Bella

Time seemed to fly by as soon as the initial plans were made. I made an effort to cook for Charlie every night that month, and often caught myself looking at him sadly when his attention was focused elsewhere. I called Renee as often as I could, and the night before graduation, as I got off the phone with her, I had to stifle a sob. She'd called me in a frenzy, informing me that Phil had sustained an injury and she had to stay and take care of things. I assured her it wasn't a problem, but there was a lump in my throat as I told her I loved her. It didn't seem fair that avenging Edward and Alice meant that I would never see my mother again...but it was probably best this way. There was less chance of her getting hurt, and if she came to Forks at this point, I wasn't sure I'd be able to let her leave.

I was quiet for a while after I got off the phone with my mother, and Jasper noticed. Pulling me into his arms, he whispered into my hair, "You don't have to do this."

I pushed him away. "And what am I supposed to do? Stand by while you attempt it on your own?" I replied angrily. "Not likely, Jasper."

He considered me for a moment, then sighed. "I'm sorry, Bella," he said simply. "I just hate the thought of you-"

I stopped him with a finger on his lips. "Shh," I admonished him gently. "We promised not to discuss it anymore, remember?"

The agony in his eyes was echoed in his voice as he answered softly, "Yes, I remember."

Something strange passed between us then, followed immediately by a feeling like the cramped ache you get in your arm after a slight shock. Jasper leaned forward, that familiar hungry look in his eye, and for a wild moment I wanted to brush my lips against his, to find an outlet for the pent up longing and frustration in my heart, but I refrained.

"I need to get ready for tomorrow," I told him, turning away.

"Of course," Jasper agreed, inclining his head like the gentleman he was, and then surprised me by swooping forward and pressing his lips to my temple.

"Such sweet sorrow," he murmured teasingly into my ear, and I couldn't help the smile that spread across my face. Jasper knew of my soft spot for that play, and, thinking it ridiculous himself ("how can anyone fall in love in five minutes? Romeo could be a murderer for all Juliet knows"), had taken it upon himself to embarrass me by quoting lines from it at every opportunity. I turned around to smack him with the blouse I held in my hand, but he was already out the window, the curtains trembling slightly in his wake. Smiling slightly to myself, I finished laying out my graduation outfit and, flicking off the light, lay down for a night of thankfully dreamless sleep.

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The next day seemed to slip by much faster than I'd bargained for. One moment I was fussing with my now pixie-length hair in the bathroom; the next I was walking across the vast stage, trying not to trip or burst into some frightening combination of tears and laughter as Jasper made faces at me and Charlie beamed proudly from the front row. After the ceremony was over, the three of us went out to eat. Dipping a fry absentmindedly in ketchup, I thought of how nightmarishly unlikely this scene would have appeared a year ago - Jasper, Charlie and I, sharing a friendly dinner at the Lodge. Of course, Jasper wasn't eating anything, claiming the queasiness from nerves hadn't worn off just yet, but Charlie had become accustomed enough to the Cullens' strange eating habits that this did not bother him unduly. After dinner we went back to my house and watched a movie together, and the normalcy of it all struck me as particularly precious. I tried not to think of the night in lasts - this is the last time I'll endure this mediocre food because Charlie loves it - the last time I'll kiss his scratchy cheek goodnight - the last time I'll hear Renee's voice, tinny from the long distance connection, wishing me a tired but heartfelt Congratulations - but it was impossible, and I found that my cheeks were already wet as I tried to suppress the tide of emotion. Standing in the kitchen, I placed the envelope containing the letter for Charlie on the kitchen table and raced out of the house as fast as I could, knowing that if I looked back I'd change my mind.

Jasper met me at the edge of the woods, having left a half an hour earlier under the pretense of turning in early. His face was unreadable as I approached, duffle bag in hand, silent tears streaming down my face.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked me for what felt like the millionth time, feeling like I was convincing myself as well as him, I replied, "I have to."

His eyes were blacker than I'd ever seen them before, so dark they might have blended into the night if not for the white surrounding the irises. "There's no going back."

"I know." My voice sounded stronger than I felt; maybe I could do this after all.

He studied me for a long moment, and then, moving forward, he slung my duffel bag over his shoulder and lifted me so that I was cradled close to his chest. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I tucked my head against him and closed my eyes, not wanting to see the trees whipping by. In just a few minutes we had reached the border. Sliding down onto my own two feet, I grasped Jasper's hand and waited.

