Author's Note

I just got "Midnight Sun" from the bookstore a couple days ago and am halfway finished with it!  Getting back into the Twilight world again motivated me to finally get going on this story again so hopefully you enjoy the new chapter!  Let me know if you've read "Midnight Sun" in the comments, and what you think of it!

Chapter 18 - The Seven Deadly Sins

As Raphael, Emily and I start getting closer to the cathedral, Emily grabs my hand suddenly. I look down to see she's looking up at the building with her mouth wide open. It's a kind of view she had never seen before, nor one that I've seen before either. There's what seems to be a set of guards waiting in front of the doors. They exchange a small bow with Raphael before opening the doors for us.

"So everyone is just okay with letting a vampire and a human in here?" I ask. Raphael laughs.

"Of course! Emily is not the first vampire to walk these halls. Back in the day, different supernatural beings would walk these halls alongside us 24/7. I must admit though, that you, Anna, are the first human who has visited us for centuries."

"Oh? Why is that?"

"It was agreed upon a long time ago that humans need to be kept in the dark about the existence of other beings. Humans have a bit of a superiority complex, and back in those days, refused to take any advice from us non-humans." Raphael explained, "Even the members of the human population who believed in Heaven, and our angelic heritage, began turning against us when we questioned their violence against other species. They thought the Nephilim were supposed to prioritize humans, not the "lesser beings". When we told them they were wrong, they began to spread lies about us being nothing more than the product of sinful human/angel relations," Raphael explained.

"I can see the whole superiority complex thing," I admit. It's hard to imagine a world where humans are well aware of other beings, and forced to live alongside them. Even I admit it probably wouldn't be a good idea. "But, in an effort to create a world of ignorant humans, you had to hide your true selves. Doesn't that get exhausting?"

"Not really, actually. Yes, humans outnumber us, but there's a lot more of us out there than you'd expect. The average human unknowingly sees more than a few dozen Nephilim every day, and you can add about 5 or so other beings to the mix."

"Dang. That's super difficult to believe," I admit.

"That's because you're a self-centered human who believes the world revolves around her and her people," Raphael winks.

"Hey now," I laugh.

"It's actually good that you have that perception of the world, because that means we're doing our job to keep people unknowing."

"So if I become a vampire, will I be able to sense all the different people around me? Like, will I be able to see a Nephilim and know what they are?"

"Of course. Every supernatural being has that sense. Humans did too until the Reformation. When humans no longer knew of our existence, they still sensed something off about us, but had no past experience to place what that was. Because of that, the sense became useless for humans. They stopped using it, and eventually lost it."

"What's the Reformation?" I ask him, "Like, what exactly did you guys do to get humans to forget about everything?"

"That's a subject for another day," he laughs.

"Wait! If you made humans forget about the existence of other beings, why do we still know about vampires, werewolves, etc. in an unreal sense? Like, everyone knows about vampires, even if they think they don't really exist."

"That too, is a subject for another day," says Raphael.

"No... but it all sounds so interesting!" I beg. Raphael just shakes his head.

"Your boyfriend has been around much longer than I have; he would know more and he could maybe give you some first-hand accounts from that time."

I narrow my eyes, knowing he's talking about Caius. "Here's a topic for today then. What do you know about the Volturi wives? I think it's relevant considering I will likely have to be in contact with them tonight. I must be prepared."

"Fair enough," he says as we enter a large room with super comfy looking couches and a huge flat screen TV. Not the type of room I would expect in a cathedral. Right as we enter, a group of kids who look to be around Emily's age run in and approach my sister immediately. They look at her with curious eyes, speaking fluent Italian with each other, before effortlessly addressing her in perfect English.

"Emily! Our teacher told us you would join us tonight. Do you want to play in the music room with us?" one of the girls around Emily's height asks.

Emily looks up to me, making sure it's okay. "Go have fun sis."

"Okay! Have a nice time tonight!" she says, hugging me, "You had better dance with Caius at least once." Her voice is completely serious, which makes me let out a laugh.

