Heroes, "Never Mind" Peter/Claire, NC-17
Fandom: Heroes
Title: Never Mind
Characters/Pairings: Future!Peter/Claire
Rating: NC-17
Spoilers: S3x02, "The Butterfly Effect"
Notes: Takes place in some unrealistic moment in this episode, like a missing scene, er, whatever. It's smut. Thank you to frellingblonde for helping me look this over, and also, Happy Belated Birthday! You crazy Libra. =)
Word Count: 4,303
Disclaimer: I do not own Heroes; the property rights belong to NBC, Tim Kring, and all respective parties.
Summary: Peter visits Claire and claims he's from the future, and he reveals things to her that she's never imagined.
Never Mind
Claire Bennet peered through the dark window outside her living room. She frowned. To say her life had been rough lately would have been an understatement. From almost losing a bio-dad, to having an encounter with Sylar among other things, had put her nerves on edge. It was no wonder she felt like doing a double take when she thought someone was watching her from the window. No one was home, as usual, and after some thought, she knew for certain who was watching her.
“You can come out now, Peter,” she said in exasperation as she opened the front door. She had a feeling it was him, and oddly enough, she was used to his presence. She hugged herself and sighed heavily while she darted her head around to the shadows.
After a quick beat of silence, her uncle fell out of the dark unknown into the yellow light over her stoop. She glowered at him as he said her name and met her with his curious eyes. “Was it really necessary to hide like that?”
“I’m sorry,” he said simply.
Claire rolled her eyes and motioned him inside. He looked the same as he did when he ‘saved’ her from the speeding train earlier that day. Though, after their heated discussion with him refusing to help her, she didn’t think he’d come back. “I think I’m getting tired of men floating outside my window,” she grumbled, and she felt Peter walk up closer behind her. After he shut her front door, she turned around to face him.
“I don’t know if I should be here,” he said, looking around her house suspiciously. He seemed to relax when he realized no one was here.
“Why are you here, Peter? You made it perfectly clear you aren’t going to be there for me,” she said, turning around toward the kitchen. She pulled out a can of soda and leaned over the middle counter and gave him a hard stare.
“I was thinking that I should be straight with you on why I can’t help you. I owe you that much.” His face was a cornucopia of expressions. Claire was sure she saw regret flicker in his eyes.
“So you’re still not going to help me,” she said with a scoff.
“No,” he said, moving to the other side of the counter to face her. “But I think there’s a way you can help me.”
Claire cocked her head curiously at him. She was definitely interested now in what he had to say. At first, she just thought he was coming to apologize, to make sure they were okay. Peter had a habit of not burning his bridges with people important to him. She warmly remembered the time he had stopped her before she set off to France without saying good-bye.
“I don’t know… what I can do, Peter. I’m not even sure what to do with myself,” she said shakily. How could she help someone as powerful as Peter when she was so weak against Sylar? Memories of what that monster did to her flashed in her mind for a second, but Peter’s warm hand over hers pulled her out of her thoughts.
“Claire, it’s very important that you keep an open mind to what I’m about to show you,” he said, and he pulled his hands from hers, and she immediately missed his touch. Peter started pacing in front of her kitchen counter, and she saw the storm in his eyes while he wrestled with some dilemma.
He sighed heavily. “I think it’s only fair if I told Nathan, I should tell you as well.”
Claire’s brow furrowed. Uh oh. This was big; if Nathan hadn’t been involved, Peter wouldn’t be so distressed.
“How… how is Nathan doing?” she asked, but the look Peter shot her clearly told her this wasn’t the time for such inquiries.
“He’s fine; Claire look, I can’t stay long. Now look at me,” he commanded, and his voice sounded so absolute that she had no choice but to abide. “Watch very carefully.”
In seconds, the youthful face that she had grown to love had changed into a worn, agonized face of a man she could barely recognize. What was even more unsettling was the scar across his face that would have long healed with her powers. But despite all of this, he was still her Peter… only different.
“Peter,” she said breathlessly shocked. “What… what happened?”
“Claire, I’m not the Peter that you know. I’m from four years into the future.” There was a stark pause, and Claire kept silent to let him continue. “This is why I can’t stay to help you, and why more than anything, I need your help.”
Claire felt awed and worried. “Where… where is the Peter from this time?”
“I’m looking for him. I … I planted him in the body of someone who is no longer where I thought he’d stay. Look, I think I‘ve told you enough, but I came here to make sure that you help Peter as much as you can from now on.” He turned from her intense gaze and bore a hole into the floor. “I’ve already messed too much up by being here. I have to fix it, and I will. First, I have to find Peter.”
Claire cautiously moved toward him as he froze in his spot in the kitchen, looking worriedly around as a hundred of regrets and thoughts passed through his mind.
“Peter, maybe I can come with you to find him…”
“No, I’ve messed up your life enough already,” he said bitterly. Claire didn’t know what he meant, but by the way he clenched his fists at his side, she wondered if he’d done something to her in the future. Maybe the reason he wanted her to stay close to his present self was to prevent such regrets.
