"So, this is my room," I said, flinging my arms out. The mirror wall was to the left, the wide expanse of wooden floor and the small corner where my couch, desk and bookcases were to the right. I watched through his eyes as he took everything in and grinned when his eyes fell on my pile of gifts from earlier this evening. It was nearly midnight now, the party downstairs over. Edward had just left to take Bella home. He was staying with her tonight so she wouldn't insist on coming to the field with us later. She had been asleep on her feet the last hour of the party.
"Okay, what'd you get from who?" Adam asked with a grin, striding over to pick up a toy airplane. I laughed.
"That one is from Jasper. He's going to teach me how to fly an airplane," I said happily. Adam raised an eyebrow and I gave him an exasperated look.
"Same as with driving, all I need is a good, reliable pair of eyes. Rose got me a car. It needs a lot of work, but it's a BMW 507 Roadster. We're going to fix it up together." I was proud that my sister and I were going to be doing such a big project. It meant that she and Emmett weren't planning one of their extended honeymoons anytime soon.
"Wow, really? My gift suddenly seems really insignificant," he said, ducking his head sheepishly. I crossed the room and lifted my hands to cradle his face.
"Adam, you know money means nothing to my family. It's not the gifts or the money spent on them that I care about. It's the thought behind them. All of these gifts are my family's way of promising to spend time with me. Emmett got me some books for us to read together, Carlisle and Esme are taking me to Europe for a month and Edward is going to teach me to play the guitar," I said, gesturing at the case on the floor under my couch. Adam went tense and quiet so I stroked my thumb gently over the skin under his eye.
"What's wrong?" I asked softly. He looked into the mirror and I saw the tightness behind his eyes and his deep frown.
"A month?" he asked with a tremor in his voice. I knew it was hard for him to be away from me. I was beginning to understand how he felt because I always missed him when he wasn't around, but Sarah had told me how Adam suffered when we were apart because of the imprint. I was as essential to him as sunshine. He wouldn't die without me by his side, but it would be a cold, painful existence. I refused to do that to him. Fortunately, my family understood our need to stay near one another.
"I suppose now would be a good time to give you your graduation present from my family," I said with a gentle smile. I pulled away from him and grabbed the envelope off the side table. Adam opened it to find an itinerary for the trip scheduled for next spring. He relaxed, but there was still a frown on his face.
"I don't want to intrude on your time with your family, Leia," he said hesitantly. I hugged him.
"You are part of my family now, Adam. If it soothes your conscience at all, we'll go on a few excursions without you," I teased gently. He sighed softly and his arms tightened around me, no doubt with enough strength to have cracked ribs if I'd been human.
"Thank you, Leia. Thank you, everyone," he said the last, raising his voice just a little so my family know they were meant to hear. I heard Carlisle reply for all of them and conveyed his 'You're welcome' to Adam. I didn't mention Alice's snarky comment that he would have to deal with solitude for the four days we'd be spending in Paris. That wasn't part of the European trip. Alice was determined to buy me a new wardrobe for the month long trip along with the pajamas she still owed me from our little motorcycle wreck earlier this spring. That was her graduation gift to me.
Adam pulled me over to the pile of pillows in the corner and we settled on the floor. He was excited about our trip now, and was looking over the itinerary closely.
"I'm shocked to see Venice on the list of destinations," he said seriously. "I thought you hated Italy."
"Carlisle is trying to convince me not to condemn the entire country just because of one bad experience," I said with a nervous laugh. Adam gathered me close, his arms around me and my back against his chest.
"I do believe you promised to tell me about that bad experience. I want to know, Leia."
"I can't tell you everything, Adam. Please understand that," I pleaded softly.
"So, tell me what you can," Adam said, his deep voice rumbling through his chest.
"Emmett and I are going for a swim." I heard Rose say as they ran out of the house. No doubt she hoped we thought she just didn't want to be in the house while Adam was there, but I knew better. She still blamed herself for Italy and it was hard for her to hear us talk about it. So I waited until she was out of earshot before I began to tell Adam about the trip to Italy. I left very little out until we got to the end.
"And they just let you go?" Adam asked incredulously when I stopped talking, trying to decide how much of the rest of the story I wanted the entire pack to know.
"We convinced them that Bella wasn't a threat. There was no good reason to detain us," I said evasively. Adam's arms tightened around me.
