Author's Note: Jasper's story is entirely made up except for the following counts: He was a major in the Confederate Army in 1863. A woman named Maria did change him and he did live with a vampire family that fed off humans. He was 20 when he changed and he did meet Alice before meeting the Cullen clan. These facts are Stephenie Meyer's and not mine, nor do I lay claim to them. Yet, to better imitate her writing style and the overall Twilight feeling I am using these to create my own idea of how Jasper was transformed. All credit for the above goes to Stephenie Meyer and Twilight Lexicon (where I got the information). I highly recommend Mrs. Meyer's site and Twilight Lexicon for any interested viewers.

Jasper

"Is everyone ready?" Carlisle asked, "Remember, you can not be seen!"

"Right," Emmett said, the excitement written on his face.

"Now, there will be more than just us there. I can guarantee the other werewolves will be on standby," Carlisle continued. "There's no telling if they will attack or not but we must not attack first! This is a completely hands off operation."

Rosalie and Alice nodded in agreement. Esme stood by Carlisle and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I'll take it from here, dear," she said. "Don't worry; I'll keep them under control."

"Of course," Carlisle said, "We'll meet you there."

Esme, Emmett, Rosalie, and Alice flew out of the room. Edward stayed behind and stared at me.

"Bella… you don't have to come along for this…"

"I want to, Edward," I insisted. "Please, don't worry about me…"

I knew it was useless to say that. He was going to worry about me no matter what I said or did. Edward pulled me into a tight hug.

"Stay safe… don't leave Carlisle's side for even a second…," he whispered into my ear.

I nodded and looked up at him, startled at the worry I saw there.

"I won't, besides you'd know if I did," I said, my voice cracking despite my attempt at a light-hearted tone.

He smiled and leaned down to kiss me. It ended far too soon as he ran off to join the rest of the group, leaving only Carlisle and Jasper with me.

"Alright, we'll take my car," Carlisle said, "Come on, kids."

I couldn't help but smile at his use of the word 'kid'. I wasn't exactly sure just how old Jasper was, but I was sure he was far too old to even remotely be referred to as 'kid'.

Jasper and I followed Carlisle out to his car.

"Sorry, but you'll both have to sit in the back," Carlisle said, apologetically, "I'm afraid I have quite a bit of medical papers on the front seat."

I nodded, although I was a bit apprehensive to sit so close to Jasper. Although I knew he would never intentionally hurt me, I could still remember what he was capable of. I shuddered as I remembered my near-death experience with him over a paper cut. Jasper gave me a shy smile as I buckled my seatbelt. I smiled back, hoping that the strain was not too hard for him. He seemed to be well fed; his eyes were liquid topaz with hints of gold.

"Well, we're in for a long drive," Carlisle said, grinning at me, "It's about an hour away without driving our usual speed."

I couldn't help but smile at this statement. Edward had once told me that all of the Cullen's had a 'need for speed' or so to speak. I glanced over at Jasper, suddenly curious about him.

"Jasper?" I said suddenly.

"Yes?" he asked, glancing over at me curiously.

"Forget it, it's nothing," I said quickly, realizing how personal my question was.

"What is it?" he asked, smiling warmly.

I bit my lip, still apprehensive about asking him. I could feel his gift moving about, making me a bit more confident.

"I was just curious… and you don't have to answer if it's uncomfortable," I said quickly, "But… how did you change?"

He knew immediately what I was talking about. Jasper looked up at Carlisle, as if waiting for permission. Carlisle gave an encouraging nod and Jasper looked back at me.

"Do you really want to know?" he asked, surprised that I was interested.

I nodded encouragingly; it had been a question that I had been wondering about for ages.

"Well… it was in 1863," he began, his voice steady as if he had gone over this story a thousand times. "I was born and raised in a small town in Georgia. I joined the Confederate Army at the age of 19 and worked my way up to Major by my 20th birthday. I hated the war and everything about it. At the time, I would have given anything to be out of it. That's when I met Maria…"

"Maria?" I asked, confused.

Jasper nodded, deep in thought. "Maria… the vampire who changed me…"

"Oh," I said, growing quiet.

"She was… very pretty… and she would always come to flirt with the officers. She had long, black hair and, at the time, I thought that I was in love with her. That is not the case now of course; it was before I met Alice. Then, one night I was on midnight watch. I… stubbed my toe in the dark and started cussing up a storm."

He chuckled lightly at this, flashing a slight smile at me.

"I don't normally cuss, but at the time I was just so mad at everything. The war, the army, the state of living. I just yelled at the stars about everything that the war was doing for me. Maria came up behind me and offered me a way out. She said that she could… get me out of the army on a special sick leave and that I could stay with her. It was… a dream come true for me. Here there was a pretty girl offering me a way out of the hell I was in. Of course, I took it and she bit me right then and there. I was in pain for a week and the army discharged me to live with her and her family. When I awoke from my painful state, I… I didn't know what to do. I wanted to die, but… some how I knew that was impossible. Maria explained to me what had happened."

Jasper snorted angrily, "As if it was just going to be okay. As if she had not just ruined my life… I… I am ashamed to say that I followed their way of living for a long time… but I always felt guilty after feeding off humans… and I could not understand why. Maria and I began to fight all the time and I realized what a viper she truly was. I began to go off in search of something more… that's when I met Alice, the true love of my life."

"And the Cullen's?" I asked, fascinated by his story.

"Later on, yes," he continued. "After I spent a couple years with Alice, we met up with the Cullen's and they were good enough to take me in…"

"We're lucky to have you," Carlisle said, speaking for the first time.

Jasper smiled and put a hand on Carlisle's shoulder. Carlisle took one hand off the wheel to pat his hand. I smiled at this loving exchange, happy to be there to witness it.

"And the rest, as they say, is history." Jasper said, "I never saw Maria again after that…"

"Do you… ever miss her?" I asked hesitantly.

He shook his head, "No, even when she was charming me I always sensed an inner evil in her. She was the kind of person that always had an ulterior motive to everything she did. I don't regret being changed though; if I hadn't I would have never met Alice."

Carlisle pulled onto a small dirt road. I looked up surprised that we had arrived so quickly.

"Has it really been an hour?" I asked.

Carlisle grinned sheepishly, "I guess I couldn't resist going a little faster than the speed limit."

Jasper chuckled and the three of us stepped out of the car. I could see the clearing where Billy and Jacob were to meet us. Carlisle placed a hand on my shoulder.

"Bella… you can wait in the car if you'd like…"

"No," I said, feeling a sudden wave of confidence. "Let's just do this…"