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Astraea's POV

My blue eyes turned to Caius, who had not moved the entire time I had been there. No movement or even sign that he was conscious at all, my mate's body was the only thing indicating that he was in the room at all. I could barely feel his presence, but the part that I felt left a hollow mark on my heart.

"Caius," I whispered, my voice much softer than before as I looked him up and down. Either he could not hear me or he was outright ignoring me, both ideas haunting me. Vampires don't sleep, so why are you just there? Please don't....don't just reject me...I need you. "I know that I'm not what you wanted, but I'm what you got."

The gold plated room felt heavy, like all of the gold that lined the walls were crashing down on my shoulders and my human heart. I had never allowed myself to feel this way for someone before, let alone a vampire. Not being able to handle the mate bond between us was proving to bring me to desperation. I need you. I want you and you don't seem to want me. That's all that I want. I don't think I can handle the rejection, the loss. I've lost too much...

"Tesoro," Marcus ran his hands down my sides, "Do not think that he does not long for you-"

Cutting him off with a single tear running down my blushed cheeks, I say, "Why would he do this if he wanted me? He doesn't act like he wants me. I want him more than anything but he just ignores me all the same. Obviously he wants to reject me but isn't saying it."

"Astraea, Caius would never reject you," Aro tries to reason with me, but fountains of tears run down my face as I stare at my blonde mate's comatose body. The raven-headed king wipes away some of the tears that had fallen from my electric blue eyes before he spoke again, "It pains him to be away from you, piccola."

"Our mate has difficulties accepting new people into his life," Marcus explains, holding me close as my eyes continue to wander back to the bed where Caius layed. "He shall explain it to you when he comes back from this state. Never think that our mate does not care for you more than anything else, I have seen it in his eyes when he looks at you. We have waited for our entire lifetimes to get the chance to have you, to be complete and happy with you, Caius would not try to jeopardize that on purpose."

Taking another look at my blonde mate, I saw that I couldn't fully see his face. I had never been able to get very close to him, emotionally or physically. My very soul longed to be near him, to give him everything. I had done exactly what my soul told me to, giving my mate my heart and soul. Whether or not that was a mistake on my part would remain unknown. There was nothing that could help me pull away from him now. I had allowed myself to fall too hard too fast.

Inching away from Marcus and Aro, I take one step towards Caius. No movement. Another. Nothing, not even a twitch. A third step and I was next to the bed, able to see his red eyes as they glared daggers into the wall. There has to be something I can do. I can't let him hurt himself like this.

"Diletto," I hear Marcus whisper under his breath as I make my way to our mate's side. I paid no attention to him as I pulled the blanket that someone had placed over him. "Cosa stai facendo tesoro?"

Not answering his question, I carefully slip myself under the covers, snuggling up to his cold, hard chest. Streams of tears rolled down my cheeks as I sobbed into his unmoving chest, just wanting for him to be okay. Wrapping my arms around him, I silently continue to sob as our mates watch.

"Potrebbe essere così per un po ', amore mio," I shake my head, willing to stay here for as long as I need to. Holding onto his much larger frame, I feel a small shift in the blankets. I miss you, Caius. I miss you so much. Please don't leave us like this.

I yelped as I felt strong arms wrap themselves around my smaller body, pulling me in close. A long kiss was placed on my head as I continued to cry, overwhelmed by the situation I had been placed in. I knew that the one who had kissed the crown of my head was Caius, but my crying stopped me from saying anything.

"Παρακαλώ μην... κλαις," Caius' voice was low and pleading as he held me against his chest. "Μην κλαις αγάπη μου."

Unable to speak, my arms tighten their grip around my mate's waist, not wanting to part from him, not after we had not spoken for three whole days. The blonde king tried to move me off of him, which made me let out a sound of protest Seeing as he could not remove me without upsetting me further, he allowed me to stay furrowed in his chest.

At that moment there was nothing that mattered more to me than to keep myself with him, to not part from him. I had never been a possessive person, but having him away made me want to claw my own eyes out. The idea that he could leave made me crazy, sending my heart into a frenzy. It was clear that Caius saw my upset, kissing my head as I cried into the sheets and his chest, but he said nothing as he gave me those small bits of affection that I craved.

My tears stilled as he moved my face up, letting me gaze into his red eyes. His cold hand carefully rubbed away some of my leftover tears, moving them off of my cheeks. No clear emotion could be discerned from the way that he looked at me, but his lip quivered slightly at every breath I took. Rolling his fingers over my blushed expression, I could feel him start to come back to life, eyes no longer clouded with so much pain and guilt.

"Amore," he whispers, his voice barely audible, "You cannot fathom how sorry I am. Please do not cry any longer. I never wished to harm you in any way, my precious mate. Never would I consider rejecting you, my darling. I cannot bear the thought of such an act.... My soul tears at the very mention. To be without you... I would rather embrace death, but only would I wish to embrace death with you beside me."

