It's a long, dead life!

by BDE

We join the Volturi in 1663 when Carlisle was turned for his long, dead life and family drama. Aro, Caius, and Marcus are trying to rule the world. Felix, Demetri, Jane and Alec are creating havoc as child vampires and the Denali sisters soon join them. Mature scenes - Corporal Punishment (spanking/discipline) and offensive things, but its the Volturi, so what do you expect?

160. On-side

AN: We're in lockdown/home-schooling hell here - I am not living my best life. Send help! I hope you are all safe and well? The world is still a crazy old place.

I've seen some review left by guests. I respond to every review/message when I get on line, but I can't respond to guests at all, so wanted to say a quick thank you!

When I started sketching out the outcasts return to Volterra, I realised how many little vampires we have to deal with… so it's going to spread across a few chapters. If you think a scene is missing, don't worry yet, we should get through them all by the end of this chapter set :)

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On-side

JANUARY 24TH

"Oh, man." Felix let his head fall back against the cotton wall of the wagon. "We're so close now."

Why did I look, he asked himself. Why? Seeing the Volterran town folk mulling about from the end of the day's trade hadn't helped his mood one bit.

Odi didn't bother looking. Hearing the bells from church ring out and the rushing water of the town's fountain - he knew exactly how close to home they were. He looked forward to a hot bath and clean clothes, but that was all.

"Hey," he hissed to Felix. "How are you going to play this?"

Felix opened one eye to check whether Magnus was listing too intently. Deciding he wasn't paying them much attention, he answered, "If my mom's home when we get there, we're safe. If she's not in the tower, we're dead."

"You're lucky to have Sully to save you guys."

Odi knew well enough that his mother, though no doubt worried sick, would be ready to wear his guts for garters. Not good, Odi, he told himself, forcing his mother's far from his mind. Instead, he concentrated on his fellow guard and oldest friend.

"I'm worried about Corin," he whispered to Felix, hoping the girl in question wouldn't hear. "What's going to happen to her? Can you do anything about it?"

"Like what?" Felix asked. He liked the idea that Odi thought he had any sway in coven life, but he knew better than to believe such things. "You've got more chance than I have, Odi. Can talk your dad into laying off her? Your old man is over Corin, not mime.

"I'll be begging for the both of us, don't worry about that."

Corin was next to work out where they were. She peered above Magnus' shoulder and saw a guard on the highest point of the castle's front curtain wall. "Is that Renata?" she wondered aloud. Yup. Damn. "She's going to be so mad at me."

"Tell her to get fucked."

After being so keen to throw the rest of them under the wagon back at the caves, Irina knew she was on shaky ground. She'd tried to get her outcast pals back on-side on their trip home - joking with them, joining in their chat in the brief moments that the over lords permitted chat at all, but she had been largely ignored. Even Kate had ignored her sister's desperate attempt to regain some control over the group.

"What's it got to do with Renata anyway?"

Corin side eyed the Denali girl.

"She will be mad because she cares about me," she explained. "You don't tell the people who care about you to get fucked for caring or you will soon find yourself with few people left to care."

Irina rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Like me, you mean?"

"I didn't even mention you," Corin snapped back. Poor lamb usually a placid girl, had become travel weary – spending so much time in Irina's company hadn't helped. "Not everything is about you."

Despite Corin's claim, Irina knew it was about her. In Irina's world, the snide comments around her were usually about her. Always, in fact.

"Yeah, well, I'm doing just fine, thanks," she said. "I guess prisoners are above guards in Volterra."

Felix reached out for his girlfriend when she lunged forward. "Don't give her the satisfaction," he told her, and pulled Corin to sit with him, away from Irina. "You have people who care," he said to the Denali girl. "Get a grip."

"That's enough," Magnus called behind him.

He'd kept half an ear on the young ones as they conversed and saw little to be gained in banning their chatter when he could easily tune them out. But hearing the scuffle of Felix pulling Corin away had caught his attention.

A dutiful chorus of 'yes, sir' spread around the wagon in a wave and they all settled once again.

The girls' tiff had been a welcome distraction at first, but suddenly they were at the coven gates and wishing to go back a few steps along the road.

Too late. They were home already. Home, safe? Who could tell? Not the young outcasts that was for damn sure! As they each silently worked through their last-ditch plans for evading harsh punishments, the air filled with creaks - the tall timber gates were opening for the wagons to enter.

Feeling their anxiety increasing, Magnus looked back and offered the bunch a sad smile. "Time to face the music, kids."

Basileus had ran ahead of the wagons, moving through the shadows of the evening sun to ensure easy passage for his family. Standing with his mate on his arm, he already appeared refreshed. Indeed, if it were not for his travel worn clothes, one would wonder if he had been with them at all.

Wish I recovered so quickly, Magnus mused to himself, bringing his wagon to a halt.

"We have a welcome party," Basileus announced, smirking to Magnus over a certain person's presence.

Having already descended the wall, Renata eyed the wagon for signs of Corin. "I've been keeping watch, Master," she explained to the juggernaut.

Magnus smirked back to Basileus. "You know she's here for the girl, you old fool," he chuckled, bringing Corin down from the back first.

No sooner had Magnus set Corin on her feet than she was off them again! Renata lifted the girl clean off the ground and swung her around in the air.

"I am so sorry."

Renata, not Corin, apologised, drawing the attention of everyone present.

"I'll never push you away like that again, I swear it."

Bringing up the rear in the wolf wagon with his brother, Aro overheard Renata's promise. You only pushed her aside this time because I told you to, he reminded himself. Same for Felix. And Odi, probably. The king, though still livid with the danger his sons had inflicted upon themselves, blamed himself a little for the situation that brought about their decision to leave the coven.

Basileus smiled to himself hearing his son's thoughts. A little parental guilt would make his plans easier to see through, he hoped.

"Don't do too much with the children until we have talked," Basileus told those concerned. He ordered a guard to find Marcus for him and promptly left, whispering to Atia.

Magnus instructed Renata to take Corin back to the dorms and headed to Caius, whose emotional reading gave the juggernaut cause for concern.

"I asked to be notified when you returned," Caius snapped, jumping to answer a question never asked.

"Aye, alright," Magnus said, soothing the man with his calm tone. "Why are you so…"

"I just came to help," Caius jumped in again. "If you needed any."

Behind them, Irina and Odi had exited the wagon, with the latter offering to help Kate due to her bad leg. Simple kindness.

Irina saw the kid's actions differently - perhaps he's trying to earn some brownie points before the showdown? Knowing she, too, could do with getting some overlords on-side, Irina pushed Odi aside.

"Is she your sister now?" she sniped at Odi. With a sickly-sweet smile, she helped Kate hop out of the wagon.

Odi snorted in her face. "She'd be better off!"

If he'd left it there, no one would have said a word about the exchange. Calling the Denali girl a 'twisted bitch' forced Magnus to respond.

He snatched Odi from the spot and gave him a clout before shoving the kid in Caius' direction. "Take him home for me and tell Freyr I won't be long."

Aro whistled into the air hearing Magnus bossing about their co-Master. "Shine his shoes whilst you're at it."

Magnus didn't miss a beat. "They could do with it, if you're offering Aro?"

Pausing for long enough that the coven king felt uncomfortable, Magnus flashed everyone a broad, forced smile, and headed off to instruct his guards in storing the werewolf haul. They wouldn't have the early evening light for long so the job couldn't wait.

"Why wind him up? I already said I'd come to help," Caius reminded his brother-in-arms with a glare. "Come on," he said to Odi, forgetting to tell Magnus that Freyr was at the market with Marcus.

Caius didn't get very far.

"I know why you're getting him on-side," Aro sang out.

When Caius met his eye, Aro held his hand to his mouth, as though he were drinking from a bottle. "Dungeon blood."

Caius closed his eyes and cursed. He flashed as close to the man as he could, hoping no one else would hear them. "Listen, Aro…"

"I assume you drank it on the way home and that you kept any trouble away from the coven, so it is not my concern." Aro paused and dropped his smile for a moment. "Correct?" he pushed when Caius made no move to respond.

"Correct." Or not entirely incorrect, Caius thought to himself.

Aro relaxed. "Wonderful. Basileus called you every name under the sun when he realised you had swiped the bottle, so you'll still need Magnus on-side."

"Then I'd better keep him sweet by getting Odi home."

Caius clicked his fingers in the kid's direction and bid good day to his co-master. Aro and Eleazar collected up their broods and headed into the castle, too.

When Odi tried to engage Caius in conversation on the walk to the north tower, he received no more than a grunt in return. Charming! It had only been a week ago that Caius had so gallantly saved him from Aro's wrath, but they were already back to square one. Odi wondered how it was possible to piss someone off when he wasn't around but by the scowl on Caius' face, he knew he'd achieved it.

It was a relief when they made it to the tower door. Facing his mother wouldn't be much fun but it would be better than walking in Caius' cold shadow.

Caius had different ideas. "In here," he said, opening his own chamber door.

"No thanks."

Caius scoffed and dragged Odi back down the three steps he had managed to climb. "Freyr's at the market so you will wait with me where I can keep you under watch."

Odi's complaints caught in his throat when Dora launched at him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"I missed you so much!"

He could tell! Odi tried to speak but her grip was too tight.

"Are you okay?"

Caius tutted at his mate's over-emotional display. "How do you expect him to talk with your arms around his throat?"

"I'm okay, Dora," Odi assured the woman, rubbing his neck. "I'm not a child." Ignoring Caius' chuckle at such an assertion, he continued. "How many missions have I been on? Why wouldn't I be okay?"

"I'm not doubting your abilities, you fool." Dora sighed and wiped the kid's face; a stray tear he hadn't realised he'd shed. "I've been worried about you. We all have."

"Don't be so dramatic," Odi replied, smiling despite himself. It was nice to hear she cared. Especially after a month or so of thinking no one did. "I'm sure he told you I was still alive."

"He did, yes. Your mother wouldn't leave these chambers until Caius returned with the news you were safe. She's worried herself sick about you."

"Did you hear that?!" Caius jabbed Odi hard in the back. "Do you care at all?!"

Odi gulped down the bile in his throat. His father had refused to discuss anything on their way home and Odi didn't know whether his mother had read his note. It's bad enough that Dad's read it, he thought with a shudder. What a brat! He knew his mother's worry would be greater than Dora's, and she seemed pretty concerned.

"I didn't expect anyone to worry about me," he replied to Dora, doing his best to continue ignoring Caius.

Sadly for Odi, Caius just couldn't stop himself.

"Such a self-centred brat," he said. "I hope Magnus belts you blind, I really do. I might stick around for the show."

"Leave him alone," Dora hissed at her mate. "You're upsetting him. There's no need."

It pleased Odi to have Dora on-side, but he couldn't understand why Caius was being so vicious. Belt me blind… harsh. Possible, though. Maybe even deserved?

"There's every need," Caius replied to his mate. "You've seen the state Freyr's been in."

Odi scrubbed a hand through his hair as thoughts of upsetting his mother passed through his mind. He saw her staring out the window with silent tears running down her cheeks – at least, that's how he remembered her after his brothers had left in the dead of night. So many years has passed, but Odi could still see his mother's heartbreak, his father's fear-induced rage. He had hated them both for a time, his brothers, that is. How could they put their parents through such horror? He had reasoned Ivar and Sven couldn't possibly appreciate Magnus and Freyr the way he did, their love. How could they when they'd always received it so easily. But now he had done the same thing. He caused the same pain. And Caius hated him for it.

As if on cue the woman in question arrived. Odi gulped and suddenly his eyes welled-up again.

Seeing her boy struggling and overcome with her own relief, Freyr, in much the same way Dora had minutes before, wrapped Odi in her arms.

He tried to speak, to apologise, something. But the words wouldn't come. It didn't matter. Freyr knew what he would have said if he were able.

Finally, Odi found his voice.

"I'm okay, Mom," he said, swiping at his eyes and feeling embarrassed in front of Caius and Dora. Or at least Caius. Dora was nicer and easier to be vulnerable in front of.

Freyr pulled away understanding why he would be feeling shy. It wouldn't stop her saying her piece, however.

"Why did you leave?" she asked. Her tone uneasy and anxious which was far from usual for the shield maiden. "Do you have any idea what you've put me through?"

If she brings up Ivar and Sven leaving, I'm going to break, Odi thought as he concentrated very hard on not crying.

"After everything we went through with your brothers… I expected better of you, my darling."

Odi released a small whimper as he sucked back the tears.

"He knows exactly what he's done." Caius, still stomping about his chambers, huffed. "You are expecting him to act like an adult," he pointed out to Freyr. "Clearly you've expected too much."

Odi was right, at least partially. Caius was pissed with him for upsetting his mother. Odi's mother, that is. Caius reminded himself often that Freyr was Odi's mother, not his own. He hadn't really processed why it bothered him so much, all he knew was that it did bother him, and it was Odi's fault.

"Keep out of it," Odi shot out, glaring at Caius for making matters worse. "I am a fucking adult."

It was just the reaction Caius wanted - something to argue with.

"Don't you dare get kicking off in here, you ungrateful little shit!" he said, squaring up to the kid. "You need to grow up. You're too old for tantrums, Odi."

"You're too old to be alive."

"So are you, dick head."

"Stop it, both of you!" Dora implored, her wide eyes focused on her mate to signal that he was being an ass.

Caius ignored her, of course.

"He needs a serious wake up call," he went on. "He needs to know serious actions have serious consequences."

"Yeah," Odi chuckled to himself. "I get it, Caius. It's serious."

"You don't get it, though, do you?!"

Odi winced from the vicious jab Caius gave his shoulder. Having Freyr pull him out of the way to safety felt better.

Safe or not, Caius still wasn't done. "You took three of Aro's kids to a fucking werewolf den, you idiot. Do you think he's going to forget that you put his sons in grave danger?"

"I do actually, yes." Hiding behind his mother, Odi felt brave enough to reply. "You stopped him from getting near me back in the caves and he hasn't mentioned pinning this on me since."

Freyr spun around to face her boy. "What happened with Aro?"

"He, erm, went a little crazy. Dad and Basileus were finding carts and humans and stuff. Aro would have killed me if Caius hadn't stood up to him."

Caius scoffed as though Odi was lying through his fangs, so Odi called him out on it.

"You said he'd have to go through you to get to me."

"Did you really, Caius?" Dora asked, keen to hear the glimmer of hope for her husband's relationship with Odi. "Did you mean it?"

"Of course I bloody did!" Caius threw his hands up in the air. "As if I'd have let Aro get his hands on him?! I'm pissed with him, but I love him!"

It took a moment or two for Caius to realise what he had said. Seeing the goofy grins Freyr and Dora wore made him repeat his words in his mind.

Fuck.

