AN: Thanks to all the reviewers… I'm sorry I left you with such a cliff hanger. Thanks for being patient =)

So here it is… Clara's secret. If anybody has any questions, you know how to get them answered… review! I know this chapter is a bit shorter than the others… but I hope you'll think it's worth it anyway!

Not much else to add… thanks for reading, everyone, and have a great week!

Enjoy!

~crit.

Chapter 36: Stranger Things

Clara breathed deeply, one hand clutching her drink as if her life depended on it. Renesmee could hear the human girl's heart beating rapidly. She managed a small, encouraging smile.

"You're not going to believe me," Clara said as a warning.

"Try me."

"Okay…" Clara shook her head. "I know exactly how this is going to sound to you… but I promise you it's true."

"Clara!" The other girl almost jumped as Renesmee raised her voice. "Please just spit it out!"

The old Clara shone through for a moment as she broke out in a short burst of laughter. "Sorry. Okay. Okay. I'm just going to say it." She paused, and then her eyes met Renesmee's. "I always get what I want."

There was an expectant sort of silence between them as Renesmee waited for her to continue. When it became evident that Clara wasn't going to say anything further, Renesmee gave her a dubious look. "And?"

"That's… that's my secret."

Renesmee narrowly avoided the urge to laugh. "That's not exactly a secret, Clara."

"No, you don't understand!" Clara set down her drink. It hit the table with such a clatter that Renesmee almost thought the glass had broken. "I always get whatever I ask for." She gave her a loaded look. "Always."

The thought of her family, with their special abilities, came the Renesmee's mind, but she pushed the idea away. That was impossible. "You're rich," she said, "People tend to give rich people whatever they want."

Clara closed her eyes, a pained expression on her face. "Would you just…" Then she stopped, suddenly, opening her eyes. "Okay… Let me put it another way. I can… make people do things. Things they wouldn't have otherwise done. Just by telling them to. I don't know how, I don't know why… but I've always been able to, and since I met you it's gotten stronger. A whole lot stronger."

She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Maybe it was possible… "Are you saying," Renesmee asked slowly, "That you can control people with your mind?"

"Oh god," Clara moaned, burying her face in one hand. "Don't say it like that! It makes me sound like a supervillain."

"There's no such thing as a supervillain," Renesmee said numbly. Clara raised her eyes to look at her.

"What if there is?" She asked, her voice quiet. "What if I'm it?"

Renesmee got up from her chair and moved to crouch in front of where her friend sat. "Don't even," she said firmly. "You are NOT a supervillian. You're not even a remotely bad person." She took the other girl's hands. "You can't let yourself think like that."

Clara's eyes widened. "You believe me," she almost whispered, "Don't you?" Renesmee didn't answer, knowing that Clara already knew anyway. "Why would you believe me?"

"Stranger things exist in the world," she replied. "At least… one would assume."

Clara pulled back a bit. "Ness… why are you taking this so calmly? Why do you even believe me?"

Renesmee was torn. Could she risk telling Clara about herself? Was that something she could even think of doing? "Have you ever lied to me before?" She asked, avoiding her own moral question for the moment. Clara shook her head.

"Never. You're the first person I've ever been completely honest with, Ness… and I knew I had to tell you, because I don't want to lie to you. And the more time we spend together, the more I'm going to slip up and use this… thing… on you." She stopped for a moment, pulling further back, a guilty look in her eyes. "I did it today. I didn't mean to… it's a habit, and sometimes I forget…"

"When we were talking about Rideau," Renesmee said, half to herself. She felt the shock of it physically. Someone had used a power on her, someone outside of her family, and she hadn't even known. She'd actually convinced herself that the strange feeling was due to her own paranoia, a product of years spent in conversation with her mid-reading father. "You told me to tell you the truth, and you got this look… and I did, right away." She looked at Clara in wonder. "I didn't even notice… I thought I was doing it on my own."

"It's not the first time," Clara said heavily. "I never meant to… with you, but like I said, it's a habit, and it's so much stronger now, sometimes it just happens before I can catch myself."

