Disclaimer: I don't own it, SM does. I'm open to all arrangements that involve me borrowing Jasper for a while though.
The story so far: Jasper has agreed to help Bella with a 'history project' set around the time of the First World War. He suspects there's something more to it though, as she appears to be keeping it a secret from Edward.
Chapter 2 – Bring in the Reinforcements
BPOV
The next couple of weeks passed slowly. I worked my shifts at Newton's store, cooked for Charlie the days he was home for dinner and the rest of my time was spent at the Cullen's place. It was fairly quiet there most days. Carlisle, of course, was working at the hospital and Emmett had taken a short term administrative post there under the pretence of earning some extra cash before going to college. Alice and Rosalie spent an inordinate amount of time on shopping excursions in and around the area, taking almost daily trips to Seattle while Esme spent most of her time tending the gardens around the mansion. I noticed that Jasper spent a lot of time with her, book in hand and shifting his position around as she worked, so that he was just a few feet away from her most of the time. Neither spoke, but there was a contented air about them as they waited for their respective partners to return home each day.
Edward and I spent most of our time together. While I tried to stave off the boredom of the summer holidays, Edward did his best to ensure that nothing so much as a floral bouquet looked at me dangerously. I had several summer projects to work on, as well as some pre-reading for the following school year and used the time wisely to put some space between my own sanity and Edward's increasingly paranoid behaviour. I had tried hard not to let myself fret about what I had discovered until I had all the facts, but his constant presence was making me more and more uneasy.
I still hadn't availed myself of Jasper's offer to help with my 'history project', other than to innocently borrow a couple of books from his library, mindful to leave a note with the exact titles I had taken and the occasional request for clarification on something I had read. I didn't want to give Edward any reason to misunderstand my new-found friendship with Jasper and believed that a little innocent covering of my tracks couldn't go amiss before I took him up on his agreement to help me.
Beyond this, I was wary of Alice. Ultimately, I knew now that as long as the big picture didn't change, nothing I did would trigger a major shift in her visions. I was still, for now at least, with Edward. I was still determined to become a vampire. The exact details of my change had always eluded Alice and at one point or another she had had visions of almost every Cullen changing me or killing me. I also still wanted to join them once I was no longer human. I still loved Edward but I was becoming acutely aware that, at eighteen, I had little experience of a healthy, loving relationship. I still didn't feel entirely comfortable amidst his too perfect family. My plentiful helping of self-doubt in this regard ensured that Alice had always seen a certain lack of solidity in my future with her brother, so any sudden wavering didn't really shake the boat too much. Nonetheless, I paid more attention to what I was doing or thinking than I normally would and was careful not to make any decisions that might affect what she saw.
My hope was that I could use Jasper's ability to evade Alice's visions to help me in the long run. The silent, blond vampire had learned a few tricks after half a century running alongside Alice. I had found out from Emmett that he was the only one who could successfully buy Alice a surprise present, so I had faith in his abilities.
Before I could persuade him to let me make the most of his talents in psychic stealth, I would have to tell him what I had found and give him time to look into it. In order to do this, I would need to get rid of Edward for at least a few hours and that was proving even more difficult than I had anticipated.
Hovering simply didn't cover it. Every time I turned around he was there, within arm's reach. The teenage romantic in me loved that he was always so close, always just an outstretched hand away from my touch. My growing inner sceptic felt it was a little creepy and may have caught him sniffing my hair when he thought I was otherwise engaged.
He did. You know he did. There was definite sniffage.
I think he may have. Innocent until proven guilty.
How are you enjoying that boat trip down the River of Denial?
Shut up.
If it's icky and you know it clap your hands...
Shut up!
Glad to see your new high school is expanding your vocabulary.
Of course, he was a vampire, who by definition was ruled by more primal instincts than your average male, but still, his attentions were beginning to give me an uneasy feeling that I found difficult to shake off. My empathic friend picked up on this on several occasions and, without raising his head from his latest volume, sent me a dose of the reassurance I desperately needed. I felt sure that Jasper was going to be my greatest ally in what was to come and was somewhat relieved that he was already there for me before I had even told him the full story.
All my attempts to get Edward out of the house and leave me alone long enough to talk to his brother were somehow thwarted by his ability to dodge responsibility. If I suggested he fetch me something from home, he drove me there to get it myself. If I requested something that required a trip to the shops, he simply phoned whichever Cullen was currently out and about to pick it up on their way back. If I suggested he went hunting, he pointed out that he had six to eight hours to do that each night while I slept. No matter what I did I just couldn't shake him off and my irritation was growing with every passing day.
