Chapter 5 - Plans

After Castiel was taken to see Arkos, the ancients dismissed the guard, but only after Caius took the time to threaten everyone who had attended the trial with their tongue being removed for the next month if any of them dared to speak a word. And, as curious as those who attended were, they were not going to invoke the Masters' wrath. Castiel, the human Master Marcus had all but laid an unspoken claim to, was to remain a secret until they were told otherwise.

Aro and Caius all but dragged Marcus from the room, and Sulpicia seemed to know that Marcus was about to throw a fit, because she suggested they head to one of the training rooms so he could blow off steam.

That's where the ancients were now, but Marcus was not with them. He had instead taken to destroying a room a few doors down the hall. Most of the rooms this way were filled with items for storage while a few rooms in the castle underwent renovations – after all it was important to make sure the castle was structurally sound, and in the last decade Aro had made the decision that the castle underwent massive renovations. All these renovations were done by vampires of course.

While the wives exchanged worried looks, and Caius sighed in frustration because he was impatient to get to the matter at hand, Aro couldn't have been in a better mood. After all there was nothing in any of the rooms that wasn't replaceable, and he viewed that Marcus was reacting much better than expected.

He had seen the inner turmoil in his brother's head, and Marcus knew he needed to blow off steam before he could see Castiel. This was hard, so very hard, for Marcus to grasp. Marcus had though he was mated before and was mourning the loss of Didyme for centuries only to realize that he was destined for an imprint. It pained him to question his old relationship and to have an imprint who simply could not feel what he so intensely felt for her, who was probably hurt both physically and psychologically when she was forced here by their guard.

Marcus worried for their bond, worried how much damage they had already caused without meaning to, and how it would affect Castiel's feelings toward him. Aro wasn't even slightly concerned though. He had seen the bond and noticed there was no negativity or hesitance coming from Castiel's end. Marcus just needed to calm down so he could think rationally enough to see it for himself.

Suddenly it went quiet, the sounds of Marcus' rampage ceasing. This drew the family from the room where they encountered Marcus entering the hall himself. He was covered from head to toe in thick white dust and his suit was thoroughly ruined. It was torn in multiple places and missing a sleeve while his tie seemed to have disappeared somewhere.

"Now that that's settled!" Aro said in his usual cheery voice, clapping his hands together – the sound echoing through the hallway, "Why don't we go take a seat in my office and figure out what to do?"

So together they ran, Aro leading the way and being sure to take a path that wouldn't lead them through the hall where Castiel's room was. Marcus simply didn't need the distraction.

And once they were in his study, Aro and Caius took their previous seats on the loungers while their wives head over to Aro's desk. Sulpicia reached into one of the drawers to draw out a silver laptop which the two women opened and began speaking quietly over.

The brothers didn't ask what their wives were up to, sure they would be told once they finished whatever they had set themselves to do.

Marcus sat heavily on the couch, dispersing dust across the fine leather.

"Perhaps we should give you a moment to tidy yourself up brother," Aro suggested as his brother dirtied his couch, only too have the suggestion shut down by Caius.

"No! For once we need to get straight to the matter at hand. Shit. Hit. The. Fucking. Fan. In there Aro!"

"Why is it such an issue that I imprinted?" Marcus snapped from his seat, his glare at his blonde brother truly dangerous, "I don't see what the problem is here so if you could explain it to me, I'd really appreciate it."

"He wasn't saying that brother," Aro hurried out in a soothing tone, sensing how dangerous Marcus' hostility was toward Caius really was, "Castiel is the furthest thing from and issue, and I can say that confidently for I've seen her entire life. It was truly very… peaceful inside her head. She's very kind and her true innocence is shocking to say the least. It's been a long time since I've seen someone with such a clean and straight-thinking mind."

"Right," Caius confirmed, mindlessly agreeing with Aro because it seemed to calm Marcus down somewhat, and he leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "My concern is only for her safety brother. We don't need word getting out to enemies about her just yet, not in the state she's in-,"

"Her human state you mean?" Marcus stood impatiently, his sharp eyes narrowing at Caius, "I have no problem with her humanity, so please refrain from talking about her as if she has some condition waiting to be treated."

