A/N: timeline note. Due to Jake's presence here their trip to Volterra begins on Saturday- the 17th of December.
My daughter's school usually starts their winter break the weeks before Christmas and then they usually go back the Monday after New Years. As 2006's New Year's Day was on a Sunday, Jake would be back in school on the second of January. I needed their trip to allow him to be able to go.
If we note in the book, Jake is often at the Cullens after Renesmee is born. We don't often see him leave. I'm sure he does as he was only sixteen in canon when she was born. He'd have to go to school- except when he was protecting them from Sam. In this case he isn't protecting them from Sam. The family is more than capable of protecting Bella and the twins from Edward- despite mistakes made- so he is in school.So winter break on the Res becomes a necessity.
That way he can travel with them since he doesn't know how long they'll be in Volterra. Hope this makes sense. So this chapter starts on the 17th. They learned the knews of who they'll be fighting potentially on the 14th- I wanted to give them a few days to prepare for their trip. Tanya showed one week before the 14th so the 8th or 9th. Remember I like my timelines clear. Lol.
Questions will be answered in this chapter. Remember there's a reason it's called Twisted FAMILY Tales. ;)
One more note. Someone said in a review that they couldn't believe that Aro wouldn't keep an eye out on his enemies, like the Romanians. Keep in mind that while he may be different in personality in my story, he wasn't at the time- over three Millenia ago- when he and his brothers faced off and removed the Romanians from power. He was arrogant, thought he could do no wrong. And would have felt he was invincible. He would never dream that Stephan and Vladimir would have the guts to come back and oppose him. So they were forgotten.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Alice
How did we not figure this out sooner? How did I not see that they were the ones? Felix told Aro and the others that we shouldn't discount them. The Romanians. He warned them that to do so would be a grave mistake and now here we are, heading to Volterra with the news that, while I haven't seen who Tanya and Edward are actually going to see, we now have a pretty good idea it's those two. I mean we could be mistaken, but only one coven lives in that area that would want the throne to our world. Aro was an arrogant fool back then, now it may cost him. Hopefully Jasper, Bella and myself can see it doesn't.
But I still can't figure out how I missed this. How did I not see them? I still haven't seen when it's all going to come to pass either, I don't know the date, the time, nothing. So how. How are they keeping it from me? Maybe Marcus or Caius have come up with a better answer than before- that they just haven't decided yet. I mean, surely they have had to decide to begin gathering an army, it's the only way to defeat us. So there's no way I wouldn't have seen a decision somewhere at some point. No way. Marcus and Caius are usually the ones who catch things others don't. We'll just have to see. For now, it's a long flight and we have other things to discuss.
Jasper
I can't believe it. The Romanians are our enemy? Just fucking perfect. It's no wonder Alice's human vision was full of death and destruction. Those two have no care for human life. They view humans as nothing more than cattle. And I'm sure they'll be smarter than the brothers and make sure all their enemies are dead, along with any supporters of the Volturi. It'll be a massacre if they succeed. I never understood how the brothers could allow them to live. They showed mercy, yes. But at the same time they left two vipers to strike again when the time was right.
There are times you should show mercy, but when they took over from the Romanians was not one of those times. Now somehow they have gotten around Alice's visions and possibly created an army to take back over control of our world. And they have to have gifts that are unknown because there's no way they would risk a coup without the resources to pull them off- so what? Did they create new ones? How did the amount of humans that had to go into creating new vampires not go unnoticed. There's a lot more to all this mess. But what?
For now though, we're on a plane heading to Italy. The moment we knew who the enemy probably was the brothers were called and our presence was requested. So we all got on a jet that they sent for us. We asked it be today, the day that begins the Res school's winter break, so Jake could join us. Hopefully we'll be home before the end of his break. If not we'll come up with something. When he realized we would be gone more than just a few days, he got upset. So we talked it out with Billy and he and Sam agreed Jake should go with us. It also helped them stay in the loop through calls from him.
Tanya and Edward took three days to try and convince Eleazar and the others to join them, they in turn tried to convince her she had to be wrong- despite what she saw- because Kate told them the twins weren't immortal. She told them they needed to choose a side, because she didn't need anymore proof that Edward was right and we were wrong, and when they told her they wouldn't make any decisions until they saw things for themselves- because they wouldn't just take the word of a liar like Edward- she got angry and told them they'd already made their choice. That's when they left and Alice had the vision of who we might be facing.
