A/N: Holy shit, y'all are quick to reply to questions, lol. So, here it is. For anyone who didn't reply at lightning speed, I'm posting two chapters today so make sure you don't skip Chapter 49!
This final chapter is a little different to the others. After the ceremony, it will be told more as individual snapshots of various moments - some short, some long - rather than a straight narrative of the entire night. All the snapshots are, however, in the proper order of when they happened throughout the evening.
Thank you for reading:) The epilogue will be up tomorrow! ~ M. x
Waking a Half-Asleep Heart
Bella took one last look in the mirror and couldn't hide her smile. She looked every inch the radiant bride she felt like inside. Hearing her dad clear his throat behind her, she grabbed her bouquet and turned to the door.
"You look beautiful, Bella," he said softly, eyes shimmering.
Bella gave him a hug as she laughed. "I feel beautiful. Now come on, I've got a gorgeous fiancé waiting for me," she said as she started tugging him downstairs.
Her dad smiled as he let himself be dragged, so happy at the way his little girl seemed to be radiating happiness. Every bride should be this ecstatic to walk down the aisle. Charlie Swan couldn't have asked for any better husband for his daughter, or better son-in-law for himself. Even knowing that Jasper was 'different' hadn't made the man hesitate in the slightest in his acceptance of him. He'd woken his daughter up and he would always be profoundly grateful to Jasper Whitlock for treating Bella as an equal partner since the very first day of their friendship, giving her just the kind of support and respect that had let her blossom into the beautiful young woman who was now urging him to speed up the closer they got to the back door.
"I don't think he's going anywhere, Bells," Charlie laughed.
"I know, I'm just excited," Bella grinned and stopped the two just inside the door, taking a huge deep breath and blowing it out slowly. "Okay. You ready to do this?" she asked. Charlie could only nod, his throat tight with emotion. "No! We promised no tears!" she whined as her own eyes started to sting.
"It's your fault!" Charlie laughed and cleared his throat as he opened the door. "You look all beautiful and confident and radiant. You know fathers are powerless against that in their little girls, so you have no one to blame for this but yourself. And maybe Jasper," he added.
Bella snorted a laugh as she gave her eyes one last swipe. "Yeah, let's blame all this on him. Boy, it's a good thing I chose not to wear any makeup."
Jasper stood at the end of the 'aisle' smiling as he listened to his almost-wife and her father. There was not a single negative emotion in either of them, not even that little bit of melancholy he'd expected to feel from Charlie. All Jasper could detect was contentment and happiness. He was truly happy that Jasper was the partner fate had chosen for Bella.
It honestly was a little overwhelming for the man who still occasionally looked back on the last 165 years with more regrets than any one person should shoulder.
"I'm so proud of you, Jasper," Carlisle said quietly from beside him. The couple had opted to not have a best man or bridesmaid, so it was just Carlisle and Jasper standing in the front.
Jasper turned to look at him with smile. "Am I getting a Dad Moment of my own while Bella has hers?" he asked, making the other vamps laugh quietly.
"Of course, son. I can't let you down on your big day," Carlisle chuckled. "But no, that's all the moment I need, really. I just want you to know how proud I am of you, and how ecstatic I am that we're standing here right now."
Jasper gave him a hug and let Carlisle feel all the love, respect, and gratitude he held for him. "Thanks, Carlisle."
Before they could say any more, his soulmate took her first step outside and Jasper's very unnecessary breath caught in his throat. Charlie hadn't been exaggerating. She did look beautiful, confident, and radiant. Jasper didn't even need his gift to feel her happiness. She was lit from within by it.
As their eyes met, they both broke into matching smiles, and Bella seemed to practically float down the aisle with her dad. When they were about halfway to Jasper, Bella looked up at her father.
"I love you more than I can ever express, but if you try to put my hand in Jasper's like you're transferring property, I will see to it that you have zero apple pie. Do we understand each other?"
Charlie, along with everyone else, laughed at his darling daughter. "Like I'd risk missing Sue's pie. Did you wanna just do the rest on your own?" he offered, gesturing at the rest of the aisle.
"No," Bella laughed and rested her head on his arm. "You can continue walking me to him. Just, you know, no 'who gives this girl away' stuff."
"Noted," Charlie smiled as they took the last step to stand in front of the wedding arch.
Jasper reached out to take her hand but was stopped in his tracks by Carlisle's voice.
"Who gives this girl—" Carlisle cut himself off with a laugh when Bella put her free hand on her hip and glared at him playfully. "What? I don't mind missing the pie," he smiled, then quickly looked at Sue Clearwater, who was laughing with the other guests. "No offense, ma'am."
"None taken. It just means more for the rest of us," she smiled.
"Alright, y'all wanna pipe down so I can marry my girl?" Jasper laughed as he grabbed Bella and yanked her under the wedding arch, like that would hurry this whole thing up. Then he remembered manners existed, so he pulled Charlie into a hug with the most heartfelt 'thank you' he could utter.
Charlie patted him on the back, not at all phased by his 'different'-ness anymore. "Love you, son," he said quietly before he went to take his seat.
And oh boy, the sob that burst out of Bella was just as fierce as the blast of joy that the wedding guests felt when Jasper lost control of his gift at his surprise.
"Not cool, dad! Now I'm crying and we haven't even started yet!" Bella laughed, yet again wiping her eyes. "It's a really good thing I didn't wear makeup," she muttered under her breath.
"Your dress has pockets, Isabella," Rosalie drawled while rolling her eyes, trying not to laugh at her ridiculous family. At Bella's surprised face, she nodded. "Perhaps check them?"
Bella laughed and sniffled when she found the tissues Rosalie had put in her pockets. "Thanks, Rose. Oh, and thank you, Emmett," she added as she lifted up Jasper's arm to point to his watch. Emmett smiled and shot her a wink, pleased that she'd been happy with the small touches he, Rosalie, and Alice had added to their day.
