[for matt, brian, and roger] when it rains...

[karmic_darwin]

Dated December 5thSince Parkman's arrival, Mohinder's dreams had been dark, disturbed, even violent. Knowing that Hiro had corrected the timestream, that Molly and Nathan and he had all survived Peter exploding in the square banished them in daytime, but his subconscious mind could not let go of the timeline he had lived and died in, or left from.

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[cantbebribed]

Matt froze briefly at the sound of that voice, pausing before carrying on in transferring the small handful of clothes he'd gone through since getting there into a dryer. "Maybe not quite as easily as you seem to have, but yeah, I'm making do," he answered curtly, shutting the lid of the machine with a little more force than was probably necessary.

"What do you want, Suresh?" he asked with a sigh. His instincts to take the traitor down may have subsided somewhat, but that didn't mean he was quite ready to make friends. Especially since, knowing what he now did, Matt was starting to wonder whether or not Suresh had been the only right to make the right choice.

[karmic_darwin]

Eyes rolling with disgust, Mohinder resisted the urge to snort. As it was, he had to remind himself he'd come to try to make peace to keep his feet from walking him right back up the stairs and home to (try to) sleep.

"After the second month without cardamom, I gave up and went native," he answered dryly, near certain Parkman wouldn't have the slightest idea why the lack of cardamom had been a blow. He'd never been a stupid man, but world culture definitely wasn't his strong suit.

"Which brings me nicely to the point of this little visit. As delightful as your arrival has been for both of us, it has disrupted my otherwise idyllic existence." Excellent, Mohinder, that's certainly going to help bury the hatchet. He sighed. "I came looking to see if we might put the past to rest, so that we can both get on with our future, such as it is."

[cantbebribed]

"Oh, you poor thing," Matt scoffed, shaking his head. Well, at least it was a step up from wanting to make friends. Small favors. Still, even as a spark of anger flared inside him, Matt found himself willing to go along with what the good doctor was suggesting. Between the then of Homeland Security, Sylar, and dying, and the now of Tabula Rasa, Daphne, and somehow being alive, embracing the future was something that had been on his mind as of late. That didn't mean it would necessarily be happening any time soon, but it was certainly worth addressing.

"But I guess you've had worse ideas in the past. Duty ended for me back in that hallway, so... you're right. Clearing the air would probably do us both some good," he admitted after a moment, crossing his arms. "Such as we are," he added dryly.

[karmic_darwin]

Perhaps he hadn't expected the acquiescence or perhaps it was simply the exhaustion of the past week, but Mohinder found himself uncertain where to begin. In part, too, being willing to begin served his needs. Already the tension was bleeding away, relaxing his neck and shoulders.

Pushing a hand up through his hair in the way that Abby said made him look like Beaker, whoever that was - she'd tried to explain but had gotten to orange and muppet and said she'd search the bookshelf and show him - Mohinder studied Parkman. "Do you remember what I asked you when you found me in Hiro's loft?"

The conversation had been significant for him, but Parkman had had other priorities that day. He might well have forgotten.

[karmic_darwin]

He did not believe it. He could not. He could not have been working for Sylar for years without having known it. It simply was not possible.

But his thoughts returned again and again to moments where Nathan had seemed sharper, his expressions less determined and more cruel. He tried to find the point where Nathan had stopped calculating compassion and started justifying means. He'd never been warm and gentle but Mohinder had believed in him enough to follow him. Somewhere that had changed. He thought it was desperation. Perhaps...

No.

Yes, Mohinder, you know Parkman's right. You knew when he said it.

No.

He had not been in love with his father's murderer, a serial killer. He had not.

Unwilling to face the thoughts anymore, Mohinder dragged himself to the kitchen for the cider he knew would be there. If perchance it was not, he would go to Ianto. But Ianto might ask, and he couldn't talk about this. He could not.

[queer_as_brian]

Brian had no particular destination in mind, but as he walked past the kitchen with a glance, that changed. He stopped, then took a step back, aligning himself with the doorway again. Now that he thought about it, he was kind of thirsty.

"What're you looking for?" he asked in a purr as he moved to Mohinder's side, smiling.

[karmic_darwin]

"Absolution," Mohinder answered the stranger, beyond caring what he said and to whom. "Failing that, to drown my failings in alcohol barely worthy of the name and sleep until I don't recall them."

Or find Rupert or Alcuin and sweat them out and find relief in release, physical and emotional.

[queer_as_brian]

"Well, I'm not a priest, but I've fucked one," Brian quipped. Hell, it was probably even true. He'd fucked a lot of men, there had to have been a priest in there somewhere. "But sleeping is a waste of a good drunk, and I don't know if I can condone that kind of behavior." As he spoke, he reached past the man for a bottle of cider, letting his shoulder brush against the other's. "I can think of much better ways to enjoy it."