Unfading Joy and Sorrow Pt 1 (Volturi Kings)

Hell and You

Blood, its coppery scent filled the air around them, growing stronger in the direction of the back part of the trailer. Each man's head snapped to the direction of where their mate had gone to knowing deep down something wasn't right. "Amarantha,"Marcus rushed to the room with Aro right behind him.

The door slammed open and off its hinges by the force. There on her knees Amara sat with her upper thighs exposed from her leggings and seeping blood from a few long lines carved on her tattooed skin. Her breaths were short and fast. Her pupils slightly dilated as well. In her grasp was a blade of small proportions, but a blade nonetheless. Her right hand, slightly red, shook as she held onto the sharp object.

"Amarantha, cara mia, why don't we set the.. knife down," Aro said as they approached slowly.

When she didn't make a move Marcus got down on his knees in front of her. His hands immediately going to her nondescript face, his own looking pained. Voice desperate, he pleaded, "Amarantha, look at me."

Her hazy gaze met his own blown out pupils only for tears to begin to slide down her cheeks and onto his finger tips. She sucked in a shaky breath before closing her eyes, letting out an ungodly wail as she cried harder. Her world had crumbled before her and she was left with only the broken pieces.

Aro knelt down and grabbed the offending object out of her hand and tossed it into a waste bin across the room. He grabbed the red silk handkerchief from his suit pocket and applied pressure to her wounds with it. He 'tsked' at her while he shook his head at her after reading her thoughts, "Cara mia, it didn't have to come to this. You still have plenty of control."

She didn't want to hear that right now. What kept looping through her mind was the exact opposite. She was trapped within herself. If only the pain she caused herself helped her feel better. In all honesty it just made her feel worse. She felt weak for caving into an old habit as soon as things turned for the worse. She hadn't done anything like this to her body in years.

"Take a deep breath for me, cuore mia, please," Marcus' softened voice caused Amara to hiccup some air into her lungs. "You can do it, follow me."

He over exaggerated his breathing to help while wiping away her tears with his thumbs. Aro did an odd thing that seemed to help. He began to purr softly at her side. Its sound and the direction from Marcus caused her to begin to slowly breathe in a more normal pattern. She felt her tense muscles release. Shoulders sagging, she sat defeated. Luke, her job, her freedom were all gone all in a blink of an eye. How else was she supposed to react?

Her wet eyes fluttered open to a scene of discomposure between the vampires. Their features were rigid, especially Marcus now with completely black iris'. He had stopped breathing all together once hers returned to normal, she'd noticed. Yet his hands remained on her face, softly caressing her. Even at a low point in her life, all she wanted to do was lean into his touch.

"Why," the question strangled out of Marcus' throat, "Why did you feel the need to do this, Amarantha?"

"I-I don't know," she lied to them, but mainly herself. What was she to say? 'Oh hey, I felt out of control because of everything and the only thing that would bring me back was to hurt myself?' Amara thought that might not be the best thing to say.

"Yes you do," Aro growled out. He was going to force her to say it out loud. She needed to know how ridiculous her illness was making her think. "You know exactly why you just won't admit it. It's okay to break down. You've been through a lot in such a short amount of time. What is not okay is you cutting yourself. You know there are other ways to process your emotions and this was the worst way. What if Marcus and I couldn't control our blood lust? You'd be dead by our hands. Did you think about that when you did this?"

Aro eyed her with his black hues causing her to shiver. She didn't say anything, but she did shake her head no. She knew she was in the wrong here. She was better than this. Amara dropped her gaze from Aro to her lap where his hands still laid. The crimson cloth was darker now with her blood and so were his hands. She really did a number on herself if she was bleeding that much.

"With everything that has happened I lost myself. I can't control my love life, my friendships, where I live, or my job. Everything's changing, but I just want it to be the same. I'm weak," her voice was as small as she was feeling.

"Amarantha," Marcus whispered her name to draw her attention up to him. His eyes glistened with unshed tears, "I haven't known of you, but a short amount of time, already you have my heart. It destroys me knowing we are a part of the reason why you did this. You can't control everything, cuore mia. It will drive you insane trying to.

"Change shouldn't be a deterrent from living your life. It can be a good thing. You changed everything for us the moment we knew you existed. We've lived thousands of years missing a piece of ourselves. For me it was agony not having you in my life especially after my wife passed. Never would we imagine you'd present yourself the way you did. Never had we acted so quickly to find someone. You need to realize how much control you really have over the situation. There is nothing we wouldn't do for you."

Amara's brows furrowed and heart skipped a few beats, unconsciously. She absorbed what was just said to her as a dry sponge would. She stored away the questions about his wife she had and focused on the situation at hand. He openly admitted she had his heart, but did she want it? Her head wanted to say no; somewhere in her heart pained her to think like that. That realization startled her. Did they already have some place within her heart? Not possible, it was too fast. It just couldn't happen for her like that. Feelings took time to develop even if she felt a pull toward them all.