Eleazar and the others joined us yesterday, two days later, and immediately saw that Tanya was wrong. They were fascinated by my children, Eleazar even more so when he saw Carlie's second gift. It's rare for a vampire to have more than one gift, actually- it's unheard of. But she's only half vampire. When he told us what it was, we were shocked. Combine it with Micah's shield and the two are deadly. Absolutely lethal. Turns out she's a fire starter too. Though she's never shown it, probably because they've been told what fire does to vampires. She'd be afraid to hurt one of us.
At least we know if it comes down to it they'll be able to protect themselves just fine. Though Bella and I have no intention of allowing them anywhere near the fight. No way, no how. Watching the Denali coven now, I can't help but feel sorry for them. While Edward is someone we know, we now know his true self. We've seen his manipulations, his lies, how narcissistic he is. Tanya... She's just lost. She thinks she's in love with him, that they're mates and he's just fighting it. She's following him blindly and if we can't save her in the end, she'll die because of him.
I can tell that Irina and Kate are anxious. More so than the others. Laurent has dealt with backstabbers before, the very couple who killed Alice's sire was a part of his coven at one point until James betrayed him. Eleazar is used to having to deal with people he knows having to be killed for breaking laws or going against the brothers, he was with them for a long time after all- even before they changed.
Carmen will do whatever necessary to protect her family and if that means writing one off to save the others, she will. But not one of us have given up hope that once confronted with the truth, the full truth of why Edward wanted her at his side, Tanya will turn against him and rejoin us. This new more lenient Volturi might then be willing to grant her a pardon for her actions, seeing that she had been manipulated to go against them.
For now though our main concern has to be Edward. I want to find him. Once he enters their camp he'll know more than we will and that information can be important to us. I look forward to potentially torturing it from him. Before I turn him to ash that is. Then there's the children. They look about seven now, their baby fat slowly melting away to reveal the more mature child.
They're extremely articulate and have been asking questions almost nonstop since Tanya showed up at the house. When they asked why I was so important I had to tell them the truth, I wasn't sure but think it has something to do with my skill as a soldier. They learned everything about my past- except that Maria and I were lovers. I expected fear, perhaps disgust from them, but then I should have known better. They're my children after all.
"So you were forced to hurt people Daddy? You didn't do it on purpose?"
I look into the sweet face of my daughter. She looks so much like Bella. I'm glad I won't have to worry about boyfriends since Jake will chase them all off anyway. "No Carlie. I didn't do it on purpose. Maria made me into her best weapon. I didn't like hurting people."
"Dad, are you going to have to hurt people this time too?" Micah is too smart for such a young child. He's very observant and notices things others might miss at times.
"Yes Micah I will. But only because they are a threat to you, your sister and your mommy. They mean to hurt us and I can't let them do that."
"Oh. Ok. We understand." And with that they go back to the puzzle they're putting together.
I had to go off on my own for an hour or two after that. My own self-loathing had me apprehensive to tell them and then their understanding undid me. Bella understood, I needed time to myself to help me remember that I have people in my life that love me for who I am and who I was and that the monster I always thought I was is a thing of the past and I love them all for that. My innocent children with their kind and generous hearts and acceptance of everyone in their midst, except those they know mean harm, have humbled me more than anything. They don't see Jasper Whitlock- The Major. They see Jasper Whitlock Hale- daddy and protector and the man who loves their mother.
We watch as they fall asleep somewhere over the Atlantic, their chairs leaned back as far as they'll go, and the rest of us take advantage of it. It's time to discuss strategy. We gather around the conference table the jet has. Alice goes first.
"When we get to Volterra the first order of business will be to meet with the brothers and their wives and to get settled in. Then I'm sure Jasper they'll want you to see if you can weed out any spies. I haven't seen anything to indicate that our absense has been noticed from Forks, so for now we're safe. I still wouldn't go out alone. But Edward isn't a threat for now. He hasn't found the enemy yet though, he's still following the rumors but I should see when they get there.
"I'm just glad that I can see the twins in my visions now. I can't see if they're instrumental to all this though. Decisions still have to be made, I just hope they won't be. We can probably put them with Sulpicia and the others to keep them safe. They moved out of the wives tower about fifty five years ago, when bigger better weapons became available. With what the humans have now, anyone could blow that tower to pieces from a distance. So Aro felt it safer to move them.
