Apocalypse pt 19
Title: Apocalypse
Author: SLynn
Fandom: Heroes
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: Up to "Fallout"
Beta By: tripp3235
Disclaimer: I’m just borrowing and will return them all when I’m done, virtually untouched.
Summary:
Three years have passed since the explosion and life has drastically changed for everyone. This isn’t the world they imagined they’d be saving.
Previous chapters found HERE!
Notes:
Am I really on Chapter 19 of this thing? Wow. Okay, so this progressing much faster than I'd assumed, but that's not a bad thing. Big thanks to tripp3235 for talking me down. She knows what I mean. I'm not entirely sure you were successful, but we'll see where the story takes me. Either way, after all the crap I emailed you last night, I think I owe you another Matt/Audrey fic! :P
x-posted heroes_fic/paire_love/mattaudrey
Chapter 19: Reunion
“I can’t believe it,” Claire said for the third time since they’d left the room.
“I know,” Niki echoed with a disapproving shake of her head.
“I mean,” Claire said, stopping cold in the middle of the walkway. “He just doesn’t remember? None of it? Not anything?”
“He seemed to know some…”
“This isn’t right. There’s something wrong here,” Claire said, continuing on towards the kitchens. “They’ve… they’ve done something to him… someone did…”
Niki nodded and kept her opinions to herself.
She understood Claire’s frustration, but it was entirely plausible that Peter really couldn’t remember anything without there being any outside interference. Either that or that he didn’t want to.
“Let’s just find Micah…” Niki began as they entered the dining area, but stopped abruptly; a grin broke out across her face. “D.L.!”
Claire watched as Niki ran across the room and into her husband’s arms. She should be happy for her, for her and Micah, but it wasn’t an easy thing to do.
It only served as a reminder of everything she’d lost.
Still, it got a little easier when Hiro and Ando rushed over, excited to see her as well. Hiro in particular pulled her into a tight hug.
“Claire, I’m so sorry,” he whispered in her ear. “It’s all my fault.”
“No it’s not,” she returned, squeezing him tighter. “It’s not. If anything…”
“Stop it,” Ando gently admonished the two of them as they broke apart. Moving in and giving Claire a briefer, but still as warm, hug. “It’s no one’s fault. Matt was only doing…”
But he couldn’t seem to finish the sentence. He didn’t have to. They all knew that Matt had only done what he’d thought he had to do. It was supposed to be reassuring, but it wasn’t. It felt like a waste.
Still, Claire was relieved.
No words were going to talk her out of feeling responsible, but it was good to hear that no one else felt that way. It was also a relief to know that she didn’t have to explain it all again, Jacobs and Micah had done it for her.
Claire didn’t want to think about it any more.
“Hey, sweetie,” D.L. said, the last to make his way to her, having just gotten done being welcomed back by his family. Hugging her as he did his own child; kissing the top of her head. “You okay?”
Claire nodded tightly and there was a heavy pause.
“Did they tell you everything?” Claire asked, looking to Micah and Jacobs.
“Yeah,” D.L. answered, “but Claire, are you sure? Are you really…”
“Dad,” Micah interrupted, “I told you. I saw him too. It’s really Peter.”
“Did he remember what happened?” Hiro asked. “After you talked to him, did it help any?”
“No,” Claire said sadly. “He thinks he’s some guy named Jonah. And he’s not. I can’t see how he could forget. But, he doesn’t remember the paintings, or the dreams, or how any of… What?”
They were all staring as if in shock, but not at her.
D.L. motioned with his eyes and Claire knew. She just knew he was behind her. That Peter, or Jonah - whoever he was, was standing right behind her and had had heard most of her angry tirade.
Claire put on her best fake smile and turned around to meet him.
“Sorry if I’m interrupting,” he said, giving her a smile in return.
“You’re not interrupting,” she lied. “We were just catching up. All of us. Let me, um… this is everyone, but you already know… No, you don’t know.”
“I’m D.L.,” the man said, stepping forward and taking the pressure off of Claire. “Hiro, Ando and I just arrived about an hour ago.”
“Of course you all know Peter,” Claire continued lamely.
