Alice nearly burst with anticipation, waiting to answer and I didn't try to slow her down as she started to tell our story faster than a human would be able to understand. It was her version of the story - the one that started with her memory loss and her gift and didn't contain any information of my past except for the fact that I had been wandering around alone while she waited for me. "Remarkable! So, you already knew that we would sit here like this hours ago?", Tanya asked after Alice had finished our story. "As soon as Carlisle decided that we should visit before going back to Calgary", my mate confirmed her suspicion. I could feel how surprised, intrigued and at the same time charmed the two vampires were by her. It was in the range of the usual reactions I observed to someone who met Alice and learnt about her gift for the first time.
"Have you ever seen something like this?", Tanya inquired further. But to my surprise, her question was directed at Eleazar, who had listened closely the whole time. "Never", he replied and then returned his gaze towards us: "You two are quite the couple. Your gift is truly powerful Alice, and even though I have met empaths before, your capabilities display a versatility that impress me, Jasper." His words made all my alarm bells ring. How did he figure out that I was gifted as well? I had only been using my powers subtly to keep the situation from getting out of hand in the beginning. Since then I had hardly intervened, except from keeping everyone's emotions calm, something I did instinctively mostly for my own sake. I hadn't tried to influence anyone in a way that would have been noticeable – or at least I had thought so. "Eleazar can detect gifts. That's how he knows", Edward explained, and my eyes widened. He called us powerful, but this gift would have been very valuable in combat – much more than mine had ever been. Knowing exactly what you're up against is priceless and being able to identify your opponent's prodigies makes it so much easier to deduce an adequate strategy... Not even to mention how useful this would have been for recruitment.
Realizing where my thoughts had gone out of habit, I quickly discarded them and shot Edward an apologetic look. "An empath you say, Eleazar? Does that mean you know what we are feeling at the moment?", Tanya continued the conversation, now looking directly at me. I could see how she flinched for a short moment when her eyes trailed over my ravaged jaw and I paused for a moment before answering: "I can feel it, yes." Her intrigue grew and she must have had some questions, since Edward involved himself in the discussion. "Why don't you show them what you showed me today", he suggested but I hesitated. What exactly should I show them? I wouldn't resort to Emmett's lust again. But it had to be something different, something that they didn't feel yet such that they would notice. However, I also didn't want to go towards anger or fear, because this would provide a basis for conflict. I couldn't think of an alternative right now and didn't really feel comfortable being in the spotlight any longer. "I'd rather not... I don't want to hide something, but I don't feel comfortable invading your privacy like that. What Edward was pointing out is that I can't just feel your emotions but also influence them", I finally stated and hoped that they would accept it. "Of course, Jasper, don't worry about it", Esme immediately reassured and Tanya nodded as well, however her eyes still lingered on me.
"I am always marvelled by the sheer variety and power that abilities come in. My sister Kate will be very excited to meet you, she loves to get to know others who are gifted", the blonde remarked and sparked my interest. There was another gifted vampire around? Alice noted the change in my posture and gently laid a hand on my leg. "Kate can shock people with electricity, isn't that right Tanya?", she filled in the blanks for me and quickly added: "I saw her using it on Emmett once, in my visions I mean." Tanya chuckled but nodded her head: "That's correct. Wow, I think I'll need some time to get used to your gift." The others laughed at that comment, they could feel her pain. Everyone but me. I was the only one that had the pleasure of Alice's company long enough to not be surprised by such occurrences anymore. As if her gift had been triggered by Tanya's remark, her hand grew limp on my leg as a vision washed over her.
My eyes rested on her, although I knew that she couldn't perceive anything that happened around her at the moment. The vision came quickly, and I wasn't sure if anyone else even noticed it. Except for Edward, who was staring at her as well. Could he see what she saw in her thoughts, I wondered, and the bronze-haired vampire nodded in confirmation. Just in that moment, her hand curled and she slightly shook her head, as she returned to reality. "Irina, Kate and Carmen will be here in a few minutes. And they found the perfect colour for the new bathroom!", she announced and once again, everyone except for Edward and I stared at her in disbelief. "Well, why don't we go outside and greet your sisters?", Carlisle proposed after they all had overcome their initial surprise and Tanya nodded, leading us towards the front door. Alice immediately followed her, excited to finally meet the rest of the Denali clan, while I chose to stay behind and left the room last, right behind Eleazar and Edward.