Did she really still have control in this or was he just saying that. She had an inkling that if she tried to stay they wouldn't allow it, so would it really be her choice to leave? If she left, did she have to go with them? She had her life here or at least she thought she did. Now it seemed like she was being kicked out of town by the people important to her.

Would it kill her to give them a chance? Or would it kill her not to? She could not help the bombardment of questions from forming in her mind. She glanced over to Aro who had been listening in to her considering his hand was still touched her thigh. Amara felt the heat of his stare upon her flesh. It was piercing deep through the protective layers.

"How much control do I really have," she asked them.

"There are certain things that cannot be changed now, but you're still in control. You know the existence of vampires now and it's within our law to change you or kill you for no human can remain alive with the knowledge, at least not long. We want you to be with us forever, but understand if you would rather not stay with us once you're changed. It's just.. with you not in this world it would kill us," Aro removed the piece of cloth from her thigh to see if the lines were still bleeding. Seeing that they clotted he took the dirty cloth and left it on the ground to be destroyed later. His eyes met her hazel ones again almost pleading with her to just accept them in her life.

Her mind still hadn't grasped the concept of vampirism. She never imagined she'd be presented with the opportunity of living forever. There had always been fantasies about vampires, hell she owned the Anne Rice collection for a reason. She just didn't expect to be mated to them. "If I accept becoming a vampire then what? What's expected of me?"

Marcus and Aro stood up and straightened to their full height, both offering a hand for her to use. She took them, Marcus being gentle with her injured one, held her arm, as they helped pull her onto her wobbly legs. She stood there with her leggings half down with dried streaks of blood on her leg.

"Let us clean you up before answering, cara mia. How does that sound," Aro asked, giving her hand a light squeeze.

She nodded her head, mumbling that it sounded nice. Marcus picked her up which caused her to let go of Aro and wrap her arms around his neck for fear of falling. She wanted to say she could walk just fine, but the look on his face stopped her. His eyes spoke volumes for how he felt. She decided he needed this more than she did. He moved fast through her house, setting her down gently on the couch. He knelt down in front of her and removed her shoes for her while Aro disappeared into her bathroom. Once her shoes were off he asked silently with his eyes about her leggings to which she nodded. Swiftly those were off as well, leaving Amara in her undergarments and dress.

It was then Aro returned with a wet washcloth and some antibacterial ointment. He handed the cloth to Marcus, who delicately went about wiping the drying blood off her pale skin. "Please don't do this again," he muttered as he cleaned her.

She blinked once, than twice before saying, "I-I don't know if I can promise I won't do it."

"At least promise if you feel like doing it you'll come to one of us," he sounded desperate in his demand.

She bit on her lip thinking about it first. She couldn't promise not to do it, but he had a point. She could at least reach out for help. 'Man did it feel nice to be worried about,' she thought. She released her lip, nodding once more, "Okay, I'll try to."

"You must. You will be traveling and living with vampires that thirst for the very thing inside your veins," Aro stated.

"Living, hmph," she sat there looking up at the man, "and where exactly do y'all live?"

"Volterra, Italy. It's a beautiful place I assure you'd love it," Aro said with conviction. He leaned down to soothingly put some of the cream on her wounds after Marcus was finished cleaning her. His icy touch on her thigh sent an electrical shock straight to her core. If he sensed it he didn't let on. He just continued to apply the medicine to her cuts. Her mind was too focused on his touch to notice Marcus disappeared with the soiled rag.

"Italy.. Wow.. That explains the Italian," she felt nervous all of a sudden, "It's also kinda far."

"It's about one day of traveling," his hands paused their movement and just rested upon her leg below the damage. He looked at the images currently ruined by the cuts. One was of a water lily flowing like water color up her thigh with black into red to orange. The other was of a black lined daisy with the word wallflower underneath. She had a thing for plants because on the other thigh was a tree growing up her leg, its trunk a peace sign with roots rolling down her upper leg. Aro decided one day he would ask about all of her tattoos even though he knew her thoughts already. He'd rather hear it from the source.

Amara felt a blush creep up her cheeks at the vampires studying her legs. It was a very intimate action to be looked at in such a way by him. The rhythm of her heart sped up as his eyes slowly made their way up her body.

He scanned her, looking at all the scars that littered her body. The signs of her survival through the tough parts of her life. He was tempted to kiss every single one of them and he will just not now. Right now he listened to her wonder what he was looking for. When his eyes reached her lips the thought of placing his on hers crossed both of their minds. Finally reaching her eyes he was left stunned by her beauty even with the tear stains on her cheeks.

'Kiss me, if this works then kiss me,' she tested. She didn't know why she dared him to, but her emotions were still haywire at the moment with how quickly they were changing. Maybe it was because she wanted to test out a theory or two. All she knew for certain was it felt right to ask that of him.