"Any chance we could get this show on the road, people? I'd like to marry her on our actual wedding day, so could we not spend the next…" Jasper looked at Emmett's watch and did some quick math. "Four hours and fifty-six minutes jabbering away? Y'all do know we're having a reception, right? Look to your left, you can even see the tables from here. Y'all will have your turn to talk. Could we maybe have ours first, though?" Jasper asked, filled with an odd mixture of both unbridled joy at marrying his soulmate and fond exasperation that his friends and family had no filters or concept of appropriate timing.
Bella laughed, and after one last swipe of her eyes, she tucked her tissues back in her pocket. She went to put her hands in her almost-husband's and looked at her bouquet with a little bit of surprise, like she'd forgotten she was carrying it.
"Oh, for goodness sake," Charlotte laughed and darted forward to take it from her. "I'll keep it safe, you focus on marrying him before he has some kind of meltdown none of us will ever recover from."
Jasper gave her a weird look. "I'm not sure I want to know what kind of meltdown you're imagining."
"Yep, probably for the best," she laughed as she sat back down beside her one and only.
Jasper looked back to his mate and it was like the rest of the world fell away when he saw her brilliant smile. "Shall we, sweetheart?" he asked as he took both her hands.
"We shall," she grinned.
In one part of his mind, Jasper was aware of Carlisle speaking, but he wasn't paying a lick of attention. He had his soulmate in front of him, wearing a beautiful dress, underneath a wedding arch their friends had made them… and those seemed to be the only thoughts he was capable of focusing on.
Soulmate. Dress. Wedding arch. Soulmate. Dress. Wedding arch. Soulmate. Dress. Wedding arch.
It was only when he felt a little bit of concern bleed into Bella's emotions that he started hearing what was happening around him.
"You good?" Bella whispered with a smile, realizing that her so-very-nearly husband was as lost in her as she was in him. She really wanted him to focus, though, so she could get from 'so-very-nearly' to 'finally!'
Jasper's lips tipped up in a smile, not even the slightest bit ashamed, as he realized Peter was standing beside him, holding out his hand with their rings on it and holding back a laugh.
"You try focusing when you've got your soulmate in front of you, wearing a beautiful dress, underneath a wedding arch your friends made you," Jasper laughed as he took the rings and handed one to Bella.
Peter shook his head with a smile and went and sat back beside his own soulmate, both of them nearly as joyful as Jasper.
"The couple have decided to recite traditional vows, with a few small changes. Jasper?" Carlisle smiled at him.
Jasper looked in Bella's eyes, his own filled with venom tears that shimmered in the fading daylight and the soft lights in the tree above them. "I, Jasper Whitlock, take you, Isabella Swan, to be my wife, partner, and soulmate, to have and to hold and to walk beside, from this day forward, for better or worse, for richer or poorer, to love and to cherish, for all of my days until the end of time," he said as he slid the ring on her finger, his smile blinding.
Carlisle smiled. "Bella?"
Bella took a deep breath as her tears spilled over. "I, Isabella Swan, take you, Jasper Whitlock, to be my husband, partner, and soulmate, to have and to hold and to walk beside, from this day forward, for better or worse, for richer or poorer, to love and to cherish, for all of my days until the end of time," she said, her smiling growing with every word, and slid the ring on his finger.
"As you join in marriage this evening, you make the promise to love each other today, tomorrow, and forever," Carlisle said. "By the power vested in me by the State of Washington, I'm so happy to pronounce you husband and wife. You may…" he trailed off with a laugh when Jasper's impatience got the better of him and he pulled his wife to his chest and then dipped her low for a kiss. "…seal your union with a kiss," he finished as their guests broke until loud applause and cheers.
As Jasper righted a slightly lightheaded Bella and they turned to walk back down the aisle, they both laughed and Bella looked up at her husband.
"We're married!" she shouted.
"We're married," he nodded, giving her one more kiss before they walked up the grassy path, right through the middle of the crowd of all the people they loved most in the world.
Angela stood looking at the table now set up beneath the driftwood arch, the lights and lanterns above casting a gentle light, with tears in her eyes and a smile on her face.
While everyone had been in the process of moving the chairs across the yard to set up the reception, Esme, Emmett, and Angela quietly got to work on a small surprise organized by the newlyweds.
Jasper and Bella had told their friends and family that they wanted to document the run-up to their wedding, and asked Angela to take pictures of them with each of the guests at various times over the previous three weeks - some posed shots, some candids.
Sitting on the table, beside a mason jar of flowers, were nineteen silver picture frames, each containing a photo of the couple with one of their loved ones in attendance. Etched across the bottom of the frames was their wedding date and the words 'Thank You'.
When their Italian guests had arrived, Jasper had been grateful Bella had said to order a few extra. They'd planned for the three kings but hadn't planned for any of the guard. With Morgan being Alice's mate and Renata helping the couple with the flowers, they wanted to be able to include the two in the gifts they were giving everyone. Emmett had taken photos of them with each king and Renata earlier in the afternoon, and at the end of the ceremony as they thanked each of their guests for coming, he had quickly snapped a photo of the newlyweds with Morgan, as Bella hadn't seen him before the wedding.
Emmett ran inside to print them out and pop them into frames as Angela and Esme started bringing out the table, flowers, and already completed frames.
Just as Angela was turning to find her own soulmate, Emmett raced over with the final five silver frames for their Volturi guests.
It was the addition he brought of one last piece in the tableau beneath the driftwood arch that had her tears spilling over even as her smile grew. Beside the table was now a chalkboard that sat on an easel, and Jasper had used his nice vampy script to write their loved ones a message.
Thank you for standing beside us and making our lives more complete.
We love you all.
