The silver jeep bucked slightly as it slowed and pulled off to the side of the road.

"Jasper, what are you doing? We're going to be late to school. Don't you think we ended up in enough trouble already? I know I'm not looking for more." Edward groused from the backseat.

"Just hold your horses, Edward. I won't be a moment. I just noticed something that I need."

Alice's soft gasp drew both boys' attention as she reached her hand out to grab her mate's arm. "Jazzy, I don't think that's a good idea. I really don't."

"It will be alright, darlin'. I came to this decision last night. My mind is made up so I might as well get it together while the gettin' is good."

Edward looked at his siblings as he tried to decipher their code when he suddenly picked up an image from his brother's mind. "Have you lost it, Jazz? You DO NOT want to do that. Trust me."

Jasper turned around catching his brother's wide panic stricken eyes. "This isn't about what I want to do; it's about what is right and this feels right."

"Fuck that! It's not going to feel right tonight when we get home; in fact it's going to feel anything but right. Trust me on this one, bro. That is quite possibly the worse idea ever. Emmett has come up with some damn bad ideas in his time, but I think you have blown him smack out of the water with this one."

Jasper sighed as he stepped from the jeep to collect his road killed treasure. Within seconds he was seated back behind the wheel with his find firmly tucked away in the back where it would eagerly await his attention. "I know what I'm doing, Edward."

"Jazzy, you're confused right now. I can feel it. I think it would be best if you think of something a little less..." Alice blinked as she tried to carefully choose her words. "...nasty? brutal? extreme? I don't even know what you would call that apart from seriously bad ouchy."

"That's a very professional description you've got there, Alice."

"Can you do better, Edward?" She raised an eyebrow as she folded her arms across her chest.

He felt the need to argue, but suddenly didn't see the point. "No, I suppose you have pretty much covered it."

As Jasper pulled the truck back out onto the road he mumbled mainly to himself, "Y'all act like it's your behinds it will aim to for bruisin'. This is mine to do alone and this is my way to clear the slate with Papa."

"And what are you planning on doing? Are you just going to hand it to him like that?" Edward met his brother's glare in the rearview mirror.

"No, Eddie, for your information I am planning on refining it a bit before this evening."

"Jazzy, you're not thinking of skipping class to do that are you? Daddy won't be happy at all if he finds out that you did something like that," Alice lightly scolded her husband as she watched his mind churn away.

Jasper shifted uncomfortably in his seat as he let the thought dissipate. "Suppose not, but I have my shop class that I can do this as a personal project in and then there is my free period. If I can use some of the tools in shop I can get it rough cut quickly then I can whittle away with my knife as I find time during the day."

This time it was Edward's turn to be aghast. "You are not thinking about bring a knife into the school are you? You realize just how much trouble you would be asking for with that, right? That is a death wish act right there."

He eased the jeep into a space next to Rose's convertible and switched off the ignition before crossing his arms over his chest and glaring at his brother once again through the review mirror. "I aint stupid, Edward. I know what I'm doing and I would kindly thank you to stay out of my head."

"I don't believe that you do know what you're doing. No one with a lick of good common sense would hand something like that to dad, period; sure as hell not when they know that their ass is on the line. And yes brother, I do know what you had just been thinking. If you try to sneak that Bowie knife into school, you will get caught. Alice, can you back me in this?"

As both Edward and Jasper turned their attention to the dark haired pixie, she averted her eyes and slowly nodded before whispering, "And nothing good would come from it."

"No, shit. Jasper if you try to pull something like that you will get your ass tossed out of school so fast your head will spin and you would be lucky if Charlie Swan didn't lock you up for carrying a weapon. Then what? Oh wait, I can tell you; mom and dad will be furious because you would have broken some major rules leaving you facing punishment that will make last night seem like an amusement ride."

The wheaten haired youth sighed heavily and rolled his eyes. "Fine, Edward. I get your point. The knife stays in the car. Does that make you feel better? If you keep riding me about this we're not going to make our first class and then your original issue will come about." Jasper got out of the jeep before his brother could respond and walked around to open the door for his mate.

Taking her hand in his as he tucked their books under his arm he asked quietly, "Darlin', do you happen to have any duct tape."

