RENESMEE POV
My hands rest gently on the bulge of my stomach as I relax on the couch. The place where my last remnant of Alec is growing. It's late July, nearly a month after telling my family of the pregnancy. I'm two months along. It's become very clear that my pregnancy is by no means going at a regular human pace. It started out slow, but now I'm pretty far along. Anyone who looked at me could instantly tell.
Every time I look down at my stomach, all I can think is why? Why did this happen? Why now, of all times?
I feel like throwing up every single time I think of Alec (even though that isn't an uncommon feeling in general nowadays). I miss him more than I can even describe. I can still feel the electric sting of our last kiss sizzling on my lips, forever reminding me what I had to give up.
My eyes are completely red, and my skin is losing color swiftly. It seems I have a slight improvement in eyesight, but maybe I'm only tricking myself into thinking that. Who knows. Certainly no one here. We have no idea what to expect.
"No!" A shocked gasp comes from my far right. Alice bolts upright, swaying slightly, stiff as a board and her eyes vacant, lost in the future. We are the only two home, and I am petrified and don't know what to do. I can't remember ever being alone with Alice when she got lost in a vision like this. I've only ever been alone with her for brief glances.
I take on Jasper's role. I set her back down by her shoulders and try to coax her back to the present with soothing words. Finally, she returns to our living room.
"What is it Alice? What did you see?" I ask desperately, shaking her slightly.
"I don't know.. I was only seeing flashes. Things are changing too quickly. But.. It's not good. I saw.. I saw Alec and the Volturi in the same vision.. I think Alec might even be in Volterra right now." Alice gulps, hands quavering.
"No.. That can't be right. Alec was set free of our world a month ago. How could he be involved with the Volturi?" I am shaking violently.
"Renesmee, calm down. Stop panicking. I don't know what's going on, maybe I misread something. All I could see was glances of things. I saw Alec, and then I saw the Volturi. Maybe it's just my stress coming to haunt me, those are always the top two things I'm worried about." She gives a crazed-laugh, and I concentrate on calming my riled up nerves.
"Alright." I tell her, releasing a breath. "Could you do me a favor and try to maybe block his future? I just.. I don't.." I sigh, not sure how to put my feelings into words. I almost feel...invasive having Alice seeing his future. I left him far behind, and still keeping up with parts of his life he doesn't even know about yet seems very scummy.
"Of course, Nes." She smiles, patting my shoulder. I smile back, then remove myself from the living room, heading up to my room. I walk onto the balcony, sitting down on the chair out there. A butterfly flutters right in front of my face. Wind whistles through my hair. The sky is a clear blue streaked with thin white clouds. The sun is high in the sky.
Everything looks so perfect. This little castle tucked in a slice of heaven appears to be paradise. But inside the castle..things are very different. Everything is smothered in confusion and turmoil.
As I stare up at the endless blue sky, I begin to wonder what Alec is looking at right now. I wonder what he is doing, if he is still missing me as much as I miss him.
ALEC POV
I stare up at the dull gray sky. Thunder rumbles, and a streak of white-light flashes in the distance. Citizens shuffle along, preparing to head back inside. This is the first cloudy day I've been out on the duration of my visit. It's been cloudy pretty often though, but this kind of weather puts me down, and it's not like I need any help slipping further into depression.
But I'm out now. I just couldn't take being locked up in that narrow house with loud voices and rushing movements any longer. They had only met my father once, at my mother's wedding, and they definitely weren't all too upset by his death. I'm starting to wonder if they had ever even liked him to begin with or even approved of the marriage.
They had never met Renesmee either. They had never fallen in love with her unique charm and witty retorts. They had never been pulled under the spell of immortality. They are going on as if life is perfectly normal, when, in my world, it is no where near normal. Miserable, dull, painful, lonely, yes. Normal, no.
I sit on the edge of the fountain in the middle of the city, staring up at the clock. It's nearing four in the afternoon. Dinner is usually ready by six, and food is the only possible thing that could pull me back to that house. So I've got two hours to kill.
I lay back on the edge of the fountain, my arms acting as a pillow beneath my head, and soon enough I'm asleep. The blissful, painless blackness of unconsciousness is disturbed by a gentle shaking of my shoulder.
I crack my eyes open. The hand on my shoulder is pale white and feels like ice. My heart begins to pound. As I'm giving my eyes time to adjust, all I can make of the face is blurry white and brown. For a fleeting moment, I wonder if it's Bella, or even Esme. Hell, I would be more than happy with Carmen.
But that moment disappears and the features of the unknown person become clear. It's a tall, statuesque woman with rolling chocolate-brown waves and wide violet eyes. Her skin is the shade of white death and her lips are rose red with a pearly, perfect smile.
"Sorry to disturb you, sir." She says, her voice musical and flowing. I gulp, knowing very well I'm in the presence of a vampire, something I'd never thought I'd experience again. My instincts scream , my heart pounds, and my stomach churns. My palms become sweaty and adrenaline rockets through my veins. It's like a drug addict finally getting a hit after months clean. I'm intoxicated by her presence within milliseconds.
"I was just wondering if perhaps you might like to go on a tour of the ancient Volterra castle. It's free." She smiles again. I look behind her and see a crowd of anxiously awaiting tourists. Towards the back is another vampire. He is tall and muscular with honey-blonde hair that does a little flippy thing at the end and his eyes are muddy brown. He has the same pale skin and inhuman perfection.
Both vampires are wearing red and black, the girl a racy dress and the guy a pair of nice black pants and a red shirt, and she has a ruby-encrusted V necklace while he has a similar bracelet. They're together, and even though every fiber of my being screams at me to decline and go home, I helplessly nod my head. It feels like just being around others of her kind, I'm connected to Renesmee again. I'm too addicted to this to possibly be able to walk away now.
