"What is your opinion of the De Luca's?" Claudius Nero asked Thomas and his group as they sat down in some comfortable chairs in a near by lounge. The kids and the younger magicals were in between them in a privacy dome playing games. This was done so everyone could watch them but not have them be apart of the conversation. Angela, Aphrodite, and Poseidon opted to sit with them.
Claudius wanted to get to the heart of the matter before anything else was discussed. He was also very eager to hear about what Thomas had to say.
Thomas ran a hand through his wife's strawberry blonde hair as she sat in his lap. He frowned thoughtfully as he replied, "They are very skilled," He began. "They probably have lots of resources but above all; they are very angry. This isn't just your typical anger but a white hot rage. I was overwhelmed by the smell of their anger."
"Overwhelmed by the smell of their anger?" Astoria frowned at Thomas who chuckled a little.
"My apologies, allow me to explain further," Thomas murmured. "Wolf shifters or animal shifters in general have heightened senses or abilities. However, there are some who are better with one sense or have different abilities altogether. In my case, my sense of smell is superior in comparison to the other wolf shifters that I know. So much in fact that I can literally smell an emotion that someone is feeling. The stronger the feeling, the more powerful the scent will be. I was very overwhelmed by the hatred they were feeling."
Thomas paused and then turned to Claudius.
"If you don't mind me asking Lord- Claudius," Thomas corrected himself when Claudius gave him a look. "If you don't mind me asking; what did you do or what do the De Luca's think you did?"
Claudius let out a weary sigh as his wife slipped her hand into his, offering her support.
"I… I killed their father in combat." He admitted and Cassius snorted at his brother in law. "This isn't funny Cassius!" Claudius hissed. "What almost happened today was because of what happened to Giuseppe!"
"That may be," Cassius said calmly. "But what happened with Giuseppe was an accident; plain and simple. An accident, that happened when he lost the duel and fired a curse at you when your back was turned. I wish I could say that I understand what the two of them are feeling but my father wasn't that much of a father so I can't but they had no right to try and pull what they did!" He finished hotly.
"Be that is it may," Claudius said. "They blame me for what happened and decided to take it out on the family. That's a fact that you cannot deny."
"Regardless," Embry cut in before Cassius could retort. "What they tried to do was unforgivable," He turned to Thomas. "What's going to happen to them?" He asked him and a few people frowned.
Thomas' eyes glazed over as he searched the future of the De Luca brothers.
"Is he ok?" Harry asked, speaking for the first time in a while. He was mostly quiet and he observed the other group. He had to admit that they had this presence about them It wasn't one that made him uneasy but one that made him feel like he was apart of it. It was a strange feeling for him but it didn't put him off.
"I'm doing very well Hadrian," Thomas answered. "Just checking something out. Oh and I'm calling you Hadrian because I think it's too soon for me to be calling you Harry. We're not that familiar with each other though I hope we will become friends."
Harry and a few people sat in their chairs dumbfounded. Tanya grinned and decided to take pity on them.
"My husband is very gifted," She said. "He was born with the gift of precognition or foresight if you prefer. He can see the future; sometimes in his sleep but also while he is awake. Before he would only get glimpses; bits and pieces from up coming events but sometimes he would get the entire event when he was asleep.
"Over the years his power grew but it became more powerful after he ascended."
"Ascended?" Neville asked. "Ascended in to what exactly?"
"An Alpha." Embry answered. "Remember when I said that some of us have bonded to other supernatural beings?" Though he was looking at Neville, everyone not in Embry's group nodded. "Well when T.J. and I," He gestured to Thomas then himself, "Imprinted on our soul mates, our bodies changed. We possessed the basic vampiric abilities; super speed, enhanced strength etc. We trained for a confrontation that ended in a battle of wits but spring break of last year was when things really got interesting.
"See T.J. here," He patted Thomas on the shoulder. Thomas turned to him and gave him an irritated look even though his eyes were still glazed. Embry ignored it and continued. "Was the first of us to have a link to the Great Spirit; a higher power that all of us fuel but ultimately ignore. He was marked by T'ist'ilal; a figure from Quileute legend who has made the sky his domain." Thunder boomed outside the building and there was a flash of lightning as rain began to fall. "Well at least in the spirit world." Embry eyed the weather with trepidation as Thomas blinked to adjust his vision.