With a smile Alice nodded. "You're in luck, Jazzy. I have a roll in my locker."

"Great. I will need some to wrap the handle so it will be a little easier on Papa's hand."

"Will wrapping the entire thing make it easier on the butt?" She shivered a little at the thought of the possibility of getting a taste of Jasper's creation herself one day. Alice didn't think she had ever felt more grateful for her gift of foresight than she did at this moment.

"It would probably take a couple of rolls to pad it up enough to make a difference and even then, I highly doubt it would do much good."

Alice stopped just as the bell rang, "Knowing that this thing is going to be that bad, why would you want to make it? Daddy is not cruel, Jazzy. That really isn't something that he would have come up with on his own."

"That's why I have to do this for him, sugar. He isn't cruel at all so he won't use it harshly. Papa told me that my creativity in coming up with a fittin' punishment should reflect the severity of my offense. I think this does that."

"But, Jazzy."

"Sh." He leaned over and kissed her to silent her protests. "Trust me, now let's get to class before we both get into trouble and as you and Edward have pointed out, I don't need any more of that."

Jasper's study hall period found him sitting in Emmett's jeep shaving layers of vulcanized rubber from the truck tire scrap as he refined the shape of his paddle. Some of his fellow shop students had given him funny looks as he rough cut his 'project', but in truth Jasper wasn't sure that there had ever been a time that they didn't look at him like he was strange.

He had managed to rivet two strips that he had held back from the initial cutting process to the front and back sides of the handle making it thicker and easier to hold, but he still wasn't pleased with the hot pink duct tape peppered with tiny Hello Kitty heads that wrapped the handle. There was just something so wrong about that, however it was the only tape Alice had, making it his single option. Alice wanted him to wrap the entire thing with these blasted kitties which was something that Jasper had no intention of doing. He was well aware of how much the reclaimed rubber paddle would hurt; there was no need in adding humiliation to the mix by having dozens of bow bedecked kitten faces staring at his behind.

"Mr. Hale? What are you doing out…?" Mr. Varner stopped short as he noticed the hefty blade in the boy's hand. "Young man, I'm going to have to ask you to stop what you are doing, hand that over and come with me. I'm certain Mr. Greene would like to know that his students are carrying weapons at school."

Jasper looked up at the math teacher with a dumbfound expression plastered across his face. "But. But... Mr. Varner, I wasn't carrying it anywhere. It stays in the car. I have a free period and thought I would finish up on a project that I started in shop. I needed the knife to do it, so I came out to the car for the simple reason of not wanting to carry it at school."

"You are still in possession of a weapon on school property, Mr. Hale. We have a zero tolerance policy when it comes to things like this. I will not stand here and argue with you over this matter. You may come with me and explain yourself to Mr. Greene or I will go in without you and call the police for you to discuss this with them."

Jasper sighed as he held the man's gaze while the teacher stood trembling visibly with his hand stretched out to take the knife. I am screwed seven ways to Sunday. Cursing softly under his breath, Jasper spun the knife around and placed the handle in the man's open palm. "Please, Mr. Varner, can't we keep this between us? I'll do whatever you ask. Detention. Extra work. I'll wash your car and clean your yard. Anything. PLEASE! My dad is going to go ballistic if he finds out that I've managed to get in trouble."

"Mr. Hale, I believe that is something you should have considered before you brought a weapon to school. Please come with me." The teacher began to walk off towards the main building without a backward glance, safe in the knowledge that Jasper would follow.

"Shit." Jasper huffed as he left the relative safety of the car to trail the man with his head hung low in shame, never noticing that his phone had been left behind on the floorboard; silently vibrating madly.

Pulling Edward's Volvo into the faculty lot, Esme killed the engine and sat for a few minutes to enjoy the last moments of peace and quiet she was likely to encounter for a while. Couldn't the school ever call with good news? Just once she would like to see the number registered on the caller ID and greet an upbeat voice instead of the somber tones that always instructed her that her presence was required to repair some damage done by one or more of the children. Emmett what have you done this time?

The brief conversation replayed in her mind. "Hello?"

"Mrs. Cullen?"