“Actually,” he interrupted. “I know you all know me as Peter but I’d prefer if you called me Jonah. It’s what I’m… that’s who I am.”
“Okay,” D.L. agreed. “Jonah it is.”
No one knew what else to say. Claire, in particular, looked lost. Hurt even.
“I actually wanted to talk to you,” Peter said, turning to her. “Alone, if that’s alright? I have some questions and…”
Claire looked around uncertainly.
“If you’d rather we stayed here,” he continued, “that’s fine. I just thought it might be easier to talk without so many people around. You seem to know the most about me and…”
He didn’t seem to know how to finish. In fact, Peter looked almost as lost as Claire did.
“Go,” Niki silently mouthed to Claire as soon as she’d caught her attention.
“Okay,” Claire said quickly, that tiny bit of encouragement all she needed. “Let’s… okay. We can talk alone. Wherever.”
Peter cast one serious look at D.L., seeking permission.
D.L. gave him a slight nod in return and it really hit him.
Hard.
Matt was gone. Niki might not have liked it, but Matt and D.L. had been the ones that had led. They’d made most of the decisions and nearly all of the plans. And now, now everyone was going to look to D.L. for those things. Things he wasn’t sure he could do alone; he wasn’t sure he wanted that responsibility in its entirety.
Claire gave them one last nod and smile as Peter motioned her out and away from them all.
“What’s he like?” D.L. asked Jacobs as soon as they’d left.
“Jonah? He’s a good guy. Quiet. Mostly keeps to himself.”
D.L. didn’t look entirely convinced.
“You don’t have to worry about her,” Jacobs continued. “She’ll be fine with him. Besides, that girl is tougher than she looks.”
****
They’d walked without speaking and seemingly without direction.
Claire didn’t know what to say or how to begin. If he had questions, why wasn’t he asking them?
“Did they assign you rooms yet?” he asked.
“Jacobs took care of it for us. Thanks.”
Peter nodded and continued walking.
“Where are we going?” Claire finally had to ask.
It was a big place and she was more than a little afraid of getting lost. The main meeting rooms that the colony used were all inside of Grand Central Station, but their sleeping quarters were all located in the adjacent Grand Hyatt Hotel.
But all of that was inside. He was heading out.
“Here,” he said, stopping near the old train tracks. “I like to come out here. Mostly because it’s so cold no one else bothers.”
“Is it safe?” she asked cautiously as he leaned against the railing.
He gave her a quick smile and a nod.
“So,” she started, “what did you want to know? What did you want to ask me?”
“Well,” he practically sighed, “a lot. I want to know a lot. But first I want to know exactly how we know one another. Are we related or…”
“No,” Claire cut in quickly. “No, we’re not. We’re definitely not related. Actually, um, we’re kind of strangers.”
“Really?”
“Sort of,” Claire admitted. “We’d only met a month before everything happened. You saved my life.”
“Like a hero or something?” Peter said, sort of smiling as he spoke.
“Exactly like a hero,” Claire returned, smiling now too.
Peter seemed to be letting that sink in as they lapsed into a comfortable silence.
“I want to remember you,” he finally said, his voice just above a whisper. “I want to remember everything. It just seems like the harder I try the more it slips away.”
“I wish I could do something.”
“You’re doing plenty,” he said, turning to her. “Really. There’s something… something about you that’s familiar. There’s something…”
Peter moved to touch her face but quickly stopped himself.
“What can you tell me about my brother?” he asked instead.
“Nathan?” Claire said, sorry for the abrupt change. “Well, you know he’s leading the Order. Before all this happened he was running for Congress.”
“He wasn’t in town that day?”
“No,” Claire answered. “He and his wife were at the capitol.”
“What about his boys?”
Claire looked momentarily surprised. Peter didn’t even seem aware that he’d just recalled something new. That Claire had never mentioned his nephews.
“They were here,” Claire provided.
“Did they…” he hesitated. “Did they make it?”
Claire could only shake her head.
“Matt and I,” she continued but not without a struggle, “we looked. When we were able to, we looked for other survivors. For anyone. But by then, there was no one left. We checked everywhere we could think of. Your apartment, Isaac’s loft, your mother’s home, Nathan’s… All we ever found were empty rooms or…”
Claire stopped as the tears began to run down her face and turned away from him.
