Chapter Fourteen| Becoming a Queen

Growing up, I hadn't thought much about weddings, husbands, or children. They were just fantasies, for an alternative version of me.

In another world, I would get to be married and have children.

This world on the other hand, I expected I would end up living in community housing.

I would have Renee visit whenever she would remember (if at all), and Charlie would take time off from work so he could travel to see me. We would sit together in front of the television, and he would play one of my favorite shows or movies despite me telling him he could watch whatever he wanted. He always put me first and would continue to do so even with little things like this.

Now, I stood awkwardly in front of the grand mirror in one of the random parlor rooms of the castle with a simple but beautiful white wedding dress on. A wedding dress any other girl would be crying in glee at the thought of them wearing it.

I had insisted on being able to walk down the aisle for my wedding and had spent as much time as I could training myself so I could walk with forearm crutches. I would not be pushed down the aisle in a wheelchair to Caius, that was something that I had passionately denied an option. He deserved to see me put in an effort into this.

I both found myself loving the dress but also hating it.

I knew it was my wedding day, and I should be happy that I was getting married.

I believed maybe I would enjoy the day more if I were able to simply walk without needing help.

I would enjoy it if it weren't for the fact that I was getting married with the highest courtiers of the vampiric society sitting in the throne room and watching me awkwardly shuffle forward on those stupid forearm crutches.

The dress was quite simple, spaghetti strap with a high V-neckline and soft, flowing fabric. Over the dress that cascaded down to the ground and pooled around me was a pearl beaded tulle wedding cape, but I wasn't wearing any shoes. I didn't see a reason why I should wear them, nor would I put myself through the motion of having someone put a pair of shoes on me.

My hair was pulled up in a high bun, with a few pieces that were strung out in a dramatic manner. There was very light, natural makeup on me that didn't highlight me too much. Everyone made sure that my beauty would be on display, well my human beauty. I wasn't just another vampire getting married to their executioner king.

"Are you ready to go, Bella?"

I turned my head, noting that Hedi had her hands clasped together behind her back. She shot me a warm, happy smile.

She was dressed in one of her best evening gowns that were perfect for the wedding. Apparently, vampires liked to party a lot and held many soiree parties. There weren't that many now, in modern times, since the invention of technology in fear that the humans would find a way to capture them or one of their own wouldn't be thinking wisely so they would be the one to leak evidence.

"Y-Yes. I'm ready."

Heidi opened the doors and went forward, not moving too fast nor too slow. I went behind her, grunting a little bit from the multiple movements I had to make. I was certain my head was swaying and bobbing without me meaning to do so. I wished I had actually cared about exercising and not depending on my wheelchair in the past. I still had a long way to go for me to feel not as self-conscious about the whole forearm crutches.

My heart was dangling on the edge of a cliff, threatening to fall into the crashing waves below. The broken and sharp rocks right off the cliff would puncture and destroy my heart. Only instead of it even being able to fall off Caius would be able to hold it safely in his hands, as I had already been given his heart from him.

The walk took longer than I wanted it to be, and when we reached the grand doors that led into the throne room, I had to take a good couple of breaths.

Heidi leant over to me and kissed me on the forehead before the doors opened. She stepped forward, entering the throne room that had become the ceremony for the wedding. I didn't know where the reception would be (probably still in the throne room, their vampiric speed would make it possible for them to switch to the second part of the event).

Slowly but surely, I went through the open doors, my eyes not landing on Caius in front of me. I was too busy blushing a crimson hue as I went down the white fur aisle rug that had been placed down for me to walk on. My bare feet were comforted by the soft fur, I wouldn't have been surprised if it were from some animal they had hunted and killed in the past to commemorate the wedding between me and Caius. It had taken over a thousand years for us to meet, of course someone would probably hunt down a polar bear or something so I could walk on something soft.

I only looked up when I got up to the very front row of the aisle, my eyes widening at the sight of all of the Cullens sitting where the bride's family would be sitting. They were all wearing light hued clothes, different shades of purple, one of my favorite colors after all. They waved hello to me, and tears came flowing down my face at the knowledge they had come to support me in marrying Caius and eventually becoming their queen.

Tearing my attention away from the Cullens I almost fell onto the rug underneath me and messed up the forearm crutches as I caught the eyes of my king, my love, my Caius.