When he looked like he was going to leave, Claire softly put her hand on his shoulder. He stilled, and met her gaze at the moment he felt her touch.
“You haven’t ruined my life. If anything, it’s because of you I’m still here,” she said. His expression still appeared tortured, but he rewarded her with a small smile before he took her hand off his shoulder and squeezed.
“There are so many things that I wish I had to opportunity to tell you in my time. Some days I feel like I’ll never get a chance to be by your side again,” he said. His words started her, and his touch was suddenly less tender than usual. He pulled her closer, and she brushed against his chest and settled into his desperate embrace. A forbidden pang of sensuality surged through her body, and she felt confused yet allured.
Before she could be trapped within whatever they were doing in this heated moment, she snorted audibly and rolled her eyes. She pulled away from him and went back over to her side of the counter. “Don’t be so dramatic. Nothing you do could be as bad as what Sylar did to me.”
Peter leaned onto the counter and matched her complacency, which seemed to cover up the tense moment well. “You’d be surprised, and Sylar is not who you think he is.”
Claire took a sip of her soda and raised an eyebrow to his statement. “I don’t think I even want to know what that means.”
Peter’s intense gaze imprisoned hers again. “Just remember what I said. Stay close.”
“First you have to find him,” she said with a frown and a sigh. “Without me.” She pouted, and she knew that maybe appealing to Peter’s empathic side was her last hope. However, this Peter was different from the one she knew. “I’m useless. I’m supposed to be special, and I can’t even use the powers that I have.”
“Claire,” Peter said sternly, and he snatched her hand into his again. “You’re better off laying low. When Peter finds you again, just remember to trust him and his judgment.”
She snorted. “You sound like my dad.” She glowered at him. “I hate when you do that. You’re not supposed to be like that.”
She almost regretted what she said because another awkward moment fell between them.
“You have no idea what I’m saying, and the less you know the better.”
“Easy for you to say; you’re not on the receiving end of ‘hey I’m from the future and I’m telling you that you’re grounded until your uncle can come over and baby-sit you further,” she said with disgust. She was becoming angry. She knew it wasn’t specifically Peter’s fault, but her father’s constant coddling and secrecy was starting to get to her, and now Peter was supporting that oppressive agenda.
He sighed in exasperation. “It’s not like that. I just don’t want you to become the person you become four years from now. It’s bad enough I feel like it’s my fault.”
“I wish you could give me clue on how I become if you’re so damned worried, Peter! Maybe I can prevent that now if you would only tell me!” she raged at him, and before she could storm toward the door and escort him out, he was in front of her, looming over her with a glare. She froze, and she felt his hot breath on her face. His hands clamped around her wrists, and for a moment she had forgotten that this Peter was different. This Peter had four years to turn into someone else that she really didn’t know. Strange as it was, the immediate thought frightened her.
“Can you imagine a future where you hate me enough to kill me?” he asked in a low voice. Her answer was suddenly caught in her throat. She shook her head. “And can you also imagine loving someone and then realize that years after fighting with them and watching an impossible love grow only to have it be ripped to pieces and cause us to work on different sides?” The grip around her wrists became tighter.
Claire watched him, stunned. She didn’t know if she could believe him. She didn’t know if she even wanted to know the rest of the story. She pulled her wrists from his grasp, unable to feel the pain from the obvious bruises. She pushed away from him. She’d had enough drama lately; she didn’t need this Future Peter to make it any worse.
“Okay, I get it. The future sucks and once we were pals and then we’re not. I get it. I won’t let that happen, Peter,” she said, giving him a small smile. “I promise.”
He didn’t seem to relax, but she tried to calm him down anyway. If what he was saying was true, he cared enough to come back and fix it. She couldn’t let his effort be in vain. If anything, this was at least one thing in which she could become useful. She was starving for some action, to somehow prove her worth when her dad was out there fighting villains, and now she had an opportunity to do at least one thing - take Peter’s request seriously and use it to fight for a better future.
“It’s so different,” he said, breaking through her thoughts.
Claire looked at him curiously. “What is?”
“The way you are now compared to the way you are in my time,” he said. Both his voice and expression were softer, as if he was trapped in a moment of nostalgia. She watched his hand reach out to her and push a tendril of her hair behind her ear. She shivered involuntarily at his touch. “I almost forgot that you were once the cheerleader I saved.” By the look in his eyes, she felt there was something that he’d lost by her and was gaining back by just being here.
She closed her eyes as his hand lingered there, and when he pulled his arm away, he stepped closer to her, his breath warming her face just like minutes before.
“I’m sorry I grabbed you and yelled. I should be going soon. Peter is out there, and I still need to find him.”
“Right,” she said, suddenly not wanting him to go. He was stirring strange feelings within her entire body, feelings she had only learned to suppress when she found out he was her uncle. Now the feelings were coming back much stronger than before.
