Jasper didn't have to search long. Ana hadn't run very far from the house, only enough so that she was hidden from sight. She stood with her arms wrapped around herself and her breath rasping from between still gritted teeth. Jasper was baffled by her behavior, though it was clear from it and from Nicholas' brief explanation, which Jasper noted was the thing that had set Ana off, that something painful had happened in their past. Choosing not to care what that was for the moment, Jasper concentrated on sending out soothing energy to the distressed young, or at least young-looking, girl in front of him. She turned her head as she felt the effect of his gift envelope her. Had she been able, he knew she would have been crying. The creases around her eyes slowly smoothed out and her hands fell limply to her sides. She still looked vaguely upset, though the tone was more subdued and distant. Her head tilted to the side and Jasper had to smile at the odd puppyish idiosyncrasy.
"How'd you do that?" Her voice sounded smaller, though it flowed easily as her breathing had calmed.
"It's a gift," he replied cracking a quick grin. She smiled back at him before turning away again, apparently self-conscious now.
"I'm sorry that I acted like that. It was foolish and rude to run out on all of you, but – "
"Please, don't be embarrassed. We all have things we would prefer not to remember and when they catch us unawares, we don't always react rationally or collectedly. No one will have taken offense, if that's what you're worried about."
"It was my mate," Ana blurted out. "Well, my former mate – " She paused for a moment, the words seeming to catch in her throat. The air rushed out through her lips and she began again. "I'm sorry, I can't say his name still. We were together for almost 50 years, but he… he didn't want…" Her words cut off again and her eyes snapped shut against tears that wouldn't come. Jasper saw that she could go no farther in her confession and he cut in before she tried to speak again.
"I'm not originally from around here either," he said, hoping the change of subject would pull her out of the painful memories of this unnamed first love. For extra measure, he sent another pulse of his gift out to her. Ana's shoulders slumped under the enforced relief and she turned to face him.
"Where are you from then?"
"The South." Her reaction was as he expected. Her mouth dropped open a bit and her head tilted to the side.
"So that explains the scars then, doesn't it?" She took a step toward him, reaching her hand toward his face. She didn't touch him, but her fingers traced the shapes of the scars in the air between them. "You were involved in those wars, were you?"
"In a way, yes, I was. I was responsible for training and grooming newborns for my partner's army."
"Then how did you manage to end up living on a human free diet way up North?"
Jasper's lips curled in a grin. "Alice found me." This seemed to be explanation enough somehow for Ana and she nodded knowingly.
"Does she have a gift too, then?"
"You ask a lot of questions."
"Your coven intrigues me. I've never seen anything like it in all my years."
"We are something of a unique family. There is another coven up in Denali, Alaska that shares our unusual eating habits, though they aren't quite as large. There are only five of them." Jasper winced at the number. With the addition of Garrett, the former nomad who was now Kate's mate, the number should have been higher. However, with the painful and needless loss of the third Denali sister, Irina, the count remained at five. The grimace lasted less than a second, and if Ana noticed, she let it pass without comment. "There used to be only seven of us, but my brother, the one you haven't met, recently married."
"Congratulations, then." Ana sighed and looked back towards the house. "Nico must be worried. I'm surprised he didn't come after you."
"Come after you, you mean."
"Oh no," Ana giggled, as though this were obviously wrong, "He usually leaves me alone when… Well, when something like this happens. But he wouldn't have liked you following me, especially not you." She reached up to his face again, indicating his scars.
"I see," Jasper murmured. "Well, we should get back either way." Ana hummed in agreement and they turned to walk back to the house.
Nico practically leapt to Ana's side when they came into view, grabbing her arm and pulling her away from Jasper.
"Are you alright?" He hissed through his teeth. Ana put her small hand on his cheek, sliding it back into his hair.
"Of course I am, Nico. Jasper here has an interesting talent for calming." She smiled back at Jasper over her shoulder. He inclined his head in acknowledgment.
"You're a very talented family," Nicholas remarked sharply, looking at Jasper as well. "You're mate has visions of the future, I discovered."
"Does she now?" Ana gasped. "Isn't that interesting? How does that work?"
"She certainly is full of questions," Jasper said, walking toward Alice. She was sitting on the top step leaning back on her hands.
"I can see that," she smirked back at him, "and I would be glad to answer them." She stood up and held her hand out to Ana. Ana glanced back at Nicholas who rolled his eyes and nodded, and she strolled up the stairs to meet Alice. Alice took her hand and danced into the house with Ana trailing behind. Nicholas, frustrated, snarled roughly and made to go after them, but Jasper was instantly at his side, looking fierce and dominant, ready for a fight.
"Chill out, Nick," Emmett said, the picture of ease. "She'll probably just change Ana's clothes a dozen times and demand to throw some kind of welcome party for you guys. Alice loves parties." He laughed raucously and Rosalie smirked up at him.
"You really have nothing to worry about, I promise," Carlisle interjected, more in an attempt to soothe than Emmett had been. Nicholas growled again, but didn't move.
"How far do I have to go to hunt?" he asked through gritted teeth.
"How far are you willing to go?" Jasper countered. He and Nicholas were about the same height and they glared momentarily into each other's eyes before Nicholas relaxed a bit.
"Look, I'm not trying to be difficult. I certainly don't want to expose you. I'm very thirsty, it's been a while since we had anything, but I don't know if I can trust you. You are very strange as far as our kind normally goes."
"If you're uncomfortable leaving Ana here, I'm sure Alice won't be too upset if you take her with you now."
"No, no, let her have her fun. Ana could use some new clothes, and she hunted more recently than I did anyway." Nicholas began to head for the door, but he stopped and turned to face Jasper again. Jasper had not relaxed. "Just don't let her wander off. She has a penchant for wandering and disappearing on me. I'd rather not have that happen."
"Neither would we," Carlisle said.
"We'll keep an eye on her, Nicholas," Esme added.
"Alice won't be done with her for a while, anyway," Emmett added with a wink.
Rosalie smiled and, speaking for the first time, said, "In fact, I should go see how things are getting along." She flipped a shiny golden lock in Nicholas' direction and headed up the front steps with a smirk on her perfectly painted lips.
Nicholas headed for the door and Jasper followed him out.
"You have a strange coven here," Nicholas said turning back to face Jasper. "How you got them all to agree to this strange lifestyle, I'll never guess."
"We prefer to call ourselves a family, and I'm not its leader if that's what you think."
"I apologize. I just assumed," Nicholas trailed off, eyes flickering to Jasper's nearly invisible battle scars. Jasper ignored this.
"Carlisle is the head of our family. He's the one who changed Esme, Rosalie, Emmett and my other brother, Edward."
Nicholas looked back at the house, a hint of shock in his expression. So the quiet, even-tempered doctor of humans was the leader of the coven and the creator of over half of its members. Family, he corrected himself, not coven. These Cullens were very peculiar, he thought. He nodded in farewell to Jasper and disappeared into the woods.