Disclaimer: I do not own nor do I claim any rights to Twilight and the universe thereof.

A/N: Sorry about the uncharacteristic delay. I am an SAT tutor on the weekends, so those are my busiest days. No excuse for the long Monday, though. Accept this long chapter as my apology (2.8k+ at last count).

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Chapter 8: Humanity

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Jasper:

She passed out.

She passed out.

I had called Carlisle as soon as it happened, but…

Shit.

I didn't know vampires could pass out.

I don't think vampires can pass out.

Breathe, Jasper. I needed the familiar action to calm myself. Carlisle was here. Everything was going to be okay.

Bella was going to be okay.

Her pale vampire skin was translucent and I could almost see the shadows of the bleached bones beneath her flesh.

Carlisle knew what he was doing. I had to convince myself or else I was sure I would reach down and throw everyone off of her. As it was, I wanted to go all caveman and throw her over my shoulder and keep anyone from touching her, hurting her.

Carlisle finished examining her and I couldn't help but notice the difference between Bella now, and Bella the last time I had seen Carlisle doctoring her. Then, she had looked broken and destroyed. Now—she looked like she was asleep. Her hair had pillowed out behind her and her lips tilted upward in the faintest smile.

And she thought I was an angel.

Carlisle finished the limited inspection he could do on a bloodless, heartbeat-less vampire.

He spoke before I could jump down his throat. "She's fine, Jasper." He looked at the rest of the family gathered around her prone form, "She's fine."

"Then what's wrong with her?" I asked.

"Nothing." He said. "Nothing is wrong with Bella."

His emotions gave him away. He was buzzing with a mix of apprehension and excitement.

"What is it?" I asked him. He looked at me sideways, annoyed that his emotions had betrayed him.

"I… I have a theory."

"About Bella?" I asked.

"Yes." He said. He didn't elaborate for a few moments, and I had to literally bite my tongue to keep from growling at him. As it was, Emmett beat me to the punch.

"Care to share?" He hissed.

Carlisle snapped out of whatever daze he had been in.

'I apologize." He bowed his head. "I was just speculating. I believe…" his eyes flicked toward me. "What I mean to say is—" He cleared his throat.

"I think that Bella's most dominant characteristic in her past life was her humanity."

Emmet sat down on the couch. "Come again?"

"I think that, like you have your strength and Rose has her beauty, Bella retains her humanity. She was so quintessentially human in her other life that some of those characteristics carried over."

I was stunned. "I didn't know that that could happen."

Carlisle shrugged. "For anomalies of nature, we really know very little about our limits and capabilities. I have always thought that our powers, should we have powers, evolve and strengthen as we grow. Every power has the potential to be a give and take, like yours Jasper."

"I don't follow." I said.

Carlisle gestured his hand toward me. "You have the ability to read, like Edward does. He works with thought, and you work with emotion. Correct?" I nodded. "You can, however, effect the emotions of those around you. You spent the first few decades of your life using your power every day; it strengthened and developed into a give and take. Now, not only can you read the emotions of those around you, you can change them. Edward immediately recognized the intrusive and unwelcome aspects of his power, and has spent his entire vampire life repressing and attempting to smother his talent. If he had nurtured and practiced his ability, I have no doubt that he would be able to either control, alter, or add to the thoughts of others."

I processed what Carlisle had said. "What about Alice?" I asked.

"I believe she has begun developing the flow of her power. In the beginning, visions came to Alice without urging or order. Now, if she wishes to see someone's future, she can concentrate and tune in to their decisions. She can decide who she is looking for in the future. I'm not sure if this is the cap of Alice's power, although I have speculated that one day she might learn to see multiple futures; not only the outcome of the current path an individual is on, but all of the potential outcomes of a specific decision."

"So you think Bella's… humanity will grow into something more?"

"Well, she shielded Edward's thoughts. Her body rejects the supernatural."

My jaw dropped. "She's a vampire whose body rejects the supernatural?" I asked. "Wait, she is a vampire, right?"

Carlisle nodded. "Oh, there's no doubt of that," he said as he held up a syringe that he had tried to use on Bella. The needle was bent and the chamber's glass had stress cracks running through it. "She is definitely a vampire. Her innate human-ness was such, though, that she retained many human abilities. Fainting, for example."

"Her clumsiness." Emmett added.

"Blushing, too." Rose said.

I looked up at her.

