A/N: Twilight belongs to Stephanie Meyer, but her characters are fun to play with so I'm making them do my bidding for the foreseeable future. Jasper as the God of War and Peter 'just knowing shit' are ideas that belong to IDreamofEddy. I do own the plot and original characters of Longing though.

Thank you to my wonderful beta and friend, Laurie Whitlock, my sister, beta/pre-reader, Shelljayz, and my pre-reader, Shadman. I truly do not know what I would do without the three of you! :)

Once again, a huge thank you to everyone who has followed, favorited, reviewed or just plain stopped by to read or visit. I love you all! :)

I have actually managed over 400 reviews which pretty much astounds me. I literally have a "struck dumb" expression on my face. That is what you all do to me with your awesomeness! :)

What happens now that Bella has made her decision? I guess we'd better find out, hmm?

Chapter 23

oOo

October 2080

JPOV

It had been three days since Carlisle made the proposal to Paige ... three days of waiting, wondering, and worrying. There had been no sign of her, not a breath or a whisper. Absolutely nothing. Everyone was on pins and needles as we sat there in limbo. My family was trying desperately to keep their anxiety, excitement, and impatience under control for my sake but even after decades of living with an empath they were still failing miserably. But while their emotions were grating and troublesome, they were nothing compared to my own.

I had voted no, knowing it wouldn't matter because the emotions of every other vampire at that dining table had told me it would be useless.

I had voted no even though a voice inside my head was screaming, Yes, yes, yes. Yes! YES!

Because despite that voice, a voice I hadn't been able to identify and which clearly needed to see the inside of a padded cell, I could not live in the same goddamn house with Paige Donnelly. I could not be around her all the fuckin' time. She had driven me crazy enough when I had spent only a few minutes with her but to be confined in a small space with her for an indefinite period of time? I couldn't do it. Well, maybe not couldn't; more like didn't want to. I did not want to be continuously surrounded by her scent or to deal with her constant need to test my control. The last time I saw her, I had just barely held myself together and my hold on my sanity had continued to weaken since. Going after Em and Rose and nearly ripping Peter's head off was a testament to this, and I didn't want to have to deal with the implications of what that could potentially mean for a human living in the same house as I was. Peter would survive if I took off his head; Paige would not and as much as she annoyed me, I still did not want to hurt her nor did I want her blood on my hands. I had to hope that she wouldn't go against the grain and accept Carlisle's offer because I didn't know what I would do if she did.

As if my persistent thoughts of her had conjured her out of thin air, her scent suddenly permeated the surrounding area within a mile radius of the house. When she got to the door, I was the one waiting to answer it, and I could feel just how uneasy this made Carlisle, Emmett, and Edward. Peter was the only one who wasn't concerned and I didn't have to wonder why. He may have voted in favor of Paige living here but his primary emotion regarding her was curiosity.

Join the fuckin' club, dude, I thought to myself in exasperation. In actuality, I couldn't decide what my primary emotion toward her was but curiosity was definitely a driving force behind my fascination. Fuck! She does not fascinate you!

No matter what his motivation, which he still hadn't divulged to me or to Charlotte, he didn't much care about Paige, and he most certainly didn't need to be concerned by her. He could handle me if I lost it around her. He had to handle me if I lost it around her.

I knew my waiting for her at the door would have bothered Esme and Alice, but they, along with Charlotte and Rosalie, were out on a hunting trip together doing some girlie bonding shit. I could only assume that either Alice hadn't seen Paige showing up or she had and had seen that I managed to keep my cool; otherwise, she would have called to give us some warning. Then again, if Alice had seen Paige showing up, the girls would still be here.

I didn't really give a shit about Carlisle, Emmett, or Edward's worry. What I did give a shit about was seeing Paige because I really did want to. Yes, it didn't make any fuckin' sense to me but I was done trying to figure it out. The only thing that did was frustrate the hell out of me and considering the girl herself managed that just fine all on her own, I didn't need to add to it given my current circumstances. I certainly wasn't going to if I could avoid it.

I was operating under the current theory that if Paige had decided to live with us, maybe if I spent more time with her, tried to like her, I would be less likely to hurt her if I lost control. Maybe it would even be fun having her around. She challenged me and I really did enjoy our little standoffs.

When she knocked, I waited several seconds, wondering while I did why she never used the doorbell. Opening the door, I surveyed her casually, leaning against the door frame and admiring the way she filled out her well-fitting jeans and dark green sweater. Also, she was wearing her necklace again.

"What can I do for you, sugar?" I drawled, lazily.

Paige scowled, her tone scathing, "You can't do anything for me, Cullen."

"Whitlock," I automatically corrected, making no move to let her in. I had been hoping the hatred I'd seen in her eyes three days ago when she looked at me would be gone but it wasn't, and I didn't understand what had changed. I thought we had left things in a relatively decent place, a good one even, when I left Louisville but maybe I had misread the situation. I never had been able to read her well. Maybe she really did hate me as much as I had hated her.

That's right, Jasper, I realized suddenly, hated, past tense.

Now that I had figured out she wasn't the cause of my downward spiral, I had no reason to hate her. That did not mean I didn't still find her fuckin' annoying but this revelation would make it a hell of a lot easier for me to attempt to like her. Unfortunately, her apparent hatred for me would muck that up some, but I could be a charming son of a bitch when I wanted to be, and I was convinced I could get her to let that go.

"What?" Paige snapped impatiently.

"My last name," I clarified, still blocking the doorway. "It's Whitlock."

Paige pointed to her indifferent expression. "This is me trying to figure out why I should give a fuck."

