I Do Not Own Twilight
Bella was livid when she logged on to her Polyglot account. She could not believe the day she had. It was worse than the first day of school. She had no idea what was wrong with all the boys in this town. She couldn't possibly be this interesting she had thought. She was scowling when Aro's face popped up on her screen.
Aro's wide smile quickly dimmed and he cocked an eyebrow at her, "Cara mia, what on earth is the matter? I can feel your anger all the way in Italy."
She rolled her eyes and a smile played at the corner of her mouth, "I had the stupidest thing happen today, Aro. It was just unbelievably embarrassing."
"Well Cara tell me all about it." He batted his eyes and pouted as if he terribly sad he had to wait to her about her miserable day.
"Okay, so there is this dance at school."
Horrified, "Don't tell me nobody asked a beauty like you to go with them?" He shook his head in contempt at the boys in she went to school with. He couldn't fathom why they wouldn't take her to the dance.
"No, that's the problem. I don't want to go to this dance and it is one where the girls are supposed to do the asking. I didn't plan on asking anyone."
"Who asked you then?"
"Three different people asked if I would invite them to the dance! Can you believe that three whole people!" Bella was indignant. She folded her arms and sulked.
Now this truly shocked Aro, "Cara mia, why on earth is this upsetting? Did the boys all have body odor?" Bella giggled and shook her head, "Where they sufferers of acne? Or did they wear glasses, braces?" She kept giggling and shaking her head no with each statement. "Then why not go with one of them? It is very hard to approach a girl to take out for the night you know?"
Bella sighed and looked ashamed, "I guess it is because all three of these guys have really nice girls, who I am friends with, that are crazy for them. These guys know that but still they ask me and I have made sure to keep them all at a distance."
Aro looked at the girls speculatively and rubbed his chin in deep thought. "No, I don't think so. I think that is part of the reason. If the only reason was the claim the other girls have on them you would have asked someone else. I think you are either interested in someone which I think I would already know about or there is some other reason. Keep trying," he motioned for her to continue in her explanation.
Seeing the familiar blush spread along her cheeks Aro knew he was on the right track. Bella sighed and rolled her eyes at herself, "Fine!" She huffed, "I can't dance! Even if I knew how we both know I would trip over my own two feet!"
"Is that such a big deal, Cara mia? Not knowing how to dance? We can figure out how to dance and I don't even need to be there to help." He smiled gently at the girl on his screen. "What dances are they doing are people still doing the tarantella?" Aro was giddy he loved the tarantella he could easily explain it over the computer. Aro was lost in his mind when he heard snort.
Bella was laughing so hard she started snorting. She had tears rolling down her cheeks. Fanning herself with her hand she calmed down to sporadic giggles, "No one does dances like that anymore. Especially, at school dances," a fit of giggles burst out of her mouth at the thought. "Mostly people just bounce around and grind on each other. I don't want to go with anyone because I don't want them trying to rub up against me."
She continued her giggles never noticing Aro's eyes go dark. Now he was furious. How could young men feel like it was appropriate to be so intimate with young females. It was just vulgar in his opinion. He was thinking about sending his guard to slaughter the under twenty male population of Forks when Caius burst into his office.
Aro looked up surprised he didn't hear Caius coming but then he was totally absorbed in his conversation with Bella. "Caius, I am in the middle of something."
Caius sniffed and rolled his eyes, "I am aware of what you are in the middle of." He flitted to the side of Aro's desk and walked at human speed around the corner and sat down on the arm of Aro's chair. He looked at the screen and smirked, "I just wanted to see for myself what has you so distracted of late."
Aro started to growl at his brother but Bella's light laughter caused him to calm immediately. "Isabella this is my brother Caius. Caius this is," he paused wondering what he should call this wonderful, beautiful girl he spends hours a week with, "this is my Isabella."
Glancing down at Aro noticing his swift change from annoyance to adoration Caius grinned at the girl on the screen, "Isabella you have vastly improved my life. Aro is not a tyrant on days he visits with you?" He glanced back to his brother, "Normally he is quite impossible to deal with. Perhaps you should come and visit us here?"
