Twilight: Creation

Chapter Six

"Where do you go?"

Sulpicia turned her eyes from the rich tapestries above her head to her husband's inquisitive face. She swallowed the emotion of annoyance for his constant question asking since his fingers were tracing absent patterns on the skin of her arm. Picking up her thoughts would be all to easy for him and his mind reading hands. "What do you mean?"

He frowned slightly, his forehead creasing. "There are times when I can not read your thoughts. You go so far inside yourself, you become unreachable. Where do you go?"

"I do not know." A small smile tugged slightly at her mouth. "Perhaps that is my gift, to become lost even to myself."

The frown eased away. "A very useful gift, to be sure." He leaned forward, burying his face in her loose, golden hair and sighed. "I must leave again tonight."

Pushing away the feelings of dissatisfaction this time was proving more difficult. "Very well."

She felt him smile against her neck. "Is this jealousy I detect in your tone?"

"Of course," she replied. "How can I not be jealous of these things that fascinate you?"

He sat up, a crooked grin on his face that was completely untouched by the sharp edge of truth that armed her words. "There will always be 'things' that fascinate me but take comfort in the fact that you, dear Sulpicia, will continue to confound me."

Another time, years ago, his speech would have melted the icy feelings she was harboring but not tonight. It seemed trite, rehearsed and it only angered her further. She sat up, wrapping the sheets around her chest in an effort to feel modest and rid herself of being vulnerable. "Is that the only reason you keep me here? I am a mystery to be solved and nothing more?"

His good nature had given way to cautious apprehension, like a inquisitive child who had stumbled upon an asp. "Are you angry with me?"

"Yes," she hissed. The pain of admitting such a thing stung more than she anticipated. When had she come to rely on his presence to bring her happiness?

Aro's eyes scanned the air in front of her and she knew he was rifling through memories, both hers and his own, searching for something. After a few seconds, he apparently found what he was looking for and sighed. "Ah. I see. You are angry with my absences from you."

Sulpicia traced the shadows on the sheets with her fingertip. "I fear you will find someone who enchants you more than I."

His hands brushed against her bare shoulders. "That could never happen."

She tried to decipher if there was truth behind his words but realized, she would never be able to tell. He was gifted when it came to coercion, so much so he could deceive himself into believing whatever benefitted him the most. If he couldn't tell between his truth and lies, how could she ever hope to do the same?

"We have not travelled in a long time," his child like glee was coming back. "We will make preparations, anywhere you want to go, and we will see it. Perhaps being in Volterra for so long is too stifling."

She had missed their jaunts into Spain and France. The long range hunting was starting to fade ever since Heidi joined their guard and brought food to them. Perhaps a journey, just the two of them, could reignite the spark that had once consumed them so completely. "I will think on the matter and give you an answer tomorrow."

"Excellent." He pressed his lips to her forehead, cheeks and neck. "There are a few matters I must attend to before tomorrow."

She nodded mutely and he was gone. She strained her ears for the sounds of him dressing and finally the door to their chambers closed. She quickly dressed herself and went to find Demetri. Aro wasn't the only one with plans and schemes.

Lucianna lit her customary three candles: one for her mother, father and her own soul. She wondered if it even mattered anymore, lighting a candle for herself. She knew she was different. She had watched orphans being brought to the church and knew her ten years of age did not match theirs. Her mind and body were that of a young woman, not a child. She heard what the nuns whispered behind her back as well. They still called her Trista, sneering as they did so.

Devil...sadness. It was a name with a double edge to it. As she watched the flames bounce and bob in the draft, she knew her strange protector had entered the sanctuary. It was her only warning of his arrival. He was too silent, too perfect. She wondered what the sisters would call him? Aro, with his perfect face, long black hair and red eyes. He looked more like the devil to her than her own reflection. But she knew the similarities between them held answers. Answers that she desperately needed, even if it meant the sisters were correct in their assumptions. She could handle being a spawn of Satan himself, as long as it was truth.

"Good evening, child."

Lucianna rose from her kneeling position and smoothed out her skirt. "Good evening, Signore."

"Shall we?" He offered his arm to her along with a razor blade smile that teetered on sincerity.

She accepted his arm and they moved out of the sanctuary into the courtyard. "It has been quite some time since your last visit. I hope nothing serious kept you away." She was used to asking questions even when she already knew the answers. There were so many events that had passed for this man, too many for a normal human though he never alluded to being anything but a man.

"Merely the droll of business, I am afraid."