This pissed me off and everything I had just thought went flying out the window. My spine went ramrod straight and I gritted my teeth so intensely it was actually uncomfortable. "Because names are important. I had a family before this one and remaining a Whitlock honors them, never lets me forget. It's who I am," I said seriously, and then my voice lowered and darkened menacingly, "and you would be wise to remember that this isn't your home yet, so mind your fuckin' manners."

"Or what?" she spat, the challenge I loved so much filling her eyes. This time I did not find it amusing. I didn't appreciate disrespect and I usually didn't stand for it; especially in light of my past and my current struggles. I was willing to let her attitude against me go, for now, but I would not let her disrespect Carlisle and Esme. "You'll rat me out to the cops?"

I had been ready to show her exactly what I would do if she didn't shut that smart mouth of hers but that caught me off guard. Of all things, why would she ask that? Then I remembered that Carlisle and Esme had threatened her with this more than once when she'd first been here so I took it with a grain of salt.

My eyes narrowed and I glared at her, my tone still fierce when I spoke, "You don't want to know what I'll do to you, sugar."

"I came here to see your father," she said, coolly. "Are you going to let me in or do your balls need to make an appointment with my knee?"

I laughed, hearty and deep, for a few seconds before my scowl returned full force. "I'd like to see you try."

I could hear Carlisle, Emmett, and Edward heading toward the door, eager and anxious to defuse the situation and was surprised they hadn't made a move to stop it before now.

Paige smirked. "I wouldn't underestimate me, Whitlock. People that make that mistake always regret it. Now are you going to stand in that doorway all day looking like a jackass and wasting my time or do I have to make you move?"

I folded my arms across my chest and let my own smirk spring to my lips, my posture and stance going from casual to cocky for the express purpose of pissing her off.

"Please, sugar," I challenged arrogantly, knowing how much she hated it when I called her that, and doing it to piss her off more, "make me."

She took a determined step toward me, prepared to do exactly that, and I widened my smirk in taunting. Her scowl deepened, but before she could get any closer Carlisle laid a hand on my shoulder, the pressure of Emmett and Edward's emotions against my skin informing me that they were hovering just behind him. Carlisle's touch nearly made me flinch but I wouldn't let Paige see me weak. Not now. She had already seen enough of that and I refused to let her see any more.

"Please come in, Storm," he invited politely. His tone with her said one thing, but his emotions, which were directed toward me, said another entirely and his hand tightened on me in warning.

Paige's eyes locked on mine for several long moments, our gaze intense and challenging just as it always was; and, once again, the world faded away until nothing and no one else existed, the atmosphere between us so charged it could have lit the house on fire.

Finally, I broke our connection, stepping aside and moving my arms in a broad sweeping gesture of invitation. She moved passed me, back straight and head held high, pretending like I no longer existed. That pissed me the fuck off, of course, because everything she did pissed me off. When our shoulders brushed that same electricity went zinging through my body and that pissed me off too. We both tensed, Paige seeming just as angry about it as I was, which left me oddly disappointed and even more agitated, though I wasn't sure how that was possible.

She kept moving, and as she left me behind in the foyer, she growled, "Fucking asshole." Her tone was low and irritated, too low for a human to have been able to hear, and I did find pleasure in her aggravation ... just not enough to override my own. Then her tone changed to genial as she said, "Thank you, Dr. Cullen."

"Bitch," I growled back, wishing she could hear me as she walked away.

"Damn, Jazz," Emmett said in disbelief and disapproval. "I know you don't want her here but did you have to be such a dick?"

"She started it," I snapped sourly, my smirk morphing into a glower. I wasn't going to tell him that my not wanting her here had less to do with her and more to do with the fact that I was fucked in the head and currently unable to manage it well. He didn't need to know that yet. I was hoping he, and the rest of my family, wouldn't have to, and truth be told, I was back to wanting nothing more than to snap Paige's skinny, little neck.

"How old are you again?" Edward asked, voice vaguely amused but also concerned and somewhat disapproving.

I didn't respond to that, instead walking through the door Paige had just walked in and heading toward the outside entrance to the garage. I needed to get the fuck away from her but I didn't feel like running, so I grabbed the keys to my Dodge Tomahawk. It was the fastest motorcycle in the world, topping out at 350 mph, and it was exactly what I needed. I quickly started it up and hopped on, the tires squealing as I sped down the driveway and as far away from her as I could get.

Fuck!

oOo

BPOV

I hated him. I really, really hated Jasper fucking Cullen or Whitlock or whatever the hell his last name was. I hated him for many reasons ...

I hated him for showing up in Louisville and fucking up the perfectly good life I had going there. I had established a firm six week limit that was the maximum amount of time I ever stayed in one place. I had never actually stayed in a place for that long but I'd had every intention of taking advantage of my six week rule that time, and I had been robbed of two of those weeks in the place I had been the happiest. Maybe I had been restless and itchy with an ache in my chest I couldn't explain, haunted by the echoes of memories of a boy I hardly knew, but there had been Wildfire and riding, and I had never loved anything the way I loved that horse and that pastime. Maybe I could ride again somewhere else but there would never be another Wildfire, and Jasper had taken away two-thirds of the time I could have had with him.

I hated him for getting under my skin, tearing down my walls just enough for me to convince myself that it would be okay to let him touch me, for the fact that his touch actually felt good, for pushing me to open up to him about a subject I knew better than to broach, and then betraying me. He had gotten me fucking arrested, opening up the possibility of my location being compromised, and it had been. Project Apotheosis had come for me.

