Chapter Five:
JPOV:
I didn't know what to expect as I ran back to the house with Bella. All I knew was that Rosalie and the Denalis may have come up with a way to life my curse, and I was excited. Maybe, just maybe, life could get back to normal, or as normal as it was. I inhaled deeply, smelling Bella's unique scent swirling around me as we passed the familiar pine and oak trees.
I would miss having to be with her twenty-four seven. If anything good came from my walk through hell, it would be seeing Isabella again, and seeing what a wonderful woman she had become.
We ran through to the edge of the property, and I slowed to a human jog, just in case the mailman or grocer was by. I didn't want to have to explain why I could run at the speed of wind to a mortal.
I could hear the worried voices of Esme and Carlisle.
I could hear Eleazar and Carmen trying to explain the concepts of space and time to them.
What the hell was the plan?
I felt Bella's breathing hitch behind me. She must have sensed the shift in my mood. I slowed to a jog and then stopped, setting Bella down. There was no way I was going to let her do this!
"Jasper, no matter what they found out, we will get through this, okay?" Bella whispered, squeezing my hand. I kissed her forehead, inhaling her scent deeply, wishing, just wishing that we were back at the hot springs.
"We know you are back," Edward said quickly, low enough that Bella wouldn't be able to hear.
I sighed, letting Bella lead us back to the family. We entered the dining room, and déjà vu hit me. The last time we were all gathered like this, we were sitting around discussing my near slip-up. Today, we were gathering to discuss this curse. Maybe I wasn't worth it. I bring this family only misery.
Esme looked up, and smiled at me. "Did you guys enjoy the cliffs?"
"Yeah," I answered softy. "It was nice to get out running."
"We will have to do it again," Bella interjected, smiling up at me. "Jasper is an excellent tour guide of the property, how far back does it go?" Bella was stalling, I could feel that she was just as nervous as I was about this.
If only she knew.
"All the way past the Canadian border," Carlisle said. "I purchased the land before Edward was changed. Jasper built the house here in the 1970s, we recently updated the interior though. But we aren't gathered here to discuss the house and land . . ."
"We found a solution to Jasper's predicament," Eleazar announced diplomatically.
"I heard part of it, and it doesn't sound very feasible," I said. "I heard part of it as we were walking up, and I think you guys are insane. There is no way that it is possible? Is it?"
"Will someone tell me what is going on?" Bella asked impatiently. "It's not nice to leave the human out of conversations."
"They want you and Peter to travel back in time to stop me before I meet Malia," I explained. "But there is no way in hell that this can happen."
"In theory it would work," Bella pointed out. "But is time travel possible? And why does it have to be me to go back in time?"
Eleazar smiled. "Your blood, Dear. Since you are biologically related to Peter, and Peter is a vampire, you technically have vampire DNA running through you. It's probably why your shield is active, even though you are human."
Bella closed her eyes for a minute, trying to formulate her thoughts.
"I'll do whatever it takes to help him. So when do I do this thing?"
"No!" I all but shouted. Were they not listening to my wishes right now.
Bella placed her free hand on my cheek. "Let's just listen to everything that has to be done. What all does it entail?"
"I don't even want to entertain the notion . . ."
"Well I do," she said, cutting me off. "Let's hear it."
Esme shook her head, flashing a small smile at me. I could tell that she was just as worried about this plan as I was.
"Well, it isn't easy. We have to fashion a molybdenum knife to pierce Peter's skin and your skin. Then the blood will mix with some special herbs, that when put together with your blood and Peter's venom inside the chalice will allow for time travel. We just have to gather the roots and herbs," Rose stated. "And salt, but we can pick that up at the grocery."
"What chalice Rose, it's not like we have those readily available," Edward spoke up.
"We do. Carlisle has a chalice that was used by Saint Damien in the 1800s."
"I remember Father Damien, he was a wonderful man. I met him early in his priesthood. We had wonderful theological talks. He gave me his chalice when I came to America in 1855. It's at the house in North Dakota in the china hutch," Carlisle spoke quietly. "Damien would be pleased that he could help someone beyond the grave."
"We are sending Peter and Bella physically through space and time, have you guys not thought about the repercussions of such an act. What happens to their bodies? Do they get pulled apart and reassembled? What if something goes wrong?" I pointed out.
"I don't think it works like that," Peter said. "We will be inside a protective salt barrier. Everything inside that pentagram will be sent through space and time, including the air, chalice, and whatever belongings we have on us."