Aro sat for a few milliseconds on the thought of doing it on her cheek. Only a few were spent on if he should kiss her chastely. Just one on not doing it. His mouth clashed against hers, their lips moving in sync. She moaned from the contact and instantly went to grab ahold of him to bring him closer to her. His hands went to her wide hips and brought her closer to the edge of the couch. His tongue slithered across her low lips asking for entrance. She whimpered slightly from feeling his hard body against hers before relenting and allowing him in. He tasted of mint and something else she couldn't place her finger on. Their tongues fought against each other til Amara submitted to his demanding one.

It was only when they heard a throat clear did they pull apart slowly. Amara felt high as she took in deep gasps of air from the onslaught. She didn't know what she expected to happen when she asked for a kiss but it wasn't that. Her mind no longer felt the earlier crippling depression, but something else. Was it hope? Happiness? Her earlier theories were answered. One: she was extremely attracted to them. Two: she was screwed. Amara stared at Aro who smiled at her looking unaffected except for his eyes looking hungry.

He leaned into place another kiss on her cheek before whispering, "It works."

Their bodies were still melded together when Marcus spoke up, "I leave for a second and you're already violating each other."

If Amara could turn any redder she did just then. She pushed herself off of Aro releasing him in the process, backed further on the couch and brushed a nonexistent stray hair away. Her lower lip now between her teeth as she pushed her dress down her legs. Aro just felt pride at making her feel something besides dread or even regret. He stood from his position with ease and straightened up his suit jacket.

"Don't be jealous, dear Marcus, I was just fulfilling a simple request I couldn't pass up," he almost sounded smug.

Marcus looked to the ravished Amara and nearly groaned. He will have his chance to taste her, all of her, eventually. He moved to sit beside her which she shifted over to allow him to do so. "I'm not jealous, brother," Marcus pointed out, "Just think it might be moving to fast for our mate."

Aro didn't think of that before kissing her. He had to admit he was being selfish when he did. He wanted her to feel the pleasure she could receive from them and he felt like he accomplished that judging by her thoughts. He crossed his legs and placed his hands on his knees. Changing the subject back to before, "Amarantha, when you're turned you have a position within our coven if you choose to stay. However, you will be required to live by our laws no matter where you go. Nothing is expected from you except that."

"We do have requests that we hope you follow, but we will not demand anything from you," Marcus added.

She fiddled with the hem of her dress not knowing what to say. She needed to think about it more. Her eyes went from Marcus to Aro, then back to Marcus. Letting go of her lip she sighed, "Its already decided then. That I will be a vampire and leave with you. How long will I have to say goodbye to my life?"

The two men looked between each other as if having a silent conversation before Aro answered, "We'll give you a few months before turning you."

"When do we leave?"

"As soon as possible would be preferable. We still have a society that needs to be ruled and we can't be gone for long," Aro responded.

"What am I to do with all of my stuff," she looked around her home sad. She loved her environment she built.

"We'll have a company pack everything and have it sent to Italy so you have it. You won't be without your belongings, cuore mia," Marcus grabbed her hand to keep her from messing with her dress. It was distracting him from thinking of anything, but the creamy legs beneath.

"You said if I stay, I'll have a position in your coven. What position is that exactly," she questioned, hoping it didn't mean what she thought.

"You'll be ou-," Marcus began but was cut off.

"You'd just be a part of our coven," Aro's chest puffed out slightly. Envisioning her by their side as they ruled over the vampires in the world caused him much beatitude. But figured now was not the time to tell her. She was already overwhelmed as is. He sent Marcus that message via eye contact alone.

Amara sucked in a breath. Who would want her to be a part of anything? She was normally outgoing, but right now all she felt was the opposite. Looking unsure of herself, which was obvious to both men, she stared at her feet.

"You don't see what we see, my sweet Amarantha. You're what we've been missing all these years. I know you would do well with us," Aro spoke.

Marcus reassured her with a squeeze to her right hand and added, "I agree with Aro. You would be a breath of fresh air that we've needed."

She didn't believe them, not yet anyways. How could they decided that so easily with only knowing her a few days. She could barely resign to the fact that they were "mates." She was just now accepting the fact that she felt the pull. She guessed she would need the time to adjust and hopefully within the allotted time they were giving her.

Her adrenaline that had been keeping her going ran dry causing her to feel emotionally drained. She sagged into her couch and drew her knees closer to her, pulling her dress down as she did so. She might have just been kissed by the man sitting across from her, but she didn't want to give him an eye full of her underwear. She wanted to lean her head on Marcus and take a nap.

"I guess I should start packing soon," she said through an unlady like yawn.

"It can wait, cara mia, you should sleep now," Aro said tilting forward in his seat. He had analyzed her previous events like this and knew she always was zapped after the big swing in her emotions. He had spent most of his free time trying to comprehend most of her thoughts and found how uniquely her mind worked.