Aro Volturi sat beside his brothers under a warm night sky, an uncharacteristic smile on his face. As he watched the humans, vampires, and wolves chatting and laughing with each other as they moved the chairs over from where the ceremony was performed, he was again filled with a feeling of gratitude that his old friend had finally found what had been so elusive in his first centuries on this planet. This disparate group of beings was a true family.
"Strange, no?" Caius said quietly as he observed the small crowd.
"Strange," Aro nodded his agreement. "But lovely in its own way."
Before more could be said, the radiant bride walked over holding the hand of her father. "Aro, Caius, Marcus, I'd like to introduce my father, Charlie Swan. Dad, this is Aro, Caius, and Marcus Volturi."
The three kings stood and Charlie shook hands with them, saving Aro for last. "It's nice to meet you all. Thank you for coming to celebrate with us," he smiled, then turned to Aro. "I'm not real sure how this works. I understand you'll see my memory of the day Jacob shifted in front of me?"
"Yes," Aro smiled. "You don't need to do anything in particular, I'll see the memory when I touch your hand," he explained. At Charlie's nod, Aro took his hand and closed his eyes.
Aro skimmed past much of Charlie Swan's life, though he was saddened to see the demise of the man's marriage and his loss of custody of his daughter. He paid closer attention when it came to the man's memories of Edward Cullen, and couldn't help his frown at the things Charlie noticed about Bella's boyfriend that worried him, notably Edward's efforts to control her and his tendency to disregard his girlfriend's thoughts and feelings.
After witnessing the newlyweds and how they interacted, their very obvious love for each other, Aro was interested in Charlie's memories of the evolution of the friendship between his daughter and Jasper Whitlock. He smiled in satisfaction that Bella's father liked and respected Jasper from the very beginning, having seen for himself firsthand that he treated Bella with care and respect in all things. The man was quite genuinely happy when the two transitioned from a friendship to a romantic relationship.
Aro paid closest attention, of course, to the night Charlie, his daughter, and Jacob Black were sitting in the backyard celebrating Bella's high school graduation. Charlie had already noticed some things about the wolves and vampires that had struck him as slightly strange and different, but the man respected them all enough to hold his peace. So when the young Quileute man had phased in his defense of the two humans, Charlie Swan had been shocked, but not altogether surprised.
Aro smiled a little at seeing Jasper take Peter Whitlock to the ground, and then again when Peter's mate came flying into the scene, very clearly upset with her mate.
Because Charlie hadn't been able to hear the conversation between Bella, the vampires, and Jacob, Aro couldn't hear it either. He was a little confused by the gratitude on the human's face just before she hugged Peter Whitlock, but that could wait for another time.
Aro listened as Bella and the wolf gave Charlie a brief and relatively vague explanation, simply telling him that Jacob was a protector of his tribe and that the Cullens were 'different' to most people. When they stressed to the human's father that keeping some information a secret was paramount to all of their safety, Charlie Swan had swallowed any questions he had and accepted their word. He truly trusted all of the 'different' people in his daughter's life and was willing to let them keep their secrets.
At no time did the word 'vampire' cross his mind.
Bella watched Aro nervously as he closed his eyes and took her dad's hand. Having been on the planet as long as he had, and being one of the rulers of a race of supernatural beings, Aro had a stellar poker face. She thought she saw the most fleeting expressions, a frown here, a small smile there, but otherwise he gave no outward clue to his reaction to her father's memories. All she could do was hold on to her faith in Alice and Peter. She trusted them both with her whole heart, so she just kept repeating to herself their assurances that everything would be fine.
It wasn't long before Aro opened his eyes and released her dad's hand, probably no more than two minutes.
It felt like the entire gathering was holding their collective breath as Bella's dad put his arm around her and pulled her close to his side, but Bella felt hope bloom in her chest when Peter caught her eye and winked.
"Well?" Caius asked.
Aro smiled. "It is just as Carlisle explained."
The rush of relief that washed through Bella was so profound that she felt a little lightheaded for a moment.
"So my daughter's safe? My son-in-law? His families, the wolves, they're all safe?" Charlie asked.
"They are quite safe," Aro nodded, then looked curiously at the human. "I notice you didn't include yourself in that list."
Bella's dad smiled. "My daughter and our friends and family mean more to me than my own life."
The group let out an 'aww' in unison and Bella felt her eyes fill again. "Could you all please quit making me cry? I'm going to look terrible in all my wedding photos," she huffed.
Caius surprised her by smiling at her. "You are radiant, Mrs. Whitlock-Swan."
"Thank you, Caius," Bella smiled as she wiped her eyes. "That's very kind of you to say."
Jasper stepped to her side and lifted her hand to kiss her wedding band. "He's only speaking the truth, sweetheart. You are radiant."
As Jasper leaned down to kiss his new wife, Marcus Volturi found himself smiling as he looked at the newlyweds and the crowd that had gathered to celebrate with them, his typical amount of soul-crushing grief lightened the barest of fractions.
Yes, finding love in this life was a precious gift.
Alice stood up on her chair so she could see everyone. "Can I have your attention? It's time for the first dance, and Bella and Jasper are doing it a little differently than most. They both wanted to pick the song they'd dance to first, so they came up with a compromise. They each chose a song and told me what it was, then they flipped a coin to decide whose would play first and whose would play second. Jasper won that," Alice said with a smile when she saw Bella's playful pout. "But! What our beautiful couple don't know is that they both chose the same song."
Jasper looked at his wife with a smile as the guests did another 'aww' in unison. "Great minds, huh? Carlisle's actually the one who helped me decide, although he probably doesn't know that. Something he said yesterday triggered a memory of the lyrics."
Bella kissed him and laughed. "My dad did the same for me this morning. So yes, great minds."
Charlie and Carlisle both grinned when Seth cheered loudly for them. "Way to go, dads!"