"How can you be so calm about this! Charlotte, tell him he can't do it . . ."
"No can do, Pops. When my mate makes up his mind to do something, he is going to do it, no matter of what I want," she answered, sounding resigned. She didn't want him to do it, but wasn't going to stand in his way.
"It will be okay Jasper," Esme told me, placing a hand on my shoulder.
I shrugged out of her touch, and wretched myself out of Bella's embrace. I took off running, trying to place as much distance between me and them as possible. Their plan was insane, and I wasn't going to allow my brother and . . .
What exactly was Bella to me?
Best friend? We had certainly became close over the past three weeks, but I felt so much more for her than just sister or friend.
Well, back to the original thought, there was no way in hell they were going to place themselves in danger for me.
I wouldn't allow it. I was the Major, Malingo, for fuck's sake. I was not this little, weak, pathetic vampire . . .
Just as I hit the tree line for the property, a blinding amount of pain pushed through my body, bringing me to my knees. I hit the ground with a resounding thud, and tried to scream out. All the pain and agony I had inflicted in all of my existence hit me with full force.
"Jasper!"
I fought the pain, and looked up through blurry eyes and saw Bella running toward me. Peter caught up with her easily, holding her back.
"Bella, he has no control when he is fighting the pain. He could snap and hurt you," Carlisle told her.
Keep her away until you guys get to me.
I heard the screams and cries of the villagers as I commanded another raid on a small town in Mexico. I could hear the sounds of vampire flesh being ripped apart - a sound that you would never forget if you heard it.
I felt Emmett wrap his massive arms around me as I struggled against him. Carlisle ran up, hitting me on a pressure point to calm me. Edward wretched my arm out and I felt warmth engulf it.
Bella.
The agony subsided and Emmett lowered me to the ground.
"You are a stupid idiot Jasper Whitlock Cullen," Bella whispered, wrapping her legs around my waist. I stood, holding her, walking us back to the porch.
"Esme is waiting with a drink for you. Don't do that to us again Jasper," Carlisle told me, his voice cracking with emotion. "We will figure something out. What the fuck where you thinking?"
Carlisle swearing, he must be pissed.
"You have no idea Bro. You have to stop thinking that you can run to protect us . . ." Edward told me, catching on to my thoughts.
"You have been Alice's mate for a total of two months, I was her husband for over sixty years, and your brother for just as long. It's my job to protect you guys, and I can't even do that. There is no way I want Malia to cause you and Alice to go crazy. I couldn't take that . . . not knowing that it was completely and utterly my fault."
I took the blood from Esme, resigned that this is what my life had become. I couldn't even run forty feet without stumbling to the ground. I used to be the most feared vampire in the south, now . . . well hell, I depended on Bella for everything.
It was humbling.
"It's my job to protect you, all of you," Carlisle interjected. I knew that he took his role as coven leader seriously, but he took his role as our father figure to the next step. "I may not have created you Jasper, but I love you all the same as if it was my venom running through your system. Don't run again Son."
"It's not like I will get very far," I said bitterly. "I feel useless . . ."
"But you aren't. We need your help with coming up with a battle plan for when we fight Malia. We will have to fight her Jasper . . ." Alice trailed off, sitting next to me. "I don't see the outcome, but you have never lost a fight Jazzy, and I know you aren't planning on starting now."
I looked over at Peter who was holding Charlotte. He was planning something, and I didn't like it.
BPOV:
My hands were cupping Jasper's cheek as I begged and tried reasoned with him.
"Jasper, please, just listen to reason . . ." I knew that his mind was made up, but I had to try, even if the plan did sound ludicrous to me.
He started to shake his head, but I applied gentle pressure to stop the motion. "There has to be an easier way. There are too many unknown variables. I won't let you do it."
Edward shook his head and Peter let out a laugh.
"You really don't have a say in the matter Jasper," I told him quietly. "We have to do this. I would stay wrapped up with you forever, but that just isn't possible. What happens when I have to go to campus more? There is no way I will be able to let you go - even if it is only for a couple of hours or so, and there is no way you can go to campus with me . . . it's just too big of a risk to you and the student body.
"You need to be the vampire you were meant to be, and not drinking out of cups from hunted animals. You need the thrill of the hunt, the wind through your hair, and if I can do anything to give it back to you I will, and you won't be able to stop me." I poked him in the chest, and he grabbed me, crushing me to him.