I knew this because I had never left Louisville. Not really. Initially, when I left Dr. Cullen's hotel I had stolen a car, something I rarely did, driven it 100 miles toward Green River Lake near Campbellsville, KY, and abandoned it after eradicating any trace that I had been the one to lift it. Then I had hoofed it the last five miles to the forest, which had been tough even though I felt much better after Dr. Cullen had patched me up. I then climbed the highest tree I could find and passed out for two days. When I woke up I was back to tip-top shape, though I still haven't been able to figure out why I had been dead to the world for so long, pun ironic and very much intended. I was uncomfortably aware that this was becoming a trend and I didn't like it.

I shouldn't have returned to Louisville after that, but I hadn't had a choice in it. I had invested a great deal of myself both body and soul while there and I had business there that remained unfinished, but I couldn't just show back up without being cautious about it. When I had first arrived in the city I had done my homework, familiarizing myself with everything about it, including maps; so when I got back into town I knew the best perimeter to prowl to look for signs that hunters were there searching for me. I knew everything to watch for because I knew them and they were there, hunting me, hoping to capture me and take me back. I hadn't turned back and gotten out of there though because their presence didn't make the business I still had in Louisville any less unresolved. I just had to watch my back the way I always did, adding an extra layer of care to my defensive and offensive tactics now that I knew for certain that my fears had come to fruition.

Luckily, hacking into the Louisville PD database and altering the fingerprints attached to my mugshot had paid off. From the intelligence I had gathered, they still had no idea what I looked like and were currently in the process of covertly investigating everyone who had been arrested in the ninety-six hour period surrounding the timeframe my fingerprints had shown up in their system and which they estimated to be the time during which I may have been brought in. Though their presence and investigation did complicate matters, their initial relative ignorance did work out well for what I still had to accomplish there in Louisville.

I'd had five principal objectives.

The first was ensuring that Shiri, Jax, Matt, Alana, Lucas, and Mari were placed in safe, potentially loving foster homes. I had nearly given my life to remove them from an abusive situation, and I'd be damned if I would allow that effort to be for nothing. They deserved safety and reassurance, love if possible. I had told myself that what happened to me didn't matter as long as I had ensured that they had those things. That hadn't changed no matter what I had gone through to get to that point nor did it matter that I was in genuine danger of getting caught. It had been tricky managing to pull that off behind the scenes with no one the wiser for it when I wasn't satisfied with the choices Social Services had made for them, but I had done it.

How had I determined who was or was not right for them? Hours of careful surveillance, comprehensive background checks, and covert interviews, of course. Ultimately, they had all ended up in good homes. Jax and Matt were with a younger, sweet-natured couple who had one child of their own and had been ecstatic to take them in. Alana and Shiri were with a couple in their thirties who had been desperately trying to conceive for nearly a decade. They had recently discovered the wife was incapable and had been driven to tears when they found out they had gotten them. Mari and Lucas ended up with a woman in her forties who had housed several foster children who had lived in abusive homes before going to live with her. I had talked to some of her previous charges, and they all had nothing but wonderful things to say about her. With those people as their new parents, I genuinely felt I had left them all in good hands. It was the resolution to a fucked up situation I'd needed so I could leave feeling peaceful ... in regard to that, at least.

My second objective had been to check up on Lydia and Elizabeth. They had been discharged from the hospital the day I'd returned from Green River Lake, both healing nicely from the wounds Rafe had inflicted on them the night he'd "killed" me and on the mend from all the other damage he'd done. Lydia was both filing for divorce as well as charges against him for all the abuse she'd taken over the years as well as that he'd inflicted on their daughter and had adamantly insisted on testifying at his murder trial. Though she was only six, Elizabeth had been adamant about this as well, and I couldn't help but be touched by that. They were now living in Tree Hill, North Carolina with Lydia's parents as they tried to piece their lives back together in the aftermath of it all and seemed to be doing well; as well as can be considering the circumstances anyway. I knew this because I had taken a detour to Tree Hill one day to check and was more than a little pleased to see it. It added another layer of sweetness to my victory over Rafe and the resolution I'd needed.

My third objective had been to keep an eye on the people I had formed connections with during my time there, though "connection" was a loose description. It was only a matter of time before the hunters figured out which incarcerated girl was me, and then they would go after the people I knew. Jack, Jeremy the Stable Boy, and everyone else at Churchill Downs would be fine since I was known as Kristine Hastings there, and I doubted the hunters would make that connection. I'd still keep a tentative eye on them but my main concerns were Christian, Ashley, Todd, Sharon, everyone else I'd worked with at The Finish Line, and Mr. Conroy. They were the ones the hunters would approach, the ones that could potentially never be seen or heard from again. By the time I left, not a hair on their heads had been harmed and, as far as I could tell, not one of them had been approached by anyone from Project Apotheosis. Of course, I had been busy with several other things, so I could have been mistaken, but I would keep an eye on them through alternative means for the foreseeable future just to be safe. If something happened to one of them because of their association with me … well, I would cross that bridge when I came to it.

My fourth objective had been to procure a copy of the case file of the investigation into Jane Doe's murder as well as the evidence collected from the crime scene. That one had been a hell of a lot fucking trickier to accomplish than the first three since it involved not only hacking the Louisville PD database again but breaking into the place to make a hard copy. I had no idea of the caliber of the detective(s) working her case or if he or she kept the digital and paper files up-to-date with each other. Plus, I had to get my hands on individual notes that may or may not have been included in either as well. In order to fulfill my promise to Jane, I couldn't afford to miss any evidence that may have been collected, leads that were being cultivated, or hunches that might have taken root in the investigative minds of those trying to solve her case. Yet again, despite its trickiness, I managed it.

