A/N: gah xP sorry for the wait. hopefully you guys enjoy the chapter.

Alice stood in the kitchen mixing her latest meal concoction. Not being able to sleep meant that it was necessary to keep your time preoccupied. Everyone had their own ways of doing it while they were waiting for their turn to feed. Emmett often worked out in his room in the basement. Rosalie was often found relaxing or reading the latest human beauty magazine. Jasper seemed to preoccupy himself with a novel of some sort. Carilse was generally in his study while Esme was more or less everywhere at once. Edward was probably the most secluded, if he wasn't going to Bella's he remained held up in his room. This was Alice's thing. She enjoyed cooking. It kept her mind off of things and now that was exactly what she needed: to get her mind off of things.

She was determined to keep her thoughts off of Jacob whenever she was in the house, yet it seemed that this was becoming a harder task than before. Some days she was almost certain that Edward was aware of the situation. However, he never spoke of it which only caused Alice to be more confused.

Before she had come back she made sure to spray herself in perfume. After that she volunteered to be the first one to go feeding. She made sure to do everything she could to make the smell of a werewolf disappear, especially after today. Shaking her head, Alice couldn't let herself think of today's events right now. Until she was with Bella or out on her own she wouldn't be able to reflect on everything.

As she brought the knife down on a piece of lettuce, everything in her body froze. Her eyes had gone wide as she suddenly looked up. Glancing around to the living room slowly, she watched the expressions of everyone else. Noting nothing had changed she let out a breath. They hadn't caught it yet. Placing the knife down slowly she reminded herself to remain calm. Making her way past Emmett who was on the couch she prayed that he wouldn't notice.

"Hey, where ya going Alice?" came the deep voice. Mentally cursing Alice smiled and bounced around to see her brother-in-law.

"I just need to pick up some more things for the meal" she lied, tying her hands behind her back.

"I'll come with" Emmett said hoping over the sofa. "Not much to do around here today." As he walked towards her, Alice put a hand up against his firm frame to stop him.

"I can do without your witty comments on every food I pick out" Alice told him, smiling. At least that wasn't a lie. Emmett had a tendency to complain and ask why she was buying what she was or why she was even shopping at all. Alice wondered if the only time he enjoyed shopping was when it was for lingerie with Rose.

"Fair enough" Emmett said backing away with his hands up. "You know I'm right" with a grin he jumped back onto the couch and laid down. "Have fun!"

Laughing as she headed out the door, she rested her head against it after closing it. Could she deal with continuing to lie to her family when it came to Jake? Alice didn't like seeing those she loved hurt. She was just keeping everyone safe this way; at least that what she tried to tell herself. Remembering why she was leaving in the first place, the pixie haired vampire took off into the woods. It wasn't long before the blurring trees came to a stop. Standing before her was a panting male, using the tree for support.

"Jake" she called out walking towards him. Grasping his face she turned him to look at her. "What happened?" her worried eyes searched his features for any sort of sign. He seemed exhausted, something that certainly wasn't normal for him.

"I…had to make sure…make sure you were okay" he said panting, raising his eyes to meet hers.

"What? What do you mean make sure I was okay?" she questioned her confusion evident in her voice.

"Dream…a dream. You were…" Jake couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence as the images flashed through his mind. Alice's lifeless head rolling to his feet.

"Oh Jake" Alice pulled him into her, not caring that his sweat would most likely ruin this outfit of hers. "It's just a dream, I'm fine" the comment seemed ironic coming from someone who had visions of the future, but she was a special case. Hell she was a special case even among vampires. Besides, certainly she would have seen something about herself if it was as dire as this nightmare he had. As he pulled back, Alice looked down at him, bringing her lips to meet his. In that single contact it was as if she could feel all his worry and fear slip away.

Jacob finally pulled away, finally standing so that he was above her. "I need to go see Bella" he said. Despite the reassurance from Alice that this was all just a nightmare, Jake needed that definite proof that she was okay. Considering there was still a red-haired blood sucker and now an army that could be after her, Jake needed to know his best friend was okay.

Alice nodded, "I'll go with you. I can't go back smelling like sweaty dog anyway" the tease caused a smile to erupt from Jake. Making sure Jake was able to stand on his own, they began to make their way towards Bella's house. Even though Alice knew he had only had a nightmare, she couldn't help but feel a little unnerved by the possibilities of what he may have seen.

It took longer than it may have normally, but eventually they reached Bella's house. Perhaps it was better that it took longer as the sun was well into the morning hours when they got there. When Alice had found Jake it was still in the pre-dawn stages of the day. Jacob had instructed her to wait until her father had left for work as to not raise any suspicion. Alice verified that they had time before Edward came to pick her up for school. Knocking on the door gently, a surprised Bella came to the door.