She followed him to her door, and she realized he wasn’t going to say anything more before he left. Before he could officially leave, she put her hand on the door to stop him. She brushed up against him from behind and rested her head against his back.
“Wait, there’s just one more thing I need to know,” she said.
“Claire…” he said. He seemed a little annoyed, but he wasn’t pushing her away.
“I want to know what you’d say to her… I mean me, in the future, if you could,” she asked softly, and she felt him turn around. She moved back and met his dark eyes. ‘
“Never mind, Claire,” he pleaded warningly.
“But what if you go back, and I kill you and you never get to tell her…I mean me,” she said, making an exasperated noise from the confusing words. She watched him curiously.
He seemed to be deep in thought, as if her words had left an impression on his mind. His eyes darted around the room, and he bit his lip, wrestling with some answer to her question. Claire didn’t think it’d be that hard.
“I don’t know if telling you would be a good idea. I’ve already changed so much about this time,” Peter said dejectedly. Claire noticed that his voice no longer seemed as fierce. He almost looked vulnerable.
“Peter,” she said, and felt him move closer, drawing her into a tight and desperate embrace. She wrapped her arms around him and let him hold onto her as long as he wanted. By the way he hugged her tightly, she wondered if he was going to stay like this forever.
Slightly, he pulled away, and she felt his nose nuzzle hers. “Are you sure you want to know the answer?” She was frightened again, but more than anything, she wanted to know everything.
When she felt his soft lips rest over hers, she stilled, knowing it was wrong and then feeling so peaceful against him all at once. She sighed as his lips parted hers, delving his tongue deep into her welcoming mouth. Time stopped as his soft touch turned ravenous, drawing in her heat and sliding against her wetness as much as he could reach. Her hands fisted in his hair, and she felt his hands cup her cheeks, drawing her face close and holding her solidly at his mercy.
Never in her life did she think she’d ever kiss Peter like this, but until it happened, she knew that she wanted to, more than once, a hundred times a day and until he scolded her that it was wrong.
But Peter wasn’t scolding her. He was filling her mouth with his, so hot and wet she almost forgot to breathe. This is what he wanted to tell her. She wondered if he had done this to her before in his time, and maybe much more.
A thrilling pang surged through her body, and almost on instinct she leaned closer, rubbing against him. He moaned loudly, his control slipping as he reached his hands into her shirt, searching out the warm bare skin. Her hands tugged at his pants, and he moved slightly back and broke the kiss.
“Claire, we can’t,” he said, yet he didn’t convince her as he nibbled on her bottom lip.
It was her turn to say it. “Never mind, Peter,” she said in a soft voice before taking his mouth again and directing them up toward her bedroom. His arms tightened around her body, and she felt a strange popping sensation in the air around her. She opened her eyes and saw that he’d transported them there without having to clamor up the stairs.
She didn’t even give him a chance to admire their surroundings before she attacked his mouth again, pulling at his shirt. Quickly and awkwardly, he pulled it over his head, and she traced a cautious hand down and over the scars painted over his taut muscles. She paused and stilled their kiss to look at them with surprise. Peter wasn’t kidding around. The future was serious.
He took her hands into his, and he bent down to resume their tumultuous kiss. She felt his hands in her clothes now, pulling at them and drawing her shirt over her head and her pants over her hips. Gently, he led her to the bed and covered her body with his. Their lips resumed with vigor, pulling and teasing as much as they could, soaking up time and reveling in this forbidden taste. Nervously, Claire’s hands fumbled with the zipper on Peter’s pants, and she felt his hands gently pull hers away as he took over.
She felt his weight shift, and she gasped when she felt the nude heated skin of his legs rub against hers. She squirmed eagerly under him, and his hands wandered, feeling the curves and angles of her body beneath him.
With a ragged breath, Peter pulled from her mouth and trailed kisses down a burning path from her cheek to her breast. Claire arched her body when his wet mouth settled over a pert nipple, swirling and nipping and burying his face there between them before he moved to the next.
“Oh!” A cry escaped her, and her hands found his hair again, running her fingers through it as he teased her flesh. She bucked up against him, feeling his hardness brush against her. The more she felt his heat, his lips dancing over ever inch of her breasts, the more she wanted him to be inside her. It was the closest she’d ever get to him, and she knew as his warmth covered her it would be the most she would ever feel.
He pulled his lips from her skin and drew his head away from her so he could meet her eyes. Claire felt his hand caress her jaw, and he looked down at her with longing and regret. In his eyes she saw pain, but when she cupped his face, he took deep breath and rewarded her with a content smile. He leaned down and nuzzled her again, and he took her lips into a slow, burning kiss that continued to send thrills through her core.
“Please,” she begged between his kisses, and she felt him shift. His hands drew from her face and fell below, parting her legs. She tensed as he lifted her hips, and she threw her head back with a groan as she felt him slowly slide inside her. She felt her own breath pull from her control as he moved, pumping into her slow, letting her get the feel of him.
