When had these feelings start creeping into Jasper's heart?
Was it the swish in her natural brown hair?
Was it the flow of her knee length white dress?
Was it the old, worn cowboy boots that contrasted perfectly with her dress?
Was it the field of grain that surrounded her?
Was it the look of absolute happiness and bliss on her face?
Or was it her brown soulful eyes that shock him to his very core and had his feet planted firmly on the ground?
Jasper could not answer any of those question's without adding more to them.
Was it her laugh that sounded like a Angels?
Was it the sadness that seeped into her face when she realized she would never see her brother again?
Jasper could not breath properly once he looked upon her beauty.
All he could do was stare in shock, amazement, and, what he did not want to even acknowledge, love.
"Major Whitlock!" a soldier shouted, snapping Jasper out of his reverie.
"Y-Yes soldier?" Jasper stuttered as he recovered from his shock.
"The Union is on the horizon!" another soldier shouted as the camped soldiers started taking up their weapons and packs.
Jasper swiftly got onto his horse and rode to the family they recently, as of that day, recruited the son of.
"Mr. Timbers, take your wife and children into your home immediately. Lock your doors and do not open it for anyone, but me understand?" Jasper told them as he kept his restless horse at bay so he could address them.
"Yes sir. You heard the young man, in ya go" Mr. Timbers said getting his wife and remaining children into their home.
"Papa give me a second!" a young woman's voice shouted behind him.
"! Wait a second!" she called to him.
Jasper turned around and he felt his breaths quicken involuntarily. Why did she have to call for him to wait? Did she not see that her beauty has tortured him enough already?
"Yes ma'am?" Jasper asked her trying to keep his face from giving away his feelings for the young woman standing near his horse.
"Take care of my brother, bring him back alive to me someday. You take care of yourself as well, do not go doing stupid things that could get yourself killed" she told him.
He could feel she wanted to tell him something more. The emotion's in her eyes said it all, but she didn't...she let her eyes do the talking.
She, too, had felt something when they met.
She felt just like he did; she still was.
Jasper held his hand out for her to place her's , and, when she puts her hand in his, he brought it up to his lips and kissed her knuckles lightly, but firmly.
"I'll try not to" Jasper whispered to her.
That had been so many years ago, every time he even catches a glimpse of something that reminds him of her, his breath would hitch and he would start shaking uncontrollably.
His family thought it was him losing control of his thirst, but that was not it at all. He just wanted to take that reminder and bring it back with him so he could relish in the memories of her.
Analaya Marie Timbers.
Her brother told him her name one day while they were traveling to Rogers, Texas.
Jasper had locked her name into his heart so he would not be able to lose it; he couldn't lose the name of the girl that took his breath away with simply looking at her.
"Jasper?" Alice asked as she broke Jasper away from his thoughts.
"Huh?" Jasper said still in the throws of his memories of Analaya and the information her brother told him about the young woman that he had wanted to make his wife, but he never got to go back to her home.
He never got to tell Analaya that he loved her.
He never got to tell her that he thought about her almost every waking moment; wondering what she was doing at the moment he would be eating supper, getting in bed, or even while in battle.
"Jasper" Edward said to him as he tried to get his brother's attention, but, today it seemed, that Jasper was not willing to do anything, but reminisce on Analaya.
Edward had often heard of Analaya in Jasper's mind.
He had just seen the memory that Jasper had of her, but his thoughts said volume's more than what the memory that had played in Jasper's head had done for Edward.
Jasper was still pinning after a girl after all this time.
Edward did not get why Jasper wouldn't just give up on her, because he had Alice now and, Edward had thought, that they were happy together, but, as it seems, with Jasper becoming a "vegetarian" vampire the thoughts of his past life had crept upon his brother more and more.
Edward knew that it was not the thirst that had Jasper shaking uncontrollably or breathing heavily...it was the reminders of Analaya that had Jasper losing the battle with his memories.
Analaya was almost the constant thought Jasper had now-a-days, and Edward was about to go mad because of it.
Edward had started spending more time at his own house with his wife and daughter than with his family because Jasper could not get his thoughts off the girl he left behind so long ago.
Alice pulled Edward aside that evening after the family had finished watching Renesmee eat as cutely as a baby could.
"Edward what is wrong with Jasper? It feels like he is being lost in thought more and more often" Alice asked him in a concerned voice.
Edward knew he needed to tell Alice the truth, because this Analaya woman could be dead or worse and he did not want to lose his brother to the memory of this woman that none of the family knew about.
"He's remembering thoughts...about a woman from his past" Edward said so he could gage Alice's reaction to the words he was telling her.
"W-What wo-woman?" Alice asked him. She hoped it was not a woman that he could have possibly cheated on her with; he was her soul mate for Christ sake!
"Analaya Marie Timbers, apparently she was the only woman to make Jasper feel breathless with simply looking at her" Edward told her as he knew that this information could tear the couple apart or make Jasper hate him for a few centuries.
"But...But him and I are soul mates" Alice said trying so hard not to believe that she was losing Jasper to the memories of a dead woman.