"Oh, Mrs. Cope it's always a pleasure. What can I do for you today?"

"Mrs. Cullen, Mr. Greene asked if you or Doctor Cullen might be able to come to the school at your earliest convenience. There was a little trouble and he needs to speak with one of you."

"Oh, dear I hope it isn't something too serious. Yes of course. I'll be right over." If it wasn't serious they wouldn't be calling, now would they?

"Thank you, Mrs. Cullen. Mr. Greene will be looking forward to seeing you soon."

"Thank you so much for calling and I am terribly sorry for whatever trouble my brood has caused. I won't be long. Goodbye for now."

Esme closed her eyes and leaned forward, resting her head against the steering wheel as she sighed softly. After everything that had happened last night she could not believe that any of her children would willingly find themselves in trouble again so soon. The school secretary hadn't mentioned which of the children was the reason behind the call nor did she disclose the current issue, but Esme could only surmise that Emmett was the culprit. Maybe she should have let Carlisle handle him since it was pretty obvious that she hadn't been effective. Emmy, why can't you behave yourself? "Is there some reason that you can't be just a bit more like Edward and Jasper?" At least they know when it is a bad idea to tempt fate. This would be one of those times.

Her burly bruin and her little solider boy were both still due a conversation with her husband tonight. What in the world could her baby bear have been thinking; getting himself into more trouble before he was cleared of his previous transgressions? Why do I get the feeling that Carlisle is not going to be pleased?

Sighing heavily, Esme sat up and attempted to ignore the twinges of foreboding that brought with them a sickening feeling of dread. You would think that after a hundred years I would be used to all of this. I feel like I'm the one in trouble here. A thought formed rather suddenly that caused a sad smile to briefly cross Esme's lips. Well I have just been called to the principal's office.

With a slight shake of her head, she grabbed her purse and stepped out of the car to hopefully resolve this problem without further issue. Walking across the parking lot gave her an extra few moments to convince herself that it wasn't going to be a big deal. Most likely something simple that I can clear up and then Carlisle need never be bothered. At least for the sake of your hide, Emmy, I hope that's the case.

Mrs. Cope greeted her warmly as Esme walked through the all too familiar office door.

"Good afternoon, Mrs. Cullen." She smiled brightly at Esme as she briefly considered what she wouldn't give to exchange places with the flawlessly beautiful doctor's wife before her. "Please take a seat. Mr. Greene will be right with you."

Turning towards the small leather couch Esme found herself unable to suppress a soft gasp at the sight that met her eyes.

"Jasper?"

Her son sat there with his elbows resting on his knees while he cradled his bowed head in his hands. Refusing to lift his head, his mannerisms were a testament to the shame that was racking his system. His mother sighed inwardly as she took a seat next to her gentle sensitive little boy.

"Oh, baby, tell me what happened."

Esme slowly rubbed his shoulder trying to comfort the miserable boy, but Jasper flinched at her touch.

"Whatever it is, I'm sure it's a misunderstanding that we can get cleared right up. Don't let it trouble you like this, Jazz."

"Momma, I am in so much trouble right now. Papa is going to skin me alive, and rightfully so."

"He'll do no such thing and don't you even think like that." She ran her fingers through his soft blond locks as she tried to reassure her disheartened son.

"Of course he will, Momma. Ode Japer's fixin' ta find himself in uh heap uh trouble. Ah was already in it pruty deep, but now…"

"Mrs. Cullen, it is so nice to see you." Mr. Greene stood in the opened doorway with a silly smile on his face. "Would you and Mr. Hale please come in?"

"Hello, Mr. Greene. Nice to see you though I do wish we would stop meeting under such unpleasant circumstances." Esme gracefully rose to her feet, but her son seemed to sink a little lower into the couch. "Jasper, come on, sweetheart. I'm sure Mr. Greene is a busy man. We don't want to keep him waiting."

Swallowing hard Jasper shook his head. Sitting in the reception area of the office was bad enough, but actually entering the inner chamber would be the point of no return. While he would battle his brothers to the death if they challenged his bravery, Esme's southern gentleman was feeling very unsure of his ability to face his mother once she was informed of the charges against him. She would certainly be disappointed, most likely angry, and facing his father would be much worse than that. Jasper was unwilling to start the ball rolling so he foolishly hoped that by gluing his butt to its current location he would somehow be able to keep the consequences of his action at bay, if only for a little while longer.