“Oh God,” she sighed when the quake hit her. First she was tight and suddenly she was full, and there was no pain thanks to the glitch in her power. She felt her own wetness blanket him as he pulled and then pushed. He bent down and kissed her; then, he became faster, and drew away from her, lifting her body and settling on his knees as he thrust inside.
For a moment she was both scared and elated. She could feel no pain, yet when Peter filled her, she felt as though he belonged there. That Nature had intended this despite giving them the same blood coursing through their veins. And yet with Peter, she could not feel pain, but she could feel something else - something so intense that it took over all the senses of her brain and drowned out the sounds and sighs of her cool room. And everything that was dark became brilliant under her closed eyes.
Sweat trickled on her brow, and she licked her lips. She pushed hard against him, following his pace and letting instinct run its course. Peter’s hands were hard and tight around her legs as he pulled her in, slamming into her faster and faster. She moved with him, waiting as an elusive completion of her peak drew nearer and nearer, hovering just within her fingertips like an unfulfilled dream.
Then, he groaned, his body stilling after one final thrust. Claire’s head fell back and her body tensed. She pushed and let out a whine as warmth blanketed her and stars rained over her eyes. She could taste the sweat that fell into the crevices of her mouth as she came back down.
She could hear Peter’s heavy breathing as he stayed inside her. She opened her eyes and focused on him, watching as light from her nightstand lamp reflected on his glistening body. On his face, she no longer saw regret. She saw completion.
Then she wondered, idly, how long it had been since he was able to do that with her. She even thought about what their first time had been like in the future. Now, everything had changed, but she’d be damned if she didn’t allow that to happen anyway.
She wondered whose idea it was at first, Peter or hers. Even if she asked him now, she doubted he’d tell her.
“Peter, I never thought…” She began, but he hushed her with his finger as he moved out of her and then to her side. He looked at her and caught a tendril of her hair in his finger that he removed from her lips.
“This never happened, Claire. At least, not to the other Peter when I find him,” he said sternly.
Claire understood, but she felt sad anyway.
“And when it does happen for real…?” She couldn’t help it. She had to ask. She didn’t want this to be the one and only time.
Peter sat up, and instead of predicting a sour face, he gave her a coy smirk. “Let’s just say, I always had a hard time saying no to you, even in the future. As the months went by and danger got more prevalent, you got more… persuasive in every one of your endeavors.”
Claire returned his smirk with a flirtatious grin. She was excited there was at least hope. “I take it no one knows about us.”
“It was for the best,” he said with a warning stare. “Nathan wouldn’t have understood, neither would Noah.” His hand reached out for her face again, and she closed her eyes as he caressed it lovingly. “Not that you cared what they thought. I might not have mentioned but you were extremely rebellious.”
“But I told you … that I loved you,” she said, not knowing if it was a question or a statement.
Peter leaned in and kissed her lovingly. Their eyes captured silence for a moment. “All the time,” he answered. His seductive smile was contagious.
“I have to go. It’s late already, and Peter is out there in need of my help,” he said.
Claire sat up in her bed and watched, as he got dressed. She nodded with understanding. “Right, you have to find him, otherwise…” Her voice trailed off. They both knew they had to protect this present for the future. If Claire was going to even hope to be with Peter now, she needed this Peter to ensure his survival.
She threw a robe over her body as he began to head out of her room to the front door. He stopped at the stoop for a moment, while Claire grabbed him for one last kiss.
“I have to go, Claire. I love you, and I always will. No matter what the future is,” he promised.
“I know, and I love you too. And I promise to stay close to Peter, like you said,” she returned.
Peter smiled, and she let the memory of him and their night together linger like steam within her mind. Then, as fast as Peter came into her life again, he was gone, retreating back into the shadows and racing through the unknown looking for his present self.
Claire sighed and shut the door when he was gone. She hugged herself and could still feel his warmth over and inside her skin. She admitted that in her wildest dreams she never imagined to be with Peter like that. Though she may have wanted to, the taboo was just too strong to motivate her further. But with this Peter, everything changed. She now had a plan for the future, and she had hope that she never had before.
Sylar could take away her pain, but he did not take away the feeling of love, and she reveled in it. What she had tonight was a gracious reminder that despite whatever was happening to her, she was still a human being. She had Peter to thank for that, in more ways than one.
She started to shake the lonely feeling of being without him, and she went upstairs to get dressed and returned to her father’s study. She couldn’t just sit around for too long. She couldn’t just be the damsel that everyone saved. She had made a promise to Peter.
She’d find him, and she’d find out the secrets the future version denied her. She knew the best place to start. She opened the door to Noah’s study and began to poke around.
Somewhere in this office, her destiny was hiding, ready for her to grasp a hold of it and lead her to what she needed to do, to use her abilities and fight - someday, alongside Peter.
