The Other Swan

Part Four

Heidi was bringing a new group of humans to the castle today for a tour and Danni was asked to stay in her room all day. Danni didn't mind as the weather outside was overcast so it was perfect for a duvet day. She spent the morning drawing with the art supplies Esme had sent her; the afternoon reading and the evening watching movies on her laptop until she fell asleep. The King size bed always felt so much bigger to her when she slept in it alone, even the room seemed bigger when Demetri wasn't there with her. She woke up on Demetri's side of the bed noticing it still smelt like him days after he left.

The following morning Josh came by and took Danni to the kitchen for breakfast and then escorted her to the gardens where they talked about different topics including what guard duty was like as Danni was curious. After having lunch outside, Josh took Danni back to her room as he was on duty for the remainder of the day.

A few days later Caius came to Demetri's room "Morning Danni, I thought you might like to join me in my study for a history lesson?" "Morning Caius, I'd like that. Thank you" Caius held his arm out for Danni to take, which she did and they made their way to his study talking about what they'd had been up since they last spoke.

Once inside the study Caius and Danni took a seat on the sofa and he told her about the history of the Volturi and how they came to power after a near century long battle against the Romanians between 400 and 500AD. "Our purpose is to keep our existence hidden from the human world and we do that by tracking down and dealing with any vampires that break our laws which could lead to our existence being exposed. Where possible we hold a trial to ascertain their guilt but sometimes it is necessary for the problem to be dealt with immediately, especially if human attention has been drawn to the situation. Our rule is still effective after all this time" "Wow. I didn't realise you guys had been around so long, nor how you came into power" Danni responded "Our three main laws are to maintain our secret, to kill inconspicuously and to not create immortal children" "What are immortal children?" She asked "Immortal children are children of a very young age that were changed into vampires but because of their young age they couldn't be taught or restrained. They could destroy an entire village during a single tantrum. This caused humans to pay to attention to the devastation and we had to intervene. The punishment for creating an immortal child is to destroy the child and its creator. Luckily there have been no immortal children created for centuries" He replied "That makes sense, but why would anyone ever want an immortal child around?" She asked "I don't know, I couldn't think of anything worse personally" He replied. Danni couldn't help laughing at this and Caius smiled at her.

"Can I ask you a question Caius?" "Of course child" "How come I am still human? After all I know your secret. I mean Bella has to be turned soon as per your instruction" She was curious "You are still human because you are living here with us in the castle so there is no way our secret can be exposed. Bella needs to be turned sooner rather than later because she has known about us for a while and the Cullens know that it is against the law for a human to know about us unless they are to be turned" He told her "Oh right, I understand. Can I ask why there has been no talk of turning me?" "There has been no talk of turning you because again you live here with us. Also, you are Demetri's mate and it is a discussion for the two of you to have" He replied "Really?" She asked "Yes, Demetri is one of our elite guards and is very loyal, well respected and liked here. He has also earnt our trust over the centuries so we have decided his loyalty is to be rewarded, and therefore we are not rushing him to turn you" "I appreciate that Caius. It's nice to hear he is held in such high regard by you and your brothers" Caius smiled at her "Demetri has also waited a very long time to meet you and the way you met one another was not the ideal setting, and we thought you both deserved the time to get to know one another and that you both might prefer it, if you got a little older before becoming immortal. I mean you are only 15 years old and he is 21...well physically anyway." Danni looked surprised as she took in the information. "Are you ok Danni?" "Yes, it-it's just from the little I was told about yourselves prior to coming here, I would not have expected this much consideration for me and for mine and Demetri's situation" She answered "We are not the monsters others may have you believe. We look after our own Danni and only punish the guilty when needed" "I know that. I actually respect what you do and what you stand for, Demetri knows that too" It was Caius' turn to look surprised. "We had a brief talk about things and I told him that being the daughter of the Chief of Police, I understand the Volturi's purpose and thought you were great. He was surprised too" She told him "You are very interesting for a human Danni" "Why, thank you Caius" She replied smiling.