Chapter Fifteen
Hermione was in her quarters pacing back and forth nervously as she waited for 10am to arrive. The reason for her sudden case of nerves wasn't because of what happened the previous day, with the vision she and Alice had shared. She was more nervous about the fact that this lesson was with him and that they would be spending time alone with each other, something that they had not yet done. Any time they had spent with each other was in the company of others and always seemed tense. This would be different and so she didn't know what to expect, and the one thing she hated most in the world was not knowing something.
She had taken extra care getting ready this morning, by selecting an outfit she thought he would like. Then she quickly scolded herself for having such thoughts, as she didn't really care what he thought of the outfit she wore. Or at least she tried unsuccessfully to convince herself that she didn't care. The truth was she felt like she did all those years ago when she first arrived at Hogwarts. She felt like she had something to prove and wanted nothing more than the approval from all of her Professors, especially from Severus because he was the hardest one out of them all to please.
Now only a few years later here she was again, nervously waiting for her first lesson with the leader of the vampire world, and despite the pull they may share, she wanted nothing more than his approval. She wanted to impress him, not because of the magic that she had but because of her intelligence and knowledge. She hated herself for feeling this way, for believing that what he thought of her mattered. But it did matter to her.
When there was only five minutes left to go, she paced a little more and tried to calm herself down. There was no point turning up at his quarters a nervous wreck, that wasn't the impression that she wanted to give him. So she cleared her mind and tried to steady her thoughts and her nerves. At one minute to ten, she stood outside his door and done her best to appear confident when she knocked on the door.
She heard movement coming from inside and felt her nerves flare up again. She really hoped that when the door opened Sulpicia wouldn't be there. After all she and Aro had left together yesterday after court, and for all Hermione knew they could still be in there together. She grimaced at the thought and the sudden feeling of jealousy that threatened to consume her, and had to once again clear her thoughts. She was relieved however, when Aro was the one to open the door.
Every time she had seen Aro he was always immaculately dressed and regal looking. Always appearing to be in the role of leader. But seeing him now she couldn't believe how different he looked. He was more relaxed than she had ever seen him and he wore a friendly, instead of smug, looking smile on his face. He wore black trousers and shiny black shoes like normal, but instead of the full suit he normally wore, he had instead opted for a plain white shirt, with no jacket or tie. The first three buttons were open revealing his Volturi crest, that she doubted he ever took off, and a dark sprinkling of chest hair. His long raven hair, which he normally wore down, was tied back revealing the angular features of his noble face. He seemed more at ease and comfortable in his own quarters and the controlling persona of 'Master Aro' seemed to have dropped for now. This made Hermione relax a little bit more, but at the same time kept her slightly wary. She knew never to let her guard fully drop with Aro, for she didn't fully trust him yet.
"Ahh Hermione." He beamed with joy at seeing her standing there. "Please, do come in. Have a seat and make yourself comfortable." He moved to let Hermione enter and beckoned her inside. "I'm sorry I'm running a little late this morning, please relax and I will be out momentarily." He smiled again and nodded towards the plush leather sofa in front of her, before he disappeared into an adjoining room.
Unlike Hermione's quarters Aro's were so much larger and spacious. They were richly furnished in deep reds and mahogany's and seemed to reflect Aro's personality well, rich, dark, elegant and lavish. As she looked around the room though, other than the colours and the furnishings there was nothing personal about the space. What seemed incredibly odd to her as well, was the lack of female influence. She knew that Sulpicia and Aro didn't share these quarters on a permanent basis, but also knew that she sometimes stayed the night to fulfil her marital duties. But as Hermione looked around now, there was nothing to say that Aro had a wife, no leftover jewellery, no female clothes hanging up in the wardrobe or pictures of the happy couple displayed around the room. There was nothing. This room was completely Aro and Hermione found that curious indeed. She was also rather saddened to see that Aro didn't appear to have any books at all. This disappointed her for she knew that Aro was highly intelligent and well read, so she had expected him to own a much larger library than herself. Perhaps she had gotten aspects of his personality wrong.