THE END
Title: Never Mind
Characters/Pairings: Future!Peter/Claire
Rating: NC-17
Spoilers: S3x02, "The Butterfly Effect"
Notes: Takes place in some unrealistic moment in this episode, like a missing scene, er, whatever. It's smut. Thank you to frellingblonde for helping me look this over, and also, Happy Belated Birthday! You crazy Libra. =)
Word Count: 4,303
Disclaimer: I do not own Heroes; the property rights belong to NBC, Tim Kring, and all respective parties.
Summary: Peter visits Claire and claims he's from the future, and he reveals things to her that she's never imagined.
Never Mind
Claire Bennet peered through the dark window outside her living room. She frowned. To say her life had been rough lately would have been an understatement. From almost losing a bio-dad, to having an encounter with Sylar among other things, had put her nerves on edge. It was no wonder she felt like doing a double take when she thought someone was watching her from the window. No one was home, as usual, and after some thought, she knew for certain who was watching her.
“You can come out now, Peter,” she said in exasperation as she opened the front door. She had a feeling it was him, and oddly enough, she was used to his presence. She hugged herself and sighed heavily while she darted her head around to the shadows.
After a quick beat of silence, her uncle fell out of the dark unknown into the yellow light over her stoop. She glowered at him as he said her name and met her with his curious eyes. “Was it really necessary to hide like that?”
“I’m sorry,” he said simply.
Claire rolled her eyes and motioned him inside. He looked the same as he did when he ‘saved’ her from the speeding train earlier that day. Though, after their heated discussion with him refusing to help her, she didn’t think he’d come back. “I think I’m getting tired of men floating outside my window,” she grumbled, and she felt Peter walk up closer behind her. After he shut her front door, she turned around to face him.
“I don’t know if I should be here,” he said, looking around her house suspiciously. He seemed to relax when he realized no one was here.
“Why are you here, Peter? You made it perfectly clear you aren’t going to be there for me,” she said, turning around toward the kitchen. She pulled out a can of soda and leaned over the middle counter and gave him a hard stare.
“I was thinking that I should be straight with you on why I can’t help you. I owe you that much.” His face was a cornucopia of expressions. Claire was sure she saw regret flicker in his eyes.
“So you’re still not going to help me,” she said with a scoff.
“No,” he said, moving to the other side of the counter to face her. “But I think there’s a way you can help me.”
Claire cocked her head curiously at him. She was definitely interested now in what he had to say. At first, she just thought he was coming to apologize, to make sure they were okay. Peter had a habit of not burning his bridges with people important to him. She warmly remembered the time he had stopped her before she set off to France without saying good-bye.
“I don’t know… what I can do, Peter. I’m not even sure what to do with myself,” she said shakily. How could she help someone as powerful as Peter when she was so weak against Sylar? Memories of what that monster did to her flashed in her mind for a second, but Peter’s warm hand over hers pulled her out of her thoughts.
“Claire, it’s very important that you keep an open mind to what I’m about to show you,” he said, and he pulled his hands from hers, and she immediately missed his touch. Peter started pacing in front of her kitchen counter, and she saw the storm in his eyes while he wrestled with some dilemma.
He sighed heavily. “I think it’s only fair if I told Nathan, I should tell you as well.”
Claire’s brow furrowed. Uh oh. This was big; if Nathan hadn’t been involved, Peter wouldn’t be so distressed.
“How… how is Nathan doing?” she asked, but the look Peter shot her clearly told her this wasn’t the time for such inquiries.
“He’s fine; Claire look, I can’t stay long. Now look at me,” he commanded, and his voice sounded so absolute that she had no choice but to abide. “Watch very carefully.”
In seconds, the youthful face that she had grown to love had changed into a worn, agonized face of a man she could barely recognize. What was even more unsettling was the scar across his face that would have long healed with her powers. But despite all of this, he was still her Peter… only different.
“Peter,” she said breathlessly shocked. “What… what happened?”
“Claire, I’m not the Peter that you know. I’m from four years into the future.” There was a stark pause, and Claire kept silent to let him continue. “This is why I can’t stay to help you, and why more than anything, I need your help.”
Claire felt awed and worried. “Where… where is the Peter from this time?”
“I’m looking for him. I … I planted him in the body of someone who is no longer where I thought he’d stay. Look, I think I‘ve told you enough, but I came here to make sure that you help Peter as much as you can from now on.” He turned from her intense gaze and bore a hole into the floor. “I’ve already messed too much up by being here. I have to fix it, and I will. First, I have to find Peter.”
Claire cautiously moved toward him as he froze in his spot in the kitchen, looking worriedly around as a hundred of regrets and thoughts passed through his mind.
“Peter, maybe I can come with you to find him…”
“No, I’ve messed up your life enough already,” he said bitterly. Claire didn’t know what he meant, but by the way he clenched his fists at his side, she wondered if he’d done something to her in the future. Maybe the reason he wanted her to stay close to his present self was to prevent such regrets.
