"You told her?" Carlisle inquired softly but firmly.

Jasper leaned against the doctor's office window, staring at the trees outside. He contemplated how much to reveal to this mysterious vampire.

"She would have found out, sooner rather than later," he decided to reply.

"Not necessarily."

"She has her ways." Jasper wondered if this was too cryptic.

After a brief pause, Carlisle appeared to accept his response. "But you approached her and allowed her to get close to you. Does this mean you plan to take her as a mate?"

"Only if it is her desire as well."

Carlisle's emotions were a mix of approval and concern. "What would you do if she didn't? The Volturi would hardly let her remain as she is."

Sucking in his breath, Jasper sent out a wave of compassion to quell the doctor before he spoke. "I'll protect her if so, or die trying. But she's in danger right now, Carlisle. A powerful vampire has been tracking her for years. I won't leave her side until she's safe."

"Years?" Carlisle's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Such persistence is nearly unheard of, unless of course…"

"What? Unless what?"

"Her blood sings to him. That kind of call is inescapable, fated to be, even." Stroking his chin, Carlisle gave Jasper a worried look. "From what you've told me, however, it seems as though she's also your singer. That never ends well."

Jasper clenched his jaw. "It's not the same," he hissed, "Unlike him, I would never think of harming her."

"This Alice girl, she's not an ordinary human, is she?"

Protectiveness blazed in Jasper. He wasn't about to let her gift be discovered by any other vampire. Although the doctor was kind and shockingly gentle, Jasper did not trust him enough to divulge everything.

"She's extraordinary to me," he finally said.

A strong set of emotions gradually built up inside Carlisle. Jasper could sense anxiety, apprehension, and fierce determination in him. He wondered what prompted this attitude shift.

Rising from his chair, Carlisle motioned for Jasper to follow him. He went to the back of the room, where the file cabinets were. Opening the bottom one, he brought out a stack of patient files. They were all stamped from various hospital departments, which was interesting given that Carlisle should only have access to infectious disease.

Carlisle took out the third folder from the top and opened it for Jasper to see. Written in the name field was 'Mary Alice Brandon.' Various measurements, medications, and descriptions filled the rest of the page.

"Where did you get that?!" Jasper grabbed Carlisle by the front of his shirt and slammed him into the wall. There was a crack as the wood splintered behind him.

"Easy there," Carlisle growled. His blue eyes flashed and turned gold.

Startled by the strange color, Jasper stepped back. "What are you? Those eyes do not belong to your so-called species," he demanded.

"Oh I assure you they do." Carlisle let his fangs hang over his bottom lip as proof. "These eyes are the result of an animal-only diet. No human blood."

No human blood? The gears in Jasper's head turned, trying to comprehend the possibility. A future where he wouldn't crave sinking his teeth into people, into Alice, would be unbelievable. But animal blood smelled so unappealing…could it actually sustain him? Glancing back at the beige folder, Jasper returned to his initial question.

"Don't distract me! Why do you have Alice's file? Did you steal it?" He didn't care that his anger was spilling over in waves, raising the tension in the atmosphere.

"Of course not! I saw her- she was my patient. And I didn't steal any of these files! It may astound you, but I actually respect the Hippocratic oath."

Okay, maybe Jasper needed to dial down the fury. He forced himself to radiate calmness instead. Well calmness was a bit of a stretch. He forced himself to radiate neutrality, if that was even an emotion.

"Alright, doc. Just explain everything…please," Jasper threw in at the end.

"Such was my initial intention," Carlisle sighed. "There's a reason I chose to work in this hospital. For the past decade or so, there have been reports of missing patients and 'monster sightings' in the area. It is my belief that people here are being targeted and turned into newborns."

"Why?" Why here of all places, the place where Alice was, Jasper thought.

"A hospital is an easy place to seek out and turn potential talents. Poorly secured files detailing each human's abilities, easy blood supply, and patients that are literal sitting ducks in their rooms. Our north wing is an added bonus- asylums contain a disproportionally high amount of gifted or unusual people."

Jasper's blood froze. "You mean there could be other vampires after Alice. After her gift."

Carlisle raised an eyebrow. "Alice has a gift?"

Jasper cursed.

"I won't force you to tell me, but I want you to understand that I am also trying to help her." Carlisle's tone softened. "I wouldn't be telling you this if I wasn't on her side." He was telling the truth. Only kindness, no malice, radiated from the doctor.