"You are, but Jasper cannot get over his human soul mate. He doesn't want the memories to fade, he doesn't want to lose her even though she is not here physically" Edward told her feeling ashamed that he was spilling Jasper's privacy to his sister.
She needs to know he thought as he watched Alice's reaction for anything that could go bad.
"I looked Analaya Marie Timbers up on the computer. Eight years after meeting Jasper and learning of his fate she got married to a local farming family in Kyle,Texas. Her last name changed to Gavin and she had three children. One boy and two girls. The boy was named Jasper William Gavin. Her descendants still live in Kyle,Texas, and, apparently, every boy that is born has the first name of Jasper.
Analaya Marie Gavin died on July 4,1920 at the age of 74. She dies in her sleep, and her son said her last words were "I'm going to see Jasper again" before she went to bed that night, she did not wake up the next morning" Edward told her of the information he had found out about Analaya.
Alice sat down on the couch in Edward's room and put her hands over her face. If she could cry, she would have.
She could not believe that Jasper loved her even after she died. "Does he know?" Alice asked Edward though her hands were still on her face.
"I doubt it, I believe he wants that hope that Analaya was turned into vampire as well. So that he could hope he would see her one day" Edward told her as he sat down beside her and took her into his arms.
Unknown to them, Jasper had finally broken out of his memories and heard everything that Edward had said. Jasper had the insatiable need to see Analaya's resting place and, at that moment, he bolted out of the house as fast as he could go.
He needed to make sure that it was true.
He needed to make sure that Edward was not lying to him just to keep Analaya away from him, or to keep him from thinking about her completely.
He ran all the way to Seattle,Washington and got an airplane ticket for Austin,Texas.
He knew the looks he was getting from the various people in First Class was weird looks and also appreciative of his looks, but he did not care for any of those people; all he cared about was seeing the truth of what happened to Analaya.
He sat down in his seat and closed his eyes, hoping the gesture would deter anyone from talking to him. He was not in a talking mood. All he wanted was to know if Edward was right about Analaya's history...that she did not die in pain like his heart did when he was being turned into a vampire.
"Hi!" a voice greeted as someone sat beside him.
Jasper sighed, but did not open his eyes. He decided to drown himself in his loves memories...just like he had been doing all these years.
"I know your awake, no one can get to sleep that fast. Not even the hardest of sleepers let me tell you" the girl beside him said as he heard her scrounging around in her bag before taking it out and inhaling on it.
Jasper, out of pure curiosity, opened his eyes to see what she was inhaling.
It was an asthma inhaler.
That reminded him of how Analaya's brother told him that she suffered from the disease and that he had to, more than once, help her breath so she wouldn't die.
"My name's Aryela Tombs, but most people call me Ela" she said sticking her hand out to introduce herself to Jasper.
Jasper, being the southern gentleman that he was, could not deny her a greeting as well. "Jasper Hale" he said shaking her hand with his.
A white hot fire surged through him and that made him jerk his hand back in shock.
His eyes went as wide as saucers, but he tried to regain his composure in front of this human who had sent his nerves into a frazzled disarray.
"Wow, that's what I call an electric shock, what did you wear a sweater here?" she asked him shaking her hand to get the static feeling out of it.
"No" Jasper answered shortly, not wanting to look or talk to her anymore because of what happened.
"So where ya headed? Staying' in Austin or going somewhere near by?" she asked him as the plane took off the tarmac.
"Going to Kyle,Texas" he told her as he looked out the wind and trying to avoid her as much as possible.
"Oh! I'm going there too! My grandma Analaya lives there!" she shouted excitedly.
That made Jasper's head whip around so fast that he thought the speed would even jostle his brain around for a bit. "What did you say?" Jasper asked her looking at her with dead seriousness.
"My grandma Analaya lives there?" she questioned as she wondered why that statement had so much significance to him.
"What's her full name?" he pressed on, wanting to know about this woman named Analaya.
"Analaya Denise Roberts" Aryela told him wondering if he was some stalker.
He knew he should stop with the questions, but he had just one more that he needed answered and he could pretend he was tired all he wanted too. "Is she kin to Analaya Marie Timbers?" he asked her in dead seriousness.
"Yeah, why?" she asked starting to build a defensive front.
"Because my great grandpa knew Analaya Marie Timbers, he met her when he was recruiting her brother for the Confederate Army" he told her telling a little white lie.
"Oh my god! Are you serious?" she asked excitedly once more.
History had always fascinated Aryela, mostly her families, but others as well.
"I'm not joking" Jasper said as he smirked slightly. He had just noticed that his blood singer was different to him than Bella had been to Edward.
He didn't yearn for this girl's blood, he did not yearn for her to love him...all he wanted was someone that was connected to Analaya in some way. He wanted to learn the stories about Analaya's life, and learn that the things Edward had found were true.
As they talked on the plane, Jasper's love for Analaya was put to rest more and more; his love for Alice seemed to grow and he loved the feelings it brought him.
There was just one more thing he needed to do.
He needed to say goodbye to Analaya.
Soon the plane landed in Austin, Texas. He and Aryela had "slept" for a few hours before it landed, and, soon, they were talking to one another once more.