He didn’t hesitate.
Peter put his arms around her and waited it out. Waited until she’d gotten through the worst of it; held her until the tears had nearly stopped.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “This isn’t… You’re not here to watch me cry. We’re supposed to be talking about you and here I am…”
“Its fine,” he said, his hands still resting just above her elbows. “I want to know about you too.”
****
“You really think they’re telling the truth?”
“As I said before,” Albert said with a sigh, “they think they are.”
“Is that really good enough?” David continued to question. “After everything that has happened?”
“Samuel’s death was an accident,” Beatrice said firmly.
“That’s something I can’t believe,” David fired back. “You know my feelings.”
“Yes,” Albert said with a nod. “We do. And all I can do is assure you that I see no deception in them. Deception, lies, fraud. Evil; it all lies in the heart of man. If I saw evil among us, I’d be the first to cry out.”
“I still think that there is someone here working for the Order. Samuel’s death just confirmed it for me. He’s the third person in so many months to go missing.”
“Yes,” Beatrice added. “He did go missing, after going north. North where Sylar was last…”
“Sylar is a myth; an urban legend. He doesn’t exist. The Order only wants us…”
“What about their account of that day?” Beatrice asked. “They claim Sylar is real. To have seen him. That he caused…”
“They claim,” David mocked. “Exactly, who are they to claim anything? We don’t know them. And one man couldn’t have done all this. It just isn’t…”
“It wasn’t Sylar alone,” Albert added. “They say Jonah was there too.”
“How very convenient that their only witness can’t remember it happening.”
“David,” Beatrice said in as calm a voice as she could manage, “I understand your fears, but I believe the only reason they are here is the same reason we all are here. There’s no where else for people like us to go to anymore. They didn’t know Jonah was here when they arrived, and Jacobs would never bring back anyone he wasn’t completely certain about.”
David nodded, reluctantly ceding her the point.
“Besides,” she continued, “if they can help Jonah remember who he is they’ll have earned my gratitude. They ought to have earned it from us all.”
Author: SLynn
Fandom: Heroes
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: Up to "Fallout"
Beta By: tripp3235
Disclaimer: I’m just borrowing and will return them all when I’m done, virtually untouched.
Summary:
Three years have passed since the explosion and life has drastically changed for everyone. This isn’t the world they imagined they’d be saving.
Previous chapters found HERE!
Notes:
Am I really on Chapter 19 of this thing? Wow. Okay, so this progressing much faster than I'd assumed, but that's not a bad thing. Big thanks to tripp3235 for talking me down. She knows what I mean. I'm not entirely sure you were successful, but we'll see where the story takes me. Either way, after all the crap I emailed you last night, I think I owe you another Matt/Audrey fic! :P
x-posted heroes_fic/paire_love/mattaudrey
Chapter 19: Reunion
“I can’t believe it,” Claire said for the third time since they’d left the room.
“I know,” Niki echoed with a disapproving shake of her head.
“I mean,” Claire said, stopping cold in the middle of the walkway. “He just doesn’t remember? None of it? Not anything?”
“He seemed to know some…”
“This isn’t right. There’s something wrong here,” Claire said, continuing on towards the kitchens. “They’ve… they’ve done something to him… someone did…”
Niki nodded and kept her opinions to herself.
She understood Claire’s frustration, but it was entirely plausible that Peter really couldn’t remember anything without there being any outside interference. Either that or that he didn’t want to.
“Let’s just find Micah…” Niki began as they entered the dining area, but stopped abruptly; a grin broke out across her face. “D.L.!”
Claire watched as Niki ran across the room and into her husband’s arms. She should be happy for her, for her and Micah, but it wasn’t an easy thing to do.
It only served as a reminder of everything she’d lost.
Still, it got a little easier when Hiro and Ando rushed over, excited to see her as well. Hiro in particular pulled her into a tight hug.
“Claire, I’m so sorry,” he whispered in her ear. “It’s all my fault.”