Caius continued cursing to himself as he stalked to his bedchamber where he planned to stay until he forgot he'd ever admitted such a thing.

Feeling happier than she had in a long time, Freyr took her boy home.

Across the castle, Magnus finished up directing his guards with storing the dead wolves in the disused stables. He did more of the heavy lifting than he would have liked, but he couldn't stand by watching two struggle with a wolf between them when he could easily lift one solo. With the last wolf laid out on the ground, Magnus shut the stable door. The wolves stunk to high heavens. Perhaps not to other wolves, maybe not even to humans. But to vampires, werewolves reeked. Magnus sniffed his shirt and realised he didn't smell much better. All he wanted to do was relax in a hot bath, but before he could do that, he needed to check on his guards. Two of them in particular.

Moving through the coven, something felt off. Magnus was a popular coven master; he had been since he'd ascended to the role. So why were the guards, his guards, standoffish, distant? Polite still, sure, but there was something going on. Thanks to the outcast mission, Magnus' hands were full but he would get to the bottom of guards disputes as soon as he had time.

Turning into the guard hall, he spotted Turk laughing behind the bar. Oh, I don't think so!

"Get off that bar and get to your dorm, now!"

The young barkeep jumped out of his skin! He didn't move, though. Instead, Turk looked in Phillipe's direction and waited for a nod from the man before he scurried out of the hall, offering apologies to the guard master as he went.

Aside from Turk's obvious surprise and subsequent stress, Magnus felt an abrupt shift in the emotions of the room. He looked around the hall. Every single guard in attendance felt… annoyed? Unhappy, at least. Their ire was directed at him!

Magnus wasn't sure how to play matters, for one, he didn't know what was going on! He went to the bar and helped himself to a very large whiskey – Aro always said there was little a whiskey couldn't help with. When he turned back around, Phillipe and Richard were mere inches away, the latter feeling resolute, the former, agitated.

They clearly wanted a conversation of some sort. At least, Magnus hoped that was all they wanted.

Magnus had long since learnt there was little to be gained in arguing with Phillipe. The guy was a volatile beast when he had a bee in his bonnet. Much easier to speak to Richard and have him relay the conversation to his mate.

Magnus set down his glass on the bar and said to Phil, "You can go with Turk and keep him company until I'm ready for him."

With a little shoving from Richard, Phillipe left the hall.

"Come on then," Magnus said, prompting Richard to speak. "I'm assuming this is about Turk."

"Master, it's just that…" Richard paused to take a steading breath. "Adrianna and Carlisle knew what was going on, too, Master. We don't think it's right that Turk is punished for his mistake keeping your son's secrets."

A little loaded, Magnus thought to himself, glad he had chosen to speak to Richard and not Phillipe.

"Carlisle didn't know much, and Adrianna is too…" He nearly said stupid, too stupid to know what was going on, but he stopped himself in time. It wasn't a pleasant way to talk about a lady, even if the lady in question was as thick as two short planks. "Adrianna didn't realise what she knew."

That sounded weak, he thought, and by the look on Richard's face, Magnus could tell his guard agreed.

"I'm pleased you're standing up for Turk - that kid needs someone looking out for him." Magnus paused to take a swig of his whiskey. "But I'm not an ogre, he's not in any danger with me. "

"What about with the king, Master?"

"Turk's neck is safe, if that's what you're worried about?"

Whilst Richard's emotions certainly settled hearing Turk wouldn't die for his mistake, he still felt conflicted to Magnus.

"What else is it, Rich?"

"Master, it's just that Caius, he has been, erm…"

"Caius has been, what?"

Richard's hands were clammy. He wiped them on his tunic and found his voice. "He's been scaring Turk about repercussions every chance he gets."

Which explains why Caius was so skittish at the gates. Magnus exhaled slowly and took another swig of his whiskey.

Richard continued, "The guards are against Turk suffering any repercussions for the outcast mission…"

"And why would that be?" Magnus asked, his head snapping up. "I know you know," he pushed when Richard remained silent, knowing he'd said too much. "So, was it Phil threatening the other guards, or was it you talking them into Turk's corner? Or both? Both. Great."

Richard whispered an apology across the bar for his involvement, but it was insincere. Both Richard and Phil felt they had done the right thing by Turk, which was their primary directive. He did apologise for any additional stress their actions would bring to Magnus' feet, and that was genuine.

What could Magnus say? Richard and Phillipe were doing the same with Turk as he and Freyr were doing with Caius. How could he give them a round of fucks when he would do the same thing, were roles reversed?

Magnus knocked back the last of his drink. "I want you to know I understand why you have stood up for Turk, but I'm not pleased with the way you've gone about it."

"Yes, Master."

"You can take on the bar until I release Turk," he told the guard, leaving to seek out the kid in question.

Magnus would pass Corin's dorm before he'd get to Turks and had already decided to look in on the girl. Hearing her sobbing caused him to double his pace. Throwing open her dorm door, he was presented with Renata stuffing clothes into a cotton bag whilst Corin sat with her head in her hands.

"What's going on?" Magnus asked, joining Corin on her bed. "Why are you so upset?"

"Ren says we have to leave!"

Renata stopped dead and looked to Magnus beseechingly. "Please, Master," she began, her voice quivering. "Allow us to leave. Help us to leave. Please."

Magnus didn't know what to say. He wasn't even sure what they were talking about. Logically he knew vampires shouldn't get headaches, but he damn sure had one!

"I know what she did was stupid." Renata paused to sternly tell Corin, 'very stupid'. "But I can't sit around here waiting for the king to end her life over one foolish mistake." Again, Renata paused to tell Corin, 'or many stupid mistakes'.

"Hold up, hold up," Magnus said with his hands out placating. "No one is going anywhere, and no one is going to die for a mistake. Or a few mistakes." He took the bag from Renata's hands. "We don't kill kids for being kids, Ren."

"I'm surprised you've forgotten Lucy so easily, Master."

Magnus recoiled from Renata's harsh tone.

"I'm sorry, Magnus," Renata said, recovering more quickly than he did. "But we have killed kids, as a coven. I won't lose her for a stupid mission. I can't…"

The poor woman broke down and found herself in Magnus' arms. Soon enough Corin joined them.

"No one's going anywhere," he assured the pair. "Basileus and I have already talked it over and I can promise you, no one is going to die."

For the entire time the outcasts were away, Renate stayed fixed in position on the front wall. Rain or shine, and there was a lot of rain, she hadn't moved. Even when Caius returned with good news, she still wouldn't leave her post. She spent her watch running through plans to get Corin to safety. It was no secret that Renata was Aro's favourite guard, and she believed she had a good reputation in the coven. Maybe the masters thought enough of her to let her take Corin away? Renata didn't want to leave, though. She didn't even like taking jobs outside of the coven. And Corin would wish to leave even less! Not without Felix.

"Are you sure?" Renata asked, her nerves completely frazzled. She was desperate to believe him. "You're sure she won't die, certain?"

Magnus clasped the woman's hand to his chest. "On my life, and my honour."

Relieved, Renata got herself under control. "They won't get away with it though, will they?"

She certainly hoped not. Renata had been truly committed to fleeing the coven with Corin if the girl's life was in danger. If it wasn't, then she hoped the higher-ups would impress upon her and her co-conspirators just how badly behaved they had been,

Magnus chuckled and kissed Corin on her head before moving for the door. "Oh no," he said. "They won't be getting away with it."

Closing the door behind him, he heard Corin gasp and felt her panic rising again. Scared of death, he wouldn't wish for her to feel, but scared of just punishment… he was okay with that.

Down the hall, he heard Phillipe shouting, rounding out Turk who seemed aggrieved for being sent to his dorm like a petulant child.

Sounds like Phil has it all in hand, Magnus mused as he approached. Having Phillipe and Richard take Turk under their wings could cause a disturbance in the guard, Magnus knew that. In fact, he would go so far as to say that it already had as half the guard now resented their favourite Master for punishing the young barkeep- and I haven't even done anything yet! -but he also felt it would be handy. Having a good, solid couple like them to guide Turk on the right path (and be the ones to issue a round of fucks when he strayed from it) would lighten the guard master's load.

Mind, set. Magnus planned to make short work of saying his piece to Turk before heading home to deal with his own boy. The sooner this is behind us all, the better.

The knock he gave on the door was curt, serving only as a warning of entry as Magnus didn't wait for a response before storming inside.

"Master…"

"Hold up, Turk," Magnus said, cutting him off. He turned to Phillipe. "Have you been on his case whilst I was away?"

"Yes!" Turk burst out, unable to hold himself back. "He has, and so has Rich."

"Good, that's good."

That put Turk on the back foot! He eyed Magnus suspiciously. "Good?" he questioned. "But they have no right…"

"No right?!"

Phil stepped forward and then back again remembering Magnus was present. He continued to silently fume - after all the efforts he and his mate had made on Turk's behalf, it felt a bitter pill to swallow.

Thankfully, Magnus had his back.

"It's good because it saves me a job," Magnus explained. "And they have every right…"

He drifted off seeing the kid pay him so little attention. Magnus knew Turk well and although he was generally a good kid, his had a sullen side, as so many do. He didn't take too kindly to a ticking off, either.

Since Magnus' appointment as guard Master, he could count on one hand how many times he'd had to address behaviour with Turk, which, when considering vampiric temperament, was a remarkable record. Magnus toyed with leaving the boy be for the time being as he'd already decided to make sure Turk wouldn't suffer any more harshly than Tanya and Jane - they were both fully aware of the outcasts' mission, too, after all.

Turk spoiled it for himself when he muttered under his breath, "They don't have any right," he said about Phil and Rich. "They're just guards, same as me."

"Insolent brat," Phil huffed behind the boy.

If I'm going to have Phil and Rich step up with Turk then I need to set you straight, young one.

"Insolent brat is right," Magnus boomed, his voice bouncing around the small, single dorm. "They are older than you, much older. They are older than your king, for Christ's sake! And they have more sense-" Magnus didn't stop to clarify that he meant more sense than Turk rather than more sense than Aro… his point worked either way to be fair "-You will show them the respect they are due as your elders."

Turk cursed under his breath. I'm to be a guard under guards? An under-guard? "Fuck," he said, a little louder than the first time.

Magnus was quick to react - he backhanded the young guard across his disrespectful mouth.

"And you will mind your damn mouth in my presence, boy!"

"Yes, Master," Turk replied, blinking rapidly to quell his tears. "Sorry, Master."

He hadn't hit him hard, but Magnus softened when he checked Turk's emotions and found genuine repentance. He's not a bad kid, he reminded himself. He's only caught up in all of this out of loyalty to my son.

"Listen, Turk," the guard Master said, guiding the kid to his bed.

Turk began to panic expecting punishment, no doubt. He soon flooded with relief when Magnus indicated he should sit alongside him.

"Phil and Rich have stuck their necks out for you and saved yours in the process," Magnus went on. "You should be grovelling to the pair of them. You can't expect that kind of loyalty from others without relinquishing a little control, can you, young one?"

Eyeing the man carefully, Turk attempted to read between the lines. There was something in Magnus' tone that said he should. I don't want to relinquish control, though, he thought. That said, he didn't want to die for keeping quiet about the outcast mission, either. Such a response had never been on the cards, but Turk believed it was possible - a good many of the guards believed it was possible, come to that!

"You aren't going to die for a foolish mistake. You need to think about what you've done, the mistakes you've made, and the loyalty you have been shown by others."

Turk snapped out of his thoughts. "Master, do you mean that's all I need to do?"

Phillipe watched Magnus carefully as he schooled his features into a stern expression. Something was amusing the guard Master, but Phil couldn't see what was so funny. He had better receive some sort of punishment after all this stress, he thought, wishing Magnus could hear him.

"Aye," Magnus finally said with, unable to hide his smirk. "You won't be doing much else as you are on block, my boy. No work for you."

Turk beamed; Phillipe scowled.

"That's what you'll be doing," Magnus said, getting to his feet and heading to the door. He stopped just short of leaving and turned back to the young barkeep. "Of course, I'll be doing something else. You will have the ashes of your arse handed to you in due course."

Turk released a gasp. That's not good!

"Though I'm tempted to have Phil do the honours."

Shooting a nervous sideways glance to Phillipe, Turk cringed even harder. That's worse! Is it? Oh God!

"One last thing," Magnus said from the doorway. "Don't worry about Caius. I'll make sure he to backs off."

With the boy lost in horrific thoughts, Phil had to nudge him to respond.

"Thank you, Master," he said. It felt a little like he was thanking a dog for biting him!

Freyr leapt at Magnus when he walked through their chamber door. She hadn't hugged him so tightly in many years. It wasn't an indication of a poor relationship between the two, simply a show of her gratitude for saving their child. The feelings overwhelmed her completely, as they had been doing since Caius returned to the coven with good news.

Magnus tucked her hair behind her ear and whispered, "I told you we wouldn't lose him, love."

Freyr bobbed her head into his chest, unable to speak. She didn't need to - he could feel what she felt.

Eventually, the stench of werewolf blood acted as smelling salts to Freyr's frayed emotions, bringing her some stability. She broke the silence by offering him a bath. When she scrunched up her nose at the idea of sharing one with him, Magnus settled for a wash and a change of clothes so he could speak to their boy - he could feel the poor kid's agitation through the stone walls. Sometimes his gift was a curse.

On entering his son's bedchamber, Magnus found Odi's emotional state was almost as distressing as his wife's.

Sitting on his bed with his feet on the floor, Odi bounced both legs, flinching periodically as he waited for his father. Magnus considered sending him for a bath to calm down, but from the wet shaggy mop of dark hair on his head, clearly Odi had already tried that. Best to get on with the chat, he decided.

Odi spoke before the man had a chance.

"Listen, Dad, I know… I know I failed you, again. I know. You don't have to say it. I thought… I thought I could prove myself going on that mission. I don't know why I thought that now… it made more sense at the time. I know I screwed up, again. I always do. I know that, too."

"You know a lot, it seems."

Magnus went to the chair in the corner of the room. He dumped the clothes it held onto the floor and dragged it over to Odi. Taking a seat, he watched his boy for a moment, rubbing his chin and sighing.

To Odi, it looked like his father was trying to work out what to do with him. Or how hard to whip me, he thought in horror. Thinking on his feet, Odi decided not to give his old man too long to think on such things. Approaching with some trepidation, Odi sucked in his breath to hold back the tears and started to unlace his britches.

Placing his hand on his son's, Magnus stopped him. "No, young one," he said quietly.

Oh no! Sweat began to bead at the back of Odi's neck. I wasn't quick enough! He's already decided on something worse!

"You, my boy, are miserable. You've been miserable for a while now," Magnus said gently. "We need to work out how to put things right."

His face was serious, his eyes kind, and his voice understanding. It gave the kid some hope that he could talk the guy down to a lesser punishment.