"She does have a special ability," Jasper admitted. "But is it alright if I spare the details until I get to know you more?"

"Of course. Thank you for your candor."

It almost didn't make sense how nice he was. Jasper had never met a purely nice vampire before. They always had something to gain, an ulterior motive.

"I'm sure you've been guarding her with your life," Carlisle continued, "But would you let me assist in keeping an eye on her? There's another person in the north wing as well, whom we might watch over."

"Another potential talent?"

Carlisle nodded. "He's not a patient, but his information is still in the system. I've chatted with him quite a bit these last few weeks. His mother recently became my patient; based on her test results, I'm sorry to say that we'll likely be seeing him more often."

"Who?"

"A young man named Edward Anthony Mason."

Jasper's eyes widened. Whenever Alice talked about the people in her life, Edward was the name that popped up the most. He remembered the brown-haired brat, plunking his sappy songs and getting overly cozy with her.

He might've also been the one that Jasper accidentally showed his vampiric appearance to on the lawn. Jasper didn't mean to, but there had been a faint sweetness on Edward's clothes, which must have been Alice's lingering scent. Combined with his excruciating ride in a transport van full of blood bags, he'd let his thirst slip. Edward's face had completely paled, the coward.

That spindly, effeminate boy was gifted? Unbelievable.

"I'm not particularly interested in guarding him," Jasper spat out.

"Really? I think you'd get along wonderfully with Edward."

Jasper scrunched his face. "What? Him? Why?"

"You're similar in how you read people, pick up on their thoughts, and react accordingly."

"What would you even know? You've hardly close with either of us," Jasper scoffed. He tried to tamper down the fear shooting through his veins. How did Carlisle figure out his talent? Was he hiding an ability of his own?

Carlisle smiled. "When you've lived as long as I have, you notice things faster."

"Just how old are you, exactly?"

"Quite old. But is it alright if I spare the details until I get to know you more?"

Jasper didn't need his powers to detect the sarcasm.

A morally upright vampire who spent his day surrounded by human blood, only to drink from animals. The very concept of Carlisle was madness. Whether or not he could be trusted was dubious, but Jasper believed their motives aligned enough to cooperate with him. It would be a strategic alliance for a battle that Jasper hoped would never come to fruition.

"See you around then," Jasper said. He thought of Alice and the increasing dangers surrounding her. It vexed him to admit that he might need Carlisle's aid. His throat, going dry just from her image, was equally vexing. At the very least, he shouldn't be one of the dangers.

"And Carlisle," he gingerly added, "Maybe someday, if you're willing, you could…you could show me how you avoid hurting humans. How you feed on animals."

Joy and astonishment flickered in Carlisle. "I would absolutely love to."

The summer this year was cloudier than usual, so Jasper felt comfortable going to work before sunset.

When he walked in, he saw Alice and Edward laughing on the couch.

"Really? A puppy?" Alice squealed.

"It literally translates to 'waltz of the little dog' in French. Chopin was inspired by a dog chasing its tail," Edward explained.

"How adorable!"

"I dug it out of my old music book because it reminded me of you."

"Because I'm cuuute?" Alice batted her eyelashes in a comical way.

Edward snorted. "No, because you're silly and short."

"Hey!" Alice pretended to scowl, but quickly broke into giggles again.

Their atmosphere was overly saccharine and they were sitting too close for Jasper's comfort. His first instinct was to fly over in a jealous rage, but he reminded himself how fragile humans were. There was only a forty percent chance that Alice would forgive him if he tore her friend's head off. Probing the area with his powers, Jasper was relieved that Edward harbored no romantic intentions towards her. Their bond was platonic, almost familial in nature.

Gliding across the room, Jasper took a seat in a nearby chair. His arm longed to wrap around Alice's waist, but there were too many people around.

"There you are!" Alice sang. "I was just thinking about you and Edward. He's absolutely convinced that you're magical. Isn't that funny?" She flashed him a look of caution.

Edward narrowed his sharp green eyes. The mellow mood had vanished. "I wouldn't use the word magical, but there's no plausible explanation for what I saw."

"What did you see?"

"Two fangs snapping from your jaw, gleaming crimson eyes. Much too realistic to be a costume."

"Human memories can be very inaccurate. You'd be surprised how unreliable eye witnesses are in court cases. Besides, the setting sun has a way of giving the world a reddish hue." Jasper kept his tone polite and sent waves of trust towards the boy.

