Before you read this, I explained Jasper in the way I had always pictured him, I know he is supposed to have honey-blond hair, but I couldn't bring myself to write him like it!

I watched him carefully, his soft brown hair flourishing over his forehead, and his coal-black eyes strained in concentration. He was digging his metal fork into the soggy macaroni with gritted teeth, and I gently removed his hand before the plate split.

It hurt to see him like this.

I made a mental resolve to go hunting as soon as we left school, watching him struggle like this only made fools out of both of us. I knew he wouldn't do anything, but there was no need for the pain he was enduring. I squeezed his arm and lifted my chin a fraction in Edwards's direction.

Edward, I called out tentatively, and he blinked.

How is he holding up?

My thoughts flashed through my head, letting Edward see more than he probably wanted to. He winced as I brought up old memories of when Jasper was less… Controlled.

Following the wince came a conservatively miniscule frown, and I gripped Jasper's hand as my mind jump-started.

Is there any danger? I projected my thoughts to Edward, not that I needed too, and I scanned Jasper's expression with eagerness

He looked… In pain… As usual.

I skimmed the future intensively, watching for scenes that would flash with reference to my thoughts. Although there was going to be… Temptation throughout the day, I didn't believe that he would… Put any person in more danger than they already were. With five vampires, three with special abilities, all in one lunchroom, it was like a vast massacre session just waiting to happen. We were lethal, each and every one of us.

A flicker of movement caught my attention, and I witnessed Edward slowly move his head from side to side, slow enough to be examining the room in intense focus, but definite enough for me to know it was a shake of the head.

I relaxed. My grip on Jaspers arm loosened slightly, and he twitched.

Let me know if it gets too bad. I instructed sternly, and Edward made his eyes twitch up and down.

Thanks for doing this. I tried to project a mental wave of gratitude.

I loved Jasper, but I was glad I couldn't see into his mind. Much as I wished I could understand his pain, I knew I would never be able to support even a crumb of his burden, and my knowing it would only make him feel worse.

Part of his conscience – I knew- Must have noticed the silent conversation between Edward and I, but I doubted that he would have been distracted. Every muscle in his body was tense and frozen as I felt a brush of warm air melt over me.

The sweet aroma of the human blushed over me, intoxicating my numerous predator features. Every thing about me was screaming prey. I was unprepared for the burst of human, and I caught my breath in my throat. The fire flickered gently, and my whole mouth felt coarse. Then the venom swelled, dampening my mouth, and I gritted my teeth, forcing myself to look at her. Whitney. It –she- was not Prey. She was Whitney. She has young siblings, sweet, garden-loving parents, a little beagle dog. The small fraction-of-a-second ritual was comforting, and I relaxed.

I felt my gullet choke up as a vision played through my head. It was a basic and instant reply of Jasper's thoughts, I guessed.

I say him rush to Whitney's side, as fluid as gentle change in a peaceful stream, and laid a dead hand upon her sandy shoulder. She flipped around, and innocent eyes widened. He caressed her ear as if to whisper something to her, and she blushed, giggled. He closed his eyes and shivered with delight as the blush deepened, and his lips touched the arch of her throat.

We had jumped up by then, and were by his side, but he bit her, and then she was gone, she didn't even have time to scream. He was replenished and ready, as he spied upon the rest of the room. His eyes began to shift. The ominous black shifted to let a trickle of red puncture his iris. His bloodlust had only just begun.

I gripped Jasper's fingers protectively as his chair vibrated gently from the kick Edward gave it, and I lifted his hand gently to my cheek.

"Sorry," Jasper Muttered, and Edward shrugged nonchalantly.

I spluttered, guessing that it had been worse for Edward, as he had had it first hand. My experience was only a maybe. A possibility. A passed opportunity. Thank God it had passed.

"You weren't going to do anything," I murmured to him, in my most soothing and reassuring voice, "I could see that." and I attempted to pacify his vexation, smoothing over my catch in my voice from the vision.
I saw Edward harden his face in companionship, and I knew he wouldn't give away the truth.

Thank you, I whispered silently to him, and he did not respond.

I turned my attention back to Jasper, whose face, if it could, would be burning with shame.

