Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Notes: Boredom + 3 day weekend led to me polishing up another chapter ahead of time. A short one though. Woot.
Also, most chapters in this story will be from either Bella or Jasper's POV with just a handful of exceptions. This is one of those exceptions.

Chapter 2: Rosalie

"If I have to spend one more minute listening to you debate about if we should go with a dark or a light blue tablecloth for Bella Swan's birthday, I will rip out your tongue and toss it in the fire." I growl, glaring daggers into my sister's wide golden eyes.

"Rosalie does have a point, dear," Esme chimes in, stepping between the two of us to assure there will be no vampire bitch fights in the mall. "You know how Bella feels about us making too big a deal out of her birthday. Besides, her favorite color is forest green and I already bought the perfect one."

Alice's attention immediately focuses on the bag in Esme's hand. Before the girl can demand to see it and whine about not seeing the purchase in a vision, I step forward and grab the bag. "I'm taking this to the car and leaving in 30 minutes, with or without you two."

I don't even wait for an answer before I'm off heading towards the parking garage. Enough is enough. I do love shopping, but shopping for the human has gotten old very fast.

Besides, there is something I need to do and I sure as hell don't want Alice or Esme to see it. If I'm really lucky, Alice is so focused on seeing Bella's perfect party that she won't get a glimpse of my next task in her visions. Emmett has whined and begged me all week to do this, so here I am - I have to get Isabella Swan a birthday gift.

Life sucks.

It's not that I hate her, I just don't like her very much. Sure, her lack of fear when surrounded by vamps like us is refreshing. And I admit to being impressed by her ease around Jasper even after she's been warned about his fragile control. But as soon as my dear brother Edward comes in, she's all doe eyed and spineless. It's disgusting. It's too close to certain things in my own past that I sure as hell am not going to let myself think of again.

Stupid human needs to grow a spine and stop trying to take me down memory lane.

Alright, let's get this over with.

Three hours later find me helping Esme decorate the dining area while Alice is busy getting out the fine china in the kitchen. I'm finding myself more and more eager for tomorrow to come, if only just so this birthday party can get itself over with and I can stop hearing about it every other second.

A loud crash from the kitchen has myself and Esme running over as quick as we can.

Alice is in the middle of the room, surrounded by broken crystal and gazing into the middle distance as she does when hit by a particularly powerful vision. In the blink of an eye, Alice is out of it and in full on panic mode.

"No, no, no! How could I not have seen this?!" the petite girl croons as she falls to her knees and claws at her face. Esme is by her side in a flash and holding onto Alice's arms as the girl continues to moan.

I fall to her other side and grab her face between my hands. "Alice, what is is? Is it Emmett? Jasper?"

There is no response from Alice, and I meet Esme's concerned eyes over Alice's head. I drop Alice's face and run to get my phone from the dining room table. I'm about to dial Emmett when Alice lets out a scream and rushes out the door. I throw my phone into my pocket and run after her, Esme coming up right beside me. Alice is running faster than I've ever seen her move, and I'm finding it harder and harder to remain calm. If something happened to the boys, to Emmett -

Suddenly I realize that we are not running deeper into the woods but towards town. That calms me a bit - the boys are all in the opposite direction, so they must be safe. They had better be safe.

They had better be safe becomes my mantra for the rest of the agonizingly long sprint. But then we've arrived at our destination and relief mixes with exasperation. The Swan house is a destination I should have expected as soon as I realized we were headed to town, yet I'm still vaguely surprised to see it. What has the girl gotten into now?

Alice has come to a grinding halt outside the house, a hand clamped over her nose. I take a sniff and feel a surge of hunger at the overpowering smell of blood that fills my nose. I stop breathing immediately, and fight the urge to turn around and leave. I don't know if I trust my control around so much blood, but ….

I look at Alice and Esme beside me, both shocked and still. Horror is written plainly across their faces. No doubt that they are imagining what the inside of the house must look like.

"You can wait here," I whisper to them as I slowly head towards the open back door.