Once I had that information, I was able to examine the crime scene with my own keen eyes, checking for evidence that could have been missed due to pedestrian human error. Since I was not entirely human and my preternatural senses could pick up on things that most could not, I had to make sure. Finding Jane's killer and making him or her pay for taking her life long before it should have ended was now my responsibility. It was one I took very seriously; especially since, in the absence of her body, her case had already been deemed cold. That had made breaking into Louisville's evidence locker to steal the rest of the physical evidence all the more important. I would return it to its rightful place if I could, but only if.

Jane would be avenged. I wouldn't rest until this had been done.

My fifth objective had been to clear out my motel room. I had half a million dollars and a decent stockpile of quality weapons stashed there. I was picky when it came to what I armed myself with, and I had collected some great pieces that I'd already made specific modifications to. I didn't want to leave them behind. My arsenal wasn't quite complete yet but I had a good start on it after abandoning the stash I'd had in British Columbia, the one it had taken me more than a year to collect, and I wasn't fond of the idea of having to start over again.

I didn't need weapons per se. I was a wickedly deadly weapon in my own right, but my drill sergeants and trainers had insisted I master the use of practically every weapon known to mankind nonetheless. The fact was there were times when I just liked using weapons better than my natural abilities, though I suppose my proficiency with them could technically count as one of them. I tried to ignore that thought though because I found comfort in the notion that with enough practice and dedication, anyone could master a weapon. It made me feel like less of a freak.

And as far as the money went? Honestly, how stupid would I have been to abandon the $500,000 I had earned fair and square? Especially when I intended to use it to fund my endeavors to keep the promises I had made to Jane Doe. There were a couple other things I had planned for it, but that was the most important.
All of this had taken me seventeen days. After that I had purchased a ticket for a nonstop trip on an express train to Seattle so I could make my way to Forks in a last ditch effort to locate my necklace. I had noticed it was missing not an hour after I'd woken from my restorative slumber since it was like a physical extension of my body. I could not have lost it, so I had searched for it frantically in every place it possibly could have been. After coming up empty, the only thing I could figure was that Dr. Cullen could have somehow ended up with it. In my desperation to convince myself it wasn't really gone that was what I had forced myself to believe. It wasn't the best idea to go to Forks though. Dr. Cullen no doubt thought I had died and he was better off believing that, but I simply could not even entertain the thought of not at least seeing if he might have had it and so I had come.

Why else did I hate Jasper fucking Whitlock? I hated him because I had nearly died due to the situation he had put me in, but also I hated him because there were things I couldn't hate him for. Maybe he had been the one to call in the anonymous tip that had gotten me arrested, but I was the one who had given him the ammunition that had inevitably ended up leaving me fucked. I had made the choice to stay in Louisville after my arrest instead of making an immediate escape. I was the one who had decided to take Rafe Jones down, which was what had led to my near demise. I was the one who had gone back despite the likelihood that hunters would be there looking for me and had stayed even though they were, in fact, there. Yes, Jasper was partially to blame but I was equally culpable in the shitstorm my last days in Louisville had been but I wanted to blame him for all of it. I wanted to hate him for all of it. The fact that I couldn't pissed me off.

The thing that I especially hated him for: there was a little part of me that was happy, ridiculously fucking happy to see him despite everything that had gone down between us. My head was telling me that I wanted nothing to do with him but there was a little piece of my heart that seemed to want the opposite. It didn't make any damn sense, and so I hated him for it. I was already confused about enough; I didn't need to be confused about anything more and hating him was easy. Granted, he never had made it hard to hate him every time he opened his fucking mouth, which worked out well because I had to hate him. It was one of the only ways I could live in Forks with the Cullens and manage to leave them behind after my six weeks were up, to survive it and remain in one piece; if I even ended up staying that long.

I was going to studiously ignore that particular train of thought for the moment. I was, once again, sitting across from Dr. Cullen in one of the wingback chairs in his study, preparing to discuss the terms of the arrangement he'd proposed. I wasn't naive enough to believe there wouldn't be conditions to my living here and while I was 90% certain I would take him up on his offer, my final decision still depended on what he and his family were expecting from me and what they hoped to get out of it. I believed they were genuine in their desire to help relieve some of the burden from the shoulders of a girl they thought had grown up too fast but there were always conditions, no matter how good one's intentions might be.

We sat there regarding each other for a few moments before either of us broke the silence. I was the first to speak. "You're really serious about this?"

It was a redundant question but I felt the need to ask it again for my own peace of mind, and I felt an unfamiliar sense of vulnerability as I waited for his answer. It had nothing to do with him and everything to do with my eagerness to get started on fulfilling my promises to Jane. No matter its cause, it still made me uneasy.

"Absolutely," Dr. Cullen answered. He had a trace of an accent that I must have been aware of before but was only just now registering. It sounded British but I couldn't pinpoint its specific origin.

I nodded and then got down to business, not wanting to waste any more time than I already had beginning my investigation into Jane Doe's death. Maybe it would only delay things for a few minutes but that mattered to me. "Alright, what are the conditions to my living here?"

"Conditions?" he questioned, a look of mild confusion marring his features. For the first time I noticed how startlingly beautiful Carlisle Cullen was. Except for his eyes, he didn't look any older than twenty-three or twenty-four but no matter how beautiful he was, his looks didn't really affect me.

I stared at him, my gaze penetrating, measuring, daring him to argue. "There are always conditions."

