A/N: This chapter is a little bit shorter, but I'm sick and cold medicine makes my brain a little slow so writing is a lot harder. There may be a couple days with no updates until I can breathe without coughing up a lung, lol.

Thank you for all the reviews, follows, and faves. Y'all make me smile even through the flu:)

Gifts From the Past

"Why did you want Lilly to be a Whitlock, rather than a Swan?" Jasper asked as they walked out of the Clinic.

Bella smiled that it had taken him this long to ask her that. "I'm eventually going to be a Whitlock and I want us all to have the same last name," she answered.

Jasper gently squeezed her hand. "You're no less a full member of this coven, this family, if you don't use the name Whitlock," he said quietly. "You know that, right?"

"I do," Bella nodded. "But I don't just want to be a Whitlock because of the coven. I want to be a Whitlock because it's your name, Jas."

Jasper froze in place for a second and his shock was so profound that Bella felt a blast of it before he got control of his gift. "You…"

Bella smiled and tugged his arm a little to get him moving again. "Come on, let's talk in the truck. The sun looks like it wants to come out and play and I'd rather we weren't caught in it."

Jasper glanced at the sky and saw she was right. He unlocked the truck and they both climbed in the tinted cab, and Jasper started the engine so he could turn the heat on low. It was a chilly day for mid-April.

"I don't want to put words in your mouth, and I'm gonna sound like a real idiot if I'm reading this wrong," Jasper started, sounding way too nervous to his own ears. He rambled when he was nervous. Either that or just went completely silent. Neither of which were great, obviously. Damn, where did that man who survived the Southern Wars go? He sure wouldn't mind having him by his side right now, because—

Jasper's inner monologue was cut off by Bella laughing as she took his hand. "Breathe, hon."

Jasper dragged in a raspy breath. "Right. Breathing's good. I mean, for you. Doesn't do much for me these days, obviously. But I'm glad you breathe all the time. I'd hate to think—"

Jasper was again cut off by the beautiful sound of his mate's laughter. "I don't think I've ever seen you so flustered," Bella said with a cute little giggle. "It's adorable."

Jasper huffed a little, trying to sound offended, but Bella's laughter was always a little contagious to him, so he started laughing with her. "What I'm trying to say, clearly not all that successfully, is you want to marry me someday?"

"I do," Bella nodded as she got her laughter under control.

"But aren't you against marriage? Like extremely against marriage? Like so against marriage that turning into a vamp was an easier commitment to make?" he asked her. "Which, I just need to point out for the sake of my own sanity, is kinda weird. You were willing to change your species to be with Edward but you thought a wedding was a commitment too far?"

"I…" Bella hesitated and then huffed a little. "Well when you put it like that it sounds stupid."

Jasper gave her a little bit of a weird look. "Uh, yeah. That's because it is stupid. I only used the word 'weird' a second ago because I didn't want to offend you."

Fortunately for Jasper, Bella started laughing instead of getting offended. "Yeah, it was a little stupid. In my defense, I was young. I was only seventeen, what did I know?"

"Sweetheart, that's not helpin' your case in this scenario. You were young, you didn't know a whole lot, but becoming a vamp seemed a safer option than marriage?" Jasper laughed, pulling his mate into his arms so he could at least hold her while he insulted her.

"You glad you got nineteen-year old Bella, instead of seventeen-year old Bella?" she laughed.

"Absolutely," Jasper nodded with a smile. "Not that I would have loved you any less back then. But I think you're way more fun now that you're a little older and a little wiser. Y'all both took yourselves awfully seriously back then and neither of you did a whole lot of laughing."

"True," Bella agreed. "I much prefer this version of me. I wish I'd become this version a little earlier and without losing so much, but I'm still glad this is where I've ended up. Here, with you. Which circles back around nicely for me," she laughed. "Yes, I want to marry you someday. And, honestly, sooner than I'd originally thought."

"What did you originally think?" he asked curiously.

Bella shrugged a little. "I didn't have a set timeframe or anything, but I kinda thought it would be after I'm a vamp. But lately, I…" she trailed off a little nervously.

"You want to be married when Lilly's born," he finished softly, starting to understand.

"Yeah," she nodded. "I don't really know why or what changed, but… yeah, I want our little one to come into the world with parents who are married."

Jasper held her a little bit closer for a few minutes, his emotions practically choking him. Thank the lord they were all positive emotions or it would've been really unpleasant. Choking on joy is a hell of a lot better than choking on misery. Jasper had choked on a lifetime's worth of that particular emotion. Which, honestly, just made the joy taste that much sweeter.

"Do you have documents for Whitlock now? Or are you still technically a Hale?" Bella asked.

"Whitlock. I got everything changed over when I left the Cullens," he answered. "What kind of wedding do you want? Aside from not large and not fancy."