It was quiet for a second and Caius knew he would have to reel-in the human comments for the time being. He didn't care she was human, she was to be his sister so of course he wouldn't view or treat her badly, but Marcus was going to defend his mate at every turn for now and he wouldn't take to kindly to what could be considered rude comments if viewed the wrong way.

"Marcus please relax," Athenadora's soft voice came from over by the computer, the tapping of the keys on the keyboard pausing, "Everything will be alright, we'll figure this out together. I'm sure I speak for everyone when I say we will secure you your mate."

Glancing around the room and seeing the expressions of agreement on each member of his family's face caused Marcus to take a deep breath and run his fingers through his hair, suddenly ashamed at the way he was acting.

"I know. I'm sorry."

It was times like these that the brothers were truly grateful for their wives. They were always the voice of reason in tense situations, and their calm demeanor always soothed the beasts within them. That was what a mate did for the more aggressive partner, they calmed centuries of pain and bouts of bloodlust and rage without effort.

"Our only concern for our youngest is her safety right now," Aro's tone was placating as he rose from his chair to stand with Marcus. "We will gather the guard and privately inform them of Castiel soon, and those who know already will remain silent for now. For the time being we just have to make sure we issue your guards to-,"

"Afton and Chelsea are already guarding Castiel." Marcus interrupted, knowing what Aro was going to suggest.

Afton and his mate Chelsea had been Marcus' personal guards for centuries now. Afton had been eager to step down as head of the guard for the honor of protecting a Master when the position was offered to him. The two were quite a pair, Chelsea's gift of bond tying meshing well with Marcus' gift of bond sight. Though Chelsea's gift was much simpler since she was only able to really strengthen or loosen a bond as a whole. Her gift did not show her a bonds true complexity or form. Her ability also didn't usually work if a bond was strong; she could not affect mating or family bonds.

But Chelsea was viewed in a very bad light by many of the Volturi's enemies. They acted as though she could take away free will and used her powers willy-nilly. Chelsea could not take away free will, and contrary to popular belief she never used her gift to make people join the guard. She only ever used her gift during trials to make accused vampires more trusting of the masters and therefor more willing to give up information.

His guards had seen his distress when Castiel was being removed from the room earlier, both of them were of course in attendance since they always followed Master Marcus, and Afton gave him a silent nod as an unspoken agreement that they would leave to watch his mate.

Before Aro could respond Sulpicia called him over to the computer. Caius and Marcus were a bit frustrated as the two began talking lowly to each other, their eyes fixed on the machine as Athenadora scrolled and typed.

Caius let out a low, irritated growl causing his wife to look up and roll her eyes at him. "Oh relax Caius, we are just looking at something for Castiel."

"What's for Castiel?" This caught Marcus' interest, he really wished they would keep him more in the loop with things that concerned his little mate.

Athenadora turned the screen around, Aro leaving the desk to go take a seat on the dust-covered couch so Marcus would have room to see what the wives were doing.

On the screen was the online shopping cart of a well-known clothing brand, other tabs on the web browser indicated that she had more designer clothing sites opened as well. In the cart were dozens of different things ranging from sweaters to skirts, to socks and makeup.

"We were only having Aro confirm if these things were in her size and if she wore heels at all." Sulpicia turned the computer back around to face her and began typing away. "She isn't very into makeup but Aro said she is fond of liquid lipsticks so I have to find some brands she may like."

Marcus was both speechless and touched to see his sisters already going out of their way for the comfort of his mate, the two of them going on to discuss bath products while Athenadora thought aloud of lending Castiel some clothes to wear for the next day, since it would take a day or two even with express shipping for most of the clothes to arrive and she was physically the closest to Castiel's size.

