Hi all!

Welcome to the next installment! JaneyGWF deserves great thanks for this one, there was a lot of work that went into this to get it just right!

Since I've breached the wall into another fandom here and the last chapter, I should probably do the disclaimer thing, so, obviously, this is just for fun, I don't own any rights to Rizzoli and Isles or Twilight.

Please review, your responses are really encouraging and help me write!

Predictably, Alice was the first to jump forward, holding out a hand to Maura imploringly. "Please, I need to know if you can see something."

Maura perceived the desperation in Alice's whole body, from her uncertain expression to her skittish movements, and nodded in agreement. She grasped Alice's hand, closing her eyes in concentration. During the ball, she had been pondering what the specialty of the person she was touching was, in order to activate her analytical mind and therefore her powers. Now, she simply allowed her mind to continue to try and figure out what was going on, and why she had somehow gotten embroiled in the Cullen's issues.

Maura braced herself for an onslaught of visions, sensations, memories or a combination of all three, but instead she experienced an ominous silence. She frowned, concentrating on thinking through the causality around the Cullen's arrival at the ball, but nothing seemed to be happening. She wasn't sure if she had failed to copy Alice's power or if it was simply not working for her, but either way they were back where they started.

Maura opened her eyes, meeting Alice's hopeful gaze with a mournful shake of her head before releasing her hand. Alice sagged in defeat, turning back to Jasper and crumpling into his arms.

Maura felt a hand on her elbow, and realised Jane had moved closer to her side. She looked at her friend and gave her a brief smile before speaking. "I'm fine, Jane. Nothing happened. I can't see anything new."

The Cullens shared a disappointed look, with Edward seeming unsurprised and Emmett seeming angry at this turn of events. Jane, Constance and Hope wore ambivalent expressions, apparently happy that Maura was okay but also disappointed that they were still in the dark.

Jasper finished muttering reassurances to Alice, slowly releasing her and stepping towards Maura. "My power is probably the least harmful to try next. It's a subtle power, so you shouldn't feel overwhelmed if it works, but you'll still be able to tell if it's there."

Maura nodded, considering the earlier sequence of events as she held out her hand. "It's something to do with emotions, correct? I could feel you trying to calm my reactions earlier, but it stopped when you looked away."

Jasper nodded. "Yes ma'am. I didn't want the situation to escalate, but when I tried to do the same thing with your mother earlier, it had unexpected consequences, so I realised I should be more careful using it on you in case my power was somehow broken as well."

As Maura touched his hand, still thinking about the situation she saw upon first entering the room, she suddenly experienced a flood of emotion rushing into her from every other person in the vicinity, all blended together and indecipherable. Jasper had been wrong about his power being subtle. It felt like she had been previously unable to feel, and she was now drowning in everyone else's emotions. She gasped and closed her eyes as she tried to make sense of it all. She tried to focus on one person at a time, separating out the flavours of the emotions and making the room more manageable to understand.

Jasper was still holding her hand. Maura could feel him reaching out to her with his power, passing along his balance and serenity as best he could. He was obviously practiced at controlling what he passed on to others, as Maura couldn't feel anything but what he most likely wanted her to, no reflections on how he felt about the current situation, nothing besides calmness and tranquillity. She held on to those feelings, trying to keep a sense of calm as her base as she processed and catalogued the other emotions in the room.

She decided to try and feel out the Cullens, since understanding them and their motives could possibly have great repercussions for those she loved. Since they all knew exactly what Jasper's power entailed, she felt assured that they had given her tacit permission. Based on their appearance, she expected them to be generally uneasy but controlled, with the exception of Alice who hadn't been able to hide her fear.

However, once Maura was able to access their emotions directly, she appreciated how much they were hiding beneath their perfected exteriors. Maura was immediately fascinated by this new ability, as it revealed not just the surface emotions, but the deeper emotions that made up personalities and tied relationships together. She focussed on Bella, who had so far been silent, and wonderingly followed the emotions as she found them twisting through the people in the room.

