It's been a week since Alice and Jasper joined the Cullens.
Alice was an absolute delight to have around with her perpetual happiness and love. Carlisle was enamoured with her as much as Esme Edward and Emmett were. She fit with them like a missing puzzle piece they hadn't even noticed it was missing.
Rosalie still refused to yield to her.
But Alice was nothing if not persistent.
She was hard to despise and she seemed to have developed a burning favoritism over Edward which was both amusing and endearing. Edward was more than gleeful about it. To have a sister who wasn't a bitch like Rosalie.
Her mate on the other hand...
At first it had been unsettling to get used to the scars marring most of the little skin Jasper showed along with the lack of scent and footsteps.
Even now it was still hard for no one could ever tell where he was or if tracking the scent down would lead them to Alice or him. He clung to Alice like a shadow and would refuse to go hunting with no one but Alice.
And he was quiet. Would never speak unless spoken to and even then most of his answers were monotonous.
Carlisle had the firm belief that he would be able to integrate with the others given time, he trusted Alice's judgement. For what he had seen this week from her it was hard to believe she would bring harm to this family on purpose.
Esme was more than delighted to have another son.
He could be reclusive but she knew that he wasn't bad. Someone who looked at Alice with such adoration couldn't be bad.
And if one looked past the intimidating appearance all she could see was a boy who had had a rough life and now seeked nothing but a peaceful place to be at.
Rosalie on the other hand made a point to avoid him and whenever she was in the same room as him she made sure to glare at him and let him know how much she wanted him to fuck off. He was dangerous and she didn't want him anywhere near her family. He didn't belong here.
Meanwhile Emmett liked him despite the fact that he had spoken little to none with him. He knew him to be a potential good companion for wrestling if those scars were something to go for. Plus he had been a soldier in the civil war. That meant he could put up a good fight.
Sad thing was he couldn't touch him or even get too close. Jasper refused to cooperate and let him befriend him.
Edward on the other hand couldn't understand how Carlisle could allow Jasper in their home. The way he moved to the way he stood and looked around were unnerving and unsettling. As if he was preparing to either attack or bolt at the slightest of provocation.
On top of that Edward couldn't read his mind because there was a persistent static that prevented him from doing so which did nothing but add to his mistrust against Jasper.
And no matter how much Alice assured him that Jasper wasn't dangerous he couldn't help but feel like there was more to Jasper than they were aware.
Then the first incident hit.
~~~~~~~~
Jasper was highly aware of a few... concerning habits from the Cullens due Alice's constant stories about them before even getting to meet them.
Like Rosalie and Edward's arguments and Emmett and Edward's fights inside the house.
Still.
He hadn't been prepared at all to be caught in the middle of one of those situations.
He had been standing at the porch waiting for Alice to come back from hunting.
The place had been so quiet and he had been so spaced out he didn't notice the person creeping up behind him until arms grabbed him.
He froze for a moment and as he felt his feets leave the ground his mind reeled and he twisted on the hold as his leg connected with the glass door. The sound of glass exploding drowned his hearing as panic seized his chest. He twisted as a guttural sound tore out of his throat.
Off. Off. Off. Off. Off. Offoffoffoffoffoffoff.
He couldn't move his arms. Couldn't scratch. Couldn't hit. He was gonna be crushed again .
Then he was released and he dropped to the ground shaking and fighting the wave of crushing panic that wanted to take hold of his mind and senses and God he needed to breathe . Deep. Hold. In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. Calm.
-Dude you-
Emmett was infront of him and his hand too close. His reaction was a reflex at the worst moment.
He punched him. Hard . A snarl tearing out of his throat as he did so.
-Jasper!
Carlisle's shout made his blood freeze and his throat close. The shock and anger in the air. Disbelief. Surprise. It crushed him down to his knees. The coven leader was furious. Esme was sad. That meant the coven leader was even more furious.
He couldn't move. He angered him . The one thing he had fought so hard to not do. He was mad . He couldn't move. Couldn't move at all. Carlisle was talking but he couldn't hear him. Couldn't grasp the words. He couldn't breathe . There were four vampires around him. Strangers. Danger. Wrong . He fought and fought and failed to keep the panic from raising.
The adrenaline was kicking in. His increasing panic feeding it until he was left shaking and his breathing too erratic for it to be normal. His chest hurt. His head was buzzing and he couldn't move no matter how much he wanted to move. Because he was in danger. Four. Four. Four. Four.
A presence came too close. Close. Too close . Coven leader. Furious. Furious. He's gonna die. Die. Die. Die. Die. Death . His chest wants to explode. His muscles. His insides. He's going to explode.
And then he is infront of him and he explodes.
Adrenaline suffocating him as he shoves the threat, snarling and swinging at them. Shoving his attacker onto the ground and pinning them against the floor by the throat and biting down on the raised arm. Fangs sinking deeper into the flesh and injecting as much venom as he can muster.
