Seraph

Volterra 1950

"How did you know you had found your mate?" she asked.

Both women's eyes lit up with excitement at the thought of gossip.

"Did you find your mate?" Athenodora asked while scooching forward in her seat.

"No, then he would be here too," Sulpicia answered Athenodora, turning her attention to Serafina, "Why do you ask? Do you think you may have met him? It may have been lust if he's not here with you. I'd get your fill of random affairs out of your system while you can. Once you find your mate, it will be you and him for the rest of your existence. So, if I were you, I'd sleep with the man that caught your eye now."

The twins scrunched their faces in disgust as Serafina smashed their heads against her sides to try and protect them from hearing such talk. But both twins giggled at Serafina's reaction.

"We know about sex. We're older than we look." Alec chuckled.

Serafina was almost afraid to ask, "but you two haven't-"

"Of course not! That's disgusting!" Jane retorted with brows furrowed.

Alec nodded, agreeing with his sister, "I'd rather be destroyed than be close to a girl. I can only tolerate being near Jane because she's my sister."

Serafina sighed in relief, then couldn't help her chuckle. She loved that while they acted so mature, they couldn't completely erase their immaturity, "maybe it's best if you two go back with Demetri and Felix. We're going to continue discussing adult topics." She said as she pushed them up.

"Well, alright, but you can't leave while we're gone! We've gotten much better at our sleight of hand! We want to show you!" Jane insisted.

"I won't be leaving Volterra for a while, I don't think, don't worry. I'll be able to test your skills later," Serafina agreed, smiling as she kissed their heads.

Once the twins left, Athenodora turned back to Serafina, "was there a man that caught your eye?"

"Not exactly," she sighed, "can you please tell me how you knew you found your mates?"

"We locked eyes, and that was it," Athenodora said, smiling fondly at the memory, "love at first sight is real. Even for humans, but it's a lot harder for them to tell. They could look their mate in the eye and still question themselves. More than likely chalking it up to a simple fancy. For ourselves, think of it as our sharper instincts, allowing us to tell immediately."

Serafina couldn't help the sharp inhalation at realizing that was how she had felt. But she wanted to deny it. Both women looked at each other in worry. Serafina noticed and cleared her throat, "is that how it was for you, Sulpicia?"

"Not necessarily," she answered, "I was human when I met Aro. He tried to stay away from me. But it was almost as though fate kept bringing us together. He then began to court me. I accepted. Then he told me what he was; this was all before the laws were in place. He offered me immortality. I wanted to be with him, and so I accepted. When I was turned and saw him with my vampire eyes for the first time, it clicked immediately. The love I felt for him was immediate. Instinctual, as Athenodora said. But Serafina, do you think you met your mate?" Sulpicia asked with a slight frown. She was concerned. If she was here alone, did her mate refuse her?