When he looked like he was going to leave, Claire softly put her hand on his shoulder. He stilled, and met her gaze at the moment he felt her touch.
“You haven’t ruined my life. If anything, it’s because of you I’m still here,” she said. His expression still appeared tortured, but he rewarded her with a small smile before he took her hand off his shoulder and squeezed.
“There are so many things that I wish I had to opportunity to tell you in my time. Some days I feel like I’ll never get a chance to be by your side again,” he said. His words started her, and his touch was suddenly less tender than usual. He pulled her closer, and she brushed against his chest and settled into his desperate embrace. A forbidden pang of sensuality surged through her body, and she felt confused yet allured.
Before she could be trapped within whatever they were doing in this heated moment, she snorted audibly and rolled her eyes. She pulled away from him and went back over to her side of the counter. “Don’t be so dramatic. Nothing you do could be as bad as what Sylar did to me.”
Peter leaned onto the counter and matched her complacency, which seemed to cover up the tense moment well. “You’d be surprised, and Sylar is not who you think he is.”
Claire took a sip of her soda and raised an eyebrow to his statement. “I don’t think I even want to know what that means.”
Peter’s intense gaze imprisoned hers again. “Just remember what I said. Stay close.”
“First you have to find him,” she said with a frown and a sigh. “Without me.” She pouted, and she knew that maybe appealing to Peter’s empathic side was her last hope. However, this Peter was different from the one she knew. “I’m useless. I’m supposed to be special, and I can’t even use the powers that I have.”
“Claire,” Peter said sternly, and he snatched her hand into his again. “You’re better off laying low. When Peter finds you again, just remember to trust him and his judgment.”
She snorted. “You sound like my dad.” She glowered at him. “I hate when you do that. You’re not supposed to be like that.”
She almost regretted what she said because another awkward moment fell between them.
“You have no idea what I’m saying, and the less you know the better.”
“Easy for you to say; you’re not on the receiving end of ‘hey I’m from the future and I’m telling you that you’re grounded until your uncle can come over and baby-sit you further,” she said with disgust. She was becoming angry. She knew it wasn’t specifically Peter’s fault, but her father’s constant coddling and secrecy was starting to get to her, and now Peter was supporting that oppressive agenda.
He sighed in exasperation. “It’s not like that. I just don’t want you to become the person you become four years from now. It’s bad enough I feel like it’s my fault.”
“I wish you could give me clue on how I become if you’re so damned worried, Peter! Maybe I can prevent that now if you would only tell me!” she raged at him, and before she could storm toward the door and escort him out, he was in front of her, looming over her with a glare. She froze, and she felt his hot breath on her face. His hands clamped around her wrists, and for a moment she had forgotten that this Peter was different. This Peter had four years to turn into someone else that she really didn’t know. Strange as it was, the immediate thought frightened her.
“Can you imagine a future where you hate me enough to kill me?” he asked in a low voice. Her answer was suddenly caught in her throat. She shook her head. “And can you also imagine loving someone and then realize that years after fighting with them and watching an impossible love grow only to have it be ripped to pieces and cause us to work on different sides?” The grip around her wrists became tighter.
Claire watched him, stunned. She didn’t know if she could believe him. She didn’t know if she even wanted to know the rest of the story. She pulled her wrists from his grasp, unable to feel the pain from the obvious bruises. She pushed away from him. She’d had enough drama lately; she didn’t need this Future Peter to make it any worse.
“Okay, I get it. The future sucks and once we were pals and then we’re not. I get it. I won’t let that happen, Peter,” she said, giving him a small smile. “I promise.”
He didn’t seem to relax, but she tried to calm him down anyway. If what he was saying was true, he cared enough to come back and fix it. She couldn’t let his effort be in vain. If anything, this was at least one thing in which she could become useful. She was starving for some action, to somehow prove her worth when her dad was out there fighting villains, and now she had an opportunity to do at least one thing - take Peter’s request seriously and use it to fight for a better future.
“It’s so different,” he said, breaking through her thoughts.
Claire looked at him curiously. “What is?”
“The way you are now compared to the way you are in my time,” he said. Both his voice and expression were softer, as if he was trapped in a moment of nostalgia. She watched his hand reach out to her and push a tendril of her hair behind her ear. She shivered involuntarily at his touch. “I almost forgot that you were once the cheerleader I saved.” By the look in his eyes, she felt there was something that he’d lost by her and was gaining back by just being here.
She closed her eyes as his hand lingered there, and when he pulled his arm away, he stepped closer to her, his breath warming her face just like minutes before.
“I’m sorry I grabbed you and yelled. I should be going soon. Peter is out there, and I still need to find him.”
“Right,” she said, suddenly not wanting him to go. He was stirring strange feelings within her entire body, feelings she had only learned to suppress when she found out he was her uncle. Now the feelings were coming back much stronger than before.