Dr. Cullen's gaze turned sad. I couldn't call it pity exactly but it still pissed me off. I glared at him, but he remained ever patient as he responded with, "You are far too jaded for someone so young."

The smile I flashed him started out bitter but I fought hard to empty it of emotion, especially hoping it hadn't corrupted my eyes as well. The eyes always gave you away and there was no place for emotion in this ... yet. "It may not be the most attractive character trait, but being jaded is a hell of a lot better than being a fool. There isn't any place in this world for innocence and naivete. All those do is get you eaten alive and that particular experience has never made it onto my bucket list nor will it. So, shall we get to the negotiation part of this shindig?"

Dr. Cullen frowned. "I didn't realize there would be negotiations."

I chuckled, only partly without humor. "Everything is a negotiation, Dr. Cullen. Didn't you know?"

His expression turned both amused and bewildered before moving on to seriousness and determination. It seemed he really wanted me here, I just didn't know why. Sure he had explained it to me, but I still had a hard time believing the truth of it despite how genuine a person I knew him to be. "I suppose if you feel it's necessary," he said and I nodded in assent. He paused for a beat before saying, "If you live here you have to go to school and that is not negotiable."

"Didn't I just say everything is negotiable?" I asked, my tone annoyed and impatient.

"I am open to negotiating other things," Dr. Cullen said, "but not that. A young lady needs an education so if you're going to live here, you are going to get one."

Shit! I cursed internally. Of all the things I had expected him to open with, that had not been it. I had never been to school before, not a traditional one, at least. My book education had been a one-on-one type of deal with the occasional lesson taught by multiple instructors. Going to school required a birth certificate, records of attendance at prior schools, and proof you'd passed from grade to grade legitimately. I had none of those things and it would be a pain in the ass to get them. For starters, except for the people involved in the project and the information at Fort Ares itself, there was technically no proof that I existed. It was so classified that it might as well not have, and while I was more than capable of getting my hands on that proof, as good a hacker as I was, I couldn't risk that my breaching Project Apotheosis' firewalls might tip them off that I had been there. There was no one else capable of doing that besides the people who had designed the system and they knew it, so they would know it was me. Even if I got away with it scot-free I certainly couldn't, not to mention wouldn't, share that information with Forks High School.

Needless to say, if I wanted to get the things required for enrollment I would have to resort to forgery and doing so was a direct violation of the Safe Citizens Act. I'd had a belly full of what came of doing that in the last weeks, so I didn't relish the idea of actually committing that crime. I did try very hard to keep my felonies to a minimum. On the other hand, normal kids my age went to high school and getting a taste of normalcy and what it was like to be a kid was part of the whole point of living with the Cullens. Going to school would cut into my investigation time though and I wasn't sure I wanted that. It wasn't really fair to Jane.

I took several minutes to mull these things over and Dr. Cullen waited patiently with his hands folded in his lap for me to tell him whether or not this was something I would concede to. Maybe it was the fact that I had come a hair's breadth from dying not long ago but as distasteful as I found the idea of going to high school, I wanted it. I would find a way to balance it and accomplishing my other goals. I was good at balance, and I was confident in my ability to pull it off. Besides, nonstop investigation could result in burnout and tunnel vision, and I would not screw this case up. I would not let Jane down.

"I can deal with that," I finally answered with certainty. "What else?"

"You have to let Esme and I help take care of you," he told me.

"In what way?" I questioned warily.

"We will provide you with clothes, food, a car, a cell phone, all the things a teenager generally gets from their parents," he explained, rationally.

"No," I protested immediately, my tone sharp. "You told me when you proposed this that you had no intention of interfering with my independence and you never said anything about the parent thing."

"I wasn't implying that Esme and I would take on that role," Dr. Cullen responded evenly, "but I also told you that a girl your age shouldn't have to take care of herself in the way that you do. You can be both independent and let people help you, Storm. I promise it won't be the end of the world."

I considered this for a moment, observing Dr. Cullen's body language as I did, and I could see that he was dead set on this. Even if I pulled out my best negotiator and put the screws to him, which I wouldn't do because he was Dr. Cullen, he wasn't going to cave. "Alright, I'll let you buy me the basics: food, toiletries, socks, underwear, jeans, shirts, and whatever else is appropriate for the weather here, but I will be responsible for anything else."

"You need a cell phone and a car, Storm," he protested calmly. "You need some way to communicate with us in case of emergencies, especially if you'd like to preserve your independence. Plus, I can't imagine you'll want to rely on me, Esme, or any of the kids to chauffeur you around town. How do you plan on paying for either of those things?"

I rolled my eyes. I didn't really want to get a job since it would interfere with me holding up my end of the bargain I'd made with Jane, but I had known I would have to and had never entertained the idea that I wouldn't. I had certainly made enough money in Louisville to make it unnecessary, if not for the fact that it was reserved strictly for finding Jane's family and killer. I would have to use some of it to buy a car and a cell phone anyway because I would need those things to help with that as well as what Dr. Cullen had pointed out I would need them for. "I'll get a job. Not all kids have filthy rich parents to buy them everything they want. They have to work if they want or need things like that, and I am not considering taking you up on your offer as an excuse to take advantage of your wealth."

"I wasn't implying that either," he said, "but paying for your own cell phone and especially a car and the insurance for it is a big responsibility. It will put a lot of pressure on you; particularly with school heaped onto your plate. Am I correct in my assumption that you weren't going to school before?"

I regarded him without allowing my expression to change and chose not to answer that. It was none of his business. "I can handle it."

