Obedience

Carlisle

There was no rush of blood to his face to show the humiliation Carlisle felt in that moment. And despite everything, he forced down the snarl of anger that threatened to make its presence known. No, all Carlisle did was stand, still and distant. Aro, with his perverse proximity, knew that he was not under Chelsea or Corin's sway anymore. That his emotions were his own in the moment.

Perhaps they had stopped intentionally. Perhaps he had once again resisted, the way he had resisted so many times before this. It did not matter how, only that in that moment, he was free from it.

Yet, the older Vampire took a decidedly extra few seconds before he stepped back and stared at his old friend with a brilliant, guiltless smile. "Why the hostility my friend?" Aro asked. "Up until a few seconds ago, you seemed to be enjoying yourself. Why then, did you stop?"

"Had I expressed any hostility, I would either be in agony or in pieces, Aro," Carlisle looked the man straight in the face and he could no longer lie to himself.

Standing before him, Carlisle felt many things.

He was humiliated.

Carlisle was a man of religion and Esme, a woman raised with Victorian values. Unlike their children, they had always refrained from any public display of intimacy. And his children had accorded them with any privacy they wished for, with Jasper or Edward or Alice subtly herding the rest away. Yet here, his shirt hung open over his bare chest and all those present, had seen his body, his instincts reacting in a way that was reserved only for Esme's eyes. Things that his wife had done to him, the woman married to him under the eyes of the Lord, under the implied privacy of their bedroom…Aro had done to him in the presence of over a dozen people. And Carlisle was no fool. It was no coincidence that Aro had touched him, exactly the way Esme did the last time they were together. Carlisle now understood Edward's feral reaction when Aro had been reading Esme's mind.

He was angry.

His family, he had built through years of resentment, hatred, rebellion and hurt. He had held them, helped them and healed them till together they had formed this rag-tag of a coven and eventually emerged as a family. But now, half of them lay in pieces, and the other half stood senseless. All because they could not be seen as people, as children, as husbands and wives, as siblings. No, all they were viewed upon was as their gifts. As threats.

And more than anything, he was resentful.

Carlisle had been nothing but cordial to the Volturi. Where people saw black and gray cloaks, Carlisle at a time, had known each and every single one of them by name and nature. He had spoken to them, sat with them and listened to their stories. He had endured the endless humor they had shared at his expense. He had followed every law and every whim of the Volturi.

And yet he was in this situation, being treated worse than a criminal. At least the lawbreakers met a swift end.

But while he would not mind a swift end for himself, it was not something he dared pray for when it came to his family. They were far too young, all of them.

So, Carlisle stood and he gave up all lies and fights.

"Nor have I stopped you from doing anything," he continued. Carlisle's throat closed up but he forced the words out. His dignity was not worth more than his family. "Tell me, Aro, how can I barter my family's life? Whatever it is you ask, I will submit to your wishes."

Aro raised an eyebrow at him. "Whatever? That is a rather broad term, my dear. A dangerous path you seek to walk down."

Carlisle ignored the mirth in Aro's face and stayed silent. He dared not look beyond the man in front of him. For all he would see is his sons trying to fight a battle they were doomed to lose. He would see his granddaughter's tear stained face, frozen in the horror of watching her mother die. He would see the fear in his beautiful wife's features. And if he looked lower, he would see the headless bodies of Jasper and Alice, the former littered over the latter as his son made a last ditch effort to shield his wife before they both fell. He would see Bella's head, perhaps still at her daughter's feet. He would see his beautiful daughter, his Rosalie, so scared of being scarred, torn to shreds.

It did not matter if Aro asked him to walk through hell at that moment. Carlisle would do it.

"All right then," Aro once again stepped closer to him and grabbed his hand. "Let's see what our dear friend is willing to do to prove his obedience."

Aro held his hand for only a brief moment before he let go and stepped away.

A scream rang through the room, the sound pounding on to Carlisle's ears. His usually sharp brain took a moment to register that it came from him. He curled in onto himself as fire burnt through every inch of his body. He felt like he was being branded and rebranded by a hot iron rod all over. His knees gave way and he fell, flat onto his face on the marble floor. His body burnt, worse than any pain he had ever imagined.

His vision blurred to a white and his ears became an audio kaleidoscope of his own screams.