They hailed a cab together and it drove them all the way down to Kyle,Texas.
Jasper paid for the cab and then stood stock still in front of where they arrived.
The house resembled Analaya's so much from back when he had seen her in Rogers.
"My parents decided that they wanted to honor our ancestors in a way that everyone could see. So they took the plans of the Timbers family home and made it our own" Aryela told him as she looked at it.
"I...My grandfather told me how beautiful it was, but I never thought I would get to see it" Jasper said in awe as he looked upon the house.
"Welcome home country boy. I'll lead you to where grandma Analaya Marie is buried once I drop these off in the house" Aryela offered to Jasper while looking up at him.
"That'd be a good idea" Jasper told her as he shook his head trying to rid the images that replayed over in his head.
"Come on, if you're staying long enough, you can hear grandma Analaya Denise tell you stories about grandma Analaya Marie" she told him taking a step up to the house.
Jasper, though stiff legged, followed along with her.
She opened the door and put her stuff in the entry hall as she called out to her parents, but no one answered.
"Everybody must be out so I will take you to grandma Analaya Marie now" Aryela said as she grabbed Jasper's hand and brought him around back of the house.
There, in a private cemetery that was no bigger than a small garden, was a headstone that read:
Analaya Marie Gavin
May 12,1847 - July 4,1920
May you rest in ever lasting peace
It sent a shock into Jasper's system and he had to sit down for fear of falling over.
"It's said that she died in her sleep, she had her hands placed over her chest and she looked as peaceful as she had ever did in her life" Aryela muttered to him as she bent down next to him.
Jasper sighed and swallowed as he looked on her grave.
It hurt, yes, but he also had a sense of relief. He did not know why relief, but, he guessed, it just cemented that she did not have to go through the pain he had to just because some vampires wanted a war.
"I missed you so much" Jasper whispered to where he could only hear.
Aryela decided it was best that she didn't say anything now; this felt like an intimate moment between Jasper and her great-great-grandma.
Aryela soon left so that Jasper could have some alone time with Analaya Marie.
Jasper sighed as he stared at Analaya's headstone, he traced the words and the little angels on the side of it with his fingers.
"I can finally move on with Alice, Analaya...because I know that you did not have to suffer like I did. All these years I thought about you and hoped that I would see you one day, and now I have, but not in the way I thought I would. I love you Analaya, I always have and always will. I will never forget you; no matter what I never will, but I feel it's time to say goodbye. Goodbye to our love, but never our memories. I will see you again one day, and I hope, by then, you will be able to meet my wife Alice.
Alice is an incredible woman Analaya, you and her would have become instant friends. I love her, and, with each thing I am told about you, is a bit of me that heals and blossoms into love for Alice. I'm staying for a week before I go back home, I want to learn about your life as much as I can before I leave. Just remember, you took my breath away first and you will take my breath away each time I remember you, but I am moving on now. I love you Analaya Marie Timbers, I always have and always will" Jasper said to Analaya's headstone as he kept touching it softly; mesmerized by its beauty.
A soft breeze went through his hair picking it up gently and letting it sway. "I love you too Jasper" a woman's voice in the wind whispered to him before the wind died down.
Jasper had a sense of peace, he thought that he was ready to learn of Analaya's life before he returned to his family. The family that had taken in his broken mind and equally broken heart; they mended him the best they could, but it had to be Jasper's choice to heal fully.
Jasper felt it was now time to just love the woman that was in his life now. Alice was in his life now and he must give her everything that she has been deserving since she found him in that diner in Philadelphia all those years ago.
Jasper got up from his sitting position, dusted off his pants, and walked toward Aryela's house. Not one doubt was in his mind that he would need to turn back and look at the headstone once more, because he had said his goodbye's and it was time to move with his future.
A week later, Jasper arrived back at his home.
His family waiting in the living room had given him a clue that Alice had seen him coming home, and, by the lack of decorations, she had sensed he did not want a "Welcome Home" party.
"Welcome home Jasper" Esme said smiling to him kindly as she puts the book she had been reading down.
"Thank you, where's Alice?" Jasper asked her as he looked for his wife in the room, but did not see her.
"She's out in the clearing" Edward told him before he went back to playing quietly with Renesmee.
Jasper nodded his head and made his way to the clearing that they played baseball in. It was beautiful in the summer time, and he could not picture any place he had rather be than meeting his wife there.
As he arrived, he slowly made his way toward Alice, who was picking wild flowers of any color and size that she could see.
"Alice" he said as he walked closer to her, and stopping just behind her.
"Jasper" she said turning around and smiling to him.
Jasper's breath hitched, just like it did when he first met Analaya, but, this time, he was not meeting Analaya...he was meeting Alice.
The two did not need to saw anything, because their eyes and subtle body movements said it all.
Jasper brought Alice into his arms, bent his head down, and his kissed his wife with a love she had never before felt from Jasper before.
It, to Alice, was like a blazing fire that could not be tamed. She felt it crawl up her arms, go down her spine, and surround her very being. She felt like the both of them were on fire and they were going to disappear into never ending bliss at some point, and, that, is just what Alice wanted.