only to kneel before me. I can feel myself turn bright red at that.

"A mate to a vampire, is like a soulmate. We feel a magnetic pull to our mate, and a strong feeling to protect them and keep them safe. The love between mates is unconditionally. When bonded to a human, the human usually doesn't feel the pull as much, but they're still drawn to the other person. As you know, it is possible to have multiple mates. You are mated to all three of us." Aro explains, clearly trying to be as gentle as possible. I remember the jolt that went through my body upon meeting them, how I had dreamt of them.

"Is that why I dreamed of you?" I ask him.

"It could be, but that usually doesn't happen. It's more a way of Fate trying its best to bring you to us. Maybe the dream had to do something with the mate pull." Marcus explains.

"Is it… is it possible to-to not follow the bond?" I ask after a moment of silence. They instantly look pained at that, but I had to know.

"You always have a choice, Ophelia." Caius says, surprisingly soft.

"What would happen to you three?" I ask then, and Aro sighs at it.

"The rejection would hurt, physically and mentally, and we would slowly… cease to live, in the sense that you know. We would eventually turn to stone, unwilling to move ever again." Aro admits, seeming very upset.

"But you do have a choice, like Caius said. We will not force you to be with us." Marcus says gently.

"I-I don't want to do that to you." I bring out at that.

"So you accept the bond?" Caius asks, eagerly, all three of them brightening visibly at it.

"I-I want to give it a chance. But I want to take things slow, this is all very overwhelming." I admit, and the tension leaves the room a little.

"Of course, anything you want." Marcus immediately gives in, the other two nodding along. God, this was too much. Three kings, vampire kings, wanting my love and affection? What on Earth did they see in me?

"And I refuse to be locked up in the tower, like Sulpicia and Athenodora. I have a life of my own." I state, and Aro looks up at that, a little worried.

"We only wish to keep you safe, cara mia-" he begins, but I interrupt him.

"No, I refuse it! I told you that I would come with you to Volterra, but that I would not be a prisoner." I argue, and he sighs.

"Fair enough. At least let us assign you a personal guard, then?" He gives in, and I smile at that, content.

"Fine. I want Felix and Demetri." I state, and Caius chuckles at it.

"You're very stubborn, love." He says, making me grin.

"Well of course, I'm going to need it with you three." I argue playfully, and they all brighten up at that. They seemed to like it when I acknowledged our bond.

"Very well. We will discuss the official guard assignment later, darling. For now, you must rest." Marcus gently says, giving me a soft smile.

"Yes, from what we've heard from Athenodora and Sulpicia, you had a rather busy day." Aro says, making me smile.

"I had a lot of fun with them." I say, as I get into bed. They were right, I was tired.

"I'm glad you did, now sleep, love." Caius orders gently.

"Good night, Ophelia." Aro says with a last smile, Caius and Marcus following him.

When I wake up the next day, everything that happened yesterday feels like a dream. Unfortunately, Felix is the one to burst that bubble.

"Good morning, my Queen!" He exclaims, bursting into the room. I yelp in surprise, clutching the covers tightly as I turn to face him, noticing the big grin that's on his face.

"Don't call me that! And don't barge into my room like that!" I exclaim angrily, but he doesn't seem impressed.

"You wanted me as your official guard, so you're stuck with me!" he argues with a grin, as he walks over to the windows to open the curtains.

"They already told you?" I ask him, sitting up a bit straighter.

"Of course! The entire castle heard Sulpicia, you've been the talk of the castle! I knew what was going on, naturally, but I didn't know they'd tell you so soon!" He rambles, and I begin to feel sicker and sicker as his words continue. Queen? Talk of the castle?

"Are you feeling alright? You look a little pale." He asks at that, making me focus on him again.

"I-I need Vladimir and Stefan. NOW." I state, and he nods quickly, pulling out his phone from a pocket in his trousers before handing it over to me. I dial Vladimir's number by heart and wait, my heart racing. Felix subtly leaves my room, thank God.

"Vladimir speaking, who's this?"

"Vlad! It's me!" I bring out, tears welling up in my eyes at the sound of his voice.

"Ophelia! How are you? Are you safe? You better tell me they're treating you alright, or I'll be on the first plane to Volterra to kill those assholes!" He answers, sounding relieved and worried at the same time.

"Did you know I'm their mate?" I ask instead. Silence follows.

"Ophelia?" Felix appears on the other end of the line.

"Did you know?" I repeat.

"Yes. It was why we didn't want you to go." Felix admits. Suddenly, I remember what Aro had said, calling me "la tua cantante", speaking of Fate. All of them had probably known, save for the shapeshifters.

"Then why did you let me? You know I probably can't ever leave this castle again, you know them!" I exclaim, incredibly hurt.

