Sorry this is so late; kind of a nutty work week for me! And now...

Finally the Denalis trickled to outlying islands, where they would spend the night holding their own counsel. I touched Kate's shoulder as she walked by and asked if she would mind having a word with me before parting.

"Of course," she said. We made our way over to the farm island. No one was out here now.

"How long did it take you to train your gift?" I said. "I mean, to make it cover your whole body, not just your fingertips."

"Decades," admitted Kate. "It took me that long to work through it in my mind, figure out what to try. Once I figured it out, the progress was immediate. Eleazar thinks there may be more in there, some other way of expanding my gift, but he's not sure and I can't even begin to imagine how to go looking for it."

"What does it feel like?" I said. "How did you first know you had this gift?"

"Almost immediately. Sasha and Tanya attacked my lady's entourage—"

"Your lady?"

Kate pressed her lips together. "When I was human, I attended a highborn woman. I was almost like a—like a bodyguard, perhaps. She had other guards, especially while travelling, but Sasha killed them without hesitation. She paused when she saw me, though, because I was smaller than all the other guards, yet I did not stop fighting and I did not beg for mercy. Of course, I got nowhere. I was only human. But I impressed her, enough that she wanted to turn me instead of drink me."

"And your power?" I asked. "Edward said that powers are an exaggeration of your personality. What does electricity have to do with personality?"

"It's not just personal traits," explained Kate. "It's...it's whatever is in you when the venom enters your body. Whatever fear. Whatever hope. Whatever qualities you wrap around yourself, your identity. I do not know how to say it well. The twins Alec and Jane, they were turned by Aro even as they burned at the stake. That experience of fire was in them when Aro's venom began to work. Alec, he is the gentle one, he tried to blot out the pain and feel nothing. And that is his power, now. Jane did not have that kind of self-control. All that pain, all she could do with it was imagine it was happening to someone else. And now it does, if she wants it to."

"So what was in you when you were turned?"

"Nothing that wasn't always there, hiding beneath the surface," she said, holding her two forefingers an inch apart and letting a spark bridge the distance. She did it idly, like another person might twiddle their thumbs. "I was born during a thunderstorm. My mother always told me the story. She said that my birth was attended by Perun, our highest deity, the lord of lightning and thunder. She said that I was destined for great things, that I would one day be a handmaiden of God. It may sound silly to you, here and now, but I heeded her words. I had ambition to be great. I needed to be strong in the same way that most people need to be loved. I spent much of my childhood working toward that end. I made my body strong, or as strong as I could without much to eat. I would spend days and weeks training myself not to mind pain, so that it would hold no power to weaken me. This made me a fighter. This is why my lady hired me as her own personal attendant. I was granted the honor of sitting beside her at table; I was the only one allowed in her bed at night. I did not have large muscles like the others, but I would fight longer than any of them. And I was loyal.

"When Sasha bit me, I felt the venom spreading. Whereas to Jane and Alec the venom was like fire, to me it felt like lightning. For three days the transformation lasted, and in all that time it was as if Perun made love to me endlessly, filling me with his power, sanctifying me to his service. Just as my mother had always said. I had so much desire in me, so much faith that I would become a vessel of lightning, that it happened. Be sure, Carlisle has his own theory about the origin of my power. Much more scientific. But however it happened, Sasha's venom gave me this gift. That is what venom does. It makes imagined things real. It makes what is inside you come to the outside."

"Wow," I said. "That's hardcore. When I was changed, I wasn't thinking anywhere near that clearly. I just wanted it to stop."

"Of course, I too wanted the pain to end," said Kate. "But I didn't want it to end until it had made me a god."

"Which it did," I said.

"Which it did," she agreed. "Think of your own transformation. Not the pain, perhaps. Just try to remember what you were thinking about before it happened, maybe in the weeks leading up to it. Not just thinking with your mind, but feeling inside—what did you want?"