"You do realize that you just created more questions right?" Thomas muttered to Embry who just shrugged. Thomas turned to Claudius and spoke in an almost sad tone; "The De Luca's are going to be executed," His declaration had silenced everyone from commenting. "They have dozens of warrants for their arrest in many different countries. They also have bounties on their heads; all of them equate to tens of millions of dollars.
"Both of them have done illegal body modifications; they drank diluted troll's blood to enhance their strength, injected boiled werewolf venom into their veins to enhance their senses etc. It's a very long list of things that they have done to their bodies.
"Embry and I will be called to bear witness at the trial as we were the ones to engage them in combat.
"No one has been able to catch them until now," He went on when everyone was still silent. "The ICW will convene soon but the decision will be swift and clear; Giorgio and Fabrizo will die before the day this meeting takes place is over." He finished quietly.
He paused for a few moments to let that sink in before speaking again.
"This is no one's fault but theirs." He said gently. "I'm not saying that they have no right to be angry about what happened to their father, but they had no right to take it out on any of you or try to at least." He paused again before looking back at Claudius. "Does today have any significance to you?" He asked him curiously and Claudius shook his head.
"No it doesn't," Claudius frowned. "Their father died in January of 89, not too long after the confrontation he and I had at Artorius' first birthday party. The family left not too long after to bury Giuseppe, their father, in Italy."
"And what happened to their mother?" Embry asked him.
"I don't know," Claudius admitted. "Like I said; they left for Italy not to long after Giuseppe moved on. No one has heard from her or any of them since. Why do you ask?"
"Because I think their mother might have passed away on this day sometime ago," Embry explained. "It's the only thing that makes sense. If they wanted to cover this up by calling it a terrorist attack, it would have made more sense to do it on the anniversary of 9/11. By doing so they would have gotten away with it in the mundane world because the ensuing panic would have covered up any scandal that happens in this world. At least a scandal that needed to be cleaned up by erasing memories or what not."
Several people pondered what he said while Thomas raised an eyebrow at his fellow Alpha.
"When did you get so smart?" Thomas said in mock confusion though his lips twitched slightly. Embry merely rolled his eyes at Thomas.
"I do have a brain you know." He grumbled somewhat good naturedly. Thomas smirked at him.
"You mean you have a good tutor." Thomas corrected with a pointed look towards Irina. Embry smirked and nodded in agreement, pulling his mate into a short kiss. Out of the corner of his eye, Thomas saw his nephew making gagging motions along with his niece which caused him to laugh. His wife followed his gaze and chuckled. The others did the same except for Embry and Irina who frowned at their children.
Thomas noticed their looks and snorted, "What, you thought they would have found you two swallowing each other's faces adorable or something?" He demanded. "They're kids; they don't like seeing their parents being all lovey dovey with each other. That's one of the cardinal rules of parenting." When Embry wanted to open his mouth, Thomas cut him off. "That doesn't count Levitas and you know it. They were babies; not even born yet and they were learning how to use their powers. They also couldn't help but be curious."
"Um excuse me?" Susan nervously began and both men turned to her.
"Yes Lady Lestrange?" They asked and Susan made a face.
"Please call me Susan," She murmured. Despite finding out that Bellatrix Lestrange was manipulated by her husband through their mutual like of Dark magic and that the reason she attacked the Longbottom's was out of grief for the death of her child; Susan still felt that it was wrong to be addressed in such away. She had no regrets about marrying Neville but she still couldn't wrap her head around the fact that her name was Lestrange now.
"Yes Susan?" Thomas and Embry both asked.
"May I ask what you two are talking about?" She said politely.
"Oh I was just referring to the time when our children asked us about sex," Thomas murmured and Susan's eyebrows almost disappeared into her hair line. The others in her group had similar expressions. Artorius was trying very hard not to laugh but Wilfred and Bertram cackled like Hyenas. Jen and Maddie felt their lips twitch but kept their laughter inward. The older lords and ladies in attendance wore bemused expressions.
