Author's Note: I wrote this story in response to a challenge from darthistar: Write Alice's and Jasper's arrival from Carlisle's POV. This story is the result. I hope you enjoy!

I'm indebted to Katiebug5 for letting use a cameo of Margaret and Frank from her story "The Language of the Blood." If you haven't read it, you're missing out. :)

When the doorbell rang, it surprised me, but it wasn't cause for alarm. Humans rarely wandered out to our house, but occasionally some traveling salesman or another stopped by. I placed a bookmark in my collection of Mark Twain's short stories and then Esme yelped in alarm.

Our kind!

Dashing to the living-room, I arrived in time to see a tall, blond male wrench what looked like a female vampire-child off my wife's neck. Before I could speak a word, though, a deep serenity filled me. This pair meant no harm. I raised an eyebrow at the thought. More likely, one of them was talented.

Rosalie still stood with her hand on the front door-knob, staring at the intruders in amazement, while Esme, still seated at the typewriter, took a slow, steadying breath. Keeping my eyes on the vampire couple in the middle of the room, I sidled around to Esme. "I'm fine," she said calmly.

"Knock it off, Jasper," the little female chimed, bouncing on her tiptoes excitedly. She was slight, under five feet, with an almost boyish cut of hair. "You're ruining the moment."

"No," the male called Jasper answered softly, glancing from me to Rosalie to Esme with wary eyes. Wary tawny eyes! "I'm trying to keep them from attacking you."

"Pshaw!" the little one scoffed. "Them?" She bent to pick up a scattered collection of gift-wrapped boxes. "Emmett might have been a problem, but that's part of why we waited. I'd have to take Carlisle's arm off before he'd do anything violent." Handing her stack of gifts to her companion, the little one took the top box and gracefully skipped over to me.

She solemnly passed me the present then met my gaze, her golden eyes bright. "I've waited for as long as I can remember to meet you, Carlisle. We've been looking for you for years."

I searched her eyes and found nothing but delight there. I'd never met her, never so much as heard rumor of her, and apparently she knew us intimately. "Who are you?"

Her laughter sparkled. "I'm Alice."

"How do you know us?" Rosalie demanded, drifting to take a defensive stance beside Esme and me. "And how long have you been spying on us?"

Indeed. And how did they get close enough to watch us without us detecting them by sight or scent, not to mention Edward?

Alice laughed again, and the tension in the room dissipated. The male visibly relaxed. "It's a rather long story," he said.

"I have time," I answered evenly.

"Not enough of it," Alice cut in. "Doctor Harrison's wife undercooked their chicken. You'll need to cover his shift tonight."

"How..."

"Open the present," Alice interrupted. "Things will make more sense, then."

I met Esme's gaze, and she shrugged, so I pulled open the wrapping paper to reveal a cloth-bound copy of H.G. Well's The Time Machine.

"It's an autographed, first edition," she added proudly.

I stared at the title, lightly tracing the imprinting as I absorbed its significance. I was immensely pleased that, when I spoke, my voice was steady. "Do you mean to say you're a time traveler?"

"In a way," Alice answered. "I see things. Possibilities."

"The future," Jasper clarified.

"I saw you," she continued excitedly. "I don't know what happened before I became a vampire; I have no memory of my human life. The first thing I can remember was Jasper's face. The second was yours."

I was utterly speechless. Even three hundred years' experience didn't prepare me for a revelation like that. I stole a glance at Esme again, and she and Rosalie were openly staring at Alice. Jasper, however, was grinning widely.

"Oh! Here! These are for you," Alice said, breaking the awe-struck silence. Taking the next two boxes from her companion, she distributed them. "Esme. Rosalie."

"You first," Esme said to her daughter.

Still glancing curiously at Alice, Rosalie sat down on the couch and unwrapped her present to reveal a clothing gift-box. So far, the self-proclaimed psychic was doing well. Rosalie slit the tape with a fingernail and lifted the lid. White satin shimmered with intricate bead-work and seed-pearls. Rosalie lifted the garment and rose to her feet, holding it in front of her and appraising it with an expert eye. It was a wrap-around knee-length dress with spaghetti straps. "Is this...?"

