Alright, so this is intended to be much darker than my other story. The updates on this will be much slower than on my other story and this chapter is mostly to evaluate the interest in the story. If a lot of people show an interest, I'll write more. If not, then I'll finish my other story and then get back to writing this. Or I may periodically update this story, but update The Bird and The Thorn more regularly. It all depends on the interest.

This fiction will develop into an Alice+Bella story following the next chapters and more things about the coexisting vampire/human worlds will begin to unfold.

Alright, I'm done. Read on.

Alice

Alice looked coolly at the man she was evaluating. James, thirty-four years old, no wife, no kids, no job, no degree, no diploma. No sickness. How he expected to pass the tests to become a vampire, she had no idea.

"And you believe you're a qualifying host because?" Alice asked tiredly. She had interviewed fifteen odd people that day and only one really deserved the Anti-Senescence virus.

Because that was what it was all about now, deserving things. The gift of vampirism didn't just go to the sick anymore. The people who really needed the virus weren't the only ones getting it. Hell, they weren't even getting it anymore. No, those who were lucky enough to get the virus now were those who were important enough to be kept alive for hundreds of years. Scholars, scientists, athletes, anyone who was worth something, those were the chosen hosts for the virus.

Everyone dies. Everyone is on the verge of dying. It could be a year, a month, a day, a millisecond, everyone could use the virus. If everyone who needed the virus got it, then the world would over-populate. Humans would still reproduce and the vampire population would grow and grow until they outnumbered the humans. The human government wouldn't allow that to happen. That's why "Operation: Cheat Death" is really "Operation: Save the Prodigies."

Out of this requirement of some sort of exceptional talent came the Viral-Consultants. They interviewed those who apply for the preparation and injection of the virus and determine whether or not they qualify. They pass their results to the medical professionals who would either accept or deny the applications. Alice was one of the lower Viral-Consultants. She interviewed those who weren't suggested or backed by a higher-up official of some sort. That was why she was stuck with mostly mentally unstable drug addicts seeking immortality and an easier life. As if being a vampire was easy.

"Well," James's voice shook slightly, nervous about his final interview. "I'm smart, you see. I've done a lot of independent studying because I've not got a job, you know. I live with my brother, he's a vampire."

"Yes, the Addict, I remember," Alice answered, examining her fingernails. "Do you have any illnesses that qualify you?" She knew he didn't. She just needed to hear him say it. Then she could write it down in her chart and have him on his way.

"W-well, well, I've heard, from um, from somebody," James stalled, stuttering still. "I've heard that uh, that the uh, virus, it um, it can heal disorders, like schizophrenia and things like that…"

"A myth," Alice dismissed. "Anti-Senescence increases and worsens most disorders and mental illnesses." She ran her fingers through her dark, spiked hair. "Do you have any life threatening diseases?"

James paused. "Well, no," he hesitated. "But, but cancer runs in my family," he said in a panic, noticing Alice had begun to write. "And I'm into some shit right now, some really bad shit," Alice raised a brow. "Well, vampires don't crave drugs anymore, right? After they've been injected, they don't want any illegal substances, right?"

"The hosts who were previously drug addicts usually move on to human blood. A lesson learned from your brother, Laurent." Alice wrote another quick note in her book. "Is that all?" she asked.

"Well, I mean, I'm a pretty good athlete. I was on the high school wrestling team for a couple years, before I dropped out," James said hopefully.

"And other than your love for the male genitalia, what does that tell me about you?" Alice asked, shaking her head. "Look, James…" she glanced down at her chart. "White. Mister White, look, you're not really a qualifying host for the virus. I'm sorry."

"Can I ask you something, Alice?" James said quietly.

"Miss Brandon, and yes, you may," Alice answered confidently.

"How do you qualify for the virus?" he asked. "I mean, you're a vampire right?" All traces of nervousness in his voice were gone, replaced by a cool resentment. "You're not a star athlete, you work a shitty job, you're not that smart, so why are you a vampire? What makes you so fucking special?" he spat.

"Well…" Alice hesitated. "I don't remember why," she answered after a moment. And it was the truth. Five years ago she woke up as a vampire in a lab. That was the last thing she remembered. "I might have been some home-experiment in an underground lab. I really have no idea."

"So you can use the virus without medical aid?" James said, an excited smirk beginning to spread across his face. "You don't need the preparation?"

Alice shook her head quickly. "No, you definitely need it. It's incredibly dangerous for a human body to be unprepared to take the virus. Take a pamphlet about it-" Alice was cut off.

"Oh, I know all about the virus. Sores, insanity, fire in your skin, all that good stuff," James let out a small, humorless chuckle. "But what you're saying is that there's a tiny, tiny chance a person can survive without professional preparation?"

