A/N: Hello everyone! I'm back and terribly sorry it took so long to get this updated. I had to figure out where I wanted to go with this. I'll be honest, I never saw this as a terribly long story and I still don't. I only expect there to be about 10 or 11 chapters in total to this story, so we're almost done! I hope you enjoy the chapter (to everyone still reading) and hope it was worth the wait.

Disclaimer: The Twilight Series and all recognisable characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended. Only this rather lame plot is mine

Chapter Six: Truths

Edward was brilliant.

He had been smart when he was human and since his parents were fairly well off, he had been scheduled to attend Harvard before he had gotten sick. After he was turned, his previous intellect was nothing compared to what he was capable of now.

Despite this, it was difficult to decide how exactly he would act when he next saw Jasper. It was a difficult choice. On the one hand he could directly confront Jasper, but that could make Jasper deny everything and run away. The other choice he had was to not mention the kiss, but Edward feared that would allow Jasper to ignore that it ever happened and he would never move forward. Edward spent all night debating, but eventually it hit him: Jasper was a soldier. He wouldn't enjoy being played and manipulated. So that left Edward with only one choice and unfortunately it was the choice that terrified him the most. Edward wasn't a particularly violent or confrontational person, but if that were what he needed to do to reach Jasper, then he would do it.

The next night Edward went out hunting for a lack of anything else to occupy his time. He was getting restless. He had long run out of things to do in the small town and if it hadn't been for Jasper, he would have left weeks ago. Being away for so long was beginning to get to Edward, and he had a strong suspicion that once he left with Jasper he would head straight for his post box in Montana, find out where Carlisle and Esme were staying, and return to them. His wayward ways were behind him now. Jasper's life had awoken him to the importance of family and he wanted nothing more than to bring Jasper into his.

Edward stilled and focused his hearing on a noise. The wind blew towards him and carried the smell of bear. Edward smiled as he set off, though he wished Jasper were with him. He knew that Jasper would want his chance at hunting a bear. Edward hoped that the thrill of hunting animals would distract Jasper long enough to get used to the taste.

Once he was close enough, Edward slowed down to sneak up on the bear. He watched it walk along the edge of a river and pause to paw at the water. Edward was about to launch at it when a thought that wasn't his own went through his mind.

Slowly. Don't startle. From the side… the side… the side.

Edward immediately recognised the voice in his head and ran straight towards the person.

And… One…Two…Three…

Edward burst through the trees behind Jasper and smirked at the picture Jasper made. His brow was furrowed in concentration, his arms strained with the retrained force he was using to not jump out and immediately confront the bear. And, to Edward's amusement, Jasper was repeating Edward's instructions in his head.

From the side… and NOW!

"What are you doing?"

Jasper was mid-lunge when Edward spoke, and Edward bit back a laugh as he watched Jasper flop forward and whirl around with the guilty face of a child caught doing something naughty.

"What are you doing?" Edward repeated.

"Nothing," Jasper deflected.

"Really? Because it looks like you were hunting. Practicing, huh?"

Jasper muttered something so quietly that Edward couldn't make out what he said.

"I don't think I caught that. Want to repeat it?"

"This morning I caught a fox," he repeated, and though he made it sound like it wasn't a big deal Edward could hear the pride in his voice.

"Good job," Edward said. "You're catching on quickly. May I ask what made you so eager to practice?"

"It's fun, and as horrible as the taste is… I like it."

Edward smiled. "Well how about you show me your skills on that bear, then? I'll just act as back up, you take the lead."

Jasper smirked back and got back into his crouched position. The bear hadn't moved while they spoke, so Jasper inched forward.

"I'll go first and be the first assault. You go around and come at him from the other side, okay?" Jasper sounded very confident, but he looked at Edward for confirmation that his plan would work. Edward nodded and moved over a bit so he could have easy access.

Jasper looked at Edward out of the corner of his eye, and at Jasper's signal, they both ran from the tree line. Jasper went straight for the bear and, in his typical fashion, confronted it head on, distracting it long enough for Edward to get in position. Just as with the buck, they both moved together effortlessly. Edward didn't need to read Jasper's mind, they both instinctively knew where the other was going to go. There were a few close calls with the bear's teeth and claws and it took longer to go down than the buck, but soon Jasper had his teeth around the bear's throat and Edward heard a loud ripping noise.

