Alrighty, here goes! An AU Jasper/Alice fic, in which he is a member of the Cullen family and meets a still human Alice…a still human Alice whose blood he can hardly resist. In a sense, a retelling of Twilight, with different characters taking center stage. And obviously, as they are different characters, that changes everything. And don't worry, Edward is not alone. He has his beloved Bella with him. (did you think I could separate them? Never. ) This is set 90 years in the future, but for my purposes, things haven't really changed. Why? Because I don't want to get caught up thinking about what's futuristic, etc. So socially, technologically, etc., things are basically the same. And though I absolutely adore Nessie and originally intended to put her in this fic, I decided against it because practically, that fight couldn't have been won without Alice. So that's why there's no Nessie here, unfortunately.

Anyway, I own none of this. I'm just having the time of my life playing with it. : )

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Jasper

Of course, it was raining when we drove in. A fact made even more annoying by the fact that I was on my motorcycle. It was, honestly, my own stubborn fault. Emmett had offered to put it in the back of the jeep but I had refused, wanting a little space. Being stuck between him and Edward on a flight for 8 hours kind of drove me a little insane. Now, though, the rain was really coming down and I was following pretty close behind Carlisle's taillights. And almost regretting that I hadn't taken Emmett up on his offer. Almost.

The drive had become so overgrown over the last few years that it looked utterly abandoned, and really, that's what it had been. It had been 90 years since we had lived in Forks. Almost a hundred years since my brother had found his Bella in this tiny, rainy town. Carlisle had had some sort of fondness for it even before that, as they had been here before. Practically, the cloud cover really was the best we could hope for. All in all, a combination of reasons that just kept us coming back.

I pulled all the way up to our old garage building, easing the bike to stop just outside the door. The people we had hired to fix the place up a little before we arrived had done pretty well, but the signs of disuse were everywhere. The garage had been painted, but every entrance was overgrown with weeds and ferns. This had been the building to house my first Ducati, a present from Edward when he realized he didn't need it for himself. I had learned to love it then, and had stuck with the brand ever since. The sleek, silver bike I rode now was only two years old, still very young and healthy. And with Rose looking after it, it should be useful for quite awhile. Or until a faster model came out.

"Oh, it's so good to be home!" Bella's voice rang out from behind me, clear and brilliant. I could feel her happiness radiating from here, feel Edward's answering joy. Whatever made her happy made him happy. There was love intermixed in there as well, adding depth and dimension to the happiness. The same emotions radiated in at me from all sides. Edward and Bella. Emmett and Rosalie. Carlisle and Esme. Sighing, I twisted the keys in the ignition, listened to the bikes purr quiet under me.

"C'mon, Jazz, give me a hand!" Emmett, hauling Edward's piano out of the back of one of the moving vans. We had more than enough money to order them to bring the vans out and leave them until the next morning, that we would do the unloading ourselves. Everyone's lives were just much easier that way, as Esme couldn't bear to have movers touch our furniture. Heaven forbid they drop something priceless, some antique.

"Coming." I slipped off of the bike, strolled casually over to the back of the truck. Carlisle was pulling out one of the living room couches, smiling down at Esme, watching her drink the house in. 

Out of all the places we had lived, if we had a home, this truly was it. I slid in behind him, ducking under his arm to grab the other couch. "Looks good, huh, Carlisle?"

He turned that smile on me, widened it just a little. "Yes, it does. It's nice to be back in Forks." I nodded easily, tugged the piece of furniture easily up into my arms. It was nice, truly. And there was something wonderful about all the radiating love and happiness. I thrived on a good emotional climate, 99 of the time. But every now and then, being surrounded by lovers was just lonely. Very, very lonely. I mean, I seriously doubted anyone could ever understand my position. I had felt love, felt it with all the strength and power it could have a million times. But I had never been in love for myself, and that made it even worse. I knew how good it could feel, in theory. Knew also that if I was the one really feeling, that feeling would be a thousand times grander. Still, I had never been that lucky. Maybe I never would, and that was alright, honestly. I could be content like this. I had a family I loved, maybe it just wasn't in the cards for me to have a mate. Maybe I was the loner, always. That would be alright.