Caius, the one who was wearing his jeweled hair chains and light purple robes that had little diamonds sewn throughout the robes. A darker purple button up silk shirt that clung to his muscles and dark skintight pants, silver thigh high boots that had little diamonds too sewn into the sides in the same pattern as the robes were beautiful. There was charcoal eyeliner around his eyes, and soft red lip gloss was upon his lips, bringing even more attention to his lips and his eyes.

"C-Caius…"

"Cicco…come to me."

We were not on the dais, since of my disability but were in front of it. The thrones were made into the white marble dais. The chairs were of the same marble, with so much detailing carved into the thrones, of little flowers and vines and thorns. They almost looked as though marble had decided to coat nature in order for it to not wither away.

It didn't surprise me when Aro had deemed he would ordain us.

Marcus sat down in the row that was meant for the groom's family, and even Queen Sulpicia herself was sitting in a chair a few seats down from Marcus. The bitch had to come to the wedding, but at least they had monitored what she would wear so she wouldn't outshine me. The last thing we needed was her to wear her veiled crown and a white dress at the same time.

I barely listened to Aro as he spoke, instead I was too busy staring at my beautiful groom. He wiped away the tears that were falling down my face. We didn't care to say vows, we didn't need to validate our feelings for each other in front of everyone, what we thought of each other was meant for the other person's ears and not for the entire Court.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss your bride, Caius."

Before I could react, Caius wrapped his arm around me and pressed his lips against mine. I became weak in his arms, my arms dangling by my sides for I knew if I had the strength, I would have run my fingers through his hair. I would have grabbed his face, but this was good. This was perfect in my opinion as well.

Remembering that I was human and needed air, Caius pulled me right back up and I was flushed against him. He smiled some, venom in the corner of his eyes. He brought one of his hands up and ran it against my cheekbone, though we both had to pause when Queen Sulpicia stood up from where she had been sitting. I stiffened and Caius almost had his lips open enough for a growl to emit from between his lips.

She went over to where one of the guards was not far from me and claimed the purple cushion where there was the Volturi Crest embroidered in silver within the middle of the cushion.

On the said cushion there was a rose gold crown, one that was almost too fragile to wear. There were medium and small sized pearls that were in pink and white lining the bottom of the metal. There was a rounded cluster of diamonds that was on the top of the crown, arching upwards. While on the top of the arch was one single rose gold stone welded on top.

"As the only other queen of the Volturi, Queen Consort Sulpicia is here to crown Isabella Marie Volturi as the Queen Consort of King Caius Volturi."

Aro motioned for his wife to reach us.

Caius kept his hands in mine to let me know he wasn't going to let me go. Not after I had just become his wife, and waiting for me as long as he did. Even though we both knew she wouldn't do anything on my wedding/coronation day. She knew that she wouldn't be the only queen consort of the Volturi. I now would have the title.

"Isabella Marie Volturi, to be the queen of the Volturi means more than a title. Do you promise you will come forward in times of crisis and offer sanctuary for our people? Do you promise to be executed peacefully if you shall ever dare to perform treason against our kind? Do you promise to put our people first and then yourself second?"

I turned my head, noting the vast number of vampires that were in front of me.

There weren't as many as the novels and movies made it out to be. There weren't thousands of vampires that were here. There were only about two hundred people, and I had a feeling that this was the eternity of the whole vampiric society. I couldn't help but wonder if there were ever many more in the past, or if there were always a couple hundred vampires in the world.

Carlisle gave me a warm, fatherly smile. Esme sat next to him, her head leaning against his shoulder blade. Alice held the hand of Jasper, and she was beaming brightly at me. Rosalie was stiff and stern, but I could see she was letting me know with her eyes that it was my decision in the end. Even though she herself wouldn't have wanted to be affiliated with the Volturi in any means she wanted me to be happy. Emmett brought one of his hands up and raised it in a fist, motioning it towards the ceiling, letting me know he was pumped at being here and wanted me to be happy.

Turning back to the queen, I could see how she was smirking, her stupid lips turned upwards as she waited for me to tell her no. She wanted me to realize that I didn't want this after all. I would want Caius, but I would not want the crown. I would rather hand off all queenly duties solely for her and she would be able to rule with the same amount of power as before.

"Y-Yes. I will."