They both drank their fill from the bear, though Edward let Jasper have most of it since he was really only hunting for a lack of anything else to do. He knew Jasper had to be starving: when one wasn't used to animal blood it was nowhere near as filling as human blood could be.

Once they were both done, Edward leaned back on his haunches and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. Jasper stayed hunched over the carcass before he stared off into the river.

"You know what's going on with us, don't you?" Jasper asked in a quiet voice.

Edward froze and for the first time since he could remember it seemed like his mind shut off. It was the moment he was dreading… the moment Jasper realised something was different between them.

"You do," Jasper repeated in the same tone.

"Yes," Edward admitted. "I wasn't sure you were ready to know."

"Tell me."

Edward debated how to tell him. It was obvious relationships weren't common in the army base. Edward didn't even know if Jasper knew about mates. How did you explain mates to someone whose entire existence as a vampire had been controlled by a woman hell bent on turning him into a monster?

"What do you feel, Jasper?" Edward started off.

"I feel like I need to know you. Sometimes when I'm far away, it's like I can hear you… and yesterday… I had to kiss you. There was something inside of me that wouldn't let me leave until I did. This morning when I went hunting, I only did it because I know you want me to. Why do I feel like this?" Jasper asked, weakly. Edward marveled at this moment as Jasper showed how insecure he actually was.

Edward sighed and grabbed Jasper's hand and led him away further down the river. He didn't want this life-changing conversation to happen over a dead, drained bear. Once they were a distance away, Edward sat on the bank and pulled Jasper to sit down next to him. Edward made sure to keep their hands joined the whole time.

"I'm sure Maria never told you about this. Soldiers aren't useful when they have a heart, after all."

"What are you talking about?"

"Right, okay, I'm just going to tell you. The reason you feel this connection between us is that we're mates."

Jasper blinked and furrowed his brow. "I don't understand."

"I don't know how to explain it," Edward huffed. "We're mates. Like, meant-to-be-together-forever mates. Like, Carlisle and Esme are mates and they love each other so much they never want to be apart. They always know the other will be there when they need them. There's always someone to support you. And love you.

"And I want that with you, Jasper, I really do. But we can't because you don't even know what this means. I mean, if Maria had raised you properly like a Sire should, you would know all about this and the moment we meet you would have recognised me.

"I've waited for you for so long," Edward revealed, not even caring about how pathetic he might sound or how quiet Jasper had gone. "I've waited, and when I finally met you, you don't even belong to me. You belong to her. And no matter what I say, what I do, you won't leave."

"I don't understand," Jasper said again.

"I want you to leave her and come with me. I'll show you what you've missed. You don't have to have this life anymore because I'll give you something better. Carlisle and Esme will love you; we'll be a family. You'll go to Europe. We'll go everywhere. I want to show you Venice, you'll love the history of Italy."

"That's why you haven't left? Me?" Jasper asked. Edward wasn't really sure what Jasper was feeling, he was somehow managing to keep his thoughts to himself and his mind was a blank. It frustrated Edward more than he thought it would; he didn't know what to say to make Jasper respond.

So he said the only thing he could. "I'm not leaving without you, Jasper. I have no other reason to be here. I've seen everything I can here. If not for you, I'd've been gone weeks ago. But I'm not leaving without you."

"Maria would never let me go."

Edward growled and jumped to his feet in anger. "Why does she get any claim on you? I'm your mate. You know you're drawn to me. Jasper, until yesterday I didn't even know where you lived. But we've meet how many times since I've been here? You seek me out! Despite what Maria says, you defy her to find me. You care for me and worry about me. Isn't that worth it? You don't want to serve her anymore. So don't! Come with me. She'll never find you. We'll leave the continent. If you want we'll leave tonight and after a quick trip to Montana to find where my family is we'll never come back. You'll be free."

"But you barely know me," Jasper protested. "How could you be willing to do all of this for me?"

"Because you're my mate and one day you'll understand."

