36. Bloodlust

Chapter Synopsis

The cloaked Volturi float in gracefully, moving as one dark unbroken shape at “the pace of the invincible,” whatever that means. They show no emotion — no surprise or dismay at finding a large group of spraklepires (and one werewolf) waiting for them in the snowy clearing. Bella uses her speshul counting skills to note that there are 32 of them.

But as the disciplined Volturi come to a stop in the clearing and spread out into a formation, dozens more vampires begin entering the clearing behind them — an angry mob not even trying to hide their emotions. Clearly they want to see the Cullens brought to justice for creating an immortal child. Irina is in the mob, looking distraught at the sight of her sisters standing on the opposing front line.

Edward snarls and says that “Alastair was right.” The Volturi have indeed come to destroy AND acquire. In case Irina’s claims prove to be false, Aro and Caius have planned to find some other reason to start a glitter-filled battle. But, now that they can see Renesmee, they’re confident in their course of action.

But suddenly the Volturi ranks stop, and Bella realizes it’s because the rest of the wolves have come into the clearing. There are more werewolves than at last count — 17 total now, including Jacob. And Bella realizes how many of them must be barely even teenagers. She is suddenly furious that children should have to die for this. Her murderous rage takes over, and suddenly she’s seeing red and feeling positively giddy about the idea of getting to rip off some Volturi limbs and then dance manically around their funeral pyres. (Weirdo.)

At the center of the stalled Volturi ranks, Aro and Caius are holding hands and conversing silently. Aro is scanning the opposing sparklepires, and Bella can read the disappointment in his filmy eyes when he discovers that Alice is missing. Bella takes the lull to growl a bit, and scope out Alec and Jane.

Edward informs his group that the Volturi aren’t sure how to proceed now. They’re weighing their options, choosing key targets, and Marcus is testing out the bonds between them all, looking for ones that can be broken. They’re bothered by the Romanians, wary of the long Amazons, and worried about the wolves. Since they don’t count their witnesses in their numbers, the Volturi find themselves outnumbered. Carlizzle takes the opportunity to speak.

He takes a few steps into no man’s land, greeting Aro as his BFF. Aro, too, steps forward, asking Carlizzle why he’s acting so friendly when he’s assembled a force to kill Aro’s “dear ones.” Carlizzle assures Aro that there’s no intent to kill anyone, and that the crime the Volturi have come to punish does not exist. Caius gets all huffy and is all, “We see the kid, dumbass,” but Carlizzle begs them to look closer and see that she’s part human.

Caius, pissed off, pulls Irina forward from the crowd and bitch slaps her across the face. Then he asks if Renesmee is the child she saw weeks earlier. Irina pauses; she isn’t sure. This child looks bigger. Aro steps in to stop Cauis from hitting Irina again, asking him not to be “hasty.” (What are we, Treebeard now?) Aro takes Irina’s hand and sees her thoughts, and agrees that the child has grown since Irina first saw her. Carlizzle offers Aro his hand again for an explanation, but Aro wants the story from a more central source — he wants it from Edward.

Edward walks forward toward Aro, and the red haze in Bella’s vision “flames brighter.” When Jane smirks, Bella’s had it. She flings her shield out into the clearing like a javelin, where it hovers like a “mushroom cloud of liquid steel.” Naturally, in this moment of need, Bella figures out how to let go and control her shield. She stretches the steely, mushroomy thing all the way across the clearing to envelope Edward, but pulls it back again so he can have his little powwow with Aro. It pains her to do so, but at least she knows she can protect him again if necessary. She knows, but nobody else does.

Edward and Aro hold hands for an uncomfortably long time, Aro gaining all the knowledge and thoughts from Edward’s pretty little head. Bella growls some more. Aro eventually pulls back, slightly awed and amused, and asks to meet Renesmee. Caius objects, but Aro tells him the crime they came to punish does not exist, and that he should “ponder” what to do next (i.e. think about other reasons to destroy the Cullens) while Aro meets the kid.

Edward and Aro (accompanied by Felix and Demetri) meet Bella, Renesmee, Jacob and Emmett in the middle of the field. Bella makes sure to keep those behind her shielded (this time describing her shield as a “cape”), but presents Renesmee to Aro when he asks. Aro’s positively smitten with Baby and the implications of her existence. He assures her he won’t hurt her friends, but a hiss from Edward and Maggie (the vampy lie-detector) suggest otherwise.

After letting Renesmee share her thoughts with him, Aro takes a keen interest in the werewolves. Edward, reading his thoughts, assures him that the wolves are “loyal” to the Cullens because they are committed to protecting human life, not because they follow orders. Apparently Aro is considering some guard dogs for his dear ones. Woof.

Aro ends the exchange by noting that he has “much to discuss” with his brothers. Boo discussion. We want action.

Best Worst Lines

“They came with pageantry, with a kind of beauty.”

“Their progress was slow but deliberate, with no hurry, no tension, no anxiety. It was the pace of the invincible.”   (Do they have their own theme song, too?)

“I supposed I should have foreseen this. With so many vampires encamped in the neighborhood, a werewolf population explosion was inevitable.”

“Abruptly, I was furious. Beyond furious, I was murderously enraged. My hopeless despair vanished entirely. A faint reddish glow highlighted the dark figures in front of me, and all I wanted in that moment was the chance to sink my teeth into them, to rip their limbs from their bodies and pile them for burning. I was so maddened I could have danced around the pyre where they roasted alive; I would have laughed while their ashes smoldered. My lips curved back automatically, and a low, fierce snarl tore up my throat from the pit of my stomach. I realized the corners of my mouth were turned up in a smile.”

“My muscles flexed, and venom welled in my mouth.”   (That must be unpleasant.)

“The red haze I saw around the Volturi army flamed brighter than before. I could not bear to watch Edward cross the empty white space alone — but I also could not endure to have Renesmee one step closer to our adversaries. The opposing needs tore at me; I was frozen so tightly it felt like my bones might shatter from the pressure of it.”

“I could taste madness on my tongue — I felt it flow through me like a tidal wave of pure power. My muscles tightened, and I acted automatically. I threw my shield with all the force in my mind, flung it across the impossible expanse of the field — ten times my best distance — like a javelin.”

“The shield blew out from me in a bubble of sheer energy, a mushroom cloud of liquid steel.” (690)

“Both were tall and dark-haired, Demetri hard and lean as the blade of a sword, Felix hulking and menacing as an iron-spiked cudgel.”

Things That Really Irk Us

Blah blah blah, talk talk talk. Ugh, why is this so slow and painful? WHERE IS THE ACTION?

The fact that, magically, Bella masters her speshul power at the last minute, flinging her shield over everyone on her side without them knowing. Convenient. Very convenient.

All of the unnecessary similes and metaphors used in this chapter. Throwing invisible shields like javelins, comparing said shields to mushroom clouds of liquid steel, describing other sparklepires as hulking iron-spiked cudgels. … Seriously, please stop, SMeyer. We are bothered.

Final Thoughts

So… no battle? Goddamnit, what’s the point??

Go to Chapter 37.