That smirk that was on her face dissipated quite quickly, and I had to fight off the urge to chuckle some at the whispers from some of the guests in the crowd. They weren't very impressed with the obvious distaste the queen had for me. I was certain word had gotten out when it came to how she had handled me being queen, and as if they had reached a decision one of the vampires nodded his head, saying he would talk to the kings later about the vampire queen.

As the crown was placed upon my head, I couldn't help but let out a soft laugh and smile. Rose petals came tumbling down and showered like confetti around us. I leant forward and wrapped my arms around Caius, rolling my eyes when he took the forearm crutches and breaking them in one single move. He held me in his arms completely this time, wrapping one of his arms around my waist and holding me quite straight in posture. He was doing better than the forearm crutches did.

Led down the aisle we left the throne room, and he led us to a settee that was in the hallway. He sat down next to me, and the doors opened, revealing the vampires coming out so they could wait for the reception to start in the throne room.

Of course the first ones that reached us were the Cullens, and I was immediately coddled and hugged, and venom danced in their golden eyes. Carlisle reached one of his hands out and placed it on his brother's shoulder, "I'm glad for you, Caius. You have a wonderful wife and a wonderful queen consort. I will always look fondly back to meeting Esme."

Esme giggled some, before she turned her attention to me, her fingers reaching out and taking my free hand in both of hers. "The wedding was beautiful, Bella. And your crown suits you perfectly. I remember the late queen having one that is similar to the one you are wearing. Or at least that is what I was told by Marcus when we arrived for the wedding."

"There's also the fact that your dear husband…who is right here-"Alice teased as she motioned towards Caius-"called me multiple times, sending different sketches of wedding dresses for you to me in emails. I felt bad for the poor man, it's obvious that even though he has fabulous tastes he's not used to designing clothes for women. Much less his future wife."

I looked over at Caius, where he brought his hands up and rubbed the nape of his neck, looking as though he were eighteen like me. I smiled some at how bashful he was, lightly squeezing his hand to let him know I thought it was cute.

Jasper stood rigid, his eyes flickering over everywhere, and on the verge of becoming completely obsidian. "A-Are you o-okay, Jasper?"

Jasper turned and looked at me, where I could see he wasn't breathing. He shot me a small, sad smile but there was a sweetness to him. Alice seemed to pick up on this and she quickly spoke, "is it alright if Jasper and I go to the gardens? It would be best for us to be out in the open air. Even if we had stopped and gotten something before coming to the wedding."

Caius brought his hand up, palm facing the young vampires in front of him.

"Peace, Seerer. You and your husband may go to the gardens along with anyone else in your family if they wish to leave. I am sure you learnt that there was a house nearby that was offered for your family. You can retire for the evening; it was nice to come to the ceremony. You don't have to stay for the reception."

Rosalie had a startled look on her face at what she was hearing, her eyes turning towards me.

"You look beautiful in your wedding dress, Bella. It was a wonderful wedding. I'm going to retire for the night with Alice and Jasper. Emmett you can come with me, or you can stay and behave yourself."

"Nah, it's fine. It won't be fun without you, anyway. Besides we came for the ceremony, the reception doesn't cater to our needs. See you, Bella."

Emmett reached his hand up in a fist manner, and I managed to create a fist bump before we fist pumped. He whooped in celebration before wrapping his arm around his wife's waist, the purple clad couples leaving so they could retire for the night. I was merely glad they had come to show their support for the union between me and Caius.

Edward took my hand in his, giving it a soft squeeze before he turned and looked at Caius.

He glanced over at me again, probably wondering what it would have been like if it were him and me. Thankfully there wasn't any longing in those eyes, nor was there any anger or disappointment. It was merely an intriguing thought most likely, because of his bachelor status.

"I plan on walking around the town, checking out the sights. This is my first time here. Esme and Carlisle will stay for the reception. Have a good honeymoon," Edward decided, bowing his head in respect towards Caius and me.

Esme and Carlisle stepped off to the side and allowed more vampires that were in the Court come forward and pledge their loyalty to me.

Obviously, they knew this was official and I was now their queen. They were quite good at hiding their true feelings, and though there was a nervousness that was apparent to me it was quite obvious this would happen. I was still human, and it was my wedding day to my vampire royal groom, I wasn't just another vampire bride.

The doors to the throne room were opened again and we entered to see it had been decorated for a reception. There was a long table for the kings and queens to sit at, the two golden chairs in the middle were for me and Caius, there was a round golden circle welded to the top with the inside of the circle that of the Volturi Crest. The side chairs were silver but were in the same design of having the Volturi Crest at the top of the chairs.

