Paradigm Shift

A/N: Well, I wanted to first start off by thanking Jaspers Darlins' and letting me be a Darlin' for a Day a couple of weeks back. Thanks Ladies! That was really cool and I loved writing a review for you. If you haven't visited their blog, do so at http://jaspersdarlins (dot) blogspot (dot) com.

Also, Slow and Steady just got its 2000th review, so I wanted to say thank you to everyone that had taken the time to review that story. I am glad that so many people enjoyed that story and I hope this one turns out to be just as good.

Chapter Six

Bella looked at the passing scenery. It was almost ten hours ago Jasper had called Peter and Charlotte. The relief that the both of them felt was abundant when Peter greeted Jasper with what Jasper said was his traditional greeting of- "Brother, how the fuck are you?"

Jasper did not go into much detail over the phone, instead he had just advised Peter that he needed his help and he wondered if he could stay with him and Charlotte for a while. Peter, without pausing, readily agreed. He advised Jasper that they moved back into their old Wyoming home recently, that they were no longer living down in Utah.

So, they were on their way to Wyoming. Bella was relieved really. It was less than a day's travel time from Minnesota; less than a day between her and Edward. The car ride was fairly quiet, the conversation they did have revolved around Peter and Charlotte mostly. Bella was getting anxious to talk about Edward and Alice and how to solve the problem, but she could sense that Jasper wanted to wait till they arrived at Peter's. Bella could grant him that; it has barely been twenty-four hours since everything went down. She needed to learn patience or else this situation would eat her up inside.

Bella was not the least surprised to see that Peter and Charlotte lived in a relatively secluded area; the forests around them were plentiful and would provide ample hunting for them both. As they pulled up to the house, Jasper spoke again.

"This was the last house I lived in with Peter and Charlotte before I met Alice. It's definitely more modest then by Cullen standards; but it's fairly large and comfortable nevertheless. I think you will really like it. Peter and Charlotte have never truly been into anything really fancy; even though you may doubt it when you meet Peter in a moment, they actually prefer things that are simple and the house is a reflection of that."

Bella smiled. Bella was going to make a comment about how Alice must have gone bonkers around them if they preferred simple things, but just then two vampires opened the front door and stood on the porch waving in greeting. Both Peter and Charlotte were blonde like Jasper, a fact that surprised her. When Jasper spoke about them, she had pictured them as brunettes like herself for some reason. Peter looked to be as tall as Jasper, while Charlotte was almost as short as Alice.

Jasper placed the vehicle in park, and quickly exited the car. Bella was only a moment behind him, and she noticed gratefully that he did wait for her before walking up the steps to greet his old friends. Jasper smiled. "Peter, Charlotte. It's been a long time."

Peter immediately grabbed Jasper pulling him in for a hug. "A long time? Fuck, it's been years, Jasper. Years."

"I know. I'm sorry. But you are making it sound like I never talk to you either. Hell Peter, I just spoke to you last week. Thanks for mentioning that you moved by the way."

It was Charlotte's turn to give Jasper a hug. "Oh, don't mind him. He has just missed his brother is all, just like I have missed my friend. Talking is not the same as visiting. As for moving, well, it was a spur of the moment kind of thing."

Charlotte pulled away from Jasper and smiled at Bella, who hung back a step watching the exchange unfold. Jasper reached out for her, pulling her slightly closer to the three of them. "Peter, Charlotte, May I introduce Bella."

Bella stuck out her hand and Charlotte shook it warmly. "Bella, it is a pleasure finally meeting you. Trust me when I say this home is as much Jasper's as it is ours. I hope you feel free to make yourself at home here as well for however long you are here."

"Thank you."

Peter smiled at Bella. "Why don't you both come inside and we can give Bella a tour of the house?"

Jasper gave Bella an encouraging smile as they followed Peter in the front door. Jasper was right; the house was spacious, but certainly more modest. The furnishings in the house were old and well lived in. In a lot of ways it was more comforting then their current home or the one in Forks. It felt like a home that Jasper would live in and it was more of the style Bella would have chosen had she purchased a house.

