Disclaimer: All Twilight characters and some of the settings, ideas for action, are owned by S. Meyer. I just play with them. No infringements intended. Megan Harris is my own invention. Bella doesn't exist in this universe, some things are not canon and English is not my mother tongue. If you find any errors – I'm up to corrections.
Alternating POVs marked M=Megan or E=Edward. Mental conversation is marked in '…'.
Chapter 35 - Overload (E POV)
Again my beloved had turned out to do opposite of what had been expected of her. She displayed the most unusual behavior for a new vampire I had ever encountered. Jasper, our expert on newborns, was worried to the point of causing everyone else a major headache, that's why I had insisted on taking Megan out for her first hunt during that night. At first, she had been hesitant about her heightened senses, but I recognized a spark of something else in her. She acted like a natural, as if she had indeed been born for this life. Was I grasping at straws here to calm my bad conscience? Maybe, but I couldn't fight the impression that she would have been changed anyway, even if she'd never met me. The moment I had turned her, I had felt a shift in my perception of everything around me as if a missing piece of a much larger plan had fallen into place. I shooed the thoughts away and concentrated on Megan. She ran next to me and passed me effortlessly from time to time. If that was due to her newborn status or another talent, I couldn't fathom.
Sheer power radiated off her, mentally and physically, and the wolf had figured it out immediately. Actually, I had expected her to feed upon the grey one but instead she had recognized the poor state of health of the animal and had shown mercy. This should have been impossible for her. Her face at the smell of the moose bull had been priceless though, I would never forget that. She had killed it fast and clean, although I was one hundred percent positive that she had been clueless on the techniques. We had hunted down two other animals that night before making our way back. Watching her in hunting mode had stirred long neglected primal instincts in me. There was a reason why most vampires hunted alone or only with their mates. Hunting was completely instinctual for us and rational thinking was subdued. The tension and excitement would be channeled by the killing, but with another vampire present, it could easily turn into a fight over prey and territory or into sexual actions, if the other was a mate. I'd heard stories about members of my family coming back with shredded clothes after a hunt. Emmett and Rosalie had even destroyed several cabins in their heated beginnings. I guessed it was time to repay them for the countless times I had endured a house full of sexually overloaded vampire couples. I found myself looking forward to our next hunt and grinned.
When we got closer to the house again, she stopped running and turned to face me. The expression on her face was unreadable. "Is anything wrong?" I asked her. She wrapped her arms around me and buried her face at my chest. I caressed her back and tousled her hair. "What has you worried, Megan?" I said and lifted her chin with one finger, forcing her eyes to meet mine. 'Care to share your thoughts?' I sent her. I had noticed that she had kept her mind closed since the change, except for our love-making in the forest. She shook her head. 'I feel insecure as hell,' she replied. 'About what?' I returned. 'This,' she gestured at herself with an exasperated look on her face. 'I don't feel different, Edward. I had expected a change in personality, but it didn't come and Jasper's comments had me thinking I may not be a real vampire! Does that make any sense?' She looked slightly desperate at me. I chuckled lightly and planted a kiss on her forehead. 'As much as I wish I could tell you otherwise, I'm afraid you are a real vampire, dear. You may not react the way Jasper or anyone else in the family expects, but if I remember correctly, you rarely adhered to standards before, didn't you?' She sighed and leaned against my chest. 'Thank you,' she sent. 'For what?' I replied. 'For sticking around,' she said. I laughed at the reference and pulled her even closer. There it was, that softness in her strong character which I had feared she'd lose. 'Look at me, Megan,' I asked. When she did, I cupped her face with my hands and kissed her softly, but thoroughly. 'I don't care if you're normal or not – I love you!' A few yards outside the house Megan stopped and growled. "There's someone I don't know," she hissed. I searched for the mental signatures inside and found our family and the complete Denali clan. Eleazar and Carmen had obviously returned. "Use your senses, Megan. It's our family and the Denalis. Eleazar is back, that's all," I requested. I felt her open up and search with her mind. She relaxed visibly and straightened up. Putting my arm around her I teased her, "You need to loosen up a bit." She snorted, "I can't. I still don't know what will happen if I open my mind. I don't want to blow up the whole place." I turned to face her and placed my hands on her shoulders. "You will never know if you don't try it. I trust you not to harm anyone intentionally, Megan, just like you trusted me in the beginning without even knowing me." She took a deep breath and crooked a smile. "I remember," she whispered. I pulled her close. "I'm at your side, always," I said.
The door opened and Alice peeked around the corner. "When you two are done, why don't you come inside? There's someone who wants to meet you," she sounded cheerful. I looked at my mate. 'Shall we?' She just nodded with a smile. We went inside and braced ourselves for her first encounter with the Denalis as a vampire. I let her go first, also to cover her back in every sense. Kate eyed her closely. "Megan, wow! You look great! Is it okay for you if I come near?" she asked. "Of course, I thought Jasper had filled you in about my strange behavior," Megan grinned and hugged Kate. Irina followed her, as well as the rest of my family. Emmett whirled her around. "Finally, I don't have to watch out for your bones anymore," he hollered when he let her down. Rose was a little more reserved, but embraced her nonetheless. "I'm glad you're still alive and kicking, even if I didn't wish this life on you," she stated with a smile. Esme hugged her without reservation, "Welcome, Megan. I'm looking forward to having another daughter," and jostled Carlisle into her. Megan smiled and opened her arms. Carlisle embraced her and whispered something into her ear, making her smile. She patted his shoulder and they separated again. I made a mental note to ask her later what he said. I had seen the same thing with Jasper in the hospital and now I was getting curious. Or was I jealous?
