Midnight's Pixie

I own nothing. Stephenie Meyer does. Some lines from Midnight Sun have been used in this chapter. No copyright infringement intended.

Author's Note: Any suggestions from my faithful reviews and supporters are always welcomed! You can tell me in a review or even email me. I love to write, just for fun, but I love that others enjoy it too! Just let me know if you want to share something and I'll see what I can do!

Also, I made an error about Peter's hair color. He's actually also a blonde, as Stephenie reveals in Midnight Sun. I hadn't been able to find that information when I was writing the last chapter and I apologize for the error. I know its minor, but I still like to get my facts straight. Also, Peter was created by Maria in the 1940s, not the late 1800s like I had originally thought. Again, I apologize for any other errors on my part that come to your attention.

Edward and Emmett returned home a few hours before Peter and Charlotte arrived. Edward had changed clothes and immediately run to Bella's house. Emmett muttered something about Edward completely losing his mind. I was sure though, that whatever conversation Edward and Emmett had exchanged, that Emmett couldn't exactly understand the complexity of Edward's feeling for this human girl… only Carlisle could possibly understand. He had previously meet Esme once when she was younger, and both had left their impression on the other. However, Carlisle had decided long before that time that he would never take away a human's life. And so he had left her alone to live out her life. Years later, when he had discovered her broken body in the Chicago Hospital morgue, it was the memory of her that had compelled him to save her. Rosalie, had she more sympathy for Edward's complicated situation, should probably be the most understanding; seeing as something about Emmett, a frail, broken human, had compelled her to save him.

Carlisle returned from his late shift at the hospital around 3am. He had picked up a copy of the Peninsula Daily News and the Seattle Times on the way home. He sat at the dinning table, reading through the articles. Esme sat across from him, her blueprints spread over the table. She jotted down notes on square footage and features she wanted in her notebook. Rosalie and Emmett were lounging on the sofa, their bodies tangled together. A thick Vogue magazine was propped up in front of her as she studied the newest fashion designs. Emmett was watching ESPN. Jasper was buried in his books: Confederate Military History: Texas Volume by Clement A. Evans and The Civil War in Texas by John C. Rigdon. He was studiously bent over the two enormous volumes, frowning to himself every once in a while and jotting down notes and corrections in the margins. Jasper often read through history books and sent them back to the publisher with his notes and corrections written in them.

I waited, anxiously pacing the length of the front room. Part of the anxiety was simply excitement. Although Peter and Charlotte didn't share our passion for preserving human life, they respected it and were good friends of mine and Jasper's. But the other part of the emotion was worry – about Edward, about Bella. I knew that Charlotte had more of a grip on her self control, but sometimes Peter couldn't help himself. We would just have to make sure they didn't go too close to town and catch a whiff of Bella's delicious scent. A wave of tranquility washed over me and I relaxed automatically.

At 3:34am, the whisper of feet in the surrounding forest made everyone freeze. In a moment, everyone was on their feet, gathered around the front door. Carlisle opened the door, the Peninsula Daily News tucked under his arm.

"Welcome, friends, come in!" Carlisle said warmly, beckoning to the couple. He stepped inside, allowing the two pale creatures to enter.

Charlotte was the first to enter the house. Her long, white blond hair hung down to her waist. A few stray leaves were caught in her hair. Her pitch black eyes greatly contrasted the rest of her extremely pale body. She stepped gracefully through the door, followed instantly by Peter. He towered over her petite form. He looked much wilder than his mate, his eyes twitching every few seconds to take in his surroundings.

The corners of my lips turned down minutely. That was not a good sign. Jasper would have to take Peter hunting very soon, if not immediately. I quickly smiled, not wanting anyone to see my concerned expression.

Peter went immediately to Jasper. He stood at attention in front of him for a second before both burst into a fit of laughter and heartily clapped each other on the back. Jasper's joy rolled off him, causing all of our hearts to feel uplifted. Charlotte glided over to my side and we embraced each other warmly. Hands were shook and hugs were given. Carlisle welcomed Peter and Charlotte very kindly, insisting they stay as long as they like.