There wasn't a traditional dance floor, just a wide grassy area with the tree branches covered in twinkly lights making a canopy overhead. Jasper took his wife's hand and walked her over, and she surprised him by pulling him down a little so she could jump up to wrap her arms around his neck. He laughed and quickly wrapped his arms around her waist to hold her up.
"Like this, limpet? Really?" he smiled.
Bella shrugged and nodded. "This way I can look in your eyes easier."
Jasper kissed her for a few long moments and then the first notes of the song Half Asleep by Hem rang out around them. They didn't do much dancing, honestly. Jasper gently swayed them in slow circles while the new husband and wife sang quietly to each other.
"My heart has been half asleep inside of me, it wakes up when you come around."
At the end of the second verse, Bella lit up with a beaming grin. "And I'm wearing a blindfold, a shoelace untied. I'm steady when you're next to me."
As the song built to its crescendo, Jasper held her even closer and gently rested his forehead on hers. "I've been half asleep all of my life, lost in the dark of some perilous night. Is that you or some beautiful light, finally coming around?"
The couple sang the last lines quietly together, Bella singing through the lump in her throat and slightly watery eyes, while Jasper blinked against venom tears, but both with smiles on their faces.
"My heart has been half asleep all of my life, it wakes up when you come around. It wakes up when you come around."
As the last quiet note died away, their wonderful, loving, loud ass guests broke the peace of the moment by erupting into piercing whistles and thunderous applause. Jasper gave Bella a searing kiss before setting her on her feet, and the newlyweds turned to their guests and gave them an overly dramatic bow, their bright laughter sounding nothing but beautifully joyful to their friends and family.
Peter and Jasper were sitting at one of the empty tables watching their soulmates dance - Bella with her father, and Charlotte with Emmett.
"Thank you," Jasper said softly.
Peter looked at him curiously. "For what?"
"For so many things that I'm not sure I know where to begin," Jasper answered honestly. "You were the first person to love me in this life. The first person I loved. For a time, I thought what Maria and I had was love but… after you, I knew that was just another of her lies," he said with a shake of his head, as Peter reached over to take his hand. "When you realized who Charlotte was to you, you showed me what it means to have a soulmate, how it feels when you find your other half. And when I brought Ali to meet you and you heard about the whole animal thing, you accepted her immediately and didn't make judgments or make fun of that diet the way many in our world do. You simply thanked her for showing me a way to live that didn't crush me under the weight of my gift."
Peter smiled. "Why would I judge you or make fun of you for somethin' that made your life easier? I may not be in love with you anymore, Jasper, but I will always love you. Your peace and happiness mean more to me than just about anything in this life. Only Charlotte is above you."
Jasper laughed as his eyes started to sting. "Now I get why Bella was a little huffy. Y'all have got to stop making venom flood my eyeballs, that shit stings, asshole."
"And you're an ugly crier, Major," Peter smiled, ducking Jasper's punch.
Jasper ruffled his oldest friend's hair with a sigh. "I'm so grateful that you and Charlotte kept me standing, kept me moving, all these years. You never let me give up hope that I would be this happy some day."
"I knew your path would be long and difficult," Peter said softly. "But I also knew that eventually, every dark moment you'd endured would pale in comparison to the brilliance of your future."
"You sweet, sappy bastard," Jasper smiled as he pulled his oldest friend into a hug. "Did you know the rumors about Maria were true?" he asked when he let him go.
"About her demise? No," Peter shook his head. "The woman was like a cockroach. I just assumed her hatred and spite would keep her alive for at least a few more centuries."
Jasper nodded but before he could answer, Aro walked over and pointed to an empty chair. "May I?" he asked. When the Whitlocks both nodded, he sat down with them.
Aro had listened to the words Jasper sang during the newlywed's first dance with keen awareness. Having read Maria's thoughts when she'd been brought to Volterra, he knew more about the first few terrible decades of Jasper Whitlock's second life than anyone present. 'Lost in the dark of some perilous night' was indeed a fitting description of Jasper's introduction to this life. He suffered year upon year upon year, decade after decade. It was the reason Aro found himself grateful that he had finally found a home, a family, and more love than most people experience in a lifetime.
"First, let me again extend my congratulations, Jasper. I'm happy to see you've found so much joy in this life," Aro said honestly. "I also couldn't help but overhear your conversation, and I wanted to share something with you about your sire."
Jasper and Peter exchanged a brief glance. Jasper was slightly wary, well aware that Aro knew a little too much about his past than he was strictly comfortable with. "What about her?"
"Did you know that she was aware of the relationship between the two of you?" he asked quietly. Seeing the shock on both the young men's faces, Aro nodded. "I wondered as much."
"What do you mean she knew?" Jasper asked, eyes wide. "Maria made no secret of the fact that it pleased her to destroy anything or anyone that held any meaning to me."
"And yet she allowed Peter to live far beyond his newborn year. A privilege she'd only extended to you prior to that," Aro pointed out.
Jasper shook his head. "He was a good fighter. I trained him hard so that I could prove he was worth keeping."
"And I believe that is what kept him alive in his first two, perhaps three, years," Aro nodded. "But then she accidentally stumbled on the two of you one night when she was returning from hunting on her own. The two of you were sharing a kiss, and yes, her first instinct was to destroy both of you. She saw it as you, Jasper, betraying her."
Peter and Jasper wouldn't have been more shocked if a ghost of the woman who tormented them walked into the Cullen's backyard and asked them to dance. Charlotte and Bella must have seen something or felt something from their soulmates, and turned at the same time to see them both frozen completely, staring at Aro with wide eyes. They exchanged a glance and then quickly made their way to the table where the three were sitting.
"Jas?" Bella said softly as she wrapped her arms around her husband from behind and rested her chin on his shoulder.