Perhaps evasion is his second power.
That one I'll concede.
Why thank you Ma'am.
Don't push your luck. I don't need to irritate myself as well.
You hear that? That's the sound of me saying nothing.
Good.
By Friday, I had moved from mildly irritated to downright annoyed. It became apparent that the family would be going hunting without Edward, who seemed to feel it necessary he stay behind to 'keep an eye' on me. It was getting ridiculous and I grew determined to find a way to get him out from under my feet.
During the afternoon, he and Jasper went to run an errand for Esme and it occurred to me that perhaps enlisting his mother might be the way to get what I needed. She was tending her roses in the conservatory on the far side of the house, so I made myself a cup of tea and wandered in.
"Hello dear, come to help?" Esme smiled so warmly at me I couldn't help but smile back.
"Gardening. Not such a good idea. Sharp implements... rose thorns... I don't see it ending well. Besides, I'm not very green fingered. I can just barely keep a cactus alive and that's only because it doesn't mind if I forget to water it."
Esme laughed lightly and continued pruning.
"I understand. Not everyone can be good at everything. You're more of a people person than a botanist."
"I notice Jasper spends a lot of time out here with you. Is he into gardening too?" I hoped she wouldn't pick up on the fact that I had noticed he was always reading.
"Oh dear, no!" She laughed again. "He just likes to keep me company while I work. He reads; I tend the plants." She paused as if in thought. "I think he finds it restful. As an empath it can be quite taxing for him and it's not as if he can sleep it off like a human would. When I'm looking after my plants I feel very peaceful and happy. Jasper just sort of gravitates towards it I suppose."
"I can understand a need for peace when you're married to Alice," I muttered with a grimace, taking a sip of my tea.
Esme smiled knowingly. "She's a little excitable isn't she? She tires me out sometimes too."
Here's your chance...
"Speaking of tiring you out..." I hesitated, wondering how best to approach the subject.
"Yes dear?" The warm smile was back and it encouraged me every bit as much as Jasper's waves of reassurance had. I was beginning to see that they had a lot in common. "I need a little help with something. I don't really know who else to ask."
Esme turned towards me, leaned back against the raised wall around the flower bed and removed her gardening gloves. She laid them on the stone beside her, rested her hands on her thighs and looked me straight in the eyes. It was almost ritualistic. Even with my limited Renee-based knowledge of motherhood, I could see she was about to take whatever I said seriously and give it her utmost attention.
"I'm all ears honey. What can I help you with?" The reassuring smile graced her lips again and she looked so sincere it brought a lump to my throat.
I sighed a little before answering.
"It's Edward. I feel a bit..." I frowned and bit my lip, not quite sure how to tell her that her golden boy was wrapping me in cotton wool so tight I couldn't breathe. I finally chose a word, "…smothered."
Esme said nothing and I took a breath to continue, feeling somewhat braver now that I knew I wasn't just going to be told I was being silly.
"I love him, very much. I like spending time with him. It's just that he's getting more and more paranoid lately about me getting hurt. It's like he feels he needs to protect me from everything, regardless of the real risk involved and sometimes I wonder when he's going to start buttering my bread and cutting up my meat for me." Once I began I couldn't stop and the words I had been dying to say to someone came tumbling out. "It's not that I don't appreciate what he's doing or how he's feeling it's just that I need some space. He's stressing out so much that he's stressing me out and I need a break from it, but I don't know how to explain that without hurting his feelings. Nothing I say seems to make him realise that being joined at the hip to someone willing to take a bullet for me is starting to drive me a little crazy."
Esme nodded slowly. "I understand Bella. I have noticed him becoming more and more protective of you. It's his nature, he can't really help it and, as a vampire, you would understand it better and tolerate it more. I can see how it might feel a little claustrophobic to you as a human though; especially in your first relationship."
I did the same for Esme as she had done for me, giving her a small smile and sipping my tea to allow her time to think, waiting for her to continue.
You don't feel even the slightest bit guilty do you?
Guilty? What do you mean?
You just lied to your pseudo-mother.
No I didn't. Everything I said was the truth.
That's called 'lying by omission'.
Whose side are you on?
Shut up.
That's what I thought.
Esme stood still for some time, deep in thought, then suddenly looked up and smiled. "Why don't you spend a day with Alice and Rosalie? I'm sure they'd love to take you shopping."