“No it’s not,” she returned, squeezing him tighter. “It’s not. If anything…”
“Stop it,” Ando gently admonished the two of them as they broke apart. Moving in and giving Claire a briefer, but still as warm, hug. “It’s no one’s fault. Matt was only doing…”
But he couldn’t seem to finish the sentence. He didn’t have to. They all knew that Matt had only done what he’d thought he had to do. It was supposed to be reassuring, but it wasn’t. It felt like a waste.
Still, Claire was relieved.
No words were going to talk her out of feeling responsible, but it was good to hear that no one else felt that way. It was also a relief to know that she didn’t have to explain it all again, Jacobs and Micah had done it for her.
Claire didn’t want to think about it any more.
“Hey, sweetie,” D.L. said, the last to make his way to her, having just gotten done being welcomed back by his family. Hugging her as he did his own child; kissing the top of her head. “You okay?”
Claire nodded tightly and there was a heavy pause.
“Did they tell you everything?” Claire asked, looking to Micah and Jacobs.
“Yeah,” D.L. answered, “but Claire, are you sure? Are you really…”
“Dad,” Micah interrupted, “I told you. I saw him too. It’s really Peter.”
“Did he remember what happened?” Hiro asked. “After you talked to him, did it help any?”
“No,” Claire said sadly. “He thinks he’s some guy named Jonah. And he’s not. I can’t see how he could forget. But, he doesn’t remember the paintings, or the dreams, or how any of… What?”
They were all staring as if in shock, but not at her.
D.L. motioned with his eyes and Claire knew. She just knew he was behind her. That Peter, or Jonah - whoever he was, was standing right behind her and had had heard most of her angry tirade.
Claire put on her best fake smile and turned around to meet him.
“Sorry if I’m interrupting,” he said, giving her a smile in return.
“You’re not interrupting,” she lied. “We were just catching up. All of us. Let me, um… this is everyone, but you already know… No, you don’t know.”
“I’m D.L.,” the man said, stepping forward and taking the pressure off of Claire. “Hiro, Ando and I just arrived about an hour ago.”
“Of course you all know Peter,” Claire continued lamely.
“Actually,” he interrupted. “I know you all know me as Peter but I’d prefer if you called me Jonah. It’s what I’m… that’s who I am.”
“Okay,” D.L. agreed. “Jonah it is.”
No one knew what else to say. Claire, in particular, looked lost. Hurt even.
“I actually wanted to talk to you,” Peter said, turning to her. “Alone, if that’s alright? I have some questions and…”
Claire looked around uncertainly.
“If you’d rather we stayed here,” he continued, “that’s fine. I just thought it might be easier to talk without so many people around. You seem to know the most about me and…”
He didn’t seem to know how to finish. In fact, Peter looked almost as lost as Claire did.
“Go,” Niki silently mouthed to Claire as soon as she’d caught her attention.
“Okay,” Claire said quickly, that tiny bit of encouragement all she needed. “Let’s… okay. We can talk alone. Wherever.”
Peter cast one serious look at D.L., seeking permission.
D.L. gave him a slight nod in return and it really hit him.
Hard.
Matt was gone. Niki might not have liked it, but Matt and D.L. had been the ones that had led. They’d made most of the decisions and nearly all of the plans. And now, now everyone was going to look to D.L. for those things. Things he wasn’t sure he could do alone; he wasn’t sure he wanted that responsibility in its entirety.
Claire gave them one last nod and smile as Peter motioned her out and away from them all.
“What’s he like?” D.L. asked Jacobs as soon as they’d left.
“Jonah? He’s a good guy. Quiet. Mostly keeps to himself.”
D.L. didn’t look entirely convinced.
“You don’t have to worry about her,” Jacobs continued. “She’ll be fine with him. Besides, that girl is tougher than she looks.”
****
They’d walked without speaking and seemingly without direction.
Claire didn’t know what to say or how to begin. If he had questions, why wasn’t he asking them?
“Did they assign you rooms yet?” he asked.
“Jacobs took care of it for us. Thanks.”
Peter nodded and continued walking.
“Where are we going?” Claire finally had to ask.
It was a big place and she was more than a little afraid of getting lost. The main meeting rooms that the colony used were all inside of Grand Central Station, but their sleeping quarters were all located in the adjacent Grand Hyatt Hotel.
