𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐥𝐲

Chapter 14

Marcus and I quickly arrived at the Seattle airport where we made our way onto the awaiting private jet. Ahura greeted us as we entered and I was relieved to see that Aro and Caius had made themselves comfortable on the lounges while they waited for us. Jane and Alec bowed upon seeing us and quickly disappeared to another section of the plane so my mates and I could be alone. After confirming we didn't need anything else, Ahura too retreated to the cockpit to give us some privacy.

"Jane and Alec will accompany us on the journey home. I've sent the remainder of the guards back to the coven to prepare for our arrival," Caius explained the presence of the two elite guards. I nodded but my brain was struggling to really understand the circumstances. All I could think of was what had transpired between myself and my friends.

"My little swan," Aro greeted as he stood from his chair and held his arms open. It was like he could sense my distress and knew I just wanted a hug. I launched myself into Aro's arms and curled myself around him as best I could. My heart desperately trying to overcome the loss of my friendship with Em and Q. I was vaguely aware that Aro had returned to his chair and re-positioned me to a more comfortable position on his lap. His fingers lightly trailed up and down my arm, as I continued to bury myself in his hold, wishing the world would swallow me up and make the pain in my chest go away. Who would have ever thought that the unofficial leader of the Volturi was such a cuddlier when he wanted to be.

"Well," I muttered as the plane took off, "What a way to end the year".

"You did so well vasílissa mou," Caius whispered as he sat beside Aro. I reached my hand out and wrapped it around Caius' hand, craving more contact with another one of my mates.

I hummed as I lightly squeezed Caius' hand, "I got lucky. I only had to break my friendship with Em and Q. Part of me is relieved that Bella psyched out. The other part is dreading the conversation that is to come. Bella will have time to process everything and will be more prepared for our next meeting".

Marcus took the seat across from us, "Mourn i kardiá mou. It will help you move on".

"I don't know how to," I confessed quietly, "I can't cry so...how can I mourn them?".

Marcus smiled softly at me, "Tell us, what were some of the antics you got up too". So I did. For the entire plane ride, I told my mates all the stories I could think of that had happened between my friends and I. Their ridiculous antics over my baking (more like who ate the most), our car restoration project, and all the other teenage nonsense we got up too. It was only after many hours of talking did I realized why Marcus had done this, and how incredibly therapeutic it was for me. Talking about the happier times reminded me how lucky I was to even have them in the first place.

"Thank you to fos mou," I smiled at Marcus, "I really needed that".

Caius gently removed his hand from mine and cupped my cheek to look at him, "Rest assured vasílissa mou, the pain lessens over time".

I placed my hand over Caius' and smiled at him, "I know ma force. This experience will make me a better leader. Every vampire has experienced in some shape or form what I'm going through right now. I can empathize better".

Aro chuckled as his arms squeezed me slightly, "My little swan! I thought I was the most ambitious one out of us. Turning this into a learning experience, I'm so proud".

I chuckled at Aro's comment, "I learned from the best mio salvatore". I gently pulled myself away from Caius' grip and turned my attention fully back to Aro. I placed my hands on his cheeks and pressed my lips against his. Aro and I shared several small kisses before we pulled away and rested our foreheads against each other.