Water dripped onto cold concrete flooring, echoing loudly throughout the abandoned warehouse lay on the outskirts of Seattle. A stifled groan joined the faint noise, chains rattling.
Joshua's head lulled about for a moment as he regained consciousness, his aching muscles twitching in protest as he moved. He forced his heavy eyes open, panicking and thinking he had gone blind when all he could see was a dark abyss.
"H-hello?" Josh called desperately, weakly. When he received no response, his head fell limply to look back at the floor. Mind ensnared by the worst terror he had ever felt in his life, tears streamed down his deathly pale face and he sobbed pathetically to himself. "Please...oh g–god. Where am I?"
He gasped, startled, cringing into himself as the pitch black room was filled with dull light, the creak of the door making his head pound. He tried to get up, but the chains that bound him to the chair beneath him prevented that. "What? who..."
His bleary eyes could just about make out the silhouette of a small person in the doorway; he was filled with hope that maybe he had been saved from this nightmare. It was dashed however, when a familiar high pitched child's voice met his ears.
"Would you quit yapping you pathetic human? It's bad enough that me and my brother are stuck with the task of guarding you, I'd rather not spend the rest of my time listening to you embarrass yourself."
He shivered as he realized who the voice belonged to...that little bitch Jane.
Past the point of caring who he had to beg to, he continued to cry and plead. "Please, you don't understand! I haven't done anything wrong, ple–"
"You've done nothing wrong?" Jane echoed. Her voice, while incredulous, was strangely calm. "Hmm, now that can't be true." She was patronizing him, toying with his mind.
"My Master would not keep you here if you were innocent. From what I have heard, your crime is that you've hurt my Mistress, a grave mistake to make."
What the hell was up with these people and their old way of speaking?
"Your M-mistress? You mean Nora?" As soon as he spoke her name, Jane's emotionless attitude turned sinister. Through the dark, he could see her glowing red eyes and the way she was louring at him bitterly. It was so intense he was surprised he hadn't turned to dust.
"How dare you speak her name!" He shrieked when he was zapped with that familiar agonizing pain, the chains clanking as he writhed to try and abate some of the horrific burning. He began to sweat, his shaggy brown hair clinging to his dirty forehead.
Jane cackled at his futile efforts, floating closer towards him. "I may not know what you did, human, but given what my Master has planned for you it must have been bad. If you think I will help you, you are sorely mistaken. No...you will stay here and atone for your sins you so willingly committed against my Queen, vermin." With a baleful smirk, she turned on her heel and marched back through the rotting wooden door, slamming it closed viciously behind her.
"No!" Josh screamed, fighting with all of his might to break free. "Please just let me go! LET ME OUT!"
He screamed and screeched until his throat was raw, until he could no longer bear to speak. His tears ran dry and his fighting stopped, and he was left in that freezing room, the only thing letting him know he was alive was the quiet dripping of water against hard stone.
"Well, it's uhhh..." Nora's mouth hung open as she searched for the right words to describe the two story, modern glass house that loomed before her, Caius and Marcus. "It's...something, isn't it?"
Caius snorted in agreement. "That does not even begin to—what the hell is that monstrosity?!"
Nora jumped and turned her head to scowl at him for his outburst, before she followed his line of sight. She couldn't contain the laughter, unattractive and loud, that burst from her mouth when she saw what had made his face screw up with such disgust. "Oh my god, tha–that's my sister's truck."
When he sneered at it again, she shook her head. 'So snooty.'
"Look babe, not everyone can afford the luxuries of life. I mean I'd love to just be able to own expensive cars, designer suits and a literal castle like you three can at the drop of a dime, but that ain't how the world works. I'm so sorry you have to look at it." She patted him consolingly on the arm.
He nodded abashadley, trying to reign in his skepticism when he realized she was being sarcastic. "Although, I do have to admit that she could have done better." At that, he smirked, pleased.
"Come, amore. Let's just get this over with. After that meeting with your father I'd very much like to get as far away from this town as possible." Marcus moved to stand on her right and shivered as he thought back to the uncomfortable afternoon they'd just had, filled with endless threats and questions that in the end had made him wish someone would set him on fire so he would no longer have to endure it.
He thumped Caius over the back of the head when he began to laugh at his misfortune. "It is not funny, brother. He would have had you wanting to flee just as much as he did me."
"What rubbish." Caius scoffed, throwing his arm around Nora. "I could have handled it far better than you. There is no creature on this Earth that I cannot charm." His pride was wounded when he felt Nora's body shake as she silently laughed. Digging his fingers into her shoulder, he squinted down at her. "What is so funny, carissima?"
"I'm sorry," She began, raising her eyebrows at him and shrugging his hand off, only for him to put it back where it was."But you...charming? I really wouldn't say that was the right word, Caius."