I thought back carefully. Most memories were hazy, but certain ones stood out. "I wanted Laelia to be safe," I said. "I wanted to keep her safe. I knew about immortal children and Edward was afraid the Volturi might mistake her for one of them. So I wanted to keep her safe from them. But I also wanted to keep Edward and all of them safe from her. I didn't know if she would be dangerous, but if she was, I would have done anything to keep everyone safe from...from everyone."

"Well, then," she said, as if I had just proven a point beyond all arguing. "And you already had a shield in place, yes?"

"I did. When I was human, it was just the same."

"Not the same, I think. I bet you it has changed. Become deeper. I built this out of nothing but desire and a strong will." She set a few sparkles free, and they danced in her palm like tiny stars, blue and beautiful. "So my question is, what have you made out of a shield that already existed? What has emerged from all that desire to keep your family safe, all that determination that you should be the protector? I would bet a thousand splitting headaches that it is something the Volturi will not want unleashed against them, if you can only figure out how to use it."

"I hope you're right," I said. "I hope I can figure it out before it's too late."

"Well, I don't know what the answer will turn out to be," said Kate, "but you might want to think about whatever's at the center of your shield."

"The center…?"

"Not the literal center. More like...the way the sun is at the center of all that we know and touch and feel. No matter how much power we may hold in our hands, no matter what darkness we try to hide ourselves under, all power ultimately can come from no other source than the sun. Even us, even vampires; for we were human once. Even we are the sun's offspring. Oh, I'm not saying this right," she said apologetically. "Once you figure it out, it will seem obvious. But until then, it will be a mystery, and no words spoken aloud can make it plain. You should just think about it as much as you can. I think you have a whole sun of power in you. But you must find it on your own."

"I will," I promised. "Thanks, Kate."

When Kate and I parted, I prowled the woods alone, thinking.

Something was at the center of my shield. The obvious answer, of course, was "Bella Swan". And that might have been true—before. It was, perhaps, my insular personality, my desire to hold myself in at all times, that had immunized my mind to Edward's power, Jasper's and Alice's. Even as a human, I'd had that. Even as a human, I'd had a strong will. Strong enough to shield me, and only me.

But…

At some point after her conception, that same shield had expanded to protect Laelia, too, instead of just me. Then something had changed, one day in my room, while Alice played music for my unborn baby. One minute, Jasper had been unable to feel what Laelia was feeling, and then it had come through and he'd shown it to everyone. Even me, for a second.

My shield was flexible. What had been the catalyst? What had been happening in that bedroom, in that moment, that had allowed the shield to lift? It wasn't one of my stronger memories. I couldn't pin it down. I couldn't remember what I'd been doing that was different from what I always did.

And then there was Edward. He heard some of Laelia's thoughts but not others. If he wanted to hear more, she had to share it deliberately, by touching him.

I guessed that the shield was wrapped around her more loosely than around myself. She was able to push it away when she wanted to, since it wasn't really a part of her as it was with me. That explained why she could access my head when no one else could. She had VIP privileges, so to speak.

So, was Laelia the center of my shield? That didn't seem quite right, or the shield would be strongest around her, which was not the case. But it was still protecting her in a limited way. She'd been a part of me, she'd been under it completely, and then something had happened and the shield had lifted, and it had never settled back onto her fully.

But maybe it could. If I could only figure what that something was, that mystery at the center of my shield, then I might be able to use it deliberately.

If only I knew what it was.

Esme found me out there while I was still struggling to make sense of Kate's advice. She was a welcome distraction; I felt like I was going mad. And I had a few questions for her.

"You're holding something back," I said as soon as I heard her coming. She skidded to a stop beside me, her luxuriant hair whipping about her face. Fatigued by my inability to figure out my gift, I was more blunt with Esme than I would normally have been. "You didn't say everything you were thinking, at the meeting. You haven't been honest with us at all, have you? I feel like you're keeping something from me, Esme. Do you think I should go after Jane?"