"I don't doubt that," Dr. Cullen assured me, and I knew he meant it, "but, as I have already said, the whole point of you moving in is to let us relieve some of the burden of providing for yourself when you shouldn't have to."

I crossed my arms over my chest stubbornly but refused to let a scowl take over my face. "I buy the cell phone and pay for the plan. As for the car, I'm paying for that too, but we can go halves on insurance. That's the deal, take it or leave it."

Dr. Cullen smiled the slightest bit and I wanted to slap him. He was good at this; I had to give him that. "Done."

"What else?" I continued, my arms still crossed.

He thought for a moment before responding with, "You'll have to abide by the rules we set for you."

My eyebrows rose. "Why on earth would I ever do that?"

Dr. Cullen's smile hadn't faded. "Because teenagers need structure and from what I've observed, you have very little."

The scowl did overtake my face now. I hadn't had to answer to anyone since I'd left Project Apotheosis and I loathed the idea of having to do that again. It was important to me that I remain in charge of how I lived my life. I huffed in irritation, but collected myself before I responded to his statement. "You have known and spent a grand total of twenty-four hours with me and the majority of that time I was unconscious, so you really don't have any idea how much structure I do or do not have; and I have plenty. If I didn't I wouldn't be alive, trust me."

If anything, I have too much.

Dr. Cullen nodded. "I'll concede that point but there will still be certain rules you'll need to follow."

"I will consider following any rules you might come up with," I countered, "but I choose the ones I will obey and which I won't. We have already covered the fact that you and your wife won't be taking on the role of parents to me. Think of me as a houseguest or an exchange student. Hell, I'll even pay you rent."

It was Dr. Cullen's turn to scowl, "Absolutely not!"

I smirked, but my expression remained obstinate. "Well," I began smugly, "if you don't accept my amendment to your condition we're at a stalemate, and if I can't pick and choose which of your rules I will or will not abide, then I walk."

His exasperation twisted his features for no more than two seconds before he pulled it together and retained his characteristic calm and patience. "Since there seems to be no budging you, I'll allow it ... for now. As for any other conditions, I can't think of any, so that begs the question - what are yours?"

I would have smiled in my triumph but I couldn't. Not yet. The one condition I had was a very important one and I couldn't allow my facial expression or demeanor to undermine the seriousness of it. Whether or not I stayed or went hinged on if this condition was met. If it wasn't, there was no doubt that I was walking away and this time I would be finished with the Cullens for good. It didn't matter that I genuinely liked Dr. Cullen or was grateful to him for saving my life. I was dragging out a connection with them against my better judgment because of circumstances and responsibilities, but eventually I would have to permanently cut ties with them. Whether that happened now or several weeks from now was up to him. "I only have one and it's my non-negotiable condition."

"Okay," he said. His tone was encouraging but there was a tenor to it that told me he was taking me seriously, and I appreciated it.

"You and your family have to respect my privacy," I said seriously. "Don't ask me questions about my life before I met you or the time in between when we met and when I showed up here again. I won't answer them because, frankly, it's none of your business," and I want to lie to you as little as possible. "If I want any of you to know anything about me, I will volunteer that information. If you grant me that, I'll grant it to you in turn. If you intentionally pry I'll leave. "

Dr. Cullen nodded in agreement. "That is reasonable and my family and I can accept that condition with ease."

"One other thing," I added, my voice not losing its steely quality. "My behavior the last time I was here has in no way suggested that I'm capable of respect but I actually hold respectfulness in very high regard. If I live here, I won't be treating you, your wife, or your children in that way." The fact of the matter was I owed him this for saving my life, but, "However, this is only provided they don't violate my condition. If any of you do that or disrespect me, I will retaliate. I give as good as I get. I always have and I always will, but I'm sure those aren't things you've forgotten. I trust you'll relay that message."

Dr. Cullen regarded me with comprehension and willingness. "I will. Is there anything else?"

I shook my head. "Not that I can think of, but I will let you know if I do."

"Alright," he said. "So will you or won't you be moving in?"

I paused as I contemplated the conversation we had just had and really thought about what I was getting into, silently revisiting my motel contemplations and the pros and cons, risks and rewards. "I will."

A brilliant smile broke onto Dr. Cullen's face and my own lips curled up of their own volition. What can I say? The guy's happiness was infectious and his relief was palpable too. I just didn't understand why he cared so damn much.

Shit! You have got to be fucking careful, Bella. You cannot let this whole thing bite you in the ass! I reminded myself sternly. I was strong and I could do this. I could live with the Cullens and survive it intact. Part of me had to wonder though: Was I succumbing to naivete? Was it stupid to think I would come out of this unscathed? What if this little taste of normalcy royally fucked things up and I had a hard time readjusting to the reality of the life I had always led and would always inevitably lead? Would this be me getting eaten alive?

Dr. Cullen interrupted my internal musings by asking, "Do you need help moving your things?"

"I don't have much in the way of material possessions, Doc," I said, "so that won't be necessary. I will be back here in," I paused, doing mental calculations, "no more than two weeks."

Dr. Cullen frowned, confused. "Why the delay?"

I gave him a bigger smile this time when I replied, "If I'm going to live here, I've got some things to take care of first."

He studied me carefully. "I don't suppose you'll allow me to help you with those things will you?"

