A/N: *sigh* It has come to my attention that I need to mend several plot holes. Please bear with me, and if something doesn't make sense, let me know so I can fix it.

Happy Holidays, people! I just love this time of the year *smiles happily*.

Disclaimer: I own a brand-spanking-new book written by Ernest Hemingway. You can't have it.

Warnings: Um. Not-entirely-dismissing-of-Jacob! Edward. Other than that, nothing yet.

Italics - thoughts

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Silence really was a beautiful thing. It came very rarely, and it was almost inexistent in the life of one Edward Cullen. When you can hear the thoughts of everyone within a five-mile radius, you never really get a chance to treasure one of life's simple pleasures.

Crystal, Edward thought. That's what silence reminded him of. A gorgeous, pure crystal, reflecting rainbow colors off its many facets. It's so odd how a crystal can take something as plain as white light and turn it into something as beautiful as a rainbow. Just like silence. It takes the plainness of this little meadow and turns it into something to be treasured.

Unlike a crystal, however, silence can be broken in a heartbeat. Edward snarled as he heard the approaching apologetic thoughts of his older brother.

Jasper smiled sheepishly at him as he came into the clearing. Edward tried desperately to ignore him, but Jasper's rather pointed "Are you okay?" thoughts distracted him.

How did she take it?

"She's ecstatic, of course. Nothing would bring her greater pleasure than me disappearing again."

Jasper ignored the rather brutal sarcasm. You don't have to go, you know. Carlisle would understand.

Edward turned furious, honey-colored eyes on him. "What are you doing here, anyway? I'd figured that stopping some 20 miles from home would get the message across that I don't want to talk to anyone. And why you?"

Jasper shrugged lightly, a motion entirely too human that made Edward sneer at him. "Carlisle knows nothing he could say would make you feel better, Esme thinks you wouldn't listen to her, Rosalie knows she'd be of no comfort to you since you two would probably just end up tearing at each other's throats, Emmett also knows he'd be of no comfort to you since, well, he's Emmett, and Alice… Alice looked into the future, saw me talking to you and kicked me out of the house."

Edward snorted, smothering a rock to dust in his fist. "Typical Alice. She sees something in her visions and makes it happen. Of course, the only reason it's happening in her visions is because she made it happen in the first place."

Completely confusing, huh? It messes up your sanity, but I love that little monster.

Even in his thoughts, Edward could feel the sincerity in those words. Or perhaps that was just Jasper projecting his feelings again. "Yea. That's how I feel about Bella."

"So stay with her. You don't have to do this. Like I said, Carlisle will understand. And besides…" Victoria may still be after her.

Edward heaved a sigh and refused to show any indication that he was aware of the waves of comfort sent his way by his brother in order to keep him from losing it. "I've thought about that. Part of me wants to stay here and protect her, but I've thought about it and… well, Victoria's been around for a nearly a year now, and the wolves have done a pretty good job of keeping her away from the area."

Careful Edward. That sneer might make your face fall off.

"They're a bunch of mangy dogs, the one that moons around Bella being the worst one, but if anyone can keep a vampire at bay besides another vampire, it's the werewolves. And that idiot is obsessed enough with her that he'd treat her like a precious diamond."

"You're not worried? I mean, he does seem very… attached to her."

The glare leveled at Jasper would have burned the flesh off a human. The blonde immediately back-pedaled, sending waves of apology at him. Unspoken, but not unheard, was the implication of that glare. I trust her. Don't you dare insult her.

I apologize. I never meant that Bella would betray you. You know I love her like a sister.

"Yea," Edward murmured. "I know."

Several moments of silence passed before Jasper spoke again, quietly. "So you're going to entrust her life to Jacob?"

By the awkward hunching of Edward's shoulders, Jasper could tell he hit him where it hurt most. "I don't know. I don't know. My heart, though the stupid thing doesn't beat, is telling me that I'm betraying her by doing this, but my mind is telling me that Jacob, although an idiot and a disgusting dog, can protect her. At least for a short while until we get this over with."

Edward glanced at his brother, suddenly beseeching, as though asking him to understand. "I love her and I'd never do anything to hurt her. But Carlisle – he never asked anything of me. Never. He saved my life. And then every time I got angry that I couldn't follow his lifestyle, every time I slipped up and killed a human and felt like a monster, he always pulled me through. Never once did he give in to temptation. I mean, he's a doctor; he works with bleeding humans every day and never once did he show any contempt that I couldn't do what he did. And besides, I'd hate myself if I didn't do my part to stop this son of a bitch who's recruiting vampires to do his dirty work."