"I don't think you should go after Jane," said Esme. I let my shoulders relax a little, in relief. Jane scared the shit out of me, and I'd never even met her. "My hope is that there will be no fight, that we will find some leverage that will force them to leave us unharmed. But if it does come to a fight, which it almost certainly will, don't bother with Jane. If you find yourself in a position to make a strategic kill, it must be Chelsea."

I stared. Then I wanted to go off in a peal of insane laughter. Instead I said,

"Well, you aren't pulling any punches, are you?"

"Bella, this is an extraordinarily dangerous situation for you. My first hope is that you can be kept out of danger. But if you are going to be in danger anyway, you should know how to fight tactically. There are things that may be within your power, things you can do for us that no one else can."

"Of course, Esme. I'll do anything," I said. "You know that."

"I won't be able to take charge this time around," she said. "Carlisle will have to do it."

My jaw dropped. "But you're...you're the one who got Victoria. You're the reason we've even gotten this far!"

"I don't know about that," she said somberly. "Have I really done any good here? I'm not so sure I haven't just made the situation worse. And technically," she added, "you and Jacob are the ones who removed Victoria."

"Yeah, after you planned everything. You explained about her shield. I was only able to trick her into believing I wasn't a threat by doing what I thought you would do in the same situation. You can't possibly mean to sit this out."

"I don't mean to sit this out," she clarified quickly. "But think about who we're up against here. Aro is a mind-reader, Bella, but he's not like Edward. If he touches you, he hears not just your present thoughts but every thought you've ever had, every memory, every-"

"-Every plan," I finished. The secrecy, the speculative looks she'd been shooting in my direction, and now the advice about who to attack if I got the chance. Of course.

"If Aro has any reason to suspect that I am making plans of my own," said Esme, "he will read my mind. I will die before I let that happen, Bella, I will, because there are things in there that would render this family up to him like sacrificial lambs. It will appear natural that Carlisle should take charge of this situation, and it is only natural that Aro should choose to take Carlisle's hand when they reunite. Which means that whatever weapons we may have, Carlisle mustn't know of them. In fact, there is no guarantee Aro will not choose to read Alice's mind, or Edward's since he will assume Edward has access to all of our thoughts. So I must protect them as well. But your mind is shielded, Bella. I am going to have to rely on your help to keep our friends from devising any plans that might genuinely pose a threat to Aro. Because if Carlisle should stumble upon some secret weapon we may possess..."

"Then Aro will know about it right away," I said numbly, "and it won't be a secret anymore."

It was established at once that Laelia should be kept far from the fight, but the family almost broke into fighting several times trying to decide who should take her away.

"Nahuel should do it," suggested Jake immediately. "He knows more about half-humans than any of us. Besides, he won't be any good as a fighter."

Nahuel shot him a furious glance, which Jake wasn't noticing because Jake was trying to pretend to himself and the world that he hadn't imprinted on a half-vampire. Nahuel actually thought Jake disliked him.

"I should be there," he said heatedly. "Do you really want Aro to get interested in hybrids? He needs to see me. He needs to see how useless I am, as you so kindly put it. He needs to see that there is nothing mysterious or intriguing about people like me. Otherwise he might be tempted to track her down, to study her. She'll never be safe, once Aro decides he wants a crack at her."

"So instead you want him to get interested in you?" countered Jake. "Don't be a dumbass. You both need to stay as far away from that creepy son of a bitch as possible."

Nahuel looked seconds away from throwing a punch. Edward and I exchanged looks and spoke at the same moment.

"It should be Bella," he declared.

At the same time, I said, "Alice and Jasper should take her."

Not Edward looked like he wanted to throw a punch. "Bella, are you mad? Obviously you need to take Laelia and get the hell out of here. This is not even a discussion worth having."