"No!" Alice protested. "I'm not saying that at all."

"Thank you Miss Brandon, but I've heard enough," James dismissed, an unstable looking smile beginning to spread across his face. "Thank you for your time." He paused for a moment. "This may be a little forward, but would you like to get a drink when you get off work?"

"I'm sorry James, but you're barking at the wrong tree," Alice rejected him coolly.

James shook his head. "Of course, you think I'm a freak," he said, rage beginning to show in his voice.

Alice was genuinely worried for her safety. She'd had armed people come into her office before, and although she was probably much stronger than he was, if he pulled a knife on her, he had the upper-hand. "No, you're just not my type," Alice corrected him.

"What's your type?" James accused. "Sexy fucking six packed vampires?" he growled. "Mocking me, you fucking bitch!"

Alice shot him an irritated look. "I'm gay, you fucking idiot. Get the fuck out, I've got another appointment and I need to get ready!" she hissed.

"They let dykes work here?" he jeered. "Well now I know why I was turned down. You're a fucking sexist whore. You hate fucking men; don't want them in your world. You let any fucking slut in here who wears her skirt without panties, but any guys you turn down. I should have known."

"Leave," Alice snarled. "Now. Before I force you out."

James's expression turned stony. "If you insist. I'll see you later, Miss Brandon," he said in a tone that suggested much more than just a casual goodbye. He walked out of the room, slamming the door as he left.

"Creepy mother fucker," Alice sighed, covering her face with her hands. One more interview. Just one more interview. She heard a knock on her door. "Come in!" she called.

A dark figure came in. He was tall and lean and wore a pair of glasses with circular lenses. Alice recognized him from somewhere, but she couldn't remember where. "Hello!" she greeted, trying to sound friendly and not totally done with the day.

"Hello, Miss Brandon," the man greeted her. "Sorry, I've forgotten to introduce myself. I'm Doctor Carlisle Cullen." He reached to shake her hand. As a doctor, he had a huge chance of passing the evaluation. Unfortunately for her, this meant an assload of paperwork and extra hours.

"It's nice to meet you, Doctor," Alice said pleasantly, taking his hand and smiling as she shook it gently. "Sit, please."

Carlisle took his seat, glancing at the clock. "Sorry, I'm not actually here for me," he explained, opening his mouth wide to show his elongated canines. "My son Edward was supposed to be here, but he's still in class, so I came as sort of an introduction to him, I suppose. I don't know if he'll be able to make it today."

"Alright, so what are his qualifications?" Alice asked professionally. "How old is he?"

"He's twenty-one," Carlisle answered. "We figured he would graduate from college and spend a year doing typical college guy partying stuff before he was infected."

"And he's spent a fair amount of time around you, so he must be fairly comfortable with the idea of drinking blood?" Alice asked. Carlisle nodded. "And this is his choice and not yours, correct?"

"It's our choice. He wants to be a doctor, he wants to help people and use an infinite amount of time to do so," Carlisle explained. "He wants to be like his dad," he finished proudly.

"What kind of Doctor are you, Doctor Cullen?" Alice inquired.

"Well," he hesitated. "I used to administer the virus, but after some problems with that, I'm working in the ER mostly."

"Is that how you became a vampire?" Alice asked. "Because you were qualified to prepare and give people the virus?" There was something strange about the doctor that Alice was struggling to figure out.

"Yes," he answered. "I believe so."

Alice nodded. "And what kind of problems caused you to lose that qualification?" This could be a deal-breaker for him. If his son was even related to someone who could have possibly given the virus to someone who hadn't undergone evaluation, it would be very hard for him to pass.

"I'm still very much qualified to do the treatment," Carlisle defended. "After certain events, I just find it unpleasant and hard to do now."

"So there are no legal reasons behind your transition to working in the ER?" Alice pressed. She had to be one hundred percent sure. If Carlisle was qualified to give the virus, his son had huge connections. She wasn't even sure why he bothered with the evaluation.

"No," Carlisle answered, shaking his head. "Just felt like I was needed elsewhere."

Alice smiled. "I guess we're good then."

"Really?" Carlisle asked, surprised. Did he really not know how easy it was for someone with connections to become a vampire? God, it was sick how easy it was.

"Yeah, well, Edward's going to be a doctor, doctors get accepted. He's the son of someone who still has the qualification to turn someone vamp," Alice replied. "With connections, anyone can become a vampire."

Carlisle nodded. "Alright, well, I'll send him back to you. I'd still like you to evaluate him. Just to be sure he's ready."