"Do you love me or something?"

"I'm not in love with you yet," Edward admitted. "But I'm on my way and I know I will. We're mates, there's no other outcome. And you'll love me, if you ever give it a chance."

Jasper stayed silent and refused to meet Edward's eyes. Edward couldn't think of anything else he could say to convince him. Finally he knelt in front of Jasper and took his face in his hands.

"She's going to destroy you, Jasper," Edward whispered. "If you don't leave you'll turn into something you don't recognise. Save yourself. Don't even do this for me, do this for you. Do you want to continue this life? There's a whole world out there that is filled with family, love, and friendship. Some people go their entire lives without harming a single human being. Let me show you this world."

He tilted Jasper's chin up and gave him a light kiss. Jasper responded and Edward had to pull away before he deepened the kiss.

"Think about it. You know where to find me."

And Edward left Jasper by the side of the river.

Jasper sat sitting for hours thinking through everything Edward had told him. A part of him didn't want to believe Edward because it changed everything he had previously known, but somehow deep inside he knew Edward spoke the truth. Now his only decision was what to do about it.

Leaving would mean freedom, but it would also mean leaving the only familiar thing he could remember. Since he had awoken to this existence, Maria and her fights was the only thing he knew. It wasn't until Edward that another way of living revealed itself.

Edward.

Jasper didn't know what to make of this mysterious, handsome man that barged his way into his life, uprooting everything. What he was offering was tempting… it was the life Jasper used to dream he would have, back when he had first been turned. Before the years of blood and death hardened him and blinded him to anything else. He had once naively dreamed that the fighting would end, he would be let go, and he could have a family and see the world. The gift of immortality seemed wasted if he didn't enjoy experiences he wouldn't have had in life.

After his first couple of battles he got over that fantasy.

From then on his life had been one horrible moment after another. Soon he completely forgot that there was another way of life. The only things he had from his previous life were his musket, military uniform, and a photograph of people he assumed were his parents but he wasn't entirely sure. At first he had hidden them away for safekeeping. Then he kept them hidden because he was afraid of what he would do to them in a moment of self-hatred.

And then there was the Mate thing.

He wasn't entirely sure what it entailed, but the connection and emotions he felt whenever he saw Edward were too strong to deny. He knew mates existed for some, but he had never considered he would ever find his. And, thanks to Maria and her trying to get him to sleep with her, his only understanding of mates was as something sexual. But what he felt for Edward wasn't sexual. There was sexual attraction, to be sure; but it was deeper than that. For reasons beyond Jasper's understanding, he actually believed Edward when he said he'd get him out of Maria's control.

But Maria would never let him go. He'd spend the rest of his life running from her and that wasn't a life that Edward deserved to live. But even though Jasper didn't know if he deserved Edward, he realised an opportunity when he found one.

When the sun went down, Jasper finally stood and went back to the camp. The moment he arrived Jasper realised his absence had been noticed. Peter walked up to him with a grave face.

"Maria wants to see you – has for about six hours. She's furious. Where have you been?"

"That's none of your business, Peter. Where's Maria?"

Peter ignored his question and stepped closer. "Were you with that other vampire? The one that followed me?"

Jasper narrowed his eyes and pressed his lips into a thin line. "Maria?" He repeated, not bothering to answer him.

"She's at the feeding pen."

Jasper pushed past Peter and walked to the end of the camp towards where the humans were held. As he passed everything he imagined what life without all of it would be like. The camp was always tense, ready and alert for whatever whim Maria had. It was a horrible place, really. There was nothing wonderful about the camp, so filled with violence, anger, and loss. But it was all he had ever known.

Jasper got to the feeding pen just as Maria was finishing her meal. She tossed the blonde female to the side and licked the remaining blood from her lips. She looked down and smiled a vicious, greedy smile. Jasper followed her eye line and what he saw horrified even him. At her feet was a little blond boy. He only looked to be about five-years-old and from the tears in his eyes it was clear that the body Maria had just thrown aside was his mother. Maria reached for the boy, but Jasper, in an odd display of sympathy, cleared his throat.