Bella laughed, "Well I can't believe anyone would think Aro is a tyrant. He is always such a gentleman to me. As for visiting Italy, I think it will be a very long time before I would consider that." She chuckled assuming Caius was teasing her. In reality Caius was very serious about getting Bella to come to Italy. In the three thousand years Caius had know Aro he had never seen him as happy as he was on the days he spoke to Bella. He was certain Bella was something special and he wanted her here to keep Aro in line.
Caius folded his arms, "Now what were we talking about children?" He asked.
"Isabella got invited by three separate uhm…gentlemen," Aro frowned at the word, "to go to a school dance. She says she isn't interested because of the type of dances."
His eyes twinkling with mirth Caius began to rub his hands together, "Isabella dances are wonderful things to go to let the young men escort you and then dance the night away." Caius was trying to irritate Aro with the idea of dancing with young men. Smirking he added, "Dancing in an excellent way to spend the evening." While Caius was talking Bella had done a quick YouTube search for club dancing and sent it to Aro's phone.
"Check your phone," Bella folded her arms and waited.
She watched as they clicked on the link and visibly saw their eyes grow wider. She saw both men's nostrils flare. Caius looked at Bella through the screen and pointed, "Young lady you are absolutely not doing something like that," he hissed.
Aro held the phone to his chest, "Isabella," he said sharply, "this has got to be a joke?"
"No, that is how the youth of today dance. So, you can see why I'm uncomfortable going!" Bella shrugged.
Caius put his hand on his forehead, scandalized. He glanced down at Aro, "You know, this explains why Demetri and Felix always offer to take business trips to America."
Aro frowned, "I'm sure."
Caius left the room still holding his forehead as if the entire conversation gave him a massive headache.
Aro sniffed, "I'm sorry about the interruption, Cara mia." He saw just a touch of blush on her cheeks. "Now what could possibly have brought on this lovely coloring on your cheeks?"
Putting her hand to her cheek her face got pinker, "Well I feel like I scandalized you both when in reality I think dancing like that looks fun if you knew what you were doing and if you were with the right person. I just wouldn't want to dance like that with just anyone it seems to intimate." Inwardly she was thinking she wouldn't mind being held that close if she was dancing with Aro.
"I agree but really any dance can be scandalous. I remember when the tango first came out. My goodness, that was scandalous," Aro's mind wandered to the first time he saw the sensual dance. Afterwards, he, Marcus, and Caius all learned how to tango with their wives.
Wrinkling her forehead, "The tango is really old how could you have seen it when it first came out?"
Aro's eyes narrowed slightly when he realized his mistake. Fortunately, Bella did not notice this movement, "There was a resurgence here in Italy, Cara mia. It was all the rage a few years ago."
"That is the kind of dancing I would love to learn to do. The kind with actual steps and patterns but American teenagers don't dance like that. I have always wanted to swing dance though."
"Cara mia, if you ever do come to Italy, I would be more than happy to teach you everything I know about dancing. Perhaps we could really get jiggy with it."
Bella's twinkling laughter was music to Aro's ears.
When Aro had finished with Bella he stalked out of his office to confront Caius. He found him in his study with Marcus. "What was that about Caius!" Aro pointed wildly in the direction of his study.
"I simply wanted to meet the young woman who was occupying your every thought," Caius smirked and glanced to Marcus. "I don't see what the problem is? If you like her so much, and I know you do, go get her. Turn her. Claim her. It is as simple as that and you know it."
Aro slumped into a chair and ran his hand through his hair, "It is not like that with Isabella," he argued. "As much as I enjoy her company Marcus has already told me my mate is out there waiting for me. I will not do to someone what Sulpicia did to me. As wonderful as my time with Isabella is, it is limited. Besides she is so young."
Marcus raised his eyebrows and glanced at Caius. "Brother, everyone is young to a three-thousand-year-old vampire. Unless you are interested in Tanya Denali, she is over fifteen hundred."
Aro and Caius just wrinkled their noses at the mention of the succubus.