HAPPY ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY! (wow, it's really been a year?)

A/N: Much love to jilburfm (and her new baby!) & ocd_indeed, as usual. Much love to the reviewers and readers and clickers of chapter 22... blew me away, as usual. More in the end notes, as usual.. x)

**

Previously on the Vampire in the Basement. Bella came back from Florida after the Volturi visit and shared a steamy kiss with Edward. She left for the night, followed be Edward attempting to drink for real (instead of being fed) and confessing to Carilsle that someone had been with him when he was left in the woods. Also, Bella learned that her future could involve some vamptasticness... And then Bella came back over, and Edward told her a story about his dark history. Which brings us to:

**

The Vision

**

Bella POV

I spent the following two days at odds with myself. I trusted the Cullens' decisions implicitly, and I figured that I would go along with whatever they decided, but there was still that fraction of my brain that felt like I should be doing something.

I knew that stressing out over it would only make the situation worse, but Edward's story had rattled me. When I left the house that night, Carlisle had pulled me aside, all concerned eyes and tense shoulders.

I stood by the door helplessly, shrugging and doing what I could to keep the unshed tears from escaping. I felt like I had been doing this a lot lately, but I couldn't help it.

Between the grief for Edward's suffering and the anger for those who inflicted it (and a thousand other unnamed feelings), my emotions were running out of control. And Carlisle, usually the pinnacle of composition, emitted waves of pity and uncertainty as we stood in awkward silence.

"Bella," he whispered, putting a fatherly hand on my shoulder.

I sighed and shrugged again, aiming for nonchalance, and the tears fell.

"Bella," he said again.

I shook my head. "No, I'm… I'm okay," I said. I struggled for composure, and he caught the hint.

He didn't say another word, but opened the door for me.

"You'll be alright to get home?"

I nodded and ducked onto the porch.

"Carlisle?" I called back, as his silhouette shadowed the door frame. "You won't let them hurt him, right?"

Carlisle nodded solemnly, and a false smile tugged at his lips.

"Not as long as I'm standing."

**

That was when the nightmares began.

For the past two nights, I awoke every few hours to the horrifying belief that they had him. He was always screaming. And, without fail, the dreams carried a vivid truth to them.

But, as I drove home from school on Wednesday afternoon, I knew I had to get a grip. Dinner with Dad. Should be interesting, to say the least.

**

I took my place at the table, across from Charlie, and kept my focus on my plate. Things had been fairly awkward since I moved back to Forks, but I'd be remiss to say my recent lifestyle changes didn't further the distance between us.

I love Charlie, I really and truly do, but we've never had much in common. And while I enjoyed our fishing trips and birthday traditions and wouldn't trade them for the world, table conversation was often strained.

Today was no exception, and it was only multiplied by the fact that it was my first dinner at home in weeks.

Charlie cleared his throat.

"Smells good," he said, his hand automatically reaching for his neck. I smiled and nodded in way of thanks.

Silence.

I stabbed a bite of lasagna and shoveled it into my mouth. I had hopes of this dinner going better – of some sort of bonding with Charlie to close a bit of that distance that had come between us.

I heaved out a sigh and started to speak.

"School treatin' you well?" Charlie said, just as my words were forming.

"Yeah." I fumbled with my glass. "Everything's going great." I fingered the rim of my glass and nodded my head.

"Keeping up with your studies?" he asked through a mouthful of food. "I know you've been kind of busy," he added as an afterthought.

And there it was.

I guess it was better to get it over with, since it was bound to happen eventually. This morning, as I mused over how to handle this exact conversation, I decided to be as honest as circumstances would allow. Granted, my half-truths would be laced with full-lies, the information I surrendered would be tainted beyond recognition, but I wanted to be as honest as possible. For Charlie.

He deserved better than what I was giving him, and while I knew this, I wasn't in much of a position to change things. Still, I could do whatever was in my power to tilt the scale more toward his side.

"I know," I said, nodding. Why couldn't I have a normal boyfriend? One that I could bring home and introduce to Charlie and Renee and sneak out with at night?

I knew I didn't actually want one, but I did wish I could bring Edward home.

"Cullens keeping you busy?"

We both sort of chuckled awkwardly before returning to our food.