Charlotte sat beside Peter and took his hand, then leveled a glare at the Volturi king. Royalty or not, he'd done something to completely unnerve her mate and brother. "What did you say to them?"
Aro gave her a small smile and held his hands in front of him. "I meant no harm, truly. I just shared something I saw in Maria's mind before we killed her. I believe they're simply in some shock."
Jasper unfroze and pulled Bella into his lap. "So what changed her mind? Why didn't she kill us both?" he asked.
"Your gift wasn't under control, Jasper," Aro smiled. "Your own emotions were flooding the area… and she felt your happiness. Your joy, your peace. Your love."
Peter sucked in a sharp breath. "Are you saying that saved us? Jasper's love saved us?" he asked incredulously.
Aro nodded. "Essentially, yes."
"Bullshit," Jasper shook his head. "Excuse my language, but Maria wasn't a woman who was moved by any positive emotion. She thrived on hatred and rage and bitterness."
Aro nodded again. "For the most part, you are correct. Indeed, you're nearly entirely correct. But while Maria didn't love you, she did care about you," he started, holding his hand up when the eldest Whitlocks opened their mouths as one to contradict him. "In as much as she was capable of caring for another. She was aware you hated this life, hated what she forced you to do for her, and she had taken notice that you had seemed more… settled recently. Once she saw you and Peter, she understood why. She had also noticed that both of you were fighting every single battle more fiercely than ever before. Once you finally felt love in this life, Jasper, you quite literally fought tooth and nail to keep it," Aro said softly.
Jasper honestly didn't know what to make of all this. The idea that Maria might have held her tongue because he and Peter were fighting far more brutally than they had before made way more sense than her letting Jasper hold on to someone he loved.
"So she let me keep him because loving each other made us more effective warriors?" Jasper asked, then quickly turned to Peter. "Sorry, that made you sound like a pet."
Peter, Charlotte, and Bella all laughed, while Aro smiled. "It was for multiple reasons, Jasper. Part of her was genuinely pleased that you'd finally begun to accept this life, and also yes, you were even more committed to the fight, to her fight, when you had someone to fight for."
The Whitlocks and Whitlock-Swans sat in silence for a minute. Then Jasper felt a flash of amusement and satisfaction in his new wife.
"So what you're saying is that love really does win in the end?" Bella asked Aro with a smile.
Aro returned her smile with a nod. "I'd say the proof of that is sitting right here at this table, in this backyard, wouldn't you?" he asked, gesturing to the two pairs of soulmates surrounded by their loved ones.
Jasper looked at Peter and Charlotte, at Alice and the Cullens, the wolves and Angela, Charlie and Sue and Jacob's father, and of course Bella. He felt his gratitude well up inside him, and rather than try to contain it as he usually did, he loosened his control and let it flow out to every single person in the Cullen's yard.
It may have taken him over a century and a half to get here, but yes, maybe love does win in the end.
Jasper and Bella had been keeping a close eye on Alice and her new mate, while Emmett had been keeping close to the stereo. As soon as Morgan took her hand and asked Alice to dance for the first time, Emmett waited until they stepped underneath the lit-up canopy and then stopped the current song mid-play, which was everyone else's cue to move to the edge of the dance floor.
Morgan and Alice looked around in confusion, not sure why they were suddenly alone on the grass with the other guests making a wide circle around them.
"What the—"
Alice was cut off by the opening violins of the Etta James song At Last, and the loud applause of the other wedding guests, none louder than Jasper's. Jacob decided he wanted to channel Seth Clearwater and cheered loudly for his friend. "Congratulations, Tink!"
Alice laughed and her face lit up in one of her beaming, sunny smiles as she and Morgan danced surrounded by her friends and family, Morgan's fellow guard member, and the three Volturi kings. The smile on Jasper's face easily rivaled Alice's for brightness and he found himself blinking away venom tears yet again when his new wife nudged him gently with her elbow.
"Jas," she whispered through her own smile. "You're projecting just a little."
Jasper looked around at the other guests, and seeing them all with radiant smiles on their faces - which honestly looked a little strange on Aro, Marcus, and Caius - he laughed and pulled his gift under control. "Sorry about that, everyone. I'm happy," he shrugged.
The crowd couldn't help but be touched by the amount of joy Jasper was feeling as he watched the woman who meant so much to him dance for the first time with her other half.
Bella and Jasper were taking a break from dancing so Bella could eat the piece of apple pie she'd hidden, knowing full well it would disappear quickly when the wolves were unleashed on the dessert table. Jasper was holding her hand, content to sit by her side, soaking up her joy.
Bella hummed happily as she finished the last bite. "I don't know how the woman does it. Do you know I've looked at her recipe and it's just a run of the mill apple pie recipe? No secret ingredients? I asked her what her trick was and she said she bakes a little bit of her love in with it."
Jasper smiled as he wiped a bit of apple from the corner of her mouth. "I can believe that, actually. She does have a lot of love living inside her."
"We're pretty lucky, huh?" Bella smiled. "All these people here, everyone just brimming with love. You must be as close as a vamp can get to being high right now."
Jasper laughed and pulled Bella into his lap to kiss her soundly. "I love you, wife," he whispered against her lips when he took a break to let her breathe.
"Mmm," she hummed happily again. "I love you too, husband."
"May I join you for a moment?" a quiet voice asked, making the newlyweds pull away from each other.
"Of course," Jasper and Bella said together as Bella moved back to her chair, both smiling at Marcus.
The Volturi king pulled out a chair and sat down, then held up the silver picture frame he was holding. The photo inside was of Bella, in a too-big silk bathrobe, showing Marcus the proper way to slice an onion - Bella's eyes a little watery, a slight scrunch to the king's nose - and Jasper laughing at the two of them as he leaned on the counter beside them.
"Thank you for this, it's a lovely gift," Marcus said quietly with a genuine smile.