Meeting the other sisters was similar to the experience before. They were just as taken aback as Tanya and Eleazar, when Alice greeted them with their names and all of them hesitated for a moment, when they laid eyes on me. I dispersed any signs of shock or fear, sticking to Alice's side and giving my best to stay relaxed. Alice recounted our story once more - the fourth time this month - and the new arrivals were listening attentively, just as amazed by her talent as the Cullens or Tanya and Eleazar had been, when they first heard it. I chose to stand behind Alice - who had retaken her seat on the couch - and watched, as they were fixated on her lips. Observing the conversation, I couldn't help but notice how strange this situation was. Ten vampires in one room and I there was not the slightest hint of animosity to detect. It really must be the animal blood, I returned to my thoughts from earlier and wondered if there were further effects which I hadn't yet noticed.
Once the story was told, the topic changed and eventually, the sisters decided to show Esme the renovation which the second floor was undergoing. Carlisle and Alice decided to tag along while Carmen and Eleazar started to catch Edward up on their most recent travels. I listened in for a moment, before tuning out and focusing on the paintings that adorned the whole room. I had just admired a painting of a battle scene – by the uniforms and flags probably from the French Revolution – when a small picture frame towards the other side of the room captured my attention. After confirming that the three vampires left in the room didn't pay any attention to me, I crossed the floor to take a closer look.
The frame didn't hold a picture but an artistically crafted V-shaped pendant with two rubies. I immediately recognised it: the Volturi in Carlisle's painting had worn similar pendants. I pondered where the Denalis would they get something like this from. I doubted that one could simply receive on of these, unless… one of them belonged to the powerful coven. My skin started to crawl at the thought, and I felt the urge to get back to Alice immediately. For most of my existence, the Italian vampires had been a myth – a nightmare we used to keep our newborns in check. Everyone knew that they once cleansed the South, but no one had seen them since. Most vampires I met weren't even sure that they still existed. From Carlisle I learned that they very much still did. But still, I would never have imagined facing one of them. And I still rather wouldn't.
"This one belonged to me, a long time ago", a voice suddenly interrupted my thoughts and I jumped, instinctively getting into a fighting stance. It had been Eleazar, who approached me but upon my reaction, Carmen and Edward quickly were at his side. It was obvious, that I couldn't stand a chance against the mind reader and two others if this escalated, so I quickly straightened my back and sent out a wave of calm, diffusing the tense situation. Their bodies visibly relaxed, even though I heard Edward snarl quietly as he realized what happened. You are using your gift on me as well, I reminded him in my thoughts and then turned towards Eleazar. "Please forgive my reaction, you surprised me", I apologized and internally scolded myself for being so neglectful. How could I not have noticed him approaching?
"All is forgiven, I was just curious: What drew you to my pendant?", Eleazar replied with a smile and I detected the slight accent I had noticed earlier again. "Your accent. It sounds Spanish but not Mexican… Given this is yours, I would assume mainland Europe?", I addressed it and a smiled appeared on the dark-haired vampire's lips: "You're very perceptive. Yes, Carmen and I are originally from Spain. Do you know the language?" I couldn't help but smile a little at the prospect of using my Spanish again. Although it was Maria who taught me, the language had always been dear to me. Maybe it was the one good thing that had come out of everything that happened during my time with her. "Yes, I do but I haven't used it in a while", I answered in Spanish and Eleazar's smile widened. "I am always glad to converse in my native language", he replied and gestured towards the armchairs to our left.
I followed his invitation and took a seat in one of the armchairs, while Edward and Carmen returned to their seat on the couch again and quickly resumed their chat. My eyes lingered on the Spanish vampire for a moment, before returning to the pendant. He had said, that it belonged to him a long time ago. This would imply, that he wasn't with them anymore. "I have heard a lot about the Volturi, but I've never actually met someone who belonged to them. I wasn't even sure they still existed until I met Carlisle", I returned to his question from before, sticking to Spanish for now. "Oh, they still exist, but their influence here isn't as strong as for example in Europe", Eleazar explained, also in his native language. "You have quite the accent yourself. Mexican?", he then added, smiling slightly. I could feel no hidden intentions, he was just as curious to learn more about me as I was to learn about him. "I learned Spanish from a Mexican native, yes. But I'm originally from Texas", I replied, sticking to the tit-and-tat-principle: He'd given me some information, so it was only fair if I provided him with some as well. "Well, you certainly picked the accent up perfectly. It's almost impossible to tell that Spanish is not your native language", Eleazar noted and I was positive he meant it as a compliment. Only it wasn't for me. Just another reminder of the fact, that for a long period of time, Maria had taken complete control over me. Not only my actions and life, but my whole identity.