Bella laughed that her mate knew her so well. "Not large and not fancy is about as far as I've gotten. You?"

"Those work for me. I'm not a fan of crowds and I'm about as far from fancy as you can get," he laughed. "Do you want rings?"

"Yes," she answered immediately. "Nothing showy but I would like that visual symbol that we're married."

"Good. My inner caveman likes the idea of the world knowing you're mine," he smiled. When Bella leaned back a little to give him a raised eyebrow, he just rolled his eyes and tugged her back into his arms. "Just like I'm yours, sweetheart."

Bella nodded, pleased she'd be staking a public claim, too. Vamps weren't the only ones who got territorial. She knew Jasper only had eyes for her, but women and girls had eyes for him pretty much everywhere they went. "Is getting a marriage license difficult?" she asked.

"No, and I think in Montana you can get it issued the same day. How soon are you thinking?"

Bella thought on it a minute. Honestly, she could marry Jasper tomorrow and be nothing but thrilled about it. But maybe a little bit of planning was better. Besides, part of their family was still in Washington. "I'm not sure. Do you think any of our Italian friends would come over for it?"

"Only one way to find out," Jasper said with a smile as he nudged her back over so she could put her seatbelt on. "Let's go give 'em a ring and see."

Aro Volturi hung up the phone with a pleased smile and went to find his brother. After knocking twice, he opened the door and popped his head in. "I come bearing good news, Marcus."

Marcus looked up from his reading. "Yes? What sort of good news?"

Aro walked in and sat across from him. "Our newest friends are planning to wed."

"Jasper and Bella?" Marcus asked. When Aro nodded, Marcus gave him a small smile. "That is good news. How is she feeling?"

"Remarkably well," Aro laughed. "Lilly has become quite active recently and Jasper's hand has apparently become glued to her stomach. The sonogram from this morning's appointment should be in your inbox by now."

"When is the wedding?" Marcus asked as he moved to his desk and turned on his computer.

"No date has been set, but they'd like us to attend," Aro answered. "Would that interest you?"

"Perhaps," Marcus nodded. "This is the perfect excuse for you to travel there. No need to make excuses about seeing 'the beauty of Montana' anymore," he teased.

Aro laughed again. "It is perfect. I was thinking, if I do attend, that perhaps I could also go to Denali and get a read on Edward Cullen. Jasper is quite certain he's genuine in not attempting to get his 'revenge' in the future, but having a little extra reassurance can't hurt."

"I agree. Especially with little Lilly's birth being right around the corner," Marcus nodded. "Who else from Volterra has been invited?"

"Everyone," Aro answered with a smile. "I imagine Chelsea and Jane will want to attend. Demetri, Felix, and Jeremiah as well. Will you consider coming along?"

"Yes," Marcus nodded with a small smile as he opened the email attachment from Jasper. "Let me know when they set a date and I'll make a decision. What about Caius? Do you think he'd come along?"

"I do," Aro laughed as he got to his feet. "He's just as smitten with little Lilly as we are. I'll go speak to him now."

Marcus nodded a little distractedly, too focused on the most recent image of the youngest Whitlock to answer properly. Aro gave his brother a fond smile, so pleased that he'd found something recently that brought him a measure of happiness.

After hanging up with Aro, Jasper headed off for a quick hunt while Bella made herself an afternoon snack. The house had been empty when they'd returned home, so Peter suddenly materializing next to her made her startle a little.

"Maybe make some noise while I'm still human so you don't give me a heart attack," she laughed, but her laughter died away when she saw Peter's serious expression. "What's the matter?"

Peter smiled and gave her a hug. "Absolutely nothing," he assured her as he pulled back. "First, congratulations. I don't know if it's officially official, but I'm real happy for y'all. Like over the moon, ecstatically happy for you. Second, I have something for you," he said a little nervously.

Bella quickly wiped her hands and gave Peter her full attention. "Okay," she nodded. "Is it something that's going to make me nervous also?"

"No, I just may or may not have acquired these using dubious means," he laughed as he held his hand out.

Bella's breath caught in her throat and she carefully picked up the two rings resting on his palm. Both were thin bands of rose gold, and one had a delicate filigree of swirls that created the shape of a flower, with a very small diamond set in the center.

"Where did you find these?" she asked, looking up at him with wide eyes. "Are these…"

"From Jasper's human family, yes," Peter nodded. "These were his mom and dad's. After Charlotte and I left Maria, I got 'intuition' or whatever that these were important. So I may or may not have snuck into a descendant's house and stolen them from a box in their attic. In my defense, they were just gathering dust up there."

"And Jasper doesn't know you have them? Why didn't you give them to him when he married Alice?" she asked curiously.