"Demetri is back too, no luck on finding the hybrids so we may have to go find them ourselves when all this is over. I know you want to go after Edward, Jasper, but we have to wait until they leave their compound. If he goes to the Romanians themselves and not wherever this army that they most likely have is hidden, there will be no getting to him. We can't get in there, it's high in the mountains. Even the most cunning vampire couldn't get in without walking through the front door. But I promise, on behalf of the brothers, that when the time comes- Edward is all yours. Just hurt him badly please?"
"Of course Alice. Sorry Carlisle."
Carlisle turns to me with the fiercest expression I've ever seen on his face. "Don't hold back on my account. He ceased being my son the day he lied to us and attacked Bella. He's now an enemy and as such needs to be dealt with accordingly."
I nod at this, then turn back to the conversation at hand. "Alice, why haven't you seen any spies in Volterra to begin with?"
She sighs. "Remember that my gift isn't all seeing. I see visions based on decisions made by someone, then I see the most likely outcome of those decisions. Spies don't come with the intention of doing anything more than gather information. You know this Jasper. So if, say, a person decides merely to come visit the citadel, but not why they're there- then I won't see that they're a spy. Merely a visitor. I wouldn't be able to tell you of any newcomers to Volterra in the last eighteen years because I've been stateside watching over Bella. Felix?"
All eyes turn to the large man and he takes a moment to think about it. "There have been a fair few. Some coming to see the archives, some the art work, some to spend time in the city. Even a number to talk to the brothers or visit the wives. If any of them had been a spy, they certainly didn't let on. I can't think of anyone asking anything that would raise alarm bells. There were a few new vampires brought by their sires so we knew they had created them and were taking responsibility, but we didn't see any that seemed to have a gift either. So I couldn't say without a doubt that a spy might have been among them."
We table things at that point, no sense in trying to figure out things we have no way of knowing. I have a feeling though that one of those newborns was the spy, if there even is one. There may not be. The Romanians may have decided to wait to send someone to get the lay of the land. After all, it's clear the rumors weren't getting to the brothers until Edward and his decisions told us about them, so why worry. Why wonder if they're managing to keep their plot hidden when it's clear they are by the brothers lack of action.
The kids wake from their naps and we get them fed, human food until we can get out into the Italian countryside and hunt. Bella's eyes are an amber color now and it won't be long until they're gold like mine, she has maybe a month or two until the color change is complete. As she turns them on me where I'm sat beside her watching our children color, I feel her love and happiness, mixed with a lot of confidence. No matter what we are getting ready to face, she knows that we can beat it. She just has that much confidence in me and herself. Her shield is amazing after all. We've worked on it a lot and she can shield anyone a hundred yards out and if pushed from her fast enough, with enough force, it becomes an offensive weapon too. There's a new clearing not far from the house where she knocked down the trees with it.
When we get to the airport in Rome a limo is awaiting us, Demetri it's driver. When we arrive in the throne room an hour later, we're all surprised- well everyone but those who live here. The thrones are gone, replaced by a long table with enough chairs for the brothers and their spouses on one side, visitors on the other. Sitting there are the three men and their wives- each one as beautiful as the other. Aro with his long black hair and red eyes is in his mid- twenties. His wife Sulpicia is just as beautiful as she is deadly. Her messy dark hair is to her waist. Her ruby red eyes taking in all of us as if making mental notes of us.
Caius and his wife Athenadora are in the middle. He's older than the others, mid-forties. His hair is so blond it's white, a stark contrast to the black suit he's wearing and his Crimson eyes. His wife is younger, changed around her thirties if I had to guess. She's fair-haired like he is, but more an ashy blonde than a white . The vibe I get from her is similar to Esme. Sweet and gracious. His eyes have landed on myself and my little family and hasn't moved from us since we walked in. Feeling for his emotions I don't feel any contempt or any upsetting emotions. I actually feel pride, happiness, love and curiosity- same with his wife. It's a strange combination coming from the leader.
At the end of the table is Marcus and his wife Didyme. Didyme is a smaller, feminine version of her brother. Next to her husband, who is three inches shorter than me at least but still towers over her, she's dainty as hell. She looks Bella's age, her ebony hair flowing over the back of her chair and brushing the floor. She is every bit the Greek woman she was when turned in her Grecian style gown and Grecian sandles I can see just peeking out from under the table. Marcus is my age, black shoulder length hair with the same waves in it as mine. He looks bored, but under that I can see a power that would be formidable. He would certainly be a worthy adversary.