Maria stopped her approach and turned to face him. "Ah, Jasper, so you have finally returned. Are you hungry?" Jasper looked at the humans and then at the boy and, rather that feeling the familiar craving for their blood, he only noticed their terror, pain and sorrow. He imagined Edward's proud face when Jasper had hunted with him and how disappointed he would be if Jasper indulged himself. For the first time Jasper considered someone else when making his decision, and that sealed the deal for him.

Jasper shook his head and purposefully looked away from Maria's prying eyes. She made a motion with her hands and Jasper watched from the corner of his eyes as guards took the boy away and threw him back into the pen.

"I was doing rounds, it took some time."

"Curious how often you do rounds now, Jasper. None of my other soldiers are as… devoted as you are," Maria purred. She drew a long nail down Jasper chest, stopping and toying with the top of his trousers.

Jasper stood his ground because anything else would be considered weak, but inside he couldn't help but compare her touch to Edward's. Maria was evil personified, whereas Edward was warm, comforting, and safe. While Jasper had never slept with either of them, he definitely knew which he would prefer.

"I'm merely making sure your territory is protected," he said, knowing his role by heart.

"And I do appreciate that. But I wonder at your devotion to me."

"I'm not sure what you are implying," Jasper said. He was immediately on guard at the raised eyebrow and calculated look Maria gave him.

"No? So you don't think I haven't noticed you running off at all hours of the day? Disappearing for hours? And I'm supposed to believe you're running patrols?" She snapped. "Do you think I'm stupid? Do you think I don't sense you drifting from the cause?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Maria's face darkened and before Jasper could do anything, her nails scrapped across his face and then dug into his chin. She yanked Jasper forward and pulled him to her face. "Shut up you piece of shit! After all the work I've put into you, all I've trained you to be, you dare to pull this?"

"I'm not trying to pull anything," Jasper insisted. "I'm just making sure – "

"Do you think you're my only soldier? I can have anyone do what I want in an instant. While you're out 'doing rounds'," she mocked, "I have people actually checking on things. No one has seen you. Not once. Since you have all the answers, how do you explain that?"

"Maybe you need better soldiers," Jasper suggested, wincing only slightly when his skin tore even more from her retaliatory grip.

"Maybe you should stop your lying. You've been caught. Where have you been? With another camp? Have you betrayed me Jasper?"

For a moment, Jasper was almost relieved that Maria had assumed he was betraying her. That would keep Edward safe – she obviously didn't know about his existence. But now he was in a very dangerous position. There wasn't anything he could do to truly convince her he wasn't a traitor if she didn't want to give him a chance. And Jasper knew what happened to traitors. He had assisted her in the last execution.

"I would never betray you, Maria," Jasper swore. "I know my place."

"Prove it," Maria sneered. "I have a task for you."

"Anything," Jasper promised, just pleased to not be killed immediately.

Maria smiled and Jasper's stomach dropped. "I want to build an alliance with the camp to the south, LaRue's army… well, at least I want them to think we have an alliance. So to do that, we have to have a common enemy. Tonight our watch guard will be killed, and most conveniently a scrap of clothes from Valaz's army will be left behind. At the same time, a small group of Valaz's men will also infiltrate LaRue's camp."

"How do you know all this?" Jasper asked.

"Because I'm orchestrating all of it, of course. Tonight you will lead a team of our most useless men south and attach LaRue's camp dressed in clothes that make you smell like you're Valaz's men."

"But it'll be a massacre," Jasper protested. "A small group against their entire army…" Jasper trailed off, as he finally understood what Maria was saying. "You don't expect us to live, do you?"

"Sacrifices are necessary. Are you not devoted enough for this? Will you go back on your word?"

"You want me to prove my loyalty to you by dying?"

Maria smiled and loosened her hold on his jaw. "What better way is there?"

Jasper had to concede her point. Had he been the same man he was before meeting Edward, he probably would have gone through with the suicide mission. But Edward had giving him something to live for. With everything he had been debating through the day, Maria's mission seemed to make Jasper's mind up for him.

"Fine, what time do we leave?"

"Not until early morning. We want the darkness so you can hide as long as you need to and hopefully it will help cause more confusion."