The look on my face must have given away the horror I felt at that idea because as soon as the words were out she put her hand to her mouth and giggled. "Never mind, that's a silly idea. Whatever was I thinking? It's a shame Emmett's not around, you could spend some time with him playing video games at least."
"Actually I tried that last weekend. Edward sat behind me the whole time and insisted we play something non-violent. There's only so much Mario Cart a girl can take." I rolled my eyes at her, further indicating how close to the end of my rope I had come.
"Hmm." She pursed her lips and frowned. "Well there's Jasper I suppose. He's a darling boy, but he doesn't have many hobbies. He likes to read and play chess, but that's about it."
"I like to read," I chimed in hopefully and perhaps a little too eagerly. "I know he has some issues being around me but Edward did too at first. Spending more time with me has helped him enormously. Maybe it would help Jasper too?"
Esme contemplated me for a moment as if weighing up options. "You know, you're right. I hadn't thought of that. I'll tell you what, when Edward and Jasper get back I'll suggest it to him and see what he thinks. If he's agreeable, perhaps you and he could go off to the library or a museum for a day. Maybe this weekend?"
Now we're talking...
"That's a great idea Esme; I think we'd both enjoy that. But how am I going to stop Edward from tagging along and making sure I don't get any paper cuts from those highly dangerous romance novels? Besides, don't you all have a hunting trip planned?"
Esme laughed loudly. "Oh, you just leave it to me!" She added a conspiratorial wink. "You'd be surprised just how persuasive I can be with the men in this house."
She turned back towards her flowers, putting her gloves back on and indicating that the conversation was at a close. A few seconds later I heard the approach of a car on the driveway and realised that she must have heard the boys returning. Not wishing to jump straight into Edward's shadow immediately, I decided to finish my tea while watching Esme snipping off what seemed to be perfectly healthy bits of plant with something that looked extremely sharp. I hoped she would be able to come through for me and get me some alone time with her youngest son.
EsPOV
I felt so sorry for Bella. Edward was merely acting the way a male vampire would around his mate, but she simply wasn't used to that level of attention and I had seen it wearing her down gradually over the last few weeks. I was glad that she had finally approached me about it as I had been keen to help but hadn't wanted to overstep my bounds. I wasn't her real mother after all and I knew that Renee hadn't really taken much responsibility for Bella throughout her life. I didn't want her to feel I was trying to take over.
If I was honest with myself, I liked the idea of her spending some time with Jasper. He was so reserved and gentle, always standing on the peripheries of the action, listening instead of talking, watching instead of joining in. In many ways they were very alike. Neither liked to receive too much attention; they both enjoyed a good book and a quiet atmosphere; recently Bella had even begun to show an interest in history, which was the only thing that could really engage Jasper's interest for any length of time.
Add to that Bella's very thoughtful comment that perhaps spending more time with her would help Jasper with his issues being around humans and I was beginning to think that encouraging them to spend time together wasn't a bad idea at all. Jasper needed regular time away from Alice and all the emotions in the house. Without it he loses control of his ability and begins randomly projecting; never a pleasant experience for the rest of us.
Bella, of course, needed to get a little space from Edward in order to re-establish her independence. While Edward was cultured and enjoyed many of the same things Bella did, he often claimed it would be better for her to have the more limited human experiences now and leave other pursuits until after she was turned, when her vampire senses would better appreciate the finer details. That seemed a silly argument to me and I had said so. I failed to see why she couldn't have both experiences now. In return, Edward had huffed at me in exasperation and ranted on at length about Bella's precious human life and how some experiences would only happen once. I must admit I tuned him out after a while, making appropriate concessional noises when he paused.
It did not escape my notice that Jasper and Bella were more suited to each other than they were their respective partners. Edward and Alice worked so well as a team that most others of our kind we met assumed Alice to be with Edward, not Jasper. Their ability to converse silently and Edward's ability to witness Alice's visions first hand made them a formidable pairing. Equally, I had noticed a few exchanges lately between Jasper and Bella where it appeared they too were having a silent conversation. I knew that humans usually experienced emotions one at a time, rather than several at once like we vampires did and I wondered if perhaps they were conversing in emotions, just as Edward and Alice conversed through 'visions and decisions', as Rosalie called it.