"Because knowing you're their mate is all we needed to realize you would be safe. We knew you'd probably die if a fight broke out, and we couldn't let that happen, no matter if it meant we'd get our revenge against the Volturi." Vladimir speaks up, his voice soft.

"I-I don't know what to do. I'm not a queen." I whisper after a moment of silence, as I wipe away a tear that falls down my cheek.

"You've always been our Princess. We knew you were destined for great things, Ophelia." Stefan argues, and I can almost see his smile.

"We only wished we were with you along the way." Vladimir adds, sounding genuinely upset.

"I miss you guys." I whisper, more tears falling down, although I was now smiling.

"We miss you too, Ophelia. But you can do this, we believe in you." Stefan says sternly. I don't have the chance to say anything else, hearing them end the call.

"Ophelia?" Felix asks, opening the door again. I quickly wipe my tears away, and offer the phone back to him.

"Thanks for letting me borrow your phone." I say, forcing a smile.

"Do you want to hang out today? You look like you can use a distraction." He offers, clearly worried.

"I would like to be alone today." I mutter, and he nods understandingly.

"Just call me if you need me." Felix says before disappearing.

After taking a moment to calm down, I enter my closet. All the bags from shopping with Athenodora and Sulpicia are still there, waiting to be unpacked, and guilt still flashes through me. They'd been so nice to me and I had been ignorant, not realizing I was the one who was changing everyone's lives. They had been together for so many centuries, only for a pathetic human like myself to drift them apart. It was awful.

Rummaging through the bags, I find a black dress, which had puffy sleeves and reached my knees. I remember Sulpicia tossing it into a bag for me, noting I would look good in it. I put it on, then grab the brown sandals I'd worn before. I also grab a pair of sunglasses, comb my hair, and then leave my room.

"Where are you going?" Felix asks, immediately by my side.

"Marcus' library. I'm going to grab a book then go to the gardens to read." I explain.

"Sounds like fun!" He says with a grin.

"You don't have to babysit me, I'll be safe within the castle." I argue, entering the library. I'm relieved when I don't see Marcus, and go to the shelves where I found Romeo and Juliet.

"It's my duty, remember?" Felix argues, raising his eyebrow at me. I'm surprised when I find The Hobbit, and grab it before leaving the library once again.

"Well, could you at least hide so I don't see you? Or stay where you can just hear me?" I ask, stopping to look up at him, pleadingly. He groans, but then nods.

"Thanks." I say to him, and when I continue my way to the gardens, he remains behind.

-Aro's POV-

When Aro enters the gardens, he isn't surprised to find Felix on his own. He's lying on a bench, seeming terribly bored.

"Felix." Aro greets with a smile, amused at the sight.

"She won't see anyone, not even me. I think I overwhelmed her." Felix speaks up, groaning.

"If anyone overwhelmed her, it was us. Take a break, Felix, I'll watch her." Aro says, almost feeling bad for the guard. He clearly wanted to do his job well, but doing nothing bored him. Felix had never been one to appreciate the slow pace of humans.

"Thanks!" Felix exclaims, eagerly speeding off. Aro chuckles underneath his breath, before continuing his way into the gardens.

He finds his mate at Didyme's grave.

She lies in the clearing, opposite his sister's tombstone, peaceful. The white marble catches Aro's attention for a moment, his undead heart stopping. Despite all these centuries, his heart still ached for his sister. He has to force himself to redirect his attention to his human mate. The breeze occasionally touches the flowers surrounding her, the only noise together with the birds in the trees surrounding the clearing. Her eyes are closed, the only indication she's still alive the rising and falling of her chest, together with her heartbeat which always beckons him closer, her blood singing to him louder now he's near. A book lies forgotten next to her, along with a pair of sunglasses.

"I told Felix that I wanted to be alone today." She speaks up, though she doesn't open her eyes. He knows her body must recognize his presence.

"I couldn't help myself. I'm sorry." Aro speaks up, walking across the field to her. He sits beside her when she doesn't protest, and doesn't say anything else.

"Lie down." She softly orders. He has to obey her, is unable not to, not when her gentle voice calls for him. He'd do anything for her. He'd destroy the world if she asked him. So Aro lies down in the grass, feels the earth underneath his body, feels the heat of hers radiating next to him, and looks up at the blue sky.

"I do not remember the last time I did this." Aro admits, and when he glances at her, a smile dances across her lips. She was so beautiful it took his breath away, even if he didn't need it. He could not remember the last time he did something so utterly human, to just lie down and feel the grass, hear the wind, and just be.

"She's here, you know. I can hear her in the wind." She says casually, like she was talking about the weather and not his dead sister. Aro wants to cry and laugh at the same time.

"She would probably scold me for not visiting her more." He admits softly.

"Then visit her more." She states.

After that, Aro stays silent, listening to the breeze.