Is he asking my opinion on punishments? Sucking in his breath to hold his nerve, Odi relinquished his pride and asked for a punishment not befitting the crime.

"Please, Dad. Well… not that I want it, but I'd rather you… and I promise it will be worse for me that anything else you're thinking of-" asking for it is worse than anything you're thinking of "-I'd rather you spanked me…"

He broke off hearing his dad chuckle.

"There's no need to laugh at me," he said indignantly.

"I'm sorry, son." Magnus had to hide his mouth behind hid hand whilst he got his smile under control. "I'm not talking about discipline, young one. I'm talking about trying to make you happy again."

"Huh?" I've been on a secret mission and you had to trek across countries to save me and you… want to make me happy? "Huh?"

"I know you and Caius are rocky still," Magnus began, smiling sadly to Odi's woeful nod. "I need you to forget about Caius for now. This has nothing to do with him. You are my son, you're my baby…"

"Dad!"

Magnus outright laughed that time. "You've been my baby for eight hundred years, and then some. I feel like I'm really letting you down, and it is killing me. We need to work this out, son. You and Caius will be fine in time."

Odi rolled his eyes. "You think everything can be solved in time."

"Because it can be," Magnus replied. "Being vampires, time is something we have in abundance. So long as you don't go running off getting yourself killed by a load of werewolves, of course."

Cringing, Odi appreciated his father trying to make light of his latest monumental fuck-up, but he wasn't ready to laugh about it. "I won't do it again," he swore. "I won't do that to you and mom again. It was so selfish."

"Aye, it was," Magnus agreed. "But I understand why went. You're bored and lost, and dare I say, a little lonely. Thing is, we can't have you working in the coven anymore…"

"But…"

"You won't work, young one," Magnus reminded him. "We've tried, we've covered for you, we've made it as easy as possible for you, but you working doesn't… work!"

"Then what am I supposed to do around here?"

A big question. Bigger than Odi himself realised.

On their travels home, Magnus and Basileus had discussed various options for keeping the younger coven members meaningfully occupied. They hadn't come up with a solid plan, yet, but they intended to hold a masters meeting soon to discuss such matters. Once the dust had settled.

"I'm figuring that out, son." It was the best Magnus could offer for the time being.

"Could you figure out a way for me to stay in the guard?" Odi asked, or more like pleaded. "Just the odd shift here and there, with Turk, maybe?"

As he wasn't ready to commit to any promises, Magnus shrugged and said he'd see what he could do. "For now, you are grounded. And I mean grounded, not restriction. Any arguments?"

Lots! Odi didn't voice them, though. "No, sir."

There was something else he really needed to say, however.

"Dad, the note I left…"

Magnus pulled the parchment in question out of his pocket. "I don't want your mother to find out about this," he said, wafting it about. "It would break her heart. Fire?"

Odi nodded and shied away from his father, pulling his legs up to his chest. He watched as the parchment curled in the flames, releasing purple smoke through the chimney. Oh, how he wished his guilt would burn away as easily.

Taking a seat on Odi's bed, Magnus said, "That note would have bled blue."

"I'm sorry about my language," Odi replied, voice a whisper. "All of it. I don't know why I wrote it."

"You really poured your heart and soul into that note and I know why you wrote it. You did what children do when they're unhappy - lashed out at those who love you because if they loved you enough you wouldn't feel so bad in the first place."

"That makes me sound like a dick. A childish dick."

Magnus chuckled and wrapped his arm around his boy.

"I lied to you, son. I told you I couldn't remember blaming you when Ivar and Sven left us, but I remember."

Odi's head shot to the side. In all the years of their vampiric existence, and the few human years before, Magnus had vehemently denied remembering anything Odi could recall.

"It haunts me and always will," Magnus went on. "We need to draw a line under this…"

Odi's arms came up to rest on his knees, his hands went to hide his face. Don't say it, don't say it.

"Cards on the table. Losing your brothers, that wasn't your fault, but it did change the way I look at you. It changed what you mean to me…"

Odi blocked out the words. He had opened up a hornets' nest in that note, he knew it. He didn't want to hear Magnus admit that Sven and Ivar meant so much more than he ever could. He couldn't hear his father say, if he'd had a choice, that he would have chosen to lose Odi instead of his real sons. Odi wasn't daft - he expected those things to be true, he just couldn't stand to hear it.

"Did you hear me, young one?" Magnus asked. He pulled his son in close and held him tight. "It made you the most important person in my whole world."

The poor kid had no words. He could tell his father was speaking the truth. He didn't need Magnus' gift – there was something in his tone, in his tight hold, something telling him it was true.

"Those big sad eyes." Magnus used his cuff to wipe away his son's tears before he continued. "I have failed you recently, but I failed with the best of intentions. This stuff with you and Caius, you and the guards, you refusing to feed… I thought maybe if I backed off a little, things would be easier for you, that you'd be happier."

I think it made us both miserable. Odi didn't say it aloud, neither did he say what he really felt. I thought you didn't want me anymore.

"I know I suffocate you sometimes."

"Not really," Odi lied.

"Your mother has told me you've said those exact words."

Odi just chuckled, same way Magnus had earlier in their conversation.

"For a kid your age you could probably do with a little more freedom than you get. It's tough because I can't back off, I can't leave you to it. I need you closer than that. I always will need you closer than that."

Truth was, Odi needed Magnus close, too. The juggernaut was his safe place. When the guy wasn't breathing down his neck, Odi always went awry. He wasn't about to tell his father so, however. He had some pride. He wanted to push at the boundaries, but he wanted those boundaries in place, so he wasn't about to argue his way out of having them.

The Caius thing still bothered Odi, though. "About Caius…" he started and stopped. Just be honest, he told himself. "I miss him, Dad. It was bad enough with the guards, but at least I could hang out with Caius. I mean, sure, he took every chance he could to rib me, but it felt… friendly. Sometimes."

Magnus listened as his boy spoke and wished he could wave a wand and make things right. He had loose plans made in his mind, but no quick fixes. It was all so difficult without knowing what Caius really wanted. Aside from protection – Magnus knew Caius wanted that from him. But is he willing to relinquish some control, as Magnus had told Turk he would need to do in relation to Phil and Rich? Magnus wasn't so sure.

Odi ended on, "Where does Caius fit in?"

Magnus could offer some sort of answer to that.

"Wherever he fits, he will never replace you." Magnus was absolute on that. "It might mean I have two most important people in my whole world."

Odi gave his father a mocking gasp, the edges of his open mouth curling. "And mom still doesn't get a place?!"

Magnus gave the same mock gasp. Kid's going to see my balls in a vice, he thought, snorting. "I could put you over my knee any time I like, you know?" he reminded the boy with a withering glare.

Getting serious again, Magnus looked his boy in the eye and sighed. "Odi, I'm asking you to never doubt our love for you again. Actually, I'm ordering it."

Magnus rarely made an order. Requests and suggestions aplenty, but not orders, so it meant something when he did.

"Okay," Odi said, nodding solemnly. "Am I just grounded?" Please say yes! "It's just Mom sounded pretty sure I'd be more than grounded. Can't we call it restriction?"

Magnus laughed and shook his head, hugging Odi a little tighter as he did so. He didn't look pleased about condemning his boy to further punishment and childish terms, which Odi appreciated.

"You know what I've got to do, young one. Make it easy on us both."

Before either could make a move, Caius waltzed in without knocking.

"He'll have to wait," he said to Magnus, letting Odi know he'd been listening for a minute or two at least. "Marcus demands our immediate presence in the creator's suite."

Magnus planted a kiss on his boy's wet hair. "I guess for now you're just grounded."

As the coven masters walked the halls, Magnus tried to pry some information from the Caius. "Are you going to tell me whats going on with you?"

Caius tutted. "Nothing going on with me."

"You sure about that?" When Magnus got no response, he changed topic. "How long were you listening in on my private conversation with Odi?"

Freyr had already left to meet Basileus and Marcus, so Magnus guessed Caius had been listening for longer than Odi suspected.

"Will you have my back?" Caius asked. "With the creator, I mean?"

Magnus didn't say anything.

"Well?"

"Sorry," Magnus replied, sweetness and light. "I thought we were just asking each other questions without bothering with the answers."

Caius huffed again, his agitation growing as they ascended the stairs of the west tower. "I heard Odi is your baby and always will be," he admitted with a snort.

So, you heard quite a lot. "Caius, listen…"

"Will you have my back or not?"

Magnus rested his hand on the creator's door handle. He had agreed with Basileus about one thing on their travels - he needed to taker a firmer stand with Caius and his demands.

"That will depend on what you have done, Caius," he said, entering the main chamber without waiting for the younger master's response.

Atia and Freyr sat together, as they usually did, with neither breaking stride in their conversation to greet Magnus and Caius. Marcus and Basileus were more welcoming and offered the pair goblets of wine, whilst Eleazar sat staring out of the window. Aro was yet to arrive - always last to any gathering.

Sensing something was off with the elder prince, Magnus took his wine over and sat with the man. "How have you got on with the girls, El?"

As his head whirled, Eleazar began rambling in Spanish.

Safe in Eleazar's arms, Kate closed her eyes. Being carried into the castle was so embarrassing. But what else could she do? Hop? Irina said she'd rather crawl on her belly than rely on a man and Kate might have agreed, if the man in question wasn't Eleazar.

Pulling a little tighter on the Volturi Prince's neck, Kate had a good view of her sister walking behind. She must be tired, Kate said to herself seeing Irina walk with her head bent low. She folded her hands over one another, over and over again, and appeared to be talking to herself.

Kate assumed Irina had a plan to evade coven discipline – Irina always had a plan for everything! The other outcasts had discussed possible punishments at length on their journey home. Whether hushed chatter under blankets in the back of the wagon, or strained speech as they hauled the wagons along when the horses tired - the outcasts had managed to scare each other stupid.

You'll have a plan to save yourself, Kate thought again, with confidence. You threw us to the wolves first chance you got. Not literally, of course. Kate didn't care. She'd long since decided to take whatever her guardians felt she was due. She just hoped they'd have the heart to get her leg fixed before adding to her discomfort.

Irina, as Kate suspected, was desperately trying to formulate a plan. Just play it cool, she told herself. It's their fault - I was trying to prove myself. They pushed me into it. Damn over lords!

As far as plans go, Irina's was weak, and she knew it.

All of Irina's intentions for defending her actions fell by the wayside when they reached their west tower chambers. A sudden feeling of relief overwhelmed the vicious Denali sister. A feeling of gratitude, even, for having a safe place to be. As she followed Eleazar into their shared home, Irina closed the door behind them, resting her back against the wood as if to hold it shut. To keep the outside, outside, away from harm.

She stood there for a while in a trance as she tried in vain to process all her feelings. Much of the time, since Sasha had been executed, Irina didn't feel anything at all. It was as though she were hollow, nothing there. And then emotions would come in a rush, all at once. It was a cruel trick of her fragile psyche, in Irina's opinion.

"Thank God!" Carmen cried, wrapping her arms around the girl.

Irina found her arms reciprocating Carmen's embrace. And once she had reached her arms around the woman, she held on tight and wouldn't let go.

"Are you well?" Carmen asked, leaning back a little to get a look at the girl.

Am I? Irina wondered. She toyed with telling the truth. No, I'm not. I'm broken. I don't know how to fix myself and I keep making everything worse. I'm self-destructing in front of you and nobody cares. Why would they? I mean nothing to no one. Would you care?

Irina could never have opened her heart like that, though. Getting herself together and withdrawing her hold on Carmen, Irina felt her emotions settle back to the everlasting nothingness she was now accustomed to.

"I'm fine, just tired," she answered. "Thanks, though." She even managed a small, sad smile.

"You're home now," Carmen said, rubbing the girl's arms which Irina had wrapped around herself. "We need to get you cleaned up and then we will talk."

"Talk?" Irina repeated, and immediately cursed herself.

"I think you know we need to talk, yes?"

She just didn't have it in her to argue. Irina nodded and rolled her eyes. She could argue after a bath, she reasoned.

"You'll have to help this one," Eleazar told his mate.

He had set Kate down in a chair and began unwinding the crude bandages around her legs.

"Good lord!" Carmen screeched seeing the damage. "You poor thing! Such silly girls. Look at the state you're in!"

When Kate began to cry, Carmen quit her tirade - like Irina, she reasoned it would keep until they had bathed. With that in mind, she sent Irina down to Carlisle's suite to borrow his bathroom. Kate, she carried to their own leaving the girl with her younger sister to help her… Carmen would have stayed, but she had a bone to pick with her husband.

"And you!"

Jesus, woman! Eleazar jumped, spilling the bloodwine he had poured for himself. "I am your husband, not your errant child."

"You certainly are errant," Carmen told him, hands on hips in full fishwife position, as Eleazar thought it. "Why did you all take so long to send Caius back here? We were frantic, El. Frantic! Waiting a whole week to hear they were safe. Alive, even!"

Eleazar blinked in time with Carmen's rapid-fire accusations. "Caius was sent straight back!"

Carmen snorted in derision. "A week is not straight back, my love."

"Hang on," Eleazar held up his hand to quieten his wife before she could begin again. "It took Caius a week to get back to you. As in, a week after we left?"

"Yes!" she snapped back. "I was going out of my mind, El. We all were."

Eleazar took a long swig of his bloodwine. Oh, how he'd missed the civility of feeding from a cup! He firmed the dates in his mind before answering aloud. "We left here midday on the 8th," he said, taking another gulp. "We got to them by midnight the same day. Caius should have been with you late on the 9th."

"Try the 15th, my love."

My love? Eleazar smirked a little. He could tell that she'd switched from blaming him to blaming Caius. Far preferable, he thought. Creeping to her side, he pulled her into his arms.

"I don't know what he got up to, but I'll find out," he vowed. "I can only apologise for his selfishness."

"Oh, El," Carmen turned away from his to take a deep breath. "You smell horrendous."

"I'll be next in the bath, don't worry."

"I'll help Kate along," Carmen replied, disentangling herself from the man.

Outside the bathroom door, she heard Tanya and Kate talking. Although she knew she shouldn't, Carmen stayed quiet to listen for a while.

"You do exactly what she says without question," Tanya said to her sister. Poor thing sounded full of concern. "You should have been scared."

Tanya hadn't realised at the time how dangerous the outcast mission would be. It had been drilled into both her and Jane just how reckless it was for them to stay quiet, how they would have been living with the death of their siblings on their conscience for the rest of eternity. Their mothers had laid it on thick as their own worries grew day by day. By the time Caius had returned, both girls were consumed with gut-wrenching guilt.

"I was scared," Kate quietly replied.

"You should have been too scared to go with her."