"You explained sex to them when they were still in the womb?" Hannah Longbottom said with no small amount incredulity.
"They forced the issue," Embry shrugged. He stopped talking so Thomas picked up the story.
"My children and my niece and nephew are incredibly gifted," Thomas murmured to them. "Tristan is a telepath; meaning he can enter someone's mind and communicate with them. He doesn't use it liberally," He added quickly and in slightly harsh tone when he saw the opposite group exchange looks. Thomas knew that those looks were filled with suspicion; like the group thought that Tristan was spying on them.
"In fact he makes it a point to only use it if necessary. He linked the thoughts of his brother and cousin together and one day, after going through my wife's memories, they uh came across a rather revealing situation. Several of them actually." He added with a look towards Irina and Embry. Both of them just shrugged. Sure at the time it was embarrassing but they had gotten over it. "Before we could properly explain, one of our cousins had opened his big mouth and said that it was just us showing our mates a good time." He finished with a slight huff.
"Let me guess, Emmett?" Bertram grinned and snorted when Thomas nodded. "I like him, he's a funny guy."
"If you say so." Thomas said dryly before continuing with the story, "Anyway we explained to them what it was and that they should only do it when they're grown up."
"And in love." Embry threw out. Thomas gave him a look that said 'you're one to talk' before he started speaking.
"Though we might have to rephrase that statement," Thomas went on.
"Why is that?" Daphne asked him and Thomas looked at his children who were pretending that they were oblivious though Tristan had filled in his pack mates and the imprints on some parts of the conversation.
"Tell me; how old do they look?" He asked the room at large. Those who already knew about vampire hybrids kept quiet while those who didn't pondered the question.
"Your boys are at least eleven years old by the look of them," Blaise Zabini said slowly to Thomas and Tanya. "Your daughter is the same," He added to Embry and Irina. "The younger ones are at least six and what, two?" He asked his wife who nodded in agreement. The others did as well.
"What if I were to tell you that the older children are a little over a year old," Thomas began. "My daughter is only four months and that my nephew is over three weeks old and will experience a massive growth spurt soon?" When he finished speaking the others just stared at him like he was crazy.
"You're barmy," Draco muttered. "Absolutely barmy." His mother gave him a look though she did agree with him somewhat. Similar thoughts ran through the minds of those in the British group.
"Far from it actually," Thomas retorted cheerfully. "Our children are half vampire; a species of vampire that is vastly different than the one you have encountered."
"We don't burn up in the sunlight but we can't go out anyway," Tanya picked up the explanation. "We don't eat, we don't sleep and most of us are unable to have children. I suppose the only thing we do have in common with the other species is that we can be destroyed by fire." She murmured and added when she saw Hermione raise her hand, "Yes?"
"You said that most of you are unable to have children…" Hermione trailed off but Tanya understood what she was trying to say.
"It is near impossible for our kind to have children," Tanya began. "Until a few years ago, I thought the only way for a vampire to have something close to a child was to turn one. An act that was and still is forbidden."
"Vampires used to change children?" Hermione gasped and the others looked disgusted.
"If you mean all vampires then no, we did not." Kate said curtly and with a touch of coldness. Her eyes had narrowed toward the window as she tried to fight memories off her mother's death. It took Kate a long time to forgive her mother but she made a promise that she wouldn't let those memories get to her. Irina and Tanya flinched at Kate's tone and the memories that played in their minds. "The price for breaking that law is death not only for the offending vampire but their coven if they have one and if they were knowledgeable of the crime." Kate went on after clenching and unclenching her jaw.
"You know someone who broke this law," Harry stated. "Someone who was very close to each of you."
Kate turned ever so slowly to regard him, her eyes were still narrowed but they were black now as opposed to gold.
"My mother created an immortal child," Kate said coldly. Garrett tightened his hold on her and Jasper sent waves of calm through out the room. "She decided to break one of the most important laws in our world and it got her killed!" She hissed out. "Do you know what it's like to watch as the person who helped raise you is shredded into pieces and thrown into a fire?!" She demanded heatedly and Harry shook his head slowly, trying not to anger her further. His hand slowly inched towards his wand though thinking he could at least hit her with a stunner if things got to out of hand.
