Chapter VI - II: A Nobody in Volterra

Part II

The next day, Altheia awakens slowly. She begins to stir when morning light filters through the chiffon curtains and onto her face. She pushes herself upright and groans as strained neck muscles remind her of memories from the night before. Fangs. Blood eyes. Memories she would have rather forgotten.

I will remove your pretty little head myself.

Eyes widening, her hand shoots up to curve around her neck. Her heart begins to beat faster. With a painful swallow, she rises from the bed and heads to the mirror. Staring back at her was a woman she didn't recognize.

Altheia always knew she lived a privileged life. She was used to seeing herself happy. Content. Eager. Smiling. But the reflection staring back at her now – bloodshot eyes, cracked lips, sickly pale skin... the undeniable plum and violet striation marks on her neck...

Water starts to pool around her eyes.

She blinks away rapidly from her reflection, grabs a bath towel from the dresser, and hurries to bathe in emotional turmoil. The soap doesn't wash the feeling away. The bruising on her neck remains after. She rummages through her clothes in her undergarments and throws on a black turtleneck and jeans. She takes a leather jacket and wraps it snugly around herself for good measure. For warmth. Her hands are shaking when they find the map and even more as she leaves her room.

She almost runs to the library.

There's no time to waste.

Thirty days left.

Bella's first day is going fine, she thinks. She woke up early so had enough time for breakfast and a peaceful bath. Alice's preparedness came with an entire clothing collection waiting for her in her luggage. She arrives at Gianna's desk with minutes to spare.

It's going great so far.

"Buongiorno, Isabella. Spero che tu abbia preso l'italiano elementare a scuola," Gianna starts, handing her an Italian language book. Bella's face falls. "Dopo aver memorizzato i capitoli da uno a cinque, torna qui in modo che io possa insegnarti come programmare gli eventi nel calendario."

"She said, 'I hope you took elementary Italian in school,'" Edward's voice startles her as he appears on the couch behind her. "'After you memorize chapters one to five, come back here so I can teach you how to schedule events into the calendar.'" Edward flashes her an innocent smile.

"Qualsiasi domanda?" Gianna has a patronizing smile as she looks at Bella.

Bella grits her teeth together and turns to Edward again.

"'Any questions?" Edward translates dutifully, a slightly smug expression on his face.

"No questions, thank you." Bella manages to say through her teeth as she marches off to the library. Edward chuckles, following after her.

She gets to the library without Edwards help because I can read a map just fine, thanks. She takes a seat and notices that Altheia is already there, at the far end, immersed and preoccupied with library catalogues and inventory listings. Bella takes a moment to survey her surroundings.

The library is beautiful. Endless shelves stocked with hardbound books arranged exactly how she dreamt a vintage biblioteca would be like. Floors were polished rose and grey marble. There were staircases, antique bookstands, and journal racks arranged near the tall glass windows. The unfamiliarity of her surroundings finally dawns on her.

This isn't Phoenix, she thinks. I'm not in Forks.

Her mood begins to brighten considerably. She takes out Gianna's prescribed book, The Italian Language Series. It's thick, a complete edition, and makes her head want to explode after the first chapter. Still, she keeps on reading.

It's a fresh start.

»»—- ❈ —-««

A WEEK LATER. . .

"I would ask how you're holding up, but I'm thinking just as well as Bella," Edward greets casually as he slides into a seat beside the dining table.

"Her Italian is... acceptable for a beginner." Altheia pauses mid-sip from her morning coffee, bags under her eyes. Edward chuckles to himself. "Is she not sleeping too?"

"No... there are some nightmares still," Edward admits slowly, running a hand through his bronze hair. "I'm giving her the space she needs. Alice told me."

"I see..." The brunette took another tentative sip. "The coffee is good here."

Edward counted five seconds in his head before going, "So how's the search for the first vampire coming along?"

Altheia all but slams the coffee cup onto the table, eyes closed and cheeks puffing up in rage. "Why you gotta ruin my morning like this, Edward?" He shrugs. "I'm just trying to have a cup of coffee. I haven't slept well since I got here. What do you want?" She exhales then pinches the bridge of her nose. "And how did you even find out?"