"She's our sister, Tan." Kate really tried to sound cheerful, but her exhaustion shone through. "I trust her."

"I know, and that's what makes her dangerous."

"She's not dangerous," Kate dismissed. "No more so than Corin or Odi or Felix."

Carmen had to agree with the girl there. She felt it would be important to keep in mind that Irina didn't plan the mission alone, nor did she attend alone. Carmen planned to make sure she didn't bear the brunt of the scorn alone, either.

Giving a short knock, Carmen went it to help the girls along so Eleazar could use the facilities. She zipped around the bathroom in a whirlwind. Kate felt like she'd barely blinked before finding herself clean, dressed, and tucked up in bed with only her damaged leg exposed.

Carmen sat by her feet and gently patted dry the scarred tissue. "Tomorrow we will have Caius work his magic."

"I don't deserve any magic," Kate said softly. She winced when Carmen started to bandage her leg, but she knew it needed doing. Something else was bothering her more than her leg. "Are you… I mean… are you… going to send us away?"

Carmen paused and looked the girl in the eye. "Why would you think that?"

"Irina said… It doesn't matter."

"Yes, it really does," Carmen said, stroking the girl's hand.

Kate bit down on her lip. "She said if we screwed up the mission then you would send us away."

"I would say your mission was a success, Kate. You all did remarkably well," Carmen replied with a smile. "Do you want us to send you away?"

Kate shook her head.

"Does Irina want us to send you away?"

Again, Kate shook her head. But then again, she thought. "Maybe. I'm not sure."

"You have a home with us for as long as you want it. I hope that's forever."

"All three of us?" Kate asked. It was hard hearing Irina's poisoned whispering all the time, so she had to check.

Carmen chuckled and nodded. Had someone asked her a few weeks before and she might have found it harder to agree. But the idea of losing Irina, even with all her spiteful ways, was more than Carmen could bear.

"Yes," she said. "All three of you."

"Even if…" Kate stuttered. She began to tear up again. Maybe because she was tired. The constant pain she had endured for the last week hadn't helped her emotional stability much, either (and Kate didn't have much of that to begin with!). "Even if we aren't useful?"

"You fill my heart with happiness, Kate. What more use could you be than that?"

Too nice! Kate dissolved into hot tears and threw her hands to her face. "I'm so sorry!" she said, hiccoughing as she spoke.

"Good! I should think you are," Carmen replied as she held the girl. "Your life won't be worth living if you put me through this again."

"I won't, I won't," Kate promised, pulling Carmen in closer.

Tanya entered the bedchamber with a cup of bloodwine and a bottle of dungeon blood. "Atia said to give Kate this," she said quietly, setting them down on the bedside table.

She looked warily to her sister as she backed out again.

Keeping one arm around Kate, who continued to sob, Carmen pulled the stopper from the dungeon blood bottle and poured a decent glug into Kate's cup.

"Come on," she said, helping Kate sit up.

The girl wrinkled her nose and turned away, cuddling into Carmen again.

"Nu, uh," Carmen told her, tutting. "You will drink it all so you sleep well."

Kate took the cup, squeezed her eyes shut tight, and began to drink.

"All of it," Carmen said, tipping the bottom of the cup up to keep Kate drinking.

Within minutes, Kate was fast asleep.

When Carmen re-joined the main chamber, Irina and Eleazar were mid row.

"Back here," Eleazar snapped. "You've got me confused, my girl. I'm a peacekeeper, not a walkover. I will be watching your every move from now on."

It was all Irina could do to contain her anger. She couldn't live under such scrutiny. "Why would you bother?" she asked full of incredulity.

"Because its better you're in here annoyed with me than out there dead."

"Like you care about me," Irina tutted, pulling her arm free of the man and turning away. "If Kate hadn't gone you wouldn't have even looked for me. You'd have been relieved."

Eleazar grabbed her again and spun her back to face him. "I do care about you. Even if you had gone completely alone I would have searched for you, because you are mine."

"You matter to us, Irina," Carmen added. "Very much."

She so desperately wished to believe them, but it was like banking on a fairy-tale for a 'happy ever after'. Irina settled on saying, "If you say so," and made for a swift exit.

"You aren't slinking away," Eleazar said, pulling her back for a third time in as many minutes. "We have a few things to discuss… I mean deal with."

"Deal with? Deal with me?" Irina summoned all her bravado and laughed in his face. "I don't think so. I only went on that mission…"

"It wasn't a mission," Tanya piped up from her chair.

Irina paused to bob her tongue out at the brat and continued, "Because I wanted to show you what I'm capable of."

"What you're capable of?" Tanya chuckled, winding Irina up.

"It was going well until you turned up and ruined all our efforts."

Eleazar breathed out heavily, trying to contain his building anger. "Kate was terrified, Irina. Terrified."

Irina threw her hands into the air. "Kate's always terrified. That doesn't mean anything. It's no reflection on me."

"No reflection?" Eleazar snorted into his fresh cup of blood. "You stupid girl."

"El…" Carmen said tentatively, trying to assess his state of mind.

There would be nothing tentative about Irina's reply.

"How dare you speak to me that way!"

She even stamped her foot into the floor, soon regretting it when her foot began to ache - spending a week dragging a wagon full of wolves in pretty shoes had given her serious discomfort.

"You really don't get it, do you?" Eleazar said, softening when he realised it was true. "You keep whining about being a coven leader in your own right, and you don't even understand that the very first job of any coven leader is protecting your coven members. You are no better than a rogue with a few followers."

"One follower, thanks," Tanya chirped.

Irina couldn't hold it in anymore. "Fuck off, Tan!"

Eleazar caught hold of Irina's swing arm just before she made contact with Tanya's face. For her efforts, Eleazar gave her a hefty swat to her backside. Irina, fresh from her bath, only wore a linen nightgown, so she felt the full effect of the sizzling sting and yelped. Eleazar wasn't messing about, she knew that! If she had been left in any doubt, the following four swats she received as he marched her to her bedroom set her straight.

"Bed!" he told her. "If you leave, I will thrash you where I find you, understood?" Eleazar paused to give her time to respond, but Irina ignored him. "Understood?" he asked again, watching her climb into her bed. Flashing up behind her, he spoke her name in an angry whisper so as not to wake Kate. "Irina!"

She flinched, not expecting him to be so close. "Yes, sir," she said, her tone bearing the evidence that she was crying.

Eleazar pinched the bridge of his nose. Before he'd lived with the Denali girls, he thought he knew how to deal with kids. He had spent enough time with his brother's, after all. The difference with the likes of Felix and Demetri was that they knew to fear him when required. And they didn't cry so easily, either. Not that Irina cried often, just enough to send Eleazar's head spinning from the emotional shift.

He placed a hand on her shoulder. "Irina," he began softly.

"Are we straight now?" she asked, cutting him off, still refusing to look in his direction.

"That was for mouthing off at your sister," Eleazar pointed out. "We'll deal with the rest of your recent behaviour tomorrow when you are rested."

Irina shook her head as she watched him leave. How was she supposed to rest with thoughts of tomorrow hanging over her? She did, though. Straight to sleep, like a candle blowing out.

"You can go to bed, too," Eleazar snapped at Tanya, clicking his fingers in her direction. "We'll be having words soon about your part in all of this."

Rather than argue, Tanya simply glared at the man. She sloped off her chair, keeping her eyes fixed on him as she made for the bedchamber.

"I might have gone after her for that glare," Eleazar told Magnus. "But Afton came to tell me they wanted to speak to me." He bobbed his head in Marcus and Basileus' direction. "I wondered what I could have done wrong so soon, but then the rest of you came. So now I wonder what we have all done wrong so soon."

Magnus tried to laugh along with the young prince - at least he was happy again. He had to agree, though. And he had a good idea what the topic of conversation would be going by their conversations over the last week or so as they travelled back to the coven.

The chamber door swung open.

"This had better be important."

Seven stern faces turned to look at Aro. Okay, he thought. It's important.

He turned and closed the door, silently apologising to his wife for leaving her with the honour of discipling their boys. He could only pray she was up to the task. Sure, she'd been mad as hell with the boys when he'd left, but she had been sobbing only an hour before!

Walking behind their father, who just had to greet all the odds and sods they passed in the halls, Felix and Demetri felt their impending doom rise.

"I bet he gets off free," Demetri said to his brother.

"Alec?" Felix shrugged. "He's only little, Dem."

"I'm only little!"

Felix shook his head, sighing. Demetri always did that – he'd argue until he was blue in the face that he should be treated like his elder brother when it came to being allowed to do the fun stuff but would switch to saying he was the same as Alec when it came to paying the price. The only benefit of being a middle child.

Demetri tutted when Aro stopped to greet yet another guard. Every single one of them so far had taken the chance to smirk at the Volturi boys knowing the little princes were in big trouble. They might as well have luminous signs above their heads!

"He doesn't even have to walk."

Felix breathed heavily rather than reply to his brother. He didn't care that Aro was carrying Alec home. The boy was still feeling rough from his gut full of werewolf juice, which Felix blamed himself for. What did Demetri want as an alternative, anyway? He would have been mortified had Aro carried him anywhere - they both would!

"After all his bitching about them calling him a baby, and now he's being carried home like one. And I bet he reminds Mom that he's the baby as soon as we walk through the door and she'll tell Dad to leave him alone and Dad will do as he's told for an easy life and…"

Aro stopped dead, forcing the boys to halt behind him. Turning fast, he had his eyes on Demetri.

"I'll do as I'm told?"

"Erm…"

Aro sucked the air between his teeth. "My father told me not to do anything to any of you before I've had chance to speak with the other masters about your stunt. Do you think I'm going to do as I'm told?"

Demetri gulped and silently moved closer to Felix, tucking his shoulder behind his brother's for defence. Only then, when safe, did he shake his head.

Aro smiled, turned, and carried on walking.

"Dickhead!" Felix barged his arm into his brother. "Why are you pissing him off?!"

Demetri bit his lip knowing Felix was right and decided to stay silent until Sully was around to defend them.

He didn't have to stay silent for long. As soon as they turned the corner of the hallway leading to the south tower, Sulpicia came into view. She shrieked and flashed towards them. One second she was standing at their door, the next, pawing at her children, crying hysterically!

At either end of the hall Aro could see eyes peering through the darkness. We're making good entertainment for the guards.

"I think we should take this inside, my queen," he insisted, directing his wife and sons through the door.

Sully had already taken her baby boy from the man's arms, and she ushered Felix and Demetri along with her to the sofas. Poor Aro didn't get a look-in.

This is perfect, Felix thought to himself. She's distraught!

Quite a selfish thing to think on seeing his mother's distress, perhaps, but he reasoned the more upset his mother was, the more likely she would be to take their side. All he had to do was wait for her to calm a little and then he could tell her how scary it was, how sorry he was, how he'd never do anything like this again… if only she would draw breath!

Somehow, Sully's hysterical crying moved straight into rapid jabbering which saw her asking far too many questions far too quickly.

Aro stood behind the sofa where Felix and Demetri sat together. "You had better start answering for yourselves, boys."

Felix looked aghast at his old man. "I can't understand a word she's saying!"

"How dare you?!" Sully snapped.

Felix heard that alright!

"Do you have any idea what you have put me through?!"

He heard that one, too. Oh, man, he cursed. She sounds pissed with us already.

"WELL?!"

Felix resisted the urge to wince from his mother's shrill tone. "We didn't mean to worry you," he said, sounding like his balls had been cut off.

Sulpicia looked to him, open mouthed. "Telling a woman not to worry about her children is like telling water not to be wet," she explained. "Particularly when she is worried they have been eaten alive by bloody werewolves!"

Felix looked to Demetri as they both thought the same thing: There goes our great defender.

"Is he okay?"

Everyone turned to Jane at the foot of the stairs, her concern focused solely on her twin in her mother's lap.

Sulpicia was about to say, 'no, not at all', and that Alec was very poorly. Aro was ready to tell her that he was feeling rough and would need a few more weeks to get over the werewolf feed that had ripped through his guts. Neither got the chance, however, as the boy in question leapt out of his mother's arms and crossed the room to his twin in a nanosecond.

That little shit had me carry him through the bloody castle! Aro thought, shaking his head, annoyed with himself for falling for such folly.

Sulpicia didn't feel annoyed - she was pleased her baby wasn't so poorly after all. For one, it meant he would face the consequences of his recklessness along with his brothers.

The twins had never been apart before, not for so long, at least. And though neither said it, as they held onto to each other tightly, they planned to make sure they would never be unnecessarily separated again.

Jane wiped her eyes - unlike Alec, she wouldn't have others seeing her cry if she could help it. "I missed you so much," she said, finally releasing her hold.

"What about me?" Aro asked his baby girl, scooping her up.

Jane hugged him tight with her arms around his neck "You most," she said into his ear. "I missed you guys, too," she added to her elder brothers, very much an afterthought.

Aro caught his wife's eye. He wasn't sure what she was trying to tell him with that look - her tears blurred whatever message she wished to convey. No doubt something to do with going easy on Jane, he assumed. As he was fully intent on thrashing their sons for their stupidity- two of them, at least, despite his father's warnings -he needed Sulpicia on-side. Scolding his princess would be necessary if he hoped on Sully's backing with the lads.

Setting his girl back on her feet, he told her, "We still have a conversation coming about your little lies, young lady." Aro paused to make a quick glance in his wife's direction. She heard. "See how much you missed me after that."

Jane gave her father a rueful smirk, assuming he didn't really mean it. Aro raised his brow, showing that he did.

Felix looked to his baby sister with genuine smile of surprise. She didn't rat us out, he realised.

Before Jane could make a run for her bedchamber, Felix grabbed the girl and cuddled her. Whilst she was so close, he whispered into her ear, "Sorry if we've got you in trouble."

Jane thought of all the spiteful things she could say, especially as it seemed she actually was in trouble with their father (for a change). She didn't say them, though.

"I'm just glad you're okay," she said. "And you're in more trouble than I am," she added, flashing him a grin. She couldn't be too nice, after all. Where would be the fun in that?

Sulpicia beckoned her baby back into her lap and called for her daughter to make herself useful by bringing some jugs of bloodwine to the table. "And cups," she added.

"Because I'm so simple I wouldn't think to bring cups," Jane chuntered to herself.

She almost looked forward to a spanking from her father to have the whole sorry episode over - her mother's wrath, which seemed to mostly consist of dolling out pointless tasks, had lasted two entire weeks!

Though she had a good many questions for her darling sons, Sulpicia had one for her husband to answer first. "What took you so long?" she asked. "I've been worried sick, and you took forever to get back here."

"So long?" Aro questioned. "We made good time. Don't forget we came by horsepower, my queen."

