Aro

"I haven't seen a prospective talent so promising since we found Jane and Alec. Can you imagine the possibilities when she is one of us?"

Aro is one of three vampires who lead the Volturi - the leader coven of the vampire world. He is widely accepted as the overall leader of the Volturi, and possesses the gift of tactile telepathy, the supernatural talent to read all the thoughts and memories a person has ever had with a single touch. He is the husband of Sulpicia and the brother of Didyme. He uses Chelsea to change the loyalties of vampires he wants to join his coven.

Early life
Approximately a decade after having been transformed into a vampire, Aro changed his sister Didyme, in the hope that she would possess an ability related 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. In order to prevent their leaving the Volturi, Aro killed Didyme: Marcus was too integral to his plans to lose. Aro had Chelsea use her ability to ensure Marcus remained loyal to the Volturi, and Marcus never found out the truth.

By 500 AD, the Volturi had usurped control of the vampire world from the Romanian Coven. Along with Marcus and Caius, Aro ruled the Volturi, although he generally acted as its spokesperson. The Volturi, under the three ancients' leadership, set down the laws of the vampire world and punished those who did not follow them, as it posed the threat of discovery of Vampire world.

By the comment Carlisle Cullen made in Breaking Dawn about the necklace which Bella received from Aro, it can be assumed that he is in the habit of collecting items from different eras.

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 of "vegetarianism" and believed that this would only weaken him over time. Carlisle eventually left to find other vampires like himself. Aro became heartened when he saw Carlisle did not weaken over time as he had believed originally and, although he did not share them, Aro respected his friend's ways.

New Moon
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 ability to read minds from a distance, 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 succeeds in blocking his and Jane's powers. He allows Edward to take Bella back to Forks after Alice shows him in a vision that Bella will eventually be transformed into a vampire, which fascinates him.

In New Moon, Alice allows Aro to touch her, therefore reading her mind, so he can see the vision of the future she has had of Bella as a vampire. It is described by Edward that Aro searches through not only the vision of Bella, but much more, delving deeply into Alice's mind so he ends up "knowing her better than she knows herself." He is described as seeming "enthralled" and "delighted" by her talent, and Edward mentions in Breaking Dawn that there's nothing Aro wants more than Alice's power.

Eclipse
When an army of newborns begin to run a killing spree in Seattle, Aro sends Jane, Felix, Demetri, and two unknown vampires to 'deal with the newborns'. In fact, Edward notes that by delaying his company, it was speculated that Aro may have wanted to let the newborns decrease the Cullens' numbers, however this is more likely Caius as Aro deeply values his friendship with Carlisle and since he values Alice and Edward's powers so highly it stands to reason that Aro would never have risked them in such a fashion.

Breaking Dawn
Some time after Bella and Edward's wedding, Bella receives a necklace from Aro. 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 ostentatious with a very large jewel, and is said to have been part of the English crown jewels.

Still some time 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.

When the Volturi arrive, they are shocked to discover what they believe to be a vampire army that the Cullens have assembled to oppose them, furthering Aro's belief they'd created an immortal child. Carlisle, however, is able to talk to Aro and offer his hand, saying that it was never his intent. Aro, to his credit, is willing to listen and is relieved to discover that Carlisle's 'army' are in fact witnesses. Bella also describes Aro "scanning the crowd" as though searching for a certain face - most likely Alice's - and Bella feels suddenly glad Alice isn't with them after all. The Volturi notice the line of werewolves behind Carlisle's witnesses. In his usual fashion, Aro acts as speaker for the Volturi. After reading Edward's mind and learning about Renesmee, the so-called immortal child, Aro is both astounded and delighted to discover that she is actually half human. He is also amused at the idea of having the werewolves, whom he believed were the Cullens' pets, as guard dogs. Unfortunately, the angry snarls from the wolves inform him that it would never happen.

Incensed at their defiance of the Volturi, Caius declares that Renesmee has to be killed, despite Aro's attempts to keep the encounter from turning violent, while Marcus is content to allow the child to live. Realizing Bella's mental shield rendered all the Volturi's powers useless, Aro knows they are at a huge disadvantage and has to do some fast and serious smooth talking to prevent the situation form turning for the worse. Soon after, Alice and Jasper show up with another vampire half-breed named Nahuel. The knowledge that there are other half-breeds in the world heartened Aro and he was relieved to realize Renesmee would pose no threat. The Volturi left with their confidence somewhat shaken. Edward knows the Volturi (especially Caius) see them as a threat and expects them to try to pick them off one by one later. Aro desperately wants Edward, Alice and Bella to join the Volturi, but in the end, he is genuinely saddened to lose Carlisle's friendship and hopes to regain it, and he's relieved that is all he lost; Aro is fully aware that the outcome could have been a great deal worse.

Though his coven have left the Cullens in peace, they expect that they will someday attempt to take them out in the name of revenge.

Physical appearance
"His skin was translucently white, like onionskin, and it looked just as delicate—it stood in shocking contrast to the long black hair that framed his face. I felt a strange, horrifying urge to touch his cheek, to see if it was softer than Edward's or Alice's, or if it was powdery, like chalk. His eyes were red, the same as the others around him, but the color was clouded, milky; I wondered if his vision was affected by the haze."

- Bella on seeing Aro for the first time

Aro is described as having almost translucent skin, and throughout the series it is repeatedly compared to onion skin. When Bella first meets him, she feels compelled to touch his skin to verify if it is smooth and cold like Edward's or powdery like chalk. His hair is very long and jet black. When he moves, it appears as though he's floating. His eyes are a milky red color that has a tendency to unsettle people.