"You know," Charlie said, as he finished up his first helping, "you can talk to me."

I continued methodically pushing food into my mouth, letting our eyes meet to convey my understanding.

"I know I'm not your mother," he continued, "and I know it's probably not easy… But if you need anything, I'm here."

Pushing back, he went to the counter to refill his plate, and I took a second to gather my wits.

"I know, Dad," I said. "It's not that… it's just…"

His attention came back to me, his face filled with hope of what I would say. Deep breath; this wouldn't be so bad. "It's complicated."

Charlie exhaled deeply, nodding his head. "You wanna tell me about it? I know I may not seem the type, but I had my fair share of problems when I was your age." Charlie pointed to himself. "Famous ladies' man."

I repressed a chuckle.

"It's…" My cheeks puffed out as I held my breath. Charlie took his place but ignored his food. I had his full attention. Great. "It's about a boy."

He nodded, certainly feeling in tune with his inner teenager. He'd no doubt guessed this, and was probably feeling pretty smug and confident in his parenting skills. If only he knew.

"Yep," he said, his hand going back to his neck, "that's what I figured."

I couldn't contain my smile, realizing that I wanted to tell Charlie. No one outside of the Cullens knew, and ordinarily my father wouldn't have been my first choice, but as I sat at that dinner table, I knew he was exactly who I wanted to tell.

"You know, Bells," he said, "you didn't have to hide it. I told you, you're old enough to date… I'd just like to know what's going on."

There was a pause while he ate another bite.

Then, out of nowhere, came, "It's that big one, isn't it?"

**

Two hours later, after a sufficiently awkward discussion about boys, the Cullens (and their distant cousin who was staying with them), safe sex practices, Charlie's first girlfriend, and wrapping up with the dangers of premature marriage, I stood, hoping my message was clear. I'd reached my limit for the night, despite my budding guilt over Charlie's eagerness and satisfaction that I was finally spending an evening with him.

"Bells," Charlie said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, "hold up a sec."

I froze briefly mid-rise and, as I overcompensated for the hesitation, my knee jammed painfully into the leg of the table.

I squeezed my eyes shut and wobbled to the sink, muttering oaths under my breath, when I heard Charlie chuckle.

"Sorry," he mumbled as he cleared the rest of the table.

I stopped the ungraceful dance I had begun and looked at him.

"I wanna meet him," Charlie said. My grimace deepened.

With my protest hanging on the tip of my tongue, ready for its release, Charlie held up his hands. "Now, I know I said you can date. You can make your own decisions – but Bella, cut your old man a break? I'll make dinner," he said, thinking about the implications of this just a moment too late. "Er," he continued, "I'll buy us dinner."

Noticing my hesitation he added, "It'll be… nice."

Before it could go any further, I quickly got my words in. "I don't think so, Dad. Not this week… Maybe some other time…"

I was floundering, making every effort to get myself and my vampire out of a situation that clearly would never happen to begin with. Obviously, there was no way dinner was even a remote possibility, and I could only hope that Charlie would let it drop. As much as I wished it was different, I knew implicitly that there was no way my dad would ever meet my vampire. None.

And, as if pulling the thoughts right from my mind, he nodded his head. "Alright, Bells." He stood, bringing his plate to the sink. "I trust you."

And with that, I was released for the night.

**

I sat in my bed, easing my mind and letting go of the day, of the conversation, just trying to calm myself down. It had been a long evening, no doubt, and I was glad for it to have ended. It was the first day I had gone without seeing my vampire since my weekend away, and I was antsy for tomorrow.

A feeling of unease weighed me down any time I had to go long periods without seeing him. I did realize that it wasn't the end of the world – going a day without being near him – but what if it was?

I knew the dangers we faced were bigger than him or me, bigger than normal high school relationships and bigger than a girl falling for a vampire. Because there was a very real threat still out there.

I pulled the purple flowered curtain aside and looked out over the woods. I didn't feel that I was in any danger – I didn't feel as though my father or my friends were in any danger. What I felt was that, at any moment, the Cullens could come under the attack of some super secret, super advanced group and I had no idea how to prevent that particular string of events. If they had captured Edward and all of those other vampires, of course they could capture the Cullens too.

