This was the first time I was actually being allowed to navigate the castle on my own. Sure, I wasn't going far, having been given very specific directions to the kitchen and being made to recite them perfectly to ensure I had them memorised, but it was still a refreshing feeling of independence. I practically skipped down the hall, took a left just as Marcus had instructed, and headed down the stairs to a set of double doors. The whole time I'd been here, I'd been treated like a baby, a guard member constantly nearby in case I hurt myself or got into trouble. For once, I didn't need to worry about someone watching every little thing I do, and it was only then that I realised how much I'd been longing for freedom like this.
I inhaled sharply, looking around me before pushing the doors open and walking in. The room that I'd just strolled into happened to be the empty kitchen, which even surprised me. Usually by this point I would have entered somewhere I wasn't supposed to be, like someone's private quarters or straight into a dungeon, but by a pure stroke of luck, I actually managed to follow directions correctly.
Feeling pretty proud of myself, I went over to the fridge to look for something to make myself for lunch, a smug grin still on my face. In the end, I settled on making myself a quick bowl of pasta after spotting a jar of pesto sauce in the door of the fridge. I'd only just finished cooking, heading over to the sink to pour out the boiling water, when Chelsea decided it was a good idea to materialise beside me.
"Jesus, Chelsea, do you mind?" I gasped, almost dropping the entire saucepan in the sink.
"Sorry Eliana, here, let me take that" she took the handle from me and placed the pasta back on the stove, now pouring the sauce in for me.
"It's fine, you can just call me Eli" I smiled.
"Okay then, Eli" she grinned, "wow, I love that nickname. It suits you well"
"Thanks, I was never a big fan of the name 'Eliana' in anyway" I beamed at her as she passed me a bowl and dished out a serving of lunch.
"What? Why? Eliana is such a gorgeous name though?" she raised her eyebrows, before smirking, "I bet the Masters love it in anyway"
"Does everyone here meddle in each others' private lives?" I asked, unamused by the fact that everyone seems to be under the impression that they can give me relationship advice all of a sudden.
"No, just yours," she giggled, taking my hand in hers and leading me out, "let's go"
"Go? Where?"
"To the private library. Unless there was somewhere else you wanted to be"
"No, no, I'm yet to see it for myself in anyway" I went along with her, my bowl of pasta leaving a trail of steam behind us.
We made our way down the dimly-lit halls which were surprisingly scarce of guard members, until I remembered that everyone else was in trials.
"Aren't you supposed to be in a trial right now?" I asked her.
"If I will be needed, it won't be for another, hmm," she glanced at her wristwatch, "half an hour? They should be finished soon in anyway"
"Fair enough-"my sentence was cut short by Chelsea.
"Corin!"
"Chelsea!"
The two ran up to each other and embraced like they hadn't seen each other in years. I confusedly wandered over to them, not wanting to interrupt what was apparently an emotional moment. The moment Corin spotted me, she embraced me the same way, causing me to drop my bowl which was only just caught by Chelsea and her cat-like reflexes.
"We were just on our way to the private library!"
"No way! Can I come?"
"Oh my God, yes! This is going to be so much fun!"
It was like listening to a bunch of eleven year old girls chatting and squealing together. After standing in the hallway awkwardly for a few minutes, listening to their infinite conversation and tapping my foot for them to hurry up, I gave up and rolled my eyes, walking ahead of them down the corridor.
"Eli, you just walked past it!" Chelsea called out to me.
"Wait, where?" I spun around in a circle and stumbled slightly.
Both of them dashed over to a door about two feet behind me and opened it, allowing me to enter first. I'm not going to lie; it was a little smaller than I imagined it to be, considering this was a library. The walls of the circular room were made up of shelves filled to the brim with books, most of which weren't in English. A few were Italian and Greek, but the rest completely confused me. There was one that even seemed to resemble Chinese, but I had absolutely no idea. In the middle sat an oak desk scattered with random handwritten papers and parchments which Corin was quick to sweep onto the floor with one swift move of her arm.
"Corin!" I panicked, "Those look important!"
She shrugged her shoulders and sat down in the grand black leather spinning chair with her feet on the desk, me and Chelsea settling on the sofa on the other side. This room resembled a meeting room more than anything else.
"So, when you said 'private library'…"
"Yeah, this is where Aro usually reads and has his super-secret meetings" Corin finished.
"You've got to be joking," I muttered to myself, "are we even allowed to be in here?"
"Well, as long as we don't make a mess, there's no rule against it"
I raised my eyebrow pointedly at the pile of paper that was now left on the floor by the foot of the desk, to which she waved her hand dismissively.
"Eh, you're his mate, what's he going to do?"
"Kill me?" I widened my eyes in exasperation.
"Fine, look," she scooped up all of the neglected sheets of paper and dropped them in a crumpled pile in the middle, "happy? Now he has absolutely no reason to kill you"
"Oh my" I sighed, picking up my bowl and finally eating my lunch, which was now at an unappetising lukewarm temperature.
"So," I began, "why did you join the Volturi? If you don't mind me asking"
"Not at all," Chelsea bounced in her seat and fixed her gaze at me, "we have abilities that are valuable to the coven"
"Like what?" I asked, intrigued.
