Title: Shattered Glass

Author: Fallen Angel of Hell

Beta: twilight-is-lovee

Rating: T

Summary: Post Breaking Dawn. Have you ever looked into a shattered mirror and saw your reflection. It's so distorted, but you know it's you in that reflection. Or do you? Or maybe you are looking at the face of something else entirely. Perhaps your other side? Your altar ego?

Original Characters: Matilda Carlisle, Gunnar Harlow

Chapter Nine
Sketchbook

"She seemed dressed in all of me

Stretched across my shame

All the torment and the pain

Leaked through and covered me

I'd do anything to have her to myself

Just have her for myself

Now I don't know what to do

I don't know what to do

And she makes me sad."

-Vermilion part 2 by Slipknot

Seth went home while Carlisle and I were in St. Louis, and when I arrived home, I was very surprised to see that Leah was still with us. She sat on a couch several feet away from Gunnar, who was silently channel surfing. Suddenly, he stopped, put the remote down, and settled in more comfortably in his seat, watching a graying man with a severe five o'clock shadow walking up a hall with a cane and a bad limp.

"I thought you said that you were going to let me have the remote for a while," she grumbled.

"Shh, House is on," he grumbled back.

"It's two seasons old, and you want to watch it again?" she sighed heavily, pushing herself off the couch, mumbling about Gunnar being a selfish bastard.

"Trouble in paradise?" I asked carefully, keeping the mocking tone out of my voice. Leah glared at me while Gunnar's eyes stayed glued on the television screen. I heard footsteps coming from behind me and smelled Jake's familiar scent as he walked into the room.

"You could say that, if you call being imprinted to a bloodsucker paradise," she sniped, glancing sidelong at Gunnar, who was still ignoring her.

"They aren't that bad to hang around, Leah," Jake said, eating a large spoonful of ice cream. "Besides, since you imprinted, didn't you have a recent visitor?"

For a moment, I thought that Leah might kill Jake, but suddenly, she stopped and sat down. I looked around the room, wondering if Jasper was around sending out his waves of calm energy, but he was nowhere in sight. My eyes fell upon Gunnar, who had a very small smile playing across his lips.

"I hate when you do that, by the way," Leah said weakly.

"Do what?" Gunnar asked innocently, turning his gaze upon Leah, who looked down at the floor as though she had gotten caught staring.

"Don't play dumb," she spat. I shot a questioning look to Jake, who planted his spoon in his mound of ice cream.

"Gunnar figured out a new trick." He gave a Cheshire cat grin. "He can change our minds about things. He reads our minds, and then, if he doesn't like what we're doing, he'll change our minds for us."

"How did you figure that one out?" I asked. Gunnar turned to look at me. "No funny business. Not that you can read my mind to change it anyhow."

"I got annoyed with Emmett a few hours after you guys left, and I thought, 'man, it would be so cool to have him go up to the top floor and lock himself in a closet and stay there for the next two days,' and he just stopped what he was doing and disappeared upstairs. He was in there for hours before we decided to go look for him."

"He looked so positively clueless." Jake swirled his spoon around the softening ice cream. "We asked him why he was in a closet, and he just said that he didn't know why, but he thought he should go sit in the closet for a couple days."

"I felt bad at first, but then I remembered why I thought it." Gunnar stretched in a very cat like manner.

"He deserved it," Leah mumbled.

"What did he do?"

"He was moaning and groaning that you made a cheap-shot, while I was distracted during the game." He shrugged very nonchalantly. "I told him winning is winning, and we are going to have to give into them no matter what. He just wouldn't stop going on and on about it though."

"And I still think that it was a cheap-shot." Emmett came in through the side door from the dining room.

"I can put you back in the closet," Gunnar said, chuckling.

"Oh, no you don't, Puppet Master." He clapped his hand on my shoulder. "You see, Bella is here, and she'll be my shield."

"You think so, do you?"

"Well, you will…" He gave me an innocent pouty look. "…won't you?"