"For now, Marcus, what we have to focus on is how you can acquaint yourself with Castiel." Aro said reasonably, "She doesn't know who you are, only that you are one of the three leaders." He made air quotations with his hands at the words, "She doesn't even know your name, so you have a clean slate."

"And she has a personality very similar to yours. She's quiet, loyal, and doesn't seem to like the spotlight being trained on her. If I didn't see it for myself, I wouldn't believe she could be so perfect for you."

Before Marcus could respond, wanting to ask more about what he saw in Castiel's mind, Aro smiled knowingly while shaking his head.

"I know how much she means to you brother, and I know you wish to know everything about her but the questions you have are best left for her."

Of course, Marcus thought before sighing. Aro having unlimited access to everyone's mind was something he knew was invasive and his brother usually did his best to respect people's privacy. So, out of respect for her, Aro wouldn't divulge much about Castiel to Marcus regardless of his imprinting on her.

At that moment a knock sounded on the door, and upon Caius' approval Arkos entered. The doctor had changed from his white lab coat and scrubs into a pair of dark blue jeans and a black button up, and he nodded to his Masters before bending into a polite bow to their wives. In his hand was a clipboard, which he didn't hesitate to hold out to Aro.

"Castiel is in overall good health." He informed them as Aro's eyes scrolled quickly down the page. "The only real concern I had was when I had her breathe deeply for me and she had a small coughing fit – as well as the scent of the sickness in her blood. But she assures me she was sick these last couple of weeks and is on the tail end of it."

"Yes, that is true," Aro nodded quickly as he finished reading over the forms before passing them to Marcus.

Patient Name: Castiel Jane Rodgers

Gender: Female

D.O.B: 24/12/1995

Height: 5 feet 0 inches

Weight: 103 lbs.

Eye Color: Blue

Hair Color: Red

Ethnicity: White/Caucasian

Blood Type: O-

Organ Donor: Yes

Blood Donor: No, due to not meeting American weight requirements for blood donation

Vision: 20/25 or 20/30 range.

*Suffers from nearsightedness and astigmatism

*Needs a pair of glasses made to legally be allowed to operate a vehicle – She is issued a class M license in the United States

*Colorblind with unknown deficiency

Sexual Orientation: Straight

Sexual History: None

*Patent relays no history of physical relationships

Head Injuries: One record of a minor concussion from grade school, no lasting effects.

Surgeries: Wisdom teeth – removed at age 19.

*All vaccinations are up to date, negative for scoliosis, no family history of heart disease, cancer, or other serious medical conditions

*Patient is left-handed

No history of physical relationships? This line stood out to Marcus, as it surely couldn't have been correct. Castiel was beautiful, there was no way anyone could deny that she was stunning even by vampire standards. Marcus knew that this was another subject of Castiel's privacy, but he couldn't stop himself from repeating the line as a question to Aro.

"Yes, you read that right," Aro knew this was a piece of information Marcus would need to know, "Castiel's father has been a very good role model… she knows how men should treat her. Of course, she has had suitors, but she never wasted her time with them. Her ability usually warned her that their intentions with her were mostly… physical."

"It's kind of unfortunate really, always knowing when the boys in her year wanted her attentions and realizing it was only because she was attractive and that they didn't care as much for her mind as her body. Quite an impression that can leave on a young girl… but she has always been very sensible and tried not to let it get to her." Aro shrugged.

Marcus nodded, trying to wrap his mind around just how innocent his mate really was. Not that she couldn't have been physical with others; answering no to physical relationships didn't mean she hadn't had one-night stands or things of the sort.

Marcus realized very quickly he needed to stay off that train of thought. Imagining his mate under someone else made him see red.

As a distraction he pointed out another line that had interested him while passing the clipboard to Caius.

"A class M license?" He said the words with an air of nonchalance, but he had a sinking feeling he knew what it meant.

"It's a motorcycle license." Aro confirmed, not blind to his brothers feigned disinterest.

"No." Marcus' voice was stern now, and he shook in denial as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Absolutely not."

Arkos couldn't help but shake his head with a small smile, he had been right to assume Marcus would hold the same viewpoint as Caius on motorcycles when it came to the safety of his mate.