Jasper nodded; despite his horror at the plan it was a solid one, and one that would ensure she got what she wanted: a fake-alliance with someone whose lands she desperately wanted, and death for her men she mistrusted or saw as useless.

"I'll get prepared then," Jasper said.

Maria studied him for a moment longer, before she nodded and released him from her grasp. His skin began to slowly knit itself back together. Jasper quickly turned and began walking away when Maria's voice stopped him.

"Jasper, what is wrong with your eyes?"

He tensed and purposefully kept his back to her. "What do you mean?"

"They have flecks of gold in them. What have you been up to on your rounds?"

"I was hungry and too far away from a human. I was forced to kill an animal and drink them. It was disgusting and I'll never do it again. I found a human soon as I could. I suppose that could have something to do with it."

Jasper walked away before Maria could say anything more because that wasn't a topic he wanted to delve into. There wasn't much time and Jasper had to figure out a plan.

He went into his room and sat down on his makeshift bed. Jasper thought for hours, every single situation running through his head. Only one this was certain, he had to leave that night if he was ever going to get free. This was his only chance.

It was almost eleven at night when Jasper came to a decision. He went to the feeding pen and nodded to the guards. "I want the boy," he said, nodding towards the small child. "I'm going on a raid tonight and need a bit of a top off from my evening meal."

The guards exchanged a smirk before one of them unlocked the pen and went inside to grab the boy. The child started crying and struggling in the guard's tight grip, but no matter how hard he tried, he was no match for the guard. When the boy was thrown at Jasper, he could see the beginnings of a bruise already forming on the boy's arm.

Jasper grabbed the boy's neck, but made sure his grip was light so the boy wouldn't be hurt. Without a word to the guards, Jasper led the boy behind the pen and into the woods. It wasn't uncommon for the vampires to feed in the woods. It afforded a bit of privacy, especially for the ones who liked to play with their food before killing them.

But that wasn't what Jasper had in mind. He continued to march the boy through their territory, not speaking until they were finally past where spying ears could hear.

"What's your name, boy?"

The boy let out a big sniffle and began crying harder. He was crying so hard he couldn't speak. Jasper stopped and knelt down to look that the child.

"I'm not going to hurt you," he promised. "I want to help you, but I need to know your name."

"Cha- Charles," the boy sputtered.

Jasper tried to smile and calm the boy down, but he had never dealt with kids before and wasn't sure how to act. "Well Charles, I'm Jasper. That was your mom, right? The blonde woman?"

Charles nodded his head, his tears running down his face. Jasper could smell the boy's tears, he could smell the blood beating within the tiny veins, and it took every once of control he had not to drain the boy dry. Jasper stood quickly before he could be tempted further.

"Where were you taken? Where are you from?"

"We're visiting G'ma and G'pa in the town," Charles mumbled. "We went to the park and mommy and I took a walk."

"Were your grandparents with you?" Charles shook his head no. Jasper had to hold his breath against the smell of blood so close to him. "Okay, I'll get you back to them, I promise. I'm going to need to pick you up and run really fast, okay? We can't be caught so you can't say anything."

He picked Charles up and ran to the only place he would be safe.

Edward was reading quietly when he heard Jasper calling for him. He stood up and swung open the door to see Jasper running towards him clutching something to his chest.

"Edward, how soon can we leave?"

"What are you talking about?" Edward asked in confusion. He looked at Jasper and zeroed his eyes onto what was in Jasper's arms. "Is that a child?"

"Maria killed his mother," Jasper muttered. "I couldn't let the kid be hurt, not after you—well, anyway, I couldn't let them kill him. He says his grandparents live in the town somewhere."

Jasper put the boy on the floor and Edward watched as he looked around him before he finally looked up at Edward. Edward smiled, knelt down, and brushed the hair from the boy's face. "Hi, I'm Edward."

"Charles."

"Hello, Charles. Do you know where your grandparents live? If I take you there would you know their house?" Charles nodded and Edward smiled and took his hand. Then he looked back up at Jasper. "What's going on?" He asked in a low voice so Charles wouldn't hear them.