"You're welcome," Bella said. "We're grateful to you for being willing to come celebrate with us in order to spare my dad a trip to Italy."
"I'm surprised by how much I've enjoyed my time here," Marcus admitted softly. "Not only is it gratifying whenever soulmates find each other, but your gift in particular, Jasper, has made this a more pleasant day than I can remember having in quite a long time."
Jasper nodded sadly. "I know it was a very long time ago, but I'm so sorry for your loss, sir. I can't imagine the pain you must feel."
Marcus smiled a little. "Of anyone, you are the most likely to know my pain."
"True," Jasper smiled. "But it's your grief, not my own. That makes a very big difference."
"Yes, I imagine it does," Marcus sighed. "But that is not why I came over. I wanted to thank you, Jasper. Thank you both, in fact," he said. On seeing their confusion, Marcus smiled. "The emotions that you've let loose on us tonight - some I think by accident, though one did seem intentional - are the first time in years I've felt joy and love and gratitude. Even though the emotions weren't produced by me, and I knew they were not my own, I still felt them as if they were my own."
"His gift's pretty great, huh?" Bella laughed. "It really boosts a girl's confidence when she knows exactly how much her partner loves her."
"Are my words so meaningless?" Jasper huffed, trying to keep the smile off his face.
"Hey, you said it, not me," Bella smiled, breaking into giggles when Jasper laughed and poked her side.
Marcus watched the two with a small smile. "Caius made the observation yesterday afternoon that your happiness seems to spill over, Bella. And I wonder if you both know how true that is?"
"What do you mean?" Bella asked curiously, while Jasper looked a bit confused. "I am happy, that's no secret."
"I thought you might not be aware," Marcus nodded. "The group of people around you, your families, your wolf friends, are all genuinely happy individuals. Just seeing the bonds of love between all of you shows me that. It is not a surprise, then, that no one notices."
"Notices what, sir?" Jasper asked, head tipped to the side in confusion.
"I believe you lose control of your gift more often than you know," Marcus explained. "It's not by any great amount, but as someone who seldom experiences true joy, the little bit of your own that sort of… leaks out of you, radiates off you, it is enough for me to notice. I believe your family and friends have enough happiness of their own that perhaps the addition of that little amount of yours doesn't register. But for me?" he shrugged.
Bella reached for his hand but stopped before she touched him without permission. "Sorry. May I hold your hand for a second?" she asked with a gentle smile. Marcus nodded as he took her hand. "One of the things I've learned in my very, very, very short life is that sometimes found families are even better than the ones we're born into. There's something to be said for choosing who our family is. And… well, you're always welcome in this strange found family of ours."
Marcus broke into the widest smile that Jasper had seen from the man, just as he knew a wide smile was on his own face. He kissed his wife's temple, so very grateful that fate chose to give him a soulmate with such a big heart.
"I know you're a king and all," Bella added quickly. "So you can't join this ragtag family full-time, but once I find my manners again after my newborn period, we're always happy to have guests."
"Thank you, Bella," Marcus chuckled. "I may just take you up on your kind offer. As long as your husband is in agreement."
Jasper smiled at the king. "She's the boss, remember? I'm just the arm candy. But yes, Marcus, you're always welcome to come see us. A regular infusion of joy and contentment can't hurt, right?"
"Like a super weird doctor's visit," Bella laughed.
"Thank you, both of you. I'll keep that in mind," the Volturi king smiled. "And if you ever find yourselves in Italy, perhaps you could come visit me?"
Bella shrugged and scrunched her nose up a little. "I don't have much of a desire to be in the same country as Edward Cullen, to be honest."
"Masen," Jasper smiled.
Bella's nose scrunched up even more. "Mason what?" she asked, confused about why her husband was talking about the jars their centerpieces were in. "Did you want to give Marcus a centerpiece to take home? Because that's… What? Why are you laughing at me?" she laughed, the sound of Jasper's laughter as contagious as always to her.
"Masen, as in Edward Masen. Pre-Cullen, human Masen," Jasper laughed, then looked at Marcus. "Though you are welcome to a floral arrangement if you'd like one."
Marcus shook his head with a genuine laugh. "It would be difficult to get it home easily, although…" he trailed off as he eyed the flowers, then quickly pulled out one of the smaller rosebuds and tucked it into the buttonhole on his suit jacket. "Roses dry quite nicely. I can keep it with my photo of the three of us," he said, holding up the silver frame.
"That's a lovely idea," Bella smiled. "We have our own framed copies of all of these photos, so maybe we can do something similar in our own home."
"Maybe after your newborn year, sweetheart," Jasper laughed. "I think we'll leave these in Esme's care. I'd hate for you to come to your senses sitting in a pile of twisted metal and torn photographs."
Bella laughed and shoved her husband. "I would never! But yeah, okay. That's probably a solid plan," she admitted. "It would be super awkward to hate you for an eternity for not stopping me before I destroyed them."
He glared at her playfully. "Oh, so it would somehow be my fault?"
Bella snorted a laugh. "Yes. That's what Rosalie has been trying to teach me. It's always your fault. Even if you're not home or not in the same state or not listening or whatever fits the scenario at the time."
"How's that ruthlessness working out for you?" he smiled. When Bella sort of shrugged and shook her head, Jasper laughed. "I'm the Hale twin, sweetheart, not you."
Marcus smiled at the newlyweds as he stood up. "I believe my brothers and I, along with Renata, will be on our way shortly. I just wanted to come thank you before we took our leave. Both for inviting us to celebrate with you and for sharing your joy and love with me, however unintentional."
Bella and Jasper both stood up, and Jasper held his hand out. When Marcus took it, Jasper very slowly started to send the perpetually grief-stricken king some contentment, watching him closely to be sure he was okay with it. Marcus seemed to understand, because he tightened his hold and nodded. Jasper added some happiness and peace, as well as his own feelings of gratitude, and smiled when Marcus took a deep breath. It sounded a little shaky, like it was the first he'd taken in a long, long while.