"They weren't hers to have. They knew they weren't mates, and they really only got married because Carlisle pushed them into it, the sanctimonious dick," he said with a little growl. "They were always meant to be yours, even if I didn't know it until he went to Italy."

"Wow," Bella breathed as she traced the filigree on the ring that she hoped would find a permanent home on her finger. "This is… Thank you, Peter," she said as she threw her arms around him, tears of gratitude welling up in her eyes.

"You're welcome," Peter said softly, his own eyes a little clouded with venom. "I'm so grateful he's finally found you. He's happier than I've ever seen him."

"Why are y'all so emotional?" Jasper asked as he walked in the house. "You're gonna make me cry in a minute."

Peter smiled and pulled his brother into a tight hug. "Congratulations, Jas," he whispered.

"The gods or whoever told you the news, huh?" Jasper laughed as he hugged him back. "Is that why you've got me near tears?"

Peter laughed and let him go. "No. Well, maybe a little," he admitted. "But Bella has somethin' to ask you so I'll give y'all some privacy."

After thanking Peter again, Bella took Jasper's hand and tugged him into the living room and gently pushed him on the couch before curling up against his side. "So before I start, let me just say right up front that if you don't want us to wear these, that's perfectly fine. This is a joint decision and I don't want you to feel pressured one way or the other."

"Uh, okay," he said a little hesitantly. "Wear what exactly?"

Bella opened up her hand to show him the rings. Just as Bella's had, Jasper's very unnecessary breath caught in his throat at seeing his parent's wedding rings and his eyes darted up to hers. "Where'd you get those?" he whispered.

"Peter," Bella smiled. "He rescued them from a life of collecting dust in a box."

Jasper laughed a little. "Stupid question, I guess. This is… I don't even have words for what this means," he told her, instead falling back on his gift, focusing on letting her feel everything inside him - the love and gratitude and joy, the awe and uncertainty, and even the little bit of sadness at the reminder of the family he lost so long ago.

These rings weren't their original wedding rings. His parents wore very thin bands through most of Jasper's life with them, being a relatively poor farming family. After gold became more widely available, his father had scrimped and saved, scrimped and saved, and then scrimped and saved a little bit more. On their fifteenth wedding anniversary, these were the gifts his father gave his mother. After his mama wiped her eyes, she darted out to the garden and picked some flowers, and the two of them had an impromptu 'renewal of their vows' in the Whitlock's kitchen. It wasn't a ceremony in any real sense, and they did more laughing than anything else, but they put the rings on each other's fingers and sealed the deal with a kiss that was steamy enough to make thirteen-year old Jasper awfully uncomfortable.

Bella rested her head on his shoulder with a smile. "Why the uncertainty?" she asked. "Do you not want us to wear them?"

"No, I do," he answered immediately. "I just don't want you to feel like you have to wear rings over a century and a half old just because they're my parent's."

"I'd be honored to wear this, Jas," she said as she picked up his mother's ring. "And it's even more special because it's a flower."

Jasper nodded with a little smile. "I told you my mom was Lilly. I wonder if that's why my dad chose it," he said softly, then captured her lips in a gentle kiss. "I'll do whatever you want, but if it was my choice? I'd be blessed beyond belief to see my mama's ring passed down to you."

"Then it's settled," Bella nodded, her happiness lighting her up. "We'll get married with these and have a piece of your mom and dad with us forever."

Jasper pulled her into his lap and kissed the daylights out of her until she was a little lightheaded. All he felt in that moment was profound gratitude that Bella just kept on giving him gifts he'd never thought to ask for.

Bella shot awake in bed when she heard what sounded like an explosion downstairs, but before she could even get up to investigate, her bedroom door was nearly blasted off its hinges and a tiny blond blur came flying into the room and launched herself onto the bed to (carefully) smother Bella in a hug.

"Charlotte!" Bella laughed. "Did you break the door?"

"I don't know and I don't care!" she squealed, still with her face tucked against Bella's shoulder. "I'm too excited and I can always fix it!"

Bella just laughed and hugged her back with all her human strength.

Jasper came walking into their bedroom and looked at the hole the doorknob made in the wall, then laughed and rolled his eyes. In a move Bella didn't see coming, he then launched himself on the bed to (carefully) smother both of them in hugs.

There were definitely worse ways to be woken up at three in the morning.

When Peter walked in the room completely unsurprised at the tangle of arms and legs that were in a laughing heap on the bed, Bella waved over Jasper's shoulder. Peter was far more sedate about it - Bella thought he was probably trying to work out which section of the bed didn't contain human limbs that were a little too delicate for full vamp strength - but he, too, hopped up and joined the group hug.

"I'm guessing Charlotte's heard the news?" Bella asked with a smile.

"Yes she has!" Charlotte shouted, then quickly sat up. "Where are they? Can I see 'em?"