"I apologize, Mr. Greene. It would appear that my son has developed a touch of deafness because I know that he would never intentionally rudely ignore your direction." Esme caught Jasper's chin and tilted his head up forcing his eyes to meet hers as she whispered sternly, "Time to pay the piper, young man. You know better than to play these sorts of games. I don't know what has gotten into you, but I'm not going to put up with it. Do we understand one another?"

"Yes, ma'am." He averted his eyes to try to hide his apprehension from his mother as he slowly found his footing. "Sorry."

"I believe it's Mr. Greene to whom you should be apologizing, don't you?"

Jasper nodded while whispering his apologies to the administrator before allowing his mother to lead him into the office as the man shut the door behind them. Jasper shuddered at the trapped feeling that came over him when he was guided to sit next to Esme before the principal's desk. He had never really been in any trouble at school since Emmett had been only too accomplished at that task to prove to Jasper that he wanted none of it. If his heart still beat he was certain that it would be pounding a hole in his chest by now.

"Jasper, calm down. I know that you are nervous, but you will do fine. Right now you're starting to project and it's making Mr. Greene jumpy. You need to rein that in for me, sweetheart. I'm not angry with you, but you need to relax." Esme's whispered instructions had been much too quiet for the headmaster to have heard as he restlessly shuffled through his paperwork to find the needed forms for this conference.

The boy closed his eyes and inhaled deeply while he consciously tried to project that calm onto the man behind the desk. He opened his eyes when he felt his mother gently pat his thigh before allowing her hand to rest there offering her support through the simple loving act of her touch.

"Now then, Mrs. Cullen let me start off by saying that Jasper has always been a model student. He is always respectful, applies himself and has never given anyone any trouble as far as following the rules is concerned. His instructors speak very highly of him."

"Thank you, Mr. Greene. My husband and I take a great deal of pride in our children."

"As you should, Mrs. Cullen, they are all wonderful young adults, but of course we wouldn't be here if we hadn't run into a little hiccup today. I have to admit that I was stunned when Mr. Varner brought Mr. Hale to the office today and even more so when he informed me of your son's offense."

Jasper groaned softly as he intently studied his hands while they fidgeted wildly in his lap. A lump of venom formed in his throat while the administrator spoke causing him to cough lightly.

"While returning from lunch, Mr. Varner observed Jasper sitting in his vehicle working on something. As he approached your son, he was surprised to find Mr. Hale armed with a rather large hunting knife." Greene noticed the expression marring Esme's face and quickly edited his explanation. "He gave no indication that he was intent on harming anyone. He claimed to be working on a shop project which apparently required carving of some nature; however the District has a no tolerance policy where weapons are concerned. As much as it grieves me to say this, Mrs. Cullen, I'm afraid that Mr. Hale must face discipline for this infraction."

Jasper cringed as he heard Esme release a held breath. He could only imagine what she must be thinking right now. He could feel his mother's distress. She was worried and he was picking up a little bit of underlining sadness and frustration at the situation he alone was responsible for.

"I know that this is viewed as a very serious matter, Mr. Greene. I completely understand why and don't wish to make light of it. What sort of consequences are we discussing?"

"Normally for a first-time offense of possession of a dangerous weapon the student is given long-term suspension."

"Long term?"

Placing his folded hands on his desk on top of Jasper's file, Mr. Greene nodded solemnly. "Long term suspension ranges from ten to ninety days, the choice being left to my discretion."

"Mr. Greene, I know that you have always been more than fair with your students, but I wouldn't be doing my job as a mother if I didn't ask for leniency for my son. I feel certain that this matter can be quickly and easily resolved. I know that none of my children would dream of causing anyone harm at this school. This could have only been some juvenile oversight on Jasper's part which will most certainly be addressed at home and never repeated. He should and will be punished, but I feel that long term suspension is a bit of overkill given the …"

Greene held his hand up successfully stopping Esme's defense in midstream.

