power lines in our bloodlines (Nathan) PG
Title: power lines in our bloodlines
Author: cartwheel_dizzy
Pairing/Characters: Nathan (also: Peter, Claire, Mama Petrelli, etc.)
Word Count: 1,013
Rating: PG
Summary: Nathan has always wanted to be President, but the costs have changed.
Spoilers: all of season one
Author's Note: My first Heroes fic! Third-person POV on Nathan, through the finale. Title is from "The Engine Driver" by the Decemberists. Feedback is the key to my heart :)
there is no good or evil, there is only power, and those too weak to seek it.
(j.k. rowling)
+++
Nathan has wanted to be President for as long as he can remember. He pictured himself in the Oval Office long before Linderman gave him that painting.
The carpet in the living room of the house he grew up in was a deep blue, a military navy that resonated: courage, pride, patriotism.
He used to stand in the middle, and visualize the seal of the United States government in its center. His father had given him an old tie - power red - and he would loop it haphazardly around his neck while he paced and pretended to make important decisions.
What will we have for lunch today, Mr. President?
I have chosen grilled cheese. I believe it is the right course of action.
He made Peter hum “Hail to the Chief.”
+++
His father’s red tie hangs in the back of his closet now - too small and ratty to be worn in public. But he keeps it for sentimental value.
His father was his hero, after all.
Nathan tells the press this - because he is a good American boy and good American boys idolize their fathers - but that doesn’t make it any less true.
The crimson fabric still smells vaguely of peppermints and aftershave.
His mother has tried to throw it away - more than once.
+++
He has the voice - silky but powerful. He has the look - sleek but smart. He has the presence - comforting and commanding at the same time.
Nathan is very presidential.
If you forget the part about how he has to let New York explode before he makes it to the White House.
+++
Linderman says: this is how it has to be.
He tells Nathan that humanity needs this, to be united in hope and fear. To be given another chance, to be granted a renaissance.
Linderman says: New York blows up, the world is rebuilt from its ashes.
(Peter dies, and the world is rebuilt from his ashes.)
Nathan keeps trying to picture the world as a phoenix, but he’s not sure it’s the right metaphor.
Linderman says: the tragedy is ‘a catalyst for good’ -
But all Nathan sees is flames and smoke and a gravestone with ‘Peter Petrelli’ carved on it.
+++
and all the bombs that fall
just scream your name
(archer avenue)
+++
He dreams in bombs and explosions now, a fragmented version of Peter’s face looming before him while he sleeps. Flames engulf him, and Nathan wakes in a sweat. He thinks:
Save the cheerleader, save the world.
But the cheerleader is his long-lost, burned alive, illegitimate, regenerative daughter. And in order to save the world, he has to let millions die.
He has to let Peter die.
.07% sounds like a lot more when your brother is included.
+++
Nathan can fly, and Peter can absorb people’s abilities. And isn’t it fitting? Because Nathan has always wanted to be above everyone else, and Peter has only ever wanted to help others.
Nathan can fly.
But he cannot escape this decision.
+++
He gets the tie out of the back of the closet, and remembers his father’s funeral. Soggy black tuxedos, wilting flowers, the cemetery soaked in rain and tears.
Peter’s hand in his.
His mother wore waterproof mascara.
He thinks of what Peter’s epitaph would be - loving brother, devoted son, dedicated to helping people.
He thinks all he would hear in the eulogy is: you let him die.
+++
Claire is a human phoenix, a spitfire rising from her own ashes in an endless cycle of death and rebirth.
Peter has her power now. He won’t die in the explosion. He’ll rise from the ruins of New York City.
What was it that Gandhi said? ‘You must be the change you wish to see in the world.’
Symbolism and all that jazz - Linderman’s words start making sense.
+++
Politics is all about the greater good, the task of promoting the general welfare. Nathan has always known this.
Letting the bomb go off is for the greater good. Linderman says so. His mother says so.
