"Silent Night

"Holy night

"All is calm, all is bright..." Angela sang to herself as she finished unpacking the last boxes into Ben and herself's new townhouse.

"Need any help?" Jasper asked, as he walked into her new room. Much to Ben's dismay, he and Alice had been staying with them until Xavier was caught.

"No, thanks. I'm fine." Angela replied, although she was certain Jasper already knew it.

There was a sudden knock at the door, as Ben carried in the largest Christmas tree he could find, and pulled it in after him.

"Oh! Sorry I interrupted" Ben said in a particularly spiteful tone, in seeing Jasper and Angela together.

Ben struggled with the weight of the tree, and dropped it on his foot.

"Ow!" he yelled as he jumped around on one foot. The tree fell onto a table, snapping it in half. A vase fell to the floor and shattered into a thousand pieces. Ben tripped on the trunk of the tree, landing his arm in one of the glass shards.

"Ouch..." he muttered, standing up slowly. Angela ran to his side.

"Are you okay, Ben?"

Ben laughed half-heartedly, "Actually, I'm beginning to feel a lot like Be-"

"Bella!" yelled Edward's frantic voice as he entered the room with Bella. He held her arm tightly. Bella's nostrils flared and Angela took up a defensive position in front of Ben. Bella glared at Angela with hate and scorn, and Angela just looked frightened.

Bella made a sudden start in Ben's direction, but Edward pulled Bella back and Jasper was at her side in an instant. Bella was still glaring at Angela as she unwillingly left the room.

"What was that all about?" asked a confused Ben from behind Angela, "What did you do to Bella, Ang?"

"Nothing. Nothing at all. It was all a bit strange... and sudden, don't you think?"

Ben nodded, "Tell me about it. Ang, is there something you're not telling me?" Ben looked into Angela's eyes, but she turned away. "Of course not, Ben. What a silly notion" she lied, and continued to unpack the boxes.

Jasper quietly opened the door and entered the room.

"Angela... can I talk to you for a minute?" he asked tentatively.

Ben frowned. "Of course not, Jasper. Can't you see she's busy?"

Jasper raised an eyebrow. "Angela?"

Angela nodded, "Sure, Jasper."

Ben did not want to admit that he was jealous of anyone who came near Angela. Especially Jasper, when Ben recollected the earlier feelings of mistrust he had towards his best friend. Ben went to press his ear to the door to eavesdrop on their conversation.

Jasper's voice cane first, "...listen, Angela. I think you should consider telling Ben the truth about us" Ben's heart skipped a beat, and he felt a wave of ice cold anxiety flow over his soul.

Jasper and Angela?

"I don't know, Jas... It's such a big risk to take... it's dangerous"

"But it will save him a whole lot of pain and confusion later. He'll find out soon enough... Isn't it better he hears it from you?"

Ben pulled himself away from the door as a tear dripped down his cheek. His suspicions had been confirmed. Jasper had betrayed him.

But what hurt the most was that Angela had too...

Alice sat in the living room of the Cullen's house, thinking over all that had happened these past few weeks, and anticipating Ben's visit with slight malice. Ever since Jasper had started such a ridiculous friendship with a human, Alice and Jasper had spent little time together. First, Jasper had travelled to Rio and Russia to try and save him; he was now spending all his time at Ben's, watching out for Xavier's return. The fact that she couldn't see the wolves, or their mutant relative, was also tearing down Alice's self esteem. She felt so useless. Even her visions had been very unclear lately and she didn't know what to believe anymore.

Ben would be at their house in three minutes and forty five seconds, but he still hadn't decided what to tell Alice yet, leaving her very anxious about his news.

When Ben finally arrived, he tripped on the stairs. Alice was near bursting with impatience.

"Ben, what an unexpected visit. Is everything ok?" Alice questioned, trying to hide her anxiety. Something she wasn't particularly good at, considering Jasper usually did it for her.

"Um... Alice, there's something I need to tell you... Do you mind if I come in?" Ben stuttered, obviously as nervous as Alice was.

She led the way into the living room as they both sat on the couch.

"You see, Alice, I overheard something horrible this morning that may shock you. I hate to admit it, but I think it's true." Ben said, his voice quivering.

"Ange and Jasper... they've... well, they've betrayed us both. I think... I heard... the truth is, they're in love!" Ben's was in tears now, much to Alice's frustration. She needed to hear the rest of the story, before she jumped to any conclusions.