The chalky pallor that was touted about a century ago at least, is mostly gone. Seems they've been getting out these days, doing their own dirty work instead of sending others. That's good. No one could ever fully respect a leader unwilling to get their hands dirty. It's been over three Millenia since they came into being and took over. In those three Millenia we've known a peace that no one is really willing to give up. A peace we know we will lose if the Romanians take control. That is one of very few reasons I'm willing to be here and help them. That and I want to know why they've taken such an interest in me and my mate.
Jane and Alec sit on either side of the couples and it amazes me how young they are. No more than fourteen, they had to be changed if Aro wanted to save them. Branded as witches, their village nearly killed them. Aro got there just as the flames began to consume their clothes. In the time it took to kill the villagers and get the flames out, they couldn't exactly just pull them from their pyres after all, they had been so badly burned they were barely alive. Aro changed them and they've been loyal to him ever since. They will die for the brothers. I can't help but admire that.
Together they stand, a graceful act that has my children staring in awe, and come around the table to greet us. Aro takes Carlisle into a friendly hug. "I am so glad you have come my friend. We have much to discuss and much to do if we are to defeat this enemy and keep the peace in our world. I am vastly glad that you have agreed to help us." Then he turns to the rest of us and smiles, "I am sure you all must be immeasurably curious about a great many things, but first let Jane and the others show you to your rooms and get the children settled and then we can reconvene here in an hour. If the children need blood we have a couple deer in the courtyard that we caught this morning when we knew you were coming so you don't have to drag them about the countryside so late."
"Thank you Aro. As the leader of my family I admit we are curious and would love answers to some things, but you are right. My grandchildren need to feed and get to bed. They're both very tired from the journey."
All eyes drift to Micah and Carlie, who are hiding behind Bella and Jake. It's obvious how tired they are with their little eyes drooping and their struggle to stay standing. They're picked up and Aro tells us to follow them and he and the others lead each of us to rooms. Caius and Athenadora lead us to the courtyard and the twins wake up a little more, just long enough to feed, and then we're led to a suite just down the hall. It's what I would expect for a room inside the epicenter of our leaders. Opulent, vast, but still very homey.
Bella and Jake move towards one of three bedrooms while I stand in the living room with the couple. I notice the look of longing on Athena's face and wonder at it. Almost as if he senses my curiosity, Caius addresses me. "You're a lucky man Major. To have such a beautiful family. I'm sure you're wondering why you. Why did we take such an interest in you in particular. Knowing that highly analytical mind I suspect you have, I'm sure you have a theory. Let me guess, you think it is merely because we knew this fight was coming eventually thanks to Alice and that we figured your skills would be useful and to ensure your cooperation we decided to help you so you would be indebted to us?"
"The thought has crossed my mind, yes."
He turned crystal clear red eyes upon me and I felt a brushing of emotions I didn't expect, sadness. "I'll admit that it hurts that my own kin would think that. But I can understand it. I can see the shock on your face son, that's right. My kin. My family moved to Germany two centuries ago. I have kept track of all my descendants throughout the years, what else can one do when not ensuring our laws are being abided by after all? I knew when your grandparents moved to the Americas. I knew when your mother and father married and moved to Texas. I knew when your brother, yourself and your sister were born.
"I admit to great sadness that your brother died in that bloody battle in Pennsylvania and I was too far away to save him. I wish I could have saved you from Maria. I was able to save your sister, we followed the war quite closely- we did have several vampires take advantage of the carnage after all, similar to our friend Garrett's sire. We knew when Major General Sherman began his march and knew where he would end up and I sent Felix to warn your sister and her husband, among others. It's why the exodus out of the city started.
"I should have taken you from Maria. I will regret that for eternity, but we couldn't give away that you meant a thing to me. It would put you in greater danger. Could you imagine what our enemies might have done had they learned that the infamous Major Whitlock was a descendant of Caius Volturi? Even you can't win over immense numbers and those more determined. They would have used you against me. Because there would have been no way I would have left you to suffer at the hands of the enemy. So it was decided to leave you, to keep you a secret much like Alice has been kept a secret. I am truly sorry though and hope one day you can forgive me."