"I won't ask how you convinced them, but I know you didn't get away unscathed. Emmett implied that you put yourself into another dangerous situation. Something happened that makes you cringe in fear every time the subject comes up." Adam's voice was insistent.
"Aro's twisted curiosity happened," I murmured darkly. "The Volturi don't understand how Carlisle can choose to abstain from human blood and it frustrates them. Not to mention Aro covets both Edward and Alice for his guard, because of their talents. So, in a combination sick experiment and hope to gain some leverage to use in luring my siblings to his guard, Aro requested that I dance for them before we'd be allowed to leave." I spoke the last sentence with enough contempt to leave little doubt in Adam's mind that Aro's request had been a command.
"I'm not sure I understand. What's so bad about dancing for them?" Adam asked in a bewildered tone. I tucked my head under his chin and concentrated hard on keeping my tone even.
"The Volturi don't hunt like common vampires. They have their meals brought into their fortress, to a central room, once every week or so." I didn't have to say anymore; couldn't if I wanted to keep my voice from cracking.
"He made you dance while they...fed?" His voice was little more than a low whisper. I nodded slightly. "Oh, Leia, the temptation...but you didn't...surely you...god, is that what you can't tell me for fear the pack will declare the treaty broken?"
Adam's voice trembled and I felt his arms go slack for just a split second before he crushed me against him. I threw my arms around his neck and forced myself to look up at him with my useless eyes.
"I didn't drink human blood, Adam. I won't lie and say it wasn't a close thing, but..." I trailed off, unable to lie by saying I hadn't killed anyone. So I edited heavily. "Aro knew that if I had, the chances of guilting me into staying in Volterra were pretty good. Or maybe he thought once I'd tasted human blood I would prefer to stay with them. Either way, I didn't do it. Instead I did something else. Something that made them angry so the Wonder Twins used their powers on me."
"They hurt you?" There was a growl in his voice, but I was relieved. Compared to the question I feared he would ask - What did you do to make them angry? - it was a safe one to answer. Adam knew enough about the Volturi to understand who I meant when I mentioned the Wonder Twins. Jasper had told all of the wolves about the Volturi guard as part of their vampire education over the last week or so.
"Only a little. Then Alec's power sent me into a...well, as close to a coma as a vampire can get. Complete sensory deprivation. Edward couldn't even hear my thoughts." I shuddered and buried my face in his neck. Honestly, I would take Jane's power over Alec's any day of the week. Pain was measurable and Jane couldn't stare at me forever. The void was infinitely more terrifying.
"But you're okay now. It was only temporary," Adam said, relief in his voice. I nodded against his shirt. After a moment, I lifted my head again and told him about my recovery. He seemed somewhat disturbed by the whole idea of a vampire needing physical therapy.
"It was so much easier for me when I could think of you as indestructible. I suppose since my kind is designed to kill yours, I should know it isn't true, but this is different. You feel pain, you can suffer. Not just physically, but mentally as well. Just the thought of you hurting is enough to send me off the deep end. When you lost your arm last week, I nearly went crazy. Leia, I wish you would reconsider..."
"Don't you dare try to talk me out of fighting. I'm no fragile human like Bella to be hidden away. I might not have an imprint driving my need to keep you safe, but you're my mate. I love you and I will defend you with my life," I said ferociously, understanding in that moment Bella's need to be Edward's equal. The thought of him fighting without me at his side was terrifying. Adam looked down at me for a long, silent moment before he nodded and bent his head to kiss me gently.
"Together, then," he whispered against my mouth. I knew he would want more details about Italy soon. He was too inquisitive by nature not to pursue to conversation. But he seemed satisfied for now and that made me relax into him with a grateful sigh.
"Always, my love." And how I hoped that could be true. There were so many unknowns in our relationship. For one, my family could not stay in Forks much longer. We had been here four years already and there were already whispers about how little our family seemed to change. Even more important, Bella's upcoming change would force at least some of us to move to Alaska this fall. But that was something I couldn't discuss with Adam. Not yet.
"And on that note, I suppose now would be a good time to give you my gift," he said, distracting me from my darker thoughts. He sounded a little hesitant about his gift. Before I could wonder why, he pulled a small cloth bag from his pocket and placed it in my hand. I ran my fingers over the intricate beadwork on the bag.
"Did you do the beadwork on this?" I asked curiously. He nodded.