The fire. He had to put out the fire. It covered his entire skin. It burnt in his throat. Carlisle's hand scratched at himself, trying to claw off his skin so that he may free himself of the agony. Screech mingled with scream in his ears, creating a cacophony so deadly, Carlisle's fingers rushed to his ears, pulling them off so that he would no longer be able to listen to it.

But he found his hands frozen. He couldn't move.

And just as suddenly as it started, the pain stopped.

Carlisle gulped in air he did not need as the floor materialized before him. Black shoes stood in front of him. The feet moved towards him and with the tip of the shoes, turned his face sideways and up.

He was on the floor, his face propped up by Aro's feet, looking up at the man. Aro moved his feet, the tip of his shoe retracing the path his lips had taken not so long ago. Carlisle felt the rough texture of the outsole on his skin, smudging dust all over his face.

Carlisle stayed still, his eyes remained open.

Aro came to a halt at his lips, tracing them with the rim. He prodded, the pressure not something Carlisle's vampire strength could not bear. But hurting his skin was not Aro's intention and all present in the room knew that. It was his pride Aro sought to destroy. And Carlisle had no hesitation sacrificing it under Aro's feet.

The older vampire toyed around with Carlisle's prone form a while more and Carlisle used those moments to take a stock of himself. His shirt was in tatters, and his chest, abdomen, back and neck burned with pain. He could feel the angry gashes. They would close soon enough. The skin around his ears hurt too but luckily Jane had stopped before Carlisle had pulled them off completely.

Aro moved his feet and Carlisle was pulled off the ground, his arm nearly disconnecting from his body under the rough force. But the guards did not shred him. Instead, they held him up before the Volturi leader who touched his cheek for a second before moving his finger away.

Carlisle hated this persistent and gross invasion of privacy. Living with a telepath, he had long since resigned himself to having each of his thoughts heard. But his son, bless his soul, had never read his mind and used what he found to torment him. This was different. It was a sick violation.

Aro once again glided around the room, almost aimlessly. He stopped near his family, right beside Rosalie's head and gave it a cursory glance. Carlisle let out a feral snarl when Aro kicked her head, rolling it away towards Alice and Jasper's. He looked back at him, amused at the reaction.

The guards tightened their grip on Carlisle's arms.

"That doesn't sound very subservient my dear," he said, tracing the side of Renesmee's face and a small whimper came from his granddaughter.

When Carlisle's eyes finally snapped up to his remaining family, a sight he had been dedicatedly avoiding, his heart sank. Renesmee stood there, silent tears streaming down her face, held in place by Afton. She was scared, but it was not the terror of the senselessness. No, his precious granddaughter was free of Alec's power. She had the horror of a witness on her face.

Carlisle wondered how long she had been aware, how much of his humiliation had she seen. The things that had happened in this room, that will happen to him in this room, she shouldn't see them. A part of him worried for her, because unlike humans, her memories of the terror she experienced would not dull with time. And a part of him also worried for himself. Carlisle's very public humiliation and degradation was far from over, and precious Renesmee did not quite understand the concept of discretion the way her father did. Anything she saw, all of his family would see soon enough.

"Ah, dear one," Aro cooed at her. "You want to go home?"

He giggled when she gave a small nod. "I think your grandfather is trying to arrange just that."

Emmett and Edward had been struggling against those restraining them the entire time, even under Alec's powers. But their struggles were disoriented, senseless and not likely to succeed. So when Emmett managed to free himself, while Aro stood that close to him, the guards all leapt forward. Only two people remained motionless among them. Aro smiled at the gentle giant before him in amusement and Jane stayed in her place. With a scream, Emmett fell to his knees, writhing in agony, simultaneously under the gift of both the twins.

The next second, his screams stopped, his head joined the ever growing pile in the center of the room.

Carlisle heard Renesmee's breathing and heart accelerate. If it was possible for hybrids to have a panic attack, Renesmee would be in the middle of one right about now. But the girl was as steadfast as her mother and kept quiet.

"Of course we will have to see just how dedicated your old man is to that end," Aro continued uninterrupted. As if Carlisle's son being beheaded was a distraction to be waved away.

Carlisle was dragged forward to the center, and brought to stand near Esme. Aro turned to him.

"I did not quite believe your thought, you know. About your willingness to sacrifice your dignity for your family. But you have surprised me." Aro confessed. "I would like to see what all you are willing to do."

