“There’s no need to be sorry,” Jane said with a small smile. “We each had our trials to preoccupy us. But it’s over now, so let us put it behind us.” The last couple of the weeks had been awful, and it was a comfort to know that Corin still held her in the same regard, even after everything that had occurred. Of course, her friend didn’t know anything, and Jane did not intend on telling her.
It was strange, to think that she had been through so much, and Corin did not know, but it was a pleasant strangeness. It was good that someone was not involved in what happened – she could keep her utter disgrace and her shame away from Corin.
Of course, she knew that her friend deserved to know, and her friend should know. Everyone in the Volturi should have known that Jane had been disloyal to them, that she had disgraced them. But she couldn’t bring herself to tell her friend. As much as she knew it was her duty to, as much as she knew she should, she did not.
The news that magic had returned to the world, that the curse was the doing of a witch, gave Jane pause. The only outward sign that she was surprised by the information was a slight raising of her eyebrows, but, inside, her thoughts came in a tangled mess. Aro must have known. He had told Corin. He had not told her. Of course he hadn’t.
She said, “Oh.” She looked at Corin, and decided not to reply to the comment about Aro not informing her. It was clear enough that he hadn’t. “Do you know what that entails, exactly? I do not know much about magic.” Her tone was different now, to the friendly one she had used before. Now her voice was cold and businesslike.
It felt like it had been far more than a week of suffering. Corin remembered the entire thing akin to a fever dream, she could hardly believe the way she had behaved. Her skin crawled with shame, but she comforted herself that only Sulpicia and Chelsea had seen her at her worst. Aro would find out about the taxi driver soon, but he didn’t often use his gift on her or Chelsea. Her most dreadful secret would remain such. “I’m sure you handled your trials with ease,” she said, confident that Jane was much stronger than she could ever hope to be.
But there was something in her tone, something off. Not sorrow, just a quiet disappointment of some kind. Corin was well-tuned to the feelings of the other Volturi, even those she saw only briefly. Her ability and her natural intuitiveness made her quite adept at interpreting their emotions. Others were more skilled, of course, but she knew Jane well. Something was wrong. She knew it.
“Nor do I. Aro had many pressing worries, he only had a moment to tell me,” Corin admitted, following Jane’s lead though she kept her tone warm and genial. If she wanted to find out what was bothering Jane, asking directly would do little. Jane would shut down. If they approached the problem slowly, she might get an answer.
“What I understand is the original witch shared her power, and then when magic ran too rampant in the world -- when our kind were growing in number and power -- she bound it. Kept it limited, so fewer of us would develop powers. And then, when she and enough descendants of the originals were all gathered in one place -- the curse was broken. Aro’s been seeking all he could find, but....” she trailed off, unable to find a way to say he’d failed. She straightened up. “The world’s adjusted to having magic in it again. We shan’t feel so ill again, it’s passed for good. Which is a small blessing, I suppose.”
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