"Sorry, but this time you are on your own." I smiled and started to leave the room. I was halfway upstairs when I heard rapid footsteps behind me. When I turned around, I met Gunnar's red eyes, which were beginning to fade to a dark orange. Soon they would be golden like everybody else.

"How is she?" he asked.

"Mattie is holding it together. She's better now that your Aunt is getting better. Why?"

"I don't know." He paused, looking at the floor for a moment. "Can we go for a walk or something? Heck, a drive. I have the keys to the Charger."

"Have you had any more slips?"

"No, I haven't. I went out by myself a few days ago and came back just fine." He tried to hide the fact that he didn't want to explain himself. "There are just some things I want to get off my chest, and I feel like I can talk to you, and you would understand."

"Okay." I searched his eyes for a moment, trying to figure out why he wanted to talk to me. Then again, I didn't understand why Mattie came to me most of the time either. I silently wondered why they were drawn to me.

"Walk or drive?" he asked.

"How about a drive?" I replied. "I'm going to tell Edward we're going, and I'll meet you out by the cars."

He smiled and walked back downstairs while I finished walking back up the stairs wondering what he wanted to talk about.

Edward was upstairs tutoring Nessie in Algebra. Naturally, we couldn't send her to school, so homeschooling was therefore our only option. At this point, she would know enough to graduate high school in a little less than two years. We had agreed that once her development slowed, we would send her to school for her senior year. It gave her the chance to be "normal," though in truth she would never be normal. Still, we hoped to give her some normality.

Nessie's shining brown eyes met my own, and she grinned brightly.

"Hi, Mommy," she said in that musical voice. "I'm happy you're home."

I smoothed her copper waves and kissed her on the cheek. I vaguely remembered Jinesa, and how upset she was of her mother's existence, but I dismissed the things she had told me while I was there. After two days, I isolated myself from her. I hoped that Nessie would always have love for me.

"Did Gunnar tell you that he wanted to talk?" Edward asked.

"Yeah, do you know what about?"

"Not a clue." He frowned, looking at Nessie's paper. "He's developed his mother's habit of singing in his head. Though, if he wanted me to know, he would have told me."

"Well, we're going to go out for a drive." I leaned in and gave him a chaste kiss. "Did you guys know that he went out on his own?"

"I do know, and I wasn't happy with him, but he explained that he needs to push himself. 'Endure the torture of that sweet scent' were his exact words, actually."

"He won't fail," Nessie mumbled. "He misses his sister. Mommy, can we adopt a baby?"

"No," I said, sweeping a piece of hair from her perfect face.

"Darn, I was hoping you'd say yes," she said, smiling. Her attention flitted back to her work.

"Gunnar was telling great stories about his sisters and brother." He shook his head. "Apparently the four were close up until just a few years ago."

"Well, speaking of Gunnar, he's waiting for me," I said. "We shouldn't be too long, I hope. I love you."

"I love you," he mouthed, returning his full attention to Nessie as I left the room.

Gunnar was tossing the keys around to the Charger as I strolled up. He looked carefree for a second in time, but once that second had passed, he was looking at me. Without a word, he unlocked the car and strolled around to the front, sliding into the front seat.

I had never actually seen the inside of the Charger. The seats were covered in blood red leather, and did not smell of Mattie's scent of orchids. Instead, they smelled spicy, like expensive men's cologne. The car's engine purred like a very content kitten. There was a CD in the player that sounded like someone was screaming.

"This isn't your mom's car, is it?" I asked. He smirked and put the car in reverse.

"It was a graduation gift," he told me. "I graduated from college this past December and traded in my Mustang for this one. Have to say I'm enjoying the trade."

He took off down the driveway, and was on the highway possibly quicker than Edward could imagine. I looked around as the trees whirred by and looked over at Gunnar.

"Shouldn't you slow down? You aren't quite like your mom and Edward," I reminded him.