"I have the ability to influence emotional ties between individuals. Basically, I can break and strengthen any bond between people"
"That's crazy! So, you can basically force people to love or hate each other?"
"To put it simply, yes. Don't worry though, I would never use it on you unless you were to request it" she smiled. That was a relief.
"If you can play with people's emotional ties, then what's your ability?" I asked Corin.
"My ability is to make any individual feel contentment. Again, I wouldn't want to use it on you without your permission" she beamed.
"Good, yours is pretty invasive in anyway Corin" Chelsea teased.
"Oh yeah? Well at least I wasn't born with the ability to force friendships" she snapped.
"At least I wasn't born with the ability to force happiness!"
"Contentment! For the last time, it's contentment!"
Both of them were now stood up, glaring at each other from either side of the desk. Were they really having this argument right now?
"Guys, geez, calm down. Both of your abilities are equally invasive, so keep them both away from me thanks" I laughed.
They narrowed their eyes at each other and sat down slowly, resuming their conversation as if nothing had ever happened. Vampires.
"How are you finding Volterra then, Eli?" Chelsea asked, brushing through her long brunette hair with her fingertips.
"It's pretty damn cool, the town is incredible. Unfortunately, I've only been out once so far but, from what I've seen, I love it"
"Wait, when was this? Did you go shopping without us?" Corin frowned.
"Firstly, this was before I met either of you, so no hard feelings. Secondly, I was out with Aro in anyway. Thirdly, what shopping would I possibly need to do? I have a wardrobe packed with clothes"
"Oh Eli, you can never have too much clothing"
"Never" Chelsea butted in.
"If you say so" I smiled sarcastically, placing my now empty bowl on the desk just as Chelsea took my arm and dragged me to the door, with Corin following closely behind.
"Where are we going? What about the mess?" I called, attempting to turn around. Goddamn vampires are too strong for their own good.
Corin made a u-turn and picked up my bowl before following us back out and closing the door behind her. "What mess?"
"But… but…but what about the papers? Thanks to you, it's obvious someone was in there, and I doubt Aro would be too happy about that"
"Oh, calm down Eli, live a little" Chelsea laughed and leant into my right, Corin leaning into my left.
I decided not to fight it as they guided me down the corridor, leading us up a familiar set of stairs. Both of them seemed to constantly giggle at pretty much everything, and considering their supposed age, their maturity was at a serious low. Corin flung the door open to reveal the guards' quarters, Chelsea still clinging onto my arm and pulling me over to sit with her and Afton.
There were many more people in the room than earlier, maybe thirty or forty, all with dark-coloured cloaks and Volturi crests around their necks. Everyone was sat on different tables and chairs, with a few beanbags in the corners which looked like they'd been dragged up from the game room. The entire room was just as dimly-lit as the rest of the castle, with just a few candles dotted around to provide light.
I sat down at a small round table beside Chelsea, with Afton, Jane, and two other guard members I'd never come across before. The black haired woman looked in her mid twenties, her nails painted deep red in contrast to her olive skin tone.
"You must be Eliana, it is a pleasure to meet you" she took my hand and shook it formally.
"Thanks, and you are…?"
"I am Renata, Aro's personal bodyguard" she answered.
"Dude, do you really need to add that to every sentence? Did she ask?" the other guard snarked which earned a glare from Renata, before he turned to me and nodded his head slightly, "I'm Santiago"
"Nice to meet you guys" I smiled sheepishly.
"Can I have a redo of my introduction now?" Afton asked from across the table hopefully.
"Weren't you the one who jump-scared Eliana and then pried on her love life?" Jane snapped.
"Don't act all innocent with me, you wanted to know too, Jane-"
"Fine, fine," I held my hands up before anything escalated, twisting myself to face Afton "why hello, my name is Eliana. What is yours, kind sir?"
"Well thank you, milady," he put on an awful fake English accent in an attempt to mimic me, "I am sir Afton of the Volturi. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance"
"Dear lord" Jane muttered and rolled her eyes as me and Afton shook hands exaggeratedly from across the table.
"Likewise. Happy now? Can I get on with my day without you pestering me, 'sir Afton'?" I snapped, still teasing him about his name.
"Why of course, milady" he laughed, just as Demetri came over to our table.
"Movie night, everyone will receive one vote and one vote only. The options are: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," he slammed the DVD on the table.
"God, that one creeps me out" I whispered to Chelsea and Renata.
"But let's be honest, isn't Johnny Depp cute in it?" Renata nudged my shoulder lightly, Chelsea nodding in agreement.
"I guess" I chuckled lightly.
"King Kong, War of the Worlds," Demetri slammed each one on the table in turn, "and finally, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith"
Everyone on our table decided to vote for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory for the simple reason that it always gives me nightmares. What did I do to deserve such a thoughtful bunch of people? Luckily for me, they were outvoted by the rest of the guard, who all seemed desperate to watch that Star Wars movie. My father had always tried to get me into the franchise like him, but it was truly a lost cause. Obviously I'd never tell him, but all the movies sucked ass. Chelsea had moved over to sit on Afton's lap, me and Santiago now in a disagreement about the movie.
