The little thing was rigid below him. She was holding her breath, so tense that he could hear her muscles spasm.
What was wrong with her? Why was she so still? Was she not pleased with his protection? He would have killed the man sooner but something inside of him had been hesitant in doing so.
Oh well. That strange, niggling voice of reason was gone. In its place, a brutal and calculating creature.
By all means, his instincts were begging him to take her right there. She carried that degenerate's scent on her shoulder and all he wanted to do was have her screaming with bliss just feet from that fucker's corpse. Heaven help the man foolish enough to lay a hand on his mate.
But she seemed… unwilling at the moment, if her stilted breathing was anything to go by. Though it pained him, he knew he'd have plenty of time to take her later. For now, though…
Winding his arms beneath her waist, he hoisted her up as he stood. Holding her to him, a brief thrill shot through him as she instinctively clung tighter to him and hid her face against his neck. She knew where to seek comfort. Him. Himhimhim and no one else. Never anyone else. He'd lie bleeding and broken and still would destroy anyone who tried to come between them.
Speaking of…
Before he left, he made sure to pause by the drained corpse. With guilty delight, he sent it careening across the room, shattering against the wall with a thunderous, muted crackle of torn sinew and cracked bones. All from a spiteful kick.
Humming his satisfaction, he absently caressed his suddenly whimpering female and left the building that reeked of livestock and dust.
"Hey."
Bella groaned and shifted against her uncomfortable bed.
"Miss?"
Growling under her breath, she shifted again.
"Move any more and you're gonna meet ten feet of air and a mouthful of dirt.
That woke her up.
"Wha-" was all she got out before fear tightened her throat abruptly.
A tree. She was in a god-damned tree, perched on one of the wider limbs. How in the hell-
And there was Jasper, staring up at her from the tree's base with a puzzled albeit amused expression on his face.
His voice floated up to her, honey-smooth and just as sweet. "Are you alright? Do you need any help?"
The clothes the Cullens had somehow managed to force him into were somewhat torn, a sizeable amount of dark dried blood staining the front of his grey tee. She shivered.
"Jasper? I don't- why are we in a forest?"
A strong gust of wind rustled the leaves of the trees, somewhat swaying her branch, making her cling tighter with fingers turned to white-knuckled claws. The rough bark tore into her skin.
One of his eyebrow's twitched, looking up at her with a pondering quality. His head tilted contemplatively, lips tugged into a frown. He looked at her like she was a strange experiment. He ducked his head and restlessly ran his hand over his hair and rubbed the back of his neck.
"I don't mean to offend but…" he huffed a humorless laugh and looked back up at her. "I'm not in a right state of mind, I think. You know my name but I'm afraid I don't know yours."
…what? She nearly fell off her branch right there. Straightening herself at the last minute, she stared open-mouthed at the slightly apologetic man below her.
He didn't know her? He didn't know her? What the hell was going on?
He'd barely uttered ten words to her for the entire time that she'd known him and now he was speaking in full sentences, not a trace of his previous feral nature to be seen. In his place, a polite young man that would've passed as human if his eyes weren't the color of dying embers.
And something else was niggling at her, though she couldn't quite place it.
"You wouldn't happen to have any rope on you?"
She looked at him like he'd grown a second head.
Jasper shrugged. "Figured a gal in the business of climbing trees would have a way of getting down from them."
A joke. He'd cracked a joke. Who. Was. This. Man.
"You're a quiet one, aren't you?" he mused, a soft smile warming his features. "Well, it can't be helped. I'll just have to catch you." He held out his arms expectantly.
That was it. An accent. Jasper had an accent. A soft twang that brought to mind old western movies. The way some of his i's turned into ah's. The way he overemphasized vowels while prolonging others. A Texan drawl if she'd ever heard one.
Her heart skipped a beat. And his smile…
He cocked his head again- a habit, she was coming to realize. "Are you okay?" he asked again, this time the levity gone from his voice.
Finding her voice, she stopped just short of slapping her cheeks. "I'm… sorry. I'm just really confused right now. I'm not normally like this," she rambled, to her increasing humiliation. "I mean, I just woke up in a tree- wouldn't that make any girl freak out? And you-" She suddenly ceased talking and swallowed harshly.
This was too weird. Why was she acting so stupidly? She'd been so comfortable around him before and now it was like she was scrambling to piece together a coherent sentence.