Charlotte, her arm tucked in Esme's with mine around her, followed us up the staircase to the guestroom. Jasper and Peter followed behind us, talking excitedly. They thanked us enthusiastically for the new, fresh clothes. Esme made sure everything was to their satisfaction before disappearing down the hall.

"Would you like to hunt? You must be very thirsty."

Peter turned to Jasper, his eyebrows raised. "Your kind of hunting or mine?"

Jasper hesitated for a moment, eyeing me. "Well…"

Charlotte placed a hand on Peter's arm. "Peter, we need to drink something soon." She turned to Jasper and smiled. "We can hunt with you and Alice now. We'll probably go for something… more to our liking later though… far away from here, of course."

Jasper nodded. "That's perfectly fine."

Peter clapped his hands. "Alright, well, what are we waiting for?"

We were able to calm the roaring fire in our throats with a small herd of deer in the early morning. My eyes, along with Jasper's burned rich butterscotch while Peter and Charlotte's lightened to a warmer burgundy. Peter grumbled a little about the unpleasant taste herbivore's blood had, but was otherwise in a cheerful mood.

The sun kept us away from areas humans inhabited. The four of us stayed in the forest, far from any trails, deep in the mossy growth of trees and ferns. We chatted as we maneuvered the Olympic Rainforest. We finally settled five miles south of Lake Crescent, which was northeast of Forks. We sat atop a hill, surrounded by Sitka spruce, Douglas fir, Western hemlock and red cedars. Peter reclined against the truck of a giant spruce with Charlotte draped over his lap. Jasper lay flat on his back, examining the canopy above us. I sat beside him, brushing my fingers along the ground, over the moss, lichen, and rich earth.

"Where was Edward?" Charlotte pondered. "I didn't see him when we arrived. Is he in Denali?"

"No," Jasper said, frowning at the blue sky. "He's watching over someone… a girl… a human girl."

Peter's eyebrows disappeared beneath his light, shaggy hair. "A human?"

I nodded. "He's become very fond of her, I'd say something probably even stronger, but he won't admit that to anyone just yet. He is… very protective of her." I slipped off my ballet flats and placed them beside Jasper's Justin Roper cowboy boots. I dug my bare toes into the rich earth, feeling its coolness. Charlotte was watching me and smiled softly. Her demeanor was so gentle and soft that it made it hard for me to imagine her as she once was: a killer, part of Maria's new born vampire army. Maria… that wasn't someone I wanted to talk about. I quickly turned my attention back to the conversation at hand.

Jasper had snorted. "He's overly protective. He even risked exposing our family." He shook his head. "He's becoming obsessive. I know that you already avoid any of the local residential areas close to our home, but I would stay far away from Forks right now, Peter. He's completely going insane over this girl – if he thinks she's in danger, I have no doubt in my mind that he would attack you."

I frowned. "Yes, Edward is overly protective of Bella. He's refusing to accept the visions I've had of her future, but you can't doubt the strength of his true feelings for her, Jasper. You shouldn't say such harsh things about him."

Charlotte sat up. "Wait. Alice, are you suggesting that Edward had feelings… is even in love with this girl?"

"Yes. He is in love with her. I know that Jasper can feel it. This is a difficult situation for him; it's torturing him."

"If he feels that way, why doesn't he just change her and get it over with? Problem solved!" Peter said.

"Alice sees it that way. Well, one of two ways: either he'll kill her, or turn her. But he's refusing to accept either future." Jasper shrugged. "It seems stupid to me. Why wouldn't you want to be with the one you love forever? Why wouldn't you risk everything to be with them?" He titled his head toward me, his sparkling, golden eyes dripping with admiration.

I scowled at him, though my heart was bursting with respect to the beautiful vampire staring at me. I pinched my lips together, trying to shake off his mood. "Jasper," I said softly. "You know Edward's reasons behind his actions."