And I wasn't naïve enough to believe that I would be of any help in the event of said attack, but I couldn't bear the thought that I could lose them at the drop of a hat. There was nothing saying that it wouldn't be tonight, or tomorrow, or over the weekend. I knew something had to be done – but what could be done to stop an invisible force?

What we lacked was knowledge, and although Carlisle was under the strict impression that Alice would be their saving grace, I wasn't so convinced. Alice had been wrong before. Alice had missed things before. And people had gotten around Alice's talents before.

After all – she certainly hadn't seen Edward coming.

I swallowed back my anxiety and let the curtain fall, closing my eyes and shoving my headphones over my ears, praying the soothing melody would ward off the nightmares.

It didn't.

**

There was a shrill noise coming from somewhere, but I wasn't sure where. I abruptly realized it was coming from me, but I couldn't stop it. All I knew was that I had to get to him… and my body wasn't working. I was standing on the other side of a two-way mirror, my fists banging on the glass, but it went unnoticed. They were all watching him, and it was as if I wasn't even there.

I could feel the tears pouring down my face as I slammed my hands over and over into the window. I could see that Edward was screaming, too, but I couldn't hear him. All I could hear was the laughing, the smoke from their cigars filling the room and the laughing. I couldn't even see the men surrounding me, it was so dark. I was focused on one thing, and he was about to be destroyed.

I woke with a start, my heart thumping in overtime in my chest, and threw my hands over my mouth to muffle the screams I knew were still coming from me.

It was still dark. I tried to look at the clock but I couldn't see anything. I was dizzy, so dizzy, and the tears were still free falling. I tried to force myself to get a grip, but could only fumble around on my bed looking for the light.

It was just a dream. Edward was fine. It was a dream, and he was fine.

I opened the shades and saw the rain slamming against the window. I blinked hard, trying to get my eyes to focus. Edward was fine. He was at the house, and he was safe with the Cullens.

I tried to lie down, but couldn't quite get myself under control. I swallowed and padded downstairs, pouring myself a glass of water. I choked it down over my sobs.

I put my weight on the counter and let my head fall into my hands, still trying to get myself under control. He would be fine. No one had him, and he was still safe.

In retrospect, I'm not really sure that my frame of mind excused it, but at the time, as soon as the thought popped into my head, I had the car keys in hand. Damned if I was going to lose another minute of what could be a very finite amount of time together.

Charlie was going to kill me.

As I yanked open the front door, I ran straight into her.

"Alice!" I squeaked, covering my mouth.

"Bella," she whispered, pulling me out the door. She didn't even give me a chance to grab my coat or umbrella as she dragged me into the freezing rain.

"Al-" I began, protesting. She closed my front door after me and locked it. Alice certainly had her ways of getting things done; I only hoped they didn't involve pneumonia. "Is everything alright?"

"Fine," she answered, pushing me along. If I wasn't awake before, I certainly was now.

There was something missing from the driveway, as I peered through the downpour.

"Where's your car?"

"Oh," she responded simply, looking beyond me. "I thought it would be a nice night for a run…"

The frigid water pelted me as I waited for Alice's explanation. She had to be kidding. Even for Alice, this was insane.

"Oh?"

"You know, spontaneous… fun…" she grasped. "And I didn't want an engine to wake Charlie."

Thunder crashed in the distance and I sighed out my frustration. It was hard to argue with a psychic.

So with that, I climbed on Alice's back (feeling completely ridiculous), closed my eyes, and hoped she could push herself fast.

**

I walked into the bedroom, drenched from head to toe, still in my pajamas. The clothes were sticking uncomfortably, but I couldn't find it in me to care just then. Edward sat on the bed, watching the rain, his long arms curled around his legs.

He turned to face me and a half smile crept onto his lips before it was quickly replaced with a look of concern.

I looked down at myself and, for as cold as I was, my face was feeling increasingly heated. "Surprise?" I aimed for nonchalance and hit a little high, but it didn't matter. Edward was here. He was safe, after all.

He stood tentatively and crossed the room.

"What are you…?" he asked, trailing off. I wrapped my arms around him, looking for some warmth. For the first time since I'd met him, his body did not feel cool to the touch. I wrapped myself tighter around him, shivering outwardly, and felt his arms snake around my shoulders.

