"Hey, Afton!" The serious vampire stopped, staring at me as if I had two heads. He might not enjoy my next question..."Did you know the earth is round?"

He looked back and forth at the two men behind me, before an arid expression overcame his face. "What kind of inane question is that?" "Nevermind." I tossed back over my shoulder, crossing out a date and walking back towards Felix and Demetri. "So, either he was born after the 5th century or he believes in recent science." I rubbed a finger on my chin in mock contemplation. Only some 1,000 years of possibilities — no big deal.

"What are you three doing?" I looked up slowly to meet Heidi's eyes, marked with the elegance of a French wine. She came to a stop in front of us, hand on her hip and garbed in her usual skin exposing outfit. Though this one held a bit more modesty.

Heidi had been my guard for most of yesterday, surprising me with an immediate trip to her room where we chalked her bedroom walls. She talked a lot, but I didn't mind because she didn't tip toe around subjects. When she turned on surprisingly modern music, she began talking about how she discovered the band on one of her fishing expeditions.

Yeah. That's how I found out. The grand plan took the whole 'being bored to death on a museum tour' to a brand new level. Go figure.

I hadn't seen Alec since that first night.

He'd left me off at my room without a word. Refusing to touch me, even when I'd almost tripped up the stairs. One part of me was grateful, because the last thing I wanted was to be any closer to him. The other part of me spent the rest of the night trying to ignore the way he'd looked at me in the pub as I said his name.

I'd be lying if I said Alec hadn't crossed my mind at all over the last three days. I'd also be lying if I said it had only happened once. The ridiculousness of it all made my disdain for him grow all the more.

The only thing able to occupy my mind when I wasn't being distracted by someone else, was the increased curiosity about my father. There were so many possible things that his friend might have to show me. I had only two days before I was supposed to meet him again. Two days too many. The extra time was precious, but dangerous as I found myself lost in idealised scenarios which led me straight to my father — no more unnecessary risks with vampires. I knew it was all a dream, and while I tried to keep my thoughts realistic, I couldn't help but cross my fingers and wish on a star every night. I needed all the luck I could get.

The more time I spent with Felix and Demetri, the more I forgot that I should be truly terrified by my situation. I had, after all, been kidnapped by vampires and was being forced to become one. Along with the added element that I was to stay human — for a reason that had yet to be sensibly explained to me — in a castle full of vampires who had to try not to eat me for a few weeks. All for the purpose of 'bonding' with my new playmates.

Perhaps the situation was so absurd that I'd processed it and moved on. Or perhaps my rock solid faith in a non-existent escape plan — that had to factor in 'running from vampires', was enough to keep me going. Or maybe it was because every time I tried to remind myself exactly what I was supposed to be afraid of, all I could see was Alec.

He leaned closer to me and his eyes locked with mine. I felt as if we'd returned to that alley, because I couldn't move and I think I forgot how to breathe. Yet, none of that mattered and for a moment, I thought he was lost in the same trance that I was. That is, until he spoke. His voice as slow and dark as I imagined his soul to be.

"Do you feel your heartbeat, human?"

Even the memory of the blood on his lips mere seconds after he'd killed someone in front of me wasn't enough to get my heart racing. At least not in the way it needed to be.

Evidently, he had been shifting his guard duties off on the others. After Aro had admonished him in front of the entire guard the other day, he had been pawning his shifts guarding me off on the others. Whether he was embarrassed (Heidi's theory), guilty for bruising me (Demetri's dumb theory), or was just plain sick of me (Felix's theory), I was grateful because I didn't want to see his ugly mug either.

So maybe I wanted to see him a little bit. If only to give him a piece of my mind. Because for some ill-contrived reason, he decided that I was the burden in this arrangement. If anything, I should be the one with a grudge. After all, even Aro had admitted that without Alec, I wouldn't be in this mess.

His sister, Jane, had stopped by my room two or three times for a game of chess or to put a puzzle together but we didn't talk much. It was actually kind of nice.