Peter has only ever understood self-sacrifice. He doesn’t understand sacrificing the .07%, he can’t comprehend forfeiting the minority to benefit the majority.
Peter wants to save everyone.
Altruism to the extreme - it’s why he’s a nurse and Nathan will be the leader of the free world.
+++
Nathan doesn’t have a choice.
The bomb must go off.
He won’t tell Peter.
He can’t.
+++
each man is a hero and an oracle to somebody;
and to that person whatever he says has an enhanced value.
(ralph waldo emerson)
+++
Nathan never wanted to be the bad guy.
He was always the idol, and he treasured Peter’s adoring eyes above all the rest. He could pick out his clap from a crowd, his smile from a multitude.
Nathan never wanted Peter to look at him like this - in horror, disgust, and shame.
Claire was right about you.
Peter might regenerate after the bomb - but this is a permanent scar. He will live, but he won’t forgive this.
Nathan wonders: if his brother and his daughter hate him, will it matter if the world loves him?
+++
In the end, there is always a choice.
This is what Linderman and his mother do not tell him; this is what he comes up with on his own.
He chooses to save the world. He chooses the destiny his brother promised, the one where they are heroes and not villains. The one where New York lives, and so does everyone else.
He chooses self-sacrifice, and he hopes Peter is proud.
It’s all he ever wanted, really. The rest of the world doesn’t matter much when your brother looks at you like you’re Superman.
+++
When the bomb goes off, he doesn’t wish he’d kissed his wife goodbye, patted his children on the head, or hugged his mother.
He only holds tight to an exploding man.
In a sky full of stars and flames, he looks at Peter and sees the hope of a brighter future. He sees the catalyst for good in those dark eyes, smiles softly, and closes his own.
With his arms around his brother, it feels like home.
White light engulfs them.
Nathan’s last thought isn’t about power or politics or America.
It is a prayer to see his father soon.
+++
this is my renaissance
this is my one response
this is the way i say i love you
(mat kearney)
Author: cartwheel_dizzy
Pairing/Characters: Nathan (also: Peter, Claire, Mama Petrelli, etc.)
Word Count: 1,013
Rating: PG
Summary: Nathan has always wanted to be President, but the costs have changed.
Spoilers: all of season one
Author's Note: My first Heroes fic! Third-person POV on Nathan, through the finale. Title is from "The Engine Driver" by the Decemberists. Feedback is the key to my heart :)
there is no good or evil, there is only power, and those too weak to seek it.
(j.k. rowling)
+++
Nathan has wanted to be President for as long as he can remember. He pictured himself in the Oval Office long before Linderman gave him that painting.
The carpet in the living room of the house he grew up in was a deep blue, a military navy that resonated: courage, pride, patriotism.
He used to stand in the middle, and visualize the seal of the United States government in its center. His father had given him an old tie - power red - and he would loop it haphazardly around his neck while he paced and pretended to make important decisions.
What will we have for lunch today, Mr. President?
I have chosen grilled cheese. I believe it is the right course of action.
He made Peter hum “Hail to the Chief.”
+++
His father’s red tie hangs in the back of his closet now - too small and ratty to be worn in public. But he keeps it for sentimental value.
His father was his hero, after all.
Nathan tells the press this - because he is a good American boy and good American boys idolize their fathers - but that doesn’t make it any less true.
The crimson fabric still smells vaguely of peppermints and aftershave.
His mother has tried to throw it away - more than once.
+++
He has the voice - silky but powerful. He has the look - sleek but smart. He has the presence - comforting and commanding at the same time.
Nathan is very presidential.
If you forget the part about how he has to let New York explode before he makes it to the White House.
+++
Linderman says: this is how it has to be.
He tells Nathan that humanity needs this, to be united in hope and fear. To be given another chance, to be granted a renaissance.
Linderman says: New York blows up, the world is rebuilt from its ashes.