"I don't want to sleep," she said already halfway there. Amara was stubborn, that was for sure. She fought against the urge to close her eyes.

Marcus pulled her over to lean on him. Her head, beyond her control, rested on him. She released a sigh from the comfort that washed over her being pressed against his side. It was enhanced when she began to hear a rumbling deep within his chest, soothing her further. Her eyes slowly closed.

"Your body says otherwise," Marcus purred, "Sleep, Amarantha, you'll feel better when you awake."

"Hmm," was her only reply. She felt the exhaustion wash over her as she laid against him. It was within minutes she was fully lulled to sleep by his soft purr and chilled exterior.

Marcus stared at her with a concerned expression. Speaking out loud his thoughts, but below the human range of hearing, "How many times has she done this?"

"Did you not see the scars," Aro responded with his own question.

"I did," Marcus breathed. If he had a heart it would have clenched in his chest. The thought of his mate going through such turmoil to resort to that sent a surge of melancholy to spread over him. He looked down to the woman who now moved her head to his lap and had stretched her legs out on the rest of the couch. "Your thoughts?"

Aro glanced at her then to Marcus, "I obviously have many and without reading you I know we share many of the same."

"Should we have a doctor look over her?" Marcus thought maybe they should have one ready for them in Volterra waiting for them.

"Yes I think we should. She has them here, and is quite fond of them. I hope we can find someone else she will like," Aro admitted. He didn't want his mate to suffer anymore. They would provide her with everything she needed, even if it was mental health care.

"Then let us get someone on it right away."

Aro nodded and stood from his seat, "I'll have it taken care of. Watch over our mate, brother, I have business to attend to."

"I will."

With that Aro left into the back to grab the discarded handkerchief and sped out the back paat Marcus again silently. He was out the back door easily and in the woods in moments. Luckily the rain had stopped, but the clouds remained. He found who he was looking for within seconds and stopped where they were. "Jane, dear, I need you to come along with me," Aro turned to her brother, handing him the blood soaked cloth, "Alec, I need you to destroy this for me and then move toward the.. house."

Alec and Jane could smell the sweet blood on the cloth causing them to stop breathing all together. No good would come out of them questioning where it came from, so Alec took the cloth and bowed his head to Aro. The male was off leaving Aro and Jane to head off in the opposite direction. Aro needed to speak to the man that helped their beloved in the past, but also just hurt her.

Speeding off in the direction he needed he stopped just short of what was known as the treaty line. Standing there he called out, "I am here to speak to one of your kind."

He waited merely a few moments till a couple of growls could be heard approaching. The crunching of the forest brush was getting louder as two big wolf like beasts appeared. They didn't look friendly compared to Aro's smiling features. The one with gray fur growled as if to ask what he wanted while the brown one stood silent.

"I need to speak to a Luke Uley, his actions caused harm to my mate," Aro stated openly.

They both snarled at him obviously neither liking the sound of his accusation against one of their own. It took twenty minutes of the wolves staring the vampires down till another wolf appeared with salt and pepper fur.

"Are you Luke," Aro asked the wolf to which the wolf growled and bowed his head to say yes.

"Then you know Amarantha well," another growl was heard upon mentioning her name, "You also must know how unstable she is now from losing you as a.. friend."

The wolf named Luke took a step forward and snarled at Aro. He didn't want to hear anything about his Ami from that leeches mouth. He had been worried how she would take him cutting her off like he did. He knew how she felt and vice versa. It's not like he could fight an alpha command.

Yet Aro continued, "She had a relapse earlier into an old habit of hers. The manner in which everything happened has left her emotional to say the least.

It has come to my attention that you terminated her employment with you and also cut her off. I don't want the fact that we are her mates to stop the friendship you have built. Though you hurt her, you've also helped her plenty of times before, so if you wish to remain in contact with her we will allow it."

Aro watched as the wolf and an internal battle in his mind. It looked as if Luke wanted to have contact with Amarantha, but something was keeping him from agreeing to continue contact. Something the wolf couldn't control. Aro just shook his head not knowing how to solve this matter for his mate besides offering the olive branch.

"Let me leave you with this then," Aro just enjoying the sound of his own voice by now, "Amarantha will never get over how you chose them over her. She would choose you over us any day and we're her mates. I'm under the impression you know what that entails."

Aro sneered, "I would like to extend an invitation to where we live for you to stay with her until she is changed. All expenses will be covered for you while you stay. If you choose to come with us, our flight will be leaving in two days."

With that Aro and Jane left without a backwards glance to the trio of stunned beasts. Aro didn't know why he offered for the wolf to come with them besides it making Amarantha happy. If she wasn't alone maybe the transition would be easier for her to handle. The selfish side of him wanted to rip into the wolf's neck for adding onto the stress Amarantha already felt. But then he would have to do the same to himself and his brothers for causing most of it. He didn't like this nice guy's act all of a sudden. He vowed then he would only be nice for Amarantha. Aro just wanted to get back to his mate to make sure she was still alright. First he had one more matter to attend to.