"Just asking a question," Edward raised his hands in mock innocence. "Alice told me."

"What's Edward done now?" Bella enters the dining hall, hair still wet from her morning bath.

"I just asked a question," Edward muttered defensively. He seemed genuinely harmless.

"On?" Altheia sighed and kept silent as Bella fixed up some coffee and buttered bread. "Maybe we could help."

"I didn't tell you because I don't think you're allowed to... help...." Altheia crossed her arms on the table to rest her head on. "Caius has this sort of, initiation riddle thing that if I don't answer it correctly, hedecapitatesme."

Bella almost spits out her coffee. "What?"

"Mm-hmm," Altheia's shoulder shakes in self-pitying laughter. "'Who's the first vampire? How was he born?' I have a month, noooo, three weeks left... Yup. Good-bye."

Bella shakes her head in disbelief. Her gaze lands on Edward. "Do you know?"

Altheia perks up. Edward immediately shakes his head. "That's the thing. Aro, Caius, and Marcus. They're the eldest vampires, according to Carlisle's knowledge, you see. And unlike the, werewolves," Edward manages to mangle the word. "Vampires don't exactly have tribal legends."

"There are werewolves? What are they like?" Altheia's entire face brightens up in wonder for a second, but then her head lowers to the table again. "Doesn't matter. Dying in a couple weeks."

"Maybe it's in the library, you know? Since it's probably some unknown legend." Bella ponders, taking a sip of coffee. Edward nodded in agreement.

"That's what I'm trying to do, but it took me four days to even understand how the books are catalogued." Altheia's voice comes out in rapid mumbles. ''There are books on legends, but it's mostly on mythological heroes anyone would have learned in school. Perseus and the like. And I even tried the whole biblical story on Cain, on how vampirism was punishment from God for murdering Abel and lying about it, but like. It's the bible. Who even believes that anymore. It's not that simple, right? Surely it couldn't be."

"I'm sure the library is your best bet. I'll help you after my shifts end." Altheia was going to argue, but Bella shushed her. "It literally can't be anywhere else."

Twenty-three days left.

It was probably literally anywhere else.

"I told you," Altheia said morosely after their third day of renewed effort in scouring the shelves of the enormous library. Two of the study tables hosted stacks of leather-bound books on Greek heroes, biblical figures, Egyptian lore, Asian tales, and other unsuccessful leads.

"Yeah, maybe it's not in the books," Bella finally admits, collapsing into a padded chair next to Edward and Altheia, who had her head in her hands. She shrugs nonchalantly and suggests, "Maybe it's in the glyphs?"

Edward and Altheia looked back at her oddly. "Glyphs." Altheia repeated in a flat tone.

"As in... glyphs?" Edward echoed blankly.

"I think, yeah, that's what they're called, aren't they?" Bella points to the ornate wooden door of the library. The trio stand and head towards the double doors.

Sure enough, glyphs were etched – very, very minutely – on the thick, wooden doors of the library. At a passing glance, the glyphs were well hidden in the dark color of the wood, faded and undiscernible, but Edward could see them easily enough. He was already dutifully copying the carved characters onto the pages of Altheia's leather notebook, amazed himself.

"Oh mio dio, bella Bella! Sei un vero toccasana!" Altheia squealed in happiness, hugging Bella and jumping up and down. "How did you even know these are glyphs! Let alone find them!"

"Eheh, just noticed them last night..." she mumbled sheepishly. She wasn't going to tell them she tripped and fell face first onto the door on her way out yesterday. "Might be worth a try, right?"

"Let me just look for a reference book while Edward copies that. After this we'll call it a day," Altheia almost bounces back to the catalogue. "You just sit and rest, you beautiful girl. I'm cooking tonight!"

Edward laughs at that, and Bella's face heats up. "Right..."

Twenty days left.

Demetri visits the library every three days or so. He wasn't ordered to — he just liked to watch the human as she read through books at an inhuman speed. It's hilarious for him, and a little bit endearing. Jane thinks he's an idiot, but she doesn't see the human go through an entire shelf like a squirrel on crack as he does, for fun, regularly. . .

He is not surprised to find Altheia Beneventi hidden behind a cave of books in the corner of the room. She talks to herself as she scribbles on her journal. He is used to it by now.

