SOMEWHERE ONLY WE KNOW ➻ DEMETRI VOLTURI

V E N T I D U E

As soon as she entered the throne room, she felt her stomach drop in her shoes. She resisted the urge to let out a loud gasp, instead, doing her best to keep her face straight and expressionless. 

In the middle of the room sat a beautiful woman surrounded by a shimmering mist that appeared to come from Alec's hands. The last time Cecilia had seen her, her brown curls had been cascading down her back like a waterfall. Now her hair was tousled and messed up. The smile that had lit up the atelier had made place for a worried grimace. 

"Stop it, I beg you," the woman cried. Even her voice wasn't as smooth as it had been the other day. "I didn't do anything wrong."

Cecilia swallowed the lump in her throat, looking up at the three masters in their thrones with obvious question in the look of her eyes. Her heart hammered against her chest and she clasped her hands together behind her back to stop them from fidgeting. Jane had joined her brother on the right side of the masters and her eyes fell on Demetri, who was standing with Felix on the other side. His face didn't give anything away. 

"Ah, dear Cecilia, the Italian sun agrees with you," Aro said in his uncomfortable childish voice. Within a split second, he was up from his chair and right in front of her, holding out his hands. It seemed kind enough of a gesture, but she knew better. Not allowing herself to hesitate, she put her hand in his, ignoring the shiver that instantly crawled down her back. "Very interesting to see it from your perspective."

Another split second later he had moved away from her and taken a seat on his throne again. His milky red eyes moved from Cecilia's figure, to that of Aurelia's in the middle of the throne room. 

"Aurelia Lockehart here is on trial today," Aro announced, ignoring the pathetic sobbing of the said woman. "And you will be the judge."

"I will be the judge?" she repeated in question, her voice slightly stuttering. 

Caius let out a loud sigh, his angry eyes making Cecilia's skin crawl in fear. "Surely you are familiar with the term 'judge', child?"

Cecilia straightened her spine, giving the man a stern nod. "I am."

"Well then, let the trial begin."

➻

It didn't take long for Cecilia to find out what a trial by the Volturi actually meant and though she wasn't exactly surprised, she was horrified that she'd gotten mixed up in it. Aurelia had finally calmed down, at least verbally, but her haunted eyes which stared around the throne room without actually seeing anything were enough to keep Cecilia's skin crawling with fear. 

Jane was asked to give a testimony first, followed by Aurelia, who was interrupted with Jane's gift every time she lied or nuanced something. When all that was over, seven pairs of eyes fell on Cecilia's figure. 

She could feel the blood drain from her face, her throat was dry and resembling sandpaper. 

"Well, Cecilia dear, what are your thoughts on the matter?" Aro asked gently, though she noticed he was starting to sound impatient already. He clasped his hands together, raised his eyebrows and looked at her questionably. "Will Aurelia live to see another day? Will it be the dungeons? Or an execution?"

Cecilia squeezed her fingers together behind her back. "I don't think an execution will be quite necessary, surely it is not every day that a trial is held over a vampire attacking a mere human," she said calmly. Slowly, she was coming to an assumption as to why Aro had declared her the judge over this trial. She guessed that if he got her involved with the Volturi, digging his claws in her head, it would be harder for her to leave with her family, or for her family to recognize her. Even if her suspicions were true, there was no way she could speak them out loud, because before she knew it, a trial would be held for her.