He can hear voices. Blurred. Can feel the agitation and fear in the air which in return makes him even more agitated and scared. His fingers tightening around the throat as he growls against the bite. Teeth clamping harder until he can almost feel the flesh coming off. Venom dripping from his mouth as the persistent growl refuses to die down.
Danger. Danger. Danger. Danger. Danger.
He won't let them hurt him. He won't let them bring pain. He was sick of pain. He didn't want more pain. He would rather die than feel pain again. The vampires must die. All of them. If there are no vampires he won't have to fight. She won't make him fight.
And if he doesn't fight he won't feel pain.
But she won't leave him be. He needs to fight. Fight. Fight. Get rid of the threats. Get rid of them all and show whose the one in charge. Bring them to their knees and make them plead for their lives. Death is sweeter than pain. Mercy is for the weak.
He must kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. If she is happy he won't be in pain. If she is happy he won't be in pain. Her happiness meant no pain. Kill to make her happy. Kill to not feel pain. All vampires who don't bow to him must die.
Because if they don't bow to him they won't bow to her.
And if they don't bow to her there will be pain.
He doesn't want pain. He doesn't want pain. Death means no pain. He must kill kill and kill for there to not be pain.
Someone is talking. Calling. Calling. Who is it? She is calling. No. Not her voice.
And then the voice pierces the blurred bubble in his mind.
-okay. You're okay. It's okay. No one is going to hurt you. You are okay.
There are hands resting on top of his own. Same hands he is using to keep the threat down. The touch is soft but firm. Comfort and love and calm are seeping into his skin through that simple touch.
And as those emotions settle in he felt himself relax. Allowing himself to be pulled back as he releases the arm.
Carlisle's arm.
But he can't even focus on the fact that he attacked the coven leader. Because injecting him venom had done nothing but mess with him and shit he shouldn't have been so impulsive. Dizziness hits him and Alice's grip on his arm tightens. He knows she is talking but he can't quite make out the words.
Fuck he really shouldn't have put himself in this position.
Alice leads him inside and he can't keep himself from flinching as Rosalie's hatred hits harder than ever. Bitter and acid and so horrible.
He ducked his head and let Alice lead him upstairs. He doesn't register much until she is pushing him to sit down on the bed. Her hands touching his face as her concern floods him. She pats his cheek and that at least managed to clear some of the ringing in his ears.
-You with me?
-Sorry.
-Don't be. I told Emmett before that you weren't ready to wrestle with him. He shouldn't have grabbed you like that.- Alice told stroking his cheek. The vision had hit her too late and even then she hadn't run fast enough.
At least Carlisle had been quick to realize and understand that Jasper wasn't attacking him on purpose. Wasn't even aware he was attacking Carlisle. Thus he had managed to keep the others from intervening until Alice managed to arrive and calm him down.
Convincing them to let her take him upstairs had been easier than expected. His eyes were dark, the black had begun pooling into his sclera.
He had used too much venom.
She pulled her shirt up and for once she was glad she didn't had to coax him into biting her. His hands coming to rest on her waist as he pulled her closer. The feeling of his fangs sinking into her flesh was familiar. The pressure as he began feeding off her venom.
The first time he did it she had almost passed out due the overwhelming flood of sensations that had brought with it. Even now she wasn't sure if she liked it or disliked it. But at least it wasn't as intense as the first time.
She hoped this at least would serve as a reminder to Emmett that he shouldn't take her warnings for granted.
~~~~~~~~~~~
The silence that had settled over the house was deafening.
Carlisle had known that his newest son came with a complicated past. So his first thought when he heard the scandal and saw him punching Emmett and snarling was that he had snapped.
But all he had found was Jasper crouched on the ground at the verge of a panic attack, the glass door destroyed and Emmett looking like he was the main responsible for this situation.
He had tried to calm him but that had done nothing but make Jasper lash out. Keeping Edward and Emmett from interfering had been near impossible but he had managed. The glazed eyes with no sign of recognition at all letting him know what was happening.
But he had also failed at bringing him out of that dissociated state. His arm being the one thing keeping Jasper from tearing his face off. Hands around his throat.
Alice had come in and had managed to bring him back.
But she had taken him upstairs with her claiming it would help him to be away from a crowded place. Carlisle had agreed with her.
He still couldn't understand what had triggered him. To elicit such reaction...
Such fear in his gaze. Panic. Rage.
-I got a few words from his mind before.- Edward's words broke the silence as he glanced up at the ceiling. He seemed troubled for some odd reason.
But to be fair Edward hadn't expected to hear such erratic thoughts. To hear that kind of thoughts.
-He kept repeating something about not wanting pain. How he must kill to avoid pain. Emmett what did you do to him?- Edward asked turning to look at his brother in question.
-He's not the one at fault, that beast is the one who attacked Carlisle.- Rosalie snapped.
-First of; he's no beast, we have talked about this name calling. Second of; he did not attack me on purpose. Emmett, is there something I should know?- Carlisle's voice was sharp and commanding.
-I didn't knew he would react like that. I just thought he was a bit... I don't know. But I would have never done it if I knew it would cause him to freak out like that.