"It's a beautiful home." Bella commented as they finished the tour, rounding the corner to walk back into the living room.

Charlotte turned to Bella. "Thank you, sugar. Jasper deserves all the credit. He actually picked and purchased the house for us in the nineteen thirties and we all renovated it."

"Really?" She looked at Jasper.

"I was getting tired of traveling all the time. The life of a nomad can get exhausting. So I bought a house that I could come back to whenever I needed to. I wanted something that was secluded and would not attract attention from the human population. We were just traveling through Wyoming when I came upon this abandoned house deep in the woods. This house had not been lived in for years; the windows were broken and what little furniture there was left was covered in an inch of dust. The house was falling apart but the foundation was strong. So I made Charlotte and Peter trail back into the town and find the local realtor. The house was a bargain; the realtor practically gave it away they were so anxious to get rid of it."

Peter snorted. "Yeah, they gave it away because they knew what a damn money pit it was. Jasper paid a hell of a lot more in renovations then he ever did for the house itself. And don't get me started on how long we renovated this freaking thing."

Jasper shot Peter a look. "I don't see you complaining now. The house is still in good shape eighty years after we remodeled it."

Charlotte stroked the fire mantle lovingly. "It is. Peter and I thought he was crazy at the time, but it seemed to cheer him up so we indulged his need to work on the house. Jasper made us put so much effort into this house, but in the end, it felt like a home. He was right."

Peter plopped down on the chair in the corner, pulling Charlotte down with him in his lap. Charlotte snuggled into his chest. It was clear that they were mates and the both of them were completely enamored with one another. Bella could not help the small amount of sadness that overtook her as she gazed at the happy couple. When she joined Jasper on the couch that sat opposite from the happy couple, he instinctively rubbed her arm in reassurance that it would be okay. She moved over closer to him, grateful to have her friend there.

Peter cocked his head, looking at them with interest. "So Jasper, while I would love to believe that you just wanted to see me and Char, you had told me you needed help. What brings the both of you here? Where is Alice?"

Jasper and Bella glanced at one another briefly. She nodded to Jasper to begin telling their story. Jasper launched into what happened, her heart still breaking as he told them how Edward and Alice cannot remember the two of them being their mates, and how they think they are married to one another.

Peter and Charlotte listened with great interest as Jasper recounted the tale, never once interrupting the story. Jasper finished the story with an exhaustive, "… and so that is why we are here. We were hoping you could help up figure out what happened and how to fix it."

Peter let out a long whistle and stood up with Charlotte. He rubbed his hand wearily over his face before walking over to his friend quietly, pulling him into a strong embrace. For minutes the two men both stayed like that, neither saying a word until Peter pulled away, slapping Jasper's back gently.

Bella was overwhelmed by the sense of brotherhood she felt in the room. Jasper was close with Emmett and Edward, but it was nothing compared to what she just witnessed. These were two men who knew each other's deepest secrets intimately, who understood the other's past in a way that probably no one else ever could. She realized with clarity that this right here was Jasper's real family, his true home.

And he gave it all up for his love.

Peter looked over at Bella and gave her a reassuring smile. "It's going to be okay. We will get to the bottom of this and in the end everything will work out for the best. You'll see."

Charlotte finally moved over to them, giving Jasper a gentle squeeze on his shoulders and kissing him on the cheek. She looked up at him, then Bella sympathetically. "Who or what do you think is behind this? Do you have a list?"

Jasper sighed. "I have been thinking this over in my head, a lot. What they did was quickly accomplished and there was a lot of work that was involved. So whomever or whatever planned this had resources and money. Add also to the fact that there are not a lot of vampires that view the Cullen's as enemies, and the list becomes very short."

Charlotte grimaced. "You are thinking the Volturi."

He nodded. "They have the resources. They have wanted Edward's ability for years and since Alice made her appearance there with Bella years ago, I know that they were very interested in her as well. But it doesn't make complete sense. I mean why target us or target them and leave us out? Why now? I cannot for the life of me come up with an answer."