"We'll see," I tell her. She doesn't look completely satisfied with that answer, but her new friends are already pulling her along with them. I turn back to Raphael, who's already seated on the couch watching the news. Very human-esque. I sit beside him letting my brain soak in the stream of unfamiliar words coming from the TV. "What do you usually do for fun around here?" I ask, "I can't imagine that you guys just watch TV all day like a human," I smirk.

Raphael just rubs his face in his hands. "Of course not. Having that kind of habit is laziness, which is another one of the seven deadly sins."

"You've mentioned that before. Do you guys really make an effort to avoid the seven deadly sins like that?" I ask.

"We don't need to make an effort, because it's unnatural for us to have those temptations in the first place."

"Even if it's unnatural, is it still possible?" I ask.

"I can't imagine it would be," he replies.

"Hmm," I acknowledge thoughtfully. We sit in silence for a few minutes, letting the news anchors be our background noise. There are so many more questions floating around my head, but I have no idea where to start.

"You wanted to know about Sulpicia and Athenodora?" Raphael asks. I almost forgot! Seeing the wonder of this place completely side-tracked my train of thought. I look to him expectantly.

"I already heard that they're pretty much just trophy wives. I understand, but it's kind of sad. I can't imagine," I trail off.

"It's unfortunate," Raphael starts, "It was important that the Volturi became leaders without resistance, and the three wives were a big part in that. I would be careful tonight if I were you. Athenodora may be under Corin's power, but she's extremely sharp-minded. Don't even look at Caius tonight if you can help it."

My face starts to heat up, "Why would that matter?"

"Caius changed since you got here. You don't notice because you weren't around to see him before he met you, but everyone else knows you two have developed some sort of a connection. Not everyone knows exactly what that connection is, but it's essential that Athenodora doesn't pick up on it. Don't be surprised if Caius acts cold toward you tonight, but you shouldn't be getting close enough to notice. If she picks up on your physical response toward him, she won't be happy.

"Physical responses?" I ask, shocked.

"Oh you know, a quick heart, dilated pupils, and rose-colored cheeks," he winks. Embarrassment instantly washes over me knowing that of course vampires would pick up on that stuff much easier than a human, and that they already have. Good Lord I could crawl into a ball and wither away right here at the thought of everything Jane, Aro, Marcus, Demetri and Caius himself had picked up on.

"I understand."

-----

It's 7:00 before I knew it and the ringing of the grandfather clock startles me from the short nap I was taking. "Raphael?" I call, looking around me for the guy in such bright white clothes that he'd be impossible to overlook. I can't see him anywhere though, so I frantically get up and try looking for where he could be. Doesn't he realize the celebration is starting now?! Just imagine me missing that big party that I did so much work for. I was honestly kind of proud of myself, but also terrified at what the guests, and especially Aro, would think of my changes. Maybe arriving late isn't so bad afterall... once the party's started Aro will likely be too busy to give me his opinions right away. My thoughts are interrupted by a white shadow at the edge of my vision. I look over to see Raphael dressed in a sleek white (of course) suit and bow tie. "Are Nephilim allowed to wear colors other than white?" I joke. He cracks a smile.

"Of course," he exclaims, "It's just our signature color," I roll my eyes pick up the suitcase Jane gave me at the castle. "There's a guestroom up the stairs and to the left," Raphael says, predicting my thoughts. I'm kind of worried, yet excited to see what Jane picked out for me. I've never been the type to "stand out," as Raphael put it. In fact, I'd been wanting to stay invisible for practically my whole life. I take a breath, and open the suitcase to see a dress that makes for a perfect companion to Raphael's look. My eyes widen. I guarantee the entirety of the Volturi will be dressed in black and I'm... we're going to stick out like sore thumbs. I pull the whole thing out and am shocked to see lace and all the tulle.