"I'll be back. I have to…to go see it. I just want to see how it's changed." I could feel the nostalgia in Bella, and I knew she was talking about Charlie's house, the house she had shared for a couple of years before joining our family.

"Bella, love, wait, I'll come with you." He edged away from the van and toward her, anxiety radiating from him.

Edward, don't. He loved her, but sometimes he really was dense. No matter how much you loved someone, there were some things you needed to do alone. Some things that required a little bit of space. This was her father's house she was going to see. Her dead father's house, no less. The kind of feelings associated with that were intensely private, and though she would have never turned him away, she'd feel much better going alone. It would be much better for her to get that out. "Come on, Edward, make yourself useful. Grab that dining room table." I mean it, Edward. She needs to do this, let her go.

He hesitated, muscles tensing. "Will you be alright without me?"

She flitted to his side, kissed his cheek gently. "Go help. I'll be fine. I won't be long."

When I came back out from placing the couch in the old living room Edward was in the truck, maneuvering the dining room table out from behind Emmett's basketball goal. "I hope you know what you're doing, Jasper. What if she gets upset and she needs me? What if-"

"She's going to be upset, and that's precisely why she doesn't need you, not right now. She needs to grieve, to feel part of her life that you weren't always part of. You need to give her that." He looked hurt, and a little lost and I could feel both from him as well. Without thinking I slid him warmth, a shot of the love I felt for him, my brother. I could see him ease up, if only a little. "She'll be fine. But she may need you when she comes home, just be there for her then. It's fine."

He nodded, distractedly. I could tell his mind was far from me, and I let it go. I snagged the mattress for Carlisle and Esme's bed, darting back into the house. If we hurried, we could get all moved in before night fell. We started school tomorrow, and I really wanted to go hunting, alone. A little break from all the overwhelming emotion. And besides, though I had learned over the years to have a good deal more control I was, as always, the most dangerous. Perhaps my history had forever scarred me in less physical ways, I couldn't be sure. Whatever the reasons, hunting well before that first day could never hurt.

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"Jasper Hale?"

"Here." And wishing I wasn't. You have no idea, lady, how much I wish I wasn't. I shifted back in my back row seat, my head falling back against the wall. I began counting the squiggles on the ceiling tile over my head absently, desperately keeping my eyes of the teacher. She looked like a librarian crossed over into the classroom, combined with a female drill sergeant. Creepy, to say the least. Not that she intimidated me, not in the slightest. But I thought she was a bitch. The smugness radiating from her was almost more than I could stand. She rattled on through the rest of the list while I continued counting, moved on the syllabus and was working her way through it. I was 499 when I actually paid a little bit of attention to her.

"For the first part of this semester we will be covering the war between the states, the Civil War. One of our country's darkest and yet most fascinating hours."

Oh good God, was this my own personal hell? I resisted the urge to sigh loudly, settled instead for slouching moodily in my seat and looking every bit the disaffected teenager I was supposed to be. The lust that suddenly sprang up in the air around me should have made me feel better, but I didn't want them. I would admit, if only to myself, that I had entertained the thought before, briefly. I mean, the life of an incubus wouldn't be that bad. Not considering that the benefits you got were twofold. But still. I had sworn off that kind of feeding over a century ago. And even if I managed to keep that personal rule, I still didn't think I could stomach sleeping around so freely. Despite my years with Maria, there was something of a gentleman still in me, though he spent a lot of time in hiding. I just wouldn't be able to do it. I had had just sex for years with her, damn good sex too. but it wasn't what I wanted, not anymore. Not after seeing what the rest of my family had.

When the bell rang I couldn't have been happier, and I made my way almost too quickly down to the cafeteria to meet my brothers and sisters. Once in the door I called out to Edward, to stop him before he picked a table. They've added a patio out back. I want to eat outside today. It was nice, for cloudy. At least it wasn't raining. I saw him nod from his place in line and knew it was intended for me. Pacified, I meandered into the kitchen, halfheartedly grabbing a carton of milk and a pretzel. Did those two things go together? Did it matter? It had been way too long since I had had human food, I could hardly remember what I had once liked.