Felix and Demetri were absolutely bewildered when I first told them. Nor did they stop bringing it up any chance they could to try and reiterate how ruthless and unstable she actually was.

"Alec is the "nice" twin."

Do you feel your heartbeat, human? "He threatened to kill me."

"Exactly." Apparently, they had predicted that Jane would declare me public enemy number one, though they refused to tell me why.

Felix's deep voice interrupted my memory as he gleefully filled Heidi in on the assignment he'd given me on behalf of Aro. "We're making Saffiya guess when everyone was born!" Heidi raised her eyebrows.

I added in the educational component, "I believe Aro thinks it'll help me learn everyone's names."

Heidi took a look over my shoulder, doubt clouding her face. "Felix...none of her answers are right."

I gasped dramatically and pulled it away from her, "it's a work in progress!" I defended myself as the two men snickered. "They're not even giving me any clues or anything!"

"How come Charlotte's name is crossed out?" Childishly, Demetri pointed a finger at me, "cause she cheated!" "I did not!" I argued back with indignation, "I just asked her and she gave me an answer." Felix scoffed to discredit me, "you can't just ask for the answer! You're supposed to figure it out with little details and the kinds of words that they use."

"That's impossible!"

"Is not! "Yesterday, Demetri used the word, 'yeet'!"

Brushing off my extremely valid example, Felix rolled his eyes mockingly. "Demetri doesn't count."

Demetri, having been distracted by Heidi's...dress, resentfully leaned away from our debate, "I'm right here."

"You know what, you're being mean so I'm going to be the big kid and walk away." I gathered my materials and carried them through the nearest doorway, leaving behind the sound of two groan men giggling. With another turn, I entered a side door leading to the room where I'd had my second audience with the masters. A few days ago, the masters had been convened around the giant desk, standing and appearing rather busy. But today, only Marcus was resting on a chair, his attention focused in a blasé manner on a piece of parchment in his chalky hands.

I stomped in, notebook and pencil in my arms and collapsed on the top stair of the outside ring of the room. I'd entered too quickly to acknowledge the fact that I might be disturbing Marcus and the thought didn't occur to me until my bum hit the ground. I bit my lip, deciding to be extra quiet because it'd be rude if I just left after such a melodramatic entrance.

"Saffiya." My name seemed to ring from his mouth. God, vampires could say anything. They would be fantastic voice actors. I raised my head and tilted it to the side in curiosity. I'd hardly heard Marcus say anything without prompt. His ghost like hand raised itself from the parchment and gave me two waves, encouraging me to approach him.

I pulled my things back against my chest and did so, sitting when he pulled out the chair on the corner for me. "How is your day, child?"

I sighed, "I'm fine, Marcus. And yourself?" He gave me a gentle nod before placing a finger on my assignment.

"And what is this?" My response came slowly, as I was still in shock at the fact that I was having a real conversation with the stone man.

"I am trying to deduce the original year of every member of the guard." I said this proudly.

Glancing back down at the paper, the numbers and boxes for my answers suddenly seemed too messy and incoherent. Sitting with Marcus, instead of in-between two bored and unruly vampires, brought me down from the high energy haze I had been in. Marcus' calmer presence seemed to lend me a boost of intellect and my shoulders quickly deflated, "Felix said Aro wanted me to complete it, but I'm beginning to think he was lying."

Marcus raised his head and I was suddenly too nervous to look at him. Had it been so obvious of a lie that I'd made a fool of myself in not calling it out sooner? I shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, waiting for him to chide me for a foolish mistake. Though he hardly seemed the type, the refined manner he embodied was so strong of a reminder of the Mother Superior that I think I'd been projecting. Marcus, however, gave me the opposite of criticism. "Will you continue?" Pausing, I considered his question, additionally coming up with my own; Why learn if I wasn't planning on staying around?

