Well since some of you asked so nicely... here is the next chapter. So here it is, the details of what they're going to face... well mostly anyway. Not everything is revealed and there is still a lot of stuff they don't know but where would be the fun in that if I told you everything straight away. Hopefully this will satisfy you for the time being.

Chapter 8.

There was a gentle tap on the door but he chose to ignore it. It wasn't the first one and he'd ignored the others just as easily. The night was beginning to draw in now and daylight was starting to fade. "Jasper, please… let me in." It was Bella and he looked at the door; staring at it intently as if trying to see the woman on the other side. "Jasper Whitlock, either you open this door or I'm going to knock it down and tell Esme it was your fault."

He smiled at her threat and knew she meant it; feeling her anger and determination with each word. "You can come in, Bella." He whispered.

For a second nothing happened and he wondered if she hadn't heard him but then the door handle moved and he saw it open slowly. She flicked on the light as soon as she entered and the glare lit every corner of the room. She looked at him as he sat perfectly still on the window seat leaning against the panes; his legs were drawn up to his chest; his arms wrapped around his knees as he looked out of the glass. If you ignored for a second he was far too still to be human; he looked like any normal teenager; down to the angst filled expression on his face. "Is this going to become a regular thing?" The anger was still there.

"What?"

"You… sulking… in your room. I wondered if it's going to be a daily routine because I can tell you now I'm already tired of it."

"Bitchy much?" he growled; still looking out of the window.

"What do you expect me to say, Jazz? This has got to stop. Do you think Edward and Alice would've wanted this? Do you think the rest of the family wants this? Do you think any of us want you to be as miserable as you are now?"

Jasper could feel the fury ebbing from her and he knew she was right. He was behaving immaturely but he couldn't help it. His life felt like it was spiraling out of control; everything was changing and he didn't have any choices in it; all choices had been taken from him and he hated that; it just reminded him of when he first became a vampire. He moved his head and slammed it back against the wall behind him; hearing the plaster break as he gave into the frustration he was feeling. "Did they tell you what it said?" he asked her as he continued to stare blindly out of the window.

"No. Carlisle said I should speak to you." Her words were much softer when she spoke this time.

"Do you want to know?"

"I don't have a choice really, do I?"

"I'm giving you one. You should have one." He muttered it but she could hear the tenderness in what he said.

She walked over to where he sat and looked down at him, "I want you to tell me." She said softly as her hand squeezed his shoulder.

"You might want to sit down." She stared at him again and then did as he said; sitting near his feet; facing towards him. He was silent for several minutes before finally speaking. "Edward and Alice screwed us, Bella."

"I'll have you know that Edward most certainly never screwed me; much as I tried to get him to do so."

Her words brought a smile to his face which he was sure was her intention; however subconsciously that was. "Thanks for that little bit of information but that wasn't what I meant. I didn't mean literally, I meant with this bond thing."

"Oh." She looked away from him and he could tell she was embarrassed without even having to try and sense it. He could almost see the blush that would've been there if she was still human.

"There was a lot he didn't tell us; a lot they left out." His hand reached out and turned her face to look at him; the touch of her skin beneath his fingertips igniting his senses. She reached up and covered his hand with hers and stared into his eyes. "There was a lot they didn't tell us, Bella."

"You've said that already." She paused and licked her lips, "Are you ever going to tell me?" He turned his head to look back out of the window but she moved her hand and repeated his earlier action; turning it back to face her once more. "Just say it, Jazz."

"There are certain things we have to do for the bond to be valid." He murmured.

"What sort of things?" Again he didn't say anything so she prodded a little more. "What does it entail?"

"A trip to Volterra."

"To see the Volturi?" she asked; her voice a little scared.

"Yeah. For me, you and the whole family." He didn't sound any happier than she was about it.

"What else?" She knew there was more to it than he was saying.

"We have to go before them and declare our love for each other."

