Disclaimer: I do not, nor will ever, own the Twilight Saga, or any of its characters and plots.


TW: This story will contain references to child abuse (physical, mental, sexual), self-harm, and suicide attempts (both past and present).


Sylas

"Oh, epic! It's my turn to meet the vampires!" He said, his voice seeming to echo off the windows and becoming louder with each bounce.

Jasper just looked at him until Edward said, "Ah, the elusive Sylas has finally emerged from his bounce-castle."

Sylas brightened.

"Oh, you know me? That's cool! I know all about you two, because Izzy, and Eden, and Onyx, and pretty much everyone won't shut up about you."

He fidgeted with his seatbelt until they got the message and got out of the car. He hopped out after Edward, his eyes widening up at the house.

"It's even bigger than they said it was." He whispered in awe as his mind automatically began counting the windows.

"Twenty-six." Edward answered his thoughts, and Sylas spun around, blinking up at him.

"You can read thoughts. Oh, and Jasper can play with emotions. Mom does that too, except hers are less nice."

He looked down, balking at his outfit.

"Who decided to wear all black?" He muttered, utterly disgusted.

"Hey, Sylas, you want to see something cool?" Edward asked, his tone cheerful.

That was a silly question. Sylas loved cool things.

"Can you carry me and do your fast running?" He asked, lifting his arms.

Edward smiled.

"You'll have to climb on my back."

Sylas did just that, and then, they were off. It only lasted for a few seconds, but it felt exhilarating. That was a word Onyx had recently taught him.

"Epic!" He breathed, jumping down.

He promptly repeated his favorite word when he saw the wall of shininess that greeted him. Medals and awards dating back to the middle 1800's lined the wall, organized from earliest to latest, and then by color.

There was one that caught his attention from the 1860's. It was easily one of the more mangled ones, the writing barely legible, but he recognized the name, the first one, at least.

"Jasper Whitlock." He read aloud, reaching out to run his thumb over the engraved words.

The two vampires stilled behind him, and he pulled the medal off the wall, turning to them.

"Is this yours, from the war?" He asked Jasper, looking up at him.

To his surprise, a cold expression settled over Jasper's features.

"Yes." He said emotionlessly.

Sylas's eyes lit up, stepping forward. He sensed a story, and he loved stories.

"Will you tell – ?"

"No."

Jasper didn't let him finish, walking forward and taking the medal from his hands, hanging it back on the wall. Sylas tried not to show his hurt, but he knew Jasper could feel it anyways.

"Jasper, he deserves to know." Edward tried, but Jasper shook his head.

"He's just a child. Perhaps when one of the others emerge." He snapped, and turned on his heel, stalking from the room.

Tears sprung to Sylas' eyes, but he blinked them away. He had seen a flash of hurt in Jasper's eyes before he turned away, and he knew that he himself never wanted to be alone when he was hurting. Edward didn't stop him when he followed Jasper out.

It took him a moment, but he finally found Jasper standing on a balcony off of what looked to be a small sitting room. Sylas sat next to him, letting his legs dangle between the bars. He didn't say anything, watching as the sky slowly darkened and the shadows widen across the grass.

"I was seventeen when I joined the Confederate Army." Jasper began to speak, his voice soft. "My human family wasn't well-off…"

On and on, Jasper's voice went on, painting a story that connected the memories drifting lazily through Sylas' mind.

He had left one war to become the general of another: shifting from a feared major of a human army to a leader of the vampire army. The vampire wars were much different than the human war – more brutal, crueler.

Jasper dived deep into the depravity of vampirism, destroying anything that threatened his or his lover's rule. Maria lusted after Jasper's power and encouraged him to destroy every bit of humanity left inside of him.

But then Jasper met Peter, and their friendship slowly grew into something deeper. They were never truly in love, Jasper admitted, but they had a sort of kinship that gave him the strength of mind to allow Peter to escape with another newborn vampire, Charlotte.

They eventually came back for him, and the three had run north where they had crossed paths with the Cullens, and Jasper and Edward found each other.

"He stopped me from returning to that dark place." Jasper said, glancing at the red-headed vampire who had come to sit next to Sylas in the middle of Peter's and Charlotte's escape.

Edward smiled, reaching out to take Sylas' hand.

"And now we have you." He finished softly.

Sylas smiled shyly, kicking his feet back and forth to ward off the nervousness that had suddenly curled in his chest.

"Will you leave us, like the others did?" He asked, staring down at the ground.

"'Others'?" Jasper asked, sitting down on his other side.

"Yeah, the ones with the red eyes." He replied, looking up just in time to see the apprehension cross his face.

"You knew other vampires?"

The question came from Edward, and it was far from polite. There was an undertone of harshness.

Sylas opened his mouth to respond, but the previously dormant presences in the back of his mind suddenly flared to life, and he was jerked back into unconsciousness.


Ash/Isla

Eden and Izzy were screaming at him when he opened his eyes for the first time in what felt like years.

He knew vaguely where he was – Cullens' house, on a patio with Edward and Jasper – but he couldn't remember anything after…

His breath caught in his throat. There were other vampires. They knew he was here. He jerked away from Edward and Jasper, their hands feeling like flames against his.

It was wrong. Everything was wrong.

"Ash, breathe." Edward spoke, his voice stern but calm.

He looked up into his eyes, and suddenly…

She was feeling far too fragile. How was she supposed to stop angry, vengeful vampires? Panicked tears filled her eyes. Oh, she was going to die, and it was going to be so very painful.

Where was she? Why was Edward looking at her like that? She was going to be –

No. Stop. He forced his eyes away from Edward's.

"Grab her."

His thoughts were a mess; he could only hope that the others could hear him. Eden and Izzy kept screaming. Onyx was comforting a terrified Sylas, while Dolan watched apathetically. His head hurt…

She kept blacking out, and it frightened her.

"Isla – " Edward began when she pulled herself to her feet.

"Y-yes?" She stammered, trying to stop herself from shaking.

She was going to die; what did she care if she looked like an idiot?

"Sorry, sorry. I need to…" She trailed off, losing her train of thought completely.

Edward was speaking to her, but she couldn't concentrate on his words, staring blankly at her trembling hands. Jasper reached out to her, but she pulled away before he could touch her…

The hurt that crossed Jasper's face startled him.

"Ash, how can we help?" Edward asked, stepping into his line of sight.

He shook his head.

"We're going to pass out soon. Just… please don't leave us."

He felt vulnerable, the fear from being discovered by even more vampires outweighing his desire to protect themselves. Isla was too strong to be contained by Eden's and Izzy's chains, but even their fragmented mind could only contain itself through so much stress.

He felt Isla pressing against his consciousness, her emotions filtering to him for the first time. She had always been so disconnected, unaware that she had multiple people living inside their mind. She thought she was a singular being. He only wished he knew what had startled them into awaking.

They knew about the other vampires, she realized, tears streaming down her face. They knew how pathetic she was; how weak she'd been. Had Edward sensed that… thing in her mind?

What was it? Had the other vampires left a piece of themselves in her, to control her so that she wouldn't speak of them?

A wave of exhaustion crashed over her, and she felt Jasper's arms around her before there was nothing.