"When?" Renesmee felt her blood go cold as she anticipated the answer. How much of their friendship had been compulsion? Just the thought of it made her feel a bit ill.

"Not very often!" Clara was quick to answer. "Mostly just when you've been hesitating about giving me an answer to things… I've caught myself asking you to tell me stuff when you're being cagey… which you are, by the way. A lot." Renesmee said nothing; it was true, she was cagey. "I also did it earlier today, when Rideau was acting weird and you were about to start freaking out about it… I got you off the idea. And, well… when you were waffling over whether or not to tell Jacob how you felt about him, and I told you to just do it? That was a bit of compulsion, too. I just couldn't stand to see you torture yourself like that any longer. And before I could think about it, the words just slipped from my mouth."

As shocked as she was, Renesmee felt a bit of relief. If Clara was telling her the truth, then she hadn't ever used her ability on her in any sort of really horrible way. And all she could think about were the technical aspects of the situation. "That was a phone call. We weren't even in the same place… how does that work?"

Clara shrugged. "I'm pretty sure it's a verbal thing… proximity doesn't seem to make a difference. As far as I can figure, it's something to do with the sound of my voice, or the way I say it or something like that." She eyed Renesmee a bit warily. "Are you absolutely furious with me?"

Renesmee thought about it. She could be, easily. A normal human being probably would be… that is, assuming they didn't just write her off as crazy. But what right did she, Renesmee Cullen, daughter of the things that go bump in the night, have to judge Clara for her ability?

"No," she said, "I'm not mad."

A look of intense relief came onto Clara's face, and she shook her head as if in disbelief. "I'm a bit freaked out by how well you're taking this."

And there it was again, that line that Renesmee didn't know if she should cross. Clara had just laid bare her innermost secret. Could Renesmee really lie to her, tell her she was just an accepting person, and that it wasn't a big deal? Could she keep her own secret, after Clara had risked so much to be honest with her?

No, she decided. She couldn't.

"There's a reason for that," she said. This time, she was the one who had to take a deep breath. A little voice that sounded suspiciously like her father shouted at her from inside her head to keep her mouth shut. She ignored it. "I am surprised… very. But… I think it's my turn to make a confession."

Now Clara looked truly baffled. "What could you possibly say to follow up what I just told you?" She said, raising an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you think you can out-crazy me."

"And then some," she said, not without a hint of humour. Clara's face went dead serious.

"What'dyou mean?" She asked. Renesmee took another breath.

"Stay still… and trust me," she said. And then she raised her hand to Clara's cheek.

She thought of a series of pictures: The first time she'd seen Clara in their Monday morning lecture, Clara sitting across the table from her at their very first lunch outing, trying on her new Burberry trenchcoat in her room at the loft, the moment on the balcony of the penthouse earlier that afternoon. She followed it all up with a thought: You're not the only one who can get inside peoples' heads.

"Whoa!" Clara jumped out of her seat, away from Renesmee's touch, effectively breaking their mental connection. "What the hell was that?"

Renesmee stood as well, dropping her hands flat against her sides. "I told you it was crazy." Clara was gaping at her in open wonder.

"That's… unbelievable! As in, I actually can't believe it just happened." Clara brought a hand to her face, where Renesmee had touched her, and then moved her fingers slowly to her temple. "That's… wait a minute, do I have a brain tumour? I'm imagining this, aren't I?"

She was joking about it, Renesmee thought with surprise. She felt herself grin, in spite of the utter seriousness of what was happening. "Nope," she said, holding up her hand and wiggling her fingers. "I make pictures. It's… my thing."

"Oh wow. Oh wow." Clara shook her head again. "Those weren't exactly pictures, Ness. It's like I was really there!"

"You were," Renesmee reminded her. Clara rolled her eyes.

"I meant 'again', obviously!" She took a tentative step forward. "Will you… can you do it again?" Renesmee grinned.