"What did you do to make her blush?" I asked.

"I mentioned you." She said and shrugged her shoulders.

I turned to look at the unconscious vampire. What else was she capable of? Could she sleep?

Could she dream?

Carlisle continued, "I think that, perhaps, Bella's power could develop its thread of connection, its give and take, and she would not only maintain human characteristics passively, but she could actively control them in herself, or perhaps inspire and enhance humanity in others. It's difficult to say how it will develop, only that it could."

Again I looked at Bella and I was struck by how much turmoil this little thing had brought to our sedate family. We had been toeing the same path for decades when one day, and one slip threw us into completely uncharted territory.

"For now, Jasper, why don't you take her up to my bedroom and watch over her? She may need you to calm her when we tell her our suspicions."

"I'll take her to my room," I said, "I don't ever use it and its not fair to usurp both you and Esme." I swept an arm under Bella's knees and used my other arm to scoop up her torso, making sure to cradle her neck. I brought her into the fold of my chest, setting her head in the crook of my neck and rubbing soothing circles on her back as I lifted her into the air. I carried her up the stairs and into my room where I placed her on the bed. I spent several minutes fussing over her. Too many pillows? Not enough? Blankets on or off? When I had her positioned in a way I thought would make her comfortable, I sat on the bed next to her.

I reveled in what Carlisle had said. Bella was extraordinary. Not even death could steal her life. She clung, tenacious, and refused to let go. I was impressed. And it took a lot for me to be impressed.

As the hours ticked by and Bella didn't come to I found my self settling in next to her, getting more and more comfortable until I was almost laying beside her, my head propped up on my hands. It felt right. I felt like I could lie there forever, and lie there I did, all through the night, until Bella's eyes fluttered open early the next morning.

Bella:

The dim morning light was more than enough to illuminate the room as my eyes flickered open.

What had happened?

Oh yeah.

Charlie set a date for my funeral. Judging by the sunlight, it was today.

The mattress of the bed I was on bounced beneath me and I looked over to see Jasper sitting on the edge of the bed with a guilty expression on his face. I looked at the crumpled sheets next to me. Had he slept with me all night? I could feel the heat rising in my cheeks and I tried to calm myself down.

Jasper no longer looked guilty; he looked stunned. His hand seemed to rise of its own accord and it brushed against the blush that framed my face.

"Beautiful." He whispered. The heat in my face began to spread to the tips of my toes, and I felt warm all over. Jasper must have noticed because he pulled back his hand with vampire speed and cleared his throat.

"Did I pass out?" I asked.

He nodded. "Yeah, you did." I wasn't surprised. I had a habit of fainting in the most inappropriate situations. Like in a house full of vampires on the day I join their ranks.

"Bella, vampires don't pass out. We can't." I didn't even have it in me to be surprised at his words. I had never fit in. I'm not trying to have a pity party here, but it's something I've learned to live with. I always have to check myself, to make sure I'm acting like everyone else.

But not in the past 24 hours, I realized. Around the Cullens I hadn't had to try to be anything I wasn't. Around them I could be myself.

I sighed. Apparently not anymore. I was back to marking every step and word to make sure I was fulfilling someone's ideal of what I should be.

"What's wrong with me?" Jasper must have felt my dejection because next thing I knew I had his signature brand of too-simple calm surrounding me. I must have given him some resistance on the emotional front since he grabbed me and cradled me to his chest, his chin resting on top of my head. I couldn't help myself; I snuggled into him the tiniest bit. This type of comfort I liked.

"Nothing is wrong with you, Bella. We think this is what you brought over from your past life. You are, at bottom, so essentially alive that nothing could take that away from you. Not even death, Bella. You refused to relinquish your humanity even in the face of immortality."

His words sunk straight to my heart. He sounded… proud. And the feeling shot through me, burning away every doubt and worry. I looked up at him and as soon as my gaze connected with his, I was stuck. His eyes were melted toffee, liquid and hot and I was drowning happily.

As our stare lengthened, his eyes deepened and darkened with feeling. I was fascinated by how much I could see there: ancient pain and many years. Just how old was Jasper?

I suddenly remembered his ability to read emotions and I quickly looked away.

"Thank you." I whispered. I thought I felt his hand brush my hair, but when I looked his way again, he had stood up from the bed and was pacing the room.

"So, what time is my funeral?" I tried to sound nonchalant, but my voice squeaked and gave me away.