"I know there's more to it than that. Tell me everything, Jasper. Please, the suspense is killing me." She smiled at him as she spoke; despite her growing concern at what she was hearing.

"We'll be set three tasks which we must do or I'll be sentenced to death. At the end of the trials Marcus will decide if our love is true and if it is we get married and our bond becomes unbreakable."

"That doesn't sound so difficult."

"The information said a little about what the tasks would be."

"And…?"

He sighed; staring into her eyes before he spoke; his voice quiet. "The first one involves us having to face a challenge from the Volturi guard; it doesn't state which one but I'm guessing it'll be Jane; her power is lethal. I guess it could be more than one of them; it doesn't go into that much detail."

"What are our chances of getting through it?"

"Slim to none." He said softly; seeing the shock and dismay wash over her face. He'd promised himself he wouldn't lie to her; he wouldn't make the same mistakes that Edward had.

"Well, that's positive." Her thumb brushed across his cheek and he smiled at her slightly. "So, if some miracle happens and we get through that one; what will the next one be?"

"We'll be given a task to do on behalf of the Volturi; to locate something they want and take it back to Volterra."

"That sounds easy after the previous one."

"I'm sure they'll choose something that will make it a fitting challenge for us and of course we have to do it without exposing ourselves to humans. It will be difficult."

"I thought Edward spoke to them about making sure the bond would stick – wouldn't they make it easier for us?"

He'd been thinking about this for the last few hours and he'd come to a conclusion he wasn't sure he liked. "Aro is a bit sick and twisted when it comes to things like this. While he may have told Edward everything would be okay; I'm sure he'll make it as difficult as he can. I wouldn't be surprised if Aro has an ulterior motive; I'm sure he thinks Carlisle's coven poses a threat to them and the domination they have in our world."

She thought about what he'd said for several seconds then realized something else. "You never said what the third task was." She whispered.

He pulled his hand from her face and reached into the pocket of his shirt; pulling one piece of paper from inside. He slowly unfolded the sheet and then handed it to her. "Read it."

Her eyes scanned the lines; widening as she read what it said. She read it again; and then again; more slowly this time and then dropped the sheet between them. "Oh."

"Exactly." He said.

"Do Carlisle and Esme know about this?"

"No. I took the sheet with me; leaving them the rest. I didn't think I could tell them and I wanted to talk to you about it first. I don't even know if Edward and Alice had time to read the information Aro sent, so they might not have known either."

"And they didn't ask about the third task?" He shook his head. She thought of something else. "Why do they have to come with us?"

"Two reasons. Firstly to watch the trials; all three of them." He paused as she stared at him again. "They also have to be present for the marriage and bonding ceremony; should we get that far."

"So I guess I don't get the option of a small wedding then?" She was smiling as she spoke.

"Bella, this isn't a laughing matter." He could feel his own frustration building again.

"I know that, Jasper. Believe me, if I could I'd be crying now, but there's nothing we can do about it. We have no choice about this. Either we go to Volterra and go through the trials and hope we manage to get through them in one piece or we don't and you get taken to Volterra and sentenced to death. There's nothing to choose."

"I guess."

"Even if there was a choice, I'd still opt to do it." She stared at him, wondering if she had the courage to ask him what she really wanted to. She took a deep breath; forcing herself to push ahead and ask him, "What I don't understand is why you seem so reluctant to do this?"

"It's not so much the doing it; it's the fact we're being forced to do it. We have no control over any of this and we haven't had one ever since we went to Phoenix. Even longer than that really; probably not since Alice had her first vision of you. I feel like I'm being controlled and I don't like it."

"So it's not because it's me then?" Her voice was so quiet he had to struggle to hear her but he felt the rejection she was feeling.

"Don't be silly." He pulled her into his arms; cradling her against his body between his legs. "It's not you, darlin'. Never you." He whispered. "Even if I haven't always given you that impression."