"Maria thinks I'm a traitor. She's sent me on a suicide mission. I leave around three." Edward's eyes widened and he opened his mouth to ask Jasper what he meant, but he quickly closed it. "I'm not going."

"And how will you pull that off?" Edward asked, dreading the answer.

"Can you be ready to leave by three?"

"Are you serious or just hypothesising?"

"I'm serious. Could you be ready?"

"Of course."

"And what you have, you can run with?"

"I don't have that much."

Jasper looked down at Charles. "Could you bring him home before then? And you said something about needing to go to Montana to get an address for your family. Can you do all of that and be waiting for me at the end of town by three-thirty tonight?"

"Yes, but how are you going to get away?"

"I'll lead the group where Maria wants me to, and I'll send them into the rival camp, but I'm not going with them. The whole point of the raid is to kill all of us, she won't know if I'm dead or if I've just vanished. After the men start going into the camp I'll race back here and we'll run. No looking back."

"I don't like it, Jasper," Edward admitted. "Why can't we just go now? You're here; let's just leave. I don't want you to go back there."

"If I go now, she'll come after me," Jasper reasoned. "If she thinks I've been killed on a raid she sent me on for that specific purpose, we won't have to worry about her anymore. Besides I have some items I want to take with me. I couldn't bring them now because they'd be too suspicious."

"I still don't like it."

"I'll be fine, Edward," Jasper assured him. "I know how Maria's mind works. I'm a problem that needs to be fixed, but once I am, I'll be out of sight, out of mind. This is the best way. Trust me."

"I do, but –" Edward bit his lip and looked down at the boy. If Jasper was serious about this, they were wasting time by arguing. "Just promise me you'll be okay."

"I'll be just fine. It'll go great and I'll meet you at the end of town then we'll go to your family."

"Okay," Edward relented. "You should go now, no need to add more suspicion. I'll be ready with everything and I'll take Charles home."

"I'll see you at three-thirty then." Jasper turned to leave but Edward grabbed his elbow and pulled him back for a kiss.

Jasper hesitated for a moment, but then he slowly responded. He even seemed to gather the courage to place a hand on Edward's cheek. They separated and Edward looked deeply into Jasper's eyes.

"If you don't come, I'll go looking for you," Edward promised.

"I'll be fine."

"You keep saying that, but I'll just letting you know I'll come after you if you stand me up."

Jasper snorted and shook his head, but Edward thought he saw a hint of affection in his actions. With a final kiss, Jasper disappeared into the darkness with Edward watching him go the whole time.

When he finally lost sight of him, Edward looked down at the little boy who hadn't released his hand the whole time. "I have to quickly pack, Charles. Would you like to help me and then I'll take you to your grandparents?"

Charles nodded and Edward put the boy to task putting everything in his satchel. Edward didn't have much, so it didn't take more that ten minutes. Once they were done, Edward picked Charles up, left enough cash for his bill on the dresser, and left.

Charles was a bright kid and after a bit of questioning, Edward discovered that he could easily find his way back to his grandparent's house from the park. When they were almost to the house, Edward set the boy down and sat on the curb with him.

"Charles, I have to leave you here. I'm sure your grandparents are worried about you and will be very excited to see you, but I can't let them see me. I'll watch to make sure they find you, though. And, Charles," the little boy nodded along to everything Edward said, and looked up at him with trusting blue eyes, "don't go into the woods alone, okay? The mean people who hurt your mommy, that's where they live. Stay in the town, you'll be safe there."

With those final words, Edward watched the little boy run up to his grandparent's door and knock as hard as his little fists allowed. The door opened to the house and a relieved voice cried out the boy's name and big, strong arms snatched the little boy up and dragged him into the house. Edward wanted to explain to the people in the house why their daughter was gone. He wanted to tell them to leave, go north, and never look back. But there was nothing more he could do. At least the boy was back with family, even if he had suffered a traumatic loss. Edward waited to make sure no one came out to look for anyone who might have dropped the boy off, and then he turned away.

His next stop was Montana and then, hopefully, the rest of his life would lie before him.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed it! Thanks for reading and please review and let me know what you thought. ~AJ Kelly