"It's too dangerous. I can't lose you. What if something happens? I can't have another soul on my conscious, not when I can prevent it."
I didn't want to lose him either, but this was the only way to save him, I knew it.
We finally had a solution for getting the curse lifted, so that Jasper could live a normal life. It just wasn't what we had expected.
But life is never what we expect, is it?
I just didn't expect for Eleazar to mention time travel. I mean, that is stuff that H.G. Wells wrote about. It just didn't happen in real life, but then again, vampires, bokors, and werewolves were perfectly acceptable. Bending the space/time continuum was way too Sci-Fi for me to wrap my head around it. But I digress.
Apparently during their travels, they discovered that it was in fact possible to go back and alter a person's history. In this case, we would go back in time to prevent Malia from getting her hands on Jasper. Supposedly they could send me back to right before Jasper met Malia, and that would alter his history ever so slightly to where she would never meet him, therefore never having put the curse on him.
Simple, right?
Apparently both Edward and Jasper were both against it.
It seemed like a good plan, but I'll be damned if he was even more stubborn than Edward. He was fighting the idea with everything he was made of. I sighed, shifting positions and resting on his chest, trying to keep the tears of frustration from falling.
"Bella, please don't cry Darlin'," Jasper implored. I could hear the desperation in his voice. "There has to be another way. Carmen, Eleazar, and Rose, isn't there?"
Rose sat next to us on the couch, shaking her head softly. "Jasper, I wish we had more answers, but this seems to be the only solution for lifting the curse. Because our vampire bodies don't digest things, that makes any potions or herbs just not a viable option for you."
"What will happen to us?" I asked. "Will we still have memories of this, or will the past be changed and will we be entering a different world?"
"I don't know," Eleazar said. "Theory would be that we would maintain some memories, but if you were to change the past, then we would never know."
"But I would know, being the time traveler and all."
"Probably," Eleazar acquiesced.
Could I give him up after all we have been through together? Could I go back to living in Port Angeles knowing what I know?
"Bella, nothing has to be decided right now," Edward spoke up. "We have nothing but time right now. There is no signs of Malia's attack right now."
Stubborn ex-boyfriend/vampire.
"Alice, will this work?" Carlisle asked, voicing out loud what all of us were wondering.
"I don't know," Alice said. "All I know is that with the past being messed with, it will change any vision I have now. Potentially, we could avoid any confrontation with Malia as long as Bella is successful with her travels, but right now, my visions are steady. Malia is coming."
Edward pulled Alice to his side, encasing her in his arms. "It's alright Alice, just let us know if anything changes," he reassured her.
She nodded, burrowing into the crook of his neck.
"If Bella goes to the past, I will have no way of knowing her future," Alice whispered. "Too many things will change."
"So is this an alternate reality type thing, where if I go, there will be a doppelganger that replaces me?" I asked.
"The assumption is that you would cease to exist here if you were to travel there, and then come back. Kind of like going on vacation, just to another time," Eleazar explained. "You would be altering our memories by altering Jasper's past, but you would be the only one with knowledge of it, that and your travel companion."
"Can we stop talking about this, there has to be another way. I don't want her to put herself at risk like this," Jasper said irritably. "What if something happens during the shift is the space/time continuum, or what if she doesn't come back? It's not like I can go back in time and save her . . ." he trailed off trying to think of what to say next.
"Bella, please honey, don't entertain the thought. It is too dangerous, too unknown. We can face Malia. I will come up with something else, anything other than this."
"I can't lose her. Edward, back me up here. You don't want her to risk her life for me. I'm not worth it. I'll walk into the pyre first."
"Like hell you will Jasper," Edward snarled at me. "We haven't always seen eye to eye, but I won't let you destroy yourself to save us."
"Please stop thinking about that." Bella's soft voice filtered to my brain. "You don't want to lose me, see me hurt, well the feeling is mutual."
"Let's shelf this discussion," Carlisle said. I knew that he wanted to do some research to see if it could be done safely. "We can come back to it later. Plus Bella only have a couple of hours until class, so she needs to get ready."
I felt Jasper sigh as he looked at the clock. Time would be coming for me to have to go to that stupid class again, and with Carlisle being home, there was no way I could ditch the class.