Bella closed her eyes as she leant against his chest and felt his arms wrap around her. Again she felt at peace as he held her. She'd already admitted to herself while she was hunting with Rose and Emmett that her feelings for Jasper were more than those of a sister for a brother and she only hoped he felt the same way about her. She knew it was all happening very quickly and she was still trying to get her head around the fact Edward was gone but there was something about being in his arms like this that just felt right. "Can you teach me to fight, Jazz?" she suddenly asked; startling him slightly with her change of subject.

"Why?"

"In case I need to know how to do so when we get to Italy."

"I think I can do that. I have a lot of experience of training our kind to fight." He smiled as he spoke.

"When do we need to leave?"

"According to Edward's letter, the bond needs to be in place before five months after their death. I think we should try to get it done as soon as possible. There's no telling what James has planned."

"I'd almost forgotten about him."

"I wish I could. I've got plans for him myself." He said; his voice taking a bitter tone.

Bella shivered in his arms and his arms tightened reflexively. She turned her head and kissed his neck softly; trying to offer him some comfort with the small action. "About earlier, Jasper." She said quietly.

"What about it?" His words were hesitant; or sounded that way to Bella anyway.

"Do you regret it?" He was silent. "You do, don't you?" She began to pull herself to her feet but his arms wouldn't release her.

"I don't, Bella. I don't regret it but I feel guilty. I feel like I'm cheating on her. I know that's stupid because she's not here anymore but its how I feel." His hand brushed her arm; the feel of her skin sparking various emotions to rush through his body. "The last time I saw Alice we had a fight; we'd been fighting a lot and to know that our last words to each other were spoken in anger is killing me."

"It's okay. I understand." Bella said softly.

He kissed her forehead and she relaxed once more in his arms. "I know you do." He whispered. They sat in the room for quite some time; each taking comfort from the other. "Bella," he said suddenly.

"Yes?"

"I want to show you my scars." He said quietly.

For a second she wasn't sure she'd heard him correctly. "You do?"

"Yeah." He murmured. "Can you turn off the light though? I know it won't stop you from seeing them but I'd just feel better with you not seeing them under the harsh light." She stared up into his eyes and nodded once; rising to her feet and gliding to the doorway; flicking the switch and plunging the room into darkness. She moved slowly back towards him but stopped a short distance from where he sat. He was still sitting in the window seat and was now bathed in moonlight; making his beauty all the more obvious. He took her breath away. His arms rested on his knees and his hands were clenched; Bella could clearly see his stress in the way he was sitting and wished she could make this easier for him.

"You don't have to do this if you don't want to, Jazz. It's okay if you don't want to."

"I want to." He whispered.

"Are you sure?"

He swiveled in his seat and the front of his body was sheltered from the moonlight. "I…" He leant to one side against the wall and his arms wrapped around his body. "You…" She moved to him quickly and reached for him. "I didn't think it would be this difficult." He whispered.

She studied him and tried to send some calm feelings towards him; hoping he'd pick up on her emotions and find they gave him the strength he needed. She didn't want to force him to do this but she could see he thought it was important to show her. "Why don't you start small? I've already seen your arm so I know there are some there." His arms loosened around his body and slowly made their way to the buttons at the top of his shirt; his hands were shaking as each fastening was opened and it seemed to take forever but Bella was patient; realizing how big a deal this was for Jasper. With the first three buttons undone he opened the collar and turned his head to reveal his neck to her. She saw the scars that were present and stared at them intently as the moonlight struck them. Bella reached for his shirt; gently teasing the remaining buttons through the material and pushing it over his shoulder and then down his arm; feeling his muscles tense beneath the surface of his granite skin. He was wearing a short sleeve T-shirt beneath the shirt but more of his arm was revealed than she'd seen when he showed her last time. "I think they look amazing, Jazz." She said softly.

His head shot round to look at her and the wonder on his face almost brought tears she couldn't shed to her eyes. "Really?" His voice held a tone of skepticism.