"Kate," Thomas said in a warning tone as he tightened his grip on his now still mate. Embry did the same and narrowed his eyes at Kate. Kate pointedly ignored them.
"Let me tell you then," She said to Harry. "It is painful beyond comprehension; and there is no relief from it. It doesn't help when you find out that the person you once called mother betrayed the very ideals that she taught you and you could get no explanation for it because you just watched them die!" She snarled through her teeth.
"Kate!" Embry and Thomas growled in their Alpha voices. Their eyes shone with spirit energy, their teeth elongated into wolf fangs, and their nails became claws. Kate whipped her head towards them, ready to lash out but stopped herself when she saw how still her sisters were. It was then she realized how far she just took it and her mouth closed with an audible click.
The tension in the room began to build despite Jasper's efforts to change it. Kate hung her head in shame and apology.
"I'm sorry," She murmured to her sisters who still hadn't moved. In fact not too many people did but they were staring at Thomas and Embry with a little bit of fear. "I'm sorry." Kate repeated.
Thomas turned to Claudius who met his gaze without hesitation. Thomas then gazed to the privacy dome where his children were standing, looking at them anxiously. Claudius understood and waved his hand so the dome could fall. The second it did all the children ran to Kate, Irina, or Tanya. David and Sasha went to their mother. Tristan went to Kate and Erik and Minerva went to Tanya. All of them hugged each of the women, murmuring words of comfort. All three vampires slowly began to hug them back.
"That wouldn't have worked you know," Thomas commented to Harry after the silence dragged on for a few more moments. Harry turned to him and frowned in confusion. "Your plan to stun my sister in law," Thomas clarified over the growl that Garrett emitted. "It wouldn't have worked."
Harry blinked at Thomas owlishly, wondering how he knew but then he figured that Thomas probably saw something with his gift.
"Most spells don't work on vampires," Thomas continued. "Including what you call the Unforgiveables."
The magicals that didn't know about that little fact felt their jaws drop, even those who usually kept their composure.
"What?" Daphne squeaked before clearing her throat. Harry stared at his wife in amazement as that was the first time he ever heard her squeak. "I'm sorry but what?" She said to Thomas.
"I said most spells don't work on vampires," Thomas repeated. "Including the three Unforgiveables."
"Even the killing curse?" Neville asked in a slightly awed tone.
"Can't kill someone who's already dead," Jasper dryly replied. "Physically at least."
"The killing curse does not harm the body," Artorius said as he noticed many perplexed looks in the room. "It actually separates the soul from it; that's what many theorize about it anyway. With their branch of vampire," He nodded towards the vampires in attendance. "Their bodies are practically resistant to magic and their souls are intact; but they are classified as dead because their hearts no longer beat."
"All that would have happened would be that your stunner was absorbed into Kate's skin," Thomas murmured. "That is; if you could get passed this." He waved his hand from one side to the other and a wall of spirit energy erected in front of his group.
"What is that?" Tracey asked, eyeing the wall critically.
"A field of spirit energy," Bertram grinned. "When Thomas ascended he gained a secondary power; a force field that is practically impenetrable. He hasn't come across anything that can break through it," He added as the wall disappeared. "But he feels the attacks none the less."
"The field is an extension of me," Thomas added to the explanation. "I can contort it to anyway that I want but on the flip side; I feel what hit's it. So far nothing's been able to break it but I'd rather not find out what could." He finished with a shrug as ran one hand through his wife's hair and rubbed his daughter's back with the other.
"You can even block the Unforgiveables?" Draco asked him and Thomas nodded. "Well I'll be damned." Draco muttered to his wife who nodded her head.
"Why don't you give them a taste of what you can do, little brother," Thomas murmured to Embry who nodded. Thomas asked him to do so because he wanted to take the attention away from his wife and her sisters.
Embry pointed towards a glass vase filled with flowers. The vase lifted slowly into the air. Embry lifted the flowers out, and the water that covered them fell back into the vase. He sent a flower to each of the women in the room and placed the vase on the coffee table that was in front of them.
