AN: I'd like to thank the people who reviewed, added the story to their Favorites & Alert list. I apologize for taking this long to update but quite honestly I hit a creative wall and I began to second guess the plotline I had planned. Luckily I was able to find a way to push that decision away by at least 5 chapters.

I present Chapter 16.

0~O~0

Vile Beauty

Chapter 16: Change

0~O~0

It has been four months since Jennifer died at the hands of James and his coven. Four months since I had avenged my family's wrongful deaths.

I had hoped long ago that having my vengeance would bring me peace of mind, but I only realized now how naïve I had truly been. I had long thought that such a thing was impossible for someone like me, but I had been wrong about that too.

Recently, I had rejoined the guard as it's commander-and-chief, and even though I now held the highest position second only to the brothers and their wives, I still choose to leave Volterra on the frequent missions that several of the guard members were assigned, as it seemed that several vampires were causing trouble.

I walked into the feeding chambers and stood slightly behind Marcus' throne, a place reserved exclusively for me; it symbolized that I was the brothers' right hand and their immediate subordinate.

They were all waiting for their meal to be brought to them. I could hear their excited voices and steady heart beats in the lobby area as they made their way to us. I had never particularly enjoyed this method of feeding, I liked to hunt for my food not have it served for me, but that required time- time that at the moment I did not have with the frequent missions I was conducting.

"This," Heidi said opening the door and leading the humans in, "is part of the ancient castle that is still in existence today." The crowd of humans excitedly took pictures while we watched on, waiting for the sign.

"Now ladies and gentlemen," Aro continued as he stood from his throne and the doors to the entrance were closed, "I'm afraid that this is the end of your journey." He finished with a pleasant smile as some of them gave him confused looks.

At the slight nod of his head many of the guards moved simultaneously and sunk their teeth into the humans flesh. When they realized what has happening, several of them screamed and tried to get away, but some of the remaining guards stopped them. By the time I had made my way to a man in his mid-thirties, most of the guards were just about finished with their prey.

"It won't hurt... much," I whispered in his ear as I snapped his neck and sunk my teeth into his jugular- the blood was sweet and I quickly finished him, dropping his corpse and rolling him over with my foot.

I made my way back to the thrones and eyed Marcus' throne curiously, I resisted the impulse of seeing how comfortable it was compared to my chair in the throne room, knowing full well that now was not the time to try to humor the brothers; instead I took my rightful place and waited for those remaining to finish.

When everyone had their fill, the brothers sat on their thrones and watched as those responsible for disposing of the corpses commenced their task. I focused my gaze above those performing the routine task, uninterested in the work. The corpses and their belongings were to be destroyed, nothing that could link their disappearance to the Volturi was to remain- it had been this way long before I was created. Within minutes the last of them was removed and the remaining guards were dismissed. It was silent for a moment before Aro spoke.

"Bella, have you decided how long you will remain with us?" He asked, not so subtly. I turned towards him and looked at him blankly, knowing that he was far too clever to misunderstand. "Yes, you having taken your previous post should have been enough, but I would rather hear directly from you that you wish to remain with us."

"I have no plans of going elsewhere- so if it pleases you three, I will remain here until the compulsion to travel becomes unbearable." I allowed for a teasing smile to grace my lips as I finished my reply.

"We would expect nothing less from you." He replied as he and Caius rose gracefully from their thrones and left the chamber, their wives not far behind them. I was not far from the doors myself when he spoke.

"Something about you has changed, child." I stopped, waiting for him to elaborate. "You're bonds are different- one is no more while others are on the brink of being extinguished for eternity." I turned to look at him, eyebrow raised.

"I don't see how that is of any importance."

"Bonds often signify change, and change does not come easy to immortals such as ourselves." He paused, looking at me with significance. "Treed carefully, some changes are permanent, and not always for the best." I nodded in return and paid my respects before leaving the chamber and heading towards the stairwell that lead to the guard living quarters.

I loosened the buttons of my cloak as I walked, my steps echoing in the empty tunnel. I opened the elaborate wooden doors and tossed my cloak on the bed as I made my way to the far side of the room where the bathroom was.

~O~

A couple of hours after I had gotten into the hot tub, there was a knock on my bedroom door. I cocked my head to the side as I recognized the presence under the protection of my shield. "Come in," I called, seconds later I heard the light clinking of heels against the stone floor.

"Hello Bella."

"Heidi. What do you need?" I looked at my nails and frowned slightly.

"I wanted to know if you would like to join me and Chelsea for a night out."

"And where are you planning to go?"

"Not very far, perhaps to a club or somewhere along those lines."

"And what for?"

"Oh you know, the usual." A wicked smile played at her lips and I immediately understood her intentions.

"Alright then, I'll join you." I close my eyes and sank deeper into the water, the clinking of her heels fading with every passing moment.

When the water no longer felt warm against my skin, I rose from the tub and began to get dressed. I put on a black and scarlet dress that reached mid-thigh and had two inch width straps. I altered my appearance so that my hair became a dark red wine and my eyes turned violet. Once I was satisfied with my work, I selected some jewelry and put on some shoes.

I had just finished when there was a knock on my bedroom door.

"Are you ready?" Chelsea's voice filtered through the door. My only response was to join them in the hallway before making our way to the garage.

"That color suits you."

"Thank you Heidi."

"No point in keeping it to myself."

"We're going to have ourselves a great time!" Chelsea gushed in excitement. I withheld any sort of reply and remained quiet as we left the city walls behind.

Published: May 1, 2013

AN: I plan to upload subsequent chapters once a month, give or take a week, that way if I get stuck while writing I have time to find ways to get over it.

Anyway, feel free to leave a review- even if it's just to scream at me that it's about bloody time I updated the story.

Until next time,

~Med. :)