I didn't have to work to keep the smile on my face. "Don't worry, Carlisle. I've got it covered."

oOo

PPOV

Edward, Emmett, and I had all heard every word of the conversation and negotiations between Carlisle and Storm, and I had to admit the girl was fuckin' impressive; but being impressive didn't necessarily mean shit. Her particular brand of impressiveness as well as her attitude and apparent personality did command respect. I definitely couldn't deny her that. She had this magnetism about her that reminded me of Jasper and inspired a protective instinct inside me that only two others ever had in the 160-odd years I'd been a vampire. I wasn't the only one she seemed to have that effect on either, and that was what made me so fuckin' suspicious of her. Well, that and the fact that there was the very real possibility that Storm was responsible for making my gift go haywire. If she was responsible for the disruption in my gift, then she was also the cause of the chink in Alice's. I would be lying if I said that it didn't make me uneasy because if something potentially shitstormish came our way there would be no warning and we would be going into it blind. Jasper, Charlotte, and I were more than capable of handling shit like that, and I'm sure the rest of the Cullens would be up to the task as well but it was still nice to be prepared.

That wasn't the only thing bothering me though. It had been a very long time since I had seen Jasper so fuckin' affected by someone. Storm riled him, twisted him up into knots, wound him so tight he looked damn near coiled to spring. I just wasn't quite sure how or why and it disturbed me. Of anyone who walked this earth, I knew my brother best, knew what made him tick and why. There was only one other person who knew the ins and outs of what got under Jasper's skin better than I did because she was the one who had crawled underneath it and shit there. Maria. Even 112 years after he'd left her, Char and I hadn't been able to scrub that shit clean. The bitch was a fuckin' leech you couldn't pry off and by the time I had come around she'd nearly sucked him dry.

I honestly had no idea how Jasper had survived her but there was a lot I didn't understand about my brother. We'd had a lot of shared experiences while fighting together in the Southern Wars so I got the horrors of that shit. There was camaraderie there between us because of it, one I cherished despite the circumstances under which it had been forged, but he had spent more than double the time I had fighting and I had never been the target of Maria's continual wrath, volatility, and twisted affections. She had genuinely enjoyed making him suffer, and when she wasn't making him suffer, she had him in her bed. I wasn't sure which was worse.

Maria was all about power and in her quest for it, she didn't care how thoroughly she was fucking Jasper up because the more she fucked him up, the more she got what she wanted. It didn't matter that under his command she'd never lost a battle or that she had the largest feeding territory in the South because of it, that the Major had cultivated a healthy respect and a shit ton of fear from the covens who sought to take her down as a result. Maria was a fearsome, formidable vampire that most would think twice before crossing but that wasn't what she wanted. What she did want was for all her opposition to be so afraid of her that they would never even consider it, and she could only accomplish that through my brother and his gift.

When she finally got what she wanted it still wasn't enough. She was never fuckin' satisfied with anything in her life. She always wanted more, especially from Jasper. More power, more blood, more control, more sex. Oh, the way he made her scream was legendary and the only time she wasn't channeling Satan himself was when Jasper was fucking her. I would have thought that shit was hilarious if everything else she'd done to him didn't make me want to dry heave until I actually threw up.

The worst thing about it was that there hadn't been anything I could do to stop it. Jasper had never allowed it, and I had always just known that if I'd gone against his orders it would have done nothing but make things worse for my dearest friend. As hard as that was to imagine, that was one of the times the knowledge my gift had provided me was absolute. It hadn't stopped me from trying once though and my gift had been proven right.

At first I hadn't understood why Jasper put up with the things Maria put him through. Maria was an indisputably powerful vampire, but Jasper was infinitely more so. He was capable of putting her in her fuckin' place or, at the very least, giving as good as he got, and he had definitely done that at times, had started doing so more and more after I had shown up to piss him off. I'm both talented and awesome that way.

My gift had started out relatively weak when I'd first woken to this life but had gotten progressively stronger very quickly, and one day the answer to why Jasper endured all her shit and mind games, aside from the fact that he didn't know any better, had hit me like a bolt of fuckin' lightning.

Maria had somehow known when she'd come across him on the road in Galveston that day in 1863 that he was a rare find, and that he would be vital to her. How she had known that wasn't something my gift had revealed but what it had, had explained a lot. Maria had known Jasper would be powerful and knew she had to ensure his loyalty if she was to be successful in keeping him under her thumb and using him to further her endgame. She was nothing if not a smart bitch, a veritable strategic genius, and she knew exactly what had to be done in order to accomplish that. There had been no hesitation on her part as she'd taken on that task. Maria had rather fuckin' enjoyed it actually, but I didn't find that surprising.

Maria hadn't turned Jasper right away. Instead she had tortured him for days, tortured him until he was the sort of broken where he no longer understood that she was his captor and the source of his pain. It was brainwashing and, as a human, it had fuckin' destroyed him. The fact that he'd lasted as long as he did was a testament to his strength and character but no matter how strong he was, breaking under the agony of the venom was an inevitability. While the fire of that bitch's venom had burned away some of those feelings of helplessness when she actually allowed him to transform into a vampire, when he'd woken to this life, he had still carried some semblance of that over with him. Maria had never succeeded in turning him into her sniveling little bitch, which was another testament to his strength and character, but that had never been her intention. She didn't have any use for someone soft. She had, however, succeeded in her original goal which had been to secure his unwavering loyalty. He had been her ruthless attack dog, following her orders without question, and she had sucked every last ounce of humanity out of him until there had been nothing left but the Major ... or so it seemed.