Carlisle's eyes remained trained on Aro. He did not know where Aro was going to go next and his words created a dead pit in his stomach. The Volturi leader turned to his side, touching Esme's face with the back of his hand and Carlisle bit down on the growl that threatened to leave him yet again.

In the relative silence of the room, he knew everyone could hear his teeth grind.

Carlisle had fought and won over many of his primal instincts through the years. He had conquered the newborn bloodlust. He had stood before his singer's bleeding forms and treated them without blinking an eye. He had given in to physical love only after he was tied under the sanctity of a marriage. He had happily co-existed with many covens, the lack of a territorial nature in him helping him befriend many vampires who would otherwise not have entertained him.

But there was one aspect in which Carlisle had always been territorial, always been possessive. And that was his wife.

Seeing another man, a vile man touching his precious Esme…it made him see red. But while his eyes remained on his wife, he could also hear Renesmee's sobbing and Edward's low growls. It took every last bit of restraint he had to not launch himself at Aro.

Being restrained by the guards did help too.

The guards dragged him further, till Carlisle, Aro and Esme stood in a close triangle, each touching the other two. Aro leaned in closer, his hands still caressing his wife's face and, placing his lips once more over Carlisle's ears, whispered a single word, "Decapitala."

Carlisle snarled out at Aro, nearly sinking his teeth into the older vampire's face. But Aro glided out of the way and the guard holding Carlisle landed a solid blow onto his knee.

"No," Carlisle spat.

Aro turned to Renesmee. "Tsk tsk. Looks like your grandpa Carlisle doesn't want you to go home, mio caro. Perhaps you can convince him."

"Grandpa, please," Renesmee sobbed out and Carlisle's struggles died down.

She didn't know Italian. He couldn't blame her. He clenched his eyes shut and did not move, shaking his head.

"Please, Aro," Carlisle begged through gritted teeth.

"Fai come ti dico, o questa bambina vedrà cose che non dovrebbe mai," Aro answered back with a bone chilling smile.

There was a time when Carlisle believed his friend was not capable of carrying out what he threatened. But after today, he was not too sure.

The few seconds it took Carlisle to think this through, were far too many for Aro's taste. He took three long strides and with one twist of his hand, ripped Edward's right hand off. His senses deprived, Edward made no noise.

Renesmee's scream of horror, however, echoed in the large room long after it had turned from screams to pleads on her lips.

"Grandpa, please make him stop," she turned to him, fresh tears trailing down her face. "Please do what Aro's saying."

Carlisle's eyes danced wildly, between his son and his granddaughter.

Another delay Aro did not like. One nod from him and the guard that had been holding Emmett earlier stepped forward and landed a solid kick on Edward's thigh. With a sickening crunch, and the ripping of fabric, the entirety of Edward's leg separated from his body and ricocheted off the wall behind him.

Renesmee's words turned to senseless sobbing, a few 'please' and 'dad' and 'grandpa' escaping through her bubbling horror. Aro stepped behind him, trailing his hands over Carlisle's trouser covered bottom.

"I have your dignity, my dear," he whispered. With an almost painful squeeze of his behind, he continued. "Now give me your obedience."

The guards released him.

His usually rock-steady hands shuddered as he pulled his senseless wife into an embrace. His hands cradled her confused, fear stricken face and he placed a soft, chaste kiss on her forehead, hoping it would bring her ease.

It did not. Carlisle pulled away from her forehead and looked at her face. Between his palms, Esme remained entrapped in her void. He leaned in again, capturing her mouth with his, hoping to convey the extent of his love, his passion for her with that one act.

He closed his eyes, and twisted his hands.

Their lips separated just as the crunch echoed through the room. Esme's face was calm, no longer quivering or shaking with fear, in the safe cradle of his palms.

The rest of her body, however, thudded to the floor at his feet.

A/N:

Decapitala = Decapitate her

Fai come ti dico, o questa bambina vedrà cose che non dovrebbe mai = Do as I tell you, or this little girl will see things she should never.

I am not Italian and the phrases are a courtesy of Google Translate. If I have made any errors, please let me know.

Do share your opinion and review of the story. I love your input and questions and theories and they keep me motivated to write more. Just 3 more chapters to go!