"How long were you with them?", I changed the subject back to the Volturi. I didn't want to think about Maria right now. Especially, since Edward was nearby. Eleazar didn't seem to mind my question as I couldn't detect any shifts in his emotion. This probably meant that their parting hadn't been ugly. An idea that was underlined by the fact that he was still alive. "For nearly a hundred years. I was turned in the late 1740s and left the guard in 1838. I had met Carmen in 1831 and she didn't really appreciate my duties and place in the guard. Thus, I eventually asked to leave, and Aro let me go", he told his story, and my mind immediately started to gravitate around the dates. 1838, that meant he was around for… "Were you with them when they intervened in the Southern wars?", the question had maybe come out a bit too quickly, as Eleazar raised an eyebrow and looked at me. I could feel his eyes linger on the exposed scars on my jaw, as he put two and two together. Hesitating for a moment, my hand went towards the scarf that covered my neck, and I slowly pulled it away, revealing some of my worst marks. I'd rather have him understand by himself than having to tell my story once again. I had talked way too much about this painful time of my live in the last weeks. And from the way he looked at me, I could tell that he understood.
"I was part of the first raid, the one that wiped out Benito's clan. But after that, I had different duties. Since my gift also works on humans – only in a limited way though – I was tasked with finding suitable recruits to fill the ranks of the guards we lost", Eleazar recounted and I clenched my jaw. Filling the ranks of lost soldiers – I was very familiar with that task. My eyes fixated on my hands, tracing a few of the scars that were crisscrossing over their backs as I felt Eleazar's sympathy and curiosity towards me. He was probably wondering, how I felt about the wars and what part I played in them. We fell silent for a moment, both hesitant to inquire further and I found myself lost in thoughts once again.
After Peter and Charlotte ran, and especially in the years after I left Maria, I had spent many long nights thinking about the wars in a more conceptual and less attached way and always came back to the Volturi's "cleanse of the South". I had so many questions, and now that I had someone to ask them to, there was only one reappearing over and over again: Why didn't they stop them once and for all? All the suffering and pain, all the newborns I had killed both in battle and because they were too old, all those scars. None of it had to happen, if they only had stopped them once and for all. Eleazar finally ripped me from my thoughts, gently touching on the subject of the wars again: "If you lost someone dear to you during those raids, I am truly sorry." He was still sticking to Spanish and it was very strange to me to hear words of compassion in this language.
I looked up and gently shook my head. "No need to apologize, I wasn't even born back then", I quickly explained in Spanish and noticed that Eleazar still wasn't really sure what to make out of my reaction. "Your confused", I stated and ran a hand through my hair, tightening my scarf again. "I'll be glad to fill in the blanks but there is one question I'd like to ask you first", I requested, and the Spanish vampire nodded, inviting me to continue. "Why didn't they stop it? I see the strategic advantage in letting some live to spread the message. But why leave the old ones, the instigators? They must have known that they would just go ahead and create new newborn-soldiers as soon as the Volturi left", I finally stated the question, my Texan accent coming through in the Spanish since the topic had me quite worked up. Eleazar sighed and looked at the pendant once again before answering in his mother tongue: "They knew, and I am sorry to say: they counted on it. There is a reason for why the Volturi have managed to keep their position for this long: Caius and Aro are formidable tacticians. They know that their power directly comes from our world's need for someone like them. Someone to enforce the rules. By letting the fights continue on a smaller scale, they have the possibility to step in every once in a while to demonstrate their power, and remind us all, why we need them."
I could feel the anger growing inside me as he explained and when he finally finished, my hands were clenched to stiff fists. "Politics", I growled - in English this time – and Edward and Carmen immediately turned to look at us. I took a deep breath, calming myself before continuing in Spanish: "So it all comes down to politics?" Eleazar nodded and I had to supress another growl. The realisation made me angrier than I had expected, and I tried to keep it down, but it was hard – until Alice basically appeared out of nowhere and took a seat on the armrest of the chair I was sitting in. She was careful to make sure that her shoulder touched mine, knowing that the contact would increase her emotions impact on me. Her calming and cheerful sentiments washed over me and helped me push aside all the anger instantly. Thankful for this gesture, I looked at her and wondered for a minute whether she had seen me do something stupid and thus came back down to stop me from doing that. However, I chose to enquire about this later, when we were alone.