"Don't even think about ditching, granddaughter of mine," Peter chirped. "We have to turn in more stuff, and we are going to be taking a tour of the campus library. I have to go hunt, but Emmett and I will be back in time to learn the fun of the Dewey decibel system."
"Seriously, that class only serves to putting money in people's pockets. With all the crap classes we have to take, it doesn't surprise me that a four year curriculum on average five years," I ranted.
Emmett snickered and Carlisle glared. Of course education was important to him.
I sighed. "Fine."
The family filed out of the living room one-by-one , letting us have as much privacy as we could have in a house full of vampires.
Jasper kissed the top of my head again and suppressed a chuckle at my distaste for this useless class. I threaded his fingers through mine, staring at them as I held them in a stream of sunlight. I would never get used to the beauty that surrounded me.
I felt him wrap his free arms around my waist, pulling me closer to him.
"Bella, you mean more to me than you know," he whispered. We both knew in a house full of vampires that we would never be able to have a private conversation. He reached into his pocket, and pulled out a box. I breathing hitched, causing him to laugh. "Don't worry, I didn't spend anything on it. This has been in my family for years, it's one of the only things I had left of my human life."
"Jasper, I can't possibly take it . . ."
"You can. I want you to have it."
He pulled a pendant out of the book, with my initials monogrammed on it. The pendant was hanging on a silver ribbon.
"Are you telling me that you knew someone with the same initials as me?"
"My mother was Ivy Marlene Smith before she met my father. I did have the Cullen crest engraved on the back, but that is all I did, I swear. Just wear it, and when you go to class, you will have a piece of me with you. And you would be doing me a favor . . . it is meant to be worn, not to be locked away in a safe deposit box for eternity."
He fastened it around my neck, kissing my shoulder as he did so.
"It's beautiful."
"You are beautiful," he whispered, repositioning us, so I was straddling him. I snuggled into his chest, wrapping my arms around him. "Promise me you will wear it."
"Always," I promised, fingering the trinket. I cupped his cheek, and leaned in.
"Bella, Jasper I have your snack ready!"
We groaned, realizing the second lost opportunity of the day.
Oh well, we had all the time in the world.
xxxxxxxxxxx
I wandered through the library next to Emmett, trying really hard to listen to the professor as she droned on and on, sounding oddly like the teacher did in the old Peanuts cartoons. I was bored, and my mind kept drifting back to Jasper.
God, I hoped he was okay. I mean, I knew he wasn't, but I hoped that this attack would be not as bad as others. I couldn't stand it if he was chained against the basement wall again.
I sighed, trying to tune into the lecture about the procedures for checking out a library study hole, but I knew there was no way I would be using this little nugget of knowledge. I wandered away from the class and made my way down a random aisle. I might as well not let the opportunity go. A couple of minutes to myself was something I rarely had nowadays.
I sat on one of the leather armchairs, tucking my feet underneath me - A Brief History of the Civil War by Katherine W. Hamilton. I immediately thought of my ailing vampire back at home. He was changed in the prime of his life, happy healthy, with a family that wanted and needed him. His story was more tragic than any of the other Cullens.
Edward's family was dead and gone.
Emmett would have died in the woods, if it hadn't been for Rosalie.
Rosalie, even though she hated this life, would have been in a loveless marriage if her life hadn't ended so tragically.
Esme escaped a life of abuse.
Alice's family had all but forgotten about her in the asylum.
Carlisle's start to this world was almost as tragic as Jasper's, almost. Carlisle's father was the only person he left behind.
Not saying their ends weren't tragic, because it was; but Jasper, my poor Jasper, he had a sister, brother, mother and father. He had a girlfriend, and a life to get back to after the war.
A life that was stolen because of that bitch, Maria.
A life that was cursed now because of that Malia.
I had to help him, even if he wouldn't let me. I brought my hand up to the pendant, fingering the silver disc around my neck.
"I would pay you a penny for your thoughts, granddaughter, but I know who you are thinking about right now," Peter whispered. "That book is actually pretty informative, just so you know."
"Peter, we have to figure out a way to help him."
"I know Sweetpea. I have already gathered the roots needed, but convincing Jasper to let you go is going to be difficult."
"He's being difficult," I pouted.
"Jasper doesn't want to lose you. He's right, there are a lot of unknown variables to this plan. We need to be prepared for everything, but we also need to give Carlisle and Eleazar more time to research this option. If anything, it will put Jas's mind at ease, or we will figure that it is just too dangerous."