The fact that there was still some humanity left in him had been something I had just known from the moment I'd laid eyes on him, that there was any left at all was a fuckin' miracle, but there had been concrete proof as well. As hard and sadistic as Jasper had been back then, there had been times when he'd been honorable and self-sacrificing; and I wasn't referring to when he'd let Charlotte and I go despite knowing the consequences his actions would bring down upon him. He was the king of subtlety and while 85% of the time he remained the scariest motherfucker I had ever seen or met, still ruthless and merciless as he doled out punishment to those under his command who'd fucked up, the other 15% was an entirely different story. During that time he redirected Maria's wrath onto himself when she'd been about to tear into some of the more cognizant newborns. He couldn't do it all the time because he was the Major, still a hard son of a bitch, still ruthless and cold, still the Alpha male who knew it was necessary to constantly demonstrate that he was the one in charge and that if you crossed him you wouldn't survive his wrath. He only stuck his neck out for the ones who were starting to regain some of their humanity. If asked, I was sure he would say he'd only done it because they'd been of some use to him at the time. Eventually they still ended up being culled but he had made their lives a little more pleasant beforehand.

The trouble was that Jasper didn't fuckin' remember any of it and no one had ever caught onto what he'd done besides me. It had been another thing my gift had never shed light on but I had my suspicions as to why that was, and it made my blood boil. Well, it would have if I had any. Maybe if my brother knew it would bring him some peace but I had never told him because he wasn't ready to hear it. He wasn't ready for a lot of things.

After I'd figured out how Maria had so thoroughly hooked her claws into him, in addition to his occasional bouts of mercy and my just knowing shit, I had made it my mission to save Jasper. It became my sole purpose to remind him of whom he had been before that sadistic bitch found him and show him that even though he would never be the man he was before he was turned, he could strive to be like him. He could strive to recapture his humanity and maybe even make a few friends along the way. I had known undertaking that mission wouldn't be easy or fuckin' pleasant but my gift had told me it would be worth it, that he would be worth it, so no matter what the Major dished out, I had never given up on him. My gift was right. Fighting for Jasper had been worth it and I would do it a million times over if it was necessary. Even though Charlotte had been a bit late to the party, I knew she felt the same way about that as I did despite her initial hatred and hesitation.

That was why I was so bothered. I didn't like the way this girl was affecting Jasper. He was already on the verge of losing his shit in a monumental way and the fact that Storm had him so tightly wound wasn't a good thing. This was the worst possible time not only for some human girl to show up and throw a fuckin' wrench in things but also for me to not just fuckin' know. I had a vague feeling about it all that felt kind of like an itch along my subconscious that was just dying to break free of whatever was holding it back, but my gift wasn't like Alice's. I couldn't go searching for answers. I either just knew shit or I didn't; there was no forcing it. It was fuckin' annoying and for the first time since I had been a very new newborn, things were fuzzier than they ever had been.

I did have my suspicions about things though. I knew that Jasper had been in Louisville, though he had never discussed it with me or anyone else personally, and that whatever had happened there had seriously fucked with his head. Jasper's reaction to whatever had happened to him there had me doubting if I'd made the right choice in ignoring my sire for those five weeks at the end of July and all through August, but my gift had told me it was the right thing to do. It had also told me that Jasper could not, under any circumstances, spend the summer with Char and I as he usually did. He absolutely had to stay in Forks for some reason. I just hadn't known what that reason was.

When my gift had told me that Carlisle had to go to Louisville, I had wondered if the two were connected somehow but that was another thing my gift had been fuzzy on. After the family meeting, I was also curious if Storm had been in Louisville at the same time but I didn't understand why Jasper hadn't mentioned it or why Carlisle would lie to me about it. Carlisle wasn't a liar so whatever had happened there must have been fuckin' epic.

If Storm had, in fact, been the reason it was necessary for Carlisle to go there I could only conclude that she was important in some way; and my gift was giving me a minor sense, a sort of tickle, that this was true. It was fuckin' frustrating for me not to know the hows and whys and the whole thing made me uneasy as fuck. Even so, there was something about the girl that I liked, and I couldn't help but think about the phone call I'd had with Alice. Maybe my gift wasn't giving me specifics, but there was a partial sense of knowing that told me Jasper's trip to Louisville might have been a good thing. Of course, I still didn't know anything for certain, particularly whether or not Storm had actually been there, and I would be confronting Carlisle about it, that was for damn sure, but not before I made him sweat a little; figuratively speaking.

Though I had no idea what would come of all of this, if voting for the girl to live here had been a good idea, there was one thing I did know for certain. Even if she was seriously screwing with things and testing him in ways that were dangerous, Jasper would never hurt that girl. Something was telling me that she needed to be here even though I wasn't sure why. I supposed only time would tell.

oOo

A/N: Yes, I am an avid One Tree Hill fan for those of you who caught that reference. :)

Yay! We had some Jasper/Bella interaction! I hate to break it to you, Jasper honey, but you already like her. There's no need to try. *smirk* ;)

Bella and Carlisle negotiated because, honestly, did you really think Bella was going to move in with the Cullens without laying down some ground rules first?

Who else is excited that we heard from Peter? Since I freaking love Peter, I was stoked to write from his perspective. He revealed some about his past and shed even more light on Jasper's which, of course, is very important.

I will be putting a picture of Jasper's motorcycle up on my photobucket album for Longing, the link for which can be found in my profile. You can also find pictures of who I envision as Peter and Charlotte, Bella's phoenix pendant (which, in case you haven't picked up on it by now, plays an important part in the story), the lovely banner that Ellie Wolf made for the story, and any other pictures I decide to add. Check it out if you feel so inclined.

I will not be posting next week for several reasons. I will return to posting on Sunday, February 24th, and I am terribly sorry for making you wait. :(

As always, I would love to know your thoughts.

Take care all! Until next time ... :)