"You guys, Edward is going to be here to pick me up any minute now why are you here?" she asked before looking over Jake. "And why are you all clammy? Come on, get inside." Pulling the duo in, she grabbed Jake a cup of coffee from what was left of the brew. To see Jake, who's temperature ran past 100 degrees, shaking instantly told her that something was wrong.

"I just had to make sure you were okay" Jake repeated. Alice had gone upstairs to change and get the scent of wolf off her the best she could, leaving the two best friends to talk.

"But why? Why would I not be okay in the first place?" Bella questioned her friend, confused by his vagueness.

"Bella there's something you should know" Jacob started looking up at her. If he was going to explain his dream to her then he had to explain why he feared that it may come true. He had to tell her what Alice had explained to him and about the chase that occurred along the river. Before he finished his statement, if the hairs on the back of his neck were visible, they'd be standing on edge.

The door opened rather violently as Edward paced into the house. Jacob immediately stood up to meet him eye to eye, or rather to look down at him. After all he did have a bit of a height advantage. "What are you doing here?" he all but seethed out.

"I'm visiting my friend" Jake replied, unblinking. The days of having romantic feelings for Bella had gone now, but seeing as Edward was unaware of this it was understandable that he would be hostile finding Jake at her house in the early morning hours. "Besides, there's something she should know don't you think?" At this point Bella seemed to get out of her initial shock.

"Edward, calm down! Jake what are you talking about, what should I know?" she asked looking between the two of them. Edward sighed and avoided her gaze. Jacob took this as his time to share with her everything that was going on.

"We had a little encounter the other day. Blood-sucker here got in our way when we were chasing the red-head" Jake said, his face stern. Bella seemed startled by the news. The last thing she wanted to hear was that Victoria was back in Forks.

"Victoria?" the color in her face drained for a second as she turned to look at Edward. He hung his head for a moment before nodding.

"I didn't you to get you worried"

"Edward, she tried to kill me" Bella reminded him, her tone sharp. Hearing the chirp of the clock, she looked to see that it was already eight o'clock. "We're going to be late for school." She said, walking over grabbing her bag, she walked out to Edward's SUV parked outside. "I'll call you later, Jake."

As she left, Jake held Edward gaze as the bloodsucker followed her out the door. Before Jake's actions might have been thought of as a ploy to get Bella's affections. To cause a wedge between her and Edward. However, his actions were only out of concern for his friend. if there was a bloodsucker here hunting for her, then there was no way he was going to let her go around unaware.

Taking a breath, he suddenly remembered Alice was upstairs. Running up the steps two at a time, he went straight to Bella's room. Opening the door, he was met by a cold breeze. Immediately he noticed the open window. Walking towards it, he couldn't help but smile. Alice must have left as soon as Edward entered the house. Now that he had discovered Bella was indeed okay, he tried to relax and convince himself it was just a nightmare. After all, Alice was the one that could see the future right?

"I think Bella has a point," Alice chimed in.

After the confrontation from the morning, Bella had insisted that Edward bring her to the Estate in order to get all the details of what was going on. What ensued was nothing sort of an United Nations meeting. Carlise brought the family into the dining room and sat them around the table as they discussed the situation. Bella discovered that what Jacob had said was true but there was more to it than that. Newborn vampires were showing up in Seattle; something not even the pack was aware of.

"I mean, if Victoria is after Bella; and we're both after Victoria then why shouldn't we be united to keep Bella safe" the pixie-haired vampire explained. Her tone was a bit higher than usual, giving the slightest hint that she was nervous about her own words.

"I can watch over her" Edward reminded the room and causing a protest from the only human in the room.

"You have to feed eventually don't you? I could be with them when it's necessary" Bella pointed out, giving him a pointed look. "Edward, I know you're worried but they would never let anything happen to me. Jacob wouldn't let anything happen to me."

The room was silent for a moment before Esme, often the voice of reason, nodded in agreement. "She has a point. No matter what the others think, she can trust Jacob." The silence resumed after this and Alice glanced around the room. She knew the others were contemplating the conditions, but at the same time no one had spoken out yet. She was also sure that Jasper could sense her nervousness about the whole situation.

"Alright. It's settled then. Edward, tomorrow is your turn to feed. You'll take Bella down to the treaty line where Jacob can pick her up" Carlise spoke, placing his hands on the table as he stood up. Bella had to resist shooting a satisfied smile in Alice's direction and settled for an understanding nod to Carlise.

The next day couldn't seem to come fast enough for Alice, and then even the sun seemed to be up for too long. She spent her time reading through the latest gossip magazines, and attempting a new recipe but couldn't get her mind off of what she was supposed to do tonight. After Jacob met Bella at the treaty line, he was then to meet her. She questioned if this was exactly safe, but he assured her that no one would hurt her. Besides, they were on the same side now.