I sighed, leaning into my grandfather's arms. "Why can't it be easy Gramps?"
"It's not supposed to be Isabella."
"You do know that it is the only way, don't you?"
Peter sighed, grabbing my hand. "I don't see any other way. This is the best way, strategically speaking, to stop a confrontation with an unknown adversary." Peter grabbed the book and flipped it open to a picture of a very human Jasper Whitlock. "Jasper has lost a lot in his life though, he didn't think clearly when he was seventeen to join the military, and he isn't thinking clearly now Honey. He is scared. For the first time in Jasper's life he is scared."
"He's stubborn," I disagreed staring at the picture. Jasper looked younger than his years, even though the picture was taken maybe a year before he was changed. There was a sparkle in his eyes, a look that held hope. Jasper didn't have that look anymore.
"He is," Peter agreed, "But he has a whole hell of a lot to lose if this plan doesn't work, and it may not. He may lose his family again, and that is something that is weighing heavily on his mind."
I continued to stare at the picture of Jasper and his brother. He had a light in his eyes that seemed to be long since extinguished. Jasper looked well, opposed to the sickly pallor that had been gracing his beautiful features since the curse had started. If a vampire could look sick, it would be what Jasper looked like.
I traced his picture, seeing the human man, blurring him with the vampire I knew. I stifled a sob for the end of his human life.
"Does he know this book is out there?" I asked.
"I don't think so. Jas used to collect books about the civil war, but this one was in circulation before he escaped Maria's camp. We weren't allowed very many worldly possessions when we were enslaved by her . . ." Peter trailed off, staring off into space. I touched his arm, trying to bring him back to reality.
The next picture revealed a family portrait of Jasper, Caleb, and Katie, with their parents. They were dressed to the nines, smiling during happier times, before the war ripped the family apart.
The caption read: The Whitlock Family. Major Jasper Christian Whitlock, the youngest major in the Texas cavalry, seen during happier times with his family at a picnic at Whitlock Oaks. Not long after this picture was taken, Major Whitlock was declared killed in action during the evacuation of Galveston.
I closed the book, setting it back down on the table. I put my head in my hands, trying to wrap my head around what had to be done.
"Hey Bells?"
I looked up at Emmett, who was doing a horrible job at whispering. It helped break some of the tension I was feeling.
"What's up?"
"Class is over. Do you just want to sit there for awhile and stare a pictures of your lover boy, or do you actually want the real thing?" Emmett flashed his megawatt smile at me, making me forgive him immediately for his childish ways.
I stood, pretending to punch my "big brother" in the arm. He feigned hurt for a seconds, rubbing his arm in a joking manner. He grabbed the book and tucked it underneath his arm. Peter explained that they would have to steal it, since it held pictures Jasper. Since he was "living" so close to the university, they didn't want to take any chances with someone putting two and two together.
"Did you know Bells that I could check out a carrel for Rose and I to have some private time?" He wiggled his eyebrows at me. "And I see that you and Jazz are getting closer, it might be a good idea for you too, if you get what I mean . . ."
I rolled my eyes. "Emmett, I'm sure that isn't what carrels are supposed to be used for . . ." I trailed off, letting my mind run away with me, trying to think of ways to get Jasper some help sooner rather than later.
I climbed in the car, and saw a backpack in the back seat with me. "Whose is this?"
"It's our trip bag Bella, we can't very well go back in time without having a couple of change of clothes can we?" Peter told me. "I'm hoping that we can find another solution, but we have to be ready for all scenarios. I know that Emmett, Edward, and especially Jasper don't want us doing this, but it may be our only option. I will not lose my brother. But I'm not acting hastily either. We will give it a couple more weeks to see what Gramps finds out, but if he can't find anything, then we are doing this . . ."
His voice left no room for argument, it seemed as if we finally had a plan, well kinda.
AN: So there we have the plan - well kinda a plan. Time travel is a tricky tricky thing . . . and writing about it is wicked, so many plot holes happen with time travel so I am trying to be as through about it with the back story - as was demonstrated time and again on the show Heroes, but I digress.
I am still debating on the kiss, but it's still not the right time. As a quote from Speed goes . . . "Relationships that start underneath extreme stress rarely works out," or something like that, and I don't want that for my two.
Anyway, reviews rock my socks. Sorry for the delay, we had horrible storms and I just got internet back.