Bella was the most skittish after Alice, with a feeling of being out of her depth accompanying her more general fear. Maura interpreted her reactions as an indicator of a relatively young vampire, most likely the newest vampire in the room other than herself. Underneath the anxiety, she had an immense pull towards Edward, tinged with want and need, and a lesser but still strong attachment to everyone else in the room. Edward shared Bella's almost obsessively strong love, but was agitated as well, with a defensive edge to his feelings. Both Edward and Bella felt anxious about something unrelated to the people in the room, as if someone they loved was somewhere else doing something dangerous.

The strong attachment could be felt between all the couples in the room, and as Maura followed it she found they all had slightly different 'flavours'. Esme was deferential towards Carlisle, and her feelings towards the group as a whole were motherly and loving. Carlisle's feelings were very similar, with an added edge of protectiveness and a sense of responsibility over all the Cullens. Both had a deep respect and love for each other, with a more mature and long term feel to their relationship.

Maura found Emmett to be cocky and brash, with a great need to continually prove himself to Rosalie, but he was also fiercely devoted to the woman he adored. Rosalie in turn was just as devoted, both to Emmett and the rest of her family, but her attachments were all tinged with a subtle kind of sadness, as if there was a great regret in her past that still tinged all her feelings now.

Alice was difficult to read, as her fear was overwhelmingly loud. It seemed to have permeated her being like a sickness, clouding any other personality traits beneath a cloud of black uncertainty. Maura could understand how determined she must be to understand what was blocking her power, if only to relieve some of the dread that held her hostage. Glancing back at Jasper, Maura could appreciate how determined he must be to help his partner as well, since he would be able to feel just how debilitating her ignorance had become.

Maura pulled back into herself, wanting to see if she could separate herself from the emotions of others. Thankfully, she was able to sense a difference in feelings that had come from outside her own mind, and she immediately felt a flood of relief that was all hers.

Next she decided to try and understand any differences between human and vampire emotions. Since becoming a vampire Maura had experienced a wide spectrum of emotion, mostly negative, and she was quietly afraid that vampires might be unable to feel the way humans do.

The first human Maura found was Constance, whose primary emotion seemed to be concern for those around her. The level of intense emotion from Constance surprised Maura, so much so that she opened her eyes, turning to look at the woman who had raised her. To any outside observer, she looked every inch the distinguished hostess, not a hair out of place, her mask still on, her posture and poise flawless. The only sign of any compassion was the arm still carefully gripping Hope, keeping her securely tied to Constance's side. On the inside, however, she was a mess. She was worried about Hope's health, she was worried that Jane was about to launch into action and get herself killed, and she was terrified that Maura had just somehow destroyed her sanity by allowing the strangers to use her power for their own gain, and she was frantic at the thought that she wouldn't be able to help anyone. Maura could barely feel her mother's underlying sense of propriety and pride in herself, as those traits were being thoroughly crushed beneath her wish to do something, anything, to protect the people she thought of as hers.

Jane suddenly pulled on her shoulder in concern, and Maura realised she'd been staring in wonder at her mother for more than a minute. Maura's met Jane's worried gaze instinctively, her awareness turning to the woman who knew her best as she opened herself up to Jane's emotions. Maura smiled appreciatively as she realised that Jane was the easiest for her to feel and understand, since there wasn't anything she was feeling that wasn't telegraphed on her face for Maura to read already. She could feel how protective Jane was of her. She could feel how much Jane cared about her. She could feel the concern Jane had for Hope and Constance, which simmered underneath the worry she felt for Maura. She could feel Jane trying to decide between allowing this to play out or yanking Maura out of the room and away from danger whether they were finished or not. And she could feel how much Jane needed to be reassured that Maura was okay, because it would break her if she wasn't.