"Thank you for being so patient, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting." Aro said breaking her sudden train of thoughts. She swivelled her head to look at him, and noticed how he seemed to be leaning against the door frame looking relaxed. She suddenly wondered how long he had been standing there watching her for. This thought sent involuntary shivers through her body.
"That's all right I don't mind. Thank you for taking the time out of your busy day to help me." She said trying to hide the butterflies that had begun flapping in her stomach.
Aro smiled at her, as he slowly made his way over to the single leather arm chair. If only she knew that giving up his time to spend with her wasn't as difficult as she thought it was, and that he would gladly give up all the time there was to be in her company. He had wanted this for such a long time and was simply glad to finally have the excuse that he needed to make it happen.
"Now." He simply said, crossing his legs over and giving her a small timid smile. "I know things have been quite difficult between us since you first came here. So I would like to take this chance to apologise for my previous actions. Believe me I had no intentions of upsetting you the way that I did, I just sometimes need reminding that you are different and that you are no ordinary vampire. That you are special." He said the last word softly, almost like a loving caress.
Hermione sat back against the sofa slightly taken aback by his admission. She never thought that she would ever hear Aro apologise for anything, after all he was the leader of the Volturi and of the entire vampire world, which meant he had no reason to apologise for anything and especially not to her. If she was still mortal her cheeks would be aflame and she would have looked away coyly from him. But she wasn't a mere mortal, so she held his gaze with her own and gave a slight tilt of her head in acceptance. Although she would accept his apology it didn't mean she would forgive him so quickly.
"Thank you for that I do appreciate it." She replied.
He could see that she was accepting of it but did not fully trust his apology, which he couldn't help but admire her for. Only a fool would be persuaded to fully accept one and Hermione was no fool. She was anything but.
"I understand your hesitancy in accepting my apology and believe me when I say I do not blame you. I know that it will take more than that to rectify what I did, but I promise I will try from now."
At his words, Hermione felt some of her resolve melt away. If he was willing to try and make amends for what he did to her, then perhaps she should also try and be a little more accepting of him. This was new territory for both of them so perhaps a fresh start was needed.
With her mind made up, she smiled warmly at him and nodded her head in agreement.
"Thank you Aro I would appreciate that very much."
Normally members of the guard called the three leaders either Master or Sir out of respect, and although he knew he should scold her for not using his proper title, he found that he didn't quite have the heart to. He rather enjoyed hearing his name from her lips, with no titles separating them. It made them appear to be equals, which was what he wanted them to be one day, equals in everything. But he knew that it would be suspicious to the other members if he didn't correct her.
"Hermione please do not be offended by my next statement, for it is not my intention. But when we are out amongst the guard I would appreciate it if you referred to me, Caius and Marcus as either Master or Sir." He frowned slightly hating himself for this, knowing it must be done nonetheless. "It has always been the way of the Volturi and would look strange if you did not do so also, especially if you are going to become a member of the guard."
Hermione gave a small quirk of her lips at this. At the beginning when she had first arrived, she would have probably been offended at his request. But now it seemed that for the first time since she had come here, it felt like he was treating her as a proper member of the Volturi and not some powerful puppet he could one day master. His request didn't offend her in fact it had the complete opposite effect on her.
"I don't mind that at all. In fact, I apologise for not using your title sooner. When I was in Hogwarts we showed respect by calling our Professor's Sir or Madame to show respect, it shouldn't be any different here."
He smiled with joy at her words, glad that she hadn't been offended. Normally guard members' feelings wouldn't have mattered to him one little bit, but she was no ordinary guard member, or rather soon to be guard member if her training went well, which of course he knew it would, for she was superior in everything that she did.
"Excellent." He said. "In private however you may address me as Aro. No need for such formalities here. Now-" He clapped his hands together in that boyish way he did, whenever he was excited about something. "The reason why I asked you here wasn't entirely the truth."
Hermione's stomach lurched slightly at his admission. So he had lied to get her here, using teaching her as an excuse.