He approaches with loud steps. "Ragazza. What has preoccupied you now?"

He is taken aback, however, when she slams the book closed, parchment held in her fist. "Demetri. Hello. Great timing. I really need your help."

A smile takes over his face. Finally.

"Si. One time only. If it's fun."

»»—- ❈ —-««

Altheia gathers Edward, Bella, and Demetri at the southern doors, the main entrance to the castle. Edward is calm enough around Demetri, and Bella is fondly reminded of Jake by his behavior, that they are able to patiently and peacefully wait for an explanation as the Italian woman paced all around the foyer.

"The glyphs are some hybrid cuneiform style inscriptions — not just alphabet-style letters and numbers, but characters too." Altheia tells Edward. "Took me a week, but basically it was the layout of the Volterra Castle."

"So a map."

"Not just a map," Altheia tutted. "A treasure map. It divides the castle into four: North, East, West, and South. But more than that, it gives a definite number on how many plaques there are per wing. Three in the north wing, eight in the east wing, ten in the west, and one in the south."

"Plaques." Demetri repeated.

"Yes."

"Like commemorative plaques?" Bella's head tilted. "Like the ones outside historical sites."

"Yes, yes. Demetri is helping me this once, today. So let's not waste any more time, yes?" Altheia squares her shoulders. "Today we search the west wing."

"But why gather us here?" Bella groaned. "Now we have to walk all the way back."

"Well first, I needed to prove that I was understanding the glyphs correctly." Altheia's eyes were tired, but bright with resolve. She pointed to the door frame of the southern wing entrance, almost eight meters above them. Their gazes follow. "Behold: the only plaque in the south wing."

And there it was, again, a hidden inscription. This time, words were no longer cuneiform on wood, but in ancient Latin on an aged copper plaque, embossed in faded gold paint. Bella has to stand on her toes and squint her eyes to read it. Edward shakes his head in disbelief.

Demetri's smile widens.

primum illic sanguisuga

"Primum illic sanguisuga," Altheia sings happily as she marches off to the west wing. "Primum illic sanguisugaaaa~"

Bella was both amazed and slightly confused as they trailed after the singing Italian. "But what does it mean?" she whispered to Edward.

"Well—"

The scholar heard her just fine. Altheia stopped in her tracks and gave them an excited smile as she turned back to them.

"It literally means: the first bloodsucker lives here!"

Twelve days left.

THREE DAYS LATER. . .

"What in the hell...?" Alec asks incredulously as he watches the human woman tail after Jane in the lobby. He takes a seat beside Heidi on one of the black lobby couches. "Is that...?"

"Yup, she's been bothering Jane since last night. Poor Jane can't do her rounds in peace," Heidi murmurs as she flipped through National Geographic. "Apparently, the humans can't enter the east wing without invitation from a guard."

Alec shuddered. "And she's decided on Jane, of all guards?"

Heidi giggled. "Tell me about it."

They jump when Aro's voice speaks from behind them.

"Any idea why, children?"

"No, master," They immediately stand to bow, a fist on their chest.

"I see. How curious," Aro shrugs and begins to walk away, returning to the direction of the throne room. "It would be such a shame if Jane were to overhear that offering assistance on whatever the case may be would be rewarded with her very own cellular phone..." Aro clucked his tongue as he left the lobby. "Such a shame indeed..."

Even though Jane was almost ten yards away, she heard Aro's words clear as day.

Jane abruptly stopped in her tracks, making the scholar bump into her. As Jane turned to face Altheia, there was an eye-blindingly accommodating smile on the usually stoic guard's face. Alec almost choked.

"Plaques in the east wing, you say?"

Nine days left.

On the morning of the twenty-second day, Altheia chose to wander the castle grounds instead of going to the library. She needed some air and had a problem to ponder on: she couldn't get into the north wing.

Not without bumping into Caius. Not without approaching Aro or Marcus. And asking for their assistance would have defeated the purpose of Caius' test, right?

So she had a problem to think about.

Strolling mindlessly, she ended up in the gardens. She spent time just lying down on the manicured grass. Closed eyes. Thinking. But then an unsettling feeling would overtake her, and she'd be pacing around the gardens again.