Jasper wasn't looking at him; his gaze was faraway, but Edward didn't make the mistake of believing he wasn't listening. He tried to delve deeper into Jasper's thoughts, to see if his brother felt any disdain about his decision to leave Bella, but he found only resigned and reluctant agreement.

Jasper heaved a sigh. I can see why you're doing this. And, though I may not want to admit it… I think I'd do the same. But you'd better talk to Jacob. Makes sure that he protects her with his life. I know I don't have to tell you this, but if she gets hurt…

Edward grinned at the gruesome mental picture Jasper envisioned for Jacob's punishment. "Yea. I'll talk to him."

Standing up, Jasper looked around the meadow for the first time since he got there. It's beautiful.

"I know."

Jasper glanced at him slyly. And quiet too, right?"

"It was until you came."

Edward heard the amusement in his brother's thoughts. I'll leave you to your solidarity, then. Just be back within two days when we're leaving.

In a second, Jasper was gone. The slight air displacement was the only sign that he'd even been there. Lying down on the grass, Edward closed his eyes and savored the quiet.

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The very air in Grimmauld Place seemed to buzz with anticipation and fear. Molly Weasley was stumbling down the stairs, muttering various spells. Only she knew what they might do, or how spelled walls could protect anyone from blood-thirsty vampires. Noticing this, Harry voiced his confusion to the twins.

"Ah," Fred said, knowingly. "Poor, innocent, wittle Hawwy Potter."

"Don't you know that walls are great allies when trying to fend off vampires?" George continued, staring at his mother in bemusement.

"You see, Harry, those spells are animation spells."

Harry glanced at him, puzzled. "Animation spells?"

George snorted. "They make the walls grow arms and legs to strangle vampires to death." He enforced this declaration by waggling his hands in front of Harry's face.

The image of a wall grabbing a vampire and shaking it around until its tongue lolled out of its mouth had Harry snorting as well. "No seriously, what is she doing?"

"Seriously?"

"Seriously?"

"Seriously, we have no idea."

And with that proud declaration, the twins apparated happily to God knows where. From the sudden loud cursing downstairs, Harry guessed they interrupted Tonks and Moody's important-spells-to-know-in-case-the-vampires-go-haywire review session. Grinning, Harry set off in search of Ron and Hermione.

In the diner, Sirius and Remus were seated at a table, heads together and looks of intense worry on both of their faces. As he approached them, Harry saw Sirius grip his friend's shoulder tightly as Remus' hand ran wearily over his face. The werewolf seemed exhausted, dark bags under his eyes and hair looking like it hadn't seen a brush in weeks. Both of the marauders turned to Harry and gave him utterly fake, reassuring smiles.

"Harry," Sirius croaked as he reached them. "Listen, when they come, I want you to stay as close as possible to Dumbledore, okay? Actually, scratch that, stay away from Dumbledore since he's probably going to be the closest to the vampires. Stay close to Snape, okay? He's a bloody git, but if anyone knows spells dark enough to get rid of vampires in case they go bite-happy, it's him."

"Don't be ridiculous, Sirius," Molly said briskly as she proceeded to whisper incantations at the walls. "The kids aren't going to be there when they come. They can't be out of the house, granted, since it's too dangerous out there now, but they sure as hell will be on the other side of this house."

Remus shook his head wearily. "Molly, if they're on the other side of the house and the vampires decide to attack, they'll plow their way through us and sniff out the kids. It would be better if they were close to us so we could at least try to protect them if worse comes to worst."

Molly made a strangled noise in the back of her throat, and, blinking furiously, proceeded to the next room. Harry swallowed thickly and glanced back at Sirius and Remus. This time, they didn't smile. "Yup. Like I said, Harry, stay close to Snape."

Nodding, Harry leaned into his godfather as he pulled him into a gruff hug. He glanced at Remus awkwardly after pulling away from Sirius, and gladly accepted a hug from him too.

Bloody hell. It feels like we're saying good-bye for the last time. I need to find Ron and Hermione.