I stick towards the front of the group, trying to discreetly get a smell of the girl's scent. She smells sort of like Alice, but while she is berry-like Alice is more like citrus.
I revel in the feeling of the danger of being around immortals. But as they lead us into a building, down a flight of stairs, and through underground corridors lit only by dim lights attached to the wall every ten feet, I realize I've made a fatal mistake.
These people aren't the Cullens. They aren't the nice guys. They have no reason to not kill me. I've grown so used to thinking of vampires as good guys who would never hut humans that I've forgotten the things Renesmee told me about human-drinkers. They're vicious and cold-hearted and you won't realize it until their jaw is locked on your neck.
The girl begins to speak as I drag my feet along, my blood running cold. "This castle has been around for centuries. It used to be ruled by a powerful Italian clan called the Volturi." The name Volturi sends shock waves of fear resounding through my body. I remember Renesmee talking about the Volturi. The royalty of the vampire world. The unstoppable ones. The greedy, malicious ones.
"I-I need to go to the bathroom." I stammer out, my heart beating way too fast.
"Bathroom is located right outside of the main throne room, we'll take a break when we get there." She never even turns to look at me. I have a feeling I'm never going to be getting out of that main throne room.
The woman throws open two huge iron doors with intricate designs as if they weigh next to nothing. With her strength, I'm sure that's exactly how much they weigh. We walk into a huge circular room in shades of gold and red with ivory marble. Huge pillars line the walls and in the center there is marble stairs leading up to three thrones.
Three regal figures poise in the thrones. The one to the right has dark brown hair, papery skin, and emotionless ruby-red eyes. The one to the far left has snow-white hair and sullen cheeks and glistening red eyes. His face his contorted into a scowl. The one in the middle looks the most powerful just by the way he holds himself and smiles at us creepily. He has flowing black hair that disappears into the stark-black cloak all three of them wear. His eyes are red and covered in a layer of film. His pale skin is almost translucent.
He rises from his thrown and drifts down the stairs, standing about fifteen feet away from the crowd. The chatter of the group has ceased and pictures are no longer snapping. We all stand there, wondering what is to happen next.
"Welcome, my guests! Welcome to Volterra!" The black-haired man says, throwing his arms in the air. A few people fidget, but no one says anything. "Please, would you get in a line. To bring us back to the days of my ancestors who once ruled in this castle, we would like to share with you some of the past times that they enjoyed."
Everyone shuffles slowly, dragging their feet, arranging ourselves in a sloppy, slanted line. I am stuck near the end between an elderly couple, holding hands tightly and looking worried, and a girl that looks around eleven or twelve, her eyes wide and face as white as bone.
"If I touch your arm, please step forward." An elegant voice with a British accent says from my left. I look over to see the blonde-haired man who has been with us this whole time. He starts down the row, touching the shoulders of three people before me, and then myself. My legs feel like the bones have dissolved in them, but I manage to take one wobbly step forward.
The black-haired man walks with the blonde one. Nothing is said as they walk down the line, but I can see the slight tremble of their lips. I've grown used to looking for it. They're talking too low and too quickly for anyone of us to hear.
They pause as they come in front of me. I do my best to stop the trembling of my knees. The blonde one appears to be talking to the other, and they both look a little confused.
"My boy, would you mind giving me your palm?" Aro smiles, grabbing my hand without waiting for my consent. I wouldn't have been able to choke out a sound anyways. The man holds my hand firmly, eyes distant like Alice's get when she sees a vision. My breathing is hard and audible to everyone in the room.
I suddenly remember something Renesmee said to me that day in the forest in Alaska. The leader can read every thought you've ever had. This guy definitely seems like the leader.. And she told me it is a crime to tell humans anything at all. The punishment is death. I'm betraying the Cullens unknowingly right now, and the consequences could be fatal.
I jerk my hand away fiercely, but we all know that does nothing except hurt me. The man has returned to the present and is staring at me with calculating eyes. Suddenly, he erupts into a fit of laughter, dropping my hand. I clutch my hand to my chest, wanting to rip it off because it seems like a traitor now. I watch the man cackle for a good minute, panting and terrified.
"You.. You.. R-r-.. H-h-um.. E-.. B-.." He slaps his knee, unable to get a full sentence out he is laughing so hard.
After he calms down, he stares at me, still smiling, and says in a quiet voice, "Isn't it just delightful how history repeats itself? We made a mistake letting Isabella slip by. A mistake we will not be making again. And you can help us, not that you haven't already helped enough. Jane, only these two" The man points to me and someone else that had stepped forward, I'm too petrified to look "and be quick about it. Felix, help her transport them. Everyone else, have a lovely dinner."
I watch as a massive cloud of black cloaks moves forward like one object. Two cloaks break away, and the rest filter through the four of us. Screams break out. Chaos ensues, but I'm unable to stick around to try to figure out what's happening.
A girl my age with pale blonde hair that hangs limply around her unearthly gorgeous face and large, sparkling red eyes appears in front of me. My heart rate increases tenfold. She smiles demonically. "Don't be scared, pretty boy." She laughs, and then whispers darkly, "Immortality is beautiful."
Knives slide into my neck. I have only felt the sensation once before, and that was with Renesmee. I certainly have never felt the paralyzing pain that followed though.
Fire begins to eat at my veins and black dots fill my vision. I am suddenly lifted into the air, watching from an odd angle bloody corpses strewn across the room and whirls of white going after terrified humans trying to escape out the iron doors that probably weigh a ton.
Blood and screams are all that I can see and hear as I slip off into darkness.