When I made my way outside I found them easily, on a picnic table by a railing, Emmett and Rose actually up on the concrete railing. He had one arm around her, the other hand stealthily dismembering some sort of food item. A piece of which he chucked at me as I joined them at the table. "Hey, Jasper!"

"Hello, Emmett. Good morning?"

"Yeah, French went well." I could hardly imagine how. We knew all the languages offered here. Or pretty much anywhere. "You?"

"Hm. History was interesting." If I had to hear one more idiotic retelling of something I had seen firsthand, I was probably going to shoot myself.

Edward chuckled, shaking his head. "Don't, Jazz, it'd just ricochet."

Very funny, Edward. Very funny. I thought my brother was supposed to care if I got suicidal?

He chuckled again. "Yes, well, when I hear you thinking about taking an international trip, then I'll worry."

I smiled a little at that, catching on to his good mood. With me, the term 'infectious mood' was really quite literal. I began absently shredding the Styrofoam from my tray, eyes wandering over the 

grounds. The 'new' outdoor eating area stretched on to the left, down some steps to a lower level that continued for a little ways out to the right along the building. It was large, a nice addition. I skimmed over the crowd, paying more attention to the calls of a crow behind me to what I saw.

Until I saw her. She sat on a bench, her knees pulled up to her chest, her chin resting on them. She had only a bottle of water at her side and she stared straight ahead, listening to the guy in front her. He looked like he was borderline yelling at her, and I forced my ears to tune in on his words.

"…makes no sense. I don't know why you have to cause so much trouble, why can't you just be good, huh? Just do what you're supposed to, and you'd never get in these messes. And I think…" Nothing particularly interesting, at least not that he had mentioned. Still, he was upsetting her.

It was a moment before I realized Edward was staring at me, the crease over his eyes giving away his puzzlement. I ignored that fact. "Who is she?" He had to know about who I was referring, he could see her in my thoughts.

"Alice Brandon. That's her brother. Apparently she's been causing trouble at home, saying things her parents disagree with. They think she's on drugs, or trying to be difficult." He gave the information easily, but the question of 'why do you care?' remained on his face. Again, I chose not to address it.

"Her brother, huh?" He shouldn't be yelling at her like that, especially not in public. It wasn't nice, it was degrading. Not that it was ever right to yell at a lady. I almost laughed at myself internally, shook myself a bit. Who was I to talk? I wasn't always the best example of a gentleman either, though I at least tried, I at least had it in me. Still, it shouldn't bother me. Another boy approached then, this one taller, olive skinned. He took her hand almost forcefully, sat down beside her and pulled her into his side. A few words for her brother, then her brother was stalking off, leaving them alone. She looked up at the newcomer and smiled, wrapped her arms around his neck. It was then that I looked away, an inexplicable feeling of… No, that couldn't be. There were a hundred people out here, my emotional signals were getting scrambled. I stood up, grabbing my tray. "I'm going to the library."

"Jasper, do you want me to-"

"No, Edward." I didn't need company. Not right now. I just wanted to find something to read that I at least hadn't read in awhile, something interesting. Maybe Lonesome Dove. Would they have that in a high school library? They should, it was a classic.

It would hurt nothing, I decided, to walk down the stairs and past her, to go into the other doors to the school. It would hurt nothing, and it was certainly perfectly normal. Nothing out of the ordinary. I stepped down the stairs, watching her out of the corner of my eye. He was talking to her now and her head was resting against his shoulder, her fingers running through her close cut, spiky hair. The wind shifted, then, and I froze. For I finally understood what Edward had been telling me all those years ago about Bella, and I didn't know how she had ever lived more than an hour. Edward, you have to grab me. NOW.

