A/N: Uh, I know you're all probably wanting an update for my other story, but I had this idea and couldn't shake it. I've been whispering some lines from this around the house, and my mom thinks I'm going crazy, so I figured if I just wrote them down, I could stop talking to myself!
Help Me EscapeChapter 1: An Old Acquaintance
BPOV
This was all too much.
Every day, I saw death, destruction, and strife. The worst part was: I had no power to stop it. I didn't know how to help all the innocent humans that became my meals and all the falsely accused vampires that were executed for the Volturi's personal enjoyment. None of it seemed right.
So, I resigned my position as a prominent Volturi guard member and embarked on my own. It was difficult, seeing as I had no money and only one known connection, but I was trying to make it work.
With that, I pulled out the Volturi stationary I owned and began writing to my only friend in the world. Carlisle Cullen.
CPOV"Carlisle!" Esme called as I walked into the house. I gave her a quick peck on the lips and looked at her questioningly.
"What is it darling?" I asked.
"You have mail," she replied. I took the letter from her hand and examined it carefully.
"It's the Volturi's personal stationary," I mumbled. Maybe Aro had a new guard he wanted to flaunt to me. But I knew his handwriting, and this was definitely not it.
"Who's it from, Carlisle?" Alice inquired as she bounced into the room, the rest of the family in tow. I shrugged indifferently. "Well open it!" she commanded.
I ripped open the envelope and checked who the sender was. Isabella de la Volturi… oh yes, she's one of their guards. I remember her. I wonder what she wants? I haven't seen her or had any interaction with her for over one hundred years… I began to read her letter aloud.
Dear Carlisle Cullen,
I know that it has been a very long time since I last spoke to you, and this may all seem terribly untoward, but I'm in a bit of a tight spot. I have resigned my post as a Volturi guardsman. I know you must think I'm insane for doing that (or maybe not, after all, you never were a normal vampire, eh?), but I had good reason to do so. I couldn't stand the death. I couldn't stand to be the reason for ending the lives of innocent humans and the occasional vampire. But to truly understand my motives, you must know the story of the last vampire that was put on trial by the Volturi.
His name was Henri Delacour, a rather weak and young vampire who's self control was still a little haywire. Aro, Caius, and Marcus heard that he was slaughtering humans and bringing an unnecessary amount of attention towards himself. So, Jane and I were sent to seize him.
We arrived in a small town somewhere in the west of France. He was easy to locate; we knew he would be wherever blood was. So we tracked him and found him feeding on an older man, who at this point was already sucked dry. Jane and I told him who we were and that he was to be punished for his actions. In all my years as a heartless executioner, I had never seen somebody so crushed. Nevertheless, we forced him back to Volterra, where he was put on trial. Beforehand, I made an appointment to speak with him, so I went to his cell and questioned him, not with the harshness of an interrogator, but with the concern of a friend.
"I've seen a lot of prisoners," I said, "but none of them have ever been as remorseful or as depressed as you." He smiled ruefully back at me.
"Oh no, I accept my fate with open arms. I did wrong and I must be punished. But I do worry about Talia…" he trailed off.
I of course asked him who this mysterious Talia was. "The love of my existence," he replied. "My rock, my shelter, my wife, my future." Nothing could compare to the pity and sadness that rocked me to my core then and there. I couldn't believe that I heartlessly separated an innocent (yet slightly wayward) man from his love. I'm positive I'd done it before, but it hurts more when you are aware of your transgressions.
"It's alright," he assured me, "she'll be okay." I could tell he was trying to convince himself more than me.
At the trial, he was completely remorseful, but confessed to it all. I had no choice but to murder him. But I didn't do that. Instead, I faked his death, set a false fire, and smuggled him back to his Talia. I do not regret that decision in the least, but I knew how dangerous it was to stay in Volterra with this hanging over my head. So I informed the brothers of my departure.
You can imagine how upset they were. Ranting and raving about how I was one of their best warriors and how no vampire's power could equal mine. But I was not flattered nor swayed.