He sighed. "Yes."

Our group fell silent for a while, taking in the soothing sounds of the wind in the treetops, the rustling of feathers as wrens and jays flew among the branches, the distance water lapping at a rocky shore and the warmth of the sun as it penetrated its way to the forest floor. I dug my feet deeper into the earth. It had been too long since I'd come and simply experienced nature. It was so beautiful, so peaceful.

"Have you been in contact with Maria recently?" Peter asked.

I immediately stiffened. Jasper noticed and his hand slide toward me, resting on my knee. He cleared his throat, although it wasn't necessary before speaking.

"We saw her about two decades ago, in 1985. We were living in Calgary and she looked us up. It was… a very eventful visit. We had to move immediately. I told her to please keep her distance in the future." He glanced at me, but I didn't see his face.

I sat on the moss and lichen, straight and hard as a statue, my eyes now staring, glaring at the ground. Maria, Jasper's creator, had nearly destroyed our way of living. She had swept into Calgary, her skin tan behind the paleness, her long black hair flowing majestically behind her, her pitch black eyes declaring her thirst. I remembered that day… and I loathed it.

A light dusting of snow stuck to the ground. I had seen a snow storm coming within the next week, and Carlisle was busy preparing the hospital for it. The staff thought it odd, since it was only the second week of October, but Carlisle insisted that he had a gut feeling about this, so they didn't question him. He was well liked and trusted at Calgary's Holy Cross Hospital, even as a young doctor who had only started his residency the year before.

I had seen Maria coming to Calgary, looking for Jasper, the previous week. I had met her once before, before Jasper and I had found the Cullens. We had been in Colorado in early 1949 and our paths happened to cross. She had immediately flown into Jasper's arms, caressing his face and cooing at him to come back south with her, to rebuild what they had once had. He had firmly separated himself from her and declined her offer. When she saw me, and understood that we were together, she had apologized at once, begging me to forgive her. Not knowing any better, I did.

So all those years later, I hadn't seen the vision as a bad thing. I'd seen it as a friend coming to visit a friend. I couldn't have been more wrong. Esme had answered the door, the day Maria arrived, and beckoned her to come inside. The rest of us came home from school to find Maria there. Edward was attending the Alberta College of Art and Design and the rest of us were attending Robertson College.

She was sitting on the couch, her dark hair hanging in a thick braid over her shoulder. A heavy, wool lined leather coat lay beside her on the arm of the couch. She was dressed in a light, cotton dress that complimented her skin very nicely. A pair of moccasins had been propped up by the fireplace to dry. She remained sitting as we entered the living room, her hands folded neatly in her lap. She eyed each of us as we filed in, taking in Rosalie's beauty and Emmett's size. Her dark eyes rested on me for a moment, a peculiar expression etched in them. It made me extremely uneasy. As soon as a wave of peace washed over me, her eyes snapped to Jasper and she smiled. It was the kind of smile you would see on a wolf, if it could smile, right before it sinks its teeth into its prey.

Edward shifted nervously beside me, reading her mind, absorbing her thoughts. He bit his lip and stared hard at her.

Jasper nodded to her. "Maria," he said quietly.

She rose, smooth and fluid, and glided over to him. "Major," she purred, her accent caressing the word. She did not touch him this time, simply stood in front of him and smiled that same, evil smile. It made my stomach turn. I felt Edward's hand grasp mine. He squeezed it softly and my heart sank. What was running through her head? What was her intention, coming here? From the corner of my eye, I saw Edward frown. So nothing good.

Jasper stared back at her and then gestured to me. "You remember Alice, of course. Since we last saw you, we've gotten married."

Maria's eye widened as she stared at me. She recovered quickly, offering her hand to me.

I shook it once and then released her hand, not wanting to touch her more than necessary.

"And this is our family: our brother, Edward, and our brother and sister, Emmett and Rosalie. This is our mother, Esme. Our father is still at the hospital."

"Hospital?" Maria asked, clearly confused.

