AN: A little back story in this one, and some of my favourite characters are making their first appearance. In case you missed it, I did update twice yesterday, so if you only saw one chapter please go read the other, they're all important to the story. And I wanted to say thanks to all of the readers, reviewers, favourites and alerts. I'm so happy you guys are enjoying this story so far.
Disclaimer: owns all, but I want to be a Colonel so bad, especially with this Captain and Major.
"What the hell is that?" I asked Alice as she brought out a huge cork board. It had been two months since my change and while I remembered most things about Jasper now, and I just knew shit about the other members of our family I still couldn't really remember much about my human life. Thankfully after the first month my appetite for blood died down, and my temper became a lot more manageable, sure I'd still snap occasionally, but it was getting easier to deal with the likes of Emmett.
"This is your life!" Alice giggled as she spun the board around. I was confronted with a whole host of images and items which started sparking neurones in my brain, allowing old connections to re-fire. Even my million track vampire brain could keep up with the assault. Instead I closed my eyes and waited for the haze of information to pass. When I opened my eyes again Alice had only a couple of items from the board in her hands, the offending board itself was turned around against the wall.
"Was this your idea Alice?" I asked with a quizzical look.
"No. It was yours. You wanted to hold onto the human, so we helped. Here." She handed me three photographs of a young, brown haired girl and a man with a moustache, he was obviously her father, and if their body language didn't give it away then their eyes would.
I studied the images for a moment before connecting the dots. "She's me?"
"Yes Darlin'." Jasper confirmed from his seat behind me. His arms were around my waist and his chin rested on my shoulder while I leant back against him as we sat on the floor. Occasionally his fingers would dip under my shirt and stroke the skin of my hip, as soon as he did my attention was solely focused on his touch. I was still easily distracted.
"So, that's my dad?" I felt him nod. I decided to start with the picture where the girl – where I – seemed to be oldest. I had bunches in my hair and was wearing horribly bright neon colours, pink shorts and a green t-shirt. The man – my dad – stood beside her holding a fish, it was a tiny thing, but they both looked so proud, me of myself and him of me.
"Dad! Dad I did it, I caught one!" I squealed, jumping up and down waving my red net in the air as my dad set down his rod and made his way to inspect my first catch. I was ten and Charlie had taken me to California for a couple of weeks. He looked into my net and a blinding smile crossed his face.
"You did it Kid!" He confirmed; his pride and love radiating from him. He insisted someone take a photo of my first ever catch. It was my last ever catch as well, but it sure did taste better than any other fish had.
"Charlie." I breathed, running a finger over the picture where his smile beamed at me. It felt nice to remember, to be able to put a context to the image in front of me. I traded the fishing photo for another one, in this one I was about six years old. I was dressed in jeans and a multicoloured zig zag sweater. Charlie was knelt next to me, holding a Power Rangers backpack in front of him. My first day of school.
I was skipping beside my dad as we walked along the streets, I was so excited about starting school and was yapping merrily at my dad, often tugging on his hand to make him hurry up. Once we reached the gates we paused. Charlie helped me put my backpack on, inside it I knew there was a matching pencil case filled with pencils and crayons all the colors of the rainbow. We walked calmly into school and into my classroom, there were other children buzzing around but I didn't really pay attention to them. I hung my coat up on the hook with my name above it, there was also a picture of a clown there too. I placed my backpack carefully below my coat and looked at my dad. He hugged me tightly and wished me luck, then he told me how proud he was of me, and how smart he knew I was. Then he left the room and I was ushered to my seat.
The memory faded and I bit back a sob, I was sad that I couldn't see my dad now, but something in me told me this feeling wasn't new. It wasn't a restriction placed upon me by what I'd chosen to become. "Tell me Bella." Jasper whispered, squeezing me gently. So I recounted both memories to him, recalling every detail I possibly could from the scattering of white hairs around Charlie's temples to the graze on my elbow from falling on the riverbank. Each word opened up a slight wound inside me, one which I didn't quite understand.
"Where is he?" I asked in barely more than a whisper. I longed to hear that he was happy and healthy in Forks, but from the look on Jaspers face I knew that wasn't going to be the case. He closed his eyes for a moment and nuzzled my neck, breathing my scent in deeply before looking back at me.
"He passed away baby, fifteen months ago." His voice was laced with sadness but I simply nodded, I had known that, it had been there in the bag of my brain. I had mourned him after he'd been shot while on duty.
"I'm sorry Isabella, Charlie was killed in the line of duty when he was called to an armed robbery. An ambulance was called but he had already passed on by the time they made it to the hospital. I'm sorry for your loss."