I packed everything I owned (which only includes a very large amount of gowns from the Elizabethan and Edwardian eras and an extensive collection of first-edition classics by Shakespeare and Jane Austen, along with a few other authors that I took a shine to), and fled to England. This is where I sit as I write this letter, in full corset and damask apparel. I can hear the patrons of this grungy hotel murmuring about how I probably escaped from the Renaissance Fair, whatever that is. I've already amassed a large amount of papers with odd numbers on them, but I know not what I am to do with them. Do you know? I regret to say that I am still very much stuck in the century in which I was born, so I know nothing of all these new-fangled contraptions that people use this days. Humans can be so idiotic…
Ah, but I digress. The real reason I am writing is that I have heard from Marcus that you have started quite the large family. I am certain that you still follow your odd diet, and I must say it is quite interesting the way you live (yes, Carlisle, this does mean I have begun to hunt from the alternate food source, and find it to be quite a suitable path for someone like me. I rather fancy mountain lion! They always put up a good fight). However, I will need guidance, so it would bring me a large amount of happiness if you were to help me along with my new lifestyle for a few months. I completely understand if this is inconvenient for you, but I'd appreciate a suitable answer before I begin trekking to you home.
But this brings us back to the aforementioned problem. I am still pretty much stationary in the year 1559 (the year of my change, as you very well know. Oh lord, I'm an old hag…maybe I'll tell you more stories about Queen Elizabeth, if you are interested) and so I do not own one of these absurd 'telephones'. They must be pretty popular, for people are always sticking one up to their ear. Doesn't that cause some sort of brain damage? It makes sense; they are after all electric waves, correct? Humans! They say vampires kill people, but we're just speeding along the process for them. With all their alcohol and tobacco and whatnot, they really are doing more harm then good. I know it isn't right to feed off of them, but some of them are so idiotic, they'd get themselves killed anyway without my help. Lord, they are stupid. I don't know how you put up with them on a daily basis! I of course only have interaction with them every couple weeks for feasts, but even then they are air-headed. I've always wondered why they were stupid enough to follow Heidi. Sure, the men are just filled with an absurd amount of testosterone, and get turned on when she shows them her legs, but the women really should know better!
Corpus bones! I must stop doing that! I only have a limited amount of ink and paper.
So, being a bit old-fashioned, our only correspondence will have to be by post. I'm dreadfully sorry for any inconveniences this causes you and your family. I just retrieved the address from the idiotic host, so you will have some way of contacting me.
I'm staying at: The Rose and Crown Inn
1477 Queen Victoria Road
London, England 50798
There's also an odd series of numbers at the side, if it helps you:
Jason Cabaggio 555-7836
Call me for a good time, sugar.
That seems mildly inappropriate, no? Damn this new millennium. I can't understand a thing anymore. What happened to messengers on ponies? And why do I have a stack of number filled papers? This is madness!
With all my kindest regards,
Isabella de la Volturi
I looked up at my family and saw a mixture of emotions. All the children excluding Rosalie were holding back laughter and Esme was giddy at the thought of another child. Rosalie looked irate.
"Oh, it's wonderful that she's decided to feed off animals!" Esme cried. I nodded and let a chuckle loose.
"I can't believe she doesn't know what a telephone is!" Emmett exclaimed. "And did you hear her say that men were giving her their numbers? Ha!" He was on the floor laughing.
"I wouldn't surprise me Emmett," I commented. "She is quite good looking. Also, one of the most brilliant people I know. I would venture to say she's smarter than me." Edward raised his eyebrows. Yes, Edward, I thought, you would get along beautifully with her. She plays the piano, has every sonnet, poem, and play by Shakespeare memorized, and knows Queen Elizabeth personally. At least, she did. She was her lady-in-waiting, as I recall. If you ever want to have an intelligent conversation with someone, she's the one you should go to. He laughed.
"Ugh!" Alice moaned. "Did you hear her say how she only has clothes from the past! Shopping trip!"
"Wait, wait, wait!" Rose interjected. "We're going to let a supposedly ex-Volturi guard stay with us so we can 'guide her'? She could be lying through her teeth about the whole thing!" I loved Rosalie dearly, but she could be such a brat sometimes.
"I'll just read her mind when she gets here," Edward said.
"That won't work," I remarked. "All mental powers don't work on her. It's just how she's always been." Edward's eyebrows shot up in alarm.
"All the more reason we shouldn't trust her," Rosalie put in.
