Chapter Text
“You idiotic boy!” The man roared, the forest floor shaking at the noise, “do you know what you’ve done?!”
“I’m sorry master!” The boy replied, voice wobbling. He prostrated himself at the man’s feet to try and quell the man’s rage. The same tactic had worked for the boy before, but the man’s fury seemed only to increase. He snarled, lips curling and eyes blackening in anger. He grabbed the boy’s neck and slammed him into the boulder. Cracks appeared around the man’s grip on his neck, scrawling towards his face. The man hissed, venom spitting into the boy’s face, “You set the Volturi on us.”
The boy’s eyes filled with venom as his lips quivered. His gaze was glued to his master, no matter how he wished to look away or shut his eyes - it would only be worse. The man slammed the boy into the boulder again, more cracks forming on the boy’s neck as the rock crumbled around them. The boy scratched at his hands, attempting to relieve the pressure around his neck. His master was never this furious before - not even when he tore his hands from his arms or threw humans gushing blood in front of him as he was forbidden to feed. He was angry then, yes, but never like this - never this furious and fearful. Will he die here? Just as the man started to tear the boy’s head from his body, a child’s whimper floated through the clearing.
The man looked over towards the direction it came from, his expression suddenly full of concern. A toddler with brown curls and red eyes waddled into the clearing, cheeks puffed and venom pooled in its eyes. If it was still human, their face would have been red and blotchy, but it stayed the same perfect porcelain.
“Oh, sweetheart,” the man cooed, releasing the boy as he rushed towards the toddler, kneeling and patting her head, “what is wrong? What does papa need to do?”
“Papa!” The little girl wailed, “The fishies won’t stay! They all leave! Make them stay!”
“Sweetie, I can’t make the fish stay. They run from movement of other creatures.” The man replied, amusement mixing with the concern on his face.
The girl screamed louder, the pitch high enough to cause the other vampires in the clearing to wince at the sound. “Make them stay!” She repeated.
“Alright, alright, sweetie,” the man cooed, “calm down. Let’s go to the fishies and papa will make them stay, okay?”
The tantrum stopped suddenly, now that the toddler got what they wanted. They reached their arms up to the man in the universal sign of wanting to be held. The man scooped the toddler up, pressing kisses onto her face, before rounding back on the boy he was threatening earlier.
“You,” he growls, eyes boring into the boy cowering where he was left, “stay here. I’ll deal with you later.” The man and the toddler left, running towards the largest river in the area.
Is this his chance? The boy thought as the man left his range of hearing. Could he run away now? Find the man he met yesterday - the one he inadvertently told about the child his master was caring for and the reason why his master was furious with him - and ask if he could help. Run away, find freedom from his master? If he waits, he will die. His master was far more furious than he had ever been before.
He strained his senses, seeing if the man was in range again. He wasn’t, which meant that he was most definitely not in his master’s range - his senses were stronger. He would be gone for a while, wouldn’t he? Even as a vampire, it would be difficult to successfully corral fish just because the child asked him to. He could run - he will run. He ran.
———————
The boy ran towards the spot he met the other man the day before, hoping he would still be there. He must, he didn’t know what to do or where to go if he wasn’t - nothing besides continuing to run so his master couldn’t find him.
Eventually, he reached the spot - an unoriginal copse of trees and mossy boulders near a small, gurgling brook. He wasn’t here. The boy couldn’t sense him anywhere nearby. Why wasn’t he here? He said if the boy ever needed him, he would be here so why wasn’t he? Did he get abandoned, or did his master already get to the man?
Was he never going to get away?
Was his master going to kill him? Is that his fate? And if he continues to run, the Volturi will surely catch him. He’s heard that they are unmerciful even to those who broke minor laws, or where only tangentially involved in situations. Surely they would kill him as well.
Perhaps the man is just late? Or - maybe he’s hunting in the town. He just needs to wait a bit for him. The boy found a little nook in the roots of a tree, and curled up in the space, hugging his knees to his chest. He must come. He wouldn’t leave him - he didn’t know why, but he was certain the man wouldn’t leave. The boy started to cry, viscous, silvery fluid running down his face to drip onto the ground. He waited, silent sobs wracking his body.
It felt like an eternity passed when he heard someone ask quietly, “Emery?”
The boy supposed he wasn’t paying attention to his surroundings, as he should have heard whoever it was as they approached. At least it didn’t sound like his master. He looked up towards the voice. “Marcus?” He whispered, his voice nearly inaudible. “I thought you weren’t going to come.”
Marcus paused when he saw the tears flowing down Emery’s face, but immediately softened at the soft, teary tone of his voice. “Oh, caro ragazzo, you needn’t think such things.” Marcus reached out to Emery, pulling him into his lap as he settled in the nook himself. His fingers ran through the long hair down Emery’s back, unknotting it as he hummed, soothing the still crying boy. “I will always be here when you need me.” He promised. “Now, il mio bambino, whatever has you so upset?”
Emery turned his face away, ashamed of his tears. This made the still-healing cracks on his neck to appear before the man. Marcus’s eyes darkened as he traced one of the cracks with his finger. “Who did this?” He asked, suppressing a growl and infusing his voice with calm - it wouldn’t do to scare off Emery with his question.
Emery looked back at him, surprised at his actions. He blushed as he looked back down, missing the shocked expression flitting across Marcus’s face. “It’s nothing. It will heal soon.”
Marcus pursed his lips, unamused at the non-reply. He gave up having this question answered for the time being and let out a sigh. Going back to his first question, he asked again, “What has you upset, Emery?”