He followed Mrs. Weasley into the next room, looking around for his friends. Kingsley Sacklebolt was discussing something with Arthur Weasley and two other members of the Order while Dumbledore and Snape were on the other side of the room also talking in quiet voices. The Headmaster's back was to Harry, and he caught Snape's black eyes. Instinctively bracing himself for a sneer, he was slightly surprised when Snape beckoned him forward. Harry approached them hesitantly.

Dumbledore turned around to face him, with a bright smile that made Harry wince. "Harry, my boy," he said genially, his happy countenance seeming as misplaced in the house as a muggle at Hogwarts. "I have something for you. You won't need it, but I believe it might make dear Molly a bit calmer."

With a flourish, Dumbledore reached into his deep purple robes and extracted an empty tin can. He held it out for Harry to take.

"This is a portkey, Harry. If worse comes to worst, just say 'activate', and you'll be on your way to Hogwarts. Make sure you have all of your friends close by in case you need to make a grab for it – portkeys don't grow on trees and I can only break so many Ministry laws… Minerva will be waiting for you at Hogwarts. Of course, you won't need it. But I think more people may be comforted if you had a safe plan."

Harry nodded and tucked the can in his own black robes. "Thank you, sir. I'll let everyone know about this."

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled at him merrily. "Ms. Granger and Mr. Weasley are in the kitchen."

Not bothering to ask how he had known he was looking for them, Harry made his way to the kitchen where he found Ginny, Hermione, and Ron staring morosely at the floor. Hermione was chewing her bottom lip nervously while Ron was stabbing a potato viciously with his wand. Ginny alone seemed fairly calm.

"Hey," Harry said to announce his presence. Two pairs of eyes looked up at him. Hermione continued to frown at the floor, as if the poor thing had done her some offense. Harry racked his brain in an attempt to find something to say to her, but silence seemed the best solution.

"Dumbledore gave me this," he muttered, holding the empty tin can. "It's a portkey. He said that things go bad we should all just grab a hold of it and say 'activate'." That seemed to get Hermione's attention. Slowly, she raised her head and blinked several times.

"A portkey? Where would it take us?"

"Dumbledore said Hogwarts."

"Well if he can do that, why aren't we all over there now?"

Harry shrugged. "Dunno."

"Really, Hermione," Ginny snapped, "when did you suddenly stop being a Gryffindor? I don't know about you, but I wouldn't run off to Hogwarts before anything bad happened just because it may be dangerous. Maybe we could help if things turn out bad. Which, by the way, they won't, because Dumbledore is sure about this."

Hermione hung her head. "You're right, she said in a small voice. "I'm sorry."

Ron paused briefly in his mutilation of the vegetable. "Yea, well, better safe than sorry. If they start attacking, we rally up everyone and go. No leaving anyone behind, okay?"

Hermione nodded, confidence soaring slightly. "Of course. Vampires are particularly susceptible to fire. If we can hold them off long enough to gather everyone, we can all go to Hogwarts and see what to do from there."

"Right," Harry said, pulling out his wand. "So, incendios all around should keep them away for a while." Ron and Hermione nodded enthusiastically, pulling out their own wands and slightly comforted by the fact that they had a plan, no matter how meager it was.

There was a sudden loud shriek from the kitchen, then Molly Weasley's panicked voice called out. "Fred, George! Hurry up! Ron, Ginny? Harry, dear? Hermione? Where are you?"

Harry's stomach lurched uncomfortably, and the four of them sprinted toward the kitchen. There, Mrs. Weasley ushered them to the meeting room of the Order of the Phoenix. Her hands were trembling and her face was as pale as a sheet, making her freckles stand out more than ever. She fumbled awkwardly to kiss Ginny on the forehead and hugged both Fred and George around their necks. Arthur came in quickly to wrap an arm around her waist and hold her tightly.

"How are they getting here?" Harry whispered to Hermione, standing close to her.

Hermione made a small sound in the back of her throat. "No idea."

The rest of the Order strode in with pale faces and a determined look in their eyes. They formed a half-circle around the door, pressing their backs to the wall and facing the table in the center. Almost everyone had their wands out, holding on with white-knuckled grips. Snape billowed in, and Harry glanced quickly over to Sirius, remembering what he had said. His godfather gave him a meaningful glance, and just as Harry made a move to move near his potions professor, Snape approached him and stood deftly in front of Harry and Hermione. His wand was out as well, but long fingers held it almost casually by his side.