No words left my lips as our eyes met. Clashing emotions filled my heart as he placed a single hand on my cheek, not moving as we laid in the bed. Bringing my much warmer hand to my cheek, overlapping with his own that had been placed seconds prior, I allow myself to feel the ultimate comfort that came with his presence.

His gaze was unlike anything I had seen before, filled with both apology and hurt. My wandering eyes glanced down to his lips, which held the same slight quiver they had before, only now I could feel his breath as he exhaled. No longer was he the comatose statue of a man that I had seen when I woke up, having a certain amount of life to him as I looked at him longingly.

Lord had I wanted him. I had never granted myself the personal pleasure of longing for someone, let alone a man I barely knew. In my entire lifetime I did not expect to want someone the way I wanted him. Those blonde locks called to me in ways I never thought possible, his porcelain face and clear skin looking more handsome than anything I could imagine in my silly childhood daydreams.

"Αγάπη μου," he says, his voice only slightly louder than his previous whispers. "What are you doing to me?"

Deciding to not give a verbal answer, I reach out to his cheek. Caius let out a sharp breath before I moved my head up, closing my eyes and connecting our lips together in a passionate kiss. Hearing my mate groan under his breath, I wrap my arms around his neck. Given better access to my lips, my mate moved a strand of my hair off my face.

Skin like marble, everything about what I had done came flooding back to my senses. There was no stopping the pounding of my heart or the blood that rushed to my cheeks as his firm lips moved against my soft ones. Being with him was what I wanted and having him now was better than I would have thought before.

It was Caius who broke off the kiss, blinking as his eyes looked me up and down, almost as if he were checking if I was still okay. His blonde hair was much messier than before, but still held the same regal shape.

"Astraea," he breathed out, placing his hand back on my cheek as he glanced at the rest of my body. "Are you alright?"

Giving him a questioning look, he glanced down at the bed sheets, which were messy and wet from my tears. Quickly moving them out of the way, he picked through some of the heavier, warmer blankets and used them to wrap me up in a cocoon. I was sure that I looked stupid, but Caius wouldn't let me move as he continued to ensure that I was kept warm.

"Caius," I complain, not wanting to be wrapped inside of the blankets.

"No," he denies me, continuing to work me into a cocoon shape. I could hear Aro and Marcus chuckle from the other side of the room, staying away as our mate dutifully worked on me. "Humans need to be warm. It's getting cold and we don't have air conditioning."

"I can't move," I whined, trying to wiggle out of his grasp. "I want to move."

"You want to sleep," Caius said with confidence, kissing my head as he finished. I whined some more, still trying to wrangle myself out of the blankets, which in his defense had made me quite comfortable. "Please, cara, it is late and you need your rest."

"I don't want you to leave," my blonde mate kisses my head, taking my blanket wrapped self and holding me close to him.

"We can stay if you wish," I turn my head to see Marcus, who instantly kissed my cheek and found himself next to Caius in the bed, wrapping his arms around our mate. "Caius, move over so Aro can join us."

The taller man groaned but did as our mate asked, bringing me along with him in the process. Now in the middle of the bed, I feel Aro nuzzle himself into my side, wrapping his arms around the blankets. A low purr came from his chest, rumbling as he got himself comfortable.

With no more words, I allowed myself to be embraced by sleep.

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Light filled my eyes as I woke, originating from the windows that had likely just been opened. Still tired and grouchy, my body flipped over in an attempt to stay away from the blinding light that had been allowed in the room.

"Looks like our dear Astraea has woken up from her slumber," flipping my head to the right, I see Marcus smiling at me as I try to open my eyes up, only able to get halfway before wanting to close my eyelids once more. "We have much that we can do today, cara. Whatever you wish. Our schedules are cleared for the day."

"You didn't have to," I mutter, rubbing my eyes as I wrangle myself out of the cocoon that Caius had made me sleep in the night before. Letting out a groan, I open my eyes up for the first time, almost blinded by the Italian summer sun that had been allowed to harass my face. "Probably have other things to do. Kings and all."

"Nonsense," Aro mutters, making his way over to my side. "I would rather spend meaningful time with my mates than act as a king. Our duties can wait, being here for you is our top priority."

A light blush finds its way to my cheeks as Aro gives my head a loving kiss. My mate then turns to Marcus and gives him the same, causing the vampire to snuggle into the blankets and the bed. That's actually adorable. Who knew vampires could get all mushy.

Looking out to the window, I see Caius watching me as I swirl around in the bed, attentive in his stare. His pale skin now glittered in the sun, almost shining a light gold or silver as he sat at the window frame. His red eyes contrasted the aura of the room, almost outlandish when placed with the pale stone that lined the windows and the wall.

"Athenodora will be glad to hear you have finally allowed our mate into your life," I hear Aro snark at our shared mate, who just looks down and frowns. "What? She is your best friend. She will be happy for you, my love."