"Jasper, would you please stop looking at me as if I was a time bomb?" Megan sighed and walked to him, holding out her hand. Jasper looked her over with scrutiny. "It's not that I don't trust you, Megan, you just knock me off balance," he answered. Megan grinned. "Seems to become my favorite pastime, huh?" she teased. He grinned back and gave her a quick hug. "Don't make it a habit," he whispered. Alice finally got a hold of her and squeezed her tight. "Jasper, you need to loosen up a bit. I saw she's not going to hurt us," Alice wagged a finger at him. I dreaded a remark from her about torn clothes, but she kept quiet. It was obvious anyway and I could clearly hear Emmett's bickering thoughts about it. "Ah, they're back," a new voice chimed in from behind me. I turned around and saw Eleazar coming down the stairs together with Carmen. "Edward, glad to see you again," he greeted me and took my hand. "Hm, let's check something," he said and inhaled deeply. "Nothing, great, I only smell vampire. Um, what happened to your shirt?" he snickered and I grinned foolishly. "Eleazar!" Carmen scolded him from behind and pushed him aside. "Don't listen to that rubbish, Edward. I'm delighted to see you again," she said and hugged me fiercely. "I'm glad to see you both too, but you should meet my mate and fiancée," I pointed to Megan who stood next to Jasper and Alice. Carmen and Eleazar turned to face her. "Dios mio, if Tim could only see you now, Megan!" Eleazar exclaimed. She smiled and walked to him. "I take it you don't want to kill me anymore," she said. "No, that instinct is gone now you're one of us," he replied. "Are you staying a longer time?" he asked. She shook her head. "Only until I know what I'm capable of and then we'll leave, but there's something that I have to find out first."
She walked over to Tanya, who had followed all the scenes stone-faced and without a word. 'Megan?' I asked. 'Don't worry, I won't hurt her,' she answered. She stopped directly in front of Tanya, looking her deep in the eye. "I know we had a bad start, Tanya. I wish I hadn't hurt you, but it happened in self-defense and it will never happen again. Do you trust me enough to go outside for a talk?" she asked. Tanya blinked once as if she was surprised. Then she crossed her arms in front of her. "Whatever you have to say, you may say it here," she responded in a huff. Megan only smiled sadly and nodded. "Okay, if you wish to do this in public: I know you envy me. You had hoped all those years he would turn to you, but it never happened. Edward and I are mates forever and I don't consider sharing. I'm sympathetic enough to understand your longing and to regret your sadness, even tolerate your hate against me, but I want you to know that it doesn't matter if I die or not. Our souls are bound beyond time. I honestly hope that one day you will find your mate, but until then I ask you politely to keep your hands off mine. I don't want to, Tanya, but I will fight if forced to." You could hear a pin drop when Megan finished. Tanya's expression had changed back and forth between pain and hate with every sentence. Megan on the contrary kept an open and peaceful expression on her face. Tanya closed her eyes for a moment and swallowed visibly. "I know that you are considered family from now on, but I guess we will never be friends. For now I'd like to declare a truce. I cannot just switch off all those feelings I have inside me and I have to find a way to live with them. Can we leave it at this for the time being?" she asked. Her voice clearly showed her nervousness, but I couldn't find any dishonesty in her mind. Megan held out her hand. "Agreed," she said. Tanya hesitated for a moment before she took her hand and shook it for a second.
The mood relaxed visibly and everyone started to chat with each other. I looked at Tanya and gave her a small smile. "Thank you," I said, but she just nodded and turned to go upstairs to her room. I felt Megan's hand on my shoulder. "It'll take time for her to heal," she whispered. I sighed and turned to her, pulling her into my arms. "So, you don't want to share, hm?" I teased. She smiled at me. "Absolutely," she replied. "Hm, what if I want it?" I teased, but she figured me out in seconds. "If you're not careful, I'll repeat what I did to you tonight," she murmured seductively. My eyebrows shot up. "Is that a promise?" I whispered and bent down to her mouth. "Maybe," she replied with a wistful smile before we kissed. We were lost in ourselves, unaware of our surroundings. "Geez, Carlisle, and you say Rose and I had been bad!" Emmett huffed. A round of snicker brought us back into reality. If vampires could blush, Megan's face would've turned red as a lobster. We turned to face the rest of our folks and realized that they had watched our little show. "Ah, el amor juvenile," Eleazar sighed and squeezed Carmen's hand, smiling at her. Carlisle cleared his throat audibly and waved us over to the fireplace. "I think we should talk about Megan's abilities, Eleazar. The last time you saw her, you thought her to be a strong mind reader. What about now?"