His own eyes had taken on a veil of confusion- at her own accent- or rather lack of one, she realized distantly.
"Ok, ok. I'm- I'm coming down, ok?"
His confusion vanished quickly, replaced with that boyish charm. "Come on down, darlin'. I'll catch you."
Bella's heart fluttered distantly. Darling? Oh god, could he see her blush? Of course he could see it. No matter how human he was acting, he was still a vampire. Though he was acting like that was the last thing he could possibly be.
Off track, Bella! Before she could think, second-guess herself, she threw her legs over the branch and slipped down.
A moment of weightlessness and then her waist was being cradled by two hands, gently lowering her until her feet touched the dirt.
Bella stared up at him despite herself. He was tall. How had she not noticed that before?
Jasper's brow creased, no doubt puzzled by her actions. Nonetheless, a heart-droppingly charming, flirtatious smirk graced his face. Her stomach twisted. Jasper, the feral, was charming her socks off. What.
"What's your name?"
Abruptly she stepped away. "Did you hit your head? Is that why you're like this?" she wondered aloud, slowly pacing around him in a wide circle to inspect him from every angle.
Amusedly he followed her with his eyes, watching her as she circled behind him and then turning to watch her come back around.
"I just might've," he said softly, running his hand over his neck again. "There's no way I'd forget the name of such a pretty girl otherwise."
Bella stopped abruptly. "Stop that."
"Stop what?"
She waved her hands at him. "That."
He grinned and bowed his head. "My apologies. Can't seem to help myself."
Her cheeks reddened by the second, her breath faltered. Throwing her hands up, she turned away from him and began walking. Where? She didn't know. She didn't care. Her mind was a mess and she couldn't think when that… he… ugh. Her mind was a mess, reeling and scattered. It was like trying to catch a paper bag in a harsh wind. Impossible.
Footsteps echoed behind her as Jasper followed.
"What's your name anyway?"
For a moment, as she stepped around a fallen tree, she considered ignoring him. But then she thought better of it. It wasn't his fault that he was so handsome.
"Bella."
He was quiet for a moment. "And I know you?"
She hung back until he caught up to her, then began her walk anew. Fiddling with her fingers in front of her, she couldn't bring herself to look at him. "I guess… well, we're… friends?"
"Is that a question?"
"No?"
"Hm." He didn't sound convinced, but he didn't push it any further.
They were silent for a while, passing through the forest. With her mind such a mess, it was a wonder she could put one foot in front of the other. Bella knew, though, if she stopped walking… if she paused to think, that her mind would spiral into chaos.
Every so often, she caught Jasper watching her out of the corner of her eye. Whenever she would turn to look at him, he'd smirk.
She'd turn quickly away, cheeks burning. After several minutes of this, he spoke up.
"Do you live around here, Bella?"
She swallowed. "You could say that."
When she spoke no further, he went on. "Why were you in a tree?"
Turning an unimpressed look on him, she said, "Because someone put me there."
With a raised brow, he turned to look behind him then back at her. "Me?" he pointed to himself, humored disbelief. "Sorry, darlin'. I'm not in the habit of puttin' girls in trees. Not really my way of doing things."
Bella grumbled.
"So that means we're traveling together?"
Her shoulders rose and fell sharply. He chuckled and slung an arm around her shoulders. "I was right. You are a quiet thing."
Bella squealed, though she'd never admit to such a noise. Jumping three feet away, she spun and faced him as he rose his hands up innocently.
"Easy, hellcat," he soothed. "I didn't mean anything by it."
"You- you are not acting right," she accused. His touch had electrified her, sent a pressure straight to her gut.
"Easy," he soothed again, calm and concerned. Great. He thought she was crazy.
He was silent for a moment, looking at her with a considering expression. "I'm sorry. That was inappropriate of me. I won't do it again. Alright? I'm sorry."
She nodded slowly. But she couldn't stand looking into those eyes anymore. They made her at once want to go to him for comfort and run as fast as she could the opposite way. Turning on her heel, she began her quick walk away. Where was the town from here?
Jasper followed behind her.
"Bella? Can I ask you a question?"
"Don't talk to me like that," she snipped.
"Sorry?"
"Like I'm gonna break. I can handle this," she said, more to herself than him. "I can."
"Alright," he drawled slowly. She could just feel his concerned look burning into the back of her head. "Where are we?"
"Washington," she answered without much thought.
A snort followed her sentence. She rounded on him. "What?"