Finding that Jane's emotions were helping her understand how this new power worked, as well as realising that Jane's head was a very comforting place to be, Maura took the time to drift a little deeper into Jane's psyche. She could feel that Jane was letting her in, inviting her to look around and take what she needed, as long as it helped. Maura was astonished when she realised there was no part of Jane focused on self-preservation. Her entire being was constructed around protecting those she loved, with no thought for herself. Maura had always known that this was a trait of Jane's, but she hadn't realised that Jane only ever looked after herself in order to appease others, not because she actually felt the need to survive for her own sake. She would throw herself between danger and someone else every time, and there was nothing anyone could ever say to change that about her. Maura was further shocked when she realised there was no part of Jane that wavered about trusting, protecting or loving Maura. She couldn't help trying to dig deeper, looking for any sign of hesitation or doubt, searching for that one caveat that would eventually see Jane leave her, but she was stunned to find that the evidence was blindingly conclusive. Jane had truly forgiven her for past misdeeds, and was completely clear in her feelings. When Maura looked into Jane's eyes and saw nothing but unconditional friendship and love, it was the plain and honest truth.

Somewhat overwhelmed, Maura pulled away from Jane in wonder, their shared gaze never breaking despite the awestruck expression on Maura's face and the increasingly bemused one on Jane's. Maura blinked and looked away to try to settle her thoughts, which were scattered after the revelations of how much both Constance and Jane really cared. Neither of them hated her, or resented her actions, or wanted anything but to love and support her. Maura struggled to understand how that could be possible, after all the changes she'd been through and all the trauma they'd been subjected to as a result of knowing her, but she couldn't argue with the strength of the conviction she felt from both of them.

Maura looked back at Jane, answering her unsaid questions with a voice full of astonishment. "We're really okay. You honestly…and we…and I…it's all okay Jane, I'm okay, and we're okay."

Jane's eyes widened in surprise, and Maura felt a burst of amazement from Jane at hearing a verbal response to her emotional need for reassurance of Maura's wellbeing. She gave Maura a tentative smile, some of her immediate worry dissipating as she saw the honesty and joy in Maura's face. Maura could feel Jane still holding onto her distrust of the Cullens and of the situation in general, but the fact that Jane was able to let go of some of her hypervigilance just because Maura reassured her spoke volumes about the trust Jane had in Maura.

Concentrating for a moment, Maura tried carefully to show Jane how she felt, wanting to ensure she understood how much her trust and friendship mattered. Nothing happened for a moment, but suddenly Jane gasped and stumbled, with Maura quickly moving to support her as Jane looked at her in stunned confusion. Maura smiled encouragingly, nodding to reassure Jane and get her to be receptive. Jane closed her eyes for a moment, trying to understand what Maura was sharing with her. Maura carefully strengthened the connection, giving Jane access to everything she felt, as deeply as she could go.

Jane frowned for a few seconds before she smiled slowly, a wondering grin that spread from her lips to her entire face, her hands finding their way to Maura's as she opened her eyes. They shared a moment of understanding, for that brief instant in time completely and utterly knowing the other.

Still buoyed from the experience, Maura glanced back at Constance, and realised she hadn't yet touched her biological mother's mind. Maura realised she had been subconsciously avoiding doing so, as she was afraid of what she might find. Their relationship had always been complicated, and the complexity had only increased with the addition of the vampire issue. Hope's reaction to the Cullens had made Maura additionally hesitant to venture into her mind, in case she caused further damage, but she was also afraid of the consequences of discovering Hope's true feelings about her, if they differed from the ones she had outwardly expressed.

Hope was still leaning on Constance, but she had stopped trembling and appeared to be regaining her colour. Maura decided it was worth the risk to see if she could discover anything about Hope's frame of mind, as despite the fear of rejection, Maura felt a strong obligation to help Hope if she could. Somewhat reluctantly, Maura released Jane's hands with a sigh and turned towards her mothers, bracing herself for the worst.

Maura gasped when she isolated Hope's emotions and started to sort through them. Hope was a maelstrom of fear and anxiety, her mind swirling furiously in the presence of so many vampires. Maura couldn't be sure, but she suspected that Hope's mental tormentor was active, giving her hallucinations and scaring her half to death. The power she was using didn't allow Maura to see what Hope was seeing, but she could feel waves of horror and a sense of victimisation pouring out of Hope's head. Maura was astonished that Hope had been able to hold on to her sanity, if this level of terror was what she felt every time the hallucination activated.