"Well, Demetri and Felix said there were levels of the guards. And even if I don't seem them all that much, they're still important to the Volturi and it would be rude if I didn't give them the same respect."

Marcus nodded in thought, "You have a good heart, Saffiya."

"While it beats." I looked back up at him, worried he'd take offence to my statement.

He didn't, instead offering, "a word of caution, child. Not every vampire is fond of their birth." Then, he looked at me, as if to convey a full round of information through a nonexistent telepathic connection.

I bit my lip, glancing down at the two names on the bottom of the list. "You mean Alec and Jane, don't you?"

"In time, dear one." As slowly as a gargoyle, he returned his attention to the piece of parchment, once again as still as a statue. If I didn't know any better, I'd believe he was one.

I took this as my cue to leave. I'd nearly made it to the archway of the door when I heard my name.

"Saffiya," I jumped, startled that he'd dropped his composure again, but when I looked back he hadn't moved. "Perhaps the library will provide you with more appropriate answers than Felix and Demetri. Charlotte appears to have given you an incorrect year."

I returned to the foyer to see that my apparent guards had disappeared. I frowned, wishing I had had this chance only days ago when I'd needed a lapse in my 24/7 watch to escape through the corridors and out into the streets. But there was no point yet. I still had two days before I was supposed to meet my father's friend — whose name I had failed to catch. Therefore, I no longer had any reasonable destination, and surely not one that would keep me hidden from my captors for long enough.

Glancing down at the assignment in my hands, I decided that I wouldn't mind spending time in the library. There had to be a few books that would tell me about the typical lingo during the different time periods for this fake assignment. Or perhaps I'd just pick a random book and enjoy the quiet. After all, I'd hardly had a moment alone since I arrived.

It was only after I'd turning the corner on the long corridor that led to the library that a buzzing sound caught my ears. As I got further and further down the corridor, I began to pick up noises that could have formed words...only it seemed the conversation was on fast forward and I could barely understand anything being said. Good to know that vampire speed applies to more than just physical activity, I suppose.

"...won't leave...guilty..."

"she..."

Garbled nonsense, I determined, ready to keep on as normal until I heard Felix's voice loud and clear,

"...what he did to Prosper..." I froze, an overwhelming wave of guilt crashing in my stomach. I hadn't seen Prosper since I'd sent him on an errand under false pretences in order to escape my room. I had come to assume that perhaps it was only by chance that we hadn't run into each other. After all, my current rotation of guards, sans Alec, kept me relatively busy or sequestered in my room.

Felix had included Prosper's name on my list of the guards and I had hoped that meant he hadn't gotten in trouble for letting me escape. Now, it sounded as if he had. What had Aro done to him?

As I got closer, I was sure to hold my breath and each step I took was cautious and painstakingly slow. I was almost at the end of the hall by the time I could hear some of their words more clearly.

"...don't...even Jane...capable of that." I thought vampires were indestructible? Had Aro instructed Jane to use her gift on him, then decided he deserved something worse? What could be worse than burning alive?

Demetri's lilting voice came through, "...Alec was furious..." Alec's gift. Though I was only under it for a few seconds, I had no doubts that it could indeed be considered worse. I may not have felt the full extent of Jane's power, but I had experienced Alec's. I could only imagine what the emptiness would do to someone if it held them captive for an extended amount of time.

Was Alec upset that Aro made him use his gift? He didn't seem to want to use it on even me, so I could only imagine how he'd feel when he had to use it on someone he knew better.

"Saffiya thinks he..." My ears perked up at the mention of my name, but the speed of their conversation still muddled the words.

"...denial..."

"...doubt either of the twins expected to find..."

There was a pause and I worried that perhaps I had been discovered when Heidi timidly proposed a question, "does she even know?"

They had to be talking about me. There were already so many things I was being kept in the dark about around here. One more wouldn't be surprising. Between the Latin phrases and mysterious warnings, I hadn't bothered to learn much about their future plans for me. I wasn't planning on sticking around for them anyways. But this...this sounded different. Important.

