A/N: Okay, cats and kittens. Let's do this thing.

Jasper was absolutely enthralled with the little girl sitting on his bed; he simply couldn't stop staring.

She was a precious thing. She had his brown eyes and Alice's fine features. He wondered where she'd gotten her sweet temperament. Bella was hyper-aware of his injuries, often calming herself when she got a little too bouncy, lest she hurt him.

She'd greeted him with a hug and a kiss and said she was glad he was done sleeping. Then she'd promptly informed him they were playing pirates and pulled out a few props from her little backpack to assist her with this.

Carefully, she clambered further up, her little tongue sticking out as she fixed an eyepatch over his face as carefully as any almost-six-year-old was capable of.

"Today, you are Jaspah Sparrow, and I am Bella Swann," she informed him primly.

"Captain Sparrow has an eyepatch does he?" Jasper asked, amused.

"Uh huh. 'Cause of the same reason you lost all your hair, in a pirate battle. A cannonball blowed up in front of you."

"Is that what happened?"

"Yes. It burned off your dreads."

Jasper laughed. "You know what dreads are?"

"Daddy tolded me," she said, trying to adjust her big pirate hat so it didn't fall down over her eyes.

"I told you that?" Jasper asked, wishing he remembered.

Bella gave him a strange look. "No. Daddytold me."

It took Jasper a minute to understand what the little girl was talking about. He thought at first it must have meant that Alice had a boyfriend, but he already knew she didn't.

Jasper on the other hand...

He shook that thought away, determined not to let his twisting stomach and frazzled nerves intrude on his time with his daughter. Luckily, Bella was oblivious to his distress, babbling on merrily about pirate treasures and ships.

After about twenty minutes, Alice and Lucy came back from the walk they'd taken together. Jasper smiled at them.

"Look, Mommy. I has a treasure for you," Bella announced, hopping off the bed and proffering her mother a plastic necklace she'd recently pilfered.

"Thank you, baby. It's very pretty." She stooped down, her hands on her knees. "Now will you please gather all your things? We need to go."

The pleasant smile on Bella's face faded almost instantly. "No. No, I'm not done yet," she whined. "Me and Papa are playing."

"Well, it's time to leave now," Alice said firmly.

"I don't want to!" Bella insisted stubbornly, crossing her arms.

Alice sighed. "Bella, Papa needs his rest."

Jasper wished he could argue with that, but he was utterly exhausted, his eyelids already drooping. He opened his mouth to comfort Bella, but ended up yawning instead.

"See?" Alice smirked. "He's already falling asleep."

To both Jasper and Alice's great surprise, the little girl promptly burst into tears. She ran at Jasper, throwing herself up on the bed and into his arms. Jasper gasped in pain, but he held her, not sure what the hell was going on but knowing he hated seeing her cry.

"Bella, what..."

"You can't go to sleep again, Papa. You can't!" she sobbed. She lifted her head, miserable tears streaming down her face as she gulped and tried to speak. "I thought you were in a magic sleep like Sleeping Beauty. But then Daddy would be your prince, and when Daddy kissed you, you would wake up. But you didn't! You didn't and I'm a-feared if you go to sleep again, you won't wake up."

"Oh, baby..." he rasped. He wanted to comfort her, but she was squeezing him too tight. His abused body couldn't take it

"Bella. Be careful, sweetie." Alice carefully unwound Bella's arms from around Jasper's neck and pulled her away. "Papa's a little fragile right now."

"I'm sorry, Papa. Please don't go back to sleep."

"Baby girl, I won't sleep that long again," he said now that he could breathe a little better.

"Promise?"

He held out his pinky finger.

Sniffling, she reached down out of Alice's arms so she could curl her pinky around his. Calmer now that she'd secured his pinky swear, she gave him a kiss before she set about following her mother's first instruction, picking up her toys.

"Thank you," Alice told her. "Now why don't you go see Daddy? He's right outside. I think he could use a big Bella hug."

Bella was agreeable and kissed Jasper one more time before she scampered out the door.

Jasper banged his head back against the pillow.

"Talk to me, Jazz," Alice said quietly.

He swallowed hard. "I want to concentrate on Bella. I want to just be so amazed... and I am. She's incredible, Alice."

Alice's smile was soft. "She is. I'm waiting for the but..."

"But... I keep getting stuck on the fact my daughter - ourdaughter - calls another man Daddy." And that, though he hadn't pushed, hadn't tried to get Jasper to see him, he was well aware Edward had been close by all day long - probably all night, too. "I don't know what to feel about that. If he's the one who tore our family apart-"

How could he help but be pissed off? He'd woken up to find out his wife wasn't his wife anymore. Someone had stolen her away from him. It wasn't okay to touch her, hold her. He couldn't expect her sweet kisses maybe ever again.

So yeah, he was angry and befuddled and Edward was an easy, obvious target.

"He isn't."

Jasper looked up at Alice, surprised and, as usual, confused.

