A/N: Enjoy!
Bella and I walked into the kitchen, where are noses were met with the strong scent of tuna.
"Hello, girls. I hope you like tuna salad," Esme greeted us.
We sat at the island in the kitchen and started eating. I must admit, I wasn't a fan of fish, but it was really good.
"Wonderful, Esme," I complimented. "How do you know how to cook so well?"
"Just my maternal instinct," she replied, smiling. "So how was your honeymoon, Bella?"
"Amazing," Bella sighed. "Thank you so much for letting us use your island."
"I would do anything for my children." Esme saw the look of confusion on my face. "Carlisle bought me an island off the coast of South America," Esme explained.
"Oh." I nodded. Damn, these vampires were wealthy.
"Well, if you need anything else, just call. I'll be outside." Esme left the room, leaving us alone. I noticed Tasha by my feet, eating a small serving of tuna.
"Spoiled cat," I said affectionately.
She purred contentedly.
"So, you're really a witch?" Bella asked me.
"Yep. See?" I looked towards the fridge, and the door opened allowing two soda cans to float towards us. I closed the door and caught them, handing one to Bella.
"Wow. And I thought there were only vampires and werewolves out there," she said, laughing nervously.
"That's more than what I thought," I admitted. "Grandmother never told me about them."
"How did Carlisle know your grandmother?" Bella asked, taking a sip of her soda.
I shrugged. "He hasn't explained that yet. I probably need to talk to him alone, but I haven't had the chance."
"He's always at the hospital," Bella said. "That's where I first met him."
"How did an ordinary girl like you, no offense, become entangled in this crazy world?" I asked her.
"Well, it started last year, when I moved here from Phoenix…"
Bella told me her experiences with the Cullens, and eventually the wolves. After she was done, I remarked, "How the hell do you get into that much shit in such a short amount of time?"
"I don't know," Bella said, laughing slightly at my tone. "But for all the bad things that happened, the good outweighed them all."
"You really love Edward?"
"More than my life…obviously. He's so afraid he won't be able to stop when he turns me…I just wish he would trust himself more," she sighed.
"He stopped once already. He's made love to you without hurting you. He can turn you," I reasoned.
"Tell that to Edward, though he can probably hear us right now." She looked out into the hallway, her eyes knowing. "But now I'm thinking I want to go to college for a year before I'm turned, but I don't want to get older. I'm already a year older than Edward is."
"Hmm…I may know a way to help you, but it's risky," I said, unsure of whether I should tell her this.
"How?" she asked quickly, her brown eyes pleading.
"Well, witches, in general, age slower than common folk. My grandmother herself created an anti-aging potion; one of the reasons why she looked so damn good when she died at age 105," I said, bragging a little.
"105?" Bella asked in awe.
"Yeah. We had to tell people she was younger than that, naturally, but people still questioned because of how youthful she looked."
"So, this potion will slow down my body's aging and give me a longer life?" Bella asked.
"Possibly, but it's only been taken by a handful of witches, and then it's near impossible to brew, and there's always the risk of poisoning yourself-"
She cut me off. "I want to try it. I have to try."
I sighed heavily. "Edward, we need a second opinion, and we should probably get Carlisle's medical expertise in here."
Edward came into the room, looking thoughtful. "This sounds like a godsend, but I'm not sure we should risk the danger."
"Please, Edward!" Bella got up and took his hands in hers. "I could have a little more human experience."
Edward closed his eyes, then opened them again, staring into Bella's. "Are you sure?"
"Yes," she breathed. "This would mean so much to me."
"When can you have it ready, Gwendolyn?" Edward asked, not taking his eyes away from his wife.
"I don't know. I would first have to find the recipe, if Grandmother wrote it down, and then gather the supplies, and then it could take weeks to brew…"
"Do what you need to. If you need help getting anything, let me know." Edward looked at me, and I could see the devotion for Bella reflected in them.