To his surprise, Edward retorted, "There's no use lying. I can tell you're trying to hide something by acting indifferent. Using rational facts to evade answering the question- you really are just like him."

"Who?" Uneasiness grew in Jasper. Edward wasn't falling for it; his emotions blazed with confidence.

Edward smirked. "You and Dr. Cullen. I don't think it's a coincidence that you both have the same, unnatural skin and mannerisms. You guys move too smoothly, as though you're floating instead of walking. You dance around any question directed towards you, but feign friendliness. His schedule is always 'fully booked' on sunny days and you never show up on time if the sun is still out. Everyone else has a scent, but I don't smell anything on you two. You also haven't blinked even once since you came in."

Jasper was at a loss for words. Who on earth was this kid? He'd only had a few interactions with Jasper, maybe a couple more with Carlisle, yet he was completely sure of himself.

Biting her lip, Alice spoke up. Her eyes nervously flitted between the two men. "Jasper, I think you should tell him. Edward is like a human lie detector, he always guesses what people are thinking. Besides, my gut is telling me that he should be included."

"Are you sure?" Jasper asked. He exchanged a long, deep glance with her. Alice nodded, mouthing for him to trust her.

Sighing, Jasper ran his hand through his hair. He had told Alice because she was his destined mate, but he couldn't just reveal everything to anyone with suspicions. The proper solution would be to leave town or kill Edward. Either way, he'd lose Alice. It was time to be improper, it seemed.

"Very well, but we must go somewhere more private."

There are, unfortunately, very few private places in a psychiatric ward. After exhausting their options, the trio wound up in the broom closet. There was no lightbulb so they stood in the dark, awkwardly squeezed against each other.

"I'm a vampire," Jasper said.

"I knew it," Edward muttered. "Do you drink blood? Do wooden stakes and holy crosses kill you?"

"Yes to the blood, but I am nearly impervious to harm. Never try to fight a vampire."

"That's discomforting to know."

"If there are no further questions, let's leave," Jasper suggested.

"There are MANY further questions!" Edward snapped.

"I still suggest leaving," Jasper countered.

"Why? This is fun! Secret meeting!" Alice asked.

"You guys smell delicious," Jasper replied.

"AHHH! Get out, Alice!" Edward shouted.

"Don't worry, I'd never hurt Alice," Jasper reassured.

"Or Edward?" Alice added.

"No, just Alice," Jasper answered.

"Why did we even bother going in here then?! I'm leaving," Edward exclaimed. He pushed open the door and the three of them tumbled out.

A passing nurse frowned and came over, demanding an explanation. The trio quickly turned to each other, turned to the nurse, and spoke on top of one another.

"This isn't what it looks like," Edward assured her.

Alice spun in a circle, putting on a loopy expression. "I saw demons in the closet! I pushed us into it to exorcise them!"

"I'd never do indecent things on the job, ma'am." Jasper gave her a charming smile.

Shaking her head and grumbling to herself, the nurse gave them a firm warning. She then walked away and they each breathed a sigh of relief.

Once she was out of earshot, Edward turned to them. "You still owe me a deeper explanation."

Jasper nodded. "I'll scope out a better place for us to meet. Just promise to keep everything to yourself- the consequences of this knowledge can be fatal."

"Yay! Everyone is finally friends with everyone!" Alice clapped her hands and hopped in glee.

"Not quite, but we'll get there." Jasper chuckled and ruffled her hair. "I have to go somewhere now, but I'll come back tonight. Stay safe, darlin'."

After bidding his soulmate and her weird friend goodbye, Jasper left the north wing. There was something he had to do, something he was not looking forward to doing.

"You told him?!" Carlisle cried. He sunk his head into his hands and moaned.

Jasper shrugged. "These gifted humans are real good at figuring stuff out."

"Another liability! Another human on the Volturi's radar! Oh for heaven's sake…"

"At least now we can function as a team." Jasper clapped the doctor on his shoulder. "You said you'd protect them with me, doc. By the way, how soundproof is your office? We need a better base of operations than a broom closet."

"A broom clo- I don't even want to know. Just please, no more humans involved." Carlisle slumped against his chair, utterly defeated.

"Yes, sir."

A/N: a slightly chaotic chapter to get all the characters on the same page, as well as a bit of fun before things get darker :)