"I'm sorry, but you're wrong," I said. "If Laelia's going to be safe, it'll be because whoever's taking care of her can stay one step ahead of Aro, and Demetri, and Chelsea. Alice definitely fits that bill, right?"

"As do you," said Edward. "And you're her mother."

"I'm her mother," I agreed. "Which means I will do everything humanly possible to keep her out of harm's way. And I don't think that I could ever protect her as well as Alice or Jas could. Especially not both of them together. God, Edward, can you even see me trying to fight off a bunch of Volturi?"

"Demetri can't even track you-"

"We think Demetri probably can't track me," I corrected. "Let's assume, for the sake of argument, that he can't. They still have other ways of finding people, Edward. They could just track us the old-fashioned way. She needs to be with someone who will always see danger coming. And, just as importantly, Alice needs to be kept safe from Aro. God, can you even imagine what would happen in Aro got his hands on her and Jasper? I'll give you a hint, Edward, it's the same thing that happens when any government gets too big and too powerful. You want a vampire police state? Because I sure don't. Aro can't even be allowed to touch her once, and you know if she's there that's the first thing he'll want to do. We have to keep Alice away from Aro. We have to keep Laelia out of danger. Lucky for us, both of those problems have the same solution."

"Well, who says Alice would even do it?"

"Um guys?" said Alice, poking one hand tentatively in the air like she was raising her hand in class. "I'm right here. I can both see and hear you."

"Well, tell Bella she's an idiot," said Edward.

"Alice, think about it," I said. "As long as you aren't right there within reach, Aro may not want to risk hurting us. If you're standing in front of him, what's to stop him just killing everyone but you and Jasper, right then and there? But I mean, if you're far away, if you've been warned, if you're looking out for him, keeping your eyes on all of our futures, of course, watching for the moment we all get massacred...well, do you think Aro would take a risk like that? Maybe that's the one thing that makes him take his time. And anything that buys us time is a good thing."

"I don't...I don't know," said Alice weakly, her eyes round and big and frightened. She was so small, so vulnerable. All she wanted was for everyone to get along and be happy. I really fucking hated Aro for putting this on her. "Mom?"

Esme was looking at me with a mixture of sadness and approval. "I agree with Bella," she said. "If it were merely a matter of deciding who should live and who should die, I could not form any such judgment. But Alice, I do think that holding you out of Aro's reach might do us some good. It might be the saving of us, my darling."

Reluctantly, Alice and Jasper agreed. Jake refused to speak to me for a whole day, for failing to back his nomination. Nahuel refused to speak to Jake, because he thought Jake viewed him as dead weight. And Edward refused to speak to either Alice, Esme or me for three days solid. But finally he relented.

"If we're all just going to die soon," he said to me, "I'm not going to waste another minute. Although as soon as your plan works and they leave us alone and we have our whole lives ahead of us again, I'm going to go straight back to holding a grudge." And he kissed my face and neck and hair, and held me close.

Jake, of course, called Tadi to tell her about the Volturi, let her know he had imprinted (a fact of which he resolutely refused to inform Nahuel) and beg her forgiveness for sneaking out. None of us expected the wolves to rush to our aid, considering they'd been in such a hurry to see the back of us, but to our surprise they were more than willing to stand and fight with the three families. They flew out to Belfast and then met Jake and a few of our family in Glenveagh. The first thing Tadi did when Jake sheepishly loped over to her was to cuff him so hard across the side of the head that he went sprawlig. The second thing she did was sweep him into her arms for a crushing hug.

"You could have been dead," she mumbled into his hair. "What the hell do you think you were doing? I'm not losing you, you ungrateful little shit." Jake caught my eye and shot me a surreptitious thumbs-up.

We all knew that Tadi had never really trusted us. But now she had proof of our good intentions: the easiest and most promising route to our safety would be to kill the wolves and present the Volturi with their hides. Instead we were choosing this insane, almost-certain-to-fail option. We were fighting to save their lives as much as our own. Unlikely as we were to succeed, Tadi was more than willing to coordinate with the vampires. And their cooperation offered us more than just brute muscle—they offered us hope.

