Aro

Aro is one of three vampires who lead the Volturi. He is widely accepted as the overall leader of the Volturi, and possesses the gift of tactile telepathy, the supernatural talent to ascertain the thoughts of a person with a single touch. Michael Sheen has been cast to play Aro in the film adaptation of the series. Approximately a decade after having been transformed into a vampire, Aro also changed his sister Didyme, with hope that she would... more

Aro is one of three vampires who lead the Volturi. He is widely accepted as the overall leader of the Volturi, and possesses the gift of tactile telepathy, the supernatural talent to ascertain the thoughts of a person with a single touch. Michael Sheen has been cast to play Aro in the film adaptation of the series. Approximately a decade after having been transformed into a vampire, Aro also changed his sister Didyme, with hope that she would posses an ability akin to his. However, she was blessed with an ability not as useful to him; the power to make people happy. Aro's colleague Marcus fell in love with her, and she with him. However, Marcus and Didyme eventually became discontent being involved with Aro's rising organization, the Volturi. In order to prevent their leaving, Aro killed Didyme: Marcus was too integral to his plans to lose. Aro then had Chelsea use her ability to ensure Marcus remained loyal to the Volturi. By 500 AD, the Volturi had usurped control of the vampiric world from the Romanian Coven. Aro ruled the Volturi, along with Marcus and Caius, although he generally acted as its' spokesperson. The Volturi, under the three ancients' leadership, set down the laws of the vampire world and severely punished those who did not adhere to them. Carlisle Cullen came to live with the Volturi for some time, and became close friends with Aro. However, Aro was alarmed at Carlisle's preference to "vegetarianism", and believed that this would only weaken him over time. Carlisle eventually left to find other vampires like himself. At one point, Edward Cullen, one of Carlisle's adopted children, comes to the Volturi. Edward was deeply depressed because he believed his love, Bella Swan, had committed suicide, and as such was himself suicidal. Aro is interested in Edward’s talents, and tries to recruit him to join the Volturi instead, saying it would be a waste to kill him. He later meets Bella, after she and Alice prevent Edward's suicide attempt. He is both surprised and intrigued in Bella's ability to block Edward's powers, and even more intrigued when she resists his and Jane's powers. He allows Edward to take Bella back to Forks only after Alice shows him that Bella will eventually be transformed into a vampire. When an army of newborns begin to run rampant in Seattle, Aro sends Jane, Felix, Demetri, and two unknowns to 'deal with the newborns'. In fact, Edward notes that by delaying his company, Aro may want to let the newborns decrease the Cullens' numbers. Sometime after Bella is transformed, she receives a necklace from Aro, supposedly from the English crown jewels. Alice had mailed the Volturi an announcement for Bella and Edward's wedding, and Aro in return sends Bella the necklace as a wedding gift. It is described as being extremely large and ostentatious. Sometime later, Irina, a vampire from the Denali Coven, comes to Volterra to inform the Volturi that the Cullens had created an Immortal Child. In response to this breach of their laws, the Volturi gathered the entire guard together (including the wives) and set out for Forks to destroy the Cullens. Aro, meanwhile, intends to use the situation to try and force Edward and Alice into joining the Volturi. less