Short disclaimer becuse I'm too lazy to copy and paste the old one: Stephanie Meyer owns Twilight, no copywrite infringement intended against her or Summit Entertainment.
A very short authors note: Well here it is guys, good ole Chapter 7. It was great fun to write after such a long writers block. Thanks to the lovely heavyinfinity for being extremely patient with me on this and not giving up.
Peter and Char's scents hit me like a cannonball, and I could hear their quiet whispers as they approached Jasper and me. Jasper growled quietly and all movement ceased. I watched Jasper as he circled me, eyeing the pendant every time he moved in front of me. I shifted from foot to foot as I stood there, just watching and waiting for him to do something other than growl, pace, and stare at my chest. I was becoming extremely uncomfortable under his gaze and I shifted from foot to foot. Finally getting tired of the endless Jasper parade. I held my hand out for him to stop. His head snapped up to meet my gaze, and his growl deepend.
"Jasper, Jesus Christ… would you at least say something coherent besides the growling?" I said as my eyes met his.
Within seconds, he had me pinned up against the tree, the impact almost taking the tree out. His finger caressed my collarbone, trailing down to where the pendant rested just above the neckline of my shirt. He idly fingered it before he leaned in and ran his nose along my neck and jawline. My eyes fluttered for a brief second, before they snapped back open to find his eyes locked on mine. A gasp escaped my lips at the sight of his eyes; their usual beautiful crimson color was pitch black. His nostrils were flaring slightly as he took unnecessary breaths. My eyes traced his features as he held my gaze.
"Peter…" his voice escaped his lips, barely whisper.
I watched out of my peripheral vision as Peter exposed himself from behind a tree. His stance, soldier-like was unwavering as Jasper's gaze moved from me to him. Jasper let out a fierce snarl, and Peter immediately took a submissive stance, his palms out and his head bowed.
"Jasper…" I whispered as I watched his head slowly move back to face me.
I watched as his eyes traveled back and forth between the pendant, Peter, and me.
Peter emitted a constant growl from his chest as he raised his head and dared to meet Jasper's stare. I tried to make my eyes focus on one of them, but I couldn't. Seconds passed, and the growls were suddenly becoming snarls. I felt Jasper's hand on my chest and the next second it was gone. I lifted my hand and touched my chest where the pendant should be resting, but it was no longer there. I watched as Jasper's finally came to a stand right in front of Peter, a snarl ripping through his chest as the necklace dangled in his hand at Peter's eye-level.
I watched as Peter's eyes followed the pendant, before he finally looked to Jasper, again. I heard a twig snap behind me and immediately went into a defensive crouch, lowly growling as I waited for whoever it was to show themselves. I watched as Char came around from around the tree, instantly taking a submissive stance. I growled lowly to let her know that she needed to stay where she was, and her movements stilled instantaneously.
"Bella…" she whispered, never letting her gaze leave the ground. "Peter overstepped his boundaries this time. Sweets, it's gonna get bad."
I shook my head as my thoughts became rabid and uncontrolled.
Threat.
Protect your mate.
Threat.
Defend your life.
Threat.
A feral snarl left my throat as my judgment became clouded, my instincts took over, and I crouched lower. The threat's eyes snapped up to meet mine as she started shaking her head. I watched her eyes dart to my mate and Peter. I could feel the anger radiating off Jasper, affecting my own rage about the situation.
"Be..."
I didn't let her finish as my instincts were fueled by the threat to my mate. I lunged at her and made contact, feeling the threat's arms grip me tightly around the waist as they sunk her teeth into my shoulder. My hands went immediately behind her head.
"BELLA! Let go now!" I heard my mate roar.
My grip got tighter around the threat's neck. A growl ripped through my chest as I felt the venom burn. The grip slackened on my waist enough for me to turn around and use my feet to hurl myself and the threat into the closest tree. I quickly sunk my teeth into her shoulder. My hand flashed to her wrist as I yanked, hearing the ripping sound of metal filtered through the air.
In the next instant, I felt the familiar burn in my neck as I was ripped from the threat to my mate. Struggling against the force of my hands behind my back, I found myself pinned to the foliage covered ground. I let out a low growl as I continued to struggle.
I felt a sense of calm and tranquility wash over me. I groaned as I felt Jasper's breath on my ear.
"Bella, are ya calm enough for me to let ya up now?" His voice was strong and commanding against my ear.
I nodded slightly, unable to speak in that moment. I felt the pressure ease off of my back and arms as Jasper lifted himself up and he pulled me up into a standing position. My eyes immediately went to stern look on Jasper's face told me that I had done something wrong.
"Bella..." he said as he pointed towards Char. "Ya almost took Char's head off, and ya clean removed her arm." He sighed as he looked over at Peter and Char.