There were tapestries that were hanging on the walls I hadn't seen before.

Some of them had the crest on them, which was obvious but there were separate ones with the images of the kings and queens. One tapestry for one king, and one tapestry for one queen and so on and so forth. There was even one of me, though I was standing and didn't have my disability, and it was to represent me when I would become a vampire. I didn't know how to feel about it, it gave me mixed feelings towards the monarchy. They would not show weakness or represent weakness in their art.

The vampire court went to their tables that were around the large throne room, with their silver simple chairs that looked like lawn chairs compared to the chairs that the head table for the bride and groom (and said family) would sit at. There were pitchers and cups on the circular tables that were meant for six people in total, filled with human blood.

I had demanded they take the blood from hospice patients.

There were some confused looks from some of the guards, but they had done what was asked. I did not agree with them taking the blood of tourists, and the hospice patients were close to dying. They deserved a peaceful death, Alec had gone with them and made sure those that were in pain didn't feel anything when their blood was being drained from them. He never felt more important than then.

Alec and Jane were dressed in purple, one was dressed in the same shade of purple as the Cullens.

Jane was wearing a stunning gown that fell to the ground in tulle and her hair was braided behind her in a more medieval manner than modern. Alec had on a purple matching suit with a small white flower tucked in the pocket of his suit instead of a handkerchief.

Alec sat down next to me, while Caius sat on my other side.

Jane sat next to her mother, though she kept glancing over at me, Alec and Caius. There was a soft jealous look in her crimson eyes, as though she had realized that I would be a more forgiving and moral mother for her than the one she had in Sulpicia. She didn't know if she would be welcomed more in the family circle.

I smiled as Caius rose and tapped his fork against his wine glass flute, while a small cake was brought to the middle of the room on a circular table that had wheels to it, it was one that was meant just for me obviously. I didn't have to worry about not having enough cake for the guests. Instead, I had to worry about not having enough blood for the guests. Such as the case for someone who was in the same position as I was.

I didn't pay attention to what Caius was saying as he thanked everyone for coming, instead I was too busy staring at him. I knew I looked at him as though he was the only thing that mattered, as though I was dehydrated in the desert, and he was my oasis. He would give me strength; he would be my nirvana. He would be my salvation and to be honest he was all that. I would have been miserable for the rest of my life, but I actually had a meaning in my life.

After he was finished with saying his speech, Caius turned to me and gave me a kiss on the forehead and then on my cheek.

I blushed some, once again.

I couldn't believe I would blush as much as I did today.

I really was a blushing bride; this was probably the best day of my life so far. I knew when I would turn into a vampire that would be probably the second-best day of my life, since that meant death would never tear me apart from him ever again.

A wine glass was offered to me but before I could take a sip from it the throne doors slammed open and Alice came in, one of her fingers pointed at Sulpicia with the most terrifying anger I had ever seen before. I had never seen her look like this for the short time I had been in her presence.

My heart stopped as she opened her mouth to declare something.

"Arrest Queen Sulpicia. She has put poison in Queen Isabella's wine. Thallium. I have seen the death of her."

Aro took his wife's hand before she could react, able to hide away from her thoughts.

He growled as he commanded for the guards to take her. She thrashed in their arms, telling them they were committing treason and not her. They left the throne room in a blink of an eye, Alec following them in order to make sure his aunt would not fight anymore.

I turned towards Aro and whispered, "t-thank you."

Aro nodded his head, not saying anything. His face was frozen, unable to process the fact that his wife had decided she would take care of me during my wedding reception. He mandated for everyone to stay quiet, enough for everyone to become quiet.

Turning to Caius, I reached one of my hands up and placed it on his cheekbone. He opened his mouth, most likely to tell me he didn't want us to go on our honeymoon. I shook my head, letting him know that I wouldn't let this stop us from celebrating our marriage.

Caius nodded his head and squeezed my hand.

Despite the fact that Sulpicia had tried to murder me I knew nothing would keep me from going on my honeymoon with Caius. I deserved this, he deserved this.

Nothing would get in our way ever again.

I vowed this to any deity (if there was any) that was out there.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: UPDATE 3 OF 3.

AS ALWAYS: TWILIGHT DOESN'T BELONG TO ME

-IT'SEMMYNOTEMMA