It had been two hours since Aro had left and Marcus sat there as motionless as possible while Amara slept on his lap. He watched how peaceful she looked while she was off in whatever dream she was in. It seemed to be one of a good nature for she didn't stir around the couch or cry out any. In fact there was a heavy scent of arousal in the air. He did not let it affect him.

Being here with his mate caused him to be in a euphoric state. Too long had he been melancholic from the eternal loneliness. Now he felt giddy about the future for the first time in centuries. What happened earlier caused the sadness to reappear when Amara felt the need to hurt herself. He didn't want his happiness to hurt his mate. Having her there right now sleeping on him had it disappear again. If only he could do the same for her in return. He would have to work on trying to make her feel comfortable enough to at least speak to them before this repeats itself. He hoped it wouldn't, but he would be damned if he wouldn't be prepared for it.

"Mhmmm," Amara groaned. Or was that a moan he heard?

Marcus looked down at her and watched her eyes flutter open. Her lips curved momentarily before she realized exactly where she was. He almost frowned as she jolted up right.

"Oh sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep on you like that," she felt disoriented. She had a dream that she didn't know if she liked or not.

"Do not worry yourself about it. I found it quite pleasant," Marcus gave her a closed lip smile.

Amara peered at Marcus over her glasses before pushing them up her nose. His eyes had returned to their normal red, "Do you just like watching me sleep?"

He shrugged, "You look so peaceful when you do. I could not help myself."

She just shook her head. She didn't want to have another conversation on what humans don't normally do. They obviously weren't human even if they looked like it. Standing on her feet she teetered to fall to the left and almost fell if she was not caught by the very strong vampire. He held her steady, his body pressed along hers. She bit her lip, a bad habit of nervousness, and gazed up at him through her thick lashes.

She wanted to say thank you, but after the dream she had her brain was still fogged over with a residual wantonness. She gripped his jacket and without any thought pulled him down as she leaned upward. Her lips met his as she gave the particularly tall man an innocent kiss. When she pulled back she studied his features which had changed drastically. His eyes were dark again and he had become stiff once more. He licked his lips, a husky moan escaped him. Her lips tasted as sweet as she smelt. It made him wonder if all of her tasted sweet.

Amara leaned in for another kiss. Marcus hoarse, "Don't. If you do, I won't be able to control myself."

She hesitated in replying. Amara hadn't really had the best of days. She had been on a roller coaster ride of emotions. Did she really want to add sex on top of it?

'Yes, you do. Look at him, he wants you,' the voice vocalized.

'Not now.'

'Think of how good it felt with Caius. Imagine how Marcus would treat you,' it continued.

Not having the energy to fight it she honestly gave it a thought. She had just dreamed of having a wild time with all three of them. That caused her to blush just thinking about it. He had been gentle with her in her mind, would he be the same in real life?

"And if I don't want you to be in control," she tempted.

"I would end up like Caius and we only need one frenzied vampire right now," he continued to growl. Marcus wanted to kiss her like he'd seen Aro and her earlier, but he forced himself to hold back. He would go slow for his mate, for both their sakes. "I will have you, Amarantha, but only when the time is right."

Almost as if luck was on his side her stomach grumbled signaling she was hungry. She looked away from him bashfully either from the noise they just heard or from his declaration, he couldn't decide. He grabbed a hold of her uninjured hand and directed her to have a seat at her table.

"What would you like to eat," he inquired.

"A bowl of cereal will be fine," she just didn't feel like cooking right now.

"Cereal?" He wasn't well versed in all that humans eat. Did this cereal have the nutrients she needed to survive?

'Did he not know what that was?' Amara questioned herself. Replying, "Its in the yellow box on top of the fridge. Just pour some in a bowl with milk and a spoon, please."

Marcus grabbed the box before Amara's mind could process and was reading it. He scoffed, "This isnt food, it's pure sugar, cuore mia, I'm asking about what kind of real food you'd like to eat."

"Just give me the sugar, I don't feel like cooking.. well really I don't feel like doing the clean up," she openly admitted.

"You won't have to," Marcus offered, "I'll do it, the cleaning. I don't know how to cook unfortunately it is not something I kept the habit of doing."

"Why," Amara standing up from her seat and walking over to the fridge.

"Well I am a vampire. We really don't need food for survival," he pointed out. Marcus had a small smile on his face whilst looking at her.

"Oh yeah.. Sorry I forgot for a second," she played with her lip rings for a moment while standing at the open fridge. How could she forget that huge fact so easily? He didn't act like his other companions. He seemed more human than either of them.

"It's fine, cuore mia, you'll get used to it soon enough," he watched her nod before pulling out a few things for what she planned on making.