"Someone has to tell her." I'd stayed in the shadows long enough and now I was determined to get some answers. I stepped around the corner and they froze, caught red handed, as I revealed myself.

"Tell me what?" I hadn't even realized I'd been holding my breath until I spoke, releasing it all with my demand for information.

Heidi started to step forward, as if to feed me an explanation when Demetri quickly shook his head. So, she stopped and they exchanged nervous expressions among themselves.
I crossed my arms, eyeing Felix because I expected him to crack first out of the three. "Tell me what?"

Sighing, he shrugged off Demetri's increased attempts at a warning, "Saffiya, listen —"

Suddenly, his eyes rolled back in his head and his back bent with unnatural flexibility. His knees began to fold but he remained upright. I stood, in what should have been horror as I watched his body unfurl. Demetri and Heidi immediately took up their monotone guard faces as they would in the throne room, looking on with apparent disinterest. Though neither of them stared directly at Felix.

I, on the other hand, couldn't stop watching Felix. I'd never seen anyone exhibit such an extensive show of pain and I admit, with a politician's apology, that I was fascinated. His body was contorted, flinching every few seconds from what seemed to be sudden influxes of whatever was attacking him. His head fell backwards, reminding me of a newborn without the strength to hold up its own head. I wondered if his face, which was contracted with stress, would ever be graced by his normal lazy smile again.

In the doorway stood Jane, her lips curled up as she stared Felix down. Though her demeanour demanded fearful obedience, I couldn't help but liken her to a doll. Not one of those creepy ones, despite her eyes which held the truth behind her diet. Her smile was light, cheeks rosy and the resemblance between her and her twin was obvious. And though her gift was feared, the joy and what could have been relief, seemed to cathartically reinvigorate her. In that moment, she was the epitome of innocence. Innocence, that had the ability to bring Felix to his knees with the very pain that had destroyed it. So, this was Jane's gift.

Felix's knees landed on the stone floor as if hit with another surge of power. Groans left his mouth and I couldn't shrug the feeling that he'd experienced whatever this was more than a few times. It was as if he were holding on to the experiential knowledge that it would end.

And it did.

Jane continued smiling, "playtime's over."

I could feel his eyes on me before I even looked in his direction. Alec's eyes narrowed as I dared to meet his gaze. Though he didn't look away, instead his eyes stayed focused on me, forever hostile, consuming and vigilant. His eyes gleamed red, darker then his sister's and perhaps even more than the others. Heidi explained something about this; the darker the red the more recently fed. I only remembered this part because it rhymed, but I'd been too focused on trying to mix her chalk colours to make pink to remember the rest.

Beside her, Alec matched the commanding form of his sister. A natural aura of intimidation gave off less intensity, but a subtle warning rested underneath. If his sister exhibited a discernible balance of pain, surely her twin with such an opposite demeanour was not to be underestimated. He seemed to lack the same externally sadistic lust as his sister, but I had the feeling that by the time the bells went off for his prey, it would be too late.

I tore my eyes away from Alec and was immediately gifted fresh air. I breathed it in, free of the daze his eyes always seemed to leave me in.

Looking at my other guards...my friends, I picked up on their behavioural adjustments in regards to one being hurt. Though his face was as stoic as Heidi's, Demetri's eyes remained on his friend until he was able to stand. As Felix regained his composure, Jane relayed her message, "Aro wishes to see us."

I observed my guards, each waiting for the next move. Jane seemed to be daring anyone to defy her, likely eager to use her gift again. With her brother by her side, they looked like the two most intimidating beings in the entire world and I couldn't imagine anyone even trying to defy them. Even one without the other — but then, I'd already thrown myself to the sharks with Alec. Jane, however...

"I'll just take Saffiya back to her room, then."

Jane's head whipped to Felix and he flinched. This seemed to be enough for her and Felix appeared to get the message. Jane had made her position perfectly clear upon her entrance.