The officer's words echoed around my head. I had been at college at the time. The phone call was the reason I moved back to Forks. I knew there was more to it, but I couldn't figure it out just at that moment. "Armed robbery." I said for Jaspers benefit, letting him know I remembered. "I need to stop. I need to think." I needed to hunt. Without another word I freed myself of Jaspers embrace and darted out of the back door and headed straight for the forest. I knew at least two of them would follow me, they always did, not wanting me to accidentally run across a human scent and kill them. I ignored the sounds of their footsteps rushing behind me as I caught a whiff of elk to the west of me, I suddenly changed my direction and began my hunt.
There were three of them, all female. Grazing just below me in a clearing. I watched them from my perch in the tree, waiting for my moment to strike. I dropped silently onto the ground once the wind shifted enough to put me down wind from my prey. I pounced on the one nearest me, sending the other two scampering off into the safety of the trees while my teeth ripped through fur, flesh, fat, sinew until they met an artery. The blood spilled into my mouth, soothing my parched throat as it coated my mouth. I drained the animal dry in minutes without spilling a drop. When I was done I felt a little better, my mind was a little clearer even if it was still dragging memories to the forefront of my mind. Charlie was being remembered. That's what mattered, I remembered the man who had raised me, given me life and love.
Jasper found me ten minutes later sat in a tree. My legs were dangling off the branch and swinging below me as I stared out across the treetops. He said nothing as he sat next to me, wrapping me in the safety and comfort of his arms. "Darlin', there's someone at the house. They want to see you."
"I don't want to see anyone Jasper. I want to sleep. I miss sleep. I miss feeling refreshed after a good night's rest. I miss yawning. Hell I miss the feeling of needing the bathroom. I miss a hell of a lot that I don't even remember." I whined, burying my face in his chest, I took a lungful of his scent in, he smelt like earth. Earth, sawdust, wet grass and midnight. I loved his smell. I could drown in it. "But I love knowing I get forever with you." I smiled, pressing a kiss above his heart. "I love knowing that you'll help me remember my human life while helping make new memories in this one. I love knowing I can see every sunrise for the rest of time while I'm in your arms."
"And every sunset Sugar." He drawled, squeezing me gently before telling me we had to go back to the house. I growled in frustration but shimmied down the tree nonetheless and we started the run back to the house hand in hand.
Two new scents hit me as we strolled into the house, meandering through the kitchen. One was male, the other female. There was something familiar about them. As we reached the living room I spotted our guests and a squeal left me as I pounced on the male visitor. The contact made him let out a gruff exhale but he hugged me tightly before putting me back on my feet.
"Petey." I giggled in happiness. Just like with the rest of my family I remembered random shit about our time together, like I knew he hated Britney Spears, but loved talking about the intricacies of the human blood system. I also knew that he was my brother, and his wife, Charlotte, was my sister. I knew Jasper had changed them. I knew Peter just 'knew shit' sometimes.
"Wow, B, you change up good." He smirked at me, his red eyes shining down at me. I knew my eyes were still transitioning from the red of a newborn to the gold of a Cullen, they were a burnt orange shade at the moment. Charlotte nudge him out of my line of sight and hugged me tightly.
"We missed you Bells." She whispered before taking a step back and appraising my new look.
"What are you guys doing here?"
"Your Major over there asked us to stop by. I think he just wanted to show you off." Peter said, nodding his head in Jaspers direction behind me. I spun to look at him, he shrugged telling me he had indeed wanted to show me and my 'control' off. I still didn't feel very controlled.
"If he's the Major, what're you Bella?" Emmett chimed in from his seat on the couch. I hadn't really registered the rooms other occupants, my attention having been focused on the new arrivals, but I knew that Em, Rose and Alice were all present. Just like I knew that Carlisle was in his study and Esme was in hers. I also knew that Edward was nowhere nearby.
"She's the Colonel." Charlotte laughed and I joined in as Jasper growled teasingly behind me, stepping closer. "Oh give it a rest Jay, you know she's in charge, she always has been, even as a human you were wrapped around her delicate little pinkie." As if to emphasise her point Charlotte wiggled her pinkie finger at him while Peter and I shared and eye roll.
We'd all settled into a friendly banter, with Peter and Charlotte filling me in on what they'd been up to recently (ridding the world of paedophiles and rapists in Texas, apparently) and what their plans were for the next few months (staying with us to play 'annoy the newborn'). The rest of the family joined in and this was how Edward found us when he returned, but something about him seemed different, a new scent washed through the air. It was sweet, almost sickly sweet, and it made my throat flare. In one sixty fourth of a second I had leapt across the room and was sniffing him. He was covered in the smell, and it made the creature inside me roar with want, with need.
"Fuck Eddie." Emmett sighed as Peter and Jasper pulled me away from the smell, though I was fighting them. "Could you not have changed your clothes first?"
"I didn't really think about it Emmett." Edward said, running a hand through his bronze hair, the movement sent another wave of the smell to me, I inhaled it greedily.