"What do you mean?" She asked trying to hide her annoyance. The meeting had gone from being pleasant to quickly turning tense? Was this more proof that Aro could not be trusted?
"Please don't worry mio caro, you seem to have misunderstood me. I have every intention of teaching you what I promised. But I thought for our first lesson we could try and clear the air between us."
Hermione's shoulders relaxed slightly as she gazed at him curiously. If he was playing some kind of game with her then she didn't like it.
"Clear the air how?" She asked.
He smiled at her and relaxed back into the chair.
"Well I thought it would help if we got to know each other a little better. Quid pro quo I get to ask questions about you, and in return you can ask questions about me. Within reason of course." He smiled as he watched the light come back to life in her eyes. It seemed that his ploy was working.
"Really, well yes that would be nice. Within reason." She agreed feeling excitement build. Despite some of Aro's rather ugly qualities, she knew that there must be more beyond him than that. So getting this chance to uncover the finer points of him was exciting. She wanted to know more about him the man, and less about Aro the leader.
"Wonderful, now since you are my guest here I believe it's only fair that you should go first." He spread his hands out in front of him and smiled widely at her. "Go ahead ask away."
Hermione pushed down the giddy excitement and wondered where she should start. If this was her chance at getting to know him then she wanted to make the most of it, she wasn't going to waste a single question.
"How long have you been a vampire for?" She asked curiously. She knew that he had been around for a while but wondered just how long that actually was.
Aro laughed at her simple question, glad that she was taking the time and effort with him.
"Well if I'm honest longer than I would like to admit too." He smiled as the sweet music of her laughter filled the air. The sound was like magic in itself.
"I bet." She replied.
"Hmm now as I understand Marcus has already informed you of the Volturi's history and how we came to power. So you will already know that I was born in Greece but I was changed in 1280BC. A very long time ago indeed."
Hermione's eyes widened in surprise, she hadn't realised it had been that long since he had first been turned, it was truly remarkable the things he must have seen throughout the years.
"Amazing." She whispered quietly, and it truly was.
"Quid pro quo Hermione." Aro said with a charming smile. "I apologise for my next question, as I know how women tend to dislike being asked this, but I feel I must. How old were you when you were turned? Your appearance suggests that you are quite young a teenager perhaps, but your mind seems so much older and wiser. I must confess that it has left me somewhat baffled shall we say." He smiled again and watched as she sighed, but not with dismay.
"This would be a normal question for anyone else, but not for me." She chuckled at that and shook her head in amusement. "Apparently nothing is ever normal for me." She stated truthfully.
Aro furrowed his brows in confusion at her, curious about her answer or rather lack of one for such a simple question.
"Excuse my ignorance but I am afraid I do not follow." He said.
She chuckled again and smiled sweetly.
"I'm sorry for that, I should explain. You see in my third year at Hogwarts, I was so advanced in my studies that Albus, the Headmaster who you've met, allowed me to take on extra classes. But obviously there are not enough hours in the day to cover all the subjects I was taking. So he gave me something called a time turner to help, and because of me using that it altered my age."
Aro's eyes widened at her revelation. She was even more intelligent than he first thought if the Headmaster saw that kind of potential in her, to allow her to take more subjects. But what he didn't know was what a time turner was.
"This might be a rather ludicrous question but what exactly is a time turner. I know what it sounds like but it can't possibly be anything like I imagine it to be."
Hermione laughed and nodded her head.
"I bet it is exactly what you imagine it to be. The time turner allowed me to go back in time to take more classes, therefore instead of me being the 17-year-old I was supposed to be, because of my prolonged use it aged me by two years. So that when I was turned I was 19."
Aro rubbed his chin absentmindedly as he became lost in his thoughts. How extraordinary that such a thing even existed, the power that such an instrument could wield was unimaginable, and the things he could do with such a trinket, well he could only dream of such things.
But the thing that really astounded him the most was the fact that Albus Dumbledore entrusted such a powerful tool, to a 17-year-old student. This made Aro wonder whether Dumbledore was the dithering old fool he imagined him to be, or if Hermione was someone who could be trusted without question. This thought excited him more than anything else had so far. If she had been trusted to keep such a thing, then that obviously meant something. The thought of her by his side, loyal and trustworthy was an even more prominent image in his mind.