(Peter dies, and the world is rebuilt from his ashes.)
Nathan keeps trying to picture the world as a phoenix, but he’s not sure it’s the right metaphor.
Linderman says: the tragedy is ‘a catalyst for good’ -
But all Nathan sees is flames and smoke and a gravestone with ‘Peter Petrelli’ carved on it.
+++
and all the bombs that fall
just scream your name
(archer avenue)
+++
He dreams in bombs and explosions now, a fragmented version of Peter’s face looming before him while he sleeps. Flames engulf him, and Nathan wakes in a sweat. He thinks:
Save the cheerleader, save the world.
But the cheerleader is his long-lost, burned alive, illegitimate, regenerative daughter. And in order to save the world, he has to let millions die.
He has to let Peter die.
.07% sounds like a lot more when your brother is included.
+++
Nathan can fly, and Peter can absorb people’s abilities. And isn’t it fitting? Because Nathan has always wanted to be above everyone else, and Peter has only ever wanted to help others.
Nathan can fly.
But he cannot escape this decision.
+++
He gets the tie out of the back of the closet, and remembers his father’s funeral. Soggy black tuxedos, wilting flowers, the cemetery soaked in rain and tears.
Peter’s hand in his.
His mother wore waterproof mascara.
He thinks of what Peter’s epitaph would be - loving brother, devoted son, dedicated to helping people.
He thinks all he would hear in the eulogy is: you let him die.
+++
Claire is a human phoenix, a spitfire rising from her own ashes in an endless cycle of death and rebirth.
Peter has her power now. He won’t die in the explosion. He’ll rise from the ruins of New York City.
What was it that Gandhi said? ‘You must be the change you wish to see in the world.’
Symbolism and all that jazz - Linderman’s words start making sense.
+++
Politics is all about the greater good, the task of promoting the general welfare. Nathan has always known this.
Letting the bomb go off is for the greater good. Linderman says so. His mother says so.
Peter has only ever understood self-sacrifice. He doesn’t understand sacrificing the .07%, he can’t comprehend forfeiting the minority to benefit the majority.
Peter wants to save everyone.
Altruism to the extreme - it’s why he’s a nurse and Nathan will be the leader of the free world.
+++
Nathan doesn’t have a choice.
The bomb must go off.
He won’t tell Peter.
He can’t.
+++
each man is a hero and an oracle to somebody;
and to that person whatever he says has an enhanced value.
(ralph waldo emerson)
+++
Nathan never wanted to be the bad guy.
He was always the idol, and he treasured Peter’s adoring eyes above all the rest. He could pick out his clap from a crowd, his smile from a multitude.
Nathan never wanted Peter to look at him like this - in horror, disgust, and shame.
Claire was right about you.
Peter might regenerate after the bomb - but this is a permanent scar. He will live, but he won’t forgive this.
Nathan wonders: if his brother and his daughter hate him, will it matter if the world loves him?
+++
In the end, there is always a choice.
This is what Linderman and his mother do not tell him; this is what he comes up with on his own.
He chooses to save the world. He chooses the destiny his brother promised, the one where they are heroes and not villains. The one where New York lives, and so does everyone else.
He chooses self-sacrifice, and he hopes Peter is proud.
It’s all he ever wanted, really. The rest of the world doesn’t matter much when your brother looks at you like you’re Superman.
+++
When the bomb goes off, he doesn’t wish he’d kissed his wife goodbye, patted his children on the head, or hugged his mother.
He only holds tight to an exploding man.
In a sky full of stars and flames, he looks at Peter and sees the hope of a brighter future. He sees the catalyst for good in those dark eyes, smiles softly, and closes his own.
With his arms around his brother, it feels like home.
White light engulfs them.
Nathan’s last thought isn’t about power or politics or America.
It is a prayer to see his father soon.
+++
this is my renaissance
this is my one response
this is the way i say i love you
(mat kearney)