Alice laughed, the sound not remotely amused. "God..." she muttered, turning her head slightly to wipe away a surreptitious tear. "It would be so easy, soeasy, to feed your anger, to take you back. " She sighed. "But it's not the right way."

Shaking her head, she looked at him with sad resolution. "This is not going to be easy for me. Edward's not one of my favorite people, but not because of anything he did to me - to us." She smiled slightly. "He just has you, that's all. You didn't meet Edward until Bella was around one. You filed for divorce when I was seven months pregnant."

It was another in a long series of sucker punches aimed directly at his gut. "Oh, God," his voice was dry, raspy. He stared up at the ceiling. "Who the fuck am I?"

She squeezed his hand sympathetically. "All the choices of our lives sound incomprehensible without context, I suppose." She rubbed her chin, as if deep in thought. "I don't know how to explain this part to you, and I understand why it's jarring, obviously. It was the shock of my life, and most days, I still don't think I'm over it.

"But that being said, I've obviously had a lot more time to think about it. What it all boils down to is a very simple concept with a very complicated execution: Life's a journey. Just because you have a destination in mind doesn't mean you'll get there."

Jasper swallowed, hating the way his throat was tight and his eyes stung with tears he refused to let accumulate. "I just... It's not something I wanted to lose. I don't remember being unhappy," he said in a small voice.

"We weren't unhappy. I understand, it makes it harder in some ways. But then again, you kept us from getting to a place where we were unhappy and tearing each other apart. It hurt like hell, but I did get to a place where I could appreciate that."

Jasper didn't say anything. He wanted to argue. Everything in him wanted to fight. "I don't understand."

"Honey, I'm really not the one who can help you with that." Her voice was still gentle but firm. She was a mother, no doubt about it. "Just meeting him doesn't mean you owe him anything."

Jasper hummed in response to let her know he'd heard her but otherwise didn't react. Alice waited a moment, but then began to get her things to leave, correctly assuming he was done talking. She always did know how to read his moods.

When Alice left, Lucy took her place at his side. She seemed content to prattle without needing much input from her brother. Jasper was appreciative. While he did want the company, he was out of words for the most part, his thoughts too tangled to form coherent sentences.

For minutes or hours, Jasper faded in and out, sleeping and waking, lost between what was real and what was just a dream. All logic told him this could not be happening, that he should fight for Alice - for his life as he knew it - but there was the niggling notion he was six years too late for that battle.

He woke some time later, his eyes opening slowly. The light in the room was dim - the tint of it yellow, telling him it was dusk. Lucy was in the chair next to him reading. He looked at his little sister - grown now - and thought about everything he'd missed.

"Luce?" he asked, his voice raspy. He coughed, and Lucy was quick to retrieve his water. "Thanks," he said when he could breathe again. He closed his eyes, regaining his strength, hating that even a simple coughing fit left him so weak. The doctors told him he would get stronger quickly now that he was awake, but it was still one more frustration in a whole line of them.

"Luce?" he tried again.

"What's up, Jay?"

He swallowed, his heart pounding. He wanted to roll his eyes. In his memory, he'd been preparing to be a police officer, had mentally been reviewing the dangerous situations he might find himself in. Yet this intimidated him more than anything he'd thought up to date.

"Is Edward still here?" he asked finally.

Lucy didn't answer right away but studied his face carefully. "He never leaves," she said after a minute.

Jasper nodded, leaning back against the pillow. "I'm going back to sleep, but..." He swallowed again, staring up at the ceiling. "Tell him he can come wait in here, if he wants."

His sister made a little yelping noise, obviously surprised. "Are you sure, Jay?"

"Ha." Tired, Jasper closed his eyes. "No. But do it anyway."

~0~

"This is a good sign - him wanting you to be here."

Throughout the last few weeks, as Jasper slept, Edward was rarely alone. He'd been grateful for this at the time, but now his father's presence at his side in Jasper's hospital room irked him.

"He might want to tell me in person to go to hell," he answered his father's encouraging thought, voicing his worst fear.

Carlisle gave him a weary look. "He could have had Alice tell you that. Instead, he has you in here while he sleeps. That shows a level of trust. Intimacy."

"This is a hospital, Dad. You know better than most how many people get to watch him sleep here. He has people poking, prodding, and bugging him, asleep or otherwise.

His father sighed. "Would a little positivity kill you?"

Edward considered this seriously. "In this case?" His voice was tight as he spoke. "Yeah. It might."

They lapsed into silence again, Edward studying Jasper's face as he slept, trying not to think that - one way or another - this could be the last time.

"Of course it could be worse," he finally allowed. "He's alive. That's all that really matters." Hadn't he bargained with the powers than were? Anything. Only let him live.

Perhaps he should have been more specific.

"And Alice promised she wouldn't take Bella away from me."

Carlisle's eyes went wide. "Was that a possibility?"

"I don't know, Dad," Edward said tiredly. "You know I have no rights to her. No rights at all. If Alice and Jasper were to decide I couldn't see her anymore, there would be nothing I could do about it."

"You're overthinking things," Carlisle said with a sigh.

"Yeah, well, it's what I'm good at." Edward was not in a good mood.