"I'm a bit freaked out by how well you're taking this," she said with a hint of irony. Clara laughed.

"Guess that makes us both freaks." Now they were both laughing. "Seriously," Clara said, pointing to her own cheek, "Do it again. That was so cool!"

Renesmee shrugged. Why not? "Something else you've already seen, or something new?"

"Ooh, new! Of course."

"Okay, check it out…" She brought her hand up and touched her fingertips to Clara's face. She thought hard about her aunts (or, as Clara knew them, her sisters). Alice, she thought clearly as she visualized her aunt, and then, Rosalie. She followed with more family members. Emmett… Jasper. She didn't dare picture her parents, lest she think of them as "mom and dad", and she didn't want to risk her grandparents either, for basically the same reason. One secret at a time. Finally, she thought of her favorite face in the whole world, and projected it with all her might. Jacob.

"Okay," Clara said when she pulled her hand away, "Now I get why you haven't introduced us… if I had one like him, I'd keep him to myself, too."

Renesmee burst out laughing. "Seriously, Clara… is now really the time?"

"I only speak the truth," Clara said with a shrug. "He's hot." Then, much more earnestly, "You have a beautiful family."

"Thanks," She replied, feeling pretty proud of herself.

"Don't you have two other siblings?"

Renesmee shrugged it off. "Yeah… but there are so many of them I figured you'd get bored." Clara chuckled at that.

"Touche. Hey, you want another drink?" Renesmee was startled by the change in subject, but she realized as soon as Clara mentioned it that she did want another drink—badly. She nodded emphatically, grabbed their glasses and started towards the kitchen.

"I do, in fact. I'll get it," she said, reaching for the ice bucket. As her hand closed around the cool metal of the tongs, she stopped suddenly and turned to see her friend watching her with an amused smirk.

"I was wondering how long it would take for you to catch it," Clara said, sounding pretty satisfied with herself. Renesmee's eyes went wide.

"Did you just…" Clara nodded. "Huh. It's so subtle… I wouldn't have even noticed if it hadn't already been on my mind!" She poured them both another drink anyway, in spite of the fact that the request had been a ruse. They could probably use it, regardless.

Clara accepted her drink gratefully. "It's less subtle when it's something more questionable than a second Gin and Tonic. Some people take a bit of convincing… but I can generally get them to cave. Roscoe, down there, is a good example… when I tried to get him to let you and Reed into the building without question, he was pretty hesitant. He's fiercely loyal to my dad, and he doesn't like to go against orders, so I had to work on him a bit. Actually, he went quite a bit faster than he usually does. Once I convinced him that he wouldn't lose his job, it was a piece of cake. He won't by the way," she added quickly. "On the off chance that my father objects, I can talk him down. The old fashioned way… I don't compel my parents, if I can help it."

They spent the next hour or so sprawled out on the couches, swapping various stories about their abilities. Clara told Renesmee about using her powers of persuasion to talk her way into clubs and parties as a teenager. Renesmee told Clara about using her ability to talk to her family before she'd learned how to speak, and about how sometimes she transferred images to Jacob in their sleep without meaning to.

"I can't believe your family knows," Clara mused thoughtfully. "I'm pretty sure my parents would have had me locked up long ago if they knew."

Renesmee raised an eyebrow. "Come on. Not really?"

"Okay, well maybe it would be a bit less severe than that… but I think it would freak them out some. I mean, your power is totally innocent, but mine… I think people would probably react badly if they knew what I can do." She looked pointedly at Renesmee. "Most people don't like the idea that somebody else might be able to control their mind without them even realizing it."

"That's true." An idea formed in Renesmee's mind. "Is there, like, a cap on your ability or something?"

"What'dyou mean?" Clara asked, chewing absent-mindedly on a cocktail straw. Renesmee tried to think of the right way to word her question.

"If you tried to convince somebody to do something they… really didn't want to do… could you?" She looked at her friend sideways, afraid to ask the question too directly. "I mean, where does it stop? Does it even stop?"

