It had taken Jasper longer than he anticipated to get to Texas from Forks. Then again, it shouldn't have been that much of a surprise, there was a significant amount of distant between the two states, regardless of how much speed his vampire abilities afforded him. He couldn't decide if that extra time to think worked to or against his advantage. In one hand it allowed him to consider how he would explain this whole sorry mess to Peter, because he would definitely have something to say about his bitter lack of judgement. But then, it would also give him time to wallow in his guilt and his own sorrow. As much as his and Alice's relationship had been waning in recent years he had still loved her. And yet he had been nothing but a pawn in his games. He would be lying if he said it didn't hurt. And there was guilt, he felt that he had inadvertently caused Bella's death, well if Angela was to be believed that was.
Jasper knew the exact moment he reached Texas, it wasn't any particular sight, it was the feeling. It felt like coming home, as if he was shedding the skin, the disguise he wore whilst with the Cullens. He felt the need to be something he wasn't leave him with a relief he hadn't felt in decades. It didn't mean he loved his family any less, it wasn't all of them who had put chains on him. Just Alice. But her 'love' had been one hell of a drug that he was only just coming out from.
It only took him another half day to reach the outskirts of Peter's ranch after reaching Texas. It stood just like it had for the last half a century, an impressive but down to earth ranch house set against a background of Texan desert. Amusingly, the man still kept horses despite being able to run faster than the animals ever could. Jasper slowed his pace as he approached, Peter might still consider him the Major but he knew better than to spring a surprise arrival on a trained soldier, especially one that had likely had a lot more practice in preceding decades, especially when he'd be outnumbered by a couple that had trained themselves to work as a well oiled team.
No, instead he watched from the outskirts, where he'd be just outside of vampire scent detection. The sight he saw definitely surprised him. It was no longer just Peter and Charlotte, they had apparently taken on a newborn. He wondered as to the story behind the newborn, it couldn't be very old considering its lack of fighting skill because he knew Peter enough to know that it would be one of his first priorities to make sure the newborn's could protect themselves.
Then again Jasper assumed that Peter was done with the newborn thing after the Southern Wars, but apparently not. He could see the newborn starting to get increasingly frustrated as she was repeatedly taken down by Charlotte. Oh boy, but she finally snapped, lunging at Charlotte with a growl and tearing her arm off in the process. Charlotte looked more amused than alarmed by the proceedings which is less than can be said for the newborn. Peter threw his wife her arm with a wink before going to reassure the newborn. Jasper guessed it was time to make an entrance.
"That's quite a feisty newborn you've got there, Captain" His words triggered Peter and Charlotte into immediate action. Charlotte quickly connected her arm back with a handful of her venom filled saliva whilst they both dropped into a defensive crouch. Both pushed the newborn beside them.
The newborn did not drop into a defensive crouch, she stiffened at his voice, then looked up to where he was standing, panic in her eyes. And finally, Jasper got a look at his Captain's newborn: Bella Swan. Well, she wasn't completely dead.
As soon as Peter realised who their visitor was he dropped out of his defensive crouch. He didn't let the tension out of his stance though. Not until he got to the bottom of what had gone on between human Bella and the Cullen's. Charlotte had also dropped out of her crouch. A curious look on her face as she stared at the Major. He couldn't quite place what Bella was feeling, it was a mixture of fear and maybe guilt.
"You finally grant us worthy a visit after half a century, Major?" Though at this point Peter said Major like it was an ugly word. Peter loved his brother, of course he did, but he was bitter to quite a large extent. And then there was the whole curiosity surrounding his abandoning of a knowledgeable human.
"I don't have any excuses Peter, but here me out. Bella will want to hear this too." He felt the newborn growl beside him, apparently she wasn't too interested in listening to the Major. Then again, she would have dehydrated in a forest because of him and his family so he couldn't blame her.
"If you can persuade the Little Lady to listen to you then fair enough, but I don't know how that's linked to why you rode off into the sunset with no such thing as even a 'kiss my arse' for me and Char." Peter would give him his due's, he at least had the gall to look guilty.
"Because I should have listened to you when you told me that Alice was bad news." Ah, of course. The twisted little Pixie. Peter should have guessed it was to do with her. He was just about to allow Jasper closer when Bella tapped him on the back.
"Do I have to speak to him?" There was a world of hurt in the question. From what he could tell Bella and the Major hadn't been close as a human but he had still abandoned her, along with the rest of the Cullen's. He petted her cheek affectionately.
"No, you stick with Char, Little Lady. If you wanna speak with the Major then that's on your terms. Until then I'll deal with him." She nodded before shuffling up to Charlotte. Only when she looked a little more comfortable did he nod at the Major to give him permission to come in.