Knowing better than to try and reason with Edward when he was in this mood, Carlisle lapsed back into silence, able to offer nothing more than what little comfort his presence could provide.

Deep down, Edward was appreciative. It was just he was so completely devastated. Unless Jasper's memory miraculously returned, he simply didn't see how this was going to turn out well for anyone.

An inane thought passed through his head, and Edward wished Jasper's hair wasn't so short. He wished he could run his fingers through the other man's long locks one more time, if this was the last.

That thought was like an ice pick to his side, and Edward had to close his eyes, trying to breathe through the pain and fear.

His mother told him he needed to fight for what was his.

Shaking his head, Edward returned to his silent vigil.

Knowing he couldn't be there, Carlisle begged off long before Jasper woke. "Give him our love, if you can," he murmured before he left. Edward knew both his father and mother were aching in their own right, wanting to be by the side of the man they loved because their son loved him.

It was just after midnight when Jasper's eyes opened slowly. Reluctantly, Edward put a little space between himself and the bed, not wanting to crowd him.

As Jasper turned toward him, Edward's heart began to beat in overtime. Belatedly, he wondered what he looked like. Maybe he should have freshened up a bit, brushed his hair. There was only one chance to make a first impression, after all. Well, technically.

Jasper's eyes focused, his expression becoming guarded, if a little sleepy. Edward didn't know if he should say something. As it was, the lump in his throat seemed difficult to speak around. What he wanted most was to kiss Jasper, repeatedly, because he really was so glad he was awake and aware again.

It had been so long since they'd shared a simple kiss, Edward ached.

Clearing his throat, he decided to speak first. "I feel like I should introduce myself."

Jasper chuffed, letting another few moments pass between them in an awkward silence. "I don't know what to say here," he admitted.

"Well, that makes two of us." Edward blew out a frustrated puff of air. "Look, Jasper. I know this must be so hard to accept-"

"It's damn near impossible to accept," Jasper growled. He took a deep breath, not looking at Edward but grimacing up at the ceiling. "But on the other hand, you do have my wife-" he winced, "- ex-wife, my best friend, my sister, and my daughter on your side."

"This isn't a game. There are no sides," Edward said as gently as possible.

Jasper gave him a withering look. "You know what I mean."

"You mean, you can't deny who I am... was to you." That correction cost Edward dearly, but he was determined to give Jasper whatever kind of support he needed. He knew Jasper was confused and probably more scared than he would ever want to admit.

The other man's jaw was taut. Edward wanted so much to cup his cheek. It was an old habit - hard to resist. There were only two people in the world who could calm Jasper with a touch. One of them was almost six and hopefully asleep.

Finally, Jasper looked at him again, his eyes roaming carefully. "You're not what I expected," he muttered vaguely.

Edward felt a small spike of irritation - an ingrained response. He wondered if Jasper had some flamboyant stereotype in his head. He forced a small smile. "Is that a good or a bad thing?

"I don't know," Jasper mumbled. He rubbed his eyes tiredly. "Look, I don't think I'm ready to wake up yet. I just... Since you won't go home, I figured you might as well be in here." His voice was gruff, somewhat vexed, but not truly angry.

Edward recognized it for what it was - a small token of peace. Jasper might not know what to think of him, but he wasn't going to kick him out of his life. "Okay," he said softly, feeling the first stirrings of hope in his heart.

"The chair can't be comfortable though..."

"I'm fine where I am if you are."

Jasper studied him for a moment and shrugged. "Yeah. It's okay."

Edward lifted his hand to his face to hide a smile.

"I think..." Jasper swallowed. "I have questions. Alice tells me you're the one who has answers."

"Anything you want to know," Edward promised.

Jasper's eyebrow arched, a look of vague amusement crossing his features. "There's too many of them right now. They're all..." He waved his hand.

"Well, whenever you're ready."

Another minute or two of silence passed. "Edward?" Jasper said, his voice light... almost asleep.

"Yes?"

"I'm not... oblivious to the fact this has got to suck for you."

Another weight, an invisible tether, released from his heart, and Edward smiled again, feeling just that tiny bit lighter. This was still his Jasper. Somewhere. "It's not your fault, but I appreciate you saying so."

"Stupid mountain," Jasper grumbled, almost entirely gone now. "We should find a way to sue."

Edward had to smother a laugh. His adoration for this man bordered on pain then. "I'll see what I can do," he said instead of the 'I love you' that was on his tongue.

A/N: So. True story - I have a Pirates of the Caribbean crossover fic in my docs where Bella is Will and Elizabeth's daughter, a pirate trying to make her own name for herself as Captain Bella Swann. And Jasper is Jack's bastard son who crews up with her. It'd be an E/B story as Edward would be the Governor Cullen of Port Angeles's prissy son who gets kidnapped. Heheheh. I was gonna write it with tellingmelies. Sounds like fun, eh?

Ahem. Anyway. Huge thanks to naeleny, jessypt, barburella and jfka06. My docs are amazing.

What are we thinking about these boys?