Twilight: Darling of Volturi (YURI/GL)

After enduring days of starvation, all of Sophie’ determination came to nothing. The girl who had boldly proclaimed, ”I’ll never feed again,” had already forgotten the promise she had made.

As long as Fabio remained alive, Sophie would never remember any of it within the next ten years.

And by the time those ten years had passed, she would most likely have accepted feeding on human blood as the natural way of life, wandering somewhere in the world in search of her next prey.

When she eventually remembered those naïve words she had once spoken, how would she react? Jane found herself unexpectedly curious.

The water in the bath gradually returned to its original clarity. Connecting the pool to the natural spring had proven to be an exceptionally wise decision.

Jane sat on the edge of the bath, unconcerned as the overflowing water soaked the hem of her black dress. She reached out and gently stroked Sophie’ drenched hair. Deprived of her sight, the young vampire could only sense that someone was touching her, unable to identify who it was. Before she could dwell on it, however, the sweetness of the blood reclaimed all of her attention.

Jane knew it was time to give her brother an explanation.

”Alec,” she said quietly, ”I asked Fabio to seal away all of Sophie’ memories after her transformation.”

With Alec’s intelligence, he had already pieced together the truth from the earlier conversation. Even so, nothing pleased him more than hearing Jane willingly tell him everything herself.

Alec sat beside his sister and cautiously leaned in to kiss her cheek. This time, Jane did not retreat. She accepted the gesture naturally and even returned the kiss, brushing her lips gently against his face.

At last, the twins recovered the effortless closeness they had always shared.

”Are Sophie’ memories interfering with you?” Alec asked softly after a brief pause.

Jane shook her head.

”No,” she replied. ”It’s her existence.”

”Then let’s just kill her,” Alec suggested without hesitation.

Jane immediately turned to glare at him, annoyed by his impatience. ”If you’re too lazy to listen to the rest, you may as well leave right now.”

Alec promptly raised both hands in surrender.

”I’ll listen,” he said obediently.

”To be more precise...” Jane glanced down at Sophie, searching for the right words before continuing. ”The way she exists within my mind doesn’t seem to be limited to memory alone. It’s almost as though Chelsea’s Gift and Fabio’s Gift have somehow become intertwined.”

As members of the Volturi’s core guard, both siblings understood the abilities of every guard as well as Aro’s opinion of them.

Alec considered her words before answering. ”Chelsea manipulates emotional bonds. Fabio alters memories. Master Aro values Chelsea far more than Fabio because, to vampires, emotions possess far greater power than memories. They are two completely separate things.”

There was a reason countless Gothic novels portrayed vampires as creatures of overwhelming love and devotion. It was not entirely fiction.

If their race possessed a true weakness, it was emotion. Love outweighed even life itself.

Even mighty figures such as Aro and Caius constantly feared losing their mates, hiding their wives deep beneath the underground palace with obsessive care. Marcus had become little more than a living corpse after losing his beloved, spending a thousand years wandering through eternity. Not even fresh blood could restore the vitality he had lost.

Aro had invested immeasurable time and effort before finally discovering Chelsea, whose Gift could manipulate emotional bonds. That single ability allowed him to control the Volturi Guard with extraordinary efficiency and elevate the Volturi to the pinnacle of vampire society.

”Alec...” Jane lowered every emotional barrier she possessed and revealed an expression of genuine confusion that almost no one else in the world would ever witness. ”I don’t understand.”

The little vampire beneath her finished one blood bag and immediately began growing restless again. Without even thinking, Jane tore open another bag and placed it against Sophie’ lips, feeding her with the casual familiarity of someone tending to a small animal.

”I should have lost those feelings,” Jane continued quietly. ”Chelsea severed the emotional bond. But every time I remember her... every time I see her... that feeling... that weakness... slowly begins growing again. I’ve almost started wondering whether Chelsea’s Gift has somehow weakened and inherited Fabio’s flaws.”

”That’s impossible.” Alec’s expression became serious. After a moment, another possibility occurred to him. ”Sister... does the pain from the fire still remain? If I asked Fabio to help you erase it... would you be angry?”

Jane’s face immediately darkened.

”You, of all people, should know why neither of us has ever told anyone about that pain except Master Aro. I’ve lived with it for a thousand years already. I don’t need anyone interfering!”

”You need help more than anyone!” Alec retorted, his voice rising for the first time. ”Otherwise you never would have indulged Sophie the way you did. Stop avoiding my first question.”

Jane wrestled with herself for a long moment before finally sighing in defeat.

”Fine. You win. You always do.” She looked down at Sophie, who remained quietly drinking beside the bath. ”Her existence... takes away my pain.”

She could never lie to Alec.

The twins were so close that deceiving him would feel no different from deceiving herself.

”Perhaps that’s the reason,” Jane admitted softly. ”She’s still affecting me. I honestly don’t understand how she manages to do it.”

Alec wrapped an arm around his sister’s shoulders and gently pulled her closer.

”Exactly,” he murmured. ”How does she do it? That’s a mystery we’ll have to investigate.”

If Sophie continued influencing Jane, sooner or later their emotional bond would become so powerful that even Chelsea’s Gift would be unable to sever it.

But before that day ever arrived, the all-seeing Master Aro would undoubtedly discover the truth first and Sophie would almost certainly be executed before it could happen.

The twins rested their foreheads together in silence. Alec pondered every possible way to protect his sister, both physically and emotionally, while Jane quietly leaned into the embrace.

”You’ve formed another emotional connection with Sophie, haven’t you?” Alec whispered. ”Things progressed so quickly that you’ve spent these past several days avoiding Chelsea and even Marcus. Sister... you’ve made me worried sick.”

Jane hugged him back just as tightly.

”It’s all been taken care of now,” she said with the innocent certainty of a carefree sixteen-year-old girl. ”Everything has returned to how it was at the beginning of May.”

Sophie felt unbearably cold.

I must be in the hospital... she thought hazily. My body feels so stiff... When I open my eyes, I’ll probably see a white ceiling.

She slowly opened them.

Instead of white walls and the smell of disinfectant, vibrant colors greeted her vision. The room was richly decorated, every shade vivid yet harmonious, its bold palette striking her newly awakened senses.

She was lying on an incredibly soft wool carpet. The fibers beneath her fingertips were slightly damp, though not unpleasantly so.

Cautiously, Sophie tested her arms, legs, and eyes. Nothing hurt. Not a single injury. Yet the last thing she remembered was falling from a cliff. With a drop like that, she should have been dead, or at the very least, gravely wounded. Did I hit my head? she wondered. Do I have some kind of temporary amnesia?

Remaining where she lay, Sophie slowly surveyed her surroundings. The room was bright and colorful, furnished with tables, chairs, and other ordinary comforts. Had it not been for those familiar furnishings, she might have mistaken the place for heaven.

She pushed herself into a sitting position. Just then, the heavy curtains directly before her billowed gently in the breeze. Behind the swaying fabric, hidden within a shaft of daylight, stood a young girl.