He grit his teeth, offended. Pushing her away from him he stepped in front of her and cocked his head to the side, wearing his famous scowl. As intimidating as he was trying to look, he only made her laugh even harder. "Then what is the right word, Nora?"
She didn't even waste a second, counting away on her fingers with a teasing gleam in her eyes. "Dramatic, mean, aggressive, cocky, maybe overconfident, a bit of a prima donna–"
"I said one word." He bit out through his clenched teeth.
"Well, it's hard to pick just one. There's so many elements to you." She praised, pinching him on the cheek.
His eyes softened and he quickly captured her hand as she was pulling it away, tugging her closer and cradling it against his cheek before he kissed her palm.
"Are they...all bad?" His voice was low and just as soft as his eyes.
Feeling guilty, she stepped closer so their chests pressed together. "No, not all." She whispered, standing on her tiptoes to brush her lips sweetly against his, her eyes fluttering closed as he returned the chaste kiss. He smiled against her lips, wrapping his arms around her waist before abruptly lifting her and spinning them both around.
"Caius!" She squealed, locking her arms around his neck in a death grip.
Letting them have their fun a moment longer, Marcus's grin fell as his superior hearing picked up the sound of footsteps. "Fratello."
Caius stopped at his brother's monotone warning, setting an unsteady Nora back on her feet but leaving an arm around her waist to support her. Marcus was staring at the Cullen residence, blank faced.
Letting his eyes rest on the eyesore that was supposed to be a house, Caius's default frown appeared as he saw through the flimsy glass that someone was approaching the front door.
Sighing, he hugged Nora snugly against his side. "...And so it begins."
No sooner had the words left his mouth when the door opened, the friendly face of Carlisle Cullen shimmering under the light rays of the cloud covered sun. Caius rolled his eyes when he noticed the Cullen patriarch was still wearing his work clothes, perhaps to flaunt to them his abhorrent lifestyle.
He walked rapidly to meet them, fixing his clothes self consciously under all three of their stares.
Nora found herself once again in awe at the beauty of vampires and she wondered if there was actually an unattractive one anywhere in the world. This man certainly wasn't, with his tall frame and neatly kept platinum hair that was a few shades darker than Caius's, framing his handsome face.
He stopped a few feet from them all, bending his body to bow respectfully. "Marcus, Caius. My Kings. How wonderful it is to see you again."
"Carlisle." Caius intoned boredly, marginally nicer then Marcus, who didn't react at all.
As he stood straight, Carlsilse looked to Nora who was tucked under Caius's arm. "You must be Bella's sister?"
Nora nodded, moving to step towards him. Her lips fell into an annoyed line when Caius's suffocating grip wouldn't relent. "That is your Queen you are speaking to." He snarled, all pretense of the calm and collected Caius lost. "Have some respect, Cullen."
Gulping, Carlisle sweeped into another deep bow. "Of course, forgive me my Queen." She nearly giggled in spite of her irritation when his voice shook with nerves.
Elbowing Caius in the ribs, she was satisfied when he made a choking noise and let her go. "Nora is fine, Carlisle." The pretty smile that stretched across her face put him at ease, though it was short lived as Caius glared, smirking evilly at him behind her back when Carlisle took a fearful step back.
Having not seen Caius's petty behaviour, Nora simply continued. "After all, Bella will soon be part of your family. I see no reason for such titles."
When Caius laughed scornfully, she discreetly stamped on his foot with the heavy heel of her boot. That sweet smile turned sadistic when he sucked a sharp breath through his teeth.
"How about we head inside?" She suggested tranquilly, her friendly and kind attitude a contrast compared to the manic outbursts from Caius and the brooding silence of Marcus.
Carlisle all but jumped at the opportunity to flee back into his 'sanctuary.' "Of course."
He allowed them to walk ahead of him, stopping himself from recoiling in shock when Caius grabbed Nora protectively, ignoring her displeased grumbling and pulling her under his arm again, kissing her forehead.
It was almost...sickening to Carlisle. The Caius he knew was bloodthirsty and sadistic—terrifyingly vicious. A monster who had already reared its head within the first two minutes of being in Carlisle's presence. He had no idea who this subdued, loving man was that vied relentlessly for Nora's attention. Even now Caius was so wrapped up in her, nuzzling his face into her hair and showering her with unconditional love, that she was having to lead them in the direction of the house.
He needed to think of something else or his mind would be stuck on the absurdity of it all day.
"If you don't mind me asking, will Aro not be joining us?" As much as his old friend intimidated him, he was the only one of the three kings who was anywhere close to being civil.