"I did, but that's not the gift. Open it." He nudged the drawstring at the top with his finger. I complied, opening the bag and tipping it up to drop the contents into my hand. I gasped softly as I felt and saw, through Adam's eyes, the bracelet on my palm. It was an intricate, woven band with a green stone set in the center. The band itself was snow white.
"Is that…yours?" I asked in excitement. He nodded.
"Sarah pulled a handful of strands for me. If I'd asked one of the boys, I'd probably have a bald spot the size of Texas, both in wolf and human form," he said wryly. I smiled as I stroked the slightly rough texture of the tightly woven hair. Then I touched the stone.
"It's green turquoise. I noticed you wear a lot of green, so I thought you might like that color."
"It's my favorite color," I said with a bright smile and held up my arm. "Put it on me."
"You like it?" He sounded joyful as he fastened the bracelet around my wrist. I threw my arms around him and gave him as passionate a kiss as I dared before I replied.
"I love it and I love you. Thank you, Adam."
Jasper POV
My baby sister was in love with a shapeshifter. God, how that thought had rankled not only me, but nearly everyone in my family. Especially my wife. For someone that rarely ever had to deal with the normal uncertainties of life, having near omniscience taken away was tough. Especially when it meant she couldn't watch over whichever member of her family who happened to be in the presence of one of the wolves. I would never call Alice a control freak to her face, not if I wanted to keep both arms attached to my body, but she really didn't like it when she couldn't steer a situation in whatever direction appealed most to her.
As for the rest of the family, Carlisle and Esme were accepting, Edward was getting there and Emmett, well, in his mind, Edward's word that Adam's intentions were pure was good enough for him. Add in my reassurance that Adam's feelings for Leia, and Leia's for Adam, were approaching the depth of love between Edward and Bella and he was ready to call Adam 'brother'. Well, he was willing to call him 'wrestling partner' anyway, which in this family was fairly equivalent. Rosalie wasn't nearly as accepting of the situation, but she had a soft spot for our baby sister, just as the rest of us did, so she was pushing aside her uncertainty about Adam to try and be supportive. Well, most of the time. Leia hadn't been able to coax her into coming tonight.
Every offer for us to go on a group date had been refused up until now. But Bella and Sarah had somehow managed to talk Jacob into it. Alice and I had opted out of dinner plans, of course, but we were meeting them at the theatre. Rose and Emmett had opted out of the whole date, volunteering to watch over Charlie for the evening. Emmett was a little disappointed. Not that he would ever let Rosalie know.
As for me, the more I watched Leia and Adam together, the harder it was to dislike the boy. Well, discounting the rather disgusting odor he emanated. His reaction to Leia's injury last week was no less frantic than Edward's whenever Bella managed to hurt herself, so I knew her safety was one of his top priorities. He was nothing but attentive and loyal when he was with her. And now that the pack had relented on letting Adam visit Leia at our house, he was with her more often than not. They spent all their free time in her room. When we weren't working on their new fighting strategy, they were choreographing new dances or just snuggling. At least I didn't have to sneak around to keep tabs on her anymore. She had gotten so angry at Alice and Rose for trailing her to the movies that first weekend, I was thankful she hadn't caught me. Not that I had been there the one time she'd really needed me.
During our trip to Seattle last week, I had been foolish to think it was safe to leave Leia at the fairgrounds alone. There had only been one disappearance reported from the fairgrounds and so many from the city that I hadn't thought them related. And so I had given my sister the opportunity to try and prove herself again. When she had called to tell me about the vampires coming her way, I'd felt a sick sense of dread, not knowing if the wolves would help her or be content protecting the humans.
I know now that Adam's loyalty is with Leia, even more so than with his own family. He had left his sister and his father without hesitation. Jacob had only followed when Adam had assured him that the situation wasn't likely to spill over into the fairgrounds if he would help. Leia had lost an arm in the fight that day, but without the help of the wolves no doubt we would be mourning the death of our sister instead of going to the movies.
As I opened the passenger door of the Porsche for Alice, I took a quick inventory of her emotional state. She was just a little bit nervous. This wasn't the first time she was meeting Adam in a social setting, but she was planning to apologize for her harsh words the night she had found out about the imprint. She was nervous because, since it was Adam she was apologizing too, she had no idea how he would react.