My gaze followed his as I saw Peter holding Char's arm in place. She cringed at the pressure he was applying. I flinched at the site as I looked back to Jasper. The look on his face made me want to crawl under a rock. I wanted to hide from that piercing stare.
"What were ya thinkin', darlin'?" Jasper asked as he crossed his arms over his chest.
My eyes snapped over to Peter and Char when I heard a growl escape from Peter's chest.
"To protect you, to defend my mate, to keep you safe," I whispered as my eyes fell towards the ground. I felt like a scolded child with my father standing in front of me.
""Darlin', I could see that, but that was a dangerous move. Char was trained by Peter, and Peter was trained by me." he said with a smirk. "Char could have dismembered ya in a matter of seconds." He leaned into my ear, his voice just above a whisper. "She's one hell of a lethal bitch, She will have a head on a silver platter before ya can blink."
As he stood to his height again, he glanced over and chuckled at Peter.
"Jas..." I trailed off as I looked down to his hand, which still held the necklace. I reached out to seek the chain, but he moved it out of reach. "Please, Jasper..."
My little rift with Char was long forgotten as the rumble in Jasper's chest began again. I turned quickly just as Char grabbed me around the waist again, pulling me further from where I needed to be. I kicked and fought harder as her grip tightened and secured me to her.
"Bella, please…" I heard her whisper. "Ya don't wanna be there right now, sweets."
I struggled within myself, trying to understand the situation. How had Peter overstepped his boundaries? Why was Jasper so pissed off? I reached for the pendant and he withdrew it from me. What did that mean? Was I never meant to be a Whitlock, after all?
A feral snarl broke me out of my inner musings and my struggle against Char. I stopped instantaneously, and watched Peter drop to his knees, growling as Jasper stalked towards him. I could see that Peter was struggling against Jasper's gift. Peter slowly rose to his feet, looking at Jasper with a blank stare, and then did something that I would have never expected.
His eyes went pitch black and he ran full force at Jasper. I watched horrified, that someone dared to approach Jasper the way Peter was.
"Char..." I hesitated. "Why would Peter do that?"
"Peter knows Jasper, sweets," she whispered in my ear.
I watched as Jasper dug his feet into the ground and squared his shoulders, waiting the impact with Peter. With a thunderous crack, Peter made contact as his shoulder hit Jasper squarely in the chest. I gasped and covered my mouth as I saw Jasper sail back into a tree. The force from the impact, snapped the tree in half. I watched as Peter raced over to Jasper, grabbing him by the throat and forcing him to stand.
"Ya wanna tell me just what boundaries I crossed, Jas?" Peter asked scathingly. "Cause ya pussy ass wouldn't have done a fuckin' thin' about the pendant, and ya damn well know it!"
I watched as Jasper's muscles tensed and rippled, his eyes were void of emotion, but his lips curled into a menacing smirk.
PPOV
I could feel it wash over me like a blanket; Jasper's gift. He wasn't gonna fight fair and that pissed me off even more. As I fell to my knees, I snarled at that knowledge. A growl rumbled from my chest as my warnin' finally got to Jasper. He knew that this wasn't the time to make me submit; this was the time for him to back up all that anger he was projectin' earlier. I slowly rose to my feet as I felt Jasper's gift dissipate.
I could feel my own anger rising as I watched him stalk me, but I have to admit, he is one intimidating mother fucker. His stance was one of power, vengeance and revenge. I could feel Jasper's anger fueling my own, his projection as he got even more pissed that he thought I had crossed some imaginary boundary.
And to think, this was all over some pendant, something that we as Whitlock's all wear. Bella had the necklace, Char has the charm bracelet, I have the ring and Jasper wears the cuff. They are the only four crests in existence as Jasper had them personally made for everyone in the family after he came to Texas when Bella showed up.
I knew that there was only one way to make him see that I wasn't backin' down from this. I may not have had the right to give the pendant to Bella, but I knew he would never do it on his own. With that thought in mind, I ran straight for Jasper. Upon impact I slammed my shoulder into his chest. I watched as he made no attempt to fight it and he sailed into a tree. I raced over to him and forcefully gripped his neck, pulling him to stand with me. He stood there, not saying anything as I kept my grip on his neck.
"Ya wanna tell me, just what boundaries I have crossed, Jas?" I asked, venom lacing my voice. "Cause ya pussy ass wouldn't have done a fuckin' thing about that pendant, and ya fuckin' know it!"
I watched his frame relax then tense. Then he did it...
He fuckin' smirked. He actually fuckin' smirked.