Eleazar examined her closely. "Megan, would you allow me look into your mind?" he asked her. "Yes, but please be careful. I don't want to hurt you," she replied. "Just keep that in mind and I'll be okay," he returned. I felt Megan open her mind to him and Eleazar gasped at the sensation. I could see him struggle with the overwhelming power she emanated. 'Don't fight it, Eli, let yourself float through her mind,' I sent him. He was definitely not in control, but I suddenly realized that Jasper helped with sending waves of calm to Eleazar. He found his composure again and finally broke the contact himself. "That's…" he gasped and clutched at his chest. "God, how do you do it, Edward?" he asked. I shrugged. "I don't think about it." He shook his head. "I have to find another way. There are so many different currents in your head, I can't sort it out," he said. "What do you mean?" she asked him. "You are too powerful for me. I can feel that there are many talents in you, but I can't decipher them, they are too intermingled," he explained. "Let's try to separate them," he added. "Tell me what you know already, Megan." She cocked her head. "Hm, I can read and project thoughts and close my mental shield. I'm sure I can influence moods, like Jasper. There's this thing with my anger being a weapon. I haven't tried it yet and what happened to Tanya was an accident. I admit I'm afraid to go there, but I believe there's more."
Eleazar looked at her. "I am pretty sure that you are able to shield others. Shall we try it?" She looked quizzically. "How do you want to do that?" Eleazar smiled. "Let's say Jasper is influencing Edward…," I interrupted them. "That won't work. I have learned to close a shield around my mind, so you better pick someone else." Quite a few heads turned into my direction at this revelation. Eleazar frowned. "Okay, let's take Carlisle. Agreed?" he turned to look at Carlisle and Jasper. They both nodded. "All right. Megan, I want you to protect Carlisle's mind from Jasper's influence. Extend your own shield on him, got it? Guys, you're ready?" Eleazar asked. "Let's start now," Megan said and closed her eyes. I was connected with her and saw Eleazar also watching on the mental level. Jasper attacked Carlisle and Megan tried to extend her mental shield, but it didn't work. Once she recognized that, she did something else. She blocked Jasper himself, working her shield like a reflector between them. Jasper gasped and broke the contact immediately. Carlisle looked relieved that it was over. "Wow," Kate exclaimed. "I wonder if you could also block me," she added. "Huh?" Megan's head turned to her with a surprised expression. I chuckled. "I forgot to mention that Kate also has a special talent. She's the electric eel in the family," I said. "Edward! I'll get you for that later!" Kate shouted. "Can you really produce electric shocks?" Megan inquired curiously. Kate raised herself up and nodded. "Yes, it's like a taser. Want me to show it?" she asked. "Sure. We can test that between ourselves, right Eli?" Megan asked. He just nodded. Megan held out her hand to Kate. "Let's start." Kate stretched out a finger and touched Megan's hand. She winced and withdrew it immediately. "Wow, that's strange. Not really painful but if it gets any stronger, it's should be effective. Let's do it one more time and I'll block it, okay?" she looked at Kate. "Here we go," Kate said and stretched out her finger again. The next second we all saw Kate flying backwards through the room. "Oh my god!" Megan exclaimed and covered her mouth. "Kate, are you okay?" Irina asked and went to her. Kate groaned and stumbled to get up. "I'm fine, don't worry. Jeez, she didn't just reflect it, she amplified it too." Jasper got up. "I was right! I had the same impression before, but I wasn't sure," he added.
I looked at my mate and found horror in her eyes. She was clearly appalled by what she had just done. That was not going well, so I turned and reached for her. "No, don't touch me!" she gasped and stumbled backwards. "Megan, please, it's all right. Kate's okay," I tried to calm her. "No," she whispered, "nothing is okay. I am a danger to you all." She backed away from me until she hit the wall. I could feel panic welling up in her. Kate chimed in, "Megan, stop it. I wanted you to test your talent on me. I willingly took the risk." Megan shook her head. 'Edward, she's gonna lose it, do something,' I heard Jasper think. I nodded, he was probably right. "Megan, I trust you. You cannot hurt me." I crept slowly towards her. I could see all others had backed off to the opposite wall to give her space. Her hands shook visibly and were clenched into fists. "Stay away, stay away," she murmured like a mantra and closed her eyes. 'There's no need for fear. I trust you, Megan.' I tried to convey as much love as possible through our bond, but I felt her closing her shield. 'Don't shut me out, dear. Let me help you!' I begged her. I heard a thought from Carlisle. 'Force her to stop, you are her sire.' I swallowed. I knew about the possibility of using the instinctive authority of a vampire's sire, but everything in me revolted against that. I gritted my teeth. If she closed herself off right now I somehow knew I would not be able to reach her anymore. I took a deep breath and focused on her. "Don't shut me out, Megan!" Her eyes flew open and she stared at me in shock. I quickly closed the distance between us and pulled her into my arms. She went limp and slid down to the floor and I with her. "I'm sorry, so sorry, dear," I whispered, pressing my face against her hair.