"Bella, I'm a street racer. As a human, I made cops look like a sixteen year old kid on his first day of driver's ed." He grinned. "Now, I'm a vampire. However I will slow down if it would make you more comfortable."

He slowed to a mere eighty miles per hour, only twenty-five over the posted speed limit. I looked around the car, trying to take in what he might have been like before. I spotted a sketchbook and grabbed it.

"May I?"

"By all means," he said, speeding around a corner.

I opened the book, and my eyes fell upon a picture taken from a black and white photograph of Mattie. She was stretched on a couch wearing a black dress. Her hair was done in tight curls, and she looked like a nineteen forties movie star. I noticed as I continued flipping through his sketches that he copied photographs and made the copy look better than the original.

The song changed to a more mellow tune sang by the same artist.

"What are we listening to?"

"At the moment, Vermilion part two by Slipknot." He slowed as we reached an open field, and I noted that he wasn't making his way toward civilization; he was running farther from it. I flipped past a sketch of Jinesa, and my eyes fell on someone unexpected. My jaw fell open as I admired it.

"You've done a picture of Leah?" I said breathlessly.

"I did that about three months ago." He pulled into a gravel driveway that lead to a wooded area and parked. "I dreamt of her for a month before that. It seemed like every time I closed my eyes, she was there telling me to search for her, find her, and claim her. Unfortunately, I just didn't know what to do, so I started pressuring Mom to turn me."

"That's why you weren't shocked by the imprint," I said, flipping the page to another sketch of her sitting on a rock, overlooking the ocean. I recognized the cliffs of La Push.

"Mom told me that she didn't believe she had the control to turn me and not kill me. I had to keep pushing her, but she wasn't budging. I asked her why she wouldn't be moved, and she told me that she saw my future disappear, which for her, made her think that she would kill me." He sighed. "I had to find her, though."

"Is that why you—?"

"Tried to kill myself?" He frowned. "Yes and no. A week before I did it, I was going to leave my mother and not come back. She seemed content with that, and I started packing my stuff, but Leah came to me in my dreams and told me that I needed to try harder. When Mom left for work, I struggled for hours, trying to figure out what to do. I'd never tried to kill myself before that, and I didn't want to be completely gone before she came home. I timed everything down and overdosed on morphine for the pain, and cut myself open about twenty minutes before she got home."

"Then, when I saw Leah for the first time, it all fit together. She was no longer a woman who danced around in my dreams, she was really there. I'm a theater major, so I'm good about putting up a front. I've known her for a week, and I don't know how to approach her, which is a first for me. She scares me."

"Have you told anyone else about this?" I asked, attempting to keep the shock out of my voice.

"No, not even my mother," he sighed. "She believes that I wanted to be her companion, and I don't. I needed her to get to Leah."

"And you felt compelled to tell me this?" I flipped the book closed.

"Nobody can read your mind, you seemed safe, and you just remind me of my mother without the hot temper."

"Temper?"

"Just wait, one of these days she'll snap, probably on Edward because those two bicker like brother and sister rather than cousins."

"Cousins? They're related?" I asked.

"The name Masen isn't a coincidence for the two of them. His father had a younger brother, and within two generations, my mother was born."

"Does he know?"

"I think so. She did the genealogy quite a few years ago and sent it to him. It makes sense when you think about it. He's a mind reader, and she's a mind reader, but she got her gifts from both sides. My grandmother is a touch sensitive psychic, which is where she gets the memory transference and the ability to see the future."

"Small world," I mumbled. We sat for several long minutes in silence.

"What should I do about Leah?" he asked quietly. "I'm a vampire, she's a shape-shifter. We're supposed to be enemies, and she's tied to me."

"Well…" I let out a breath that I hadn't realized that I had been holding. "Perhaps you should start small. For one, give her the remote every once in a while, and then soon perhaps you can work up to dating."

He chuckled.

"I don't know all that much about imprinting. I know that once they have found their perfect counterpart, they will do anything for them, but that doesn't stop the other from walking away. You have freedom."