I sighed a little at that thought. Their pairings were so wrong on the surface, yet a little mixing and matching could make everyone's life more bearable. Still, there was no sense in musing on such things. Bella was with Edward and she loved him. Jasper and Alice were happy together and had been for many years. Far be it from me to interfere. But I would talk to Jasper as promised and make every effort to encourage his friendship with Bella, for both their sakes. I would have a word with Carlisle too and see if he could encourage Edward to back off from Bella a little and allow her some breathing room. The only person he was going to listen to was his father. Unless we all got lucky and Alice had a vision that required him to leave Bella alone for a few days. I chuckled to myself. Some chance there was of that happening.
I had almost forgotten Bella's presence when she quietly stood and walked back into the kitchen. Immediately I heard Edward muttering something to her about not liking to be away from her and asking her if she'd like to go home for the evening since Charlie wasn't working tonight. Perfect, that would give me time to talk to Jasper.
As I turned I caught Edward watching me out of the corner of his eye and realised he might have caught that last thought. Most of the time I was able to block him out but sometimes it caught me off guard. I returned my thoughts to my plans for the flower beds on the west side of the house and he soon disappeared to the garage with Bella in tow.
I waited until the Volvo had rounded the end of the drive before I went in search of Jasper. He had no doubt sensed Bella's presence in the conservatory with me, as he had not joined me as he normally would. I assumed he had retired to his study instead. I knocked softly on the door and waited for him to acknowledge me. I always felt out of place in there. It was like I was intruding on something sacred.
"Come on in, Esme," he said quietly and I heard him fold a newspaper, which he placed on his desk as I opened the door. He indicated towards the leather sofa under the window and sat down next to me as I took a place at one end.
"What can I do for you?"
"I have a favour to ask of you actually."
"Oh?" He tilted his head very slightly to the side and minutely raised an eyebrow. It was a minuscule set of gestures; so typical of the unassuming vampire who sat before me.
I sighed, trying to find the best words to use. "It's Bella. She's having a little trouble understanding why Edward is so protective of her all the time. I think she's feeling a little claustrophobic and could use a break."
Jasper's face was expressionless, though his eyebrow remained slightly raised. He said nothing but merely waited for me to become uncomfortable enough with the silence to carry on talking. It was a tactic he used regularly, especially with me and it almost made me chuckle.
"She's not much of a one for shopping like the other girls and she needs someone her own age to make friends with rather than hanging about with me all day. Emmett's hardly here so that leaves you..." I trailed off, hoping he would take the bait.
He frowned, clearing his throat unnecessarily.
"I don't quite follow."
"I wondered if you might spend some time with Bella to give her a little space from Edward. Perhaps you could go to a museum or into Seattle to the library, something you'd both enjoy. It would be useful for you to get used to being around her too."
Jasper appeared to consider this for a moment. "You're right, it would help a little if I could desensitise to her like Edward has. I doubt I'll ever be able to be around her without any problems, but if I can get a handle on the urges I feel it would definitely benefit all of us."
I smiled, happy that I was going to be able to help both of them with this one act. Jasper, however, seemed a little concerned.
"I don't think Edward will go for it though," he said quietly, almost as if he didn't mean to say it aloud. There was the faintest trace of sadness in his eyes and swear I felt my frozen heart clench for him. Edward was possessive over Bella and overprotective around all of us, but Jasper bore the brunt of his zealousness, always being reminded how weak and uncontrolled he was. I thought Edward was a little unfair on him in reality and that Jasper had more control than we gave him credit for, but Edward would always play his mind reading card and I would be forced to back down.
Not this time though. I was tired of seeing Jasper so crestfallen by his brother's actions and I wanted to give him a chance to prove himself. I threw out as much determination and motherly support as I could.
"You leave Edward to me. If you're willing to spend some time with Bella, I will make it happen."
Jasper looked up sharply, his eyes dancing with genuine happiness and one corner of his mouth lifted slightly. "Yes, I'd like to spend some time with Bella, Mom. If you think you can arrange it, just let me know."
"I had thought maybe you could go to Seattle tomorrow. There are several places you could visit and you would be in public, so Edward can't object to that. You'd need to hunt well tonight of course."
"Aren't we all supposed to be hunting this weekend? Edward won't like me staying behind with him and Bella." He frowned and a lock of blond curls fell over his eye. Instinctively I reached up to push it back, a gesture that it had taken nearly a decade for him to allow me to do, but now seemed to be an everyday occurrence.
"Edward will be going with us," I said firmly, ghosting out of the room. I felt a wave of Jasper's anticipation hit me as I entered my husband's study to await his return.
A/N: I would like to say a HUGE thank you to my betas cowgirlamber and dangerkitty (who already deserve a raises). These girls are damned good at rounding up my errant commas I tell you.