I felt his hand on my wrist, pullin' it away from his neck as he looked straight in my eyes. I wanted to submit, but I just couldn't suppress the growing rage inside of me. My chest heaved as I honestly didn't know what to expect from Jasper; he was unpredictable, and runnin' on instinct. Never lettin' go of my wrist, he quickly spun me around and brought me to my knees, twistin' my arm into an awkward angle that I had never seen him use before. He was makin' me submit as I locked eyes with Bella.
I kept my eyes locked with Bella as I felt his teeth pierce my neck. Then the burn from Jasper's venom. I struggled to get to my feet as the burn spread through my body again. I managed to get one foot on the ground and that was enough leverage. I used my one foot to launch myself over Jasper, usin' my weight to slam my feet into his back, which sent him sailin' forward. He quickly rolled and recovered into a defensive crouch, snarlin' at the sight of me back on my feet.
"I will not submit, Major!" I roared, as I held out the pendant for him to view. When his instincts took over, it left me a moment's distraction to grab the necklace. "This belongs to Bella."
I tossed the pendant towards Char, never removin' my gaze from Jasper. I crouched low, splayin' my fingers across the damp forest floor. I watched as he crouched lower and moved to the balls of his feet. He was gonna spring forward. He pounced quickly as I lept forward, our bodies collidin' in mid air with a thunderous crack. The force behind his impact literally took my breath away. I landed with a loud thud on the wet ground.
"You will submit, Captain!" he roared as his boot came smashin' down on my chest. I heard and felt my chest crack under the force of his boot.
He leaned down over me and cracked me right in the jaw, but as his fist came down for the second time, I grabbed it. Holdin' onto his wrist, I placed my foot in his gut and launched him over my head. I kept pace with his airborne body and grabbed his arm to roughly yank him down, slammin' him face first into the tree. I quickly sunk my teeth into his shoulder and yankin' as hard as I could. I heard the sound that I relished back in the ol' days. Screechin' metal.
I smirked as I leaned into his ear.
"Now, now, Major..." I whispered. "Never lose focus."
His snarl vibrated the foliage around us as he spun around and grabbed my neck, throwin' me towards Bella and Char. I quickly recovered as I snarled back at him. His posture became rigid and that fuckin' smirk reappeared again. I heard Char pull Bella out of the way, because she knew what was comin'. Hell, I knew what was comin', and I braced for it. He ran straight for me, moved left and grasped my head.
BPOV
I watched horrified, as Jasper, grabbed Peter's head. I shrieked and roughly tried to get out of Char's grasp. In the blink of an eye, Peter's head was detached from his body. Jasper's eyes snapped to mine. The look in his eyes terrified me. I couldn't move as I watched him toss Peter's head towards Char and me.
"Put ya mate back together, Char," He roughly jerked his head at me indicating that I should follow him. "This discussion is over, never to be brought back up again."
"Yes, Major." She replied, stepping forward and picking up Peter's head.
I bent down and picked up the pendant in my hands, lightly brushing it with my fingers to remove the dirt. I placed it gently in my pocket. I looked up to Jasper and nodded, taking the steps forward to meet him. I bent down and picked up the discarded appendage that was Jasper's arm. He roughly grabbed my hand and pulled me deeper into the forest.
"Jas.." I stopped as he growled lowly.
"Don't, Bella..." He ground out through his teeth. "Just, fuckin' don't."
I nodded minutely, but didn't make a sound. We walked for what seemed to be miles before he stopped in his tracks. He turned towards me and relief flooded over me when I saw his eyes had returned to their normal crimson color again.
"I'm not sorry that ya had to see that, Bella," he said, while running his fingers through his golden locks. "I'll never be sorry for who I was, who I repressed for so long and who finally came to surface today."
He sighed as he reached in my pocket and pulled out the pendant. He gently fingered the broken chain and looked down at me.
"Now, this I am sorry for." He said reaching out and placing it in my hand. "And, if I'm honest here, Peter was right. I would have never given it to ya on my own."
I looked at him through my lashes and frowned.
"Then why that fight, Jasper? Why fight your brother and remove his head..." I shook my head in complete disbelief because I just didn't understand.
"Bella, ya have to understand that..." He trailed off before stepping forward and wrapping his arm around my waist. "He's not just my brother. I am his superior. But, first and foremost he is my brother. What ya saw back there was small compared to what I've done in my past, Bella."
"The Major," I said quietly.
He rested his chin on my head and nodded.
"Jas, I just don't understand how you could do that? You lost it back there..." I trailed off.
"I didn't lose it back there, that was nothin', darlin'." He glanced down at his shoulder and smiled.
"That doesn't happen very often," he said, leaning down and grabbing his arm from me. "Peter was very lucky that he even got that opportunity."