"Okay," I agreed, going against my gut feeling. "But if anything should backfire-"
"I'll turn her," Edward said with dead certainty. "I would feel better saving her life like that than taking it away if she's healthy." He looked back at Bella. "What do you think, my love?"
"Oh, Edward!" She wrapped her arms around his neck, and he picked her up, holding her to him.
"I think we should go," Jasper whispered in my ear.
I gasped and spun around. "You startled me."
"I can tell." He placed his hand over my fast-beating heart. "I'm sorry, but these two might…" He lifted his eyebrows suggestively.
I giggled. "Okay. Let's go."
Jasper took my hand and led me out into the forest. A small breeze rustled the autumn leaves that were still clinging to the branches.
"So what made you decide to tell Bella about the potion? You could have kept it a secret," Jasper asked me, moving a low branch out of our path.
"I don't know. I guess I felt bad for her, since she was so conflicted, and for Edward…" I trailed off. "Was it the right thing?"
"Perhaps," Jasper said. "If it doesn't kill her."
"I'm worried, since she doesn't have the magic gene."
"Couldn't her inability to be affected mentally by our powers be evidence of it?" Jasper asked, suddenly picking me up and placing me over a log that was in our path.
"That's what I'm hoping," I admitted while blushing. "You know I'm not helpless." I gestured back to the log.
"Sorry. It's just my southern manners." He smiled sheepishly, and that's when I noticed his voice had a southern twang to it, more than usual.
"Why don't you always speak with your accent?" I asked.
"People would notice us more if we spoke with our accents; they would see how different we are. Like Carlisle: he's from England, so he has to hide his British accent," Jasper explained.
"Oh," I said, rather lamely. "When humans aren't around, do you let your guard down?"
Jasper shook his head. "It's become a habit."
"You could when you're with me," I breathed, unsure of whether he could hear.
"Okay, I will," Jasper said.
We came across another log. "May I?" He gestured with his hands that he wanted to pick me up.
"I got this," I said, and focused my energies on the dead tree. In a puff of smoke, it turned into a pile of mulch. "There. Much better." I neatly stepped over it, feeling very confident.
"Impressive," Jasper noted, smirking.
"Why are so many trees down?" I asked, looking around us.
"You really don't want to know," Jasper answered.
"Come on, it can't be that bad," I pried, leaning against an old oak.
"Rose and Emmett like to try new things…" Jasper said, waiting for my reaction.
"Oh, god!" I jumped away from the oak, afraid of what might be on the tree.
Jasper started to laugh at me.
"God, it's not funny!" I yelled, taking my light jacket off. "I'm gonna have to burn this thing," I said disgustedly.
"Emmett and Rosalie are quite open with their sex life," Jasper said.
"Apparently," I sighed.
"Come on, I want to show you something." Jasper reached for my hand.
"It's not more nasty trees, is it?" I asked warily.
"No," he chuckled. "Just something you should be aware of."
I took Jasper's hand, and noticed how different his touch was to Jacob's. It was much colder, and harder, but also more careful; I was holding his hand more tightly than he was holding mine; he wanted to make sure he didn't crush it.
"See this line of trees?" Jasper asked, and I nodded. "Beyond that is Quileute territory. Black told you about the treaty, right?"
"Yeah. Vampires aren't allowed to go onto their land."
"Well, this is the dividing line. If we cross it, they are allowed to attack us."
I nodded thoughtfully. "Good to know. But am I allowed to cross it?"
Jasper laughed. "Humans are welcome to."
I released his hand and walked to the trees. I visualized a white line on the ground, and I dramatically jumped over it. I turned around to see Jasper applauding.
"Thank you," I laughed, bowing to him.
All too soon this moment was spoiled. A large creature toppled me over, lightly growling.
"Get off of her!" Jasper shouted, unable to aid me.
"What the hell?" I gasped as I saw two large, black eyes staring at me. I recognized them immediately.
"Jacob Black!" I spat. "What the hell is wrong with you?!"
A/N: Ooh, Jake's in trouble! What will happen? Will Jasper kick his ass? Review to find out! ;)