Amara set everything she was going to need on the counter before shutting the door to her icebox. "What do you plan to make," Marcus inquired as she watched her.

"Well, the best time for breakfast is for dinner, so I'm going to do that," she said as she grabbed out a skillet and a small bowl. She set the skillet on her stove top and the bowl next to her ingredients.

Marcus watched as she went about washing her hands as best she could with the offending piece of plaster. She went over to the bacon she grabbed out to bring it closer to the stove. Marcus saw her turn the knob about halfway before pulling out a couple of slices of the meat and placing them in the pan. He continued to watch her as she worked around her kitchen with ease. She even managed to crack a couple of eggs with only one hand. He was so entranced by her flowing around that he almost missed her request.

"Would you mind turning on the radio over by the microwave? It should already have a CD in it," she didn't look up from what she was doing, too focused on not burning the bacon.

"Of course," Marcus had it on in an instant. His eyes barely leaving her for a second. She had replaced the items in the fridge and brought out a few more. Seeing the dishes beginning to be placed in the sink, he started to take his jacket off and rolled his sleeves up his forearms.

Music now softly playing in the background. Amara just listened and danced slightly along with the electronic music, ignoring the pair of eyes she felt burning on her body. It only took her only a few more minutes to have everything cooked and plated ready for her to eat. When she turned around with her bacon, eggs and toast in hand she almost dropped the plate from the sight Marcus made. His arms exposed, were muscular, but not overly so. Only in his black slacks and a white shirt with the arms rolled up he looked like a model. This man wanted her? That didn't make sense to her, but still being the mortal she was, she couldn't help the reaction he had over her body.

Marcus noticed her slip up and was there to help her hold the plate within a blink of an eye. He smirked only after inhaling her scent softly releasing an approving growl, "I take it that my mate is pleased with what she sees?"

His observation and slight flirting had a fire spread through her veins and pink to flood her cheeks. "I-I umm.. yes," she couldn't deny it. Not in that moment.

His eyes met hers as he bent down to her level still holding the plate with her. He leaned in and placed a modest kiss upon her blushing cheek. His breath could be felt on her ear as he whispered caringly, "Thank you. Now eat, cuore mia, before your stomach eats itself."

Just as he said that her stomach made another embarrassing noise stating her hunger. She gave him a bashful nod before walking past him to grab a fork from the drawer. She sat at the counter with her food and dug in. Amara felt too self-conscious to eat her normal pace of shoveling food down her throat. Slowly she ate, but her eyes weren't on her food for once.

Currently they were glued to the back of the vampire doing the dishes. She never thought a vampire of his standing would do house work. Yet she sat there chewing her food leisurely as his strong arms were under the soapy water, working away quicker than she has seen any human do them. By the time she was halfway through eating he was already done and drying his hands off his hands with a dish towel.

Marcus turned to her with a warm smile gracing his face. "Do you enjoy cooking?"

She nodded, swallowing her bite, "I love to cook. I just hate cleaning up most days, which makes me a bad chef."

"How so?" Marcus cocked his head to the side.

"A good chef always picks up after themselves right when they're done. I'm not always the best at doing dishes that I just dirtied," she shrugged her shoulders, finding it easy to be honest about her bad habits with him. She took another bite.

"Doesn't make you a bad chef. Lazy maybe, but not a bad chef. It looked like you were in your element. It was a sight to behold," Marcus joked with her then snuck a compliment in as she ate.

"I-I.. thanks I guess," she stuttered out once her food was down. She didn't know how to take a compliment well from these men. She was acting like a prepubescent child and she was far from that. She needed to start acting her age and try to somehow find normality within herself again. First she needed to finish eating and then hopefully smoke a cigarette. Maybe even take her night medicine already and just sleep the rest of the day away.

Amara decided to ask a question of her own, "Have you ever tried eating?"

He took a moment to contemplate, "Once, a very long time ago."

"What happened," she grew curious.

"It just tasted like dirt to me. Nothing too appetizing," Marcus began only after she finished eating, "I ended up regurgitating the small bite I took and never tried again. Occasionally I can tolerate some wine though."

"So does that mean when I am changed I'll never be able to taste food again," she actually felt sad about that. What good would her love of cooking do when she was a vampire? It would be a useless skill.

"Unfortunately yes," Marcus saw the sadness in her eyes, "I am guessing that isn't a good thing."

"Well if you can't tell, I'm a foodie," she opened her arms, gesturing to herself, "Food has been a major comfort to me for many years. I am passionate about cooking for people and having them experience what I do. The different flavor combinations you can make from simple ingredients and pouring a lot of love into it. For them to appreciate the small gestures. It just bums me out that I'll be losing something I love to do."

"No need to be 'bummed out,' cuore mia, we have human staff that eat," Marcus comforted her by taking her hand from the table.

