Sunrise

Chapter 2: Going Down In Flames

Going Down In Flames--Three Doors Down.

For the record, only a few characters are mine. And so is the setting of Volterra and the palace since Stephenie never described it in detail.

OOO

I explored the palace alone the next day, feeling like a total piece of crap. I had been so terrible to Matthias, and it wasn't normal for any form of me to feel remorse. But I had a feeling, a hunch—crap—that there was something deeper to Matthias. Something I needed to figure out.

I found a small pond, sitting underneath the tree next to where the waves gently lapped at the shore. I had to make a resolve. I would have to be nicer to Matthias. He was right—it wasn't his fault. It was completely mine.

I wanted to punch myself for being so rude, but from what I'd experienced of baseball, that would just make a loud bang, and everyone would get annoyed.

People. I had mostly steered clear of the inhabitants of the palace. Jane especially. She did not make me feel very welcome, and when an evil grin appeared on her face as she saw me, I about called Matthias for help. But then Aro commanded, "Not yet, Jane," and the evil little grin was replaced with a disappointed pout.

Not yet. Pft.

So I distracted myself by glancing at my reflection in the crystal clear pond, and immediately cringed. My eyes were dark—I was extremely thirsty. I had forgotten as a newborn, I had to feed more often. And my hair was matted, my face streaked with dirt, all from the railroad fight.

I needed a bath.

I got up, smirking to myself, shifting from foot to foot. Was I really about to return to the feel of my death? Ironic, yeah. I stripped myself of my shirt and jeans—they were covered with dirt, and I hadn't realized it before. I kept on my underwear (and locket); I wasn't about to go skinny-dipping when Matthias obviously wanted every part of me. That much was obvious.

No, I was merely in a bathing suit.

I took a running leap into the pond. The water rushed over me and I wasn't immediately flipping out as if I were drowning. That was good. I scrubbed my hair and face, feeling the dirt drift away. I surfaced from the waves…

And instantly wanting to pull myself back under. Drowning didn't seem like such a bad idea after all.

Matthias was there, in all his shimmering glory, leaning against the tree I'd been sitting under moments before. I stiffened in the water. How much had he seen? "Having a nice swim?" he commented lightly, betraying none of the answers to my hammering questions.

I gave him a thumb's up before slipping back beneath the waves. He laughed—I could hear it through the water. "Is the water a good temperature?" he called, and I rolled my eyes. I could barely even feel the water. "Maybe I should come in?"

My head popped above the surface within a millisecond. "No," I said sternly, as if speaking to a dog. But he was already running at lightning speed. I tried again: "No—!"

I felt him slam into me, and I was pinned to the sand beneath him. I was surprised he kept his eyes on my face, because to him, he could have me in a moment. Thinking that gave me a whisper of that damn temptation again and I tried desperately to shove it aside. He just grinned, leaning closer, lips inches away—

"Matthias!"

I stifled a groan at the intrusion. Matthias, on the other hand, let out a string of profanities that I could easily understand even under water, I recognized the voice that had called him. It was another member of the Volturi's guard, but his name escaped me.

I saw Matthias's brows pull together in frustration, and he made a motion to stay down. It was the same as a command. My body locked down as the bracelet glowed. I couldn't move.

As Matthias surfaced, he asked, "What is it, Lucas?" his tone was cutting, It reminded me why I was slightly afraid of him.

"Aro wants to talk to you about the girl. Cara, is it?"

"Yes." Matthias paused. "Why?"

"As if he would grace me with such information," Lucas laughed. "Make haste before he looses patience."

I could feel the waves of Matthias's hesitation. Behind his back, I saw him motion me up. I rose, glad I could move again, and he grabbed my forearm, pulling me closer to him. I tensed, but he was angry at someone else. As I looked into his face, Matthias's eyes were narrowed, spitting fire. I slid my line of vision to the intruder, whose face was livid.

"Please, come," Matthias's voice was oddly smooth, calm. "Aro apparently wishes to speak to us."

I did not miss the glare that exchanged between the two, or the fact that Matthias's would not let go of my arm. I looked up at Matthias. His face was still raging, livid. I had never seen him this angry, but then again, I had only known him for a few days.

"What was that?" I asked. He still didn't drop my arm. He wouldn't look at me.

"What was what?" He inquired, voice innocent. Too innocent. I frowned, glaring up at him.

"I mean the Lucas dude and yourself having the stare down of an existence!"