Unable to bear the intensity of Hope's torment for long after the emotional rollercoaster she'd already been on this evening, Maura hurried to Constance's side. "Mother, I need you to get Hope away from here. Don't leave the ball, but get her somewhere quiet and give her some water. I'll come and find you when we're finished here."

Constance nodded decisively, immediately lifting Hope into a more upright position and guiding her out the door. Hope gave Maura a thankful smile as she left the room, confirming that Maura had made the right decision to send her away from the source of her continuing torment.

Jane touched Maura's arm again, her face concerned. "Are you still okay? What's going on?"

Maura couldn't quite smile in return, she was still reeling from Hope's anguish. "Yes, I'm alright. Her condition was more overwhelming than I was expecting."

Maura looked at the door her mothers had just left through, and grabbed Jane's hand to emphasise her point. "We have to help her somehow Jane, I don't know how much longer she can go on like this. It must be affecting her health, obviously mentally and emotionally, but also physically. The human body can't take that much fear on a regular basis without serious detrimental effects."

Jane nodded seriously. "Okay, sure, we'll find something. Do you think one of these guys can help?"

Maura glanced at the Cullens, who were talking amongst themselves and trying to give Jane and Maura the appearance of privacy, as impossible as that was in a roomful of vampires. "I don't know. I'm worried about the effect Jasper's power had on her. He was trying to calm her down, but it seems to have done the opposite, ramping up her usual fear response to critical levels. If the same thing happens with other powers, we could end up making things worse for her."

Jane frowned and turned to address Carlisle. "Do you guys have any idea of what happened to Hope? She met a vampire a few years ago who planted a hallucination in her head to scare the hell out of her anytime she thinks about vampires, sound familiar?"

Maura could determine from the confused looks on their faces and from the new wave of unease permeating the room that the answer was no. "Have you ever heard of any vampires who enjoy their victim's fear, or who take particular pleasure in using their powers to torment humans rather than simply feeding on them?"

Carlisle answered with a concerned note in his voice. "That all sounds extremely unusual. No vampire would need extra powers to attack humans. We are all perfectly capable of hunting humans with our basic abilities. It sounds like this individual is targeting people for fun, not for food, which is a very disturbing prospect."

Maura sighed in frustration. "And if none of you have ever heard of something like this, you probably can't help either."

Edward stepped forward, pulling Bella compliantly along with him. "It might not help, but perhaps you can do something with our combined powers that we can't do alone. If you can hear her thoughts as well as feeling her fear, you might be able to figure out a way to help her."

He held out his hand to Maura, offering his power freely. Maura felt Jane grab her arm, trying to dissuade her, the gesture accompanied by a new burst of concern, but Maura knew Edward had a point. If there was any chance she could help Hope, she felt obligated by her conscience to try.

Maura grabbed Edward's hand, bracing for a new wave of sensations. She immediately lost her emotional connection with everyone in the room, which made her flinch at the sensation of loss. In place of the feelings she was just starting to become accustomed to, a wall of sound assaulted her mind. She could hear multiple voices, all speaking as loudly as if they were standing next to her.

Maura closed her eyes and stumbled away from Edward, instinctively slamming her hands over her ears despite knowing the voices she was hearing weren't audible. She felt like she was being swept along in the torrent of silent sound, and she knew she needed to find an anchor.