"You better have one hell of a story, Major." And, he'd be damned if he didn't mean it. Apart from the odd, monitored visit the Major had had no contact with them over the last 50 years. It wasn't something that Peter took lightly.
"I was a mess after the war. You knew that, you were about the only shred of sanity in that whole time. But you were fucked up too, and whilst your mating bond fed some light there was so much darkness. And then, I'd disconnected from the darkest parts of myself, I could feel the fear, horror of my victims and it no longer fed the demon it destroyed the man. And just when I was close to the edge, Peter man I was considering building a fire just to walk into it, Alice turned up. In a room full of humans with half assed emotions she was a beacon. She called to me. There was affection for me in her emotions. It was the drag from the edge I needed. She made tempting promises, another way to live. And I listened. And I changed. I became a man I didn't recognise. The truth was I was ashamed to face you guys. I remember what you said to me when I left. 'The Major's not the problem here, she is.' But I was lovestruck and I'd already associated the Major with everything I hated about myself. So I told you I'd be fine and I walked off into the sunset of a cuddly life of animals and repeating high school over and over. Every time the Major tried to get out, I reigned him in, and every time I did Alice would be proud. I thought she was my mate, or at least as close to, because I was a monster who didn't deserve a mate." Peter felt his hard stance melting. He hadn't seen Jasper so emotionally wrought since just after the war.
"I got stuck in the pattern for fifty years. I wore the 'Hale' coat like a protection. They were all so overwhelmingly positive. And despite some shit, most of them loved me. Then we moved to Forks. Apparently, the others had been there before but it was the first time for me and Alice. It was the right sort of place for vegetarian vampires. Plenty of forests to hunt in, and plenty of rain that our absence from school wouldn't be noticed too often. Oh, and mutant wolves designed to kill vampires. Anyway, for a while Forks was fine, we had a treaty with the wolves, the humans were understandably wary but saw us as reasonable polite, decent people. Then Bella turned up, and no offense, but the shit hit the fan. Edward was obsessed with her, he couldn't read her mind, and despite warnings from all of us he still insisted on romancing her. And romance her he did. For a long time, she was smitten. She loved the rest of us too, she wanted in as part of the family. Every time she brought it up Edward always brought up the sanctity of her soul. Then there were some rogue vampires who decided it'd be fun to hunt Bella.
Long story short, the male vampire got to Bella and had bitten her by the time we reached her. Emmett and I offed the male, Edward was too preoccupied with stopping Bella from turning to care about eliminating the threat. He succeeded. Everything was hunky dory once again until her birthday. Bella was adamant that she didn't want a celebration, but Alice, as always, steamrollered over what everyone else wanted. Bella was slightly more human then and cut herself on an envelope. She was Edward's singer so logically his bloodlust skyrocketed. He would have killed her. Tried to get him out the way, he exacerbated the situation by pushing her into a glass cabinet. His bloodlust increased even further, so I tried for him again, but Carlisle and Emmett held me back. Must have thought I was going for Bella. So, I'm removed, Edward's removed. I'm kept away in Alaska for a while with the Denali's. A week later the rest of the family turn up, Esme and Emmett distraught, Carlisle not the happiest either. Bella asked them to leave, blamed me for the attack and realised she'd got in too far." He was about to carry on but was swiftly interrupted by Bella.
"Bullshit! Is that what he told you? I never fucking blamed you for one minute. Even ask Alice, I asked to make sure you were okay a number of times in that week!" Hmm. So, Edward and Alice had played Bella as the bad guy to the family and him to Bella in order to stop any questions occurring.
"Well that's where things get interesting then. Things were miserable in Alaska, Emmett and Esme were distraught. Out of us all them two loved you the most. Strangely though Edward and Alice seemed to be fine. It was about three days ago that I figured out why. They've been together the whole time. I don't know why but their plan was to keep me under Alice's spell and to make sure you were dead. They'd assumed you were dead because Alice could no longer see your future. I went back to Forks to find out. Angela threatened me for daring to turn up and confirmed your death. I couldn't bare to give that news to Esme and Emmett, and honestly, I was just a little fucked up over Alice. So, I came to the only other home I had ever known."
Well, this mess seemed to grow with every passing moment. Then again, Peter wasn't surprised this whole mess was orchestrated by the Pixie and mind-reader. They should be warned though, there would be hell to pay when he found them for fucking over his brother and new sister.
"I'll save the 'I told you so' for now. First, we've got to figure out why this was their plan and then how to make them pay." And though Peter hadn't fully forgiven Jasper for leaving him for so long he let him back into the fold with a hug.
Here's another chapter. I promise there'll be a bit more of Jasper/Bella interaction next chapter but I wanted the initial meeting to be more from Peter's point of view.