He raised an eyebrow, facing me. "What was that?" They were the same words I had asked moments before, except he was ignoring my pestering.

"Stare down of an existence," I repeated slowly. He frowned, and I continued, "You're not going to spill, are you?"

He grinned. "Not a word."

"You suck."

"It takes very little to make you agitated, doesn't it?" he questioned. "I say something, and you blow up in my face. I don't say something, and you tell me I 'suck'."

I glanced at him. He was still grinning. "It depends on the subject," I insisted. "For example, I could ask you why you can control my every move, and you could choose not to answer me. That would make me angry because it has to do with me, and since you control my every move, so does the Lucas thing. So yeah, I'm agitated," I emphasized, "that you won't tell me something about me."

He thought about that, but changed the subject. "How's the temptation?"

I mentally stomped my foot. Who was the Lucas dude anyway? The temptation was so strong; I could have sworn that I would have given in. Matthias knew it, too. It was why he was asking.

"You're despicable," I muttered instead, too prideful to waver.

"They tell me that a lot, actually," he admitted. "I'm starting to wonder why."

"Think real hard," I advised. "Maybe you'll—"

I stopped abruptly as a scent hit my nose. It was so… mouthwatering. I needed it, it was a need. Not a want. It was so wonderful, so great. So… tempting.

"Are you alright?"

Matthias's voice brought me back, but the ache in my throat just grew. I shot him a helpless look before darting into the nearest room. I could hear him trailing me and the door click shut as he stepped in. I was looking around for something—anything to stifle the smell.

"Are you alright?" Matthias asked again.

"Fine, fine," I muttered, grabbing at a candle and holding it under my nose. It didn't help much, only a little. I witnessed him blink a few times before he gave up and shot me a look.

"Is that something American girls do regularly, or am I missing something?" I could tell he was thoroughly confused at my antics.

I locked eyes with him, and I saw comprehension flicker across his face. My eyes must have been pitch black. I needed blood, and soon.

"You're thirsty." It wasn't a question. I nodded in response and he pulled his perfect brows together in thought. "You don't want to drain the receptionist. That would put a mark on your record, correct?"

I blinked. He cared about my record? But I was still panicking. Jasper was so right about the temptation. "Is that what I'm smelling?" I asked distractedly, pacing to occupy myself.

"Probably," he answered casually. "Her or the custodian."

"That's nice to know." I was nearly hyperventilating. What would Carlisle say if I slipped?

"Whoa," Matthias cautioned, laying his hands on bother my shoulders, stopping my frantic pacing. "Calm down. Breathe."

"I don't have to breathe," I pointed out, but inhaled the candle all the same. He rolled his eyes.

"Look, if you're that thirsty, we can't have you massacring the innocent townsfolk. So, I'll get you something." His face took on that disgusted twinge again. "What do you like? Rabbit…? Birds—?"

I raised an eyebrow, breathing in the candle again. "Birds?"

He gave me a short glare. "I'm new at this, okay? What do you usually hunt?"

"I'm guessing there aren't many bobcats in Italy?" I hedged. He gave me a "hell no" look, but only said:

"No, not really."

I sighed. "Deer?"

He looked hopeful. "Yes, in a forest nearby."

I felt my lower lip jut out; Matthias's eyes immediately got a shade darker. I pulled them back in, remembering that I was still in a bathing-suit like attire. "That should be okay," I muttered quickly. He let his hands slipped off my shoulders, discreetly shaking his head. "Matthias, why are you doing this?" I asked softly.

He raised an eyebrow, looking at me levelly. I realized I had never said his name before, and that was another turn-on for guys. I clamped my mouth shut as he spoke. "I don't think Aro would be exceptionally ecstatic if you killed the brand new receptionist." He pondered that for a moment, before shuddering. "It happened a while ago with one called Gianna. You don't want to know the gory details."

I frowned at him, unsure if he was lying or not. Finally, I just muttered, "Thanks."

"Hey, you're my slave. It's my job to keep you happy so you don't rip me to pieces when I least expect it, right?" he teased, but at my hardened expression, he asked, "Too soon to joke about it?"

"Yup."

"Of course." He looked out the window. "It's nearly sunset. I'll go when it gets dark. If I shimmer constantly, we might have a slight problem."

"Yeah," I agreed, picking up the candle to take another whiff—feeling like a complete stoner. "Good idea."