To say I am stunned is an understatement. He is my ancestor? Like Carlisle is Bella's? That is why they have kept such a close eye on me all these years? I have family in the vampire world? My mind is spinning with the information and I feel the need to get away, to think all this through, but I feel small hands on my shoulders and look into amber eyes and a soft smile. Bella.
Bella
I could hear everything Caius was telling my mate. So that's why? Interesting. It would seem our little family tale has many twists and turns in it these days. But that doesn't explain why they watched over me. Perhaps it isn't my gift as we had thought. Similar in the way we assumed it was due to Jasper's prowess as a fighter as to why they helped him. Maybe it has more to do with me being his mate. After all, what person wouldn't want to see their loved one happy after all those years of suffering and pain?
I'm trying to get Micah to sleep when I see Carlie sit up, Jake looking at me from where he was trying to get her to sleep sitting at the side of her bed. She looks at me and simply says, "Mommy, Daddy needs you. He's upset." Her gift, the one she inherited from her father.
He must be so overwhelmed and I'm sure he needs to get away, but he can't run from this. He needs to face it. I don't like to sound callous, but this isn't important to the grand scheme of things and we need him focused on the task at hand, not going off for hours to process what he's heard. So kissing my children goodnight and leaving them with Jake to tell them a story, I make my way into the living room of our suite and see my mate in a panicky state turned away from them, Caius and Athenadora looking at him in concern.
When I step out they look to me and I give them a reassuring smile, then I move to Jasper and take his shoulders bringing his attention to me. He looks into my eyes for what seems forever before he nods and gives me a small smile, letting me know he's ok. He then turns to Caius. "Thank you for telling me. I'll admit I was a little overwhelmed for a moment there, I'm sorry if I scared you. Perhaps we should go join the others now so we can get this threat taken care of and have some time together after to get to know each other?"
Caius smiles at him like he's just given him the greatest gift in the world and nods in agreement. "I would truly like that. Perhaps you might consider moving here for a while after all this is over?"
"That may not be possible at the moment. I'm sure you realized that Jake is a guardian? He is also imprinted to Carlie." At Caius' shocked expression Jasper chuckles. "Our reaction at first too. We have a lot of things to talk about with you all. But he is still in highschool and won't graduate until next year. The only way we could bring him with us now is that his school is out for the holiday. He may have to leave us before all this is over. He doesn't like the idea, but his education is more important. But we can talk about all that once we take care of the Romanians."
Now that the crisis has been averted, the four of us make our way back to the judgement room, Alice told us this is now what it is being called- as opposed to throne room like it used to be. Caius and Jasper continue to talk about the things we need to find out, about what's been happening with the Romanians, while Athenadora and I trial behind. She keeps glancing at me from the corner of her eye and I finally ask her what she wants.
"I'm sorry Bella, I just wondered if you could tell me what it's like to carry a child. I'm afraid that I was was unable to carry a child even in my human life, so I admit to a great curiosity to know. Don't get me wrong, I don't miss the idea of having kids anymore. Millenia of being what I am and a bit over a decade before that has given me plenty of time to come to terms with never having children of my own, but I would like to know- that is if you are willing to tell me?"
I sigh a bit. "My experience is nothing like a normal humans. I didn't get to experience the months of carrying my children and going through all that human women do."
"I understand that, but... Well. I was wondering what it feels like to feel them kicking within you. To see your belly growing rounder as you carry them. Things like that."
I fall silent as I think about how to describe those things for her. "Well... When I first felt them nudge my hand was the day we learned I was carrying them. It's hard to describe that feeling. All I felt from that moment was a love so great that I would have done everything I could to bring them into this world. I would have died to do so, I almost did actually. It was amazing watching my belly grow, it meant they were too. It was rough, I won't deny that. Two weeks of my body shifting and changing for them was uncomfortable at times. They left bruises anytime they moved within me, but it was worth it."
As I start to run through everything I felt during my pregnancy I hear Athenadora gasp next to me and look at her in confusion. She's looking off into space with a dreamy look and I glance around to see what might have happened to do that and see Jasper and Caius about five feet ahead of us, Caius with a look of wonder on his face, Jasper with a smirk on his. That's when it hits me. He's taken what I'm feeling and has pushed it out so they can feel it too. I've realize then, I've never really seen the true extent of his gift.