"Do you still have that time turner?" He asked curiously.
Hermione's brows furrowed obviously disliking his question. She knew how much Aro wanted power and there was nothing more powerful than being able to go back in time and change the past. But she couldn't imagine him actually wanting to use such a thing, because the repercussions for all were too great.
"No I don't have it anymore, Albus took it back after my third year was finished. It was safer that way. Going back in time is such a risky thing to do, and any slight alteration of the past can be dangerous. The slightest ripple could change the time line significantly and not always for the best. So he thought it best I give it back." She said honestly hoping to drive away any thoughts of him wanting such a thing in his possession.
Aro could hear the warning note in her voice and reeled his fantasy back a little, realising that he had made an error asking this question. Wanting to ease her mind he said,
"Oh I can imagine the devastation something like that could cause, I just cannot believe that something like that even existed in the first place. It is truly remarkable."
Hermione nodded her head in agreement, somewhat appeased by his observation.
"Yes only a few were ever made and the ones that were, were quickly destroyed. Except for the one Albus owns. Such things should never have come to be. But in my third year I was too naive to appreciate that and was too focused on my studies."
Aro chuckled at her words. From what he knew of Hermione so far, she was incredibly industrious. Not that he found that to be a bad thing. On the contrary. He rather liked that about her.
"Now I believe it is your question next." He said realising they had come off tangent.
She smiled and nodded her head in agreement.
"I wondered, do you still remember your life as a mortal?" She had wanted to know the answer to that particular question for a while now.
Aro sighed and relaxed back into the chair, clasping his hands together he placed them on his knees and looked deep into Hermione's mesmerising eyes.
"Honestly no I don't. I'm sure that at the beginning I did, just like you do now. But after years and years of living as an immortal any humanity I had vanished, as the vampire side of me took over. All the memories and feelings I had as a human also left." He leaned forward and gazed in wonder at her. "Now the question is will that be the same for you, after all you are a witch, you have more compassion than any vampire I have ever met before. Not to mention the obvious fact that you still have a beating heart. It will be fascinating to watch and see your journey progress." He sat back against his chair and smiled. "You know, all this time we vampires have been worried about the technology that humans possess, which could be used against us. But now I'm beginning to wonder if we were looking in the wrong place."
Hermione's back stiffened wondering where he was going with this and if she could hear a thinly veiled threat.
"What is that supposed to mean?" She asked instantly, hoping that what she was thinking was wrong.
He laughed although it seemed somewhat forced.
"Well mio caro all this time we thought humans had the technology to destroy us not knowing that in your magical world time turners and such things had been developed. Not to mention all the extraordinary wonderful things that your magic can do. It makes me wonder what else witches and wizards are capable of."
Hermione couldn't help but bristle at his words, it wasn't so much what he was saying that bothered her, it was more what he wasn't saying.
"Despite all of that witches and wizards live a peaceful existence." She said.
He smiled and shook his head at her.
"Is that why there were people like the Dark Lord around?"
She huffed and said,
"During the last few hundred years there has only ever been two Dark Wizards that we know of. A bit like you, they craved power and wanted to rule, but look what happened to them. One is currently rotting away in Azkaban, which is a magical prison for witches and wizards. While the other was turned into nothing more than ash. They are prime examples of why bad never wins over good." She felt the need to defend her world from Aro. What did he know about Wizarding history? Just because he felt the need to rule the vampire world with strength and power, and laws that if they were broken would be punishable by death, didn't mean everyone had to be like that.
"Touché." He said with a smile, recognizing the thinly disguised insult against his personality. "But there is nothing wrong with craving power and wanting to be the more dominant species."
Hermione sighed, realising that a part of her would never understand Aro and his mentally sometimes.