"Alice, how did you like the renovation works?", Eleazar addressed my angel and she nodded. "Yes, it's lovely. We were actually just about to start preparing the guest room for painting, but I wanted to see what you guys are doing down here first", she replied in perfect Spanish and my eyes widened. I hadn't known she spoke Spanish, she had never told me. "Well, I see you are just talking. I'll leave you boys to that, I think I have talked enough for the time being", she then added in English and disappeared just as fast as she had appeared. Eleazar and I turned our heads to follow her and I could see a smile appear on his lips. "Am I wrong or were we just checked upon?", he then joked, and I smiled: "No, I think you're right."
Alice's short visit had dispersed the anger that I felt before. It wasn't completely gone, and I would definitively have to think about what Eleazar revealed sometime. But not now. Not here. I turned my head back to him and noticed, that his eyes once more were fixed on the scars on my jaw. "I promised I would answer your questions", I reminded him, and his eyes immediately returned to mine. "Well, if I'm honest I am a bit unsure about what the wars mean to you", he admitted, and I ran one hand through my hair again, before answering: "I spent the first 67 years of my new life fighting in them… I started off as one of the newborns but when my talent manifested, my creator quickly realised that it could be of use, even once I surpassed my first year." I started to give him a short version of my history during the wars, containing just enough information for him to understand, why I had reacted so poorly to his previous answer.
Eleazar listened to everything very attentively and in contrast to most of the others I had talked with before, he looked at everything very analytically, although he still apologized for the fact, that they – referring to the Volturi guard – hadn't stopped something like this from happening first. Then, however, a rather interesting conversation about the necessity of the war and the implications of the Volturi's power for the rest of our race ensued. We had been talking for quite a while, when Eleazar mentioned how he and Carmen met the Denali sisters and chose to follow the vegetarian lifestyle as well. This reminded me of why Carlisle had initially proposed this meeting and I couldn't help but ask him, how he did it. "Not much different from what you did, I suppose. We just stopped hunting humans and started hunting animals", Eleazar replied and chuckled, but quickly noticed that this was not what I meant. "Well, of course we would occasionally slip up in the beginning. But Carmen and I both never really enjoyed the killing and thus it felt more like salvation than a burden", he continued, and I nodded my head. I could understand the "salvation" part all too well. But there was also the part where I was slipping up, disappointing Alice and now probably all of the Cullen's in the process. And this one was even more painful than having to live through my victim's fear and agony as they took their last breath.
"How long did it take you to not be fixated on their blood all the time when you come across one?", I inquired further and Eleazar thought about this for a while. "I would say probably about 30 years… It was shorter for Carmen, she was a natural. I had my troubles, but it got easier with every year", he replied, and I nodded faintly. 30 years, it was a long time, but I had lived more than three times this long; I could do it. For Alice. It was somehow encouraging to hear, that even he – a vampire who had lived longer than I had from human blood – was able to do it. "I'm sure you'll adjust splendidly. Just give it some time, I'm sure it took you a few years to master that gift of yours as well", Eleazar eventually added and I chuckled. He was right. If I was honest, I was still learning until today. Alice had introduced me to a whole array of new emotions that I had never come across during the wars. Like the strange feeling of hope she gave me, when we first met.
As if that thought had been her cue, my mate danced into the room once again, accompanied by Carlisle, Esme and the sisters. She crossed the room and came to a stop next to me, leaning onto the armrest again. "We have to wait for the paint to dry and I was wondering whether you would accompany me on a short stroll through the area", she asked and quickly added, glancing at Eleazar: "You are very welcome to join us." The dark-haired vampire smiled gently but shook his head: "Thank you, but I think it's time I checked what my lovely wife is up to. It was very insightful to talk to you Jasper, I hope we'll be able to do this again soon." With these words he rose to his feet and walked out of the room. I had been so concentrated on our conversation, that I hadn't even noticed how Carmen and Edward left earlier. I stood up as well and gently took Alice's hand into mine: "Lead the way ma'am."
xxxx
My angel led us out the front door and away from the house. We didn't go too far, only a few miles, until Alice let herself fall into the grass and I let myself be pulled down with her. "You and Eleazar seemed to get along well?", she pointed out and I could tell that she was very pleased with this development. "He seems to be a very decent person", I replied and used the fact that we were alone for a moment to pull her close and place my lips on hers. Alice returned the kiss and buried her hands in my hair, placing her tiny body atop mine and pinning me to the grass. My hands ran up her back as she continued with one of her favourite ways to spend time: kissing every single one of the scars on my face, jaw and neck. Sometimes, she even continued farther, spending hours upon hours tracing every single half-moon on my body with her lips. But that wouldn't be appropriate here and today, and she knew that. I examined her peaceful smile every time she stopped for a second to look at me and I stroked the back of her head. The purity of her love was a salve for my scarred soul, and I was sure I would never be able to get enough of it.
