Sweet Dreams

After The Fall

Chapter One

"This is private property and you all need to leave."

"Mr. Petrelli, do you have any comments on last week's incident at the carnival?"

"Mr. Petrelli, do you have any information on the political developments that you can share with us?"

"Mr. Petrelli, what kind of dangers do these super powers pose to the people?"

A slew of voices followed Peter back up the drive to his front door, shouting questions and speculations about what the recent exposure of his kind would mean to the world. He waved them all away and kept walking without a backward glance.

It had been two weeks since the Sullivan Brothers' carnival and reporters were still salivating over the idea of getting an exclusive story. At first the sensational idea of everyday people walking around with real super powers had garnered an attention that no one, not even Claire herself could have ever been prepared for. Upon Peter and Claire's return to the Petrelli home they were faced with blockades of people surrounding the would-be quiet neighborhood. Reporters from every news outlet local and national alike were camping out in their vans, cameras always at the ready. Any space left between them was taken up by civilians. Some wished support and encouraged the bravery that lead to the 'Great Revelation'. Some spread fear and discontent, and still others just looking to gawk without the consideration to disguise their curiosities. At least now the ever noisy shutterbug throng had dwindled to a few stubborn dozen.

Angela Petrelli, after receiving one of her visions had already taken the liberty of gathering a small arsenal of personal body guards to protect the premises and escort the family to and from the home. She was at least half right in doing so. The men in black stationed all around the area effectively deterred much of the vandalism and hate acts that had swept over the city. But any time one of the Petrellis, whether they were known to have powers or not needed to leave, their comings and goings were met with little resistance. Everyone was more than a little hesitant to get to close. Even the fanatics and prying reporters would spread like the Red Sea in fear of bodily harm or contamination of sorts.

"Who ever would have thought that checking the mail could become hazardous to your health?" Peter quietly mumbled with a sideways smirk as he dumped a full arm load of envelopes onto the table before an irritated Angela. She sipped her tea from one hand and tossed a few letters over with the other before looking up at Peter with the tight lipped frown that had become a staple during those two weeks.

"This never should have happened. She had no right to expose to us all like that," Angela nearly hissed as she took another sip of tea.

"I don't know, Mom. She could have picked a better way to do it, but maybe it was time. We were all so tired of having to keep secrets like we were doing something wrong just by being ourselves. I was as mad as anybody at first… But now it's like I'm relieved it happened. No more waiting for the other shoe to drop. No more being afraid of what might be." Peter lifted up one of the letter addressed to him and began to tear it open.

"Dear Mr. Petrelli, you and your 'X-Men' are abominations against God," Peter only read the first sentence aloud before folding the paper into a plane and floating it into the trash. Angela shot him a poisonous glare.

"I have to depart this afternoon for a meeting with the Governor and a few other political allies. Have you given any more thought to the proposal?"

"Not really," Peter said with a sigh. He could deal with the constant clicking of cameras and microphones being shoved in his direction every time he went down the drive to pick up his newspaper, but the prospect of potentially falling into Nathan's old life was the worst consequence that he could think of coming out of all of this.

Nathan. Just the thought of his name was salt in a barely healing wound. Peter had come to terms with his brothers death, and even his killer, but there would always be a part of him that would miss his brother. He was quick to push the thought away and conceal his moment of sadness before his mother could start in on him again.

Angela was never one to let an opportunity go to waste. After the whole of five minutes that it took for her to deal with the idea that their secrets had been outed for good and that there was no cover up to organize or any way to reverse the situation, she immediately went into action, making phone calls and working to protect the Petrelli status quo. It was what she did best.

Now she had it in her mind to maneuver Peter into a kind of ambassadorial position on behalf of their kind. Meetings had been taking place behind closed doors every hour of the day since the event. Committees were being formed, deals were being made, and with any luck a Petrelli would land in a firm seat of power working alongside the American government to create a new state of coexistence between civilians and the apply nicknamed 'Specials'.

"We don't have much time to sit on this, Peter. Someone needs to lead the charge here and you're just as good a candidate as anyone else," Angela moved over to her son and put a tender hand on her son's cheek in the fashion of a doting mother while a sly smile accompanied the gesture. "Nathan was a great leader and now you can be too." She quietly left the room leaving Peter to his thoughts.

Claire parted her white curtains just enough to glance out the window and was immediately blinded with more camera flashes. Every shade in the house had been drawn to block the views of prying eyes. It left the house feeling so dark and depressing where it had been light and airy in the past.

She hadn't been able to sleep much in the last few weeks, tossing and turning all night to the sounds of voices outside and the mid-morning shift change of the guards. Apparently not even super regenerative powers could save her from the dreaded bags that would form under eyes from sleep deprivation. A knock at her door sent her jumping into her nightstand so that the delicate lamp resting there fell to the floor and smashed into several pieces. She clutched at her chest willing her heart to stop beating so fast as she called, "It's open, Peter."