"They are already inside. Edward has our tickets." I told Alice, having spied Edward through the glass front of the building. Alice and I made our way carefully through the throng of young people milling about. I held my breath. I didn't need the temptation of scent tonight. I was surprised to hear Edward and Adam having a real conversation, discussing music. Leia and Bella were getting refreshments so we paused beside the boys. Edward was grinning at Adam, who was gesturing wildly with his hands and occasionally shuffling his feet to some beat that only he, and probably Edward, could hear.
"You should try your hand at composition sometime. You've got a good ear and a creativity that shouldn't be limited to percussion." Edward was almost completely relaxed, emoting genuine interest. Adam was excited and happy, despite the fact that his eyes kept wandering to check on Leia. I wondered which of the girls had orchestrated, pun completely intended, this conversation.
"I think they've both been plotting," Edward said, looking at me, answering my unspoken question. Adam's grin dissolved into a wary expression as he turned to look at us. I gave him a tight smile.
"Hello, Adam. It's good to see you again." Alice's greeting was quiet and sincere.
"Hello Alice, Jasper." Adam's greeting was hesitant and I sensed fear in him, as I had that night in dance studio when Emmett was grilling him about imprints and I was watching him clutch Leia's hand like a lifeline. It wasn't like the terror humans felt when they unconsciously realized we were a danger to them. I didn't quite understand it.
"He's afraid for her sake," Edward said in a tone that even I had trouble hearing. I knew Adam's hearing was on par with ours, though nowhere near as good as Leia's. He didn't give indication that he'd heard Edward's comment. He's afraid she will be forced to choose between him and her family?
Edward nodded subtly and I grimaced. Adam didn't notice, because he was watching Leia and Bella make their way over with arms full of refreshments. Adam stepped forward and snagged a giant tub of popcorn and a box full of junk food from Leia's arms. She smiled up at him and he glanced back towards Alice. I could feel the determination warring with nervousness in him. Determination won, because he turned back to kiss her gently on the lips and thank her for getting the refreshments. Beside Leia, Bella was carrying an odd contraption with four sodas tucked into it. Edward took it from her with a crooked smile and balanced it perfectly in the crook of his arm before pulling Bella under his shoulder.
"Can't have you tripping and spilling those everywhere," he said to her, teasingly. Bella snorted softly and rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. It was good to see a smile on her face after the last few days. She was incredibly tense about the whole Victoria situation and with good reason.
I had been surprised by Bella's suggestion that we use her scent as bait for the newborns. It was an excellent plan. It almost made up for Bella talking Edward into staying out of the fight. I understood why he'd done it and the way Bella attracted danger, she would likely end up mauled by a bear or something equally ludicrous if left alone during the fighting. Besides, I had learned enough about the wolves during our three training sessions to know that the fight with the newborns should be, as the humans might say, a piece of cake.
As we made our way into theatre, Adam and Leia ribbed Bella about her clumsiness. As if their teasing made her more self-conscious, she managed to snag her shoe on the worn carpet twice. She was in no danger of falling with Edward holding on. When we finally made it inside the dark room, Jacob tried to coax Sarah into the row first. She smacked his arm and insisted on sitting beside Bella. Leia sat herself beside Edward and after a moment of consideration, Alice sat beside Adam. That left me on the aisle. Between the open space to one side and the rather pungent smell of dog mingling with the smell of my ultimate temptation, I was marginally comfortable.
"Adam, I'd like to apologize for my unkind words before..." Alice started quietly, her nervousness almost tangible as she dropped her gaze to her dainty, fashionable shoes. Her right hand was gripped tightly in mine but the other was resting on the arm rest between herself and Adam. I watched Adam reach out with two long, tanned fingers and gently touch the back of her hand.
"Apology accepted. I'd honestly like to say I wouldn't act the same way if the positions were reversed, but if Edward had set his sights on Sarah..." He trailed off with a shrug. I squeezed Alice's hand and nodded when she looked at me. As far as I could tell, Adam was completely sincere. Alice's relief warmed me as she settled back to watch the movie.
I didn't really pay a lot of attention. It was an action flick with too many gratuitous explosions and a little too much blood for my self control to deal with. I spent the time snuggling with my wife and basking in the glow of four couples completely in love. It was a good place for an empath to be, especially when there wasn't any melodrama to color the atmosphere. Even Edward seemed to be free of darker emotions tonight. I knew this was the calm before the storm, but I decided to sit back and enjoy the moment of peace before the Olympic Peninsula officially became a vampire war zone.