"It helps a little if you think of them as people," I trilled, too fast for any human to understand, if any were standing close. "Her name is Whitney. She has a baby sister she adores. Her mother invited Esme to that garden party, do you remember?"

"I know who she is." Jasper said tersely. He looked away towards a small window located on a far side of the room. His verse and tone effectively ended the conversation.

I swallowed my rejection and sighed, biting my lip. I swept my tray off the table, -my prop, otherwise known as entertainment for when the lunches get severely boring (not only Jasper could puncture macaroni effectively)- and zipped across the lunchroom. Dumping my tray and quickly prancing from the room, I respected Jasper's solitary mood, and restrained my encouragement.

I strolled to my locker quickly, and opened the lock with a flash of my hand. There was no one about; they were all at lunch, or at clubs. Plus, Jasper had made sure all the Cullen's had been given remote lockers, if we ever felt like letting out a little speed or strength, so long as we didn't break anything.

I slowly ran a slender, pale finger across the spine of all my books. They were brand new, the same for practically anything I owned, and the flamboyant colours against my blinding white-pale skin would have made any human dizzy and nauseous, but to me it just made me think of Jasper's future. Every thought I had turned automatically to Jasper.

How I wished I could lessen his pain. It was apparent in how he speared his food, how he portrayed his powers on humans, how is so very reserved every moment at school, and everywhere else with humans. His silent suffering! I longed to lessen it . But most of all, how much I longed for his future to be bright, powerful, and happy. With me.

I sighed. English next. Double. I picked my books up diligently, with as much grace as I could. A small smile played on my face as I picked up the sharp, petty whispers of girls in the far corner of the hallway.

"So unfair." Agreed Julie.

"I mean, I'm so much prettier than anyone else in the school," Taylor continued.

"Yeah." Julie nodded enthusiastically.

"It's, like, a total crime! The prettiest should always be together."

"Well, Alice and Rosalie..." Muttered Julie, and she spared a hesistant glance in my direction.

"What? Oh, yeah. Alice and Rosalie. Yeah. Um. But... They're, like, practically married anyway... So. But, Who cares?" Snorted Taylor, effectively ending the conversation.

Edward certainly was not ignored in this school. He was the only one out of the five of us that wasn't 'paired', and he attracted a lot of attention by the girls in the school. That was the first time I had heard my name, though. Usually I was catergorized more like 'look at the skinny little freak!'.

I grinned.

I had already arrived at the English class before the bell had rung for lunch to be over, but that was nothing out of the ordinary. I had spent the break carefully tagging Jasper and slowly picking through the visions I managed to catch. When the students began to file in, I was scrutinizing a vision I had of Jasper in his next class, but it was nothing unusual.

Just him, leaning into the farthest corner of his desk in the farthest corner of the room, his dark eyes pained as the class swept in, as the pure, spine shivering scent of human cascaded down unto the room. He would grasp the table as little Whitney sat at the table infront of him, and brushed her hair back quickly from her eyes. She turned, smiled at him, and sat down. His throat tightened. He grasped the table in a very un-humanly way, and edge crunched into pieces.

"Miss Cullen, could you please join this universe?"

I smoothly gathered my notes on Jane Eyre as if I had been listening all lesson.

"Of course Mr Greyson, could you repeat the question?" I smiled sweetly, exposing my teeth.

Mr Greyson stood, slack-jawed, momentarily, then blushed beetroot red as he scavenged his scattered thoughts.

I gritted my teeth.

"Er, yes, well, um. Heh," He mumbled, glancing at the floor with a bedazzled expresssion. "Um, Belinda, could you, um, answer my question?" He muttered to the floor,

But I wasn't listening anymore. Jasper had my full attetion, and Greyson asked me no more questions.

He was sitting there, in his car, his expression dementious. His shoulders hunched, coat wrapped around him, but not for warmth. Almost as if to protect him from something, -or even someone-.

But who could be a threat for a Vampire?

All I knew was that Edward needed would need my help, and he would need it very soon.

I bolted out of the corridors, and rushed into the car.

And waited.

Thanks everyone! The reviews were great! They really egged me on. If I start to drone a bit, tell me, and I'll try to be more exciting.

xxxxx

l.m.a