I apologize for the lack of updates, but I've been really busy with school.
Alice POV
I stared at Caius, feeling sick to my stomach. Peter's accusing, furious eyes were on me. Jasper looked horrified.
"What would you want?" I finally got out.
"Well, I don't know." He was obviously enjoying playing with me. "Take a guess, child."
"I… do you… want me to join you?"
Jasper POV
I flinched at the very thought of Alice going to join the Volturi, and looked at Caius in terror.
But he just smiled coldly.
"You are not that valuable. I wish for something better."
Aro was tense and uncomfortable. He had clearly not intended to ask for anything, thinking of it as a favor to an old friend.
Peter spoke. "We can… we can tell you where Maria and her army hide. They are planning the destruction of a whole city."
"Not good enough. I'll take that, but perhaps something more."
I almost cried with frustration. This was ridiculous.
"We don't need it soon," I protested. "You can take as long as you want. Please, just let us go."
"Go!" Aro cried eagerly. "Please do go! I will have it ready soon, dear friends! Goodbye now."
Peter rushed me out of there, shoving me in the process. I tripped and cried out as my body collided with the hard ground.
"I'm sorry," he muttered, lifting me easily and carrying me the rest of the way. A burning pain started in my body. He was in such a hurry that he wasn't as gentle as he usually was, and it hurt. Was I really so fragile now?
"Be easy with him!" Alice shrieked. "You're hurting him!"
"Are you happy now?" Peter growled. "Look what you've done. You've gone and ruined our only chance of having his cure ready soon."
"But Aro said-" Emmett began.
"She didn't give the Volturi anything in return. It won't be ready for at least two weeks now," Peter said tersely.
I moaned at the thought of this pain for so long.
"But he'll die," she whispered.
"Most likely, yes. Why the hell did you have to do that?" he shouted at her. "Aro would have given it to us in three days at the most!"
"I'm sorry," she cried. "Stop yelling at me!"
"Enough," I whispered. "Stop it, Peter."
At my request, he fell silent. "Sorry, Jasper. Did I upset you?"
"You snapped at Alice." My voice was sharp. "Of course that upset me. I don't understand why you think you have the right to snap at my wife, Peter."
"I'm sorry."
I started coughing violently as my strength gave out. I couldn't even reprimand him now, I was so weak.
"Come on," Peter said. "Let's just get him home. You can yell at me later, Jas, okay?"
I closed my eyes, not bothering to respond. He took off running again.
Charlotte POV
We were back at our hotel now, and we were finally free to talk without Alice interrupting. I understood that she only wanted Jasper to be safe, but that didn't help decide what to do.
Now she was busy tucking Jasper into bed for the night and whispering to him, so we were sure she would pay no attention to what we were doing. She would probably be occupied with Jasper for a while, at least until he went to sleep.
"We have to stay here," Peter said. He did not look happy about that. "If only she hadn't opened her mouth-"
"It will hardly kill him to wait another week or so, Peter," I said, but I was doubtful. Jasper was so weak already and I wasn't actually sure he would survive the long wait.
"It could. Look at him," Peter retorted.
Looking at Jasper, I knew my mate was right. There was something so fragile about his face that it frightened me. He wasn't strong enough to make it much longer.
How had he gotten so sick so fast? I wondered. It was so strange.
Alice was singing to him softly, and I thought that maybe she was going insane with worry, since her mate was so sick.
"When you wake, you shall have a cake, and all the pretty little ponies," she was singing quietly. "Go to sleep, sweet Jasper. I'll be right here when you wake up tomorrow morning."
I turned my attention back to the others, not wanting to eavesdrop. But it didn't really matter, because Alice came over to us quickly, and we had no time to discuss anything else.
"He's asleep," she said. "I need to call Esme and let her know we'll be staying here for a while."
"I'll do it," Carlisle said. "You just be with Jasper. He might wake up and need you."
Alice beamed at him gratefully and hurried back to Jasper's bedside. Carlisle walked outside, holding his phone to his ear.
"Think there's anywhere to hunt around here?" Emmett asked my mate hopefully. "I'm bored."
"I'm sure you can find someplace."
Emmett's face fell. "Oh, you won't be coming with me, will you? You don't hunt animals. I forgot."
"I can accompany you if you want me to," Peter answered. "I can hunt afterwards."
"Let's go then," Emmett said, tugging him out the door. With some frustration, I realized that I was again being left out of everything and had nothing to do to all night.
Fuming, I sat down on the sofa and tried to think of something, anything to do. I was unsuccessful, and ended up waiting for Carlisle to come back inside. When he did, he instantly understood my predicament and kindly offered to play a game of chess with me. I gratefully accepted.
He won.
Jasper POV
My nightmare began as it always had. The forest, the gloom, the emptiness. I was running through it, searching. I was cold, cold as death, and I was terrified. I had to find what I was searching for, and I would be safe and well and everything would be all right again.
But this time I could see Alice's pixie-like form flitting ahead of me in the gloom, moving away from me. She was what I was trying to find, and I just knew if I could only reach her then this nightmare would end. But she was always so far ahead, and I was unable to catch her. Then the fog and gloom thickened, and Alice began to fade away, to disappear from me.
"Alice," I cried out to her. "Alice… Alice… Alice… Alice…"
"Shh, sweetheart, you're dreaming. It's not real, you're safe."
"Alice…"
"Yes, I'm here. Hush now, darling, you're all right." Her arms cradled me against her, and I was finally warm and safe again.
I woke up with a start. There was no fog, no forest. Just a dimly lit hotel room, and Carlisle, Alice, and Charlotte were here with me.
"Alice," I whimpered. "It was so awful." And for the first time in so long, I actually started to cry.
"Oh, no. Don't cry, Jazz, it was only a dream." She cuddled me close to her body.
"I was so cold and thirsty," I cried. "And you were so far away from me and I was so afraid. It was horrible, Alice."
"Of course you were cold and hungry." Her voice was teasing, but it soothed me. "You haven't had any blood in so long, and you've kicked all your blankets off. Here, I'll pull them up and you'll sleep just fine." Alice laid me down against the pillows and placed a soft kiss on my cheek, pulling the covers over me.
"Don't leave me. It will come back."
"I'm not going anywhere, Jasper. I'm staying right here with you, I promise."
"Alice?" It was a blurred, drowsy sound.
"Yes, Jasper?"
"Thank you for waking me. How'd you know I was having a nightmare?"
"I was right next to you, and you were shouting my name." The last thing I heard was her melodious laughter, like a lullaby, and I drifted back into sleep.
Sorry for changing POV so much. Again, I'm sorry for the lack of updates. Been busy with school, and Fanfiction is now refusing to let me log in now. Also, I wondered if anyone would be interested in making a banner for this story. Whoever makes a banner gets the outtake of their choice.
Please review, including lurkers. :D