"Absolutely. Can you show me more? Are you comfortable with that?" He stared at her; his eyes holding a petrified look she never expected to see on his face. "It'll be okay, Jasper, I promise. Trust me."

He pulled the shirt from his other arm; aware of her watching him as he did. His body was tense and he wondered if this would ever get easier. If anything this was much harder than when he'd revealed them to anyone else but it also felt much more important that she be okay with them too. He took an unnecessary deep breath and reached for the bottom of the T-shirt he wore. Her hands reached for his and he turned to look at her in concern. Had she changed her mind? She moved towards him and then her lips were on his again in a kiss that was so gentle and sweet he forgot all about his misgivings of showing her what he hated so much. As she pulled away from him a little her eyes were sparkling, he held her gaze and lifted the T-shirt up his body; something as simple as her kiss removing any nerves he'd had. His body was still sheltered from the moonlight and he knew she wouldn't be able to see that many scars with the way he was sitting. He closed his eyes once his torso was bare; the T-shirt still wrapped around his wrists like material handcuffs. The only sound in the room now was the sound of them both breathing; Jasper had no idea what he could say to ease the tension that seemed to have built; knowing the reason for the buildup was his fault. He knew he'd been filling the room with his stress and he hoped he hadn't affected Bella too much. He jumped slightly as he felt her lips press against the skin of his shoulder; for a second he could've sworn he felt his heart thump in his chest as a whole host of different emotions flooded his system. "What are you doing?" he whispered.

"Saying thank you." She whispered back. "I'm glad you trusted me enough to show me them. I know it wasn't easy for you." She shifted slightly so she was kneeling next to him and this time she kissed his cheek; sweeping his hair back from hanging in his face. "Thank you," she murmured against his skin; her lips discovering a scar at the edge of his hairline that she'd never noticed before. She pulled herself to her feet and stood before him; holding a hand out, hoping he would take it. They both stayed still for some time as he stared at her hand. He pulled the clothing from around his wrists; reaching for her hand and then he was standing in front of her; his torso now directly in front of her as he looked down at her face. She was still holding his hand but her other moved up to his neck and traced one of the scars directly before her eyes. She turned them slightly so he was bathed in moonlight once again and he closed his eyes; not wanting to see rejection on her face. "Jazz, please look at me?" she whispered. When his eyes opened she was looking at him; directly into his eyes. "Please don't be ashamed of them? They're part of who you are and they demand some respect. I should imagine there are very few vampires who can say they've survived what you've been through. None of the family can and I'm sure none of the Volturi could either; they've probably lived a far too luxurious lifestyle and anyway they have other people fight their battles for them. You've always had to fight for what you want and that just tells me you fight for the things you care about and aren't scared of doing things the hard way."

He was silent for several seconds before he spoke. "Nobody's ever said that to me before."

"Well, you know I've always been a little different to everyone else." She smiled at him. Her eyes drifted from his face and lowered slowly down his neck and then his chest. He watched her bite her lip and a frown appear on her face as again her fingers touched one of his many scars.

"What's wrong?" he said; feeling a pulse of pain ebb from her.

"I wish you could see the way you look through my eyes."

"So tell me."

Her fingers traced his chest further as she seemed to try and compose herself. "You've always hated them, haven't you?" He nodded. "Can you tell me why?"

"They're a reminder of what I was; of what I did for all those years; of the monster I am."

She frowned slightly and then hugged him tightly; pressing her face against his chest. "They are Jasper and you should wear them with pride. When I look at you I see a man who's been through some horrific things; has had to do terrible things so he can survive but he's done it. And then you did something pretty amazing; something that goes completely against the grain of what we are. You chose a different way of life and left the fighting behind you. I know that must've been such a difficult decision to make and you could've taken the easy option so many times. You never did though; okay you may have had the odd slip but given everything you've lived through, it would be silly to think you wouldn't."