"No," I muttered. "I've known her for a while, and she is completely trustworthy. She is the patron saint of ethics and morals, always has been, and probably always will be. She hasn't let go of her human beliefs in God, or anything. She rarely lies and is truly a sweet girl. In fact, before I left Volterra, I almost converted her to my way of life. That is, until Aro found out. I was forbidden to speak to her about it again, under punishment of death." Esme looked at me sympathetically.
"What's her power?" Jasper asked. I let out a gust of air. I was hoping to avoid this question, only because her power was extremely volatile.
"Mind control," I answered numbly. Everyone looked alarmed. "Don't worry though, Aro has had her trained so she is in complete control of it. She barely ever uses it and always complains about how much she hates being loved only for her power and not for herself. That's the thing she always hated. No one ever saw her for who she really was."
"Write her back Carlisle, and follow my exact words," Alice commanded. I pulled out a pen and paper and wrote what she directed.
Dear Isabella,
It is wonderful to hear from you after all this time. I've just finished telling my family about you, and they are eager to finally meet you.
My daughter Alice is standing over my shoulder dictating my words, so if this next paragraph is a little out-of-character, that's why.
Make sure to bring every gown, book, manuscript, map, and composition you own. They will all be of use. Take special care of the Confederate maps from the Civil War. Jasper will want to see them. Also, be prepared to have your first edition Shakespeare's taken hostage. Edward can be such a bookworm sometimes. Alice and Rosalie will definitely want to see your clothes, so be prepared for that too.
Alice is a psychic, so she knows that you will be teased profusely by my other son Emmett. It's all in jest, just remember that.
Nothing would make us happier than to help you in you new life. We live near plenty of mountain lions, so you don't need to worry about that. They're Edward's favorite too. How odd…
Anyway, we look forward to your arrival.
Love,
The Cullens
P.S. We want to know ALL of your Queen Elizabeth stories.
"Civil War maps?" Jasper asked. Alice nodded vigorously.
"Written in Robert E. Lee's hand." Jasper looked like he'd died and gone to heaven. "She also has a journal written by him too, with all his actions and thoughts." Jasper was drooling in anticipation.
"Carlisle," Esme began, "what do you know about her? What's her history?"
"She told me the basic outline," I said, "but I don't know everything. It's rather depressing."
"We should know," Edward whispered.
"All right, everyone sit, please." They obeyed. "She was born September 13, 1543. Her mother died in childbirth. Her father was a successful courtier in the court of King Henry VII, so when his daughter Elizabeth became queen, she was given some favor as a lady.
"As you know, Queen Elizabeth suffered some hardships at the beginning of her reign. People were conspiring against her, planning to put her cousin, Queen Mary of Scotland on the throne. Isabella was always one to stick her nose in other people's business, so when she came across a group of men who were planning to assassinate her beloved mistress, she knew she had to act.
"She tried to tell everyone she could, but no one believed her. After all, she was accusing the Duke of Norfolk of treason! Nobody would have believed a simple lady over a powerful lord.
"So her warnings went unheeded. But, she knew whatever the Duke was plotting he was plotting with the Spanish, a very powerful country at the time. She had to act, or her queen would die.
"She dressed up as a man and went undercover into their operation.
"Unfortunately, someone sniffed her out and she was bludgeoned horribly. Thankfully, Aro had been keeping an eye on her for future reference, so he knew she was in trouble. He changed her, and the rest is history."
"Why did Aro watch her?" Jasper asked.
"I don't know for sure," I replied. "He may have heard about what she was doing and decided to keep a watch out for her just in case. But I truly don't know what Aro's motives were."
"Well," Alice sighed, "you should probably mail that. Make sure it travels express. She'll be here in a couple days." She turned to Jasper. "Can you wait that long for you journal?" she teased.
I never thought that I'd see anyone from the Volturi again. But now, I guess I would have to. It wouldn't be so bad. Her self-control was flawless of course; she just needed a little guidance. It would be very nice to see her again, and I could tell that almost everyone was excited to meet her and her fabulous collection of memorabilia and gowns.
Yes, the next few months would certainly be very interesting.
Ta da! You like? I'll get the next chapter out soon, I hope, but I can't promise anything. I have a life. My story From Emeralds to Rubies will be put on hold for another week or so, so sorry to disappoint.
Love ya!
Tess