That was how she found the graveyard.

It was unkempt and unvisited. Which was no surprise to her, as the grave was situated very far from castle grounds, long past the garden maze, the shallow well, and rows of acacia border trees. It hadn't even been on Gianna's map. Layers of dust and dirt covered the gravestone and the statue of the weeping angel above it. Overgrown shrubs of pink azalea and yellow forsythia framed the dreary landscape. The Italian stepped closer to the single gravestone in the area, knelt before it, and cleared it from fallen leaves with an arching brush of her hand.

"Didyme Volturi." she reads on it curiously. The name seems familiar to her. "Who are you?"

The silence answers her.

»»—- ❈ —-««

Didyme Volturi

Beloved Queen, wife, and sister

alis volat propriis

»»—- ❈ —-««

The answer takes Altheia back to the library. The name is familiar because it is the name on one of the private studies in the biblioteca. On a label, DIDYME VOLTURI says on gold letterings. She steps into the study and finds countless personal journals, diaries, and essays written through years spanning centuries on centuries. Autobiographical accounts on the Volturi hierarchy conveyed that not only was Didyme a former queen, but she was Marcus' wife and Aro's sister as well. She had penned essays on the woes of immortality, power, love, freedom, and happiness — all with the casual eloquence of a wordsmith. Her words written from centuries ago moved the scholar.

Nearing afternoon, the scholar found herself marching back to the graveyard with buckets of soapy water, a handheld broom, garden scissors, brushes, and rakes.

"Hello, Didyme!" The human greeted happily as she started sweeping fallen leaves and twigs away from the grave. Later, she would trim the shrubs and wild grass with her scissors. "Name's Altheia. Big fan. Let me clean you up a bit."

»»—- ❈ —-««

Late in the evening, Marcus stood in the middle of the graveyard, speechless, as the moonlight illuminated Didyme's resting place in the ground. The flower shrubs curved around the chalk white angel, which now looked as if it was praying instead of weeping. Dead leaves and twigs nowhere in sight.

A somber smile graced the king's face as he knelt before his former wife's grave. A single human scent wafted the area.

"She found you, did she?" Marcus murmured softly with a chuckle. "What did you think of her?"

Eight days left.

The morning of the twenty-third day was a dark, rainy Sunday. Altheia woke at seven and rose from bed when a letter slid under her door.

The throne room will be occupied today at noon

By bloodthirsty vampires such as myself.

This is in exchange of the kindness you showed my wife.

Marcus

Altheia felt warm from the message of thanks. However, it took her three hours later, from the moment of its receipt, to realize what the letter from Marcus had truly meant.

"Porca vacca," she would swear and bolt right out of the library, her leather journal and pen clutched against her chest. Her heart thundered in her chest as her legs led her towards the northern quarters.

On Sunday noon, every vampire in the castle, including the kings, would be in the throne room.

And the north wing would be completely empty.

»»—- ❈ —-««

"Demetri. Great timing as usual. Do you know Latin?"

A playful smile. "Sic. Et Latin loquimur."

"Then I have some questions."

Seven days left.

"I am told that your scholar has been caged in the library since her arrival," Caius sneered at his brothers as he entered the chambers. "Perhaps your hopes are wasted on her."

Aro lowers the artifact he had been inspecting to glance at Caius. "Nervous?" he teased.

Caius bristled. "I am not!"

"I wonder what you would do, brother Caius," Marcus drawled from his resting position on the couch. "If the truth becomes her answer."

"Impossible," Caius says confidently. "She is no Latinist."

Marcus keeps quiet, a ghost of a smile on his face.

"She is no Latinist." Caius repeated after a minute, slightly skeptical this time.

"Yes, Caius, we heard you the first time." Aro chuckled.

Caius scowled.

Two days left.

Knock, knock.

"Altheia?"

Silence.

"Altheia, you're scaring me, you know?" Bella leaned her forehead against the door. "You haven't been out for a couple of days. Demetri says you haven't been back to the library since."

There is still no response. Edward assured her that Altheia was safely inside — given his sensitive hearing — but the trays of untouched food outside her door told Bella otherwise.