"It was not by horsepower at all," Felix complained, rubbing his shoulders for full effect. "He made us pull the wagons when we were awake, Mom. We slept in the day and pulled the wagons all night."

Demetri grinned like a loon at his big brother. Surely that will get her on-side, he hoped.

"Pulled them solo, did you, son?" Aro asked. The state of his clothes suggested he had done the same.

Felix rolled his eyes at Aro before turning back to Sully for sympathy. He had, as he'd told Odi, expected his mother's support. To find none forthcoming came as a shock.

"You should have made them pull night and day, my love."

"Mom!" Felix huffed. And huffed again when he saw his father's glee.

"As we seem to be on the same side, my queen," Aro said, taking his mate's hand and kissing her fingers. "I'm going to take a bath and get a change of clothes."

Felix silently stood and made for the stairs.

"Where do you think you're slinking off to?" Sulpicia asked, halting her boy in his tracks.

"What he said," Felix replied, pointing at his father. "I was thinking a bath, a change of clothes, sleeping in a bed… or not." His shoulders hunched, knowing he wouldn't be getting away so easily.

"You have some explaining to do first," Sulpicia told him, pointing back to his seat where the boy promptly sat. "I want to know what you were thinking. I want to know why you would do this to me?"

Aro smiled at his queen, full of love and adoration for his woman. "I won't be long," he told her.

He wasn't long at all. In fact, Sulpicia wondered how he'd even had time to draw a bath! Whatever he'd done up there, he was spick and span and appeared refreshed, at least. Aro re-entered the main chamber to the sound of his dear, fragile wife all but roaring at their sons. When she spotted Aro, she began roaring her questions at him instead.

"Is he injured?" she asked, jabbing her finger in Demetri's direction? "He is claiming he cannot be punished for his behaviour because he's damaged from fighting. And my God, the fighting!"

Aro listened as his wife went on, clearly stressed from the snippets of information the boys had told her. No doubt she had added their confessions to whatever Caius had already informed her of. All together it painted a picture of her sons in abject danger - she wasn't wrong, either.

Once she'd ran out of steam, Aro grabbed Demetri from his seat and stood the boy in front of his mother.

"It happened before we got there, but he was injured in the fight, my queen," Aro explained. "Cracked ribs and a bruised hip," he said, pulling up the boy's shirt. His Volturi tunic had been left in the wagon, too torn to wear again. "See?" he said. "Not a mark on him."

Sulpicia took her time inspecting Demetri's chest. Aro was right, not a mark.

"But," she said, lowering his shirt. "Caius did say he'd had to stitch some wounds…"

"Aha, yes." Aro began loosening his son's tattered britches.

"Dad!" Demetri exclaimed, holding on to the flimsy fabric that barely covered his dignity as it was.

Aro scoffed and swatted the boy's hands away. "Don't be so ridiculous!" he scolded the child. "I'm hardly sending you on parade!"

Aro managed to pull Demetri's britches down far enough to expose his hip. The stitches Caius had used, silk thread, already been dissolved by the boy's venomous blood, but the site of the wound from the wolf claw remained raised and bruised.

"I've kept an eye on it," Aro told his mate. "We couldn't clean it properly, so it's taken a while to heal."

Sulpicia softened seeing an actual wound on her boy. "That looks very sore, my love," she said, gently probing the area.

"Mhmm," Aro agreed. "There's most likely some claw left inside. It will work its way out eventually. A good scrub and plenty of bloodwine and he'll be fine."

A good scrub sounded painful to Demetri's ears, but he quite fancied the bloodwine part. He couldn't risk a smile, though. Not now his mother seemed to be calming down. He still needed to get her on-side.

"See? I am injured, Mom," he crooned, whilst she continued looking at his bruising. "And it still hurts."

The outcasts had been fed well from fresh feeds on the journey home, but his hip continued to show signs of trauma. His bruising had moved from black to purple, but it was still there, and it still hurt. It had been enough to get him out of pulling the carts through the night - that honour had fallen to the adults, with Felix and Odi helping.

Aro could see the cogs turning in Demetri's mind. I don't think so, my boy. You aren't wriggling your way out of this one.

"You wouldn't have been hurt if you weren't somewhere you shouldn't have been."

Demetri, much like his brothers, ignored Aro's words. Or tried to.

"You're going to get the thrashing you've earned," Aro continued. "All three of you."

Felix sighed miserably. Unless his grandmother swooped in to save him, he felt there was little he could do to avoid what his father was promising. Demetri and Alec, however, believed it would be their mother who decided their verdict.

With all hopes on the coven queen, Demetri tried again to win her sympathy and get her on-side.

He hissed when she put his britches back in place and gave her his best hanged-dog expression.

Sulpicia straightened up and refilled her children's cups. With her back to Demetri, she said, "I've seen nothing that should excuse you from proper, prompt punishment, my darling."

Demetri gasped. "But Mom!" he whined. "It really, really hurts!"

"Nor you, Alec," Sully continued, ignoring her middle boy's pleas. "You ran across the room quickly enough to get to Jane."

"Mama… but…. Mama…"

Felix stayed silent whilst his brothers begged for a reprieve. They weren't even begging for leniency from what he could understand of their whining, just for time to heal. Whats the point in that? It's just putting off the inevitable. No point. Might as well get it over with.

He wouldn't admit it aloud but seeing the state of his mother had really affected the boy. Sure, to begin with he thought her distress would be a win for him, but Felix soon felt the guilt creeping in. His brothers felt guilty, too. Felix knew that, but they still hoped for her helped against their father. Felix almost welcomed the man's scorn. He always found it easier to take a belting than a guilt inducing lecture.

Soon his brothers whining turned to tears.

"Don't start crying," Aro warned the pair. "Have I given you anything to cry about?"

Sulpicia handed her mate a large tankard of bloodwine. "Not yet but I'm sure you will," she said.

"My queen…"

"If you don't, I certainly will," the coven queen promised. "There will be harsh punishment coming your way," she told the boys. Catching her baby's eye, she made sure Alec was left under no illusion that he wouldn't be included. "All three of you."

"Mama!" the youngest prince cried out.

"All three of you," Sulpicia repeated, clearly speaking through gritted teeth.

It was a rare day for Sully to be the one calling for justice to be served, so Aro wasn't about to waste it. His hands moved for his belt but having rushed down from his quick wash and change, he only wore a shirt and britches, no dress coat or belt.

No matter, Sulpicia hadn't finished rounding them out anyway.

"You're my baby boy," she told Alec sweetly, before her tone soured again. "But when you commit big boy crimes you will pay a big boy price."

"Crimes?" Alec asked. That seemed a little loaded.

"Yes!" Sully shot back at him. "And you two," she said, turning on the dynamic duo. "You two boys think you are such big shots around here. You always need to be centre of attention thus getting yourselves into trouble. Your father is right. You need to be taken down a couple of pegs and taught some humility."

Felix couldn't hold her eye. When he looked to the floor, she flashed in front of him, caught his chin and forced him to look back up.

"You've pulled some stunts in your time, but if you ever dare, ever dare," she repeated, "Do something like this to me again, I'll deliver you to the dungeons myself for a few months of time out!"

Felix put his hands to his face to hide his shame. "Mom, please."

"I mean it!" Sully growled, pulling his hands away. "Do you hear me?!"

"Okay, alright, but…"

"Don't you dare 'but' me, Felix Volturi!"

Felix swallowed his words, choosing to nod instead with tear filled eyes.

"And you!" Sulpicia turned on her middle boy next.

Typically, Demetri glued himself to Felix, hoping for protection.

"It's time you started using your own mind, Demetri. I've had my fill of you following your brother into mischief and hiding behind him when you're caught out."

"I'm telling you, boy," Aro ground out, reaching for Demetri and giving him a damn good shake. "You had better quit those crocodile tears. I'll give you plenty to cry about soon enough."

He almost ordered Felix to fetch a belt when hammering on the south tower door stopped him.

"Enter!" Aro called out.

Afton opened the door and stepped inside. "My lord," he said, bowing slightly in Aro's direction. "Master Marcus has requested your immediate presence in the creator's chambers."

"Tell him tough."

Afton shifted uncomfortably. "Master Marcus was really quite insistent that you attend immediately, my lord."

Aro cast his eyes to the heavens and tutted thinking of his co-master. The guy can't be bothered with coven life half the bloody time, and when he can, it's just to get in my way! "Tell Marcus I have a few things to deal with right now and he'll have to wait."

As Afton had been instructed to get the coven masters to the north tower by Marcus and the creator, he didn't feel he could leave without Aro following.

"But Master…"

"Go, my love," Sulpicia said, jumping in before Aro could scold the guard who, poor sod, was only doing his duty. "I'll deal with them."

Aro began tittering, but soon quit seeing the look on Sully's face. "Oh! You mean it?"

Sulpicia nodded once, her face set.

"You don't have to trouble yourself, my queen," Aro replied. "They can wait until I return."

Sulpicia crossed the grand main chamber with her mate to the door.

"Who knows how long you will be?" she said, handing him his cloak from the peg. "Besides, I want to. You can still have your turn, my love." Sully looked back to their boys who were watching the exchange intently. "But I want to."

"Is she serious?" Demetri whispered to Felix.

"Nah," the bruin replied. "No way. Although, we might just get a slap on the wrist if Mom is taking over."

Just as the boys had heard their parent's conversation, Sulpicia and Aro heard the boys. Afton heard, too.

Sulpicia laughed. It sounded like one of their father's laughs, not their mother's. One that said, 'you're screwed'. "I think you should expect more than a slap on the wrist, Felix."

"Not me, though, right mama?" Alec asked. "I'm your baby."

"My lord, Master Marcus really was quite insistent…"

"Yes, yes," Aro tutted at Afton whilst pulling on a pair of boots. "I'm going, you are relieved of your duties."

"Wait!" Sully called her mate back. "My love, I'll need a belt."

Felix felt his mouth drop open as though he had no control over it. When he finally did, all he could say was, "What. The. Fuck?"

"Felix, you heard your mother," Aro snapped. He swung his cloak around his shoulders. "She needs a belt. Go to my closet and select one fit for purpose."

The boy stood on shaky legs looking reticent.

"It's nothing you haven't done a thousand times before," Aro told him.

It was, though. Actually, it was something that had never ever happened before. Sulpicia had never given him more than a slap. Ever. Okay, the odd, rare swat to his backside, perhaps. But she'd never punished him properly. Not physically. Felix thought back as far as he could and he couldn't come up with a time that she'd punished Demetri that way, either. He was less sure about Alec.

"Felix!" Aro snapped from the door. "Get to it. Cause her any trouble and I will treble what you have coming. Got it?"

With that, Aro left for his father's house.

"Well," Aro asked the room. "Whats the emergency? I have things to be getting on with."

No one answered him. Instead, he found himself being ushered into a seat by his mother. Aro took the one next to Caius, furthest away from Magnus and Basileus – always a sensible choice. Freyr and Atia were between them all with Eleazar near Marcus, who stood by the fire, a hash pipe in hand. Aro quite fancied a toke, too, but thought better of asking with his father so clearly agitated.

Once everyone had settled, Marcus asked, "Was I too late?" He made it appear as a general question, but his eyes were on the coven king.

Aro raised an eyebrow. You wouldn't answer my question but I'm expected to answer yours? "Too late for what?"

"For intercepting you all before you caused much more damage, of course."

Neither Aro nor Eleazar understood what Marcus could have meant by 'damage', but they weren't as annoyed as Caius.

"Stop speaking in fucking riddles," he huffed, snatching the bloodwine jug from the nearby table.

The two older couples bristled at Caius' comment, though Marcus didn't flinch.

"Please accept my apologies, dear Caius," he said, drawing on his pipe. He blew a great plume in the man's direction and continued, "Has punishment been issued for the mission?"

Waving away the smoke (and being dramatic about it) Caius scoffed. "It wasn't a mission; it was a bunch of kids being morons."

Oh, how Magnus would have liked to give Caius a slap for his abrasion. Is this what you wanted my backing for? Behaving like a prat? Good luck with that one, sunshine.

Getting back to Marcus' question, he answered, "I haven't dealt with Odi or Corin, yet."

Caius just couldn't help himself. "What about Turk?" he asked with a smirk.

Magnus fixed Caius with a stony glare. "You and I need to have a chat about Turk."

Freyr nodded to her husband and then Caius. "It will no doubt be the same chat I've already had with him."

It was Aro's turn to smirk, straight at Caius. Regardless of all the times he had scolded his own children for taking joy in their siblings' downfalls, he had never managed to make the connection to his own behaviour - Aro and Caius positively gleamed when the other was on trouble. No better than kids, Basileus often told them.

"Aro?" Marcus asked, wishing to avoid a conflict between the two immature coven masters.

"My boys are perfectly safe from me, Sulpicia, however…"

Before Aro could finish his sentence, Caius began speaking over him with a jibe at Eleazar's expense: "We all know he won't have done fuck all even if you hadn't called this pointless meeting."

Aro snorted his laughter, in full agreement with Caius.

Basileus flashed to his feet. "That's it!"

He grabbed Caius by his collar and flung the Master into his own vacated seat next to Magnus, then took the free seat by Aro.

"There," he said. "Now the two of you have a small chance of getting through this meeting without a belt across your arse."

Good god! Aro cringed so hard he felt his balls retract. He looked to his father, wide-eyed and aghast. 'I cannot believe you just said that in front of everyone!'

"Believe it," Basileus replied to his son's thoughts.

Marcus took another soothing draw of his pipe. "There will be no punishments," he said. "At least not overly punitive or unequal ones."

"For us?" Caius asked.

Freyr tutted at the man. "I think Marcus was referring to the young ones."

Basileus agreed with the shield maiden. "You two are fair game," he said to Caius whilst nudging Aro.

"Why am I even here?" Caius asked. "Kids running amok has nothing to do with me."

"You are a master of this coven and what I have to say involves you," Marcus explained. "I rarely make demands of the coven, I rarely push my own agenda, so I hope you all understand how important it must be if I do so now."

Caius sighed and slouched in his chair. "He's still talking in fucking riddles."

"Doesn't he always?" Aro muttered.

Closing his eyes, Basileus tried to count out his annoyance. He got all the way to three before thinking 'sod it' and cracking Aro across the back of his head.

"Jesus!" Aro spluttered, lunging forward from the unexpected blow.

"I've had enough of your mouth," Basileus told him. "Magnus, as you're closest, do the honours."

Magnus was only too happy to oblige. With Caius guessing what was coming, he moved his head as far away from the man as possible without toppling out of his chair. Magnus had other ideas, anyway. He brought his hand down hard on Caius' leg, catching the more sensitive area of the inner thigh as he did so. A well-aimed shot that had Caius cursing the man in seconds.

"For fuck sake!" he said, only to earn a slap across the head he had tried to protect the first time.

