Belle's POV
It's been 10 years since he left. 10 years since I was changed. It's been 9 and a half since I ran into Jasper while he was hunting. And it's been almost as long since I met my mate. My true mate that is. I still remember it as if it were yesterday. It turned out to be one of the best days of my life.
***Flashback 9 1/2 years ago***
Six months ago, I found myself in the meadow that Edward and I used to go to. I couldn't believe how much the meadow had changed since they left. It was there that Laurent had found me. He said that Victoria had sent him to see if I was still under the protection of the Cullen's. When I told him that they'd left me behind he said he had an alternative. That was the day that my human life ended. Laurent changed me that day. Three days later, I woke up. It was like a whole new world. I looked around realizing that I could see 100x better than I had before as a human. Laurent taught me how to hunt (both human and animal) and taught me the laws of our kind and about the Volturi. Once Laurent felt confident that I would be okay, he told me that he needed to get back to Irina before she got suspicious. He said that when Victoria contacted him, he would tell her that he'd succeeded in killing me. And with that he was gone.
I spent the next six months travelling as a nomad and hunting when necessary. It was only when I was running through Montana when I came across someone. At first the scent was strange. It wasn't human, that much I could tell. The closer I got to the scent the more I realized that it was familiar. I ran even closer to the scent. I came to a clearing near a river. That was when I saw him. Jasper Hale or Whitlock. Whichever. I must've startled him, because he turned around quicker than I could blink. "Belle?" He asked. I nodded.
"Didn't mean to startle you." I said.
He shook his head. "No, it's fine. Who...changed you?" He asked, cautiously taking a few steps towards me.
I stood there and crossed my arms. "Laurent. He came looking for me a favor to Victoria." I told him. Jasper nodded for me to continue. "Victoria wants me dead from when you guys killed James. Laurent offered to change me instead. Once my transformation was complete, he taught me the laws, the Volturi, and he taught me to hunt both animals and human." I told him.
He nodded. "I'm sorry. We never should have left. This never would have happened if we hadn't." Jasper said.
I relaxed a little and took a few steps towards Jasper. "It's not your fault Jasper. None of it. This...my birthday...none of it is your fault." I told him. I just hoped that he knew that I meant it.
He smiled at me. "Do you have somewhere you call home?" He asked.
I shook my head. "Not yet. Haven't really decided what I want to do yet." I told him.
"Well, I have some friends in Texas. I'm sure that they wouldn't mind if you joined them." He told me.
I smiled at this. "Really? I've never been to Texas before." I said.
"Well then lets go." Jasper said.
Jasper and I decided to take our time on our journey to Texas, giving us time to actually get to know each other. Jasper told me his story of how he became a vampire and how he met Peter and Charlotte. He told me how he'd freed them from Maria and that later on Peter had come back and helped him destroy Maria.
As Jasper and I made our way south, I couldn't help but think about how brave Peter had been to go back and help Jasper. Not many people would have done that, especially after they'd escaped once and there was a chance that they could be captured again. The more that I thought that I couldn't wait to meet him. I had to keep not only my emotions in check (because of Jasper) but also my feelings that I could feel developing. I wasn't sure what the situation was between Peter and Charlotte but I could only hope...
