Jasper was welcomed by Abigail's beam as she cast warmth and light through the cottage. The whites - walls, couch, and carpet - were brighter. The light pink and lavender accents were softer. Her emotions were pure love and unadulterated trust. As she greeted him, her voice caressed his name, "good afternoon, Jasper."

Alice's rules be damned. Abigail was begging to be adored. He lifted her into his arms, enveloping her body in a tight embrace. Her cheeks heated and flushed as he nuzzled his skin against hers.

"How are you so accepting of this?" he breathed, "how are you so wonderful?"

Abigail giggled. "I was shocked at first, of course. But I love you unconditionally, and I know that you love me. And that everything will work out in the end."

Ever optimistic. Ever lovely.

Jasper pulled back enough to look in her eyes. They shone with pure adoration.

Ever his.

"Come along," she purred, "we'll decide what to name these boys."

With a teasing grin, she tapped her baby bump against his hip. He flinched away like it hurt, but yearned for her to do it again.

"Boys?" Jasper said. "I was hoping the second was a girl. One of each?"

"Hmm," Abigail hummed, "that would be quite sweet."

Images filled Jasper's mind. If he ever were to voice them, he would have to endure endless teasing from Emmett and Peter - God, he was practically civilian, and Peter would never stop mocking. He imagined himself taking a tiny little toddler to dance class, and watching her flounce and twirl around in a tutu, her blonde hair pulled into a bun. Even in his fantasies, he could not manage to wrangle such hair - it would be long and curly like her mother's - into anything presentable. That task would fall to Abigail, or Esme or Rosalie. Perhaps even Renesmee. She did seem keen to have a cousin.

Another voice managed to intrude into his thoughts. Just the briefest flash of an image, but enough to send his nerves wild: Abigail, sprawled on a medical table with twisted limbs and profuse bleeding, his children cold and blue inside of her. All of them dead.

"No," he hissed.

Abigail dropped onto the couch and tucked her legs under herself. His curse had been too low for her ears, his discomfort too quick for her to register. She was nearly bouncing with excitement. Now that they were alone, all proper prestense had vanished.

"I was thinking Alexander for the boy," she chirped.

"After your father?"

Jasper had never met her father, and Abigail barely remembered him herself, having been orphaned at such a tender age. Her parents had been taken by the same illness that had left her body forever petite: tuberculosis. Or consumption, as it was known in those days. But it was tradition to name the first born after their grandfather. The paternal grandfather would be the height of decorum, but Jasper's own father had left his family.

"Yes," she said, "unless you object?"

"No, of course not. Alexander is a fine name."

Abigail grinned. "Alexander it is, then. And the second child?"

She was the sunshine, Jasper would say it until his last breath left his body.

"Well, that will depend on its gender," Jasper said. Her bottom lip poked out and her brows creased. "I do wish we knew. Can we do another ultrasound soon?"

"I'm sure," Jasper said. Very soon, he prayed.

"Pick a name, Jasper. Surely you've had enough time to consider. You are ancient," Abigail said. Her eyes sparkled and Jasper laughed, "practically a relic. But don't tease me too bad, Darlin'. You're only a year or so behind me."

"Oh, but you've been livin' this whole time. I . . . well, I haven't been," Abigail said, "now, focus, Love. We're naming children."

"I'd like to name the second baby after my sister," Jasper said. She nodded, a knowing expression flitting across her face. Of course she had anticipated this. She knew him like he knew himself. At least she used to. Though, he found that, when he was with her, he was the same young soldier he had been so many years ago. No gristle, no cynicism.

Abigail said, "Josephine, then?"

"Just Posie," Jasper corrected, "or, because my sister was named after our grandfather, Joseph, I would like our second son to take that name."

"Alexander and Joseph," Abigail hummed. Jasper shook his head. "Alexander and Posie."

"Either way," Abigail breathed, "they sound adorable."

Her slender hand trailed the curve of her stomach, lingering on her waist as it fluttered with the kicks of the second baby. Her eyes shone with love and she motioned for Jasper to rest his hand there too. He rested his palm flat against her stomach, and was rewarded with another ballet of delicate movements. He was about to ask after middle names when the foot falls of another vampire pricked his attention. Lord help Alice if she was trying to ruin this moment for him.

Then the footsteps were joined by another's.

Just as he heard the snarls of the wolves, he realized the sounds were coming from the wrong direction. The house was upwind of this cottage; these vampires approached downwind, purposefully hiding their scents.

Jasper's growl was low and deep in his chest.

Abigail tensed.

He jumped to his feet and backed Abigail against the wall. No one could come up behind them. His body formed a second wall in front of her. No one could get through him. He watched the door, waiting for the attack.

The wolves growled and spit, but Jasper could not hear the clangs of fighting.

"Holy shit! Jasper, call off your dogs!"

Peter.

The second footsteps were presumably Charlotte. Jasper stepped to the side, his posture relaxing.

"Abigail," he said gently, "it's alright. They're my friends."

"They?" Abigail squeaked. He smiled at and calmed her. "They're a couple. Peter and Charlotte. We've been friends for a long time."

She nodded and relaxed, waddling back to the couch. Jasper debated how he would proceed. He needed to rescue his friends from the wolves - evidently joining each other in battle was not enough to heal in-born rivalry. Seth and Leah would not attack, but they would not let them by. He could bring Abigail, carrying her, as the journey was a least a mile. But Peter and Char could be hungry, not expecting to encounter a human on their visit. And there was the simple matter of why they were here in the first place. For two vampires supposedly in hiding, they were being quite conspicuous.