Dumbledore alone had his wand out of sight. He was smiling even more brightly than before, but that didn't seem to appease anyone. Ron nudged Harry and then leaned over to whisper in his ear.

"The crazy old codger is humming, d'you hear him?"

Snape threw Ron a nasty look over his shoulder, and Ron flushed to the tips of his ears and hastily apologized for insulting the Headmaster. Harry listened attentively and found to his amazement that Dumbledore was indeed humming a little tune. Wary of Snape's infamous glare, Harry wisely kept his comments to himself.

Dumbledore stood in the doorway to face everyone. He popped out a tiny yellow candy before addressing the room in general.

"Mr. Cullen and his wife are about to arrive with their 5 children. As I've said countless times before, there is nothing to worry about. Their family is what they call a 'vegetarian' group of vampires – they don't drink human blood. It's their little inside joke." Chuckling in amusement, the headmaster didn't seem to notice the incredulous and horrified looks he was getting. No one seemed to find the joke associating non-meat eaters with non-human eaters very funny.

"The school term starts in about a month, so tonight we will just be discussing how we can go about finding out Voldemort's plans and protecting the school at the same time. I'm not sure how much more vulnerable Hogwarts is now with the added threat of vampires, but I'm sure Mr. Cullen will be able to inform us of that. I ask you to keep calm, and be hospitable to our guests. I'm sure I need not remind you that they are doing us a huge favor."

Dumbledore's blue eyes lingered briefly on everyone in the room. No one said a word. Dumbledore sighed, and strode out of the meeting room to the hallway, awaiting the guests. Meanwhile, Moody slid up to Snape, planting his feet resolutely in front of Ron and Ginny. Snape sneered at him down his long nose.

"Protecting the children, Moody?"

"Absolutely, Snape. After they take you down, someone has to be here, right?"

Several people made outraged noises at that. "Enough, Mad-Eye, this is no time for your petty arguments. No one is going to get hurt today," Tonks stated, albeit her voice was shaking slightly.

As Moody opened his mouth, perhaps to taunt her optimism, the doorbell rang ominously, and Sirius and Lupin made a quick lunge to catch the drapes that were covering Mrs. Lack's portrait before they flew open and she started screeching aberrations. Hermione gripped Harry's sleeve and clutched onto it as if her life depended on it. Harry felt his heart rate skip a few beats and next to him, Ron cursed eloquently. This time, Snape ignored him.

All eyes stayed fixed on the door, waiting with bated breath for the vampires to pass through the hall and into the meeting room. Dumbledore's cheerful voice welcomed them, and then the vampires passed through the doorway.

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A/N: I didn't mean to make this a cliffhanger, but I wanted to keep the entire meeting together, and if I had put that in this chapter, it would have become too long. It seemed like the right place to end it.

Why Harry and the other underage wizards aren't at Hogwarts right now, if Molly seems so desperate to have them as far away from the vampires as possible: at the end of the 5th book, we see Dumbledore conjuring up a portkey and Fudge nearly pissing himself with indignation. Ergo, unauthorized portkeys are rare and I'm guessing it takes quite a bit of prowess to make them. Therefore, Molly doesn't know Dumbledore can do that. She believes they would be in grave danger if they exited the house. Dumbledore is sure that Carlisle and his family will "behave themselves" and is thus not worried enough to sent the kids away. He wants them to meet the vampires, since they'll be around for a while. I hope that makes sense.

Ah, Victoria. Someone kindly pointed out that at this point in Twilight, Victoria is still after Bella. I can just hear the indignant cries of "Edward wouldn't leave Bella to Jacob, you idiot!" I think that by the end of the books it's plenty obvious that Edward trusts Jacob, no matter how much he may not like him. And I'm sure that a pack of wolves is more than a match for Victoria. Besides, I have wonderful plans with her *grins maniacally*.

Does Harry seem to be too obedient? He's doing everything he's told without argument. Even though it's because this is a very trying situation for everyone, and he knows this isn't the time for brash actions, it's making me a bit nervous.

Snape's wand was out as well, but long fingers held it almost casually by his side. Yea, I figured being a spy constantly lying through his teeth to the Dark Lord gave him a bit of an immunity to panicked nervousness. He seems more the type stay calm in the face of danger, but lash out if need be.

And now my A/N are nearly as long as the story . oopsie.