Jasper stopped pacing and looked at me. "Ten." He said. "But…"

I waited for what felt like forever before nudging him forward. "But what?"

Jasper fidgeted with his shirt and I realized how odd the action looked on a vampire.

"Bella—"

I was getting anxious. What? What was wrong?

"Jasper, you're killing me here."

He looked at me in silence for a moment and then burst into laughter. It was magical. His entire face changed under the smile. His eyes lit up and the room felt effused with pure happiness. I realized I was feeling what Jasper was feeling. I started giggling until I was curled on the bed, rocking with laughter.

"Oh, I'm sorry. But you were talking about going to your own funeral. And then you said…" He chuckled again and smiled at me, shrugging his shoulders.

Wow. He really was beautiful. I smiled back and wiped a tear that had formed in the midst of my laughter. Jasper was suddenly next to me. He looked awed as he reached up and captured another tear as it was falling down my cheek. He gazed at it on his fingertip before he rubbed it out against his thumb.

I guess vampires don't cry, either.

"Bella, you understand that you can't go."

My joy faded and I immediately became defensive. "And why not?"

"Bella, the funeral is going to be swarming with humans. You are a day-old vampire. Even though you seem to have an inborn aversion to human blood, that much life would be completely irresistible. Would you be able to live with yourself if you hurt someone? We just need to stay on the safe side."

I wasn't pleased with the situation, but I understood why it could be dangerous. I nodded.

Jasper continued. "The rest of the family is going to go to keep tabs on what people are saying about your death. Is there anyone you want them to check up on?"

"Charlie and Renee. My mom and dad."

Jasper nodded. "I'll let Carlisle know."

Something he said hit me then. "The rest of the family?" I asked.

He smirked. "You think I'd abandon you?" He lightly smacked my arm. "You're stuck with me, Bella."

"Oh, god!" I rolled my eyes and pretended to be annoyed, but I couldn't stop the smile that came to my lips. I stuck my tongue out at him. "Fine. You can stay."

Jasper bowed mockingly. "Thank you for your permission, my liege."

I waved my hand and stuck my nose in the air. "Loyal serf, you must do my bidding." I pointed to the door. "Go plow the field."

Jasper narrowed his eyes and growled at me.

I pretended to be shocked. "You dare and threaten your queen?" I brought my hand to my chest and made my eyes wide. "You insolent fool."

Jasper hunched down and balanced on the balls of his feet, poised and ready to attack.

I pointed at him. "Off with your head!" I screeched. "Off with his—" Before I could finish, he sprang at me and knocked me off the bed. I landed smack on the ground and we tumbled one over the other, each fighting for the upper hand. I'm sure tabletops were totally cleared as we knocked into the legs of desks and jostled them around. Finally, Jasper locked his knees around my hips and flipped me on my back. He pinned my arms above my head and knelt over me. My laughter tapered off as I again got caught up in Jasper's eyes. I was breathing heavily, and even Jasper seemed a little winded.

We stayed in that position for a while, and the little distance between us seemed charged with energy. I half expected my hair to stand on end like it does in an electrical storm. I was very aware of everywhere Jasper was touching me: his thighs on my hips, his hands on my wrists, and a lock of his scruffy blond hair against my cheek.

Rose popped into the room. "We're going to the funeral if—" Her eyes went wide. Jasper scrambled off of me and I, again, blushed.

"I'm gonna go…" Rose tiptoed out of the room exaggeratedly and shut the door behind her.

"Check on her mom and dad." Jasper said to the closed door. I knew the sensitive vampire hearing would have no problem picking up his request.

I stood up and looked everywhere but at Jasper. I'm sure my emotions were running the board, so I wasn't afraid Jasper would be able to make sense of the mess when even I had no idea what I was feeling.

"So do you—" I snapped my head up to look at him. I felt an odd sense of anticipation as I waited for him to finish. He was looking somewhere between the top of my head and the ceiling.

"—want to go eat?" For some reason, it felt like a dismissal. I didn't know what else to do, though, so I nodded and followed him out the door to go hunt.

A/N: Apologies to anyone who wanted Bella at the funeral, but I couldn't rationalize them allowing her to be around so many humans so early. I am debating whether or not to switch to a non-Jasper/Bella VP in order to get some funeral in. Let me know your thoughts, cause I am kind of digging on the only J/B views.

As always, reviews make my soul sing.