"Come here, Darlin'," Jasper called, holding out his arms for Abigail. She frowned as she approached, and he added, "we're going to meet them. I'll have to carry you. Bed rest and all."

"Alright," Abigail said, reaching up and twining her arms around his neck. He lifted her with ease, holding her body close to his, protective and cautious, hopefully in abundance. Jasper was still wary of thirst-blackened eyes.

"There is something I should tell you before you meet them," he said. He tried to keep his voice light. There was no need to poison her mind with his own worries. "They will have red eyes, as they are human-drinkers. I didn't want it to startle you."

Her eyes widened and her fingers clenched in his shirt. There would be permanent marks in the fabric. Alice would have yet another reason to pitch a fit.

"It's alright," Jasper assured her, "you're safe. They only kill bad humans."

"You mean criminals?" Abigail asked nervously. And Jasper nodded his confirmation. It was their own brand of morality: not preying on the innocent.

She nodded, content in that knowledge, and in the knowledge that her love would never put her in harm's way. She nuzzled into his chest. He carried her at a slow jog - twenty miles per hour. He was afraid any jostling might knock the contents of her stomach loose.

They approached the standoff from behind the two vampires, both of which were crouched low, prepared to attack at the slightest betrayal from the wolves. Peter's shirt had a jagged rip parallel to his shoulder blade, and Charlotte's bobbed hair was tangled and matted. They had clearly gone ages without proper hygiene. They had truly been fleeing. The wolves' haunches were tensed and prepared to spring. Froth dripped from the corners of their bared teeth.

"Seth, Leah," Jasper called, "stand down. They're friends."

The wolves' emotions flashed with anger and reluctance, but they obeyed. Leah jumped away, her small grey form disappearing quickly into the woods. With a deferential nod at Jasper, Seth lumbered off after his sister. When the last hair of his tail had disappeared from view, Peter and Charlotte rose to their full heights and turned to face Jasper.

"I thought I smelled a human," Charlotte joked, smiling kindly at the girl in Jasper's arms. "I'm Charlotte."

"Abigail," she replied politely, "pleasure to meet you."

"You as well," Charlotte said.

Peter stared at the girl with a raised eyebrow, making a show of looking her up and down, eyes lingering on the rounded stomach. "Starting a harem, Jasper?"

"Shut up, Peter," Jasper barked. He didn't mean it. The joke was funny, but he doubted Abigail would find it so. If she knew what a harem was? Despite her exhaustive reading, there was no guarantee she had ever come across that word.

The pulse of annoyance from Abigail told him otherwise.

Charlotte smacked Peter on the shoulder and shot him an admonishing look before she said to Abigail. "My childish husband is named Peter. And I promise he will behave himself in the future."

"Good luck with that, Char," Jasper said, "you've been trying to house train him for a century and it hasn't worked yet."

Before Charlotte could react, Alice's scent appeared, then her form. Her fury preceded all of it.

"Pixie!" Peter greeted, "what's up?"

Alice huffed in his general direction before turning to Jasper. Her eyebrow was raised expectantly. Abigail wrapped her arms around Jasper's neck, and his wife's fury grew when he did nothing to stop her.

"I'm not going to drop her into the snow, Alice," Jasper said.

"Fine," Alice said, "we are all going back to the cottage. We need to talk."

No one moved. Peter and Charlotte looked at Jasper for confirmation, only taking off at his shrug. They were back at the cottage in the flash of moment. Jasper settled Abigail onto the couch. The vampires stood, tense and fanned around the room. Jasper hovered close to Abigail. Alice stood as far away from them as possible.

"We haven't led the Volturi to you, if that's what you're wondering," Charlotte said to Alice, who was handing out deadly glares to everyone present.

"Oh, I know," Alice said.

"They aren't following you?" Jasper asked. His hands were clasped behind his back, all business. Peter shook his head. "Only for the first couple of days. Then, they just . . . stopped. It was weird, Major. Like their heart wasn't in it or somethin'."

"Their heart wasn't in it?" Jasper repeated, incredulous. What happened to Aro's threats? That all of Maria's associates must die? They certainly don't seem to have had any strange time-travel punishments inflicted upon them.

"Aro lied," Jasper announced. Perhaps not about everything. They had made some show of hunting down Peter and Charlotte. He had no confirmation that Maria was or was not dead. And Jasper himself had certainly committed crimes.

"Yeah," Peter said, "he's been known to do that. Wonder why, though. What does he want from you? Can't be your gift, cause that ain't anything but annoying."

"Thanks, Peter," Jasper deadpanned, and Alice gasped. There was shock and realization - in equal measure - pouring from her. "It's me. They want me."

Peter rolled his eyes. "Just as self-absorbed as always, I see, Alice."

She grimaced. "No, I'm right. They want me. That's why Aro brought her here - "

Alice threw her hand towards Abigail, a scornful expression on her face. Abigail flinched, and Jasper was sure that she had never had such anger directed at her before. He wanted to jump between the two women, and keep Alice's jealousy from ruining Abigail's perfect innocence.

Jasper felt a pulse of regret at that thought. This revelation - and it did seem to make the most sense - had dumped another layer onto his feelings. They felt like they were no longer his own, and that every preference he showed, whether it be for Alice or for Abigail, was either a win or a loss for Aro. And that thought, where he had assumed the worst of his wife's intentions and praised Abigail, had definitely been a win for Aro.

" - he wants to break us up."