Her pierced brow raised, "You employ humans?"

"Of course we do, you can't expect us to do everything ourselves," Marcus brushed a stray hair from her eyes with his free hand, "You'll be able to cook whenever you like."

Amara caught herself smiling at the small act, "That makes me feel a little better."

"Good." He gently stroked his thumb over the henna-like design tattooed over her right hand. He released his grasp from her hand before picking up her emptied plate. He had it washed and drying along with the others within seconds and had the water emptied before she could process.

She stood from where she sat and walked over to her jacket while he finished drying his hands once more. Slipping the garment on she went to search for a cigarette and lighter, finding them in her discarded bag on the coffee table. She just slipped on her shoes, barefooted, and headed to her back door.

"Do you want to come with me while I smoke," she asked him even though she could already guess he would have followed her either way.

"I would like to," Marcus rolled his sleeves down, much to the disappointment of Amara.

She opened the door feeling the chilly air and was shocked to see a teenager on her porch. Startled slightly by it she jumped back into Marcus. His red eyes gave away that he was a vampire, but his short brown hair, pale skin and pearly white smile made him look like any boy next door. His eyes scanned her before turning to Marcus to speak so softly Amara could barely heard it, "Sorry for startling you. I was told to be closer to you both, Master."

Amara felt Marcus nod against her before to picked herself up off of the vampire and straightened herself up. "It's okay, sorry for my reaction," she murmured.

"You're fine Amarantha," the smile that was on Marcus' face was bright as he stared down at her.

"Ami, if you want. My friends call me Ami," she spoke before heading to the far side of her porch. She placed the cigarette to her lips and lit it with ease.

"I prefer using your name," he went to stand next to her.

Amara exhaled a big cloud of smoke, "Why?"

"Do you know the meaning of your name, Amarantha?" He moved closer to her as she took another drag.

Amara wondered where he was going with this and found herself leaning in toward him. "No, I was never vain enough to search for my name's meaning."

Marcus bent at his waist so his head was at her neck. His lips ghosted near her left ear causing a shiver of anticipation to roll down her spine. "Unfading," his breath against her neck, "Undying," his hands went to her hips, "Eternal," his lips pressed down on her pulse.

She was a quivering puddle of goo. Her cigarette long forgotten as this man, she deemed a friend at the very least, placed delicate kisses along her neck. Her heart thumped loudly in both of their ears. A soft rumbling sound was heard coming from Marcus. He pulled his lips away from her heated skin, but his hands remained on her hips, keeping her steady. "Your name has a certain fitting beauty in it, wouldn't you think," he purred in her ear.

All Amara could do was nod as she was lost in the sensation of his closeness. If she wasn't so emotionally exhausted she might have put up a fight, but right now she was finding it hard to resist the pull within her chest. Her cigarette half burnt and now unlit still remained in between her fingers as she let her head fall to the side allowing him more access.

Marcus chuckled, "I must stop now, cuore mia, for I will not stop if I continue."

"You sound like you don't want to stop," her voice filled with longing and something else.

"And you sound disappointed," he sighed, "I don't want to stop, and I allowed myself to get carried away as is. Right now this isn't what you need. You'll end up regretting anything we do by tomorrow when you have a rested mind. I don't want there to be any regrets."

He slowly released her, allowing Amara to catch her bearings. He was right of course. Once she wasn't so exhausted she would probably regret everything that happened today. She re-lit her cigarette and temporarily reflected upon her actions. "Is the bond the reason why I want to give in so easily," she whispered timidly.

"Yes and no," Marcus started off avoiding her eye contact as if he didn't know how to answer her. "The bond doesn't create feelings that aren't already there, but it enhances them."

So whatever she felt toward them was her own feelings and not something forced on her. That comfort Amara only a little bit. It didn't explain why she was ready to give herself over to this vampire in front of her. Was it his looks? No, though they were a bonus. She's barely seen his personality, but what she's seen so far she is far more attuned to him than the others. He seemed to be the one that respects her opinion the most. Maybe that was it. She liked him because he seemed to genuinely care.

She took a long drag. A thought crossed her mind. Did her having three mates make her a whore? Possibly, but she couldn't find time to care what people would think. Amara barely had time to care about herself. Yet again sex was not the answer right now.

After a moment of silence she finally spoke, "You're right, I shouldn't push for anything right now."

"Like I said earlier, Amarantha, I will have you just not yet," his voice a purring sensation to her ears.

Marcus and Amara had been in their own little world this whole time, ignoring the teenage vampire who looked at them curiously through his peripherals. Alec didn't really mind having to be here guarding them. As long as he kept them safe he was happy. With Marcus' uplifted mood the past few days all of the guard wanted to keep what brought him back safe. The fact that it was this human made no difference to him. He didn't dare let himself wonder where the bloody handkerchief came from, but he hoped it wasn't bad.