Because Jasper was entirely focused on Marcus in order to ensure he didn't do any more than the man was comfortable with, he missed some of the vampires around them stop what they were doing at the sound of that deep, shuddering breath. But Bella didn't. She watched as Aro, Caius, Renata, and Carlisle all stopped in their tracks and turned to stare at their brother or king or friend, and the empath who was allowing him to breathe past his grief for the very first time.
Bella stood beside her husband, her eyes stinging with fresh tears, holding his hand and offering her own happiness and love as an anchor for him as he helped ease the pain of someone who was a stranger to him less than two days ago.
Bella knew Jasper often thanked fate that he was given a soulmate with a big heart, but Bella was of the firm belief that the Whitlock-Swans were equally blessed in that regard. Bella couldn't have asked for her life to be tied to any greater heart than Jasper's.
Bella looked around the yard at all the members of her vampire family. "So that's everyone, huh? Carlisle and Esme, Rosalie and Emmett, Peter and Charlotte, Alice and Morgan, me and you," she said with a smile. "I guess even Edward and Demetri, not that I give a shit about Edward. Demetri seemed nice enough, though," she added.
Jasper nodded with a smile of his own. "Yep, that's everyone."
"Forgetting about me so soon, Jasper? I'm devastated," a deep voice said from behind them.
Bella's first instinct was to panic, but then she saw the smile on her husband's face as he jumped to his feet.
"Garrett, you made it!" Jasper said as he spun around and pulled a dark-haired vampire in for a hug.
"I would have been here sooner if I'd known we were celebrating. I haven't checked my post box in a few weeks so I just got your letter this morning," Garrett said as he hugged Jasper. When he let go, he looked at Bella with a rakish grin. "And you're Bella, I presume? The new Mrs. Whitlock-Swan?"
"I am," Bella laughed as she got to her feet. "It's nice to meet you, Garrett," she said as she held her hand out to shake his.
He looked at her as he shook her hand, head cocked to the side. "And no fear? Even with the red eyes?" he asked curiously.
"Please," Bella laughed. "My husband would have you crying on the ground before you got a fang near me."
Jasper laughed as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "She's not wrong."
"I never eat friends, anyway," Garrett said with a dismissive wave and a smile. "Unless it's the fun way," he added, making Bella snort a laugh.
"You're where Alice caught that little turn of phrase, huh?" Jasper laughed. "I should've known. She shocked the hell out of me when she said something similar in front of Carlisle."
"Garrett!" Alice squealed as she came flying out of nowhere to hug the newcomer. "I wasn't sure you'd make it in time!"
"Hey Alice," Garrett laughed as he set her back on her feet. Seeing the man standing a few feet away watching her with a smile, Garrett looked at his tiny pixie friend. "Got a new beau, Ali?"
Alice skipped to Morgan and took his hand. "This is Morgan, my soulmate. We just found each other yesterday. Morgan, this is our friend Garrett."
Morgan stepped forward with a warm smile to shake Garrett's hand. "It's nice to meet you."
"Nice meeting you, too. Congratulations, I'm happy for you both. It seems everyone's meeting their mates here. I heard you mention Edward and Demetri also just before I announced my presence. Is Carlisle running some kind of matchmaking racket?"
"Interested yet?" Jasper asked with a raised eyebrow.
Garrett scoffed. "No, thank you. I have plenty of fun in my life. I don't need a mate," he said as he shook his head.
"You don't want to find your mate?" Bella asked curiously.
"Nope," Garrett shook his head. "I'm perfectly happy with the life I have."
Jasper looked at him a little skeptically. "But you'd be so much happier with—"
"Kate!" Alice shouted suddenly and took off running.
"What the hell?" Bella muttered as she looked into the darkness where Alice disappeared.
Jasper smiled as he kissed the top of her head. "A friend of ours from Denali just arrived. Apparently she was in Seattle for something else and wanted to say hello before heading home."
"She's from Tanya's coven?" Bella asked, wishing she could hear as well as the rest of her vamp family.
Before anyone could answer, Peter walked over with a huge grin and winked at Jasper and Bella. "Wait for it…" he whispered, watching the direction Alice had disappeared. "Three, two, one…"
Bella didn't see anything at first, not having vamp vision, but then she noticed that Garrett had gone completely still and was looking in the same direction with wide eyes. Just as she saw the vague outline of a woman slowly walking towards them with Alice, Jasper burst out laughing.
"Now that's everyone."
Alice was sitting in the grass beside the dance floor watching the newlyweds with a smile when Peter and Charlotte came to sit beside her.
"It's pretty amazing, huh?" Alice said softly.
"Everything I've always wanted for him," Peter nodded with a soft smile.
Charlotte murmured her agreement. "Look at his face," she sighed happily. "I've seen Jasper content, I've seen him happy… but this is…" she trailed off, not sure how to put into words what it meant to her to see that much peace and joy on his face.
For the three who had known Jasper the longest, watching him dance with his soulmate at his wedding was the culmination of every wish, every dream they'd ever had for the man they all loved. Every scary, sad, awful moment the four of them had gone through to secure this very future was worth it. So far beyond worth it.
Jasper Whitlock - now Jasper Whitlock-Swan - deserved every bit of happiness in this world and Peter, Charlotte, and Alice were so grateful to have a front row seat as he'd finally found it.
"Relieved?"
Bella looked up at her dad and nodded. The two were on the dance floor having one last dance before she and Jasper headed out. "Very. I trust Alice and Peter, I do, but I was still nervous. What was it like?" she asked.