OOO

The next few minutes passed slowly for me, because I knew I could easily quench my thirst. I could easily make my way out of the room, easily open the door—even if Matthias was leaning against it. I could just walk casually down the stairs—

I blinked furiously. Matthias might drink innocent human blood, but I didn't. I was a vegetarian. And I kept repeating it over and over in my mind.

"Alright," Matthias said after what seemed like an eternity, leaning out of his position at the door. "Just for extra precaution: Don't move from this room unless… You see, hear, or feel the presence of someone dangerous."

"What?"

"I hope you never put together the meaning of that," he growled. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

With that he disappeared.

I tried to decipher yet again one of his many riddles. I hated the guy. Well, if you use the form of hate loosely. He was an okay guy… I guess. Unless you counted the drinking of innocent human lives, controlling a slaves' every move, and running that slave off the road into frigid ice-water where she drowned. But yeah. Totally great guy.

But I still felt a twinge of hate for him. Maybe it was the drowning.

And then there was that part of me that suffered with the temptation. Matthias was gorgeous. There was no doubt about that. His silky voice, his beautiful brown hair. Even his red eyes—

"I'm back."

My eyes snapped open as I jumped. If I was human, I would be blushing a deep red, and I didn't used to blush much in my mortal years. He took in my surprised state and raised an eyebrow.

"You're lucky this thing isn't in pieces," he told me, grinning. "I don't know what the hell tried to take it from me, but it wasn't very nice." He dragged the deer in and I felt the burn in my throat intensify. He had indeed already killed it, but I could smell the stilled blood.

But I kept myself frozen. I was suddenly embarrassed about how I hunted. He picked up on that tidbit quickly.

"You are not about to tell me I killed and dragged this deer through the woods and castle just so you could tell me you're afraid to get blood on your shirt."

I looked at the deer. Normally, under normal circumstances, I would reply a cutting remark saying something like, "That's exactly what I'm telling you," but I didn't. he was right. I needed to get it together.

He watched me as I drained the thing and I felt really careful about what I looked like. My instincts were roaring, but I forced myself to stay focused.

"Now, let me ask you something. Please," he added when me wristband started to glow. "Everyone rages on about the Cullen's golden eyes, but you're a Cullen, and you don't have them. You consume the same type of blood as they do. So why are you're eyes red?"

I felt my mood darken. "I don't necessarily like my eyes, but, can't you smell the human blood that I still have? Carlisle mentioned something about it. It's the reason the newborns are so strong. Our blood stays in our veins until we use it up, for about the first year of our lives."

"Oh," he said, taking out a lighter and burning the deer. "None of the golden trio has mentioned anything like that. I don't even really remember my first year as a vampire."

I blinked. "How old are you?" I wondered. He was extremely arrogant, so I figured he hadn't been around long enough to appreciate the necessities of life. And he definitely hadn't been around long enough to understand women. But, hell, that was one thing guys rarely achieved.

He gave me a long look. "I'm not sure. I don't remember much of my human life, either. Vague images, yes, but names and places escape me. I think that was the Volturi's intent."

"I'm sorry," I admitted as I watched the flames lick at the deer's body. He noted my sour expression.

"You pity the deer."

I nodded. "I pity anything that suffers. I just don't usually show it." I frowned as I said this—I had never intended telling him. I had barely even known myself.

"You suffer," he noted. I averted my eyes.

"Of my own accord," I added grudgingly. "And I don't suffer."

"Oh, but you do. I have to watch every word I say around you. And," he continued, "Aro isn't exactly flippant about you choosing to be a guard's personal slave instead of a guard to the Volturi. Why did you do it?"

Because I wanted to make your life a living hell, I thought grimly. But I wasn't about to tell him that. It implied I hated—no, loathed—him, and he didn't need to deal with that.

"I don't know," I lied.

I could tell he saw through me, but he didn't say anything. He just sat next to me on the couch, keeping his eyes on my face. "Now, I'm going to as you something." He nodded. "Why aren't you demanding me to sleep with you at this very moment?" I gestured to my state of undress.

The question brought on a completely different reaction that I had expected. His eyes went black with anger, then blank with shock. I shrunk back, away from him, but he just looked away. "I don't know," he admitted, his voice a broken sigh.

And then he was out the door, before I could even apologize.

OOO

If you're wondering why Matthias burned the deer, you'll figure it out soon enough… Hey Matt!!! You have fangirls!!!

Matt: What? I do? That ROX!

Cara: …

Uh-oh. Run fangirls, run!

Jamie.