just_1_word prompt 41.3 [explain]
Samuel had suggested she try and get some sleep but she wasn’t sure she could. The bed she was sitting on wasn’t her own and the strange trailer was foreign to her, and clearly more masculine than anything she was used to. Still, it was better than going home to her dorm. She wasn’t sure she could face Gretchen and she wasn’t sure she couldn’t trust her dad, or the Haitian, to show up in the middle of the night. Her dad would have questions after all, he would be suspicious about her suddenly bringing up what happened just a few months before and she didn’t know what he’d do to keep it a secret. She didn’t think he would hurt her but he wasn’t above trying to have her memory erased as he had tried before and Angela wouldn’t be trying to protect her this time. This was their secret, one they didn’t want her in on and so they would do anything to keep it.
She could only wonder what they were going to do when they realized she was going to bring it all crashing down.
When the door to the trailer opened, she looked up warily as the tall blonde with the various tattoos decorating her body stepped in. Lydia looked surprised to see Claire sitting on the bed and quickly she scanned the trailer with a frown, as though expecting to see Samuel.
“He’s outside somewhere.” Claire explained before she was asked, shifting her weight a little. “He offered his trailer to me for the night.” She looked down, picking gently at the ratty blanket underneath her.
“Oh.” Lydia murmured, watching the young blonde for a moment. Then, with a careful look over her shoulder, she shut the door behind her before moving more fully into the trailer. “Can I ask you a question, Claire?”
She wasn’t sure she wanted to answer any questions but Claire nodded with a sigh. “Sure, go ahead.”
“Why are you doing this?” Lydia asked curiously, moving to sit down on the edge of the bed while watching the young girl carefully. “You have to know what might happen if you do go through with releasing Sylar.”
“I know.” Claire knew better than anyone. “But I....I can’t let it go on.” At the quiet look she got, she continued while dropping her gaze. “I can’t look at him and know that it’s Sylar underneath.”
“You could just avoid him.” Lydia pointed out, just wanting the girl to understand all her options before she chose to walk down this path.
“I could, but it wouldn’t be easy. He wouldn’t know, he wouldn’t get why I was avoiding him and others would start to notice. Plus that’s my dad.” There was a flash of pain on her features. “Or it was. It’s his face, it’s....him but it’s not him.”
She swallowed thickly, taking a moment to pause before she looked at Lydia with a look that would haunt the older woman for a little while. It was the look of a person who had seen too much, all while knowing she would see much more and there would be no relief for her. There would be no end. “But your father, he did things...”
“He did.” Claire nodded her head, biting her bottom lip. “But that didn’t mean he was a monster. He was human, perhaps the most human out of all of us. He was flawed and easily led by emotions or the idea that he was doing something right. But when he made a mistake, once he realized it, he always tried to fix what he did wrong.” Her eyes started to burn with the familiar urge to cry, her throat closing. “Two times now, he put himself in the path of sure death just to save us even if he was the one to put us there. He did it, knowing he could die but it didn’t matter to him. I can’t let what my other dad and my grandmother did continue on. Underneath it all, Nathan was a good guy and I can’t let them taint his memory. Not when I could have....not when I can fix it.”
Lydia shifted a little closer with a look of understanding, her hand sliding onto Claire’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, for your loss. We had one of our own, it’s never easy.”
“No, it’s not.” Claire shook her head, swallowing thickly as she wasn’t sure she would ever get used to it. “Can you see why now? Can you see why I can’t let Sylar stay this way?”
“You’re honouring your birth father.”
“Yes. That and if Sylar ever did get out? I know him, he would stay posing as Nathan to try and gain more power. He’s done it before and he would do it again. I would rather do this and have to deal with the outcome than letting him stay where he is. It wouldn’t matter how I felt about Nathan.”
“As long as you’re sure, Claire, because this won’t be easy.”
“Because since when is anything easy these days?” Claire asked dryly. “I know how to deal with Sylar, don’t worry about it.” She said it with more bravado than she felt at the moment but she was good at faking as she lifted her chin defiantly.
“Alright, I just want you to be sure.” Lydia nodded, trying not to look as doubtful as she felt at the moment. “Sometimes it’s very easy to start down one path and then suddenly find yourself on one you hadn’t planned to be on. I just want you to be ready for things to go not exactly as planned.” The smile on the tattooed lady’s face said she could speak from experience.