Charlie thought on it for a few moments. "Kinda strange. I couldn't keep up with the flashes of memory at the speed they flew past, but when he took my hand I definitely felt a… nudging, I guess, in my mind. Some moments were slowed down a bit so that I caught whispers of them, mostly from after you met the Cullens."
"I'm sure Aro was interested in anything to do with Edward," she nodded.
"Those, but also some of the early days of your friendship with Alice and Jasper, the beginning of your relationship," Charlie shrugged. "Like I said, most were too quick for me to catch."
"It's wild that he can scan over forty years of memories in two minutes," Bella laughed. "I'm just glad it's behind us."
"So what's next?" Charlie asked quietly. "Is Canada where you'll… become different too?"
Bella smiled a little sadly. "Yeah. After that it'll only be phone calls or video calls for a while. Maybe a year or so."
Charlie just nodded and held his daughter a little bit closer. A year wasn't all that much time in the grand scheme of things. He could deal with a year. If it meant not losing his little girl he figured he could deal with pretty much anything.
He hadn't been lying to Aro, Bella really did mean more to him than his own life. No question.
Jasper and Bella had changed their plans a few days before their wedding. Knowing that after Bella's nineteenth birthday the two would be away from their loved ones for an extended period of time as Bella adjusted to her new life, the couple decided to only have a short honeymoon. After Bella's change they would have months of alone time, so they both agreed they'd rather spend those last few weeks with the people they loved. So, rather than going away for the two weeks they'd planned, the couple had instead booked a suite at a hotel in Seattle for four nights.
Around midnight, after the newlyweds said most of their goodbyes, Rosalie pulled Jasper's truck around, with their suitcase already tucked in the back.
Because they would be back in Forks so soon, most of the goodbyes weren't overly emotional, although Bella did hold on to her dad a little longer than necessary. When she pulled back she had tears in her eyes and sniffled a little.
"This is stupid," she huffed as she wiped her damn eyes again. "I'm going to see you in a few days."
Charlie smiled at his little girl, now all grown up and a married woman. "This isn't goodbye, kid. Just enjoy your honeymoon. I'm going to enjoy four days of peace and quiet before you guys come back and I have to deal with my daughter and her husband sleeping under my roof," he laughed. Bella and Jasper had decided to split their time before leaving for their new home in Canada between the Swan's house and the Cullen's.
Bella snorted a laugh as she gave her dad one last hug. "Yeah, I guess you're on the losing end here, huh?"
Charlie held her extra tight for a second. "No. No one's on the losing end. All this love around us? This happiness? We all win, Bella. Every single one of us."
A sob tore its way up Bella's throat before she gently shoved her dad away, her eyes leaking a bit. "Alright, no more of that. I'm not starting my honeymoon in a bucket of tears, thank you very much," she laughed. "But I love you so much. Thank you for being the best dad I could've asked for," she added in a whisper.
Charlie rolled his eyes as they started to sting, and shoved his daughter towards her husband, who was watching the two with a smile a few feet away. "Go on. Get. I'm not spending these four days of peace in a bucket of tears, thank you very much," he echoed her with a laugh.
Jasper laughed and pulled Charlie into a hug, then looked at him a moment. "You've heard me mention my gift?" he asked quietly. At Charlie's nod, Jasper smiled. "I don't want to explain too much, better not to know probably, but I'd like to do something if you'd let me."
Bella's dad looked at him a little warily, but then saw that his daughter was holding her husband's hand with a beaming smile. If she was smiling like that, it probably wasn't anything terrible. "Alright," Charlie nodded.
It didn't take long before a warmth started to build in Charlie Swan's chest. It took him a few long seconds to understand what was happening and to untangle the riot of emotions Jasper was filling him with. There was appreciation and respect, happiness and gratitude… but most of all, there was love. The deep warmth of love.
As the emotions slowly faded away, Charlie looked at his son-in-law a little wide-eyed. "What was all that?" he breathed.
Jasper smiled, but looked a little uncertain, like he wasn't sure how Charlie would react. "How I feel about you," he said quietly.
Charlie wiped his eyes and pulled Jasper in for a tight hug. "Thank you. I feel exactly the same about you."
"Not cool, guys!" Bella whined from beside them. "Damn these fucking tears!"
Jasper and Charlie broke apart with a laugh. "That bucket of tears just got awfully deep. Tough break, Bells," he laughed.
When the newlyweds turned to give their friends and family a final wave before getting in Jasper's truck and hitting the road, Jasper closed his eyes for a moment and sent his love and gratitude to everyone around them.
"Get in the truck before I end up in a ball of tears, asshole," Paul snarked in a huff, but fighting a smile.
Jasper and Bella both laughed as they hopped in. With one last shouted "See you in a few days!" the Whitlock-Swans drove away honking and waving out their windows, the cheering of their loved ones the joyful noise that sent them on their way.
Jacob looked at Alice beside him, who was watching the fading taillights with a smile. "Their future, Alice?" he asked with a smile.
"Brilliant," Alice laughed. "Absolutely brilliant."
Alice stood in the middle of the empty dance floor, her mind awash in memories. The previous few years had held so much turmoil and worry, but even more happiness and love.
Every fear, every smile, every heartache, every tear, every laugh had led to this moment.
Alice had wanted Jasper meeting his soulmate to be nothing but a wonderful gift, a straightforward journey, rather than the twists and turns they'd had to stumble through. But even the things she'd wished at the time they could have avoided served a greater purpose. If Victoria hadn't been hell bent on revenge, they would never have made such rich friendships with the wolves. If the dark shadow of Bella's former boyfriend hadn't hovered over them, the Volturi would never have come to Forks, bringing Alice's other half into their lives.
All that lay ahead of them now, ahead of all of them, was bright blue skies and the blazing warmth of sunshine.
Fate worked in its own time, no one else's. It may have taken the long, winding road for Bella and Jasper Whitlock-Swan, but fate unfolded exactly the way it was meant to.