'ShelookstiredIwishthereweremoreshrimphowlonguntiltheauctionMauralistentoIwonderwherehewentdarnthatwaiterwheredidIneedtofindMaurastaycalmlistentotheorchestraisnicetowhenthesensorsseeashadowtheycountthenumberofpixelsandIwonderwhereCharlottewentwedidntgettofinishthereheisIneedtogethimaloneMaura, Maura can you hear me…'

Flailing around mentally, she managed to hear a familiar voice. 'Maura, be ok, be ok, please be ok, what have they done to you now, stop letting them hurt you, come on, open your eyes, be ok, please' Maura realised she had found Jane and grabbed on, focussing all her energy on narrowing her attention to that one voice. 'ok, you stopped wincing, ok, you're taking your hands away, are you ok, should I touch you, that probably won't help'

Maura almost laughed as she listened to Jane trying not to panic, but restrained herself when she remembered how worried Jane was about her doing all of this. With something to focus on, Maura didn't feel as overwhelmed by the voices, although she could still hear them like an indistinct murmur in the periphery of her mind. She opened her eyes, nodding to Jane reassuringly with a smile. Jane smiled back half-heartedly, and Maura could tell that Jane was just about out of bluster and false confidence, her underlying worry about to break through to the surface. She was almost at the point where anyone could read the fear on her face, not just Maura.

Maura turned back to Edward, frowning in confusion. "I can hear people thinking, but I can't feel you all anymore. Perhaps I can only copy one power at a time?"

The Cullens all looked to Alice, who shrugged helplessly. "I didn't get an instruction manual, I just saw us all giving her our powers. Including Bella, by the way."

Maura looked back at Bella, who looked uncomfortable at the attention as she held out her hand to Maura. "My power isn't as exciting as theirs. I'm a shield, meaning nobody can read my thoughts. It took a while, but I learned how to shield other people too. It works all the time on me, but shielding other people takes concentration."

Edward quickly mentally interjected before Maura made contact with Bella's skin. 'She can also take her shield down with a lot of effort, just in case you ever'

Maura didn't hear the rest of the sentence, as Edward's power disappeared the moment she touched Bella. Maura felt a sense of relief as she found herself alone in her head again, with no strange emotions or thoughts invading her privacy. She smiled at Jane, who still looked unhappy.

Edward concentrated for a moment before nodding. "I can't hear you anymore. Your thoughts are safe. Jasper can still feel you though, for some reason. We aren't really sure which powers Bella's shield works on. Definitely mine, and several of the Volturi, including Aro's, Alec's, and Jane's."

Maura frowned at the mention of Jane, the Volturi that had taken great pleasure in attempting to ruin her life. With the loss of her power, the last trace of Jane had been erased forever. Maura wasn't sure if the loss of Jane's power was a good thing in the long run, since it had been vitally useful several times, but she didn't regret having the near constant reminder gone.

Carlisle stepped forward to enter the conversation, cuing Edward and Bella to step back with the rest of the family. "So what will you do now, Maura? It appears we are still in the dark as to the future, do you have any thoughts on the matter?"

Maura glanced at Jane, and agreed with the suggestions she was silently conveying with her determined stare. "I don't see any reason to change anything we've been doing. We've been trying to look into the vampire activity in New York, while trying to keep as many humans safe as possible. Would you consider helping me?"

Carlisle looked surprised at the question. He was about to answer when the door burst open and Constance bustled into the room, her mask gone and her refined façade starting to crack. "Maura, Jane, please come with me. There is a situation that requires your attention."

Edward tensed and replied in their stead. "Actually I think this might concern all of us."

Maura considered her options for a moment, remembering everything she'd learned about the Cullens in her brief experience with their powers. They were a close knit group that cared deeply about each other, and they obviously cared enough about humans to avoid killing them despite their natural tendencies, just as she did. It seemed plausible that they would be willing to help, even though their usual safety net of Alice's visions was gone.

With a resigned internal sigh, Maura turned back to her mother. "You might as well tell all of us, Edward already knows what you're going to say, and they may be able to help."

Constance pursed her lips in consternation, but spoke as requested. "I've just received a phone call from my contact in the NYPD. Earlier tonight, Frankie's task force went out on a raid of a 'suspected cult stronghold'. It was one of the seven locations we had pinpointed as a vampire meeting place."

Constance's tone grew more compassionate as she looked at Jane. "There have been four confirmed fatalities and multiple reported injuries. My contact also informs me that Frankie is missing. Reading between the lines, I believe he was taken by a vampire."