The house is quiet, but I can hear a faint heartbeat straight ahead. I walk through the kitchen and into a small sitting room. And there she is - the birthday girl, lying in a pool of blood, skin ripped open around her neck, arms, legs. God, she looks like she was mauled. I close my eyes briefly, the memory of finding Emmett looking similarly torn apart in the forest so many years ago flashing in my mind.

A dry, tearless sob brings me back to the present and I see Esme has entered the house and is standing by my side. Steps behind me signal Alice joining us as well.

"She's alive."

We all know this, Alice. We all can hear her quiet heartbeat. But I guess I can understand the desire to confirm the truth out loud.

"She's changing." Esme's wavering voice sounds very certain, and I realize she must have smelled something under all this blood. I envy her control, but won't risk trying to verify that myself.

"Yes." Alice acknowledges, slipping her small hand into mine and squeezing for comfort. I allow it, and look at her to continue. "My vision … It was Victoria. She was here, screaming about James and the pain and revenge."

That… doesn't make sense. "If she wanted revenge for Edward killing James, why not kill Bella? Why turn her?"

Alice doesn't answer, staring at the broken girl in front of them and looking lost. I just shake my head - why doesn't matter for now. We have a newborn vampire on the way.

"We don't have time for this. We need to get Bella somewhere safe and remote." Esme declares, calming down and starting to plan. "We need a crime scene to explain no body as well…"

"You two can deal with killing human Bella. Meanwhile I'll take her." There are two pairs of shocked eyes staring at me, but I can't even take a moment to bask in having surprised the prescient Alice. Though Alice's expression quickly morphs into one I am familiar with - the far-off look she gets when in a vision.

While my sister is otherwise occupied, Esme tried to work out how to ask what we both know she wants to ask, "Rose, dear, why..."

A miserable groan from Bella cuts of Esme's question and we both stare at the changing human. It really hasn't been too long since I was changed - not even a century - and I can remember that burning pain all too well. Bella quiets again and I softly try to answer what Esme was wanting to ask, "Why me? Why me, when everyone knows I'm not particularly fond of her? Whether I like it or not, Bella has been accepted into the family and I need to get used to it."

"Rosalie," Esme starts, as she comes over and places her hand on my arm.

"It doesn't matter right now. What does matter is that I'm supposed to be off at college with Emmett and Jasper. No one will notice if I disappear because no one knows I'm even still here."

"It will work," Alice chimes in, startling both Esme and I. I hadn't realized she was out of her vision. She looks a bit more grounded now - I bet any vision is a comfort for my sister after being blindsided by this mess. Though there is something about her knowing look this time that is sadder than normal. She grabs a blanket from the couch and places it over Bella, smoothing a miraculously blood-free lock of the girls' hair from her face.

"I will work," she reiterates. "It will be a hard road, and some things will change, but it will work"

And for now, that's all we really need to know. I snap into action, going to Bella and picking her up. I try to keep the bloody bits covered by the blanket, but it doesn't do much good. Luckily, the smell of the venom in her bloodstream has already started to change her scent - her blood is tempting but not excruciatingly so.

I stalk back toward the back door, calling out to my family behind my shoulder, "I'm taking her up to the Alberta house. You two clean up the loose ends here."

When I'm back in the cool night air I pause a moment. What have I just signed up for, I can't help but wonder as I feel Bella shift in my arms. Just before I sprint off into the woods behind the house I hear Alice call out, "Emmett and Jasper will be on their way to you as soon as they are back!"

I don't bother to respond and in less than a minute, I am out of hearing range and sprinting as fast as I can back home. It feels like mere seconds later when I'm in our garage and piling the human into the back of Emmett's jeep - no way in hell am I ruining my car by giving its leather interior a human blood coating. We'll have to burn the Jeep later - this smell will never come out.

I don't want to risk leaving her alone even for the shot time it would take me to pack a bag. So I simply jump into the driver's seat, start the car, and pull out into the night.