"Are you sure?"

"I heard them myself. They didn't know I was there. I'm so sorry, Alice, but I thought you had a right to know." Ben confided, still in tears.

So it wasn't Ben he was trying to save at all! It was Angela. Alice was shaking with hurt and fury at what Jasper had done. The whole situation was utterly unbelievable. A couple of years ago, Jasper couldn't even be around humans without the desire to drink their blood, and now he was befriending and falling in love with them? First Edward, now Jasper, Rosalie and Emmett should be warned. All these humans ever seemed to do was destroy lives.

"Just go, Ben" Alice whispered, trying to concentrate and ignore the battle raging inside.

"Uh Alice, are you going to be alright?" Ben asked as he had finally stopped crying and was scared Alice would do something drastic, especially with that look in her dark eyes.

"I said GO!" Alice shouted, the sound vibrating around the house.

Ben didn't need to be told a third time. He sprinted out the door and into his Dodge Neon, unsure where he should go now. Alice crumpled onto the floor in silence, a vision forming in her mind. Jasper and Angela would pay, and so would the rest of humankind...

In Volterra, Italy, a meeting was about to be held.

"Calm down, everyone. Be quiet! Aro will be here soon!" said Jane as she walked into the centre of the conundrum. The vampires were shocked at what they had heard during the past year.

"Silence!" an eerie voice echoed through the hall. A transparent-skinned individual, dressed in long, flowing robes, stepped out of the shadows. A hushed silence fell upon the room.

"Thankyou, my dear Jane. I can always depend on you to maintain some sort of order around here" Aro stated calmly. Jane nodded serenely and took her place, standing next to her brother Alec.

"Aro, the hybrid cannot be found. It appears his powers are greater than our own. He is some sort of anomaly - " started Demetri, a tall, dark vampire in black. Aro silenced him with a wave of the hand.

"Now, now Demetri. I called this meeting so that I could speak, not to hear you do so" explained Aro, an otherworldly expression passing over his extraordinary face.

"As you have all undoubtedly heard, the evil hybrid Xavier who has escaped our grasp for twenty years has finally re-emerged, only to crawl back into the subterranean shadows. Xavier Ivanov is not to be trusted. He is an evil thing, a creature that should never have come into being. Those responsible for his creation will be duly punished." Aro walked down from the tier, pacing amongst his worthy subjects.

"Even if I do not find Ivanov's creators, I want him dead or alive, but I want him brought to me immediately. Is that understood?" a confirmatory murmur spread across the room, "it is beyond my comprehension why a capable, talented group such as yourselves can find it so difficult to track a simple creature like Ivanov." Are turned to Demetri, "you call hium an anomaly, the way he doesn't show after all these years. I think you are not trying hard enough!"

"Jane!"

"yes, my lord?"

"You have never failed me. Not until now."

Jane's expression turned sour.

"This human, this... Angela. Why haven't you found her yet?"

"I haven't been looking for her."

"Well, you should have been. She must know more than we do, you could use your power to get itout of her."

"Yes, Aro. It will be my pleasure."

"Felix? Alec? Heidi? Marcus?" Aro asked, floating by each of the named.

"Use your gifts in whatever way you can. I want to know more about him. I want to know where he's been hiding all these years. Marcus, I want to find the strength of the bond between Angela and Ivanov. I have a feeling Xavier's connection with the Cullens is more than coincedental. I want that investigated too." The crowd murmured. Gianna, the newest addition to the Volturi, walked slowly up to their leader.

"Aro, in three days time, Xavier will be paying us a personal visit." Gianna's green human eyes had been transformed into a milky red-white. As a newborn, she was trusted by none of the Volturi, and her gift had not been fully realised.

Aro's papery forehead creased. "How do you know this, Gianna?"

"i think I've relised my gift. It seems Alice Cullen is not the only one who can see the future. I could tell you everything that was going to happen in the world, within a space limit of three days."

A light smile formed on Aro's lips, "How impressive. Your gift will prove invaluble to the Volturi's causePerhaps even more valuable than Jane's."

Jane glared at Gianna. She didn't like the thought of replacement. Gianna smiled back with ease, knowing for certain she would never be the favourite again.

Jane mentally noted what she would do tomorrow night; kill the newborn Gianna. It would be easy. Too easy