Jasper nodded, his posture still stiff. "Yes, he's a doctor. He works at the hospital."

Maria pondered this as she looked us over again. "Well… that's different."

Esme stepped forward timidly. "Yes, our family leads a very different lifestyle than most of our kind, as you can clearly see. We live as a family, not so much as leader and follower. We settle down in an area for a few years… as many as we can manage without drawing too much attention to ourselves. And we're vegetarians – that's what we call ourselves, a little family joke – we only consume animal blood and we try to preserve human life."

As Esme explained our lifestyle, Maria's eyes kept growing larger and larger. She stared curiously at Esme. "Is that the reason for your strange eyes? The animals?"

Esme laughed softly. "Yes, it is. It's a blessing, really. Its much less frightening to a human than red eyes are, less noticeable. Its convenient for Carlisle and the children, they're around humans much more than I am."

"Hmmm…" Maria had turned her attention back to Jasper. "Well, Major, it seems you've put together quite a comfortable life here. Perhaps you could show me around town, tell me more about this… lifestyle of yours."

Jasper glanced around, his anxiety growing. Edward stepped forward. "Of course, Maria. We'll all go. It will be nice to get to know one of Jasper's old friends."

I sighed inwardly. Edward, my loving brother, was always looking out for me. He would not let Maria tempt Jasper away from me.

Rosalie caught on quickly. She glided just as gracefully over to Jasper and took his arm. "Yes, it will be a pleasure to get to know you, Maria." She reached over and pulled me behind her to Jasper's other side. I took his right arm.

Emmett stepped over beside Maria and offered her his arm. She hesitated, overwhelmed with his size, and then took his arm. He glanced over at me and winked. "So, Maria, care to give hunting our way a try?"

She tilted her dark head back to look at him. "I… well, alright."

Esme smiled and clapped her hands. "Wonderful! I expect that you will be staying with us, of course."

"Of course," Maria said, but her words dripped with doubt.

My body froze as I was launched into the future. I saw Maria take Jasper's hand, pulling him away, separating him from the group. I quickly pushed myself back to the present. I knew Edward had seen what was in my head. We would have to figure out a way to keep Maria disconnected from Jasper.

Our little group wandered into the forest. Jasper's anxiety and nervousness was rolling off him. Rosalie and I were absorbing every emotion and it was exhausting. Edward lead the way, jogging slowly ahead of us. Emmett followed after him, Maria still in his tight grasp. Eventually they disappeared.

Rosalie dropped Jasper's arm and nodded to us. She quickly sprinted up the path toward Emmett.

Jasper and I stood in the quiet woods, saying nothing. He gazed at me with sorrow filled eyes. I couldn't look at him.

"Why is she here?" I whispered, not really to him.

He knelt in front of me and took my hands. "I don't know, Alice. Trust me, I wish she wasn't here. Please don't be angry with me."

I looked down at him. I wasn't angry with him, of course I wasn't. It was her… Maria… his creator, his former leader… his former lover. The thought sent pins down my spine. He rested his head on my chest, hugging me to him. I slowly wrapped my arms around his shoulders and kissed his golden head.

At that moment, a vision had seized me and shown me Maria's red, wild eyes and bloody mouth as a hunter dropped from her embrace.

"No!" I gasped. "She'll kill him!"

Jasper immediately turned and sprinted in the direction the others had gone. I shook my head as I followed him. Where was Edward? Why wasn't he watching over Maria? I concentrated as much as I could while running at full speed on Edward's future. He was deep in the woods, chasing a cougar. He suddenly whirled around and jumped down from his tree branch. He stood still as stone for a moment before racing back in the direction he'd just come from.

When I came back into the present, I'd fallen much farther behind Jasper than I had intended. I sprung forward, pushing myself as fast as my inhuman body could carry me. I followed his scent deeper and deeper into the Canadian forest, praying that we weren't too late.

I finally caught sight of Jasper. He was stood silently, motionless in front of me. I slowed and stood beside him, taking in the scene.