"You need to check your map again, darlin'. I was in Galveston just yesterday."
"Galveston? Like… in Texas?"
"Unless there's another Galveston I haven't heard of?" Sarcasm.
…She wasn't sure she liked this Jasper.
"Well," she made a broad sweep of her hands. "Does this look like a beach town to you? Have a lot of forests in Galveston, do you?"
Bella knew she was being harsh. She was lashing out. But she couldn't seem to help herself. She was scared and now that her one source of companionship had suddenly, literally changed personalities, she felt more alone than ever.
Jasper considered the woods. Staring at the canopy he turned and walked a circle, lips pursed. "Where are we?" he asked again.
"I already told you. Washington."
"That's impossible," he snarled, immediately looking contrite when she flinched. "It's just… there's no way. It's impossible."
But the truth was written in the trees. The non-native trees which towered overhead. And the weather, bone-bitingly cold.
"Did… you bring me here?"
She snorted. "Hardly." Another pang of regret when a look of utter, desperate confusion crossed his features. He was just as alone as she was, in a foreign land that, in his own mind, he'd never been to.
He turned, walking towards a tree. But then…
Jasper… tripped. Over a log. A vampire. Had. Tripped.
He got quickly to his feet with a rough clearing of his throat. "You-… sorry, but there's no way. You must be mistaken."
"Are you alright?" she asked instead, still reeling.
"I was… I was in Galveston just yesterday. Just yesterday," he continued to repeat. "I saw the beach with my own eyes. I was there."
"Jasper…"
"Sorry," he held up a hand, eyes wild. "I think I need a second." He stumbled again, then dropped to sit with his back against a tree. Running a hand down his face, he shook his head. "They're gonna hang me… Think I'm traitor. This isn't happening."
Bella came closer, unsure of what to do. He was clearly living in a different time, his words made no sense to her. Who was going to hang him? This… this was who Jasper was before he'd been turned. …How badly was his mind fractured? And what kind of horrors were strong enough to do such a thing to a mind?
"What month is it?" he asked quickly.
Before she could answer, he went on. "They're facing 'em 'ithout me." With a growl, he dropped his head back against the tree.
Now, it was a perfectly normal, human gesture. And if he'd been a perfectly normal human, he would've thunked his head against the bark and that would've been that.
As it was, however…
The tree groaned and toppled over, creaking and smashing through the canopy, taking other trees along with it. One moment she was watching the chaotic cacophony, the next she was almost a mile away from it.
Dazedly, she felt an arm wrapped around her waist. Looking up into scarlet eyes, she assessed him.
"Jasper?"
Though he didn't smile, a warmth entered his features when his eyes met her own.
Things began to fall in place in her mind and she tested her theory. "Do you still want to know the month?"
His head tilted, locks of hair rippling with his movement. "The month?" he muttered.
Ok…
Jasper had two personalities. Ok. She could deal with that. Totally. Gone was the suave, flirtatious cowboy. In his place was the more familiar, silent and stoic vampire that she had rescued from chains and starvation. Had the shock of the falling tree brought forth the other? A protective mechanism?
Bella nodded slowly, a painful smile suddenly splitting her face. "That's great," she said enthusiastically. Distantly, she was aware she was going into shock. It was too much, all of it. Too much.
Before she could hesitate, she shuffled into his warm embrace in a silent plea for comfort. She needed his warmth. To take in his familiar scent. Pressing her nose against his chest, she nearly crooned when he automatically wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on top of her head.
"Will you take me back to the truck? I don't know where we are. I don't…" She trailed off.
She felt him nod against her. In one movement her feet were taken out from under her and she was scooped into his arms. She hid her face against his neck.
The world blurred into hazy colors as unimaginable speed took both her breath and consciousness away from her.
Yeah. I'm not sure if Jasper's personality as a human is totally true to canon but I've utterly decimated Meyer's plot line so far, why not butcher her characters while I'm at it.
So, totally unrelated but I like to tell stories (obviously).
I live right next to Galveston. Go there all the time in the summer. I don't know if yall believe in ghosts but I sure do and that place is haunted as fuck. There's been so much bloodshed there I'm surprised the sand isn't red. I stayed at Hotel Galvez once and went on a tour and when they were talking about some children spirits that wander around, something fucking tugged on my dress. And St. Mary's Orphanage/haunted walmart(yeah, I know)- look it up if you're up for a good cry.