"This is fun, I like this," Magnus chuckled. "We should have more meetings like this."

"Dickhead."

Magnus spun in his seat to face Caius and raised his hand.

Caius quickly used his to cover his legs and again moved his head out of reach.

"Move your hands," Magnus told him, addressing Caius like a child.

Caius ignored him, obviously. A response he soon regretted when Magnus shrugged and smacked his hand instead of his legs!

"OW!" It felt like a sledgehammer had been slammed into his lap - his knuckles were covered with purple bruising almost immediately. "Can you just stop?!"

"Can you?!" Magnus asked him right back.

With a satisfied smile tugging at his lips, Basileus got them all back on track. "Magnus and I talked about the mission on the way home, and I've now spoken with Marcus about it and…"

Aro was pissed! "But you didn't think to speak with me even though it's concerning my children."

"And mine," Eleazar pointed out.

Aro released his very best tinkly laugh. "You still need to make your mind up whether they are your children or not."

"They are my responsibility whether I like it or not."

"Not that you act like it," Caius said under his breath, and then immediately flinched away from the man to his left.

Eleazar growled at Caius. "This has nothing to do with you."

"Apparently it has, or I wouldn't be here." Caius rolled his eyes to the heavens. "Your brats are now my problem!"

"What about his brats?" Eleazar asked, pointing at Aro. He pointed at Freyr, then Magnus next. "Or theirs?"

"Your brat was the Mastermind," Aro said.

Eleazar was quick to remind his brother that he had previously accused Odi of the same thing. "Have you decided it's easier to blame Irina? We all know your scared of Magnus."

"Fuck off!"

Aro was on his and feet flying in his brother's direction. If it weren't for his father's quick thinking the coven king may well have implanted his goblet into Eleazar's smug face.

"Enough!" the creator boomed. He slapped Aro, first with the palm of his hand, then the back. He kept going until Aro was back in his seat and professing apologies. "That is the final warning any of you are going to get!"

Aro had been silently telling his father to intervene between Magnus and Caius— it wasn't proper for Magnus to strike a fellow master, in his mind —but now he found himself wishing he had sat by Magnus instead of Caius!

Whilst the argument was going on, Atia and Freyr spoke between themselves about the difficulties of attending meetings where vampires were concerned - the exaggerated emotions of their supernatural race made such things awkward at times. They wistfully discussed how much easier it would be with an all-female group.

Marcus had drifted over to Basileus' bookcase and discovered an unread encyclopaedia on the shelf. A hefty tome that could keep him company for the night which he clasped to his chest.

"When children communicate, it is the adult's responsibility to listen," Marcus said, apparently speaking to no one and everyone at the same time. "Our young vampires running off in the night to uncertain ends speaks loud and clear - they are deeply unhappy with their current situation. You cannot punish young coven members for being unhappy. I will not allow it."

Eleazar was pleased; everyone else, confused.

"So, they get away with it?" Aro asked with a furrowed brow.

"They get away with being unhappy?" Marcus asked in reply to show how silly it sounded. "I believe they have been left to be unhappy for a long time and it is high time we, as a coven, put their needs ahead of political aims so they aren't left to be unhappy any longer."

Eleazar smiled at the coven master. "I'm with you, Marcus."

Caius huffed. "You would be!"

"Caius is right!" Aro agreed before Magnus or Basileus could object. "Eleazar's passivity knows no bounds!"

Magnus looked across to Basileus, both already weary of the bullshit. "We could belt one each, if you like, my friend?"

"That would be very helpful, thank you, Magnus."

Eleazar had to defend himself. "I live with three grieving girls," he said. "They are deeply unhappy. Trying to shoehorn them into coven life hasn't worked - something needs to change if they are to stay here."

"Do you want them to stay now?" Aro asked politely but the sly smile told a different story.

"Fuck off, Aro."

Marcus clouted Eleazar with his hefty book, shocking the eldest Volturi prince who had only ever been rebuked by his father. The action sure quietened Aro - he wasn't up for feeling such embarrassment as Eleazar clearly suffered. If he could have crawled up his own ass, he certainly would have!

Caius was already in the difficult position of being swatted by a fellow coven master. Swatted? Who am I kidding, I was properly clouted! But that at least had been requested by the creator, so it felt marginally less humiliating. Is it? Either way, much like Aro, Caius decided to stop pushing peoples' buttons.

Whilst Eleazar was still recovering, Marcus shot some questions at him. "Your daughters have suffered a great loss, and they are grieving. What exactly are you and Carmen doing to aid their transition into Volturi life, because all I see is three young girls, lost and alone."

Eleazar didn't know what to say. He wasn't doing anything to help the girls really. Other than complaining about them, of course. He stayed silent.

Aro would have liked more time to enjoy Golden Bollock's downfall, but Marcus turned on him next.

"None of your children are being offered a childhood. You removed them, correctly in my opinion, from guard life, but you have offered nothing in return."

"What about those two?" Aro asked, clearly talking about Magnus and Freyr. "Or are they too special to suffer scrutiny?"

"Not at all," Marcus replied. "Both Magnus and Freyr know why Odi went on the mission. Odi has been put in an impossible position in the guard hall thanks to Caius' actions two years ago."

"Thanks for that, mate," Caius muttered sullenly. Like he needed reminding of being so cruel to the kid? Particularly when he planned on continuing his abrasion toward Odi.

Marcus heard him, so he asked, "Am I wrong, Caius?"

Why can't you let anything go? Eventually, Caius shook his head.

"Then please do be quiet."

Prick. Caius was sensible enough to keep that in his head, though he didn't dare make eye contact with Basileus or Atia, who no doubt heard him.

Marcus continued unperturbed.

"Odi should be removed from the guard in my opinion, although I understand why it is so important to the boy that he be included in it and Magnus' reasons for allowing Odi that choice. Why on earth would Odi choose to be pulled out of the guard when we offer him nothing in return?"

Aro genuinely couldn't understand the problem. "Being Volturi elite isn't enough?"

"Would it be enough for you, Aro?" Freyr asked her king.

Marcus spelt it out for him. "If we were to remove your political endeavours, liaising with other covens, activities as king, all the parts you enjoy, would you be happy so long as you kept the crown and some pocket money?"

"Well… fuck."

The older couples nodded to one another and then to Marcus, self-satisfied, which really pissed Aro off. He could see the foursome, plus Marcus of course, becoming a separate elite at the rate they were going. And where will that leave me and my position?!

Finally, Marcus felt able to make his request - the request that had seen them all gather in the first place. "I wish for us to discuss what occurred, and then find a solution to improve the lives of our young vampires."

"Alright," Aro said. "What occurred? Irina talked my boys into a suicide mission."

"How can you blame Irina for this?!" Eleazar snapped. "She's just a girl…"

Atia and Freyr bristled at his throw away defence. "I know it's rare in this patriarchal world of ours," Atia said to her son, "But women can come up with abhorrent schemes too."

"Irina isn't a woman, though, Mom," Eleazar said carefully. "Odi is older than Irina, if we are casting blame."

Basileus quickly shut him down. "I've been in that kid's head and he isn't older at all. He's lived a charmed life compared to most of our kind." "Unlike Irina, Odi's had the same loving parents cosseting him from the world since he were but a human boy."

"Cosseting?" To Freyr the word felt loaded with negativity. It did to Magnus, too.

"It isn't an insult, I assure you," Basileus rushed to say. "Odi has had a life I would wish for all of our kind. He's been loved and protected his entire life by parents who adore him."

"A very fortunate boy," Marcus agreed.

Caius folded his arms across his chest. "Shame he doesn't appreciate it."

"Will you knock it off?!" Magnus hissed. Before I knock you into next week!

Basileus took the jug of bloodwine and refilled his cup, passing it to Aro to do the same and pass it along.

"Irina," he said, "She had a god-awful human life and her vampiric life to date has been one fucked up interaction after another. Sasha screwed her up good and proper."

Atia flashed to her mate's side. "My dear…"

"It's true," Basileus said, looking down to his lap. He patted the hand Atia had placed on his shoulder, glad she was there.

"Sasha meant a lot to me for a time, but seeing inside those girls' heads, the life she gave them…" he shook the thoughts away. "It's shameful. And to know we are letting down our own… that's shameful, too. How can we offer counsel to the rest of the world when our own teenagers are running amok from boredom!"

"We will get Odi under control," Magnus promised. He wasn't sure how, yet, but he would do his level best.

"Not that it will last," Aro muttered.

Atia flicked her hand out and caught Aro's ear. "You will lose that bloodwine if you keep it up."

"He's not wrong," Magnus said with a shrug. "Odi is a child, a very young man at best. A vampiric one, at that, so he will always be difficult to rein in. The same could be said about Felix."

Aro rolled his eyes. "Felix is only sixteen."

"Sixteen, twenty," Basileus said. "Not much difference when you're talking privileged young men with not enough to occupy their time."

The very idea that Odi could be considered a man made Caius snort. "They aren't men, they are boys."

Aro had to move thoughts away from his sons. "You're going back to the lads, again, but Irina went. Kate went, Corin went!"

"Basileus is right, there is very little difference between them all." Marcus collected the abandoned jug from the table, as it hadn't made it to him, and realised it was empty. No worry, he drew on his pipe instead.

"They are more alike than their differences would show. Compare them as a group to their counterparts in the human world," he proffered as a thought experiment. "Ours are privileged, overconfident, rich, ungrateful, direction-less, and above all, bored."

The harsh review from Marcus saw all parents in the room recoil. Even those who didn't have children involved directly - they were still the grandparents of those kids. Not for the first time in coven life, Caius was relieved to have no young charges of his own. He was safe in the knowledge that if he ever did take on some brats- and it was a damn big if -his would be different. Eleazar thought the same before he had his own.

"They have nothing to strive for, nothing to aim for, no place in our world. That is our failing." Once he was certain his words were sinking in, Marcus continued, "We have several children in the coven, none of whom are living as children. They slot in as miniature adults here and there and spend the rest of their time making up mischief to amuse themselves."

"That's what kids have always done," Eleazar said. "It's what young adults have always done, too."

"Shiftless, idle youth like you were maybe," Aro replied to his brother. His mother soon checked him for it.

"I could add a few of the younger guards to the list," Freyr said.

She had been sharing her concerns about certain member being too young for the guard for a long time. She had 'gone on about it' (as Aro told it) enough for the coven to agree to no more under 25s if they took in new recruits.

"The only difference with the likes of Corin is that they have some hours devoted to guard duties."

Aro bobbed his head to the shield maiden and began thinking on all he'd heard. Despite his immature play, he was still the king of their world and when he put on the right hat, of crown in this case, he snapped into action.

"So," he said, taking to his feet and pacing as he thought. "My children, Eleazar's… whatever the girls are to him. Odi, Corin… am I missing anyone?"

"I think you should include Turk," Freyr said.

There were a few more she could think of, but they could be added to the roll later. Turk and Corin were the youngest guard members by a couple of years so they would make a good start.

"This is a joke."

"Problem, Caius?" Freyr asked.

"Yes, actually."

Before he spoke further, Caius moved from his seat under the guise of filling up the bloodwine jugs - it got him away from Magnus in case the guy should strike.

"Turk didn't run off because he's unhappy—" Caius stopped himself from saying what a bullshit reason that was for shitty behaviour "—he lied to our faces about where the others were whilst he was safe in these walls."

"He isn't wrong," Aro pointed out.

"Aye," Magnus agreed. "Along with Tanya and Jane."

Caius nearly dropped the jug! "Are you seriously comparing the barman with a couple of little girls?!" Rather than filling his cup, Caius drank straight from the jug, knocking back enough to fill everyone's cups afresh! "Turk needs to face…"

"Turk needs to face nothing," Magnus said sternly. "It will cause too many problems in the guard. They feel he should be let off for his misjudgement."

"The guards have got together whilst you were away" Freyr explained. "They are in Turk's corner."

"Who the fuck do they think they are?!" Aro began stalking about his father's chambers which pleased Caius no end - he felt the same! "Since when do our guards band together against us?!"

"There have been some changes in bonds within the guard," Marcus explained. "I do not believe they will be problematic. They could help, in time."

"Help?" Aro shot towards his co-master. "It won't help if the guards are moving against us, Marcus."

"Mhmm, help," Marcus said again, swiftly moving over the latter part of Aro's words. "We are at the beginning, I believe, and the road ahead is long. Phillipe and Richard," he said. "Their bond is strong, and their bond with Turk is growing daily."

"Like a…" Aro wasn't sure what Marcus was implying. "A pet?"

"No," Marcus chuckled. "Like a son, Aro."

"Oh!"

"This situation with Turk has seen Rich and Phil rally to his cause," Freyr explained. "They've, in turn, rallied the guards."

Caius slid across to Aro. "When the guards are banding together against us, we need to act."

Aro agreed. "We should get Chelsea to change their bonds."

Freyr stood in a flash. "You will do no such thing!"

"You've changed coven member bonds before and it was a disaster," Atia said, standing firm with Freyr. "Need I remind you of how Demetri responded to such treatment?"

"Well, I…"

Magnus stopped Caius in his tracks. "You don't get a say in this after what you did to Lucy. You can keep away from Turk, too."

"Whats your problem?!"

"I've heard things," Magnus said with a knowing look in his eye. "It ends, you hear me?"

You're doing it again you! Caius wanted to say. You're rebuking me in public and making me look a twat for not responding. But what could Caius say? He could say no, sure. But Magnus wouldn't let that go. Gah! He decided to have it out with the man in private and for the moment settled on a sulky 'whatever' in reply.

Aro wasn't pleased, but without Caius on-side he was suddenly a lone voice. He looked to his father to cast his verdict. Basileus shook his head and that was the end of the matter.

"Fine, fine. Turk lives and we all watch our backs around Phillipe and Richard." Aro had to laugh at the ridiculousness of what he'd said.

Freyr pointed out that the emerging Phillipe, Richard, Turk situation would be no different to Renata and Corin - Aro couldn't argue. No one could. Neither could anyone point to any problems within the coven based on Renata and Corin. Especially not once Atia reminded her son that he had used Renata to control Corin in the past, and no doubt would again.

"I've already agreed, you don't need to keep going on." Aro danced out of his father's way and crossed the room. "We know who we are talking about, and what the problem is," he said, getting back on track and pacing again. "What are we going to do?"

Suggestions started flying around the room…

Many hours later, way past midnight, Felix crept down the south tower stairs. He'd taken a bath and as he'd been sent to bed many hours before, he wore his night clothes, which for Felix consisted of only a pair of linen shorts.

"Mom… do you need anything doing?"

Sulpicia looked over her shoulder at the clock and back to her son. "At this time of night?"

The boy shrugged and looked to his bare feet.