“I know.” Claire nodded, turning her head to look out the window over the Carnival that was stretched out before them. With all the lights off, it looked mysterious and dark but she could see the simple glowing lamps that were all over the trailers and the Carnies who were together like a real family. The whole view caused a sharp pang in the center of her chest as her voice came out a little smaller than before.
“Trust me, I know.”
wc: 1043
[the use of Lydia isn't aimed at any specific journal.]
She could only wonder what they were going to do when they realized she was going to bring it all crashing down.
When the door to the trailer opened, she looked up warily as the tall blonde with the various tattoos decorating her body stepped in. Lydia looked surprised to see Claire sitting on the bed and quickly she scanned the trailer with a frown, as though expecting to see Samuel.
“He’s outside somewhere.” Claire explained before she was asked, shifting her weight a little. “He offered his trailer to me for the night.” She looked down, picking gently at the ratty blanket underneath her.
“Oh.” Lydia murmured, watching the young blonde for a moment. Then, with a careful look over her shoulder, she shut the door behind her before moving more fully into the trailer. “Can I ask you a question, Claire?”
She wasn’t sure she wanted to answer any questions but Claire nodded with a sigh. “Sure, go ahead.”
“Why are you doing this?” Lydia asked curiously, moving to sit down on the edge of the bed while watching the young girl carefully. “You have to know what might happen if you do go through with releasing Sylar.”
“I know.” Claire knew better than anyone. “But I....I can’t let it go on.” At the quiet look she got, she continued while dropping her gaze. “I can’t look at him and know that it’s Sylar underneath.”
“You could just avoid him.” Lydia pointed out, just wanting the girl to understand all her options before she chose to walk down this path.
“I could, but it wouldn’t be easy. He wouldn’t know, he wouldn’t get why I was avoiding him and others would start to notice. Plus that’s my dad.” There was a flash of pain on her features. “Or it was. It’s his face, it’s....him but it’s not him.”
She swallowed thickly, taking a moment to pause before she looked at Lydia with a look that would haunt the older woman for a little while. It was the look of a person who had seen too much, all while knowing she would see much more and there would be no relief for her. There would be no end. “But your father, he did things...”
“He did.” Claire nodded her head, biting her bottom lip. “But that didn’t mean he was a monster. He was human, perhaps the most human out of all of us. He was flawed and easily led by emotions or the idea that he was doing something right. But when he made a mistake, once he realized it, he always tried to fix what he did wrong.” Her eyes started to burn with the familiar urge to cry, her throat closing. “Two times now, he put himself in the path of sure death just to save us even if he was the one to put us there. He did it, knowing he could die but it didn’t matter to him. I can’t let what my other dad and my grandmother did continue on. Underneath it all, Nathan was a good guy and I can’t let them taint his memory. Not when I could have....not when I can fix it.”
Lydia shifted a little closer with a look of understanding, her hand sliding onto Claire’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, for your loss. We had one of our own, it’s never easy.”
“No, it’s not.” Claire shook her head, swallowing thickly as she wasn’t sure she would ever get used to it. “Can you see why now? Can you see why I can’t let Sylar stay this way?”
“You’re honouring your birth father.”
“Yes. That and if Sylar ever did get out? I know him, he would stay posing as Nathan to try and gain more power. He’s done it before and he would do it again. I would rather do this and have to deal with the outcome than letting him stay where he is. It wouldn’t matter how I felt about Nathan.”
“As long as you’re sure, Claire, because this won’t be easy.”
“Because since when is anything easy these days?” Claire asked dryly. “I know how to deal with Sylar, don’t worry about it.” She said it with more bravado than she felt at the moment but she was good at faking as she lifted her chin defiantly.
“Alright, I just want you to be sure.” Lydia nodded, trying not to look as doubtful as she felt at the moment. “Sometimes it’s very easy to start down one path and then suddenly find yourself on one you hadn’t planned to be on. I just want you to be ready for things to go not exactly as planned.” The smile on the tattooed lady’s face said she could speak from experience.
“I know.” Claire nodded, turning her head to look out the window over the Carnival that was stretched out before them. With all the lights off, it looked mysterious and dark but she could see the simple glowing lamps that were all over the trailers and the Carnies who were together like a real family. The whole view caused a sharp pang in the center of her chest as her voice came out a little smaller than before.
“Trust me, I know.”
wc: 1043
[the use of Lydia isn't aimed at any specific journal.]