"Why have you never told me, that you speak Spanish?", I asked, closing my eyes and enjoying the gentle touch off her lips for a moment. "I figured you already knew. Didn't you ever wonder how I was able to follow everything you did in the years when you still were with her? I wasn't even sure you spoke English until you and Peter became friends. I had to prepare for the eventuality", she explained and put a quick peck on my lips, prompting me to open my eyes again as she started to fiddle with my scarf. "Right… I never thought about that like this before", I admitted and lifted my head such that she could remove the scarf from my neck. Continuing with her little activity, she placed a kiss on one of the deeper bites, one that had been able to rip a chunk of flesh from my neck which I had to reattach after the battle was over. "And what did you see me do, when you came down to check on us before?", I continued and saw her beautiful smile appear in front of my eyes for a moment. "Nothing too bad, but that gorgeous couch table would have been the victim and I thought it was too young to die", she then admitted in a joyful fashion, placing another kiss on my neck. "I'm…", I immediately started to apologize but she stopped me immediately: "Don't! Anyone in your position would have reacted like that. No one ever expected you to be perfectly calm all the time, Jazz. You're allowed to get angry, or frustrated, or upset." This sounded so easy out of her mouth, but it truly wasn't. I couldn't allow myself to become to emotional. Not only because I could end up transferring whatever I was feeling on everyone around me, but also because I still didn't trust myself not to hurt anyone, if I let myself get carried away. The fighting and killing instincts were deeply engraved in me and I knew that someone like Alice, Rosalie, Carlisle, probably even Emmett, would stand no chance against the monster inside me.
"I'm trying, Alice", was all I could finally say on that topic and she accepted it. "Good. And now, why don't you try to catch me?", she sprang to her feet and dashed away and into the woods without waiting for me to reply. I sighed but couldn't help but smile at her nature, as I got up as well and rushed after her. I could hear her small feet on the forest floor ahead of me and accelerated until I could see her figure in the distance. She was smiling brightly, her skin illuminated by the occasional sunray that made it through the canopy of leaves. She was absolutely stunning. My steps got wider as I caught up with her but catching up was only the first step. What was much harder was grabbing her. She was very nimble and anticipated my moves, slipping away every time I extended an arm. After the fifth failed manoeuvre, I changed my tactics and accelerated further, running ahead and away from her. Finally, running a b-line, I was able to come at her from the side. With one well-timed jump my hands reached her shoulders, grabbing them and taking her with me as we tumbled to the floor and rolled over several times. We were both laughing – soprano and bass -, as we rolled out of the forest and came to a stop in the grass. For once, I felt completely carefree. Alice had a special talent to elicit this side of me. And she was the only one who managed to do so.
Getting up on my feet again and picking a few stray leaves from my shirt, I suddenly realised that we were being watched. There were at least three people nearby, all feeling… pleasantly surprised and happy. Turning around, I realised that we were closer to the house now and Carlisle, Esme, Kate and Tanya were observing us fooling around from the big window in the living room. "Earth to Jasper", Alice shook me out of the rigid posture I had taken on, when I realised that we were being watched. Following her towards the house, she danced impatiently in front of me – at least until a vision hit her and she halted in her step for a split second, before resuming her stride: "Oh, I see you are going to offer your help with painting the attic." I raised an eyebrow: "I am?" – "Yes you are, and I accept on Kate's behalf", she smiled and opened the door for us, already announcing that the bedroom was ready for the second coat of paint and that Carlisle, Eleazar and I could get started on the attic.
A/N: I wish you all happy Easter! Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed my take on the Denali's and especially the conversation between Jasper and Eleazar.
The last part of this chapter introduced an issue I would like to touch on some more later: The fact that Jasper is different with Alice than with the rest of the Cullen's or honestly - anyone else. I always percieved Jasper as being Alice's mate and husband first and foremost, and only as a Cullen (or Hale as in Twilight) second. This was emphasized by Stephanie Meyer as well, stating that Jasper was sticking to the vegetarian lifestyle mostly for Alice and that he probably wouldn't have sticked to it if it wasn't for her - especially since it's so hard for him. Of course, he did grow closer with the other Cullen's over the decades, but there are hints even in Twilight and especially in Midnight Sun that emphasize, that his allegiance to Alice is stronger than anything else. And I think, this is an issue that especially Esme will have to learn to deal with.
Have a great easter break (if you have one) and please leave a review if you liked it or have some thoughts on the chapter or the issue I adressed in this little note.