She followed him to her door, and she realized he wasn’t going to say anything more before he left. Before he could officially leave, she put her hand on the door to stop him. She brushed up against him from behind and rested her head against his back.
“Wait, there’s just one more thing I need to know,” she said.
“Claire…” he said. He seemed a little annoyed, but he wasn’t pushing her away.
“I want to know what you’d say to her… I mean me, in the future, if you could,” she asked softly, and she felt him turn around. She moved back and met his dark eyes. ‘
“Never mind, Claire,” he pleaded warningly.
“But what if you go back, and I kill you and you never get to tell her…I mean me,” she said, making an exasperated noise from the confusing words. She watched him curiously.
He seemed to be deep in thought, as if her words had left an impression on his mind. His eyes darted around the room, and he bit his lip, wrestling with some answer to her question. Claire didn’t think it’d be that hard.
“I don’t know if telling you would be a good idea. I’ve already changed so much about this time,” Peter said dejectedly. Claire noticed that his voice no longer seemed as fierce. He almost looked vulnerable.
“Peter,” she said, and felt him move closer, drawing her into a tight and desperate embrace. She wrapped her arms around him and let him hold onto her as long as he wanted. By the way he hugged her tightly, she wondered if he was going to stay like this forever.
Slightly, he pulled away, and she felt his nose nuzzle hers. “Are you sure you want to know the answer?” She was frightened again, but more than anything, she wanted to know everything.
When she felt his soft lips rest over hers, she stilled, knowing it was wrong and then feeling so peaceful against him all at once. She sighed as his lips parted hers, delving his tongue deep into her welcoming mouth. Time stopped as his soft touch turned ravenous, drawing in her heat and sliding against her wetness as much as he could reach. Her hands fisted in his hair, and she felt his hands cup her cheeks, drawing her face close and holding her solidly at his mercy.
Never in her life did she think she’d ever kiss Peter like this, but until it happened, she knew that she wanted to, more than once, a hundred times a day and until he scolded her that it was wrong.
But Peter wasn’t scolding her. He was filling her mouth with his, so hot and wet she almost forgot to breathe. This is what he wanted to tell her. She wondered if he had done this to her before in his time, and maybe much more.
A thrilling pang surged through her body, and almost on instinct she leaned closer, rubbing against him. He moaned loudly, his control slipping as he reached his hands into her shirt, searching out the warm bare skin. Her hands tugged at his pants, and he moved slightly back and broke the kiss.
“Claire, we can’t,” he said, yet he didn’t convince her as he nibbled on her bottom lip.
It was her turn to say it. “Never mind, Peter,” she said in a soft voice before taking his mouth again and directing them up toward her bedroom. His arms tightened around her body, and she felt a strange popping sensation in the air around her. She opened her eyes and saw that he’d transported them there without having to clamor up the stairs.
She didn’t even give him a chance to admire their surroundings before she attacked his mouth again, pulling at his shirt. Quickly and awkwardly, he pulled it over his head, and she traced a cautious hand down and over the scars painted over his taut muscles. She paused and stilled their kiss to look at them with surprise. Peter wasn’t kidding around. The future was serious.
He took her hands into his, and he bent down to resume their tumultuous kiss. She felt his hands in her clothes now, pulling at them and drawing her shirt over her head and her pants over her hips. Gently, he led her to the bed and covered her body with his. Their lips resumed with vigor, pulling and teasing as much as they could, soaking up time and reveling in this forbidden taste. Nervously, Claire’s hands fumbled with the zipper on Peter’s pants, and she felt his hands gently pull hers away as he took over.
She felt his weight shift, and she gasped when she felt the nude heated skin of his legs rub against hers. She squirmed eagerly under him, and his hands wandered, feeling the curves and angles of her body beneath him.
With a ragged breath, Peter pulled from her mouth and trailed kisses down a burning path from her cheek to her breast. Claire arched her body when his wet mouth settled over a pert nipple, swirling and nipping and burying his face there between them before he moved to the next.
“Oh!” A cry escaped her, and her hands found his hair again, running her fingers through it as he teased her flesh. She bucked up against him, feeling his hardness brush against her. The more she felt his heat, his lips dancing over ever inch of her breasts, the more she wanted him to be inside her. It was the closest she’d ever get to him, and she knew as his warmth covered her it would be the most she would ever feel.
He pulled his lips from her skin and drew his head away from her so he could meet her eyes. Claire felt his hand caress her jaw, and he looked down at her with longing and regret. In his eyes she saw pain, but when she cupped his face, he took deep breath and rewarded her with a content smile. He leaned down and nuzzled her again, and he took her lips into a slow, burning kiss that continued to send thrills through her core.
“Please,” she begged between his kisses, and she felt him shift. His hands drew from her face and fell below, parting her legs. She tensed as he lifted her hips, and she threw her head back with a groan as she felt him slowly slide inside her. She felt her own breath pull from her control as he moved, pumping into her slow, letting her get the feel of him.