"I was worried," I said simply. The thought did cross my mind that I might sound like an overbearing non-girlfriend, and not in a good way, but I couldn't bring myself to move.

I could feel his chin resting on the top of my head. I closed my eyes and put my head against his chest, breathing him in, basking in the moment.

I don't know how long we stood there, but I felt Edward pull away. I held tight, but knew it was only a matter of seconds.

His hand reached out slowly and touched my still-shaking jaw.

"You're cold," he whispered, opening his fingers so his entire hand cupped my neck. A quizzical look overtook his features as he appraised me.

He glanced over my head, toward the bathroom door, his eyes fixed on something beyond my view.

I finally turned my head to see what he was seeing. Nothing but the bathroom.

"Should…?" he questioned, nodding his head in that direction.

I considered it briefly. I mean, I hadn't really expected him to be ready to shower with me or anything, but I was cold, and I certainly didn't mind showering with Edward…

Before I could think about it further my mouth decided to take over the conversation and whispered, "I think so," before grabbing his hand from my face and dragging him toward the bathroom.

He looked sort of taken aback by the gesture but followed complacently, and for a fleeting moment I wondered if he had intended for me to shower alone. That didn't make any sense to me, since I was here to see him, but what did I know?

As I let my brain take over again, I felt the blush creeping in once more. God, I'm an idiot.

"Edward," I said, preparing myself to say the words that would release him from this situation. Would we be naked? I looked down at myself to see what the other option could be. I wasn't sure I was ready for it yet. Granted, I had seen him naked a thousand times, but the circumstances were just… different.

He reached over me and turned the water on. I watched curiously as he turned the faucet, and was momentarily distracted by his lack of attention to the temperature. I wondered if he had a preference.

"Do you like it hot or cold?" I blurted out. He craned his neck to look at me.

"Either," he said.

"But if you had to pick," I pushed. He knew so much about me. I wanted to learn about him for once. I wanted him to have a preference.

I leaned against the sink and raised an eyebrow in challenge, waiting.

"Hot," he finally decided, standing to full height once more. The rising steam was already starting to warm the room.

I nodded and moved to the shower, putting a tentative finger under the water. I immediately added cold, adjusting to something tolerable for a human being.

"Do you want to…" I began, looking at the floor. Looking at Edward's feet, his sweatpants, the bottom of his t-shirt, his chest, finally meeting his eyes again.

Boxers, I realized. Alice would have given him boxers.

I glanced down at myself once more. It was a rare quirk of mine, sleeping in my sports bra, but one that would come in handy this evening.

I decided to dive in and not look back. Edward's eyes widened momentarily when I started removing my clothing, but any curiosity or astonishment he felt was quickly contained in a passive face.

"If you're coming in," I said, "we're not losing everything."

I stepped into the shower in my underwear, trying to hide my overwhelming embarrassment. I mean, really, how many times had I seen Edward naked? I remembered back to the very first time I cleaned him. And I had the audacity to be embarrassed in my underwear?

Edward took a very deliberate step toward the tub and tugged at the back of his shirt. Slowly, I reached my hands toward his waist and lifted the fabric, pulling it over his shoulders. I eyed him appreciatively.

He'd filled out more since I last saw him sans shirt, and it was all I could do not to ogle him. I rolled my eyes at myself as he stepped out of his sweats and into the tub.

And there we were, me and my first sort-of boyfriend, standing in the shower in our underwear.

I wish I could say it felt sexy, or at the very least comfortable, but I, Bella Swan, do not make a habit out of showering with boys, and it was definitely awkward.

That only lasted about 30 seconds though, because when he took a step toward me and we turned on the shower, I melted into him.

With my body temperature being so much lower than normal, and the heat of the water, and feel of his bare skin against mine, the awkwardness just sort of drifted away and left me feeling absolutely amazing.

I moved my hands up his torso and around his neck and pulled him to me, tangling my fingers in his hair. I felt him shiver involuntarily but comply, and he leaned down, his eyes closed. I stood on the tips of my toes and kissed him softly, nothing long or sloppy or passionate. I rested my forehead against his and the kiss broke.

We stood there, our eyes closed and our lips just centimeters apart, his arms wrapped around my shoulders and my fingers trailing up and down his back. And I truly think it was probably the best moment of my entire life.