"You know in the Wizarding world we have werewolves and vampires living amongst us. And although it's still very much a work in progress, they all try to live harmoniously together in a somewhat integrated society." She looked deep into his red eyes and said, "That is where your views differ significantly. You rule your world separately thinking that vampires are superior yet you fear human technology and now the magical abilities of Wizards. Yet you have never tried to turn that fear into an advantage. Have you ever considered turning your foes into your allies? It would, in theory, make your position even stronger would it not? If you were friends with the Wizarding world, then there would be no threat of an attack, not that there ever would be unless you started it. And since you have me here, there is even more reason to befriend the magical world."
Again Aro rubbed his chin as he became lost in thought once more. Her theory was correct, but putting it into action was the problem. Too long had the Volturi ruled on their own without friends. It would be hard to change such things now. As he gazed at the intelligent woman in front of him he felt the familiar excitement flare inside. Her conversation was both riveting and stimulating at the same time. The way her mind worked was fascinating and the way she talked was so much like a diplomatic politician. He could picture her by his side one day helping the other leaders to rule. She would make a wonderful addition one day.
"Spoken like a true politician." He said with a wide grin.
She snorted at his words and smiled in return.
"I would hardly call myself one of those people." Her experience with Wizarding politicians showed them to be corrupt and full of themselves, minus of course Kingsley who she knew would be a wonderful Minister of Magic. No she didn't trust politicians.
"I must confess to rather enjoying this conversation between us, but I'm afraid it must come to an end soon." He tried not to let his disappointment show, for he truly was enjoying himself in Hermione's presence.
She, he noted, wasn't as good at hiding her feelings, she was like an open book sometimes, which he was glad of. He was also pleased when her own disappointment flashed across her face. She obviously didn't want to part from him so soon and this filled him with hope, he never once dared let himself believe.
"Oh I didn't know we had been here for so long. I guess being leader of the Volturi doesn't stop for anyone." She cringed inwardly at her own words, feeling like a petulant child taking the huff. She didn't mean to make herself so desperate sounding. But if Aro noticed he didn't say anything, which she was grateful for.
"All good things must come to an end at some point mio caro. But for now there is something I wish to show you. Come." He stood up quickly and elegantly and held out his arm too her. Looking from his outstretched arm to his face she smiled timidly and rose from the chair.
Tucking her arm into his, he led her over to one of the closed doors and ushered her inside the dark room. Even with her enhanced sight she could not see very much in front of her.
It was obvious that Aro was incredibly familiar with the room as he moved about in the darkness with ease, lighting oil lamps. The moment her sight had adjusted her eyes seemed to widen in awe and surprise.
This room was almost the size of her own quarters, and looking around she saw that it was filled floor to ceiling with old leather bound books. She could smell the old discoloured paper and the leather binding. There were shelves full and some books even sat in glass cases. She felt like she had just been transported into book heaven.
"I must insist that you wear these." Aro suddenly said handing Hermione a pair of white gloves. "Although we have nothing on our skin I do not want to risk the possibility of spoiling any of these books or scripts. They are very precious."
"I can imagine." She replied almost breathlessly as she put on the gloves.
"Some of these are first editions, some of them are lost works that collectors have only heard about but never seen. And some of them are works that were written but never published. They are old and very rare." He turned to her and smiled, opening his arms wide to gesture around the room. "Welcome to my own personal library."
Hermione turned to him in awe, realising that her earlier assumption about him being well read was indeed correct. She couldn't believe that she had almost convinced herself that he owned no books. But this room was so much more than she could ever have possibly imagined.
"How did you manage to come into possession of them?" She asked curiously as Aro guided her around the room.
He chuckled at her question and gazed at her warmly.
"We have been walking about the earth for thousands of year's mio caro. Along the way we were able to find a few treasures, antiques, jewellery, books, paintings, money. You cannot live as long as we have without unmasking a fortune. We all have needs and requirements still, even as an immortal."
She nodded her head in understanding, remembering her own fears when she had first turned about how she was supposed to live for all of eternity.
"This is amazing." She said with joy in her voice, her eyes twinkling with delight as she gazed around the room.