But all of that was inside. He was heading out.
“Here,” he said, stopping near the old train tracks. “I like to come out here. Mostly because it’s so cold no one else bothers.”
“Is it safe?” she asked cautiously as he leaned against the railing.
He gave her a quick smile and a nod.
“So,” she started, “what did you want to know? What did you want to ask me?”
“Well,” he practically sighed, “a lot. I want to know a lot. But first I want to know exactly how we know one another. Are we related or…”
“No,” Claire cut in quickly. “No, we’re not. We’re definitely not related. Actually, um, we’re kind of strangers.”
“Really?”
“Sort of,” Claire admitted. “We’d only met a month before everything happened. You saved my life.”
“Like a hero or something?” Peter said, sort of smiling as he spoke.
“Exactly like a hero,” Claire returned, smiling now too.
Peter seemed to be letting that sink in as they lapsed into a comfortable silence.
“I want to remember you,” he finally said, his voice just above a whisper. “I want to remember everything. It just seems like the harder I try the more it slips away.”
“I wish I could do something.”
“You’re doing plenty,” he said, turning to her. “Really. There’s something… something about you that’s familiar. There’s something…”
Peter moved to touch her face but quickly stopped himself.
“What can you tell me about my brother?” he asked instead.
“Nathan?” Claire said, sorry for the abrupt change. “Well, you know he’s leading the Order. Before all this happened he was running for Congress.”
“He wasn’t in town that day?”
“No,” Claire answered. “He and his wife were at the capitol.”
“What about his boys?”
Claire looked momentarily surprised. Peter didn’t even seem aware that he’d just recalled something new. That Claire had never mentioned his nephews.
“They were here,” Claire provided.
“Did they…” he hesitated. “Did they make it?”
Claire could only shake her head.
“Matt and I,” she continued but not without a struggle, “we looked. When we were able to, we looked for other survivors. For anyone. But by then, there was no one left. We checked everywhere we could think of. Your apartment, Isaac’s loft, your mother’s home, Nathan’s… All we ever found were empty rooms or…”
Claire stopped as the tears began to run down her face and turned away from him.
He didn’t hesitate.
Peter put his arms around her and waited it out. Waited until she’d gotten through the worst of it; held her until the tears had nearly stopped.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “This isn’t… You’re not here to watch me cry. We’re supposed to be talking about you and here I am…”
“Its fine,” he said, his hands still resting just above her elbows. “I want to know about you too.”
****
“You really think they’re telling the truth?”
“As I said before,” Albert said with a sigh, “they think they are.”
“Is that really good enough?” David continued to question. “After everything that has happened?”
“Samuel’s death was an accident,” Beatrice said firmly.
“That’s something I can’t believe,” David fired back. “You know my feelings.”
“Yes,” Albert said with a nod. “We do. And all I can do is assure you that I see no deception in them. Deception, lies, fraud. Evil; it all lies in the heart of man. If I saw evil among us, I’d be the first to cry out.”
“I still think that there is someone here working for the Order. Samuel’s death just confirmed it for me. He’s the third person in so many months to go missing.”
“Yes,” Beatrice added. “He did go missing, after going north. North where Sylar was last…”
“Sylar is a myth; an urban legend. He doesn’t exist. The Order only wants us…”
“What about their account of that day?” Beatrice asked. “They claim Sylar is real. To have seen him. That he caused…”
“They claim,” David mocked. “Exactly, who are they to claim anything? We don’t know them. And one man couldn’t have done all this. It just isn’t…”
“It wasn’t Sylar alone,” Albert added. “They say Jonah was there too.”
“How very convenient that their only witness can’t remember it happening.”
“David,” Beatrice said in as calm a voice as she could manage, “I understand your fears, but I believe the only reason they are here is the same reason we all are here. There’s no where else for people like us to go to anymore. They didn’t know Jonah was here when they arrived, and Jacobs would never bring back anyone he wasn’t completely certain about.”
David nodded, reluctantly ceding her the point.
“Besides,” she continued, “if they can help Jonah remember who he is they’ll have earned my gratitude. They ought to have earned it from us all.”