Marcus, who was walking slowly behind his companions, turned hesitantly to address Carlisle as if it pained him to even have to talk to him. "He is taking care of some business in Seattle. Do not worry yourself Carlisle, he will join as swiftly as he is able to."
Noticing Marcus's impatience in his voice, Carlisle simply smiled shortly and looked away from him, not wishing to make him any more irate than he clearly was.
As they entered through the door, Nora couldn't stop her wandering eyes. There was...a lot to take in—that was the nicest way to say it.
Carlisle rushed towards the stairs, already halfway up them. "Let me just inform my family of your arrival." When none of them protested, he disappeared swiftly.
"Well, isn't this lovely? Very, um...eclectic." Nora grimaced, weirded out by all of the statues that lay about. 'Is that a giant cross? That's a...choice.'
"Eclectic? The better word is gaudy..." Caius surveyed, wrinkling his nose at the choice in decor.
"I know it is difficult for you, but please try and be somewhat pleasant, brother." Marcus pleaded, pulling his hand away from its poking at the odd divider by the door. "At least until Aro arrives. It is better for him to do the talking with these people."
Caius didn't respond, but his lack of saying anything told both Nora and Marcus that he was attempting to behave. They all knew it was better for him to say nothing at all.
As they waited for the Cullens to get their act together, Caius left Nora's side and fell to sit menacingly on the uncomfortable steel bench next to the wall, while Marcus and Nora stood with one another facing the stairs, Nora trapped in his arms plaiting the ends of his hair out of boredom.
"My, isn't this a surprise?" Nora nearly jumped a foot in the air as a familiar voice sounded from behind them all. "Caius is...silent, for once. Has the world come to an end?"
Caius merely mumbled incoherently in response, too bored to even move or make a retort.
When Marcus let her go, Nora whipped around in surprise and grinned in delight, jumping straight into Aro's waiting arms. "Where the hell have you been?" She stepped back only slightly so she was still in his arms, slapping him on the chest.
His miniscule smile was secretive and, if it was possible, he looked worn out. "Now that, I cannot tell you. It would ruin the surprise." She cast him a suspicious look, slightly perturbed by his words and the obvious hidden meaning that lay in them.
He shook his head as if he were asking her to drop it, the hand on the back of her head softly pushing her closer so he could place a desperate kiss on her lips. She returned it with the same urgency, surprised by how much she had missed him.
Lost in him and their kiss, the moment was broken by Caius, as usual."When you're quite finished, someone is coming."
Nora was quick to pull back, not before she gave him one last short kiss, caressing his jaw and sending him happy thoughts to coax him into relaxing. He grinned, his eyes sparkling with affection for her. His hands slipped from her waist, one reaching to grab the hand on his jaw so he could hold it.
As Caius had predicted, Carlisle appeared again, taken aback by the addition of Aro. "Ah, my friend! Welcome."
Aro's smile was huge, almost cheek splitting. He abandoned Nora, gliding forward with his hand outstretched. "My dear Carlisle! How wonderful it is to see you after such a long time."
To his credit, Carlisle did a good job of hiding how nervous he was to touch Aro's hand. From experience, Nora remembered it was pretty daunting knowing that Aro was going to see everything, even if he couldn't help it. She had gotten over that now given the fact that if she didn't, he would never have been able to touch her. It was no issue for her, but the same could not be said for others.
As Aro's hands enclosed over his own, Carlisle's body froze.
The corner of Aro's lip stretched into a half smile and he struggled to refrain from laughing in Carlisle's face when he saw what was causing him worry. The newborn army. It was humorous to him that the entire Cullen clan apparently thought the Volturi knew nothing of the situation, which was ridiculous given the fact that they were currently staying right in the center of it all. So naive...like children.
Releasing his hand, Aro clasped his own in front of him and made sure his old friend could see that he knew, that he had already known. "We will talk more on that matter in private, Carlisle." The blond man lowered his golden eyes to look at the floor sullenly, still anxious for what was to come. "For now, I must admit that I am looking forward to being acquainted with your family. Shall we proceed?"
"Of course, my friend. Please, follow me." Carlisle's expression was falsely warm, something Aro did not miss. Ignoring that for now, he turned to Nora and offered her his hand, just beating Marcus in being the one who got to walk with her.
They ascended the stairs, Nora's eyes observing all of the tribal masks lining the walls with underlying unease. While they were truly beautiful, they were also sort of...creepy. The entire house was if she were being honest. She much preferred her fathers simple home than this pretentious and flashy waste of money.
When they reached the top, they turned right into an insanely bright living room, finally coming face to face with the remainder of the Cullen family who were doing their best to look relaxed.
Carlisle hurried to stand next to a dark haired woman who Nora assumed was his wife, since she curled into his side seeking comfort, obviously just as nervous as he was.