"You're forgiven, Felix. I told you after…"

"Don't say it!" he snapped, his head whipping up with beseeching eyes for the woman.

"Alright."

Sully held out her hand and patted the air, suggesting he should calm down. Particularly as his siblings were sleeping. Which you should be doing, she thought to the boy. It was clear to her that he had too much on his mind to sleep, though.

"You can sit with me if you would like to?"

Felix eyed the soft sofa with scorn. Not after what you did to me, he thought with a shiver running down his spine.

"Mhmm," Sulpicia murmured as she tried to work him out. "Would you like to see your grandfather?"

Felix looked back to his feet and pouted a little. "No…" Yes.

Sully smiled to herself. He looked so young in such moments, so vulnerable. So unlike his usual, bolshy self. Cute. He'd kill me if he heard me thinking of him as cute, she thought, smiling some more. She knew she was on the right track suggesting Basileus.

"Magnus, then?" she asked.

"No, neither." Either. Both? "Honest," he lied. "I just thought if you had an errand or something, then I could do it for you as I'm awake anyway…" he drifted off, feeling silly. "Doesn't matter." He turned to head back up the stairs.

As he did so, Sulpicia saw the purple lines across the backs of his legs and felt a shiver of her own run down her spine. She had never punished her children to such a degree before, and she'd already decided she wouldn't again. Well, that wasn't quite the truth - she'd ordered the boys to never again give her cause. Something they had all readily agreed to!

"Felix!" she said, raising her voice to call him back. "You could always talk to me."

Yeah, he knew that. He did talk to his mother, quite often in fact. For such a big strong teen he was also quite the mommy's boy in his softer moments. He just didn't want a mother son chat.

"I know, I know," he said. "But…"

"You need a man-to-man, not a man-to-mom?"

Felix chuckled and nodded.

"And this can't wait for your father to get home?"

Sulpicia didn't make him answer - his face clearly said he was worrying about Aro's return, not looking forward to it.

Setting down her book, Sully went to Aro's desk and ripped o slip of parchment from the end of a scroll. She wrote something down, and sprinkled setting powder on top before shaking it clean and rolling it up.

When she turned around, Felix stood behind her.

"Are you not going to dress first?"

"I'll wear a cloak," he said. "It's late, there won't be many guards about."

Atia will have a fit if you turn up barely dressed. She'll think it's a scandal… That thought was enough to make her grin and to send Felix out without even insisting he wear shoes.

"Here, take this with you," she said, placing the note in his hand.

"Who is it for?"

"Whoever you like, my darling."

Plans set for dealing with the coven youth, including a punishment of type which Marcus would agree with, Basileus was ready to send everyone home. He had already been forced to plant Caius back in his seat beside Magnus and Aro next to himself. Only Eleazar had managed to get through the last few hours unscathed.

"Are we done," he asked, his nerves frayed from their meeting.

Caius sat forward. "What about the mission to check out Henri's lands?"

Everyone turned to Magnus expectantly - it was to be the juggernaut's mission, after all.

Magnus felt he needed to be in the coven for a while, and not just to reconnect with Odi, but to keep a watch over his guards, too.

"It will have to wait," he said. "Give things a month to settle down around here."

Perfect. Caius grinned. "I'll take some guards and go solo."

"To Henri's place?" Magnus covered his mouth to hide the smile there. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"Good job it has absolutely nothing to do with you," Caius said with a side eye to the man. He looked back to Aro - it was the king's agreement he needed. "I'll do it…"

"No," Magnus said flatly, all amusement gone. "It's not a good idea."

"Sorry, brother," Aro told Caius. "I have to agree with him. The mission can wait.

"I'll travel to the French coven to express our concerns," Marcus offered. "Perhaps Henri will see sense and resubmit his accounts?"

No one said no to Marcus - that pissed Caius off! "If you can go, I can go. So I'll go."

The most patronising laughter Caius had ever heard in his life came from the older elite. He caught Aro cringing so it must have been bad.

If he were in any doubt, hearing Atia say, 'as if that is in any way the same,' to Freyr, who promptly agreed.

"Aro, brother," Caius said, having to speak through gritted teeth. "Sulpicia will not be pleased unless those accounts are accompanied by a sack full of gold. I'll go to Henri."

Aro refused to make eye contact with the man. He erm'd and ahh'd, playing with the rings on his hand, hoping his father would put the idea to rest.

"You've been told no, Caius," Magnus said. "Drop it."

"It's not up to you to tell me anything." Caius' tone, so sharp it could have cut lead, would not go unchallenged.

"A word, now," Basileus roared across the rug between them.

After feeling his balls retract into his stomach, Caius made to stand.

"No, no," Basileus told him. "You can stay right where you are."

With Basileus looming over him, Caius forced himself back into his chair, wishing he could go through the back of it to safety.

The creator cupped the young master's face with one hand and supported his full weight through his other on Caius' shoulder - Caius couldn't move an inch!

Through his contact, Basileus was able to silently transfer his thoughts to Caius.

'I know that self-sabotage is your raison d'etre, but you are really going to regret pushing him away.'

"Pushing?" Caius said allowed his voice strained under the weight of the creator.

'Don't play the fool with me,' Basileus warned. 'You are pushing Magnus away and one way or another, you will regret it.'

Caius wasn't sure what 'one way' was, but he guessed, correctly, that the other way would be Basileus.

Basileus nodded.

"I'm not pushing."

"You will regret that tone towards me, too," Basileus said aloud.

Feeling quite humiliated, doubly so when he heard the sniggering coming from Eleazar and Aro, Caius tried again in the hope Basileus would back off.

"I'm not pushing, my lord."

Basileus offered the young master a tight smile. "That wasn't much better." He silently continued, 'You can still be your whiney, pissy self without pushing Magnus so far that he gives up on you…'

Caius couldn't let that go! "Whiney, pissy self?!"

"Do you think I am talking to you about this for my benefit?!"

Caius had to answer - his pride demanded it. "I think you're making me uncomfortable for your amusement."

"That's it!" Basileus boomed. "Where's my cane? Someone give me a belt!"

Whilst the creator scanned the room for something to hit Caius with, Eleazar decided it would be the perfect moment to drop some additional information into the mix. Still feeling aggrieved on behalf of his wife, he wanted to know what Caius had been thinking leaving the coven waiting for news. Seeing the master so desperate to go to Henri's had Eleazar making a few connections in his mind.

"Why don't you tell them the truth, Caius?"

"What truth would that be?" Caius didn't know what the elder prince was talking about, but it doubted it would be good for him.

"You've already been to see Henri."

The room fell silent, everyone waiting for Caius to deny such claims. He didn't, though. He didn't say anything at all. Well, he did, but not out loud - his head screamed expletives, many in Eleazar's direction.

"What are you talking about, El?" Aro asked.

"It took him a week to get back here," Eleazar replied. "Carmen has been a wreck, as I imagine Sully and Freyr were."

Under the oppressive gaze of the whole damn room, Caius snapped. "You are such a double-crossing prick!" he raged, springing from his seat to get to Eleazar.

He managed to get passed Magnus but not Basileus.

"Let him try it," Eleazar said. He knew Caius was the greater warrior, but he would be pleased enough to punch the guy regardless.

Giving Caius a clout and telling Eleazar to hush up, Basileus told the master to sit his ass back down and start explaining himself.

"It wasn't a week," Caius said quickly - that wasn't a lie, so nothing for Magnus to pick up on through his gift. 6 weeks and 14ish hours is not a week.

Eleazar turned to his father. "You said the bottle of dungeon blood was missing when we were in France. He didn't bring it back here, did he?"

Slowly but surely, all eyes again turned on Caius.

Basileus and Atia appeared to be travelling through Caius' memories to find the truth. Magnus asked the question directly:

"Did you go to Henri's?"

Basileus threw out his arm holding Aro back, not that it stopped his mouth from working. "Fucking answer him!" he demanded. "Did you choose Henri and fucking dungeon blood over your obligations to this coven? Again?!"

"Again?!" Caius snapped back "What do you mean again?!"

"Did you go to Henri's?" Magnus repeated. Soaking up the anger coming from Aro and Eleazar, a growl began to rumble in his chest. "Is this why you begged for my backing? Because of fucking dungeon blood and that moron Henri?!"

Basileus could feel Magnus' agitation growing, something the juggernaut couldn't help under the circumstance. He knew if the man blew in his apartment there would be little left standing by the end.

"ENOUGH!"

He threw Aro towards the sofa, which saw him go straight over the top and come back up ready for a fight. Only the fire in his father's eyes stopping him from going for Caius.

Basileus turned his back on him and said to Magnus, "You need to get your gift under control - you're doubling the animosity!" and to Caius, "You need to start answering some questions. And where the hell has Marcus gone?!"

Marcus slipped out when the latest argument broke out. He had his pipe, a good book, and more sense than to stick around listening to yet another row that didn't involve him – he had said all he'd had to say.

Magnus went to the window and opened it wide, letting the cool night air ease the tension taking hold in his muscles.

"I've never begged you."

Everyone turned to Caius again.

"You wanted a question answering," he said to Basileus. "I've never begged Magnus for anything."

"You think that's the question I wanted answering?!"

Caius shrugged. "I think it's the one that needs answering."

Magnus scoffed from the window and started chuntering - luckily, no one could hear his words.

They heard Freyr, though: "You told me you left them as soon as you could." Standing with her hands on her hips, she dared Caius to lie to her.

"I did, that wasn't a lie," Caius answered, though he couldn't look at her. "It was a technicality."

"You left us here without word so you could go and see Henri." Disappointment dripped through Fryer's tone like poison, a poison that infected Caius' dead heart. "Do you have any idea the stress and worry you have caused, Caius?"

"The stress I caused?" Caius asked. "I think you mean Odi. I've done nothing."

Freyr wasn't letting that stand. "Odi caused me a day of stress and worry, the following 6 days are on you!"

"I don't see it that way," Caius replied. Lying through his fangs.

"I do," Freyr said.

Her disappointment appeared to have been replaced by a resolve of some kind - a resolve to give me a round of fucks, no doubt, Caius guessed. He wasn't wrong.

"Aye," Magnus said from his window seat. "Me, too."

It will be more than a round of fucks from him, Caius realised. He had to try and get the man back on-side. "I'd taken a wolf to the head and I'd drank the creator's blood. It must have screwed with my senses."

"Is that it?" Eleazar asked. "Is that your attempt at an apology?"

"Who rattled your cage?" Caius shot the prince a glare and said, "What else do you want me to say?"

"Much!"

Basileus heard his grandson approaching the top floor suite before Felix had knocked the door.

"Grandpa?" the boy called out, opening the door. He soon wrapped his cloak tighter to his half naked body when he stepped inside. "I didn't know you were all here."

Aro went straight to him. "What are you doing walking around the castle at this time of night?"

"And why are you doing so barely dressed?" Atia added. "No shoes, either? Your mother's standards…."

"Does your mother know you are here?" Aro asked, ignoring his own mother for the moment.

Felix nodded. "She sent me with a note."

Aro reached out to take the parchment from the boy but Felix pulled back. "It's not for you," he said. "It's for…" he paused and looked between Basileus and Magnus, wondering who to choose.

Basileus took the decision out of his hands - the note, too. "It had better be for me when I'm around, boy," he said softly.

"It's for me, not you," he told Aro who was trying to get a look.

'Give my baby a hug'.

Basileus chuckled reading Sully's words. "I assume you can all solidify our plans without me." It wasn't a question, it was a clear 'I've had enough, go home'. "And three of you have some news to break to your mates," he reminded his sons and Caius. "Good luck! Library at dawn to make the announcements."

"Come on," Aro made to take his son home, until his father got in the way.

"I'm keeping him tonight," he said, guiding Felix towards the fireside. "I'll bring him with me in the morning. Magnus, hold back."

Aro held back, too. "He needs to sleep, Dad."

"I am aware of that, he will sleep here," Basileus replied, speaking purposefully slowly. "Are you and Caius capable of walking the halls without tearing a strip off each other?"

Aro rolled his eyes. Caius did, too. They argued often, sure, but they very rarely fought.

Basileus smiled. "Then get moving."

Atia kissed her mate's cheek. "I will fetch the boy some clothes for the morning, my dear," she said, heading out the door with Freyr.

"I am going home to get settled with a nice hot bloodwine ready to enjoy the show," Freyr said. "Caius has to tell Dora she will be a working woman,"

"Eugh!"

Caius had reluctantly agreed to their new plans for the coven youth, but he had positively put Dora forward for her new role. Informing her about it wouldn't be quite as cheerful. And I've got a round of fucks coming.

"Indeed, you have," Basileus said, loudly replying to his thoughts. "And much more than that if I have my way."

"It was a dick move, you know?" Aro quietly said to Caius. "Going to Henri's." He paused and shook his head. "I assume you have written a report?"

Caius bit his lip and cursed. Why did Aro insist on punishing him with report writing?! He couldn't object, though. Not unless he wanted their argument to continue.

"I'm getting around to it," he replied.

Aro slapped a hand on his co-master's back. "Have it ready for me by morning."

Magnus closed the door behind them all and retook his long since vacated seat. "What do you need from me?"

"Company," Basileus said. He poured them each a treble whiskey and small goblet of bloodwine for Felix.

"I could do with a whiskey," the boy said to his grandfather, still standing awkwardly by the fire.

"That bad, huh?"

Felix sniffed and bobbed his head. "Awful."

Magnus looked between them, sure he was missing something important. "Come on, then," he promoted. "Out with it."

Basileus handed over his drinking pal's glass and sat down opposite him. "It would seem Marcus and I failed in saving the children from punishment after all." He gave Felix his bloodwine, which he shouldn't really have been drinking. "We didn't consider the mothers."

"Please don't talk about it," Felix whined. "Don't even look in my head."

Too late - Basileus had already entered his memories.

Felix watched his father leave and then turned back to his mother. You weren't serious, were you? The resolve in her face told him she was.

"Mom, listen…"

Sulpicia shook her head very slowly and pointed the boy towards the stairs.

Oh, hell, Felix said to himself, trudging to the spiral of steps in the corner of the main chamber. He dared a look over his shoulder at his mother, hoping she would change her mind. Before he could say a word, she growled in his direction.

Double hell, he thought, setting off for his parents' bedchamber. Felix had been in the Volturi for eleven hundred years, give or take, and all those years had been spent living with the coven queen. He couldn't count the number of slaps he'd received from the woman in that time. His cheek, his arm, maybe his thigh if he had been sat closely enough. Usually, the worst thing about a slap from Sully was that his father might find out about it. When that happened, Felix knew his ass was grass.

He thought back as far as he could remember as he searched his father's closet drawers for his least terrifying belt. Has she ever whipped me? Properly? Ever? He truly didn't think she had! Maybe it was so traumatic that I've blocked it from my memory? Sounded plausible to Felix.

