Notes: We finally leave the world of canon! Once again, the POV does switch throughout the chapter.

Marcus was in a foul mood today, Aro noted with an odd feeling of excitement.

The young Cullen boy Aro's friend Carlisle had sired had come with a most intriguing request. While it was certainly not unheard of for the remaining individuals of a mated pair to come seeking their own demise as a result of the death of their mate, it was rare indeed for the dead mate to be human.

While the Cullen boy stood in the Throne Room, Aro kept his mind occupied with the fancifully rare occurrence and away from his disturbed feelings at the realization that his close friend had so blatantly broken the rules of their kind.

Unsurprisingly, Aro knew Carlisle favoured the more moralist philosophical purpose of the law rather than Aro's preferred notions of legal positivism. However, long discussions had not disguised that Carlisle, just as much as Aro, deeply valued laws that corresponded with his morality. Protecting humans from the secret of their kind most certainly fulfilled this moral requirement for Carlisle, so it was a shock that he had been inclined to break this law in particular.

What also disturbed Aro was the young Cullen's selfishness in revealing his family's truancy to gain relief from death. Informing the Kings of the family's crimes necessarily doomed them to death. Even Aro, selfish as he was, would think twice about sacrificing his family in search of death.

Regardless, back to his dear brother, who had significantly changed recently.

Rather than being generally apathetic towards the young Cullen, as had been typical for millennia, Marcus had participated in the case!

Marcus had been significantly irritable for the past several weeks, and this had bled through in his behaviour towards the young Cullen.

As Edward stood, about to turn his back on the brothers, Marcus had called Edward out in a disdainful tone.

"You have no mate bond formed with this girl," referencing his bond-sight. "You have recklessly endangered your family's lives for a farce of a bond, boy." Marcus shifted restlessly in his seat, glaring at the younger vampire.

"That's not true. Bella was my mate." Edward stated, glaring right back before storming out of the room.

Aro was exuberant at this atypical display of disdain from his brother and excitedly anticipated the return of the young Cullen, for he was sure more drama was to come.

Marcus wished to be anywhere else as he and his brothers awaited the return of the idiotic young vampire Carlisle had sired. For such a wise sire, Marcus questioned how this son of his had grown to be so moronic.

What had truly aggravated Marcus was not the boy's general stupidity but how Edward's human lover reminded Marcus of his own Diana, whom he also felt he had failed in some manner.

Hours passed as he stewed in these thoughts, and before he knew it, he could hear footsteps coming from outside the Throne Room.

What he detected was strange, however. A much larger group approached than expected. His exceptional hearing detected the footsteps of five vampires and, strangely enough, two humans. Perhaps Edward's lover was not quite so dead after all. This still left the mystery of who the other human visitor was.

The door burst open with Jane leading the pack into the room, who met Aro as he descended from the dais.

Marcus easily identified the mousy and pale human latched onto Edward's side as the not-so-dead human lover. The short, topaz-eyed woman was another one of Carlisle's clan. Apart from the group, unshielded by the Cullens like the other humans, a very human woman stood between Demetri and Felix, the latter gripping her arm.

The mysterious second human faced Aro, so Marcus was only privy to a side profile of her face. This mysterious woman was stunningly beautiful, even surrounded by supernatural beauty.

With a mane of lush, warm brown curls, milky pale skin, and an elegantly composed visage, she was a woman who would not have looked out of place as the focus of a Eugen von Blaas portrait.

Marcus also did not notice the pressure on his chest lessening as she was marched closer to the dais.

As she was marched through the wooden doors, Diana could not help but gaze wondrously at the majestic Throne Room. Entranced, as always, by architecture reminiscent of other times, she admired the beautiful stonework and cavernous interior.

The group grew closer to a dais occupied by three thrones. The man who descended from the throne in the middle seemed almost manic with joy as he greeted the small blonde vampire. Diana's eyes gazed to the left as Aro questioned Edward on his miraculous fortune.

Immediately, her eyes met the striking figure on the left-most throne. A hulkingly tall man, evident even as he sat on the throne, she admired his warrior-esque physique, all lithe but prominent musculature, and his posture, reminiscent of a soldier. Pale, as all the others, his face was elegantly slanted in a very aristocratic manner, complete with a prominent Roman nose, like the ones she had so admired on statues from the Empire.

He also seemed to be in the midst of surveying her own form, and it was but a few seconds before their eyes met. A startling warmth erupted in her chest at this moment and she felt a profound, familiar draw to the tall man. Diana, despite the treacherous situation she found herself in, also felt a deep feeling of safety in the eyes of the King. Perhaps naively, she felt reassured that she would come to no harm in his presence.

His eyes lit up at the sight of her, hers surely did too, and he descended the dais slowly towards her. Felix and Demetri, at the approach of their Master, backed away into the shadows.

"My Lady Diana," he intoned as he fell to his knees in front of her in a worshipful stance. Diana immediately, instinctively, knew who this man was. Looking into his red eyes, she could almost see the sharp mind that had fascinated her for the past months.

"Marcus." She responded with a smile. "This is not how I anticipated meeting you."

"Nor, I." He stated, a warm laugh escaping his form. "Though I will begrudge the fates not as they have brought you to me in a very timely manner." Marcus dusted a light kiss over her knuckles. "It is of great pleasure to me to finally make your acquaintance in person, my Lady, though if you'll excuse my boldness, I already feel well acquainted with you."

"I will not begrudge the fates either for this joy," Diana smiled. "Though I do remember requesting that you solely call me Diana," she jokingly critiqued.

"My apologies, my dear Diana," Marcus replied, smiling as well.

Despite the strangeness of the situation, Diana felt as if all was right at this moment. Feeling as though she was bathed in warmth in his presence, her anxieties about expecting too much from their relationship faded away.

"I see you have already become acquainted with the elder Swan sister, brother!" Aro inserted himself into the situation, not one to let himself be excluded.

Aro's insertion into the conversation broke the tranquil bubble that she and Marcus had been immersed in, causing her to jump slightly as she came to terms with the situation once more. Marcus, sensing her anxiety, lightly placed his hand upon her waist in reassurance.

"Fear not," He said, looking down for the (significant) height distance that separated them, "No harm will ever come to you in my presence."

Marcus turned to address the room at large.

"Lady Diana Swan is a dear friend of mine. She is under my protection and is to receive every accommodation afforded to me. If any harm befalls her, the individuals responsible will face severe punishment." He finished, surveying the confused guard at large sternly.

More Notes: Thank you so much for reading! Eugen von Blaas was an Italian painter which I thought was fitting for the setting of this chapter. The portrait in question that I envisioned was "The Watercarrier." This time I allowed myself to write this chapter as a reward for finishing yet another reading (Ta-Nehisi Coates' The Case for Reparations - an amazing read) rather than to procrastinate reading, which is probably what I should continue to do.