Maria and Emmett were circling each other. In Maria's arms was a young man, his throat pressed to her lips. Emmett growled threateningly at her, warning her. Her black eyes flickered once to where Jasper and I were standing before an evil grin spread across her face.

"No!" Jasper said, taking a step forward.

In less than a second, her lips had curled over her white, gleaming teeth and Maria had ripped the hunter's throat. I assumed she wasn't usually this sloppy with her meals; that the spilled blood had been shed with a single purpose in mind: Jasper.

As red liquid poured from the victim's body, Emmett, Jasper and I went stiff. Emmett and I quickly stopped breathing. My heart, had it been beating, would have stopped when I heard Jasper inhale deeply. His eyes rolled back in his head as the smell of human blood overpowered him.

When he reopened his eyes, they were wild. I stood there, terrified at what was going to happen, what I knew was about to happen. I couldn't make my body move; I couldn't make myself reach out and take his arm, hold him back. I closed my eyes tight, trying to push out the vision that was now flooding my head. Jasper. Blood. Jasper. Blood. This couldn't be happening. It had to be a bad dream… only, you can't really blame anything on dreams when you can't sleep…

I heard Jasper lunged forward. A loud crack made me open my eyes. Edward had collided with Jasper and was now wrestling with him on the ground. Emmett quickly stepped in to help him.

Maria started to laugh, but a second thunderous bang cut her off. Rosalie's hands were around her throat as she snarled at the small, Mexican girl. The hunter fell to the ground, his head hanging limply on his plaid jacket. Maria hissed at Rosalie. The small brunette quickly twisted out of Rosalie's hold and catching her arm, flung her into the woods.

Emmett roared in fury and charged at Maria. She dodged his fists before landing a knee in his gut. Emmett doubled over, but quickly sprang back up. But she was gone.

Rosalie flew back into the clearing, her eyes wild with anger.

Jasper growled, causing everyone to turn toward him. Edward was on top of him, pinning him to the ground. Jasper was thrashing underneath him, his eyes still black with untamed thirst.

Rosalie quickly collected the body of the hunter and holding her breath, ran away. Emmett followed after her.

I knelt beside Edward and Jasper. My eyes stung and my stomach churned. My hands shook as I reached out to touch his face. He cringed at my touch. I choked back a sob. I took his face in my hands as he struggled, Edward still holding him down.

"Jasper," I whispered. "Jasper, please stop. Jasper…" I didn't care how dangerous he was at the moment. I didn't care. I rested my forehead against his, cradling his head. "Jasper, please don't let her take you away from me like this… Jasper, please…" My throat closed and I couldn't continue.

The thrashing lessened and Jasper's breathing began to level out. I stroked his hair. "It's okay," I whispered huskily. "It's going to be okay."

Edward slowly released his arms and stood, watching Jasper closely. Jasper just lay on the ground, his arms resting limp at his side.

"He'll be alright now, but we need to get him away from the blood," Edward said softly.

I looked over my shoulder at the red stained snow. I nodded and together, Edward and I lead Jasper away from the clearing.

Esme opened the door for us as we came up the stairs, her expression immediately turning grave. "What happened?" she whispered.

Edward shook his head. "A human was out in the forest. I was being careless and wasn't there to warn the others not to head that way. Maria got him."

"Oh, no," Esme sighed. "Are you alright, Jasper?"

He frowned at the floor. He didn't like it that he had control problems. He didn't like it that he showed weakness in front of us. I stroked his arm. He wasn't weak though. I was. I should have been able to step in and stop any of this madness from happening. I should have been strong enough… should have been faster… should have been smarter about all this… I could see the future, couldn't I? Why hadn't I been able to stop Jasper from suffering.

I felt Edward's hand on my arm and looked up. He was frowning at me and shook his head. "Its not your fault," he said, so only I could heard him.

I frowned at him. It didn't matter what he thought. It was still my fault.