Peter thought it over. "Maybe it's not them at all. How about Maria?"

"You think that she is trying to get to me?"

Peter shrugged. "From what I hear, she has never gotten quite over the loss of losing her major," he stated using his fingers as quotation marks to emphasize the point. "She still has plenty of money and she has enough minions underneath her. Maybe she wants you back."

Charlotte looked at him. "It's a possibility, but why not just go after Jasper directly? There is no need to attack the whole family."

Peter looked at her pointedly. "This is Maria you are talking about, remember Char? She enjoys making vampires miserable."

The petite vampire held up her hands in defeat. "Alright. Alright. You have a point. But I still think that is a stretch."

Bella did not know what to contribute to the conversation so she asked, "Any other theories?"

Charlotte cocked her head. "Does Bella have any enemies?"

Jasper looked down at Bella before she could respond. "No. Not unless you count a werewolf that was in love with her."

"Jacob is not an enemy." She replied dryly.

"I never thought he was. But he is the only person who could possibly hold something against you at this point. Unless of course you count Lauren Malloy." He laughed lightly. "She always did have it out for you after the whole Taylor incident. The jealousy and anger I felt from that girl for you..."

Bella and Jasper smirked at each other knowingly. "Yes, all fear Lauren Malloy and her evil plotting ways. I am sure she is behind this. She just couldn't get over Tyler inviting himself as my date to the prom."

Peter looked confused. "Fuck. I hate being out of the joke. Well then, since we have ruled out that it is probably not a lovesick werewolf and I am guessing the jealous teenager is of no consequence, we move on from people targeting Bella."

Charlotte threw out a few other names that Bella did not recognize, but Jasper and Peter discounted them one by one. The only reasonable suspect was the Italian vampires and Maria, but Jasper was insistent it was not her.

Charlotte, clearly getting annoyed at their shooting down her suggestions, pouted. "I don't hear anyone else coming up with any suggestions. Fine, I will throw out my last one, and then I am done for the evening. What if it wasn't anyone with a vendetta? What if it was just a random occurrence and the Cullen's happened to be the victims? There are stranger things that have occurred."

Bella and Jasper paused, looking at each other. What if it was a random attack? What if it was just as simple as something the Cullen's came across while hunting or someone just randomly choosing them and Bella and Jasper were gone at just the right time? If it was, it would make it much more difficult to figure out how to reverse the effects.

Peter must have sensed how much this bothered Bella. "Let's just go off the assumption that is not the case for now."

"So why don't we just go to Italy and confront the Volturi?" Bella wanted this all over with.

Charlotte put her arm on the young vampire. "Bella, one does not just confront the Volturi."

"Edward did it."

Jasper bit his lip. "Char is right. Edward and Alice were lucky to get out without ending up in a burn pile. You were lucky they did not eat you for lunch. What Edward did was reckless and stupid. We do not accuse the Volturi without proof and backup."

A rush of anger rose up in Bella. She knew rationally that Jasper was by all accounts probably right, but Edward was not here to defend himself. She found her anger quickly quashed and she threw a look at Jasper. She should have had her shield up. "Well then, what do you propose?"

"I suggest that we first send out feelers. Peter and Charlotte have met a lot of vampires over the years. They can find out if there is anyone with a known capability of changing memories, shifting a reality for someone, or even changing someone's personality. Hopefully, that will lead us to whomever is doing this."

Bella placed her hands at her hips. "And what is it that you and I do in the meantime?"

"We try to convince our family that we are telling the truth. There have to be records out there. School, marriage, tax, and work records- we check them all. I find it hard to believe that they could change everything. Also, we contact the Denali's. They probably remember and we can reach out to some of Carlisle's other friends. Once we have sufficient proof, we send it to them. Carlisle is a reasonable man."

Bella frowned. "That wasn't our Carlisle though Jasper."

"I know it wasn't. But the real Carlisle is buried underneath somewhere, just as the rest of them are."