Personality
Aro normally carries himself in a cheery disposition and has shown to be polite to the point of being at complete ease even in the most objectionable of situations. Beneath this facade of optimistic giddiness, he is power-hungry and highly manipulative. He finds Bella Swan's immunity to mental powers, including Jane's "pain" power, intriguing. After Bella becomes a vampire, he twice invites her to join the Volturi Guard, which she refuses both times. This upsets and surprises Aro, but does not infuriate him.

He holds power over everything and is willing to go to any length to secure his status, even if it means killing, as it happened with his sister Didyme to keep Marcus in the Volturi. As he states in New Moon, he sees himself and his kind as soulless monsters. This is one of the reasons he is so intrigued and touched by Carlisle, being the first vampire who is not, which gives him hope. Aro is also genuinely and deeply touched by Bella's love for Edward; whether he knows it or not, love is the thing he most wants. It is however unlikely he will receive it as long as he abuses his power.

He has shown himself to be an avid collector of vampires with powerful talents; if and when he finds a vampire with a special ability he sees as useful, he would attempt to recruit that vampire into the Volturi guard. Aro has shown to be relentless in attempting to recruit powerful vampires; even after a vampire would refuse his offer, he would still continue to invite that vampire, as demonstrated in his numerous attempts to get Edward and Alice as well as Bella to join the Volturi. He deeply believes that the Volturi is necessary for the survival of the vampire species, with its bylaws that hold secrecy of the existence of vampires to the utmost importance. Due to humanity's continuously advancing technological prowess to the point where there are already weapons in existence that can kill vampires, he speculates that it is only a matter of time before they create more devastating constructs that may be able to wipe out the entirety of vampire-kind on Earth.

Aro is very childlike in manner, being impatient and at times immature. He is also the most curious of the Volturi and is also the one with the most zeal. The Volturi do abuse their power, but when it boils down, Aro is afraid to lose that power and will do whatever it takes to protect it, himself, his family and the whole vampire world. He is akin to a frightened child and does not feel safe without his Guard, sadly a common feeling amongst those who abuse their power. Aro is not a cruel person and, unlike Caius, will avoid a fight or killing if he can avoid it. It stands to reason that the Volturi are headed in a direction that leads to disaster, which is the last thing the Volturi would want.

Stephenie Meyer, when supervising the production of New Moon, told the director Chris Weitz, and Michael Sheen that she intended for Aro to seem a bit insane, quoting:

"After three thousand years, you start to go nuts. That is what was intended for Aro in the book, and I hope it's in the movie."

Tactile Telepathy
"You see, I share some of your brother's talent, only I am limited in a way that he is not." "And also exponentially more powerful."

- Aro and Edward on his gift.

Aro possesses the gift of "tactile telepathy", an ability that allows him to read people's minds; he can do it far more deeply than Edward Cullen, because he is capable of reading every thought a person has ever had. His power, however, is limited by his need to touch the subject. By reading Edward's mind, he can also access any mind Edward has ever read. And like Edward, he can access Alice's mind and experience the visions that she'd had.

Since his power is mental-based, it can be blocked by Bella's power to shield, something she has been able to do since she was human.

Relationships
Aro was the brother of Didyme, and is married to Sulpicia. He supposedly shares his status of "king" of the vampire world with Caius and Marcus, though he is in reality, the true leader of the Volturi. Due to Chelsea's binding powers, the guard have a slave-like adoration and devotion to Aro, whom they affectionately call, "Master".

Sulpicia
Sulpicia is Aro's wife, though the details of their relationship are unknown. However, the Romanians do point out in Breaking Dawn that they were together before Aro came to power. Meyer stated that she is untalented but he still made sure she is protected. In New Moon, Aro seemed to have an understanding of Edward and Bella's relationship which indicates he may feel the same way about her. During the confrontation in Breaking Dawn, she is protected and remains off to the side while Aro's valued guard members - like Jane and Alec - were up front. This indicates that she is more valued then his talented guard members.

Didyme
Didyme was Aro's biological sister. After a decade and a half of being a vampire, Aro changed Didyme in hopes of having a beneficial ability like his. Instead Didyme had the power to make everyone happy which everyone eventually came to love her. Along with them was Marcus, one of Aro's most trusted companion. Didyme also found herself falling in love with Marcus so they planned to leave the Volturi and travel the world. Enraged by their decision, Aro decides to kill Didyme whilst pretending he allowed their decision since Marcus' power was more valuable that his sister's ability. Using Chelsea's power, Marcus is subsequently bound to the Volturi.

Despite his actions, Aro cared for his sister and he felt guilty for killing her.

Carlisle Cullen
Aro values Carlisle friendship very much, and was concerned about his diet when Carlisle first entered his life. Carlisle is most likely Aro's only friend, and would not want anything to happen to him or his coven. Even though Aro has desired members of the Cullens, he would not give up their friendship to have them join him. It is the kindness that Carlisle showed him when he lived there, and being able to talk to him like an equal showed what a friend could be, and Aro is very sad to lose his friendship with Carlisle in Breaking Dawn and hopes to regain it. Despite his value of their friendship, he also looks at Carlisle and his coven as a threat because of their capabilities.

Film portrayal
Welsh actor Michael Sheen plays the role of Aro in the film New Moon. He will reprise his role as Aro in Breaking Dawn.

Appearances

 * Twilight (Mentioned only)
 * New Moon (First appearance)
 * New Moon (film)
 * Eclipse (Mentioned only)
 * Eclipse (film) (Mentioned only)
 * Breaking Dawn
 * Breaking Dawn - Part II