But there was only one thing that Aro was able to look at, and seeing that look of complete rapture on her beautiful face left him mesmerised. He wished he could repeat this over and over again just to see that look on her face once more.
"You haven't seen the most amazing part yet." He said thickly, not taking his eyes away from her.
"There's more." She exclaimed wondering what on earth could be more amazing than this entire room.
Aro chuckled lightly and guided her over to one of the glass cases, where a very old and worn book was. He gently cupped her chin and pulled her face towards him, so that she couldn't see what the book was. Not yet anyway.
He could feel the pull thrumming to life as electricity passed through their bodies, connecting them in ways that only mates could be connected. He took pleasure in seeing her shiver, her eyes widening and turning dark with unspent passion. He was thrilled to note that despite what she may say, Hermione too felt something between them. She could deny it with words but not with her body's responses. Once again he let himself hope that one day she would come to him, seeing that they were meant for each other.
"Before I show you what is inside this case, I wanted you to know that you have my permission to come here whenever you wish too. I was going to give you the key for the door, but realised how foolish that would be as you can simply apparate in and out of this room whenever you wish."
Something inside of him swelled with delight and pride at the look on her face. If he was smitten with her last look of awe, then he was completely enthralled with this look.
"Really, I can't believe that. Thank you." She exclaimed, the excitement radiating from her.
He smiled adoringly at her, unable to hide his satisfaction at seeing her looking so happy, and at something he had caused.
"Now the next thing is, Caius and I were talking and he happened to mention that this was your favourite book. So to apologise for my lack of understanding before, I wish to give you this, as a token of my affection and to apologise again in the hopes that you will one day forgive me."
He removed his finger from her cheek realising that he was still touching her and watched as she looked down at the book in the case. After a second she gasped in shock before turning to look at him, searching his face to make sure that he was being serious and not joking with her.
"I can't take this, it's far too much." She exclaimed.
He smiled and shook his head.
"Of course you can Hermione, it is my gift to you." He smiled.
For the first time in a long time Hermione was actually speechless and didn't know what to say. She gazed from Aro back down to the book enclosed in glass, not believing that he was giving her something so special.
"I-I." She sighed trying hard to calm her nerves. "Thank you so much I don't know what to say."
Aro smiled and gently tucked a loose curl back behind her ear. She didn't flinch at his touch and she didn't pull away from him either, she simply turned her head to look at him with big doe like eyes. She truly was a marvel.
"Just say that you accept my gift." He whispered.
"Can I?" She asked nodding towards the glass.
"Of course. It is yours after all. I entrust you to look after it and since I know of your love of books, I have no fears for its safety."
"I would never do anything to harm a book."
He laughed at her choice of words, she made it sound like she was looking after a pet rather than a book.
"I'm glad." He bent over and opened the case, which wasn't locked. Then stepping back, he gestured for her to move forward. "There you go, it is all yours."
Nervously, Hermione stepped forward and went to pick the book up but stopped to look at Aro once more.
"Are you sure it's alright?" She asked hesitantly.
He laughed at her innocence and smiled widely.
"I'm sure, now go ahead." He said encouragingly to her.
She took a moment before reaching into the glass case and then gently brought out the old worn book. She couldn't believe that she held a very old and rare version of Dante Alighieri's La Vita Nuova. Placing it carefully on the book stand, she slowly ran her finger down the cover savouring the moment. Never in her wildest dreams did she ever think something like this would happen, but here she was. And it was all thanks to Aro.
Slowly she opened the cover and inhaled the scent of the pages, marvelling at how old the paper was.
"It's written in Italian as well." Hermione stated, knowing how obvious her statement must have sounded.
Aro smiled at looked deeply into her eyes.
"It is and I promised that I would teach you Italian. Soon, once I am finished with your lessons, you will be proficient enough to read this by yourself." He gazed at her face, memorising every little detail before saying, "They say that Italian is the language of love and Dante's La Vita Nuova is all about love, so wouldn't it be a great feat for you to be able to recite it in its glorious natural tongue."
Hermione smiled at him before carefully putting the book back into the case.