"Sorry I scared you," he said poking his head into the room. Peter rushed in to help Claire pick up the pieces of her lamp.

"No, no, I'm sorry about this," she said examining her finger as a single drop of blood trailed from an already healing cut where a shard had nicked her. "I'm so sorry. I'll fix it."

"Claire, don't worry about it," Peter said in his assuring manner, taking the shards from her hands and placing them on the table so that he could give her a hug. Peter wasn't just Claire's uncle these days. He had really become her best friend. Even though they had always had a connection, their bond only became stronger with recent events. He always understood what she needed and he was always there with his contagious side smile to cheer her up.

"Still not sleeping?" He asked noting the dark circles under her eyes.

"Not so much. I really kind of wish I hadn't done all this," she said nodding towards the window where camera flashes still pointed towards the curtains.

"Claire, it was going to happen sooner or later. People can't just hide from who they really are forever. At least we're here to make sure that things get handled right this time. There won't be anymore places where people like us are kidnapped or experimented on. It's kind of like we get to see the next civil rights movement or something."

After Claire had taken her dive from the Ferris wheel at the Sullivan Brothers' carnival in front of all of those news cameras and announced to the world that 'Specials' existed and were here to stay for better or worse, she had worried about how Peter would react. Initially he was openly irritated with her, citing that she had no idea what she would be bringing into their lives and quickly whisking her off to the privacy of the Petrelli house. As a little time had worn on though it seemed like he had become genuinely excited about the idea of being able to live out in the open.

"It'll all be okay, Claire. Trust me," he said sharing another hug. "Oh, by the way, Mom's going to be gone for a while so you and I should get out and get some air."

Claire knew what that mischievous little smile of his meant. That first week of seeing so many negative reactions to her revelation had driven her into a bit of a depression and Peter had figured out the best way to relieve that. He had called up her old flame turned friend, West, to borrow his power for flight and then taken Claire for a spin around New York.

Of course pictures of the duo ended up in every paper and film footage to accompany the nightly news, but there was nothing as breath taking as zooming in between all the skyscrapers and feeling the wind whip her hair about.

Suddenly there was a fantastically bright light outside the window followed by screams and a crackling like electricity. All of the lights instantly died, leaving Peter and Claire in the dark. Peter threw the curtains open to see what the ruckus was all about.

"Looks like we found a sure-fire way to get everybody off the lawn," he said darkly with a bit of a frown.

Claire jumped up to see what was happening. She managed to catch a glimpse of the very last of the reporters fleeing his van screaming in terror. Except for the abandoned vehicles the street was suddenly deserted for the first time in ages. She could hear shouting below and followed the sounds.

A man was standing at the edge of the drive facing a dozen guns drawn on him by the security detail. It was hard to see exactly what was going on from the distance but she could make out bolts of blue energy emanating from the man's hands. The guards were all yelling at him to get down but each time he sent just a small charge in one of their directions they would awkwardly skitter backwards in fear causing him to laugh hysterically.

"It's okay guys. We know him," Peter said waving the guards down and assuring them that it was alright to go back to their postings.

"Aww, why'd you do that? I was going to get one of them shoot me and then laugh at the look on their faces when I got back up!"

"You have a real sick sense of humor sometimes, Sylar."

"You're such a kill joy, Petrelli."

"So, why are you here, Sylar?" Peter asked pointedly crossing his arms and watching as his somewhat reformed nemesis deposited his trademark black coat over a chair and flipped the TV on with a look.

"My name is Claire Bennett and this is attempt number… I guess I've kind of lost count." Claire's face was on the television showing a rather nasty looking gash in her cheek healing before the eyes of the world.

The clip of her exploit cut to a news anchor, "Since the 'Great Revelation' hundreds of cases of these real life 'X-Men' have poured out across the air waves sparking numerous controversies among the public. How are we to deal with 'super powers' in our every day lives? What kind of new dangers does this pose to people who don't have 'powers' and how are these dangers to be taken care of? Many are fearful that these persons will have a cataclysmic effect on our world, ranging from controlling our thoughts to manipulating the economy. When we come back we'll have a few words from the consulate delegates meeting today on Capitol Hill." The curt blonde anchor woman was then replaced with a sing-song commercial for some kind of laundry detergent.

"Word has it that they're going to be forming a new official government branch to deal with us since typical policing methods aren't really equipped for it. You seem to be the guy to ask about it."

Peter was to lost in thought for the moment to answer any of Sylar's questions. He shouldn't be surprised at all that so many people were worried about dangerous powers walking the streets unchecked. After all, he did have an ex-serial killer currently standing feet away from him.

He knew about the plans for the new government institutions. It was all a part of his mother's schemes. She had told him that the best way to insure their survival was to make it clear that public interests would be addressed. They would develop a new task force that would allow 'Special' people like them to live freely as they would have before but also take care of anybody that didn't obey the rules of society that everyone else was subject to. No telepathically cheating anyone out of their account numbers or phasing through the walls of banks. No mind controlling the stock markets or fire starters threatening schools full of children. And most of all, no people like Sylar getting away with murder.