"I want it." I whined, straining in Jasper and Peters grasp to try and get to Edward, for him to tell me the source of that delicious smell. I wanted to find it and savour it.
"Isabella." Jasper was in front of me now, one of his arms around waist, the hand of the other was forcing my head to face him. His eyes captured my attention. "You don't want that." I swallowed a couple of times.
"I do Jazz. I need it. I need to taste it." I mewled like a kitten, my arms struggling to get out of Peters vice like grip.
"Baby, that smell is a human." It took a moment for me to register those words before I stopped struggling. A human? They smelt that good? Why did we have to live off animals if humans smelt that good? "They're people Isabella. With families, and futures." No, they were delicious.
"It's nice to know she's not the control freak you thought she was Jay."
"Shut the fuck up Peter." He growled, not taking his eyes off me. My eyes were darting between my mate and Edward. The bronze haired boy hadn't moved a muscle since he'd run his hand through his hair and I desperately wanted him to, I craved another chance to taste the smell he'd brought home with him. "Edward, for fuck's sake get out of here. Change your clothes and shower." Jasper ordered, his eyes blazing. As Edward moved I caught another wave and audibly groaned at the sweetness of it before immediately restarting my attempts at freedom so I could follow Edward and ask him the location of the smell or go find it myself. "Darlin', listen to me. You don't want to hunt humans. You'd regret it."
"No I wouldn't. Jazz, I need it, don't you understand?"
"Of course I understand Sugar." He soothed me, his fingers stroking my back gently as he pushed a calmness at me.
"How could you even be around me when I was human? How did any of you stand it?"
"I loved you. We all did, it helped with our control. And we had a lot more experience being vegetarian than you Darlin'." I whined again as my throat felt raw.
"Do you want to hunt again?" Jasper asked a little while later when my head had cleared a little. I shook my head. I needed to associate the pain with that smell. He'd been right, I'd hate myself if I took a human life. I never wanted to be that person. I needed to make the connection between that deliciously tempting scent and the pain in my throat. I also had to ignore the fact that I knew the source of the scent could cure the burn. It was going to be a long time before I was ready to go out in public.
"It's a good thing you were here Captain." Emmett said to Peter.
"Jay could've handled it on his own, he's dealt with worse." Peter shrugged, but Emmett insisted on continuing the conversation.
"Yeah but the others weren't Bella, were they? He didn't love them."
"Emmett." Jasper growled in warning. "Shut up."
"You did great though Bells." Emmett said to me as Rose dragged him out of the room, muttering something about him not knowing when to shut up.
"Jasper, how am I ever going to be able to resist that?" I asked after the room had fallen into silence.
"Time and experience Darlin'. Just like the rest of us. But don't you dare feel guilty about your reaction." He ordered as the guilt started to creep up on me.
"But I shouldn't have wanted it so much." I insisted.
"Isabella, listen to me, you reacted in a perfectly natural way to the smell of humans." Peter insisted form across the room before Jasper cut in.
"You weren't even really fighting us Sugar. If you had been we wouldn't have been able to hold you like that. We'd have had you pinned to the floor instead. So relax, and stop blaming yourself for an instinct you can't control."
"I might not be able to control the instinct, but I will learn to control how I react to it." I said firmly.
"In time Sugar. In time." I sighed as Jasper nipped my neck lightly starting what was to be a long night of 'make-Bella-forget' sex. Not that I was complaining.
Peter and Charlotte certainly seemed as ruffled as the rest of the household when we spotted them the next morning, apparently they'd left the house to try out the forest, but they still didn't escape Jazz's projecting. "Morning." I greeted them all brightly, skipping over to the Jasper as he appeared in the doorway, we'd had to take separate showers for fear of never surfacing, so while he'd showered I had made my ritualistic coffee. I might not drink it anymore but the smell still had some meaning to Jasper, so every morning I made coffee, and every morning he smiled at the smell. I placed a quick kiss on Jaspers cheek before turning to the other members of the family. "What're we doing today?" I asked.
"Training." Peter said menacingly.
"And remembering." Alice tinkled brightly.
"Awesome." I grinned.
I knew I should be a little wary of the idea of training with Peter and Jasper, I could see their scars, I knew instinctively that they could be dangerous. But I also knew that they'd never truly hurt me. They'd never kill me. I also knew that they had more fighting experience in their big toes than the rest of the Cullens put together, along with experience with Newborns. Jasper had filled me in between orgasms last night. I knew all about Maria and the Southern wars. I knew all about Jasper's past. And most of Peter and Charlottes for all three of them were intrinsically linked. I knew I should feel terrified when I stood across the clearing from Peter an hour later, the sun shining off his skin, making him sparkle, though his scars were duller, it only brought them more to my attention. But I wasn't afraid.
Then he attacked.
AN: Leave some love?