**

Carlisle POV

I'm not sure if it was all completely real to me until I heard him tell Bella his story.

We had all heard it, everyone in the house, and those of us not in the house got the condensed version shortly afterward. There was some sort of silent understanding that it was not to be talked about, and to keep thinking about it to a minimum.

I'm not sure how the rest of my family was doing on that front, but I was failing miserably.

I shook my head and went back to the papers in front of me. The manila envelope had been sent last night directly by Tanya, a sister from a northern coven. When she caught wind of our current situation, she called immediately.

I looked at the image of the battered female vampire, the one and only picture that the sisters had from their brief encounter. It was only a sketch, but was a startling replica of our first encounter with Edward.

Her hair was clearly long and light, but was so diluted with filth that it was hardly recognizable as such. They had found her seven years ago, deep in the forest where no human dared walk.

As Tanya explained, they attempted to approach her, to calm her and assist her, but after days of wasted effort, the sisters put an end to the vampire's suffering.

The story didn't sit well with me. My immediate reaction was that someone had in fact been planting them, for one reason or another.

My more colorful theories centered on the possibility that the vampires themselves were involved.

I let those ones go quickly, ashamed that the thought crossed my mind. While it occurred to me that we might be too trusting of Edward, his intentions weren't what worried me at this point. I felt as thought Edward was about as capable of double crossing us as Alice.

Even I had to admit – what was going on with him and Bella was nothing short of incredible. Whether or not Edward was a tool in a grand game of chess, only time would tell. But of one thing I could be absolutely certain: if Edward was a pawn, he was not aware of it.

I heard the slam of a car door and glanced toward the window, all of my senses hyper aware of my surroundings. It wasn't my intention to become paranoid or even overly protective, but it didn't hurt to keep an eye on things. Edward's story had shaken each of us more than we cared to admit. Whatever was done to him could have been done to any of us, and I could feel the family growing more tentative with every day that passed.

While we could claim that we were safe until we were blue in the face, my instincts told me otherwise. There was a danger brewing, and I wasn't going to lose this war due to carelessness.

A war. Was that really what this would come to? Was it already time to contact Aro, to demand the knowledge that he so callously held back last time? Was everything I loved in danger?

The answer was plain as day, but falling into a state of panic would be detrimental to our victory. If it was humans, as Edward was leading us to believe, then we should unarguably have the upper hand. What concerned me was the unknown. There were pieces missing, and those pieces could be our undoing.

I heard the car engine turn over and kept my focus on the window as the muffled noise grew distant.

I couldn't help the chuckle that escaped me. Paranoid, indeed.

**

Jasper POV

I ran my hands through my hair, bouncing on my toes. Not good.

I snuck a glance at Alice, curled in on herself on our bed. This was our spot, our one place to be ourselves in spite of anything that might be going on.

"… did you go all 'round our hiding place and pat it, you called our chiefs each by his own name…"

She was rambling distantly, swaying back and forth in cadence with the prose. I closed my eyes and approached the bed.

"Alice."

"…my house is full of miscreants who keep killing great numbers of my sheep and oxen…"

"Alice!"

"…I am suppliant at your knees…"

I pulled her up and dragged her down the stairs, ignoring the stares of my disconcerted family.

We ran through the woods at a lightning pace, my need to be away from that house and our temporary prison growing stronger by the step. I knew what she was doing. She had done it before, in small doses. Filled her mind with nonsense to block her thoughts from Edward. It was a trick she had learned fairly quickly, after her first few interactions with him. It seemed to work, to an extent, although it hampered her ability to interact with us.

If she let her mind drift from her task at all, she was subject to let whatever was bothering her creep in. So she concentrated on reciting the lines, as if it was her life's goal.

How well this worked, though, no one could say. Edward was barely talking enough to convey reactions about anything he heard, vocally or otherwise, so we weren't positive if Alice's trick kept him out of her thoughts. She rarely attempted it, anyway. Full disclosure, she said. She treated him as if he was already a part of the family.

And so, it wasn't the constant repetition of the Odyssey that was had me reeling. It was the panic that was radiating from my wife.

Sheer terror emanated in waves off of my Alice, usually so cool and collected, always so in control. Not right now.

