????????!
In the aftermath of a brutal transformation, Ivy Thorne is found by the Cullens- gifted with a mind untouched by any vampire power and a heart too fractured to trust again.
As she slowly rebuilds her sense of self among her unlike...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
3RD POV.
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐀𝐈𝐑, in Volterra felt heavier than Forks ever had, dense and steeped in silence. Ivy stood in the heart of the Volturi stronghold, her wrists unbound but her freedom gone. Marble floors stretched endlessly before her, polished to a glassy sheen. Massive stone columns towered around her, and from above, ancient windows let in diffused, gray light.
She could still hear Edward's voice echoing in her memory, hoarse and enraged as the Volturi guards stepped between them. Rosalie's sharp hiss. Emmett's fists curling like they'd shatter stone. But none of that had mattered. Not against the authority Aro carried with a single raised hand.
Now, she was alone.
The doors behind her closed with a resonant thud. Her breath caught in her throat.
"Do not be afraid, Ivy," said a voice from ahead.
She turned.
Aro stood at the center of the ornate chamber, dressed in a midnight-black cloak, his hands folded neatly before him. His pale face held the same eerie calm it always had, but his eyes studied her with an interest she couldn't place, something between curiosity and possession.
"I brought you here for understanding," he said, stepping down the shallow dais. "Not punishment."
Ivy stayed silent. She wasn't sure she believed that.
"And what am I here to understand?" she asked, her voice low but steady.
Aro tilted his head, as if delighting in the question. "Your gift. Your immunity. Your mind is… fascinating. A blank expanse, untouchable. Do you realize how rare that is?"
"I didn't ask to be rare."
A ghost of a smile flickered at his lips. "No one ever does. But nature has its way of choosing the exceptional."
Before she could respond, Alec stepped from the shadows, as quiet as a shadow himself. His eyes were unreadable, but he didn’t look hostile. Not exactly.
"I want to try," Alec said simply, his voice almost bored.
Aro raised a hand, not in denial, but in encouragement. Alec turned to Ivy, and she braced herself, not physically, but emotionally. She knew what he could do. The void. The silence. The nothingness that stole every sense.
She waited.
And nothing came.
She blinked. Alec's brow furrowed.
"Anything?" Aro asked.
Alec shook his head.
Ivy let out a slow breath.
"Remarkable," Aro whispered, stepping closer to her. "Even now, standing inches away from Alec, you feel nothing?"