"The shape-shifters' minds are halfway closed," Jasper announced. "We weren't sure, before, but it seems pretty clear. Edward can't get too much from 'em, and Alice can't get anything. I can't read their emotions, but I can sorter work on 'em in the blind. They have a kind of one-way block. Some things can get in but nothin' gets out."

"So they can still be affected by Jane and Alec," said Carlisle.

"Prob'ly," affirmed Jasper. "But not Demetri, Aro or Marcus. Could be useful."

"They don't know about Alpha commands," said Tadi. "Alpha commands are a powerful force. If I stay out of range of the leeches' powers, but not out of range of Jae and Ard, we may be able to cobble together a decent offense. Our reach is longer than theirs. I can issue commands from hundreds of miles away; their powers extend much less than that, save for the tracker's only. If the pain Jane causes is imaginary, then it can be expected to incapacitate one of us at a time; but if I issue an order to fight through the pain..."

She trailed off meaningfully, and I felt icy fingers up and down my spine. This sounded...horrible. It sounded like torture.

Scratch that, of course it was torture. They were simply proposing to ignore the torture.

"So now we have four fighters who might succeed despite the powers at Aro's disposal. Or three, at least, since Tadi will be at a distance," said Tanya.

"And do not think our skills insignificant," said Ard. His face, pale and freckled under his crown of coppery hair, looked uncharacteristically fierce. "Jake killed James without even one minute's worth of training. Between Jae and I, we have thousands of years of experience. And if we're taken out, Tadi will step in. In fact, you all can sit this one out if you're worried."

"Victoria evaded you for a long time," pointed out Laurent.

"But she did not land a single blow," countered Jae with a twisted grin. "If the Volturi have any sense, they will evade us as she did. All the way back to Italy, preferably."

"Have you fought Volturi?" asked Carlisle. "They are not like the nomads you are accustomed to weeding out. They are skilled and determined. They have never been beaten. They have not even been challenged in many lifetimes of men."

"An oversight only," said Tadi, smiling dangerously, "and one which we are all too eager to correct."

I don't totally blame Meyer for failing to take Aro (and his scary power) very far; I've only written a scant few stories featuring Aro, and believe me, that gift of his is bloody hard to work around. Most potential plots/plans/machinations can't logically withstand Aro's power of reading all thoughts past and present; his power allows him to exploit his enemies' every secret weakness, identify every hidden threat. And it can be inferred that Aro's gift comes with tons of extra data-storage in his brain, because the dude is way old and he's toting around thousands of lives' worth of memories, and he's (theoretically) very good at sorting through all those memories, separating the wheat from the chaff, and forming very watertight plans with the information he gleans. Even Edward can be fooled by someone with a well-regulated thought process, but dishonest intentions will be recognized by Aro quite easily, because his power will always allow him to perceive the past moment when a person has made a decision like trick Aro. So I kind of understand why in the end Meyer went with a straightforward solution to the conflict (Bella turns out to be even specialler than Aro, surprise surprise, and then the Volturi go home), rather than attempting to craft a complex resolution that accounted for Aro's intimidatingly thorough gift. But I also can't help but wonder why she gave Aro a power like that if he was never going to use it in any crucial way. Is he a terrifying badass or isn't he? Do the Cullens need to take his gift into consideration while planning for the upcoming conflict? Aren't they worried about the upper hand Aro will gain the moment he reads Carlisle's mind and sees their plans? If not, why not? Every gift has limitations; what are Aro's? I'll tell you this, readers, the best fics I've read have been the ones that a.)didn't shy away from how terrifying Aro's gift makes him or reduce him to an empty, retreating figurehead and b.)took clever advantage of the most minuscule chinks in his armor.

What do you think are Aro's limitations? How would you have resolved the conflict in Breaking Dawn?