The air was filled with awkward silence for a moment, neither party knowing where to begin as they sized each other up. It soon became too painful for Nora to bear. She tugged her hand from Aro's, approaching Carlisle's supposed wife since she looked the least threatening of the bunch. "I'm Nora, it's nice to meet you...?"
At her prompting, the motherly looking woman laughed kindly, raising her cold hand to connect with Nora's. "Esme, dear. It's a pleasure to meet you at last. Bella has told us so much about you."
Nodding politely, Nora stepped back. "Yes, I'm sure she has."
As if her move had unfrozen everyone, Aro suddenly clapped his hands together. "Isn't this just a delight! Look at you all! Such a large family, you undeniably have been busy since last we met, old friend. Won't you introduce us? I'm certain I have not had the privilege of meeting all of your children."
"Of course, how could I forget." Still plastering on his warm expression, Carlisle gestured towards a massive dark haired man whose height and obvious strength, his bulging muscles a dead giveaway, rivalled even Felix's. He was standing defensively next to perhaps the most gorgeous woman Nora had ever seen, though the uptight frown on her face kind of ruined her beauty. "This is Emmett and Rosalie."
Bravely, Rosalie didn't say a word. Knowing Caius wouldn't like that one bit, Nora looked back at him and Marcus who were loitering in the doorway and sighed, face palming when she saw him acknowledge the blatant disrespect with a volatile curl of his lips.
The large man, Emmett, begrudgingly bowed his head and spoke in a cold tone. "My Kings."
Deciding not to hover on the tension his two children had knowingly created, Carlisle edged around it and waved his hand in the direction of the gray couch.
"Of course you have met our lovely Alice. Next to her is her mate, Jasper."
Nora was unsure if she was happy to see Alice sat there, perched gracefully next to a stoic blond man. Nora couldn't stop the freaked out frown that marred her lips as she looked him over, he was a little...intense looking. Actually, screw that—he was fucking terrifying. His face was so taught and his posture was so unyieldingly straight that Nora thought he looked like he was two seconds away from shitting himself.
"You'll have to forgive Jasper. He is the newest addition to our family and he has um...not been away from human blood as long as the rest of us."
Well, that explained it.
Carlisle's voice caught at the end, apparently already knowing how the kings would react to the news.
"What?!" Caius hissed furiously, pulling a stunned Nora between him and Marcus, who steadied her wobbling body and failed to conceal his amusement at her annoyed cursing that was drowned out by Caius's bellowing voice.
Carlisle flinched and the rest of his family's faces darkened in response to his reaction.
"You imbecile! Why on Earth did you think that it was a good idea to have him be in the same room as my very vulnerable, human mate?! Carlisle–"
"Peace, brother." Aro interrupted, holding up his hand to stop Caius's ranting. Miraculously it worked and he fell silent. "Carlisle would not have allowed him to be here if there was a chance he would cause any harm to our Nora." At Aro's reasoning, and Nora's gentle hand that rubbed up and down his back, he relaxed as much as his mind would allow him, staying quiet and focusing on the fact that she was unharmed and safe behind him.
Aro cleared his throat and smiled collectedly, acting as if that small blip hadn't happened. Folding his hands behind his back he placed his admiring gaze back on Alice. "Alice! It is so good to see you, my dear."
Far more relaxed than her family, her smile was genuine when she bowed her head. "My Kings, My Queen." It pleased the kings that Nora was finally being recognised by her title, something the rest of the Cullens' had seemed to forget.
Alice beamed at her when she lifted her head. Nora, though, was not happy like Alice was at their 'reunion' and did not return her smile when the two women locked eyes, choosing instead to hold a grudge.
Her bitchiness made Caius silently proud.
Aro scanned the room thoughtfully as Nora continued to stare icily at Alice, before he found the quiet pair he'd been looking for, hidden in the corner probably wishing they were invisible.
"Young Edward and Isabella! I hadn't even noticed you were here."
At her sister's name, Nora stepped around Caius and slapped away his hand as he tried to pull her back. Unbeknownst to her, the sassy action made Rosalie grin.
Nora felt a huge wave of relief wash over her as she finally set her sights on her sister for the first time in almost three months. Granted, like Jasper, she looked like she was about to piss her pants and Nora couldn't really blame her. It was easy to forget that her mates were ruthless and terrifying, because they never acted that way with her. They were only ever sweet, attentive and thoughtful–everything she could have asked for.
It was displeasing to her that, no matter how deep she dug inside herself, she couldn't seem to find any of the anger she had housed towards Bella all this time. She was just...happy, to finally see her again. Taking a tentative step closer and picking at her fingers, Nora chuckled awkwardly.
"Heya, Bells..."