Staring at the woman who would one day be his queen. Alec thought she looked strange with her split colored hair, tattoos, and piercings. She wasn't his type at all, but he could see her beauty. He wondered if he'd grow a relationship with her. He knew his sister may never like her for reasons yet to come out. Only time would tell if the rest of the guard would like her.

Amara finished her cigarette with her face on fire from the thoughts swarming around her head. She threw her cigarette butt away and turned to the teenager. "You can come in if you want. I don't have much for entertainment, but it sure beats staying outside in the cold."

"The cold doesn't bother me," Alec stated and stayed where he was, "You don't need to worry about me."

She looked at Marcus who gave her a nod in conformation that the teen vampire would be fine. Shrugging she headed back into the heated trailer. Taking off her jacket she threw it on the back of a kitchen chair. She walked to the counter that had her pills on it and took the pm medication. Once they were choked down, Amara headed to her bedroom, turning the stereo off as she past. Calling out over her shoulder, "I'm going to change for bed real quick. I-I might need help."

She felt embarrassed having to ask him, but he was the only one here that could help her undo her bra. She felt him behind her as she moved to her room and entered. She saw Caius still laying down, his eyes following her every move. Her hair stood on its end on the back of her neck. If there was one of her mates she was afraid of, it would be him. Her heart picked up its speed marginally at his stare.

Hearing this Marcus asked, "Are you alright, Amarantha?"

"Y-yeah, j-just fine," her stutter said differently. Her eyes locked with Caius' red hues to see anger deep within them. "I-is it possible to c-cover his eyes while I d-dress?"

Marcus had Caius covered up before she could even move to take her dress off once his eyes were covered she felt comfortable enough to start undressing. Marcus didn't make her skin crawl like Caius. She felt completely fine being in her underwear around him for some reason. Slipping her dress down to her waist she turned her back to Marcus. "If you'd please," she asked.

He hissed at the sight his mate made. She was literally a walking canvas. He stalked slowly up behind her taking in the artwork on her back. His fingertips brushed some of her fallen hair over her shoulder before expertly removing the article of clothing. She held it to her chest not allowing her to spill out of it just yet.

"Thank you," she turned her head to him to look at him. His red iris' were turning dark causing her heart to speed up more. He was either hungry or hungry. She didn't know which one caused the knot in her stomach to return, but she dropped her gaze from him.

Marcus stepped back and turned away from her. "I'm sorry. Seeing you in such a state of undress causes.. desire to build within me. I can't help it," he admitted.

Heart skipping a beat, her body flushed at his honesty. "Its okay, I'm guessing its only natural. I-I mean if I saw you.. that means.. I would... um.."

Marcus growled out a chuckle, "You don't have to explain yourself. I understand what you're trying to say."

She slid the garments off of her body keeping her eyes on the man's back, thankful he seemed trustworthy enough to not turn around a sneak a peek. She found a baggy old, band tee that she slept in normally and slide it over her body. "Its safe now," she spoke while letting her hair down.

His eyes were on her soon as she spoke. She walked past him to get to her bathroom and do her nightly routine of brushing her teeth and washing her face. When she was done she saw he sat in the chair in her room waiting for her to return. Caius still covered. She felt emboldened to remove the cloth over his face slowly. Their eyes met and she found herself asking, "Are you mad at me?"

He just stared at her with his angry eyes as if to ask what do you think? She sighed, "Blink once for yes, twice for no."

He blinked once.

"Is it because I had your face covered?"

She watched him blink twice.

"Is it because of what happened earlier," she bit her lip, her hazel-blue hues looking glossy.

One blink. Caius was mad that she felt the need to hurt herself and mad at himself for not being able to be there for his mate. He felt useless this whole day.

"I-I'm sorry. If it makes a difference I don't plan on doing it again." Amara felt low. She already had begun to regret her meltdown. She moved around the room as Marcus and Caius silently watched. She sat on the free side of her bed shoulders hunched for a moment before laying down completely. "It's not like I asked to have a breakdown," she murmured.

She felt an arm move and pull her closer to Caius. Her eyes widened, 'He was able to move again!' Amara pulled back from him as he tried to hold her against him. Reading his eyes he pleaded with her for this. Did he want her to cuddle against him? How much harm would happen if she gave into this? Amara gave him a slight tilt of her head before lowering herself onto him. He did feel nice against her a flamed skin. All he did was hold her tightly to his body. There was no groping like before, just comfort.

She felt another dip in the bed behind her which almost startled her.

"I hope you don't mind, but I would like to hold you as well," Marcus wrapped an arm around her waist and held her from behind, "I won't stay all night, only till you fall asleep, I promise."

She didn't know why, but she quickly said, "No, don't leave me. Please stay."

He nuzzled her neck with his head, "Only if it's what you want."

Mumbling half asleep, "It is."

"Then I will be here when you wake up," Marcus said as she drifted off to slumber.