Alice's eyes widened in surprise. "Well, okay," she said sheepishly. "Thank you for coming in, Doctor, I guess I'll see your son around later."

Carlisle smiled. "I guess you will." He began walking towards the door. "Oh, by the way, there was a man outside your office muttering and pacing. I'm not sure who he is, but you should be careful."

Alice's eyes flickered to the door, worry washing over her. She hadn't been that rude to James, right? Was her mentally unstable client going to attack her in the night? "Thank you, Doctor Cullen," she answered finally. "I should be fine."

"Yes, well, it's lucky we're vampires I suppose. It's much safer for us than for humans," Carlisle said, opening the door and holding it for Alice.

Alice walked out, shaking her head. "You'd be surprised," she said. "In my profession, I often find myself in dangerous situations."

Carlisle nodded. "Yes, I suppose you would. Well, this is where we part ways. Be careful, Miss Brandon," Carlisle warned, before leaving the building without waiting for Alice to respond.

Alice walked to her car, feeling as though she was being watched. She shook her head, trying to shake the feeling with it, but it just stayed. While she was driving home, she kept looking back to check to see if someone was following her, but there was no one behind her in the dark roads.

"Calm the fuck down, Brandon," Alice hissed to herself as she turned on the radio. Of course, out of all the songs in the world, 'Every Breath You Take' came on. "You've got to be fucking kidding me," Alice grumbled as the chorus played. "Fate, this isn't fucking funny."

Deciding to forgo the radio, Alice drove home in silence, focusing on what was in front of her rather than what was behind her.

She pulled into her driveway and got out of her car cautiously, surveying the area carefully. Vampires had great senses and among their excelled senses, they had amazing, catlike night-vision. Alice didn't need a flashlight to tell her yard was creep free.

She unlocked her door and walked into her house, not bothering to turn on the lights. If James was going to break into her house, she would have the huge advantage of being able to see while he couldn't. Feeling extremely paranoid, she went to her kitchen and grabbed a large knife from her knife block. The kitchen was kind of pointless, as Alice didn't need to cook, but it was comforting to live in a human household, rather than one adapted for vampires.

Walking upstairs to her bedroom, she noticed dirt and scrapes on her hardwood stairs. Dirt and scrapes that were definitely not there before. Alice took excellent care of her home, and she prided herself on being an excessively clean person. She gripped the knife in her hand tighter and put herself into a crouched, defensive position. Her bedroom door was closed, and with her photographic, vampire memory, she definitely knew she had left it open when she had left.

"Fuck," she whispered. She pulled out her cell phone and turned it on. A loud 'DROID' echoed in the halls. "Shit, shit, shit!" Alice hissed, running down her stairs in an attempt to get the fuck away from who she assumed was James in her room.

"And where do you think you're going?" A deep voice rumbled behind her. Alice looked back and saw James, and a young girl, probably about twelve years old. "You only just got here."

Alice gripped her knife in her hands. "I've called the police, they'll be here soon," Alice bluffed. "Let her go and get the fuck out of here now and they might not catch you."

James rolled his eyes. "You think I care about that now?" he asked humorlessly, teasing a knife against the young girl's throat. "No, I'm so beyond caring. I'm very lucky my brother is such a generous vampire," he said with a sneer. "I should be fully transformed by the end of the week." He pressed the knife harder against the girl. "Besides, I know for a fact that the closest police station to here is at least twenty minutes away. I've got plenty of time."

"You say that now, but you really don't," Alice warned. "Let her go and we'll consider none of this ever happened. Hell, your beef is with me, leave her alone. She's got nothing to do with this. You're pissed with me."

"Oh, but Alice, my dear, this will be on your conscience for a long time…" James explained, licking a drop of blood from the girl's neck. Suddenly, he lifted his blade and made a long gash on her shoulder. "Come over here," he commanded.

Alice shook her head. "What are you going to do?" she asked, fear spreading through her voice like black ink.

"You'll drink, of course," James said with a chuckle. "I've heard that human blood to a vampire is more addicting than heroine." He ran his finger down the girls gash and brought it to his lips. "I've heard the catch-phrase for that anti-Addict campaign. 'Don't try it – won't do it.' Well, you're about to try it."

"No," Alice whispered. "That's sick, I won't do it."

"Do it or I'll kill her!" James barked. Alice walked over slowly, hiding her knife behind her back. "Don't you dare," James hissed. "Drop the knife on the floor and kick it over to me."

Alice hesitated before doing what he said. "Don't hurt her," she pleaded.

"She's already hurt, come here, stop stalling," James commanded forcefully, before running the knife down the girl's other should, causing her to let out a pained whimper. "I'll slit her throat and then make you drink it all!"

