Title: No Greater Love

Author: Hermione Eveningfall

Fandom: Heroes

Pairing: None

Rating: PG

Summary: Peter's conversation with Nathan regarding Claire Bennet turns out a lot differently than either expect.

Before I knew your name
You knew my every breath
Before I found my way
You knew my every step
Before I knew everything that I need
You gave it all to me

"No Greater Love", by Rachel Lampa

Chapter 1

He made me so angry sometimes. Nathan could be incredibly stubborn, and often came off as cold hearted, but I knew different. He