She nodded politely though the scenes flashing across her mind told a different, strange story. There were others like him though not like her. Beautiful, frightening and alluring men and women standing around piles of arms, legs and heads as smoke curled around them and clung to their clothes. Some of the strange smoke must have still lingered on the sleeve of his cloak, stinging her nose. It was too sweet, unnatural. Brimstone, perhaps? Or something more sinister.

"Please forgive my forwardness, Signore but I am curious as to why I draw your attention. Is it merely due to a promise you made to my mother or is it something else?"

He seemed to be caught between surprise and approval of her question, his flawless face contorting oddly. "You remind me so much of your mother."

"How so?"

He laughed slightly. "Your outspokenness, firstly. But you have her strength, intelligence and, of course, her beauty."

She waited patiently for him to continue but he remained silent. "You did not answer my question, Signore."

His response was superficially polite, with undertones of defensiveness. "I believe I did."

"What do you want from me?"

"Nothing."

Unspoken words hung between them, suspended on the mental scent of that odd smoke and veiled threats. There was more to his words, there always had been, just as there was more to him. Curiosity had always been part of his character for as long as she could remember but tonight there was something else she couldn't place. When they reached a dark corner of the courtyard, he paused instead of continuing their leisurely lap around the cobblestones and she realized what this new aspect to their visit was: finality.

She stepped back, neatly removing her arm from his. "You are going to kill me tonight."

There was the briefest of moments when surprise registered in his garnet eyes. "Whatever gave you that impression?"

Lucianna resisted the urge to wring her hands by balling them into fists at her side. If she was going to die, she would show no fear for the strange creature that was her murderer. "Your curiosity concerning me has waned. If you had been interested in me as a person, you would have taken me from this church shortly after you introduced yourself." Tears sprang to her eyes but she clenched her jaw, willing them to stop before they fell. Anger was quickly being introduced to the fear. "What do you want with me?"

He actually looked remorseful as he gently brushed away a few strange tears. He looked at the salt water droplets in fascination as they dripped from his fingertips. "I want to understand you."

"What am I?"

His attention quickly turned from the tears back to her. A lethal smile wound it's way across his face, uncoiling like a poisonous snake. "I am afraid, my dear, you are damned."

The word hurt more sharply than if he had struck her. She had heard the very same things from the sisters and had silently hoped her strange night visitor would have a different message for her. However, she wasn't that fortunate. Why should she be if she was as damned as everyone told her? But there was one thing that could save her. One thing that no one knew except for herself. "I have a gift."

The fire of curiosity blazed once more. "What kind of gift?"

This was her bargaining tool. "Will you spare my life? Take me away from this wretched place?"

He looked shrewd, weighing the possibilities of her continued existence. "It depends on the power of your gift."

Courage swelled up, filling her chest cavity and causing her already rapid heart to beat faster. "I want a promise."

"I can not give one just yet."

She released her hands from the clenched fists and folded them neatly in front of her. "Then good night, Signore."

He laughed. "A moment, please, Lucianna."

Every time he said her name so informally the hairs on the back of her neck rose. "A promise, then?"

"A negotiation, perhaps?"

She watched him rub his pale hands together, waiting anxiously for her answer. "And that would be?"

"If your gift could provide insight or assistance to my, ah, people, I will allow you your life."

"And if my gift could provide nothing for you, then what? I am still facing death which I am not very fond of doing at this point in my life, short and strange as it has been."

"Fair enough," he paced slowly around her, like a cat circles a mouse. "I will release you from this stone prison with the oath that you will never return to Rome, Italy or even Europe. Where you go is your business but you will have no interaction with my kind."

Lucianna tried to hide her interest in the use of the words "my kind." So he wasn't human. Did that mean she wasn't entirely human either? Was she part demon, angel or something else? "Will you tell me what your kind is?"

"Your gift, first."

She had the feeling he had reached the end of his good graces and she could ask for nothing more. She only hoped her quirk could save her tonight. "When I physically touch something with my hands, I am able to see every event that has passed for that particular object."

It did not take long for him to process her gift though she could see him shifting through the positive and negative connotations of her power. A realization broke across his face that was akin to fear but more of wariness. The thought of murder crossed his face again, she could tell from the hard set line of his perfect face but then it melted away as quickly as it came.

"I have no use of your gift, child."

She could hear doubt taint his words and it confused her. "What am I, Signore?"

"Then you must leave, never to cross paths with me or my kind again."

She nodded. "You have my word."

"You are a miracle," he said simply. "My very own creation. Leave now."