"I am inclined to agree with you, Mrs. Cullen. While I do support our 'no tolerance' stance let me inform you that, with the exception of firearms, there is no specific sanction that must be imposed. The decision is made on a case by case basis. I don't feel that Mr. Hale stands to learn anything from a long term suspension and given that school work assigned during this period of punishment is not allowed to be made up, it would do much more harm than good to the boy. Taking into consideration the circumstances of the infraction along with your son's spotless record, I am prepared to impose a milder punishment."

Jasper gave a soft sigh of relief, but a look from Esme made him feel that he may have just relaxed a bit too soon.

"What I propose is a three day suspension followed by an additional three days of in school suspension. During the home suspension, Jasper will be allowed to continue to complete assignments so as to not fall behind in his classes; not as if that is a major problem for him. He will not be allowed on campus, but his siblings are more than welcomed to take his work home to him." For the first time during the conference, the principal shifted his focus directly to Jasper as the boy shifted nervously. "I trust that this is agreeable to you, Mr. Hale and that we will have no further need to discuss such matters in the future."

Jasper met the man's eyes before giving him a slight nod then dropped his gaze towards the floor.

Esme squeezed her son's knee gently bring his attention back to her. "I believe Mr. Greene deserves a better response, honey."

Clearing his throat, Jasper spoke quietly, "Yes, Sir. Thank you for giving me a break with this. I know that you didn't have to and I really do appreciate it. I am sorry that I didn't think my plan through. I knew that I couldn't carry my knife in school, but I didn't think of the parking lot as the same thing. I can assure you that I will never bring a weapon onto school grounds again." Except for myself, Alice, Edward, Rosalie and Emmett; school sanctioned weapons.

"That is good to hear, Mr. Hale." The principal rifled through Jasper's file. "If we are all in agreement on this, I have some forms that need to be signed and then you will be excused for the remainder of the day with your suspension beginning tomorrow morning."

With the paperwork signed and tucked away in Jasper's file, Mr. Greene escorted Esme and her son out to the reception area to say his goodbyes before returning to work. "Hopefully we can meet on better circumstances next time, Mrs. Cullen."

"I do hope so, Mr. Greene. A more social setting would be a breath of fresh air."

"Yes, indeed. Pleases give my regards to your husband. And you young man." He caught Jasper's eye. "I know that I can expect better from you in the future. Everyone makes mistakes, but don't allow them to become a habit. Your future is much too bright to risk it over things like this."

Jasper gave the man a weak smile and nodded in acceptance. "Thank you again, Mr. Greene. Don't worry. I have learned my lesson." He felt his mother's hand alighted gently on his shoulder.

"Mrs. Cope, I was wondering if you would please let my children know that I have taken Jasper home so they aren't looking for him when they get out for the day?"

"Of course, Mrs. Cullen." The little red head smiled sweetly at Esme. "Always happy to help with your lovely family."

"Thank you." Her hand tightened very slightly on Jasper's shoulder as she guided him towards the door. "Let's get you home, young man. I do believe that you have caused enough trouble for these people for one day."

"Yes, ma'am." Jasper hung his head as he and Esme walked from the main office into the parking lot. His night went from bad to horrible through one simple action. If he hadn't learned his lesson through the school sanctioned disciplinary action, he most certainly would at the hand of his father…or maybe his mother from what he had heard about last night. Jasper inhaled deeply then let the air flow from his lungs in a heavy sigh. "I never meant for this to happen, Momma. I am so sorry."

"Just get in the car, Jasper. We'll talk about this later. Let's just get home first and when we do I would like you to go straight to your room."

"Yes, ma'am."

This was going to be a long quiet drive home leading to an even longer night that Jasper feared would be anything but quiet.

AN: Emmy was suppose to be the one in the worst trouble for this last little part, but it appears that Jazzy got jealous. ...something really wrong with that boy. Papa is not going to be happy. I do think that he will give the boy a bit of a break since he wasn't out there acting stupid but that is still a pretty rough patch that he managed to get himself into.

Thanks everyone for all you do! Thanks, Splinter for her support and mad proof reading skills. Hopefully I can get this one wrapped up quickly in spite of Jazz's little detour. *rolls eyes*