IC Time: December 1, early evening.
Location: Black Orchid Lounge, Port Angeles.
Synopsis: After a week, Stasia has made a decision about her future with the Volturi.
Submitted by: Stasia
For the past week or so, Stasia has been absent from the hotel. She hasn't been hiding, however, and has been seen off and on by others of the Guard. Gregori had been assigned to keep an eye on her and she seemed to accept his presence with good grace. Being fairly reticent, Gregori didn't ask her too many questions and that did a lot to put her more at ease. She'd also run into Chelsea briefly, then later, Theresa. The day before, Demetri had found her hunting in the dockside. So, she did not try to avoid her coven, but wasn't quite ready to re-enter the fold.
When she comes back to the hotel, she does so with no announcement or fanfare. She had apparently made peace with whatever she had been wrestling with, during her days of relative solitude. She simply walks inside the main door, in the same clothes she'd left in.
A meeting breaks up in the lounge — several guards split their separate ways, and Aro lingers, still seated at the head of one of the tables, talking lowly on the phone, which appears to have earlier been setup for a conference call of sorts. True to the business nature of the Volturi, a screen has been pulled down and a laptop sits on the table — there was obviously a presentation given shortly before. In the wake of such commotion, there is a dull calm in the area.
In the lobby, the attendant points Stasia to the lounge. "For the meeting, dearie?" She's a plump, matronly woman, a human, and probably, a future meal.
"You're late," Aro's voice comes, toward whomever this very late person might be. He hardly looks up. "Very late."
"I apologize." The young vampire returns. "It won't happen again." She only takes a step or two inside. Her voice is calm, businesslike and no note of petulance or defiance.
The voice causes Aro to pause in his reach for the laptop, eyes skirting the room to glance over Stasia. "It's you!" He chuckles a bit. "I wasn't expecting you to that meeting. In fact, I scarely have seen you around at all. I rather thought you might have left us," he notes lightly, eyeing the few remaining guards lingering near the kitchen entrance and frowning, as if to make the motion to leave. They leave rather quickly, leaving Aro and Stasia alone. "Gregori has kept a close watch on you, though, yes?"
"He has," Stasia confirms, stepping in the room a little further. She waits to say anything else until the eavesdroppers have left. "He was most cordial." She knows Gregori must have made reports and doesn't believe for a second that Aro wasn't getting regular updates. But she lets that go. It's not important. "I needed some time."
"Understandable." Aro closes the laptop and pulls it toward him, then gestures to a chair. "Please, sit. If you have come back, it certainly must mean you've had some time to look at our…situation with a new perspective. And, I do hope, it also means you're ready to become a larger force in this investigation." An eyebrow is lifted as the words lightly roll off his lips, almost suggestions moreso than they are orders in disguise.
"It may be more time yet, before I am able to look at it as you do, my lord." Stasia says quietly, sliding into the indicated chair. She's still hurting, of course. "But there are other things more important." A pause. "I spoke to Abbey."
Aro considers Stasia's response. Someone with as much perspective as he does on life sometimes finds it difficult to understand how the younger ones can linger on feelings and emotions so long, but he is not without empathy, and he nods thoughtfully. "I see." As she sits, he smiles gently. "Ah, yes? And she made her decision not to help us, yes?" His hand strokes his chin thoughtfully.
"She said she'd help -me-. And only me. But she will not fight her own people." Stasia's tone is more businesslike. "She said that she couldn't see any of the Children of the Moon attacking the Volturi. It would risk extinction. So it stands to reason that if a few, perhaps a pack, were behind it, they have some reason to believe they can finish it. Like allies. Or perhaps this attack was a demonstration of power to secure an alliance, I don't know." She pauses, "I can probably convince Kai to help also, along those same lines. They've been attacked by vampires and there have been other attacks upon vampires. I heard the Cullens were attacked by a werewolf."