What she'd said really surprised him and he didn't know how to respond at all. "Thank you, Bella." He said simply. "You always see the best in people and that's a quality not many people possess." He hugged her again quickly then pulled away from her and bent down to pick up his T-shirt.

"I haven't finished looking at them," she said; holding his gaze for several seconds when he looked at her until he rose to a standing position again and smiled at her. She slowly walked around him; her hands tracing the surface of his skin as her eyes ran down his body. His low slung jeans revealed even more scars to her and each one was lovingly inspected. His years of hiding his scars from people had also been hiding a lot more too. As she walked back round to the front of his body; it wasn't just the scars she saw; her eyes drifted to his stomach and she could see the muscles that defined his strength; the tell tale beginning of the v-shape peeking from the top of his jeans that caused her to become both excited and flustered at the same time. She knew he'd be able to feel the desire and embarrassment she could feel coursing through her body and wondered what he'd make of that. Again she wrapped her arms around his waist and then pressed herself against him; hoping he would return the hug.

"I feel the same way, you know." He murmured against her hair as his arms pulled her into him. He then sensed her confusion and lifted her in his arms; moving them towards the bed and laying her down; moving to lie next to her. "When I look at you I see someone who has such beauty to them; a beauty she doesn't even realize she has. Even before you were turned you were stunning but being a vampire seems to suit you completely." He took her hand in his and lifted it to his lips and kissed each of her knuckles gently before winding his fingers through hers. "Part of the reason I'm struggling so much with accepting this is because I can feel myself falling for you. I know that if I was to let myself I would fall hard and that's why I'm reluctant to do so." She frowned at him. "I'm not sure I really understand it either; or at least explain it to you adequately. Partly it's because I think it's too soon for both of us to be rushing into something but after reading what we're going to face, I don't want to put you through losing someone else. If things don't go well in Italy I may not be coming back and I can't put you through that."

"Surely the thing we should take from everything that's happened in the last few days is to not waste time. Time is short; even for our kind and we shouldn't waste any opportunity. Anyway, I didn't think you took the easy option."

"I don't. If I did, I'd be rushing into this without thinking about it."

Her eyes met his and she tried to work out how he felt; his words were beginning to confuse her. "What about if I wanted you to rush in?" She breathed. He stared at her and she could tell he was waiting for her to say more. Could she admit it to him? "You know I didn't do anything with Edward; nothing more than a few chaste kisses. The kiss with you earlier was more than I ever did with him and I don't want to lose someone else I already love without experiencing more. I've never had a boyfriend apart from Edward and I've already died a virgin, please don't make me beg you to do this, Jasper."

"I'm not going to have sex with you now, Bella. Sex should be something special between people and there's no way we're at a place where we're ready to do that; relationship wise anyway." He felt her disappointment and rejection as he spoke and he leant forward and kissed the tip of her nose; squeezing the hand he was still grasping.

"Before we go to Italy though?" She whispered; keeping the hope from her voice but not hiding the emotion from him.

"We'll see. Let's just take our time, okay. We don't need to rush into this, Bella, even with the timescale of everything else we're facing. If we make a mistake, all it will do is rip this family apart; even more than it has been already." He kissed her softly; feeling her relax in his arms as their lips met. Her hand pulled from his and wrapped around his waist; pulling him closer to her. Despite her inexperience; he could almost taste the passion in her kisses and he knew he would be constantly battling his own libido to take this at a slower pace. His hands swept into her hair; brushing through the thick lustrous strands and holding her head in place. This time it was him that deepened the kiss and as his tongue swept into her mouth he knew this time it wasn't a mistake. Last time hadn't been a mistake either but this time he was more ready for it to happen.

TBC

A/N: So there you go. Jasper's made his choice; Bella's told him what she wants; they know what they're about to face but there's something in the third task they don't want to tell their family about... I wonder what it could be? Please review. Next chapter soon.