I remembered Jake telling me that in time, if Nessie didn't love him when she was old enough, then she could walk away. It would hurt, but she could walk away and see others.

"I want her." He stared out the window. "I want her more than anything in this world. I just don't know how to approach it."

"With great ease, when it comes to Leah." I sighed. "She's already been hurt once."

"Hurt? What happened?"

"A few years ago, she was involved with another one of the shape-shifters." I looked at him. "His name was Sam. They had been together since high school. One day, her cousin came down, and one look and Sam was tied to her. It broke Leah's heart to lose him."

"I don't want to do that to her," he mumbled. "I've given up mortality for her."

"There's a good start for the two of you." I held up the sketchbook. "Tell her what you saw. Let her know that you're here for her."

"And pray that she doesn't think I'm some crazy stalker," he laughed. "You don't think I'm crazy, do you?"

"No," I mumbled. I wanted to tell him about Edward when he went away, but I didn't think that would help much.

"I'm not good at this," he sighed. "I mean, I dated a few girls in high school. My sister set me up with one of her husband's friends, but there was just nothing. I never thought that the girl of my dreams would fall into my lap like this."

"Things just work that way sometimes." I paused for a second. "Heck, when I met Edward, he wanted to eat me."

"What?"

"Yeah, I smelled like the sweetest wine to him." I shook my head. "He described me as his own personal brand of heroin."

"Look at you now, though." He held his hands out. "You married him, the two of you have a beautiful daughter, and you're happy. I'm not sure I can make her happy."

"Well, then give her the damn remote."

We both burst out laughing. Our laughter died after a few moments, and he met my eyes.

"Thank you."

"It's not a problem. Though you should probably come clean to Mattie about why you did this."

"In time." He glanced down at the steering wheel. "She's going to have a lot on her plate soon."

*****************************************************************************************************************************************************

When I finally got around to finishing the writing of this chapter I was at a serious wall (note how short it is). I draw inspiration from music and therefore will listen to song after song after freaking song in order to draw inspiration. Well one day I was listening to my Jack playlist and Vermilion part two came on and I thought "OMG this makes me think of Leah and Gunnar!" Hey just because I don't have Gun fully developed doesn't mean that I don't have their relationship developed. The song is awesome is is in the top ten of my favorite Slipknot songs. I'm banned from listening to Slipknot in the car because it does not help my lead foot.

There was originally a lot more planned for this chapter including an extensive debate on what Wolverine would be like if he were bitten by a vampire. It was very well thought out, but sadly the process was interrupted by a month long stint of my computer be in the safe "capable" hands of the Geek Squad at the time. Again I am a little scared of writing Gunnar. I have nobody to really base his character off of and therefore no experiences to take from. I love House and thought that I might give The Wonderful and Amazing Hugh Laurie a nod. I want a doctor to be like House, but I get pissy when I go to the doctor (probably because I'm in the medical field) so not a good idea. I'm still developing Gunnar so fret not.

There is another character who is fully developed that I have to bring in. I know all of the characters can get confusing. But hey in my defense I didn't follow all of the Volturi guard so there. If you are in any way shape or form confused by any character just drop a note: I am more than willing to explain. This character I get to have all kinds of fun with and he is fully developed in my mind.

So what can you expect out of the next chapter?????? A list of Mattie's cars? Guitar Hero? Update on Anamaria? A drag race????? Stay tuned the next chapter is more fun.

nature love 95 - Yes Jinesa is Mattie's daughter and Gunnar's twin. See above note.

Keely Jade - Where the heck have you been? JK. Glad you enjoyed.

FrequentlyDazzled917 - I was like sixteen when I started doing individual notes to my reviewers in the chapters and I figure hey what they heck. Ana is definately going to pull through because if I didn't have her pull through then my little sister would kick my ever living ass. TY for the birthday note... It sucked, but I took my first legal sip of alcohol.

Yaoi-Gurl-Xia - Thankies! Keep your damn head up sis!