"Why are all these belts so scary?"

His hand reached to the back of the drawer and fumbled around until he felt something… different. Mhmm, he thought, pulling the article to the front.

Most of Aro's belts, the ones he wore regularly, at least, were thicker and heavier than the one he'd found. And they all hurt like hell, the boy said to himself. This one's nice and thin… maybe it will hurt less?

Felix must have been travel weary as he didn't think on it long, for if he had, he would have remembered the time Caius had whipped his legs on a mission with a length of rope - all he'd had to hand at the time. That rope had caused far greater damage to the youth than any belt of Aro's. Felix didn't make those connections, though. Belt chosen, he returned to his mother and brothers with a smirk on his face.

He felt pleased with himself handing over the thin leather belt to his mother. It was more of a thick cord really. He couldn't understand why Demetri watched him in wide-eyed horror, but Demetri had been on the same mission with Caius and the rope and he clearly had a better memory than his brother.

In fact, Felix felt so confident about his choice, that he was smiling. Added to that, he managed to convince himself that a whipping from Sully would be the best deal anyway - much better than the one his father would dish out, that was for sure! If Mom puts some effort in, she might even convince Dad that no more punishment is due. We should aim for this every time we fuck up!

Basileus paused his travels through his grandson's memories to look at him quizzically.

So, not only did you think the thick leather cord wouldn't hurt, but you also seemed to think your dear mother couldn't lay it on too heavy anyway… poor boy must have been exhausted to think such a thing.

The main thing bothering Felix about his mother taking charge was the embarrassment. Oh well, he had told himself. I'll have to watch my brothers go first. That will give me some time to get my head around it.

"Felix," Sulpicia called, breaking the boy from his thoughts.

She waited by the desk, belt in hand.

Bless her, the foolish bruin chuckled. She really doesn't know what she's doing. This is going to be a walk in the park.

"Alec needs to go first, Mom," he told her. "Youngest to oldest."

Patronising little oik. "No, my darling," she said snapping the belt against the oak. "I want you first."

"No, Mom, you don't understand." He had never sounded more like his father. "You go youngest to oldest because it feels worse for the one waiting." With a condescending wink, he added, "Trust me."

Sulpicia shook her head. "You will go first because I say you will go first. If you keep arguing, you will go last, too."

Demetri and Alec began sniggering to each other, and Sulpicia allowed them to without rebuke.

"If you don't hurry, I'll call for some guards to hold you down."

With his brother's laughing even harder, Felix's good humour for his mother's mistakes evaporated. "I don't need holding down!" he snapped at the woman. "You're just doing it wrong."

Sully placed a hand on her hip and raised an eyebrow to her eldest. Without taking her eyes off Felix, she called to Demetri. "Be a dear, Dem. Go to the guard hall and ask for Afton and Alex to come here to assist with…"

Felix was at her side before she could go further. "I don't need forcing into position, Mom. I'm only trying to help you."

Sully tsk'd and moved aside to give him space by the desk. "When I need your help I'll ask for it," she said. "Now drop your britches and bend over."

Drop my what-now?! Felix watched his mother's face, hoping to see sign of a smile, a clue that she was messing with him.

Nothing.

"Mom, I'm sorry, all right?" he said. "I know I've fucked up…"

Sully tutted. "Language like that won't help you."

The boy's tongue flickered nervously over his lips as they suddenly felt very dry. The whole 'mom spanking' thing was new territory and he could just about deal with that. But bare?! No, no, no. He couldn't deal with that at all. His throat was fast becoming as dry as his lips.

For some reason it felt so much more difficult to submit to his mother than it ever had with his dad. Not that it was ever easy, mind.

"It's not appropriate, Mom," he whispered, hoping his brothers couldn't hear him. "I'm a man…"

"No," she said, cutting him off with a tickling laugh. "You are a boy. A thoroughly disobedient, immature boy who needs reminding of the consequences for breaking my trust."

Wow! Sulpicia punched Felix straight in the guts with that appraisal. Is that how you see me?! An immature boy?

"Drop your britches and bend over."

"Mama!" he whined. "I mean Mom. Not Mama. Damn. You're being so unreasonable!"

Sulpicia continued to stand firm, frowning at her boy. "And now you are being a silly, whiney little brat, too."

This isn't happening. Felix shook his head and chanced a look to the south tower door. He wasn't thinking of running - he wasn't that gutless. He was far more concerned with someone coming in! Bad enough that he was about to take a whipping - the whole coven knew that was on the cards. Afton knew his mother had threatened to do it, too. Horrendous. But receiving it in the main chamber, with his arse hanging out. No, no, no. Too much. His head was going to explode any moment… he hoped!

"I'm going to count to three," Sully told him. "If you aren't in position by then, I will double your tally and I'll have no choice but to tell your father how difficult you've been. One."

Felix had to do something, quick. He tried for negotiations. "Ground me?" he'd offered. Even for years! "Cancel my allowance forever? Ban me from training?"

He rambled through offers, apologies, outright begging, all whilst his mother remained impassive.

"Two."

"Mom!" Felix whined. "You don't do this!" he reminded her in case she had somehow forgotten she didn't punish him this way.

"I don't because I choose not to, Felix," Sulpicia explained. "Not because I am incapable."

"Mom, you'll hurt yourself," he said. "I'm just thinking of you."

"Such hollow words," Sulpicia said. "You didn't think of me when you ran off in the middle of the night, did you? You didn't think of me when you took your brothers to another country, did you? You didn't think of me when you were feeding yourselves to werewolves, did you?!"

Sulpicia heard Demetri crying softly behind her, and Alec openly sob. Before her, Felix whimpered.

"I'm really sorry, though," he said, swiping at his eyes. "I won't do it again." Suddenly he felt every bit the boy his mother had described.

"Enough," she said finally, and the boy's mouth snapped shut. "Three," she added. "And now your tally doubles and your father finds out how you have messed me about."

Felix didn't know how many she had planned on giving him in the first place but hearing it had doubled felt like a kick in the teeth. Aro would be livid with him, too - he knew he would be in for a rough ride with his father when he got home. Fuck.

"Mom, please."

His voice was soft and he felt his treacherous knees tremble. Biting his wobbling lip, he beseeched her with pleading eyes. He couldn't get out of the whipping, he sucked in his breath and accepted that. But he couldn't offer her his bare backside for the task, either.

"I can't strip in front of you. Not like this. Not for this.

Sulpicia held up the belt so it was level with the boy's eyes. "I was going to give you 16 of these, but you've earned 32 already. If you keep your britches on, it will be 64."

64?! That's insane! No one in their right mind will choose 64 over 32.

His younger brothers were thinking the same. Both Demetri and Alec had already silently decided to rip their own britches off as soon as they were called up for their turns. 14 is manageable, Demetri said to himself. Much better than 32, let alone 64!

"Choose, and choose quickly, my boy."

Taking some steadying breaths, Felix considered his options. He knew his britches offered little protection from a belt, but as it was his mother swinging it, he cockily thought he could take it. Still, 64 is quite a lot. His thumbs found the waist of his britches and he tried to tug them down. He stopped. Can't do it. I'll have to take the 64… unless…

"How about if I keep my shorts on?" he proposed. "How many for the shorts?"

Sulpicia smirked before she had chance to school her features sternly. "50," she said. "And that's your last offer. Decide now and get in position."

50? I can take 50. 50 is a win-win - with my shorts on, dignity intact.

A little too happily, Felix forced his britches down his thighs to pool at his ankles and bent over his father's desk. He kept his feet close together to ensure she wouldn't see anything a mother shouldn't, and thought to the woman, 'do your worst'.

Sulpicia said not another word. She moved beside her boy, placed her small hand on his back and pressed down. That small hand was stronger than Felix had expected, but he didn't think on it. Her touch was nice, comforting and…

"Yeaouch!"

It was the oddest noise he'd ever heard, and it came from his own mouth! Felix looked back over his shoulder to his delicate mother who had just lit up his ass like a demon possessed.

"Well," she said, wiggling the belt over in her hand so it flip-flopped in Felix' view. "This is going to really sting, son. It's more like a whip than a belt. It was your choice," she said, no compassion, and sliced him again.

Felix clamped both lips between his teeth to stop himself crying out, but his screech seemed to emerge through his nose instead. His earlier thoughts that taking a belting from his mom would be so much easier than one from his dad had gone. Completely gone. It wasn't just the type of belt, either— though he now realised why Demetri had looked at him so oddly when he came down the stairs brandishing it —his mother was strong enough for the job, he could feel that.

When number five made contact, he desperately tried to force his response through his chest, make it a growl, make it manly. It didn't work. Not only that, not only had he embarrassed himself further with his strangled growl sounding more like a desperate whine, but he'd bitten into his lips in the process and his mouth had filled with blood.

Sulpicia stopped when he spat it out on the desk. "Disgusting behaviour," she admonished him. "That is your own fault, Felix."

She put down the belt and went to the boy's feet. Lifting one at a time, she removed his britches completely and used them to clean the blood away. "Wipe your mouth," she said.

He did as he was told, spitting the remaining blood into the cloth.

"Now behave yourself."

Felix cringed. So belittling.

His legs trembled in anticipation when the leather flew again. He heard the whistle through the air and the snap against his bottom. Then the heat of the strike set in. Oh God, oh God, oh God.

And another.

"Mom, please…"

By the tenth, the boy began to forget his modesty and his feet inched further apart. Before too many more, he started to kick out involuntarily. When he accidentally caught his mother with his foot, he received the following five strikes in quick succession, straight across the backs of his legs.

"Feet on the floor," she told him. "Don't you dare kick again."

He tried to tell her he couldn't help it, but that only earned him another two vicious slices to the back of his thighs. Apparently, excuses wouldn't help him. It felt like nothing would help him! He hadn't even made it halfway through and he was already a snivelling wreck.

Feeling the strokes falling across his backside again felt like a reprieve after the sting of them across his legs. Who knew that could happen?! Then she suddenly cracked the leather lower, where his legs joined his backside and he cried out for real. Once he'd started crying aloud, Felix couldn't stop.

If anyone had told Felix that his mother could be so heartless, he wouldn't have believed them. With the way she wielded the belt against his hide, he wondered how much she hated him! No, he told himself. She doesn't hate me. I've broken her heart, and this is payback. No, no, not payback. Recompense.

Between stroke 25 and 26, he wondered if telling her he understood would make her stop. Sadly, if it would have, he'd never know, as he couldn't speak at all by then.

As the onslaught continued, the belt seemed to be landing all over the place. He heard her telling him to quit kicking, to quit thrashing about, to stay down, to keep his feet on the floor… whatever she said, he tried to comply, but he couldn't manage it. The belt snapped down again and again, each lick burning right through his tenderest flesh.

Tears flooded his face and he choked on each breath in, screamed on each breath out. He kept thinking each one would be the last one, as he'd lost count so long ago. When it finally was, he was crying too hard to realise it was over.

"Felix," Sully called. She bent over him, shaking his shoulders gently. "Stand up, my darling."

He did so, very, very slowly. His father hadn't belted him that hard in a good while. I'm out of practice, Felix thought to himself. He couldn't even laugh at his own funnies. Not a good sign. He gasped as his muscles twitched involuntarily, and began to cry again, his chest heaving with unchecked sobs.

Sulpicia took the boy's britches and wiped the venomous tears from his face. Then she wrapped her arms around him and held him in a tight hug. Stroking her hands up and down his back to calm him, he slowly stilled his breathing and regained some control.

Once he finally had calmed down, she untangled herself from the boy and took his face in her hands, forcing him to look at her. No sooner than he had, his eyes welled up again from guilt and shame.

"You won't ever do this to me again, will you?"

"No, ma'am."

Sully nodded, went up on her tiptoes and kissed his forehead.

When she pulled away, Felix looked down to his feet… what the…

Whether it had been the thrashing about, or the belt ripping through them, something had happened to his linen shorts as they were around his ankles in tatters.

He looked down at the traitorous shorts and back up to his mother. "May I be excused?" he asked, pulling his shirt down as low as it would go.

Sulpicia shook her head and directed him to the wall where he was to wait and watch.

"See?" Felix asked his grandfather. "Awful, right?"

Basileus brought Magnus up to date and spun Felix around. He tugged up the bottom of his linen shorts to expose a little more of his thighs and the vivid lines across them.

Magnus sucked in his breath. "You had better get that bloodwine down you, young one."

"So much for levelling everything up," Magnus huffed. "I'm going to have to wallop Odi and Corin now. Irina and Kate will walk away unscathed."

Basileus, too, felt it likely, though… brain wave! "I'll inform Carmen of Sulpicia's actions and tell her she needs to level the score. Have Freyr take care of your duties and I'd say that's equal."

"Freyr won't like that," Magnus warned him.

"But she'll do it?"

"Aye," Magnus sighed. "If I ask her to."

"Then do." Basileus rubbed his chin. "That just leaves Tanya and Jane."

"And Turk," Magnus pointed out.

"Mhmm," Basileus agreed. "You will have to deal with Turk, Aro and Eleazar can deal with their daughters."

It was the best way forward, both men agreed.

Felix licked the bloodwine from his lips and gasped - so good! "Does this mean my Dad won't take a turn, too?"

"If he tries, you tell me," his grandfather told him.

"I won't get the chance if he's planning on it," Felix pointed out. "You know what he's like."

Before he'd faced his mother, Felix would have expected his father to doll out whatever he saw fit and Felix wouldn't have complained. Well, he would have complained, but he accepted it was due. However. After the smack down from Sully, Felix couldn't face any more parental scorn.

Felix didn't know what had gone on in his grandfather's chambers, though. He wasn't privy to the very long discussion the masters had conducted regarding the coven youth, in understanding their reasons for holding their own mission, or in what they had decided to put in place for Volturi kids going forward. He'd find out with everyone else at the library meeting.

"I'll tell your father that the matter is dealt with when we see him in the morning."

Felix wanted to believe the guy, he really did.

Seeing he was so unsure, Basileus said, "I may be your grandfather, but I'm still the creator, I rule this coven - if you deserved more, you'd be getting it. You don't, so you won't."

Felix sighed in relief.

Magnus stood and took Basileus' glass, refilling for them both. "Go and get some sleep, young one," he said to the boy. "We're to be in the library by dawn."

Felix went, heading to his grandparent's bedchamber, but soon returned dragging a blanket behind him. He slipped onto the sofa and lay down, resting his head in his grandfather's lap.

Basileus watched his movements, bemused. "What are you doing?" he gently asked the boy.

Felix snuggled in, already half asleep. "Your bed isn't very comfortable.

Magnus chuckled in Basileus' direction. "Lack of use?"

"Cheeky fucker!"