"Yes I always wanted to do that. Thank you Aro for today I can't tell you how much I've appreciated it."
He smiled at her, then closed the case once more.
"It is my pleasure Hermione. Now tomorrow we will begin your actual lessons and because the ball is coming up soon, I think it would be a good idea to teach you the who's who of the vampire world." He guided her back out of the room, keeping his hand on the small of her back. Once again enjoying the feel of her beneath his hand. Now that he had a taste of what it felt like to be close to her and touch her innocently, he didn't want to stop. In fact, it only heightened his need to do so further.
"That sounds like a good idea but I must ask, won't they be a little unnerved to find out about me." She asked knowing how odd she was to a normal vampire.
Aro smiled sadly and nodded.
"They will be curious I won't lie; you are somewhat unique. But hopefully they will grow to accept you just like we have. You are one of us after all and the Volturi wouldn't let anything happen to you. So please don't worry about that mio caro."
She felt a little more reassured by his words but still worried about what others would think of her. Hermione also wanted to snort with laughter when he mentioned that the Volturi had accepted her, but managed to refrain from doing so. Some may have accepted her in the Volturi but not everyone had and she didn't think they ever would. But she didn't want to say anything to Aro, not when he was trying so hard to put her at ease.
If she was honest with herself Hermione came here not knowing what to expect from the lesson or from Aro himself. And she found herself rather pleasantly surprised by him. He had been charming and courteous, he appeared to take an interest in her, and had also tried to make amends for his earlier behaviour. She could not fault him on anything and she rather enjoyed his company. He was nothing like what she expected him to be and she was glad of this, for he was so much more.
"Thank you for today Aro and I will look forward to tomorrow's lesson." She smiled warmly at him as she made her way to the door of his quarters, knowing how busy he was and not wanting to take up anymore of his time. She couldn't help the slight feeling of disappointment she felt at having to leave him, especially since they were getting on so well.
Like a gentleman he held the door open for her and watched her, also feeling disappointed as she made her way to leave. She turned around to face him once more and gazed up to look into his eyes. He was so much taller than what she was, so standing up on her tiptoes, she pressed her hands against his chest, before kissing his cheek affectionately.
"Thank you so much for the book as well." She said stepping backwards. "I love it."
Aro's first reaction was to reach for the spot her lips had touch and savour the tingling feeling on his skin, but he refrained from doing so. He didn't want to seem like an eager child. So he put his hands in his trouser pockets, and tried to take control of his voice.
"As I said it is nothing really."
"Not to me." She said honestly, her eyes fixed on him. Something seemed to shift between them then, as the air became charged with pent up passion. They both could feel the pull drawing them in closer, needing to be closer to each other. But at that moment Demetri came walking down the hall smiling broadly when he saw them both.
Hermione stepped backwards instantly severing the connection, as she turned her attention to her friend. Not sure if she should feel thankful or annoyed that the moment she had shared with Aro had been broken.
"Master Aro." Demetri said as he acknowledged the Volturi leader first out of respect. Noticing the somewhat annoyed expression on his face. "I apologise for interrupting but Master Caius sent me here to fetch Hermione. You have a lesson with him and Felix next." He said turning his attention to Hermione with a 'you'll tell me everything later' twinkle in his eyes.
"Of course Demetri we had just finished anyway." Aro said dismissively, turning back into leader mode. "I will leave you both too it. Enjoy the rest of your day."
"Thank you…Master Aro." Hermione said with a small quirk of her lips as she and Demetri left to make their way up to the dome room.
Aro smiled at her sassiness as he stepped back into his own quarters. Things had gone a lot better than he imagined they would. She seemed pleasantly surprised by their morning and didn't seem repulsed by his advances. In fact, she appeared receptive of them.
He smiled broadly as he moved to take a seat on the sofa, inhaling her warm vanilla and honeysuckle scent that lingered in the air still. His plan at seduction was going much better than planned. And soon he hoped that she would have no recollection of the dark wizard. Soon she would be his, it was simply only a matter of time now.