After Edward left to get Bella, Alice announced that she was going into town, barely registering an okay from Rosalie. Tonight the boys would all be out, she didn't have to worry about Jasper but at the same time she knew she only had so much time to get from their house in the woods to the main road. Needless to say, this was exactly where being a vampire came in as a convenience. Faster than most people can blink she was standing in the road, staring across at a grinning Jacob Black.

"Mm, your scent is improving every day" Alice teased as she walked towards him smiling. She was sure that it was more that she was just getting more used to it and it was affecting her less and less, but she did like the other idea better. Jacob gave a deep laugh in reply as he proceeded to give a mock serious look.

"Well at least that's one of us" Alice's jaw dropped as she glared at him. Turning on her heel and walking back towards the woods. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding" Jacob called as he jogged towards her, turning her to face him. "I love your strawberry scent" he took in a deep breath before smiling and leaning down to kiss her. As his lips hovered above hers, he met a soft finger instead of soft lips.

"Behind the line mister" she pushed him back towards the invisible yet all important treaty line. As they crossed onto La Push land, Alice finally removed her finger, pulling him down into a kiss. It was quick and fleeting but enough.

"Bella's already at the camp. I think she felt comfortable enough so I left her to come and get you" he explained as they began the walk back towards his home.

"Jacob, Are you sure this is a good idea?" she asked once more, glancing over at him with unsure eyes. He turned his head to look at her, giving that smile that she hated to love.

"Trust me, Alice."

Trust was all Alice had to rely on as she stepped into the crowd of Seattle natives. Instantly she felt eyes turn towards her, particularly those of the elders. Jacob's warm hand snaked to hers, causing her to let a breath out and relax a bit. Another man, who seemed a bit older than Jacob, perhaps by a year or two, glared as they walked towards Bella's position. Alice couldn't help but notice as Jacob met eyes with the man, returning the stare until he was out of view.

"You remember Paul" he said, his tone slightly lifted to hide the obvious distaste he had. Alice obviously remembered Paul from their previous encounters, but not in his human form.

"Is everyone this warm around here?" she questioned a bit sarcastically as Jacob laughed shaking his head.

"They're just cautious is all. Just as your family would be if I went there. Actually, the elders are nicer here. You have a guarantee they won't kill you" Jacob commented as they finally reached Bella who was sitting on a log by the fire. Alice had to admit; he was right. This was certainly more hospitality than Emmett would ever give him.

"Hi Bella" Alice greeted, leaning down to hug the girl, trying not to spill the drink that the human held.

"You too are just in time. I think they just announced story time or something" Bella informed them pointing over to one of the elders. Nodding they sat down as others began to crowd around the illuminating fire. Jacob's father began talking, his voice deep and full of wisdom.

Jacob had heard the story ever since he was a child, and could only glance over at Bella and Alice who had expressions of awe. As the tale went on, he felt Alice shiver next to him. He knew that the Cullen's were self-proclaimed vegetarians but they were all bloodsuckers nonetheless. They couldn't escape their nature. He hoped if anything this would give the her, well both of them, further understanding of why his tribe had the mindset they did. Why the treaty was so important, even if their relationship alone violated it.

As the people began to disperse, Jacob sat with Bella and Alice for a lingering moment. "I never knew of that story" Alice was the first to speak while Bella seemed to be considering her own thoughts. "She sacrificed herself, just so they could destroy their enemy."

"It's a lot deeper than that Alice," Jacob said, smiling softly. "It's why we become what we do. Why we're taught to never trust vampire's." At his words he felt her recoil a bit from him. Turning to face her he tried to reassure her, "Of course there are the one or two exceptions." Alice returned his smile, unable to stay worry or feel offended when he was being honest with her.

"Two exceptions?" she teased, her smiling widening.

"Yes, two" he nodded, doing his best to appear unafraid of the tone in her voice. He was just happy that his little joke had caused her smile to return. Glancing over to Bella he raised an eyebrow, wondering how much the story had affected her with everything involving Victoria lately. "Are you ready for graduation Bella?"

"That reminds me!" exclaimed Alice before Bella could reply. "I'm planning your entire graduation party." The little bit of light-heartedness seemed to bring Bella out of her daze as she shook her head.

"I wouldn't think of trying to pry that duty away from you."

A/N: Alright time for my real author's notes. I hate that this is becoming an every chapter thing but I really apologize for the delay in getting this to you guys. Everyone who reviewed thank you so much, they really keep me going, no matter how cliche that sounds. So this chapter I tried some different things. Explained the nightmare Jacob had, it wasn't a vision I promise, and also got some of the Eclipse story line going. I'm thinking soon someone in the Cullen family will have to find out about Alice/Jacob, just not sure how to go about it yet. But yeah. Actually an idea just came to me as i'm typing xD hopefully you guys enjoyed this chapter and as always positive or helpful criticism always helps.