Whatever they were hiding, wasn't to be shared with me.

"The human was going to the library," Jane's eyes fixed onto me. "Were you not?"

I stared back at her, locked in a wave of calm before a storm. I wasn't lost in her eyes, in fact I was barely looking at her. My mind was whirling and I couldn't decide what was more important — whatever secret they were hiding from me or the power of Jane's gift. My behaviour seemed to throw Jane off, but she kept her composure. "Human — Were you not?" She repeated.

Yes, they all knew something that I did not, and even though Heidi and Felix seemed to think this secret was important for me to know sooner rather than later, it could wait. Secrets came out eventually, and there was a lot I didn't know.

Still, I couldn't help the emptiness in my tone as I held Jane's stare, addressing Demetri. "She's right." I blinked, taking a step back from the middle of the group. I received odd looks, as if each vampire perceived my behaviour as off but either didn't care to comment or didn't know how.

Jane had moved on, "Best not to keep Aro waiting."

Heidi and Demetri nodded, taking steps to the throne room. However, Felix hesitated as he looked between me and Jane and Alec.

Jane's smile had returned to her face, although with a more sadistic edge. "Don't worry. Alec won't let her out of his sight." She turned to her brother, who finally moved his eyes from me. "Will you, brother." It was impossible to miss the playful petulance in her tone.

The glare her brother gave her went unacknowledged by Jane as she turned on her heel and led the others away.

I stayed in my spot for a moment, watching their forms disappear down the stairs. Alec had gone back to watching me, his gaze looser then before. I frowned, trying not to become too irritated, too quickly with his presence. After all, I had no idea how long I'd be stuck with him.

"Right." I turned around, moving to push open the library doors. Except, they wouldn't budge. That's another thing — none of the doors in this place would budge without superhuman strength. I get that they were old, but it made no sense for doors to weigh more than an average dog. Which was the best comparison I could come up with in my head at that moment because my sanity had been interrupted by a chiming, mocking short laugh.

I tossed a glare at the useless male over my shoulder, giving another futile push against the library doors. I threw my hands against the door, leaning on them and dropping my head down in-between my arms. I refused to ask him for help. I tried to sneak a glance to see if he would graciously just open the door for me because he knows that it is literally impossible for me to do so. However, I was met with a different sight.

He had leaned one shoulder against the wall to watch me, with his arms crossed loosely over his chest. The position alone was unusually casual and as much as I hated to admit it, it made him undeniably attractive. As if he were reading my mind, a smirk lit up his face with delight at my failed efforts. I could practically see the smugness coming off of him as he caught me looking. No way was I caving now.

I stepped back to examine the doors. I was even less than a feather as far as the inanimate objects were concerned. There was no other entrance and no other options, seeing as Aro had taken everyone who would've done the decent thing by now and just opened the door.

Without thinking it through, I called him out, "wasn't there such a thing as "being a gentleman" wherever, whenever, you're from?" His eyes narrowed at me and I took the hint, Marcus's warning flashing across my mind. I quickly turned my head back to the door and waited for Alec to chew me out or threaten to eat my heart with a fork or something.

"I was under the impression that women in your era were independent." There was a lightness in his voice I had yet to hear and he was definitely messing with me. The idea initiated a slow rising of giddiness before I remembered that I'd been pushing against what I am now positive was just a fake door, for multiple minutes as he simply watched.

I bit my lip, my frustration growing, "yeah, cause chivalry is a scam." He continued to watch me for a few more tries of doing nothing but simply pushing on different pressure points of the doors before I turned to him. "Would you mind..." He raised an eyebrow and I gave him an exasperated glare before putting on my best fake smile. "Please?"

I caught a hint of amusement on his face as he opened the door with his stupid vampire strength and held it open for me.

I gave him a begrudging, "thank you" and once I was safely inside, I added sarcastically, "what a gent".