Welcome, good frans!

This will be vampy and slightly out of canon. I'm hoping to update on Fridays. Chapters will be short because I work a lot and am trying to balance two jobs, new home (soon) and plethora of other issues.

Anyhoodle. Special thanks to my right hand gal twilightmomoftwo for her beta work and my prereaders lynzylee and Mama Cougar for their encouragement/enabling.

A cloud passed over the full moon, temporarily hiding the light and making the world seem darker. And for a moment, the night seemed too still, waiting with bated breath for something to happen.

He's not going to like this.

I raised an eyebrow at the quiet thoughts of my brother who was making his way through the corridor leading to my closed door. Scanning his thoughts, it appeared I was to be summoned to the main chamber for assignment.

And by Marcus?

I opened the door before Jasper could knock. He stood there in his dark robes, hood over his head, with his hand still raised. I spoke before he had a chance.

"Must be important if Marcus is personally going to assign this to me."

Jasper rolled his eyes in exasperation and lowered his hand. "You really are a pain in the ass with that."

I pulled up the hood of my black robe and stepped out into the hallway. Jasper moved out of the way, as I shut the heavy wood behind me.

"You should guard your thoughts more carefully if you don't want me to know them."

"Who spat venom in your blood bag?"

"You know I'd rather be here than out there. I don't want assignments like I'm some sort of fucking errand boy. And why am I not going to like it?" I waited for the answer in his head and heard the location.

"Seattle?"

Jasper nodded, and I clenched my teeth to suppress the protesting growl in my chest. It had been twenty-two years since I last set foot on that side of the world.

"Maybe you're being given a second chance. Besides, that was two decades ago; you need to move on. Do you realize how depressing you are? Don't we all know that Edward is feeling all the feelings in his chamber of solitude."

"It's like you want me to rip your head off. And I am not depressing."

"You are; I should know. You're not the only one around here who has a knack for knowing others on the inside."

Jasper tapped his forehead, and I rolled my eyes. As annoyed as he was at my ability to read his mind, he had a way of tempering the emotions around him. However, it was more physical than my talents.

Probably just needs to get laid.

"I heard that." I shoved him into the wall. There was a minute fracture as his granite-hard body collided with the stone.

Jasper smirked at me as he dusted himself off and replaced his hood. "I know."

"Are you coming with me on my assignment?"

"No, and I wish I could come along, if only for my own voyeuristic pleasure."

We arrived at the doors to the Main Hall, and inside I found our elder, Marcus, at the back of the room. He was standing over some ancient scrolls on a carved wooden table. I lowered my hood and stepped forward. His thoughts were full of the Aramaic in front of him.

"Brother Edward, how good of you to come so quickly. Please, come forward." His tone was bored as he continued to flick through the parchment in front of him.

The flickering light from the fireplace and candles that eerily lit the room made the shadows dance. The flow of Aramaic continued in a steady stream from Marcus as I neared the table.

Knowing he could make me wait for hours, I was impatient to have this over and done with. "I am told you have an assignment for me."

Marcus put down his scroll and turned toward me. His flawless face passed for twenty at first glance by human eyes but to me, and to the Brethren, his ancient face was etched with sadness and grief. His saving grace was the kindness around his eyes that was at odds with the rest of his features.

"Yes, Edward. I fear we have received word that one of our protected humans is under threat. You are a prime candidate for this, and I wish for you to leave immediately."

"Just me?"

"Yes. If I send more than one, it will be detected by Aro, and I would rather not draw attention to our involvement. Alice will give you the particulars, and Gianna has already made the arrangements." He said no more, and his mind, which was still on the scrolls behind him, gave me no clues. He turned back to the tables behind him.

I took that as my cue to leave. As I joined Jasper by the door, I drew my hood forward again.

"And, Edward?"

I tensed, already hearing it in his thoughts, knowing what he would say aloud. But he didn't. The Aramaic paused, and I saw the brief flash of a woman with a heart shaped face and brown eyes. But rather than utter the words out loud, he kept them inside for me to hear alone.

Don't screw it up, or this time we will kill you.

Thanks for reading.