Then the emotions around us die down and the older couple regain focus. Athenadora looks at me and if we could cry, she would be. Caius simply looks to be in awe and moves to take his wife in his arms and kiss her. They're like a glimpse into my own future with Jasper, with the amount of love flowing between them. They break apart and Athenadora thanks us for showing us what it felt like and we continue our journey back to the judgement room.
When we get there, everyone else has already gathered and we take our own seats Athenadora and Caius on one side, Peter and Charlotte on the other. Once everyone is in the room and seated, Aro takes control. "First thing first. Alice, Marcus and Caius think they've come up with a plausible reason why you haven't seen anything yet. One, the Romanians aren't making the decisions. They're behind it, but are letting someone else do all the thinking- we'll get to who we think it is in a moment. Two, we think there's a new gift they're using. What we can't say yet, but possibly a shield of some type. Not anything like Bella's or Renata's though."
Alice nods. "It makes sense. What about who is making the decisions then?"
"We had a Guard member before you came to us. Her name was Mele. When the Volturi went through their change and allowed Guard members on the council, she wanted one. But we felt she was just too volitile to allow to have that much power, despite our votes to control her. Now we think she's used her anger at our decison and has gone to the Romanians and is helping them. We think it's been her making the decisions, we think she's their commander and they've left it all up to her to gather their army and win a war against us. If this is the case then we have a problem. She can transfer powers. She has to touch you first though. Eleazar told us of the twins gifts. We don't think she'd be able to do anything with Micah since she'd never get close enough to touch him.
"But the rest of us? If she touched Carlie and stole her fire starting power and transferred it to someone like Edward? We'd all be doomed. Good news is the effects are only temporary. Bad news, you're without your gift until the effects wear off. But if she's been making all the decisions, it explains why you haven't seen anything new. You've been looking at our known enemies. She wasn't known. But now I suspect her, I should have listened to what she said when she left. She vowed one day that she would sit on our thrones, with or without us.
"As for any gifts they might have. She could be recruiting ones we haven't found out about yet, or even creating some. If they are building an army I suppose they would have newborns. There have been a lot of disappearances reported around the world, but they were so few and far between we assumed they were vampires feeding. We are always hearing of missing persons, it's the fact they shouldn't be found that we monitor. You can make someone vanish, you can't let them be found."
He turns to my mate then. "Jasper, do think there might be a spy? Would that be part of their strategy? I could have Alice look."
"No, we need her to continue to watch Edward and see if we can confirm it's the Romanians that are behind this. If there are any, I can find the spies. I'll have them tracked down before the end of the day tomorrow. But yes, I think they have sent them recently or will send them soon. They have no clue you know about the rumors circulating, but when Edward shows up there they'll be afraid Carlisle has heard them too. They won't just take Edward's word that we don't know about it all. They'll send someone to make sure he's telling the truth and you haven't been contacted by us.
"I suggest we lay low and you all go about business as usual, as if you don't have guests. We wouldn't want them to see us and word get back to the Romanians. Felix, Peter, Garrett and myself could go out in disguise and listen and observe. We may be able to catch whoever is sent."
I can see the brothers are impressed with his confidence. Well they'll be even more impressed once they realize he can back it up. Then they turn to me. "Bella, we hear you have a powerful shield. Do you know how many you can shield with it? I'm merely curious if I'm honest. You see, we didn't have Alice watching you because of your gift, but because of what you mean to Jasper and what he means to us through Caius. But if there might be a time we could use it, it pays to be prepared."
"I understand and I'm glad to hear I mean more than what my gift can do for you. So far all of my family- that includes Alice and Felix as they have become family to us in these past months. We haven't tried it since joined by the Denali. That's fourteen people. But I'm sure I can shield more with practice."
"We can do that during the next few weeks. For now though that's all we can do, train and search out our spies. Until Alice sees anything from Edward we're blind. You are all welcome to come and go as you please, just keep Jasper's suggestion in mind and make sure you aren't seen until we confirm we have caught or there are no spies. We wanted you to come before Christmas because we wished to celebrate Christmas with you here. We haven't in the past, but after learning of the twins Caius decided he wanted to see them and their first one. For now though, meeting adjourned."
With that we all head our separate ways. It's almost a full week until Christmas. Perhaps we will have enough information gathered before then to act and Christmas can be a happy occasion instead of the tension filled one I know it will probably be if we have to worry about our enemies throughout our celebrations. It's nice that Caius wishes to spend it with us. I foresee a lot of holidays spent in Volterra in years to come.