"How could you hate this movie? Dude, no offence, but what's wrong with you?"
"It's awful, the acting is terrible, and the special effects look like they're from a comedic piss take" I hissed.
"Take that back, take that back right now!" he seemed genuinely hurt by my statement.
"Nope, you can't make me" I stubbornly crossed my arms and turned my nose up at him.
"Oh, if you weren't the Masters' human mate, I would-"
"Santiago, calm down, it is literally just a movie. A movie." Jane snapped and returned her gaze back to the projector screen.
"Thank you, Jane" I smiled smugly, gesturing at her, but she didn't respond.
"Can you guys keep it down? I'm off to sit with Felix, Demetri, and Alec. At least they can take this movie seriously" Chelsea stood up and zoomed over to the other side of the room, jokingly scowling at us.
"Thanks for that," Afton muttered, readjusting his cloak, "I was comfortable as well"
"Sir Afton of the Volturi, do you agree that Star Wars in general sucks ass?" I overdid my accent.
"I do in fact concur with queen Eliana of the Volturi" he chuckled.
"W-what?!" Santiago yelled a little too loudly, slamming his fists on the table. Everyone in unison turned and shushed us harshly, before settling back down and continuing the movie.
"See what you did?" I whispered, raising my eyebrows at him.
"What do you mean, 'me'? Dude, this is your doing" he hissed.
"Renata, do you like Star Wars, or do you have common sense?" I asked, to which Santiago growled.
"I can't say I do enjoy watching Star Wars whatsoever, no" she grinned smugly at him.
"So that's…," I did a quick head count for effect, "four to one. Any words?"
"Jane still hasn't explicitly stated her opinion though. Jane?"
She slowly turned her head to him, clearly annoyed that we'd disrupted her viewing.
"I don't like it, but I do like movie night so, if you don't mind, please do keep the volume down" she snapped.
"But I-"
Jane made a zipping sound and put one finger over her lips before resuming the movie.
"Again, any words?" I asked proudly.
"You guys suck" he sighed, looking truly disappointed.
"Awh, poor little Santiago!" Renata cooed, pinching his cheek.
"Get off dude" he shook her off of him, causing the entire table to burst out laughing, even Jane struggling to suppress a chuckle.
Corin quickly tapped me on the shoulder, and thrusted a massive bucket of popcorn at me as soon as I turned to face her.
"Umm…what's with the popcorn?" I whispered.
"Heidi made some for you, she said that it didn't feel right without the smell of popcorn in the air apparently" she shrugged and skipped back to her seat.
"Tell her I said thanks!" I called, turning back around to the table. The bucket just about fit in my lap and by looking inside, I realised that there were M&Ms stirred in as well. Out of habit, I offered a handful to Renata before remembering that I was in a room full of vampires, before shoving it in my mouth.
"Good?" Afton laughed.
"So good, damn!" I moaned dramatically with my mouth still full, earning an eye roll from Jane. A few chews later, I turned my gaze to Renata.
"So, you're Aro's personal bodyguard?" I asked.
"Yes actually," she scowled at Santiago, "my ability allows me to create a protective shield from any physical attack" she stated proudly.
"Wow, now that's cool-"
Before I could finish, Santiago reached over and took a small pile of M&Ms from the bucket, closing one eye to aim one at the back of Demetri's head. Shockingly, Demetri never saw it coming, as it smashed into tiny pieces on the back of his head, leaving little bits of chocolate in his hair. He instantly snapped around, and his crimson eyes locked on mine as he stormed over, his hands in fists by his sides.
"It wasn't me!" I held my arms up in the air in surrender.
"You are the only one here with food, Eliana" he eyed the giant bucket of popcorn, which probably looked like a dead giveaway.
"I'm not kidding, it was Santiago" I pointed at him.
"Dude!" he exclaimed as he raised his arms at me and I stuck my tongue out at him in response.
At first I panicked, thinking this was going to end in some kind of fight, but instead Demetri simply took the remaining M&Ms out of his hand and smashed them on the top of Santiago's head, pieces of chocolate now tangled in his dark hair, causing gasps and claps from across the room. Before he even had the chance to bite back, Demetri was already sat down, a pleased look on his face.
"You really didn't see that coming?" Jane snorted as Santiago pulled out the remaining food in his hair, piece by piece.
"I'd Watch it, or you'll be next Jane," he warned, lightly dropping a large chunk on top of her head, "and you," he turned his attention to me, "what the hell Eliana?"
I burst out laughing, almost spilling the remaining contents of the bucket over myself. "What are you gonna do about it, huh?" I challenged him, which he didn't have an answer to. To my amusement, apparently being the only human in here does have its advantages after all.
Author's note: This whole quarantine thing has got me writing this non-stop, so I do apologise if it at all feels like I'm spamming you with new chapters. This whole day in the chronological timeline has been split up into three chunks, so I'm sorry about that, but this whole section of the story is kinda important so…yeah. I hope you enjoyed reading, feel free to review/comment/whatever, and ily!