And thank God that he was close, that he could answer. I felt his hand grip vise tight around my arm, everything about his outside manner playful, keeping up a good act. No one could see just how tightly he held me, so tightly that I wouldn't be able to pull away without temporarily sacrificing an arm. And while I could always get it back, the thought of losing an arm in broad daylight was enough to keep some sense in my head. I let him walk me, shaking, down to his Volvo, push me inside and slam and lock the doors. He never one let go of me.



My throat burned, hotter than a thousand raging fires. I could feel just how she would taste on my tongue. Hot, thick, so good. She smelled like blackberries, honeysuckle, magnolia… I groaned, my hands shaking. It would be so easy to go back, so easy to finish it. A century before, I would have never had to think twice, would have never had the chance. The instinct would have been all consuming. Even with the perspective I had gained, it was hardly enough. I wasn't supposed to want her, I wasn't supposed to want this. But God, the taste!

"Don't think about the taste. Don't think about the thirst. Don't breathe." His words were tight, nervous.

I did as he said, cut off my air flow, restored a little clarity. Enough that I could feel the tension rolling off of him in waves, each one more nerve wracking than the last.

"Will you stop that? I made it to the fucking car, didn't I?" Harder on him than I needed to be, and I regretted it. He had saved me, just then, saved all of us. But his nerves weren't helping mine, and it took me a moment to gain the focus to calm us both down. "Sorry." I muttered the word, eyes on the floorboard.

He held my arm still, shackling me to him. I could feel him shrug. "It's alright, I didn't take it personally. I know what you're going through."

"I want her."

"I know." We were silent, deathly silent. I could hear the wind playing around the cracks in the car, hear the voices from the school up the hill. "You can do this, Jasper. You've come such a long way."

But of course, not far enough that he wasn't patronizing when he spoke to me, just then. Not far enough that resisting could really be expected of me, like it had been of him. Never far enough.

"That isn't fair, you know. Carlisle has every faith in you."

"Carlisle. Not you."

I saw him tilt his head out of the corner of my eye and I knew he was thinking, gave him some time. "No, it isn't really like that. I have faith in you, Jazz, but I know how hard this is. I know it can go either way. I know I almost did. So I know this could end very badly, but I very much want to believe that it won't."

Because we just came here, and Bella's happy. I know, Edward, you don't want me to ruin it for her.

"That's not all it is. I don't want it for you, either. You'll regret it if you do, Jasper. For the rest of your days."

I could hear the hollow tone in his voice, and I knew he was right. I would, of course. It had been the regret that had driven me away from Peter and Charlotte, had driven me to wander alone until I had met Carlisle in a bar in Alaska. He had come in to tend to the victim of a stab wound. I, having fled outside when the fight began just in case, had still been hanging around the parking lot. He had approached me afterward, and though I had been initially hesitant to speak to a stranger, his golden eyes had intrigued me. From there, our lives had fallen into place well. I had slipped up few times since, and not at all in the past 50 years. And I would regret it deeply if I broke that record now, if I took human life. Stupid, stupid girl.

"It isn't her fault. It's easier if you realize that."



Ha. Nothing short of cutting my throat out could make this easier. It was still burning, brutally. I wasn't sure what I would have done if he let me go. I at least knew I could go back to school that day, not like I was.

"Of course. I'll take you home."

I leaned back in the seat, shut my eyes. My head was swimming, the pain in my throat seeming to travel up into almost a migraine. I could still smell her, in my memory. Blackberries, honeysuckle, magnolia. Like the bits of the old south, bottled and preserved in what had to be the most intoxicating blood I could have ever tasted. The devil certain knew my weak points.

"Don't. Think . Of the smell. Honestly, it will drive you mad."

Don't think of the smell, right. Yes, that was going to be an easy one. I swallowed venom back, forced another blanket of calm over Edward and myself. It was as strong as I could manage, and while I couldn't speak for him, it definitely didn't do me very much good.

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:pokes: poor Jasper…

Alrighty, this is my first attempt at a Jasper/Alice, and a completely different kind of idea, so please tell me what you think!