Rosalie rushed into the house, followed closely by Emmett. Rosalie had taken off her sweater and now wore only her camisole. Emmett was shirtless. "We followed her for a bit," she said. "She wandering around the border of town. We need to watch her and make sure nothing else happens, or it will make things too dangerous to live here anyone."

Esme nodded. "I'll call over to the hospital and explain the situation to Carlisle."

"We need to find her," Jasper said quietly.

"Come on," Emmett motioned for the door, and then all the boys were gone.

Rosalie stripped out of the rest of her clothes and threw them into the fire. "I can still smell the blood on me…" She looked desperately at Esme.

Esme nodded. "Don't worry, we'll give you a bath and if worse comes to worse, we have bleach."

Later that night, all the Cullen men had returned. They had caught up with Maria in Nose Hill Park. She had killed 12 people before they stopped her.

Jasper had been the one to approach her. He had politely thanked her for coming, but asked her never to visit again.

We had moved immediately the next day down to South Bend, Indiana.

I looked back up at Jasper. Only a few seconds had past and an uncomfortable silence had settled on the group.

Suddenly, Jasper's phone vibrated. He quickly flipped it open and answered. I heard Emmett ask him if we would be up for playing some football out at the Rainer field. Peter chuckled and nodded. Jasper agreed that we would meet everyone else there.

We arrived at the field soon after the others.

Emmett cheered as we appeared at the edge of the forest and sprinted toward us. "I left Edward a note. Think he'll come, Alice?"

I paused for a moment to check. Nope. He was going to be watching over Bella all day. I shook my head. "No, sorry Emmett."

"The teams are even anyway," Jasper pointed out.

Emmett sighed, but nodded.

We quickly split into two teams: Jasper, Rosalie, Carlisle, and Charlotte against Emmett, me, Esme and Peter. Carlisle and I were the quarterbacks. We always played tackle and the first team to score 35 points was the winner. Jasper, Charlotte, Esme and Peter were the wide receivers and Rosalie and Emmett played defense against the quarterback.

Emmett and I beat our spouses in a fair game of 35 to 21. Rosalie had never been able to sack me when I was quarterback because I always saw where she was planning on coming from. Emmett was about to take down Carlisle twice, simply by brute force.

We all arrived back at the house in high spirits. Peter and Charlotte excused themselves for a few hours to do some hunting of their own, far from Forks.

Jasper and I went up to our room and lay on our bed. His arms were securely wrapped around my waist and our bodies were perfectly tangled around each other. He kissed my nose lightly and looked into my eyes.

"I love you, Alice," he breathed. He pulled me closer and kissed me.

I smiled. "I know, I can feel it every day." I wrinkled my nose at him.

He cupped my chin in his big hand and his expression turned serious. "I know what happened with Maria still bothers you. I understand. I would feel the same way if I ever met one of your former… lovers," he said, struggling with the words.

"Jasper," I said, stroking his face. "There was never anyone before you."

He nodded. "I know… but maybe… if before, when you were human…"

I frowned. "I don't think so… I don't see how I ever could have been with anyone but you."

He shook his head. "That's not the point, I just wanted to tell you I love you. You're everything, Alice. You're my world. As much as I can't understand Edward's fascination with a human girl, I understand his emotions. I understand his love, his desire, his agony. I felt all of those things when you first walked into my life. All those things because something about you made me immediately drawn to you. I needed you, I can see that now. I needed you my whole life, because it had been empty and I just never knew before. I was scared you would never feel the same way about me, but it seemed that maybe you might. And the agony I felt about not being the right one for you… not being good enough for you…" Jasper's liquid topaz eyes pierced mine. "I'm still not good enough for you."

I shook my head. "Jazz, what are you talking about?"

He placed a finger on my lips to silence me. "I know what you would say, but I disagree. But see… I think I may understand now… about Edward and what you said earlier. I do know Edward's reasons behind all his action… he's in love with Bella, and even if I don't understand the attraction or fascination myself, I can appreciate that."

I smiled. "I know you do."

Jasper grinned back at me and then pulled me in for another kiss.