“Oh God,” she sighed when the quake hit her. First she was tight and suddenly she was full, and there was no pain thanks to the glitch in her power. She felt her own wetness blanket him as he pulled and then pushed. He bent down and kissed her; then, he became faster, and drew away from her, lifting her body and settling on his knees as he thrust inside.
For a moment she was both scared and elated. She could feel no pain, yet when Peter filled her, she felt as though he belonged there. That Nature had intended this despite giving them the same blood coursing through their veins. And yet with Peter, she could not feel pain, but she could feel something else - something so intense that it took over all the senses of her brain and drowned out the sounds and sighs of her cool room. And everything that was dark became brilliant under her closed eyes.
Sweat trickled on her brow, and she licked her lips. She pushed hard against him, following his pace and letting instinct run its course. Peter’s hands were hard and tight around her legs as he pulled her in, slamming into her faster and faster. She moved with him, waiting as an elusive completion of her peak drew nearer and nearer, hovering just within her fingertips like an unfulfilled dream.
Then, he groaned, his body stilling after one final thrust. Claire’s head fell back and her body tensed. She pushed and let out a whine as warmth blanketed her and stars rained over her eyes. She could taste the sweat that fell into the crevices of her mouth as she came back down.
She could hear Peter’s heavy breathing as he stayed inside her. She opened her eyes and focused on him, watching as light from her nightstand lamp reflected on his glistening body. On his face, she no longer saw regret. She saw completion.
Then she wondered, idly, how long it had been since he was able to do that with her. She even thought about what their first time had been like in the future. Now, everything had changed, but she’d be damned if she didn’t allow that to happen anyway.
She wondered whose idea it was at first, Peter or hers. Even if she asked him now, she doubted he’d tell her.
“Peter, I never thought…” She began, but he hushed her with his finger as he moved out of her and then to her side. He looked at her and caught a tendril of her hair in his finger that he removed from her lips.
“This never happened, Claire. At least, not to the other Peter when I find him,” he said sternly.
Claire understood, but she felt sad anyway.
“And when it does happen for real…?” She couldn’t help it. She had to ask. She didn’t want this to be the one and only time.
Peter sat up, and instead of predicting a sour face, he gave her a coy smirk. “Let’s just say, I always had a hard time saying no to you, even in the future. As the months went by and danger got more prevalent, you got more… persuasive in every one of your endeavors.”
Claire returned his smirk with a flirtatious grin. She was excited there was at least hope. “I take it no one knows about us.”
“It was for the best,” he said with a warning stare. “Nathan wouldn’t have understood, neither would Noah.” His hand reached out for her face again, and she closed her eyes as he caressed it lovingly. “Not that you cared what they thought. I might not have mentioned but you were extremely rebellious.”
“But I told you … that I loved you,” she said, not knowing if it was a question or a statement.
Peter leaned in and kissed her lovingly. Their eyes captured silence for a moment. “All the time,” he answered. His seductive smile was contagious.
“I have to go. It’s late already, and Peter is out there in need of my help,” he said.
Claire sat up in her bed and watched, as he got dressed. She nodded with understanding. “Right, you have to find him, otherwise…” Her voice trailed off. They both knew they had to protect this present for the future. If Claire was going to even hope to be with Peter now, she needed this Peter to ensure his survival.
She threw a robe over her body as he began to head out of her room to the front door. He stopped at the stoop for a moment, while Claire grabbed him for one last kiss.
“I have to go, Claire. I love you, and I always will. No matter what the future is,” he promised.
“I know, and I love you too. And I promise to stay close to Peter, like you said,” she returned.
Peter smiled, and she let the memory of him and their night together linger like steam within her mind. Then, as fast as Peter came into her life again, he was gone, retreating back into the shadows and racing through the unknown looking for his present self.
Claire sighed and shut the door when he was gone. She hugged herself and could still feel his warmth over and inside her skin. She admitted that in her wildest dreams she never imagined to be with Peter like that. Though she may have wanted to, the taboo was just too strong to motivate her further. But with this Peter, everything changed. She now had a plan for the future, and she had hope that she never had before.
Sylar could take away her pain, but he did not take away the feeling of love, and she reveled in it. What she had tonight was a gracious reminder that despite whatever was happening to her, she was still a human being. She had Peter to thank for that, in more ways than one.
She started to shake the lonely feeling of being without him, and she went upstairs to get dressed and returned to her father’s study. She couldn’t just sit around for too long. She couldn’t just be the damsel that everyone saved. She had made a promise to Peter.
She’d find him, and she’d find out the secrets the future version denied her. She knew the best place to start. She opened the door to Noah’s study and began to poke around.
Somewhere in this office, her destiny was hiding, ready for her to grasp a hold of it and lead her to what she needed to do, to use her abilities and fight - someday, alongside Peter.
THE END