"Only help you?" Aro laughs softly. "Ah, the power of kindness." He's referring to Abbey's earlier imprisonment and Stasia's treatment of her. "We sometimes forget that is it the most powerful of all! And yet we wage on with the war…" A certain thoughtfulness strikes his expression as he eyes the phone, perhaps considering a disagreement with his own brothers. "Anyway. This Kai, he is in her pack? A pack that, as I know of, has become rather small. Still, we can use her allegiance to you to our advantage. She can perhaps obtain information for us."
Stasia nods, "Kai is one of hers subordinants, yes. She has at least one other, but I'm afraid I might have to send his hide to Caius for a Christmas present." There's a trace of her dry humor again. "As to Abbey, she and I understand one another. We've fought side by side before. She says she won't fight her own people and I won't ask her to, but…" She shrugs. "Hard to say what would happen under the right circumstances. At the very least, yes, I think we can get information from her. She wants the war ended and I've implied that it will end, once we find and punish those responsible." Her head cants to the side. "What happened to Aset?"
"We cannot, however, guarentee her safety. You should know that, and so she should. It is her punishment to wear for not agreeing to help us and breaking the contract," Aro manages sternly after he digests the information from Stasia. He shifts in his chair, placing his hands in a steeple position on the table. "But any information we can obtain from her would be appreciated. Aset? Ah. He ran from Volterra, he's a fugitive, I suppose. Once the war broke up, he fled." There is a shrug. "Signs of guilt, if you ask me."
Stasia considers this. "He /did/ like explosives." she reasons, but she's not sure. That would be an awfully big step for him to make and the Volturi had kept their end of the bargain. "Do we know exactly what was used and was any of it tracable?"
Aro nods. "Indeed. We didn't forget about his TNT incident. Still, he was in Volterra at the time. The actual murderers would have had to have contacted him through mail… and we were watching it all." He doesn't seem terribly convinced. "The explosives? They weren't traceable," he says minimally, waving a hand. "You've dealt with the wolves. I want you to continue speaking with Abbey, but in the meantime… perhaps you should visit our neighbors in La Push. Try and convince them that the Children of the Moon are something to fear, if you catch my drift."
Stasia nods again, "I understand. I don't have any contacts in La Push, but I will try." she seems disappointed that there was nothing that could be traced. But then, if the bombers were good, they'd cover their tracks well.
"Be prepared for much hostility. Our kind isn't even allowed on their lands," Aro notes, moving to a stand, his chair scraping lightly against the carpet behind him as he rises. "Do you have any other questions? Or… comments?" She shifts his weight. "And do you need a place to stay?" His room is certainly open, but he'll leave that comment to the wayside for now.
Stasia rises smoothly to her feet. She did catch the nuance of his question and it's clear that some part of her really, really does want to accept it. But the hurt is still too raw. "I can't." she murmurs softly, barely audible even by vampire standards. "I want to. But I'm not able to look at the situation like you can, yet." If allowed, she stands on tiptoe to brush her lips gently against his chin, a gesture tinged with sadness and regret.
The brush of Stasia's lips catches the leader slightly off guard — he stiffens, but then relaxes quite suddenly, his arms itching to move around her shoulders. Instead, just one hand pats her shoulder with a gentle assurance before he turns away. "A room — of your own — is still reserved for you on the second floor, if you should so elect to stay here. Otherwise, please keep in contact. Demetri and Corin have arrived; I have begun to task Demetri with overtaking operations here. It is my wish to return home, if I can."
Stasia nods, taking a step back as he turns away. For her, that was a pretty forward gesture. She would usually wait for him to come to her, or invite the contact. "I spoke to Demetri last night," she comments quietly. Then, "Safe journey, when you return." She knows she won't be going back to Volterra anytime soon.
"We shall see exactly /when/ it is I may be returning," Aro responds, somewhat irked. "It may be awhile yet." With than, he flicks his hair back over his shoulder, collects the laptop on the tabletop, and turns toward the opening to the lobby. "I'm very glad to have you back, Stasia," Aro says sincerely, looking at her levelly before walking out and heading upstairs.
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