"Dora will be a pain in my ass for the rest of time," he says dramatically, rolling his eyes at the thought. I giggle, finally able to roll out of bed. Standing up, I looked to my three mates, who watched me carefully as I got up. "Please do not harm yourself. Be careful."

"I'm not made of glass," I insist, looking down at the old and likely dirtied clothes I had on from the night before. "I doubt you have any women's clothes in here right now. Who was the woman I was borrowing clothes from again? I ran out last night."

"My sister," my eyes turned to Aro, who had found himself beside me, "I think that Didyme will be happy to dress you for today. Don't be too surprised when she pesters you with needless questions about last night or tells you stories about every single embarrassing thing I have done in the last three millenia. Both exaggerated and slightly untrue, the tales she spins with that silver tongue of hers."

"Consider me warned," my mate smiles and pulls me into an embrace that I accepted, wrapping my arms around him. He purred, kissing my head, before he picked me up in his arms. Letting out a single cry of shock, he chuckles and opens the ancient doors to our room, allowing me to see the corridor outside.

"She should be in the towers."

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The Volturi Castle towers apparently were built after the Romanians attacked some of the coven members during one of the many wars between the two covens. One major person who almost didn't escape with her life was Didyme, my mate's little sister who he turned into an immortal only ten years after he became a vampire. A place of protection was rumored to be a holding cell for the three women inside, who really chose to be there, guarded and safe for the rest of eternity.

All of the history behind the place not only intrigued me, but also made me wonder why the rest of the vampire community thought of my mates as either scary or ruthless in their pursuits of law and order. Justice had to be served by someone, so perhaps whoever were the rulers would be blamed for the bloodshed that came with the job.

My mate had been the one to knock on the alder door, giving only three taps to the old wood. Within a few seconds, the door was opened, revealing a beautiful woman with snow white hair and red eyes. She did not resemble my mate in the slightest.

A wordless exchange occurred between the two, lasting but twenty seconds, before this woman called out, "Didyme! Your brother and his human mate are at the door!"

"Coming!" a higher pitched voice called back. A few moments later I could see a black haired woman at the door, looking a bit frazzled as she looked up at my mate. This woman was a spitting image of my mate, with the same soft and caring features and general ambiance. "I suspected that she would run out of clothes soon. Just leave her here and I'll get her ready."

"Keep her safe," was all Aro said before he kissed my cheek and left down the stairs at a lightning pace. Not knowing what else to do, I quietly found my way into the room. My mate's sister, Didyme, smiled at me and ran into another room, most likely to get some clothes out.

Coming back with quite a few blue and gold dresses, I hear her giggle under her breath. While blue had come to be a color that I loved, I never suspected that I would be dressed up head to toe in it. Mixing my colors was often what I was known for, so this was quite new to me. Nevertheless, I gave her a genuine smile before sitting down on a chair in the room.

"This should be easy since we're the same size," she says, putting down three dresses. "Hmm, this dark blue would be nice, but the collar may not look good with such big breasts. Ooh, the gold on this one matches perfectly with some other shoes that I have. You are going to look spectacular for whatever my brother and your other mates have planned for today."

The white haired woman chuckles. "Didyme, mia cara, don't scare your brother's mate away just yet."

"Baby I'm not scaring her," she insists. From the way that they spoke to each other, I could clearly piece together that they were mates. "Can you get the hairbrush and the mirror I hid from Caius?"

"Why did you have to hide a mirror from him?" The two of them laugh at my question, with the white haired woman running off to go find said mirror.

"He hates them so much that any one he sees he punches and ruins. He's never told us why, but we hide them all to make sure that he doesn't get upset. Aro enforces the rule and wont do anything about it. Something must have happened, but I just don't question it. Better to have a happy Caius than an upset Caius," Didyme explains as her mate comes back with the hairbrush and mirror. "Thanks, Dora."

"So you're Athenodora," I realize, "Caius' friend."

"His oldest friend," she adds, kissing her mate on the cheek before sitting down on one of the many cushioned chairs. "Sulpicia, Didyme, and I share a nest and chambers. How people don't figure us out is beyond me. Our species is not that much smarter than humanity as a whole. Yeah, we remember what we see, but do we put the pieces together? No."

"Figure you out?" I didn't quite understand what she meant by it.

"Well, humans don't like homosexual couples anymore. Stupid thinking considering that my beautiful mates are my soulmates, but we've had to hide our sexuality from the world for some time now. Things are getting better, so we may come out of hiding soon. My friend and his mates are also in hiding," I nod in understanding. Things were changing, but not fast enough.

"They're in love, what does it matter?" Didyme rolls her eyes before starting in on my hair.

That was the real question.

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ᴛʀᴀɴꜱʟᴀᴛɪᴏɴꜱ:

Cosa stai facendo tesoro? What are you doing, darling?

Potrebbe essere così per un po ', amore mio. He may be like this for awhile, my love.

Παρακαλώ μην... κλαις. P-please don't... cry

Μην κλαις την αγάπη μου. Do not cry my love.

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