"Even if she doesn't drive," Arkos spoke reasonably, "She should have an eye exam completed so she can get a pair of glasses. Castiel said she doesn't usually wear them but it's best she has them anyway."

This earned a nod of approval from everyone in the room and Aro stood to fetch a piece of paper from his desk to write down the specifications from her last eyeglass prescription for the doctor.

"Arkos this says Castiel is a gymnast?" Athenadora asked from the desk as she read over the second sheet of information that Arkos had listed Castiel's levels of physical activity on.

Am affirmative nod from the doctor caused Sulpicia to pull the laptop toward her and begin typing away. "Okay so if Castiel is a gymnast she'll need clothing for that; leotards, leggings, tank tops, sports bras… what else?"

"Maybe you shouldn't speak out loud darling," Caius piped up from his chair, a teasing smirk directed at Marcus, "It's not nice to tease Marcus that way."

And indeed, Marcus was having a hard time keeping away the mental image of his little mate in tight fitting clothes.

Since he was too busy smirking at Marcus, Caius missed the warning look his wife shot him and felt a jolt as his smart-ass response earned him a pen being thrown so graciously at the side of his head by Sulpicia.

Laughter sounded around the room at his shocked expression, and the night progressed with much less tension than before. Marcus couldn't help how grateful he felt for his brothers as they helped him plan what he could say when he spoke with Castiel, and Athenadora and Sulpicia were very helpful giving him insights to how women and relationships have changed over the years.

Aro had relayed that due to stress and overcoming her illness, Castiel was not as on top of her visions as she usually was, and this would be a good thing. This meant Marcus could start off this relationship as naturally as possible.

Caius advised that Marcus show some affection to her right off the bat, and that hearing words of praise and endearment would probably mean a lot to her. He felt that from the information Aro was willing to share about her that she wouldn't jump to assumptions about Marcus' intentions, not after having sabotaged so many potential relationships in the past by worrying too much right away about if they only wanted her physically. And according to Aro she could be pretty naïve when it came to men being affectionate with her and she didn't usually notice flirting for what it was.

She seemed such a constant little thing that being forward with her from the start would probably be the best course of action.

Aro was surprised Caius had picked up on this part of Castiel's personality. Yes, she was a very confident person… but she still had some insecurities. She would need someone to lean on in the coming weeks as she adjusted to life here.

As morning neared the brothers had agreed on a few things. Marcus would have to be careful with his intensity toward Castiel, rather than letting his affection for her come off too strong, he would have to focus and like a steadily dripping pipe he had to let his feelings come alight slowly. Castiel was also to remain human until the day she asked Marcus to change her, within reason of course, so she would not be pushed into immortality and the change would not be forced upon her unless it was a situation of dire consequence. And finally, as long as Castiel was with either Afton or Chelsea, she would be able to roam both the castle and the city as she pleased after she adjusted.

Overall a lot of progress was made this night. The gentle doctor was a comfort to Marcus as he assured him that Castiel hadn't been injured when she was taken to Volterra, only shaken a bit. Arkos also couldn't hide the fact that he had snapped at Demetri and upon Aro seeing what had occurred his Master nodded before speaking.

"Good." Aro shrugged, "At least now I don't have to tell him off myself."

As the sun rose Athenadora and Caius retired to their chambers, and moments after they left Marcus stood to go as well, he was planning to speak with Afton about how Castiel had handled her first night in the castle.

Before he exited, Sulpicia assured him that everything Castiel would need would be arriving within a few short days, her cloaks being the only exception since they would have to be specially made and would likely take a week.

Marcus could only give her a small smile of gratitude and tried not to laugh as Aro swept her off her feet, startling her as he made to carry her to their private rooms.

"Please shut the door behind you brother." Aro said wickedly, winking at Marcus.

And Marcus couldn't help but smile as he left to shower, change, and check on his imprint.


Revised January 18th, 2021

(8 Pages, 3,461 Words)