"…this man had been looking out for a whole year to make sure Agamemnon did not give him the slip and prepare war…"

I heard the water splashing against the rocks and pulled Alice through it, far from our home; our family. I needed to get her away, enough so that I knew no one would overhear.

We had never pinpointed the exact distance that she'd no longer be heard by Edward, so I kept dragging her onward, trying desperately to keep calm without calming her. Because if I calmed her, whatever she was trying to hide would make itself known. And while that was the end goal, we needed a minute to figure things out.

It was a given that Alice would want to talk through what she saw before making any decisions on action. It was never her intention to hide the future from our family, but her visions were so bizarre sometimes. I could only imagine what she had seen.

Fifty miles of running non-stop until I finally pulled her to a stop.

"Alice!"

"Jasper," her eyes refocused and she looked around herself. A smile crept upon her lips in spite of herself. "Went a little overboard."

I nodded, grateful for the change in her disposition.

"Alice –" I urged, pacing back and forth. It would appear I was in worse shape than she was. So strong.

"Jasper, I… I don't think it's good." Her voice was rushed, the panic back in her eyes. "No, I know it's not good. It's bad, it's bad, it's really, really bad, Jasper." Whispered pleas came from her lips and I closed the distance between us, forcing my mind into a calmer state.

"Whatever it is, we'll figure it out."

"I don't know what happened," she leaned into me and I could feel her frame shaking. I could feel my frame shaking. Whatever she saw, it was really, really bad. And I had a feeling it was only going to get worse.

"Tell me."

"It's like… It's like nothing changed. He didn't do anything. But everything changed. EVERYTHING CHANGED, JASPER."

I laced my fingers into her hair closed my eyes, letting her scent calm my senses. Letting my senses calm hers.

"What did you see?"

"They're coming." She was far away, I could tell. She was looking, and looking and looking.

"When?"

"I'm not sure. There's snow on the ground. Lights on the trees. Snow on the ground…"

"Alice!" I shook her, hard. I couldn't handle it.

She looked at me, all guilty and self deprecating.

"Shit," she whispered. I could count on one finger the number of times I'd heard Alice say shit. "SHIT." Two.

"Jasper, they're coming!"

Panic started to creep in again, and I willed it down. I swallowed hard and pushed it outward. "We'll fix this," I said.

I could see her head shaking, her eyes wide. She was living in her head, as she was prone to do, and the picture was ugly. I knew the signs.

"We'll protect him," I urged, but it was no use. Whatever her vision was telling her, she wasn't buying it.

"Nothing we are doing so far is changing anything, Jazz. We can't protect him!"

"We'll figure it out, Al. We have to."

She nodded, willing herself to relax. Finally allowing me to help.

After several minutes of tense silence, I took a gamble.

"What did you see?"

Alice entwined her fingers in mine and sat down on the rocky protrusion. "He's in a room."

"A room?" I pressed. I'd have to pry the information from her, but once I got her talking, she'd let it all out. She let my calm wash over her and took a deep breath.

"It's… bright. He's scared, but he's okay. For now. They're watching him. He knows they're watching him, but it doesn't look like they're making any move to touch him. Not yet."

"Then what, Alice?"

She shook her head, backing away from me. I grabbed her hands. "Alice, the more we know –"

"I can't," she cried. "I can't look, Jasper. I don't want to know. I don't want to know what they're going to do to him!"

I closed my eyes and breathed. Moments like these, I was grateful I didn't have Alice's ability. Being an empath certainly had its cons, but knowing the future and not knowing how to change it… I understood her hesitation.

She closed her eyes, watching. "It's so far out," she whispered. "I can't see how it ends. There's still so much to be decided."

"Then what do we do?" I asked, her frustration feeding mine.

"Then we go back," she responded immediately. "Carlisle will know what to do."

**

Stop here, ye who hate a/ns: I feel like I don't have words for my fail or for your support. Both of them amaze me. But, as it is the 1 year anniversary of VITB, I figured I definitely had to get an update out there. And alas, success! Huzzah!

To the people who read and review and favorite and rec and don't hate on me and alert and click, or any combination of the aforementioned, you rock.

(P.S. the vamp in the basement is nominated for a bellie thecatt (dot) net... The fact that my mentioning this is tacky is not lost on me. I got it. Thanks :)