Clara sighed, and Renesmee could tell this was something she'd thought of before, at the very least. "I don't exactly know for sure. I've never tried to get someone to do something really… questionable. Of course, I've always wondered… but not enough to actually try doing it."

This answer should have relieved Renesmee greatly, but to her mild horror she found herself wishing she could take Clara's powers for a spin, see how far her influence could stretch. She shoved the feeling back, smiling and nodding. "That makes sense," she said, trying to sound normal. Everybody has impulses that are wrong from time to time, she told herself firmly. Temptation is a part of being alive.

"It's a moral question, really," Clara continued. "I mean, I'm certainly no angel, but there are lines that even I won't cross. And I guess making somebody do something that's against their beliefs, something they'd consider harmful or wrong, is one of those lines. But sometimes… well, I still wonder sometimes what I could do, if I tried." Her brows drew together, and she looked questioningly at Renesmee. "Is that really bad?"

Renesmee shook her head. "I don't think so. You'd have to wonder, wouldn't you? How could you not?"

Clara shrugged. "I'm sure there are some people in the world who'd be good enough not to think about something like that."

"I doubt that." She gave Clara a pointed look. "I think you're giving the rest of the human race a little too much credit." Clara laughed.

"If you say so." She took a sip of her drink. "Seriously, though… I think it's great that your family knows about you. I can't believe they're so cool about it. I mean, do you know if they freaked out initially, or what?"

Renesmee shook her head. "No. I mean, it's not like they were expecting it, but I think they got used to it pretty quickly." She looked over at Clara to find the other girl watching her appraisingly. "What?"

Clara narrowed her eyes. "It all makes sense," She said, sounding like she was almost talking to herself. "Everything from your reaction onwards… You know more about this than you've told me, don't you?" Renesmee paused for a moment before nodding. Clara blinked, then shook her head. "Holy cow. There's more, isn't there? More weird stuff… more people like us."

Again, Renesmee nodded. The conversation had taken a turn that would again result in her having to make a decision between hiding the truth and revealing it. Another half truth would have to do. "There's more," she confirmed quietly. A look of understanding dawned on Clara's face.

"You can't tell me, can you?" She didn't sound upset, just a bit disappointed… and curious.

"I'm sorry. Maybe someday. But for now… I just can't."

"Okay." Clara exhaled slowly through her teeth. "Wow. This has been a night, hasn't it?"

Renesmee chuckled softly. "It sure has."

Shortly after, Clara walked her down to the lobby and ushered her into her waiting car, giving her driver instructions to take her friend back downtown. Renesmee sank into the darkness and silence of the car's backseat, watching as the New York scenery moved slowly past her window as they wound their way through the traffic. She knew it probably hadn't been the wisest idea, telling Clara what she could do, letting her know that there were other instances of the supernatural out there in the world. She knew her family would be furious. She knew Jacob would probably shout at her. Everybody would think she was stupid, completely incapable of being responsible for herself. And as she got closer and closer to home, drawing nearer to the moment in time when she'd have to admit to Jacob just what she'd done, a smile spread slowly across her face, and she realized that she didn't care.

Somebody was like her. Somebody human was like her. And at that moment, nothing beyond that really seemed to matter.

In the Next Chapter:

"It's pretty amazing, eh?"

"Yeah," Leah said, unable to meet his eye. She felt like such a coward. "It really is."

Rideau shrugged. "I thought you should see it. You know… before you go home."

His words hit her like a lead weight. Of course he would assume she'd be leaving soon. After all, they had originally been coming to visit for a week or two. And while she felt absolutely frantic at the idea of leaving him behind, he was mentioning as casually as possible, as though it didn't make a difference to him at all. All of a sudden, she felt like her heart was sitting on the ground, a thousand feet below her. He didn't care if she went away. He didn't care about her.

(And before you tell me that Canadians don't actually say "eh", I'll have you all know that I am a born and raised Northern girl who says it all the time. Not on purpose. There just happens to be truth to the stereotype. So there)