"What the hell is this a wedding dress?!" I ask myself in a hushed whisper. I shake my head as I try to maneuver my way into all the material. There's a full-length mirror next to the window and I'm scared to even look... I slowly creep toward it and gasp when I see my reflection. "This is allllllll wrong," I tell myself. My pale skin feels even duller behind the glow of this dress, and don't even get me started on the neckline. Why the hell would Jane give me a neckline like this when she knows a bunch of vampire strangers will be there? I've never really felt insecure about myself before, but it's just now starting to dawn on me how extremely lavish this whole event will be compared to any moment of my life before this. Will I really fit in?

My thoughts are interrupted by a knock on the door. "Are you ready to go?" Raphael calls. I shake my head, but gather my things. It's not like I have another choice, I keep repeating to myself... unless I want to walk in with my jeans and sweater. Although I feel like that would get me just as many stares for being inappropriately underdressed. I see some heels Jane packed for me too, but I'm not about to go kill my feet for shoes no one will see under this poof of a dress anyway, so I quickly slip on my Keds and open the door hesitantly. Raphael steps back when he sees me and a massive grin appears on his face. "Wow," he says, shaking his head. My face heats up from the embarrassment.

"Let's go, we're already late," I try to say as chill as I can muster. Without another word, Raphael leads me downstairs again.

"Anna!" a small voice exclaims, "You look like a princess!" I look up to see my Emily and her new friends watching in awe as the two of us make our descent.

"She does, doesn't she?" Raphael agrees. I just smile, while at the same time cursing Jane in my head for making me wear this.

"I think Caius will really like it!" Emily says, giggling knowingly. The thought of him seeing me in this dress... just no. I take a deep breath, and try to calm myself down.

"Well, we'd better go. You ladies have fun," Raphael waves. My throat is so closed up that a wave is all I can give the girls too. They immediately begin whispering with each other after we walk past them to the car again. Once we're out of the house I let out a loud grown. "What's wrong?" Raphael asks, traces of amusement in his features.

"I hate attention," I say begrudgingly.

"You'll have to get used to that when you're a human wrapped up in the supernatural," he winks. I tilt my head.

"Are you the one who chose this dress?" I ask suspiciously. He only chuckles. It's too dark outside to see but I know he has one of his annoyingly flawless grins plastered on his face to match. I groan again. Of course, even Jane wouldn't pick out this dress for me. I can't believe I thought it was her idea. I apologized to her mentally for the strong words I was thinking alongside her name back inside.

We get in the car and Raphael wastes no time turning on the radio to some classical. After a few notes, I feel my muscles relax and all the worries seem to be dripping off my body like melting snow. Raphael definitely used his magic on me again, and I'm thankful. The feeling of safety and comfort is so strong that I let myself drift off into sleep.

---

It feel like only a moment has passed by the time I feel strong arms gently shaking my shoulder. I open my eyes and look up dazed to see Raphael. The car is parked and I see we're at the Volturi castle. He smiles sympathetically. "If my aura had to go deep enough that it made you fall sleep, it means you're more anxious than I thought." I'm still a bit too dazed to comprehend how we got here so quick. "I picked up another dress for you on the way. If it's more comfortable for you, feel free to hop into the backseat and change before we go inside," he smiles, handing me a box that's packaged in a very expensive looking way. I open it to see a more modest, more simple, but equally beautiful silk dress.

"You went to a dress shop while I was sleeping?" I ask, shocked that time felt so nonexistent on the way here. I feel a bit guilty for putting him through the trouble.

"Don't worry about it," he smiled, "I'm sure this one will suit Caius's taste much better too". He chuckled and I felt my face heat up again.

"Isn't attracting Caius's attention something I'm supposed to avoid today?" I ask, not that he would even even dare looking at anyone but his wife today.

"Let's be honest, you're going to attract his attention in both dresses," he laughs, "Which one would you rather be wearing when he inevitably sneaks a peek?" I feel my anxiety coming back, but I grab the new dress and jump in the back seat.

"Don't look," I tell Raphael.

"Of course not," he chuckles, "Lust is one of the seven deadly sins."