"Well I was going to give one to each of my girls," Embry explained when he saw all the raised eyebrows he was getting. "I didn't want to leave the rest of you out of the loop."
The women beamed at him but Thomas stared at him suspiciously.
"Ok who are you and what have you done with the real Embry Call?" He demanded and several people snickered. "You were never this considerate." Thomas continued.
"People can change," Embry pointed out. "Especially if they have a good reason too." He stared at his mate with nothing but love and adoration.
"Well then I maintain that Irina is a miracle worker," Thomas murmured with a smile. Embry just shrugged but smiled none the less. "Anymore questions?" Thomas asked the group.
"Um, can we talk about, the Volturi was it?" Narcissa asked and Thomas sighed softly but nodded. "May we talk about them?"
"What would you like to know?" Thomas asked her though that question was open to anyone.
"Whatever you wish to reveal to us." Narcissa replied simply.
"Well," Thomas began. "As I mentioned before they were in power for over three thousand years. They destroyed a lot covens in their reign; including the Egyptians and the Romanians who ruled the vampire world long before them.
"They gathered many allies to accomplish this. Whether they were allies who joined by their own volition or not I do not know." Seeing many frowns of confusion, Thomas continued, "They had a member of their honor guard who could affect where your allegiances lie. She could make you loyal to them and break your previous bonds if she wanted to. She couldn't break the bonds between mates or those who didn't practice the traditional diet."
"You mean human blood," Blaise stated and Thomas nodded at him. "Is that why some of you have gold eyes?" He asked the vampires who nodded. He turned to Fred who sighed.
"Yes red eyes equal human blood," Fred muttered with a roll of his eyes. "Don't worry; I find none of you appealing."
"Oddly enough that's not very reassuring." Blaise muttered and Fred shrugged. Fred had tried his hand at the vegetarian lifestyle but he couldn't maintain it. He felt like he was tasting slop as opposed to a rare wine. He wanted to do it for Amanda because she was part human and was dedicated to being a doctor/healer. Amanda told him however, that if it wasn't something that he didn't want to then he shouldn't force himself to do it.
"Eh don't worry Fred's nothing more than a teddy bear," Embry grinned and Amanda giggled at the face her mate was making. "It's Garrett you need to worry about," Embry continued and Garrett narrowed his eyes at him. "He doesn't like the English very much."
"You know very well that's not true," Garrett grumbled to Embry before talking to the other group. "I was turned during the Revolutionary War," He explained. "I fought alongside the rebels against the British crown. Despite that I do not hate the English. It would be hypocritical of me to do so because both my parents, like all of the colonists, had English blood pumping through their veins. So no I do not hate the English." He finished with a glare towards Embry.
"And yet you hate the Beatles." Thomas threw out and Garrett growled at him.
"I hate Beatle mania." Garrett snapped. "All those women screaming and running around; bah! It was very annoying and besides they're not even that good."
Thomas and Embry gave over dramatic gasps of outrage, much to the amusement of their kids and the others in the room.
"You take that back!" They yelled in unison and a few of the kids began to laugh. "This isn't funny children." Embry mock chided them.
"Yes this is an act against nature!" Thomas added. "Against humanity even!"
"Oh shut up you fools!" Garret snapped at them over the laughter that ensued.
"You wound us with your insults brother." Thomas and Embry mock pouted while holding a hand over their hearts. The kids started laughing again while Garrett rolled his eyes.
"Unbelievable." He muttered. "I believe they are waiting for you to finish your history lesson." He nodded to the group that sat across from them.
"Good point," Thomas nodded and continued with his explanation of the Volturi. "Like I said they had an honor guard member who could switch your allegiances." He said. "She was talented and it was through her that the Volturi had the numbers to wage war on those who ruled before them.
"The ruling force of the Egyptians included roughly 8 coven members, 50 honor guards and indefinite amount of recruits. Did I miss anything?" He turned to Benjamin for clarification. Benjamin shook his head. "Good. Oh Benjamin was apart of an Egyptian coven," he explained when people looked between the two of them. "Same goes for his mate, Tia." He nodded to the other Egyptian vampire. "They're from a different chapter I guess you could say. Benjamin's sire, Amun, was one of the original members of the ancient coven. He and his…companion ran after they heard that the Volturi were out to destroy their coven.