I smiled gently at him as I watched him rip his shirt off and place his arm back in his socket. He hissed loudly as it made contact.
"Fuck..." he said looking up at me through his lashes. "That hurts more than I remember."
He shook his head as to dismiss the memory, and I slowly reached up and cupped his face. He leaned in and let out a sigh. He visibly relaxed underneath my touch. I wanted nothing more in that moment than to reassure him that it didn't matter who he was; I wanted him to know that what mattered was that he was here with me.
"Jasper, what was that I felt when I thought you were in danger?" I paused for a moment trying to arrange my racing thoughts, before I continued on. "I wanted nothing more than to rip Char apart..." I recoiled at the memory.
"That, darlin' was the matin' pull." He motioned for me to sit down as he held onto his arm. I sat down and watched as he followed suit across from me. "I knew ya would feel it as ya processed the situation in ya mind. It's not just that sense of protectin' either; it will feel like a physical pull if we ever get separated."
My chest constricted at the thought of us ever being separated. I couldn't see myself ever being away from Jasper. I shook my head to clear my mind from the jumbled thoughts that were running rampant in my head.
"But what about Edward? He swore up and down that he and I were mates..." I paused. "He was so sure that it was him and me."
He looked at me with confusion and then shook his head.
"Alice's visions are subjective, as you know. When she searched for me in Philly, she was goin' on just that fact alone. There was nothin' in those visions to say that she and I were mates..." He trailed off.
"So, ya still trust her?" I asked, concern written all over my features.
He nodded.
I didn't know what to feel in that moment. After everything, he still trusted her.
"Why?" I whispered, finding the ground suddenly extremely entertaining.
"I suppose for the same reason ya do, Bella. Otherwise ya wouldn't have come down to Texas. Alice has never given you, nor I a reason not to trust her." He said as a small smile played on his lips.
I looked at him quizzically, and he chuckled at my expression.
Did I really trust Alice? I tried to think of a time when I had never really not trusted her. I shook my head as I really couldn't think of one. I looked up at Jasper, he had a smile on his face.
"Alice...well, she is Alice. Why do ya think she gave ya that permission to do what ya needed to do with me?" He hesitated for a moment and continued on. "I've always known that Alice and I weren't mates..."
I looked at him in pure shock.
"So, talk about a puppet master..." I chuckled.
I watched as Peter and Char broke through the tree line. I smiled in relief to see that Peter was fine. He walked up behind Jasper and clapped him on the back.
"Nice moves there, Major," he laughed.
As I sat there and watched them interact. They were truly a family, a family where I finally belonged. I raised my eyebrow in question as I looked at the three of them.
"You guys," I pointed to each of them. "You guys knew the whole damn time didn't you? From the trip to Texas to right before my change, didn't you?"
They all smirked, just fucking smirked at me.
I lay back on the damp ground, covered my face with my hands, and whispered,
"Why me?"
CharPOV
I watched it all unfold, exactly as we planned. Well, the guys, myself, Alice and Carlisle at least. I felt bad for Bella and only wanted to protect her. We couldn't risk anyone comin' up and finding a circle of us around a campfire singin' Kumbya or somethin'.
The sad part of this whole thing is that we had never factored in Charlie's presence in Bella's life. His death was unfortunate, and somethin' we were completely unprepared for.
After Bella left Texas, we started to put our plan into action. We needed to have the Cullen's believe that what happened between everyone, was as much as the truth as the hidden lies.
Now don't get me wrong here, I don't like Alice, but we seemed to have come to an understandin' when it came to Jasper. We only wanted to see him happy and Alice wasnt the one for him, she was just the person to do make it happen though, with her gift of course. So, we played our parts. After the phone call with Alice in 1950, we all played them well.
Peter and I were the estranged family, the human drinkers who wreck havoc on a coven by keepin' in contact with Jasper. Alice was the doting wife, who kept her husband under lock and key. Then there was Jasper, the empath who sat in the background and waited patiently while tryin' to control his bloodlust.
Everyone knew that from the time we had watched Jasper leave us and head towards Philly, that somethin' was gonna change. Somethin' was brewin' and we just didn't know when it would happen.
When Jasper called and said that he was safely with the Cullen's, I let out a relieved sigh. To my surprise, he and Carlisle bonded pretty quickly after his first hunt, catchin' up on the old days with the Volturi, and eventually filling Carlisle in on as much of the plan that we knew of at the moment from Alice.
"Peter?" I asked while his head was still firmly placed on his shoulders. "After all we have done since that phone call in 1950, are we still makin' the right choice?"
"Yep, sugar lips," he said as he smiled. "Everythin' is gonna be just fine."
There you go, hope you enjoyed! I'm pressed for time at the moment for updating, but hopefully it will be soon!