Alice hurried over. "Lean down, lick it off," James snarled. Alice shook her head. He pressed her knife to the back of her neck. "Fucking do it. I won't ask again."

Alice bent down and licked a drop of blood off of the girl's shoulder. A huge surge of energy raced through her and she found it hard to keep herself standing up. By the time she had regained control, she had licked all the blood off the poor girl's shoulder.

"I guess it is pretty addictive," James concluded, running the knife across the girl's clavicle. Feeling extremely energized, Alice whipped around and punched James square in the jaw, hearing it crack on impact.

"Fuck yeah," she panted, bouncing up and down. She grabbed the knives from the man's hands while he was still incapacitated from the blow. She began kicking him in the face until she heard his nose crack. Finally, she gave him three hard kicks to the ribs.

"Come on," she murmured to the girl, who still stood terrified from what had just happened. "I'm not going to hurt you, it's okay, we need to go to the other room so I can call the police," Alice soothed. The girl stood on wobbly feet and followed Alice into the other room.

"Hello, my name is Alice Brandon, a man broke into my house and tortured a young girl in front of me," Alice breathed out. "Please, get here as soon as you can."

"All right, ma'am, where is he now?" the officer asked.

"Knocked out at the foot of my stairs," Alice answered confidently. "I don't know when he'll wake up, but I hurt him pretty bad." She sighed. "He was given the vampire virus by an unqualified person though, so he might be a little more durable now."

"Okay, ma'am, the closest law enforcement officer to your home is about five minutes away, so just keep an eye on the attacker and make sure he doesn't get away.

Alice nodded. "Thank you sir." She hung up the phone and walked quickly into the other room. James was gone and her front door was wide open. "You've got to be fucking shitting me," she whispered. The girl followed after her, sitting at the foot of the stairs, which was covered in her own blood.

"Thank you for saving me," she said quietly. "I won't tell them what you did, I promise."

Alice nodded. "Thank you," she murmured. "What's your name?"

"Claire Young," the girl answered quietly. "When will the police be here?"

Alice looked at the clock. "Two minutes, hopefully," she answered. "Let me bandaged up, you're still bleeding." Alice ripped off a strip of her shirt and made a quick bandage out of it. "Here, put this on your worse injury."

A loud knock echoed throughout the house. "Police!" Alice heard through the door. She opened the door hurriedly. "Where's the attacker?" the cop asked gruffly.

"He got away while I was on the phone…" Alice said, feeling ashamed. "But his name is James White, and he has a vampire brother named Laurent White, he should be on record."

"Alright, we'll check it out," he promised. "I'm going to check the house to be sure he's not hiding somewhere, you follow me, okay?" he asked. Alice nodded. "Okay, close the door and lock it. If he's outside, we don't want him getting in."

Alice nodded and did as he said before following him quickly. "Come on," she said, gesturing towards Claire. She held out her hand and Claire took it gratefully.

"Well, everything looks okay to me, Miss," the officer said after finally surveying every inch of the house. "Lock everything and don't come to the door unless it's an officer. I'll be in the area looking around for any suspicious persons." He held out his hand. "Here," he requested. "I need the knives to dust for prints."

"Oh!" Alice said, forgetting she still had them. She handed them over. "Thank you so much," she said quietly. "You'll give Claire a ride home?"

He nodded. "Yes, of course."

"Thank you," Alice repeated.

"It's my job, ma'am, no need to thank me," he said charmingly. "I'm Jasper by the way," he introduced himself.

"Alice," Alice said with a kind smile.

After exchanging goodbyes, Alice ran around her house and proceeded to lock everything she could find with a lock. She couldn't sleep, so she lounged on her couch and watched the junk T.V. that was on late at night. Suddenly, the events that had happened that night hit her, and she began shaking uncontrollably. Tears rolled down her cheeks and she pulled her knees to her chest.

It was the first time in at least five years, the first time in her memory that she had cried. And then the cravings hit her.

Author's note:

I know, you're all probably thinking "What? Another one, really?" But I'm a talkative person, and I've got more stuff to say. Okay, first of all, it's much more likely that I'll update more if you review, so I'm not asking for reviews, I'm just saying the more people seem to like this fiction, the more I'll balance the focus I have on both my stories.

So yeah, I'm thinking when things get more in-depth I'll start explaining more of the VampHuman world terminology at the end of each chapter, as a kind of glossary, but right now there really isn't enough.

Anti-Senescence is basically anti aging. I think that's the only term people might not be familiar with.

Alright, bye guys, I hope you enjoyed, tell me if you did ;)

- The Sardonic Sophist (Or Miranda, if you want to be best friends :P)