"Of course," Bella laughed. "But either some of you need to move your limbs for me to get them, or you can just open the bottom drawer of the nightstand. I tucked them in there."

Charlotte moved faster than Bella's eyes could keep up with, but as soon as she had the drawer open she slowed right down and very carefully picked up the two rings. "They're lovely," she whispered. "A flower for our Lilly flower's mama."

"You never showed them to Charlotte?" Bella asked Peter in surprise.

Peter shook his head with a smile. "My girl will be the first to tell you she's not the greatest secret-keeper. She knew I had something from Jasper's family but not what it was."

"It's true," Charlotte laughed as she hopped back on the bed. "It's a little bit of a miracle I managed to keep your pregnancy a secret 'til you were ready to spill the beans."

Jasper scooted around and shuffled everyone a bit so he could pull his mate in his arms. "Sorry to wake you."

Bella waved a dismissive hand. "It's fine, waking up to a vampy whirlwind and a group hug isn't so bad. What was the explosion downstairs, by the way?"

"Someone may have been too excited to take the time to use the doorknob," Jasper said with a playful glare at Charlotte.

"What, she just barreled through the front door?" Bella laughed a little incredulously.

Charlotte tried to look sheepish, but she was entirely unrepentant so it didn't really come across quite right. "I was excited," she shrugged.

Bella reached over and squeezed her hand so she knew she wasn't mad about it. "Where's everyone else?"

"Hunting," Jasper answered, then tipped his head a little. "But about to walk in the house. They heard the door breaking and ran back."

"Oops!" Charlotte laughed.

Before Bella could blink twice, Esme, Rosalie, and Emmett were standing wide-eyed in the bedroom doorway, looking from the hole in the wall to the bed.

"What on earth happened?" Esme asked.

"I may have gotten a little overexcited," Charlotte huffed, trying not to laugh. "I'll fix the door. And the wall."

Esme shook her head with a smile as she walked over to perch herself on the edge of the bed. "I'm not upset, Charlotte. It's your house, you can break all the doors if you'd like. I am curious, though, what's got you so excited you didn't want to take the time to turn the knob," she said with a little laugh.

Charlotte turned to Bella and Jasper with a pleading look, making both of them and Peter laugh.

"Yeah, alright," Bella nodded.

Charlotte squealed excitedly. "JASPER AND BELLA ARE GETTING MARRIED!"

The next few minutes were a blur of hugs and shouting and hugs and cheering and hugs and questions and then a few more hugs.

"So Aro Volturi knew before we did?" Rosalie asked, sounding a little offended.

"You weren't home, Rose," Jasper gently reminded her. "Knowing if any of them could come or when they were available was the first step in coming up with a plan."

"It wasn't because Aro's more important to us, you know that, right?" Bella asked as she climbed out of Jasper's lap to hug her big sister.

"Yes," Rosalie admitted as she hugged her back. "I just wish we'd known first, that's all. They knew about you being pregnant before we did and—"

"That wasn't entirely her choice, Rose," Jasper interrupted. "They found out about it before she was ready to tell anyone. I only knew as early as I did because I turned up in Italy right after she found out."

"It's true," Bella agreed. "Chelsea went into my room to move my things and I'd literally just taken the tests so they were sitting on the counter in the bathroom. And I told Jasper because I needed help finding a way to convince the Volturi to let me stay human for a while."

"I know," Rose nodded and smiled a little sheepishly. "Sorry about that. That was just my selfish showing."

"Nah," Bella waved her off. "It's nice you care enough that you want to know first," she assured her. Before she could stifle it, a huge yawn escaped. "Sorry," she laughed.

Jasper looked at the clock and realized they'd kept her up for an hour. "Okay, everybody out. Y'all can talk to her some more at a more civilized hour."

There was some good-natured grumbling, but everyone eventually got up after a few more congratulatory hugs. Jasper shooed her off the bed so he could get the sheets back in their rightful place and all tucked in, so Bella took the opportunity to make her nightly trip to the bathroom. By the time she came out, her pillows were fluffed and the duvet was back on the bed.

"Vamps make a mess of beds," Bella said with a tired smile as she crawled under the covers, curling herself around her mate with another gaping yawn.

"When they're jumping on them, yes," he laughed.

Bella thought there was something she wanted to ask him but her sleepy brain and her mate's fingers in her hair were conspiring against her. "Rings?" she murmured right before sleep pulled her under.

Jasper smiled and opened his hand to look at them again. "They're safe," he assured her quietly. "Sleep, sweetheart."

Bella hummed and let go of her hold on the waking world. Jasper carefully put the rings back in the nightstand drawer, then tucked the duvet around them and settled in to spend the last few hours of the night with his Lilly flower and his mate.