When Bella nodded at Jasper, Charlotte smiled. "Good. Well then, I say tonight we relax and then first thing tomorrow we go out and buy a computer and get hooked up with Internet."

"You don't have internet?"

Charlotte laughed. "We just moved back here a few days ago and the last time we lived her for any period of time was in the early nineties and the internet was just coming around. Hooking up internet was one of our last priorities and the computer we have in the den is severely outdated. We will have to make a trip out to the city. We can also get the both of you set up with some more clothes at that point as well if you would like."

Peter hugged Charlotte. "That sounds like a good plan. Char, I don't know about you, but it's been a while since we have eaten, and if we are going into the city tomorrow, I am thinking that we should eat first. I am feeling a bit… peckish. Neither one of you want to go with us, do you?" Peter asked ask he kissed his mate.

Jasper shook his head. "Thanks for the offer, Peter, but I think we will just partake of the local wildlife."

Peter shrugged. "Suit yourself. Bella, make yourself feel at home and if my brother gives you any trouble, you let me know and I'll set him straight."

She smiled a little as Jasper rolled his eyes. "I will."

Peter and Charlotte walked out of the house, taking off into the forest to do things that Bella would prefer to not think about.

She excused herself, deciding to tour the house more slowly this time, walking through room by room, to enjoy all the little things she had not had time to look at before. As she explored the different rooms, she could see Jasper's distinct touches throughout.

She appreciated the subtle references that were made to the civil war. Most of the rooms had small memorabilia commemorating the time before Jasper was turned; she had noticed a sword in one room, a display of militia buttons in Charlotte and Peter's bedroom, and in the den, the final room she revisited, there was an old confederacy map that was hung above the mantle. It was a piece of art, the frame he chose a beautiful mahogany, the map displayed behind a thin sheet of glass to prevent further aging. She fingered the lines of the map lovingly, frustratingly realizing that she remembered scarcely anything from her days in high school as a human about that war.

"It's a topographic map." Jasper smooth southern voice advised her.

Bella jumped slightly before turning to him. "Oh." She replied quite lamely.

The blonde vampire walked up next to her, admiring the drawing. "It's of my hometown in Texas during the Civil War. I had looked at this map more than a time or two while I was in the army."

She turned to Jasper. "It's lovely. The house I mean. I love all the personal touches you have given this place. The civil war references throughout the house, your favorite books, and the reflection of your southern heritage in the furnishings are all here. You put a lot of thought into this home."

Jasper looked at her astonished. "You noticed all of that?"

Bella looked back to the map for a brief moment. "How could I not? This house…It's so distinctly you. I love it."

"Thank you. I guess no one had noticed that before."

"Not even Alice?"

"Alice was only here once in the sixties and for a very short period of time. She didn't care for the house, said it was too rustic. You know how Alice is. The décor was not her style so she never really made it a point to try and come here again."

Bella thought that was interesting. This house was obviously important to Jasper and she knew it held a lot of meaning to him. She could not imagine his mate not recognizing that. Bella was surprised when she found herself getting angry at Alice for that. She smiled and kept her shield up to protect her feelings about Alice from Jasper. She kept her voice light. "Well, Alice always was and will be a slave to latest trends and the finer things in life."

"Yes she will."

Bella continued. "But I think she personally missed the mark on this one. The house is amazing and I am honored that you are even willing to share it with me."

They turned to walk out of the room. Jasper eyed her sideways. "Bella?"

Bella turned to him. "Yes, Jasper?"

Without another word Jasper wrapped her up in a hug. She let down her shield and she felt all the gratefulness that he was projecting at that moment. "Thank you."

Bella did not need anything more to be said. "You're welcome."

A/N: So what do you all think of Peter and Charlotte so far? To answer a question that I know is going to come up- Peter does not have any special ability. I know he is often written that way, but for my story to work the way I wanted in my head, he has none.

Also, sorry if anyone is seeing this alerted twice. I was advised I spelled Taylor instead of Tyler and it was driving me crazy!!