-What did you do?
-I did nothing! I just grabbed him and then he freaked out.
-You grabbed him? Even though Alice told us not to?- Carlisle asked in disapproval.
-How was I suppose to know he would react like that?
-Emmett, there are warnings for a reason, and even then I believe I told you before didn't I? He's had a difficult life, you shouldn't be rough with him. He's not ready.
Emmett huffed but said nothing. He knew he had fucked up. He hadn't meant to trigger such reaction from him, all he had wanted was to play with him.
-Carlisle, I know you said you wanted to give him a second chance but... You saw him. Do you think it's really a good idea to have him around?
-It wasn't his fault. Kicking him out for something he had no control over doesn't seem like a fair thing to do.
-He bit you!
-That's enough. I'm not kicking Jasper out, he is part of this family now and part of being a family means learning to understand and respect each other. Not cast them aside whenever something goes wrong.
Edward scowled at that but didn't push.
Jasper was dangerous. His fault or not he was still dangerous. He knew it wasn't Jasper's fault but still...
He was dangerous.
Couldn't Carlisle see how this was nothing compared to what he could do if it was against Esme? Alice herself? Yes. Alice too.
Because mates or not Edward didn't trust Jasper with Alice. She was so small and frail and he was... He was too dangerous for her.
The sound of footsteps caught their attention. Soon Alice appeared with Jasper nowhere to be seen.
-Where is he? Is he alright?- Esme was quick to ask.
-He's fine. He went hunting.- Alice's words made a few eyebrows raise, they hadn't heard or seen him at all.
But again.
At this point that shouldn't surprise them.
Even after a week his footsteps and scent were as non-existent as when he first arrived. The stealth could be understood given his background but his scent? What kind of vampire would hide their scent to that extent? Use their own mate as a camouflage?
That was another reason Edward didn't like him.
To think he would go such length to mimic Alice's scent. Hiding his own with her's.
It was low.
-Is he mad?- Emmett asked, the last thing he wanted was for Jasper to develop negative feelings towards him, he wanted a brother not an enemy out of him.
-No. He's not.- Alice was quick to assure as she came to sit at the armrest alongside Esme.- He's really sorry about what happened.
-Of course, because someone who feels sorry for almost killing the man who opened the doors of his home to him would go and hunt as if nothing happened.
-I asked him to.- Alice defended, though that wouldn't be the entire truth, Jasper did had to hunt so as to get rid of the silver of his eyes.
-Alice, what happened today-
-It won't happen again.- Cut off Alice holding Edward's gaze.
-How can you be so sure?
-Because none of you will grab or touch him again. I said so before, physical contact with him won't end well.- Alice told as a statement of fact.
-He seems perfectly fine with you.
-Trust me. It took me weeks before he even let me get into his personal space.- Alice still remembers how he would step back from her and flinch whenever she got too close or tried to touch him. How his shoulders would get all tense and how he would put an awful distance between them when she accidentally brushed against him.
It was like dealing with a skittish cat.
-Weeks? Alice, how are we even meant to get him to warm up to us when he spends most of his time locked upstairs or outside?- Esme couldn't help but ask, she had tried to interact with her newest son but she had failed at them all.
Jasper refused to hunt with anyone but Alice and he also refused to interact with them in general.
He was in his room most of the time and when he wasn't there he was lost somewhere in the forest either alone or with Alice.
It had been a week and it still felt like having a stranger walking around.
-He needs time. He's... He has troubles with having vampires around him and with the idea of being in such peaceful environment. It's a work in progress. But I promise he will do better, like I said, he just needs time.
-What do you mean he has troubles with having vampires around him?- Carlisle asked frowning in confusion.
-He spent decades fighting in the South. If a vampire he doesn't know gets within his range he attacks. It's a reflex he can't help but act upon. It took me months to get him to get used to the idea of you being five. He doesn't avoid you on purpose he's just...
-Scared?- Esme supplied sadly.
-In a sense.
Alice decided to put it like that. Scared sounded better than alert right now.
Carlisle on the other hand couldn't help but feel sad. He had known that as a vampire from the South Jasper wouldn't be anything like any of the nomads he had ever encountered.
He had known the South to be a horrible place.
But if he merged Alice's words with Edward's... He had developed an instinct to kill in order to avoid pain. All strangers were potential threats. Enemies. Of course Emmett grabbing him would trigger him.
He was conditioned to never let his guard down and kill whatever got too close.
What kind of life must he have led there for him to develop such reaction?
That poor boy.
But if Alice's words were true then that meant...
God that meant he would lash out at the nomads that could turn up at some point. Carlisle would have to tread carefully with this one.
But that wasn't the issue now. What needed to be approached now was the fact that Jasper didn't felt safe here. That even if he stood in a corner looking like he was planning mass murder deep down he was nothing but scared.
How much must one be subjected to violence and pain in order to develop such fear towards other vampires?
And there was also the overwhelming fear in his gaze when he realized he had attacked Carlisle.
That kind of fear...
It gave him a bad feeling.