"A Ciel Chapman," Alice all but squealed. "I wanted to give you something from Paris, but shipping takes so long and I wasn't sure when we would find you, and I couldn't give you something off of last year's runway. But I thought that if she was good enough for Marylin Monroe, she'd be passable for you."

Rosalie's smile was eloquent as she held the dress up against her; Alice had obviously won her over.

"Go try it on," Esme encouraged with a laugh. "I can wait."

Rosalie dashed up to her bedroom, and Alice called after her, "The shoes you bought last August will match it perfectly!"

Every time Alice said something like that, revealing how well she knew us, I felt a little prickle at the base of my skull. Her talent was uncanny and not a little unnerving, even after living with Edward for so long. Edward's abilities were limited by ours. He could only perceive us in the present moment. Alice could apparently see everything.

Jasper smiled at Esme and me. "I know you have a thousand questions. Your curiosity is making me itch."

"Pardon?" Esme's eyebrows arched in surprise. "You're talented, as well?"

He ducked his head slightly. "My gift isn't anywhere near as impressive as Alice's. I can sense others' feelings."

"And influence them?" I guessed, my inexplicable serenity making sense now.

Jasper nodded. "I apologize for earlier. I don't like to be manipulative, but when a situation is dangerous... Well, I'm sure you can understand."

"Yes," I smiled. "I do. But Alice was right. We had no intention of harming you."

He grinned suddenly. "You didn't."

"I heard that," Rosalie quipped, strutting into the room. The dress was splendid on her as she struck several catwalk poses. "So what do you think?"

"It's almost as beautiful as you, dear," Esme laughed. "Emmett will love it."

"Yes," Alice agreed. "He will."

That prickle again. "How does this work, your... sight?" If I understood it a bit better, perhaps it wouldn't seem so eerie.

"I have visions. At first they came randomly, snatches of actions and words. Over time, I learned how to summon the vision I wanted. And I can only see forward," she added, answering the question I was about to ask.

Esme seemed to be as unnerved as I. "How long have you been watching us?"

Alice's eyes danced. "Open your present."

Apparently none of these were random gifts, and I glanced curiously at the two packages still in Jasper's hands – Edward's and Emmett's.

Esme's package was tiny, and I correctly guessed it was a jewelry box. She opened the satin lid to reveal a golden locket. Holding it by the chain, she slowly lifted it from the box, her eyes wide.

"Open it," Alice encouraged, a smug smile on her lips.

Inside was a sepia of a man and woman, his arm around her shoulder. An inscription opposite the picture said, "Love you forever." Esme became still as stone and stared at the picture for several minutes. By her reaction, I almost thought it was a picture of her former husband, but the woman in the picture wasn't Esme. They looked enough alike that they could have passed for sisters, though.

"Where did you find this?" she finally breathed.

"At a pawn shop in Indianapolis in 1939. She didn't part with it willingly."

"Who?" Rosalie demanded.

"Margaret," Esme whispered, still drinking in the image in the locket. "It's her, and her husband Frank." Tearing her gaze away from picture, Esme looked at Alice in awe. "I was still human, then, when Margaret came to my rescue."

"I was still learning how to use my talent, but I had flashes of you. Carlisle was part of my future, so you were, too. I recognized her in the photo."

"Is she still – "

"I'm not sure. Humans are harder to see. I can try, though."

Was she planning on holding a séance or whatever right here and now? The image of us seated around an occult, candle-lit table holding hands and chanting was too ridiculous to consider. To my relief, she merely closed her eyes, her face going still. After a moment, she opened them again. "It will take some time, I'm afraid." She grinned at me then. "But our time is up."

The phone rang.

This time the prickle crept over the top of my scalp to my hairline. I picked up the receiver. "Cullen residence, Carlisle speaking."

"Hi Carlisle, it's Len. I hate to do this to you on your day off, but John Harrison has food poisoning. Would you be able to cover the first half of his shift tonight?"

I knew every other person in the room could hear my boss as clearly as I could. "That won't be a problem, Len. I can be there in half an hour."

"Thanks, Carlisle. See you then."

"Bye."

"Don't worry," Alice said after the connection cut on the other end. "You'll beat Edward and Emmett home." Her smile widened. "Because you don't want to miss them opening their presents."

I dropped the receiver back into its place, still more than a little stunned. "I'm sure I don't."