"The Volturi had already destroyed most of the Romanian coven and the Egyptians were next. The Volturi were smart," Thomas admitted grudgingly. "They gathered many gifted vampires and used them to their advantage."
"Gifted vampires?" Astoria asked.
"Vampires with special abilities." Thomas explained. "You want to take this one?" He asked Eleazar.
"Certainly," Eleazar nodded. "When one becomes a vampire –in our branch at least- sometimes you bring a certain quality or skill set with you and sometimes it culminates into a talent. Depending on what it is and how strong it is when you are human, it can be very powerful and very common or weak and different. Some of the most common talents are tracking and shielding."
"Tracking and shielding?" Hermione asked him.
"Tracking involves looking or feeling out the location of someone or something," Eleazar explained. "Like a hunter trying to find its prey or a magnet being attracted to something metallic. The weakest tracker I've ever heard about was a vampire called James. He was very…"
"Harsh in his methods," Thomas finished with a scowl. "He couldn't really feel the presence of those he was looking for but he was pretty good at predicting their movements by getting a whiff of their scent. He didn't find his target right away but he never lost them."
"You sound like you knew him." Harry commented and Thomas' scowl deepened.
"I didn't know him personally," Thomas said through gritted teeth. "But I know what he tried to do to a friend of mine while she was human. And he also did something to my little Pixie Pire over there." He nodded to Alice who scowled along with Jasper. Alice couldn't remember her human life but she knew that some of her family had survived and had children. She also knew that it was because of James that she didn't get to meet her sire and entered her new life without guidance. "Frankly, if I ever had the chance I would have helped destroy him."
"Was he really that bad?" Draco asked him and Thomas looked over at him.
"Do you have a weak stomach?" Thomas asked back. Draco frowned in confusion but shook his head. "Then why don't I show you how bad it was." He turned to Claudius. "Do you have a pensive?" He asked and Claudius nodded before waving his hand. A stone basin with intricate designs appeared in the center of the room. "Does it project the memory?"
"You just have to tap the rune on the side of it." Claudius pointed to a symbol that looked like a trident. "Should the young ones leave?" He asked Thomas who looked thoughtful.
"Well they," He gestured to his children, his niece, and his nephew. "Are fortunately or unfortunately, depending on how you want to look at it, familiar with the destruction of vampires and the methods that accomplish that task. Despite that; I don't feel comfortable with them watching this."
"Dad/ Uncle Thomas!" The kids whined in unison.
"Kids," Thomas began. "What I'm about to show them involves your aunt Bella and its…not pleasant."
"But aunt Bella-"Minerva began with a frown before her face cleared. "Aunt Bella was the human you were talking about." She said and Thomas nodded. "Did uncle Edward get the bad vampire?" She asked him.
"No." Thomas said and she pouted. "Your aunt Alice, your uncle Jasper, and your uncle Emmett did."
Minerva perked up and beamed at Alice and Jasper who smiled back.
"Well what are we supposed to do?" Tristan asked.
"There's a game room down the hall," Bertram said. "You guys can go play if you like." He offered.
"That sounds like a great idea." Thomas murmured.
"Fine." The older kids grumbled before sighing.
"We'll take them," Artemis said as she gestured to her cousins who nodded. "Then we'll come right back."
"We'll stay with them." Poseidon said with Angela and Aphrodite nodding along with his words. "You can fill us in later."
Thomas, Tanya, Irina, and Embry nodded in agreement. As they began to leave the room, Thomas walked over to Artorius.
"I need your help with extracting the memory." He murmured when Artorius raised his eyebrows. "I'll need your help with several actually."
The lion animagus nodded his head and got out of his seat. He held his index finger to his cousin's temple.
"Do you know what to do?" Artorius asked.
"I have to think about the memory, right?" Thomas asked and Artorius nodded. Thomas closed his eyes and thought about what he saw about James and his coven. Artorius began to extract the memories and he placed them into the pensive.
When Artemis, Tiberius, and Drusilla came back into the room, Artorius tapped the rune that his father mentioned and the memories began to play.