We couldn't have been there for more than ten minutes before headlights bathed the road in light. Squinting, I spotted the familiar outline of a Volkswagen Rabbit pulled over on the side of the road. Giving Jasper's hand a squeeze, I then let go and made my way across the imagined border, coming to a halt on the passenger's side. Leaning down, I made to tap on the window, but Jake was already halfway out of the car.

"Save it, Bella," he growled as he opened the car's miniscule trunk. "I'm only doing this because it's right, not out of some misplaced affection, believe me,"

"That's good to hear," I said lightly, having anticipated some animosity, but Jake merely grunted in response. Pulling my motorcycle out of his car, he set it on the road between the two of us, and I made the mistake of looking into his eyes.

There was a world of unresolved pain in Jake's face, and I could see that a month hadn't apart hadn't had any effect on Jake's feelings for me. Sighing, I went over to him and threw my arms around him in a tight hug. His arms hung limply by his sides at first, but after a few long seconds they lifted and wrapped themselves around me.

"I'm sorry, Jake," I told him honestly. "What I said to you in the hospital was wrong. You put me back together when no one else cared, and I never got a chance to thank you for that. So...thank you. For getting me out of the coma. For making me realize it was okay to feel things again."

"Don't mention it, Bells," he said gruffly against my hair, and then a little softer, in a voice full of regret, "I'm sorry, too."

I responded by hugging him as tight as I could, one last time. He replied in kind, and when we pulled away, tears were standing in both of our eyes.

"Take care of Charlie for me, Jake," I asked, my voice thick with emotion.

He nodded, looking heartbroken. "Love you, Bells," he whispered softly, as though the words were being wrenched from some deep well of pain within him.

"Love you too, Jake," I answered sadly, and, taking my motorcycle by the handlebars, wheeled it off to where Jasper waited with open arms and understanding etched on his face.

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The next few days are quite literally a blur in my memory. I remember the trees sliding by one after another at such speed and with such dreadful monotony that eventually I just laid my head against Jasper's shoulder and was lulled into a sort of half-sleep that didn't come close to the real thing. The first night we stayed in a crappy motel just off the interstate, where the owner leered at me though his missing teeth until Jasper threatened to knock the rest out for him. The next night, fearing that my picture would be all over the news by now, we camped off a desolate little hiking trail on the border of Washington and Canada. We laid down beneath the stars, Jasper dressed in normal garb and me shivering even curled up next to a space heater and nestled in a thermal sleeping bag, and simply talked for a while, comparing memories of the ones we'd lost. Jasper had just lapsed into silence after recounting the story of how he'd met Alice when I gasped and pointed frantically behind his head.

Snarling and crouching into a defensive stance, Jasper was surprised to discover, not a predator, but the glorious lights of the aurora borealis, visible above the treetops from where we were settled on a modest peak. We watched them dance across the sky in silence for a while, awed at the beauty of the shimmering green and blue colors, and then, at my insistence, Jasper curled up beside me despite the cold and stayed that way until I fell asleep.

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I was awoken in the morning by the sounds of conversation. Jasper was talking to someone, a woman it sounded like, who had a perfect, melodic alto of a voice. Knowing instantly that this was no stray hiker, I sat up and rubbed the sleep from my eyes.

Standing at the edge of our campsite next to Jasper was a stunning strawberry-blond clad in leggings, boots, and a leather vest over a loose white button-down. Her corkscrew curls tumbled past her waist and her eyes were a sparkling gold.

"You must be Bella," she said in that voice like honey. Then her expression changed, and her voice grew tight, as though she were suppressing her inner fury. "We were...so sorry...to hear about Edward," she managed haltingly, and I nodded, not knowing what to say.

"So you'll help us, then?" Jasper interjected, glossing over the awkward moment, and the vampire who I would come to know as Tanya turned back to him and laughed mirthlessly.

"You have no idea how long we've been waiting for this."

A/N: Okay, so kind of a cliffhanger, but not really. Don't hurt me! Anyway, at least it's longer, I'm probably not going to be able to get the next chapter up for a while so I wanted to give you guys a little something to chew on in the meantime. Constructive criticism is very much appreciated. Thanks.