Anger flooded through her at the evasive answer but the look of lethality had returned to his face. All it took was one threatening step towards her and she fled from the courtyard. She thought about going back to her quarters, gathering the meager belongings she had but the memory of garnet eyes spurred her straight to the street. She had never been into the city before and it didn't take her long to quickly lose her bearings. Breathless, confused, angry and lost, she collapsed in a heap of skirts and tears. It wouldn't take Aro long to find her and end her "miraculous" existence. A miracle...that was what she needed now and she didn't even have her rosary.

"Signorina?"

The tenor of the voice was different but the perfect pitch was the same. Lucianna looked up into the same shade of garnet eyes only they were set in another face. It was just as perfect, flawless and pale with an olive tone. Red eyes...his kind. "Please, leave me be."

Silently, he dropped a heavy cloak over her shaking shoulders and effortlessly lifted her to her feet. "I am here to assist you, Signorina."

She placed her hands on the folds of the thick cloak and intently watched the images. A porcelain skinned goddess with golden hair and the same red eyes was giving this man instructions to find...Lucianna dropped her hands from the fabric. "I am his daughter."

"Did he tell you that?"

Lucianna wiped the palms of her hands on her skirts, trying to wipe the words "Aro's daughter" from her mind. "Who..." her voice faltered. "Who are you?"

"I am Demetri," he offered her his hand. Without thinking, she gave it to him and was startled when he kissed her fingertips. "I have been watching over you for a long time. It is very rewarding to speak with you directly."

"Thank you, Signore Demetri."

"I beg your forgiveness but time is escaping us."

Before she could ask what he meant, she was cradled in stone like arms and flying through the streets of Rome. Her surroundings were passing so quickly, her stomach roiled dangerously. To save herself from an embarrassing display of nausea, she closed her eyes and buried her face against her savior. An hour seemed to pass before the wind died down and she was being set down on shaky legs.

"How do you feel?"

Lucianna merely nodded her head, not trusting her voice at the moment. They were in a dark alley but Demetri was leading her out of it. When they stepped into the gaslights, she saw they were approaching a docked ship. "Where-?"

"This is the port at Naples. This ship will be traveling to Great Britain and from there, onto the New World."

The New World...didn't anyone understand that where she stood right now was a new world? She didn't even know where in Italy Naples was located. As she was trying to form thoughts, another cloaked shadow appeared silently by their sides. She wouldn't have even noticed the new arrival if Demetri had bowed to them.

"My lady."

"Thank you, Demetri." A soft, willowy voice came out of the hooded cloak. "You have done very well."

Lucianna saw it was the blond woman that had given Demetri his orders. She stood very still and allowed the coldly beautiful woman to study her. When she spoke, her comments were swift and directed at Demetri.

"Was she in danger?"

"He was hunting her, yes."

"Hm." The woman brushed back Lucianna's wind blown hair. "She does look like Didyme, doesn't she?"

"Yes, my lady."

She sighed sadly. "Aro was right to want to dispatch her."

Lucianna's eyes widened but the woman waved a hand dismissively.

"You have nothing to fear from me, child. Here," she dropped a heavy cloth bag into Lucianna's hand. "This should be enough gold to pay for your fare to the Americas. Go and do not look back. Do not return to Italy and avoid anyone that crosses your path with crimson eyes." She absently brushed another stray hair back from Lucianna's face. "Know that I am only saving you because I could not save her."

"Signora?"

"Yes?"

Lucianna took a steadying breath. "Do you know what I am?"

"Aro did not tell you."

"No, Signora."

"You are half vampire and half human. You are the genesis of another chapter in our history, the creation of a new species."

Lucianna backed away slowly from the strange duo. Vampire...she had never heard the word before. There was no mention of such a thing in the Holy Scriptures. As she began to approach the boarding plank, she could still catch pieces of conversation from Demetri and the woman.

"Do you think Aro will allow her to live?" Demetri asked.

"We must wait and see. I do not know how he can track her and not admit her existence. But," a soft sigh was carried away by the breeze, "I fear she may be the downfall of us all."

Lucianna finally allowed tears to flow freely down her face as she boarded the large vessel. She found a hidden spot between nets and barrels, wedging herself between the rough wood and rope. She had foolishly thought that answers would bring her comfort but all they ever brought was more questions. And now she was alone, scared and unaware of the world that was looming in front of her.

Author's Note: Well everyone, thank you so much for the reviews! This is the end of Part I! I actually have three parts planned so I'll be starting Part II very soon! Thank you again for all your lovely reviews and for reading my story!