It would all be like a new and improved Company, but without the 'bagging and tagging' or cruel experimentations. And even the dangerous 'Specials' could have their rights protected. There was a real opportunity for everyone to live together peacefully and if he just spoke the word Peter could be the leader that made it all happen.

Peter could hear Sylar rooting through the kitchen down the hall. Even though he knew the house's layout fairly well from his stint as a fellow Petrelli, Peter couldn't help but be slightly unnerved about Sylar's comfort here. Reformed or not, he was still Sylar.

Claire was descending the stairs from her room as Sylar stepped out of the kitchen with a fresh soda in each hand.

"What the hell do you want?" she snapped at him venomously.

"You," he said with a cruel smile.

"Peter!" Claire screamed running into his waiting arms beside the television.

"Oh, come on, Claire! It was a joke!" Sylar called after her walking back into the room.

"Peter, what the hell is he doing here?" She asked imploring him with her wide blue eyes.

"We were just talking, Claire. It's okay-" The return of the news program cut his reply short and they all turned to watch the developments.

"We are currently working on new legislation that will form the basis of a law system for these people with special abilities. These laws will make sure that all Americans, those with 'powers' or not will be able to live in the best equality that we can manage at this time.

This is only the first round of laws that we'll be creating. We plan to keep a close eye on the situation and make changes as we go. All of your representatives are working tirelessly to make sure the needs of the public are being taken care of on these issues and we're all really doing the best the we can under such circumstances. Thank you, we'll be taking questions in a moment," the Congressman stepped away from his podium to speak with some of the men standing behind him.

Sylar tossed Peter one of the sodas he had been holding and smirked at Claire. "This is all thanks to you. It's a brave new world," and with that Sylar tipped his drink in her direction.

Rain drops spattered the windows of the limo as Claire, Peter and Angela were on their way to the ceremony that would formalize the new lifestyles for people like them. Peter had been excited, Angela had kept a stiff drink near her side, and all Claire could think about was how much she wanted to take it all back now. She couldn't even say why exactly, other than the sickening feeling of regret that lumped in her stomach. The newly found and unwanted media attention didn't help matters for her. And having a snoring Sylar removed from the downstairs sofa wouldn't hurt her feelings any… She still couldn't understand why Peter allowed him to stick around or had the crazed notion that he really could be different.

Yesterday Claire had called Hiro, one of their super powered acquaintances that could bend time and space. She had attempted to persuade him to travel back in time and find a way to stop her from jumping off of that damn Ferris wheel and exposing them all, but all she got out of him was something about a rule and not going back in time for personal reasons. It was hard to understand what all he was saying when he would randomly break into Japanese. After about fifteen minutes of listening to a rant that she couldn't even interpret she had given up and said good bye.

Claire and Angela sat in a front row of the expectant audience watching as several officials came forward to give speeches. Then came the part where Peter stepped forward, shook a few hands for the cameras and then added his signature to a document that would forever change their worlds.

Angela stood and clapped and even mustered a tear for a photographer. Claire could only imagine what her face would like in that picture as she stood quietly in the background wondering exactly how her grandmother had bullied Peter into this job.

Somewhere behind her screams started echoing from the hallway. She could hear frantic footsteps and then an uproar began in the chamber they were in. Everyone turned to see the commotion. Claire felt her heart skip a beat.

A man had marched his way into the event with a belt a explosives strapped around his chest and waist. Security pulled their guns just to have them thrown out of reach by an invisible force… And then the guns, floating in mid air began shooting randomly into the crowd of their own accord. Civilians began to fall one by one, bleeding out on the floor. The screams were so loud and Claire was frozen in place with her heart feeling like it would pop out of her chest at any moment. She willed her legs to move, to do something, anything, but it was like the same force taking over the guards' firearms was also working to keep her in place.

Peter had jumped down from the stage to help some of the fallen people only to meet one of the floating guns face to face. Claire screamed and shut her eyes tight as the gun fired at Peter from point blank range.

"No! No, no, no, no, please… Please, I don't want to hurt anybody…"

Claire couldn't keep her eyes closed that tightly forever. Whatever will it was that had urged her to throw herself in harm's way to save others in the past came from deep inside of her. And now that will, the thing that only a few select people in this world possess, was fighting it's way through her. She had to open her eyes. She had to find a way to help Peter. And she had to… figure out what was going on…

They were all still in the limo, safe and sound. Rain droplets still tapped at the glass. Angela sat straight up next to her with a noticeably deep inhaling of breath like she had been startled. It was only then that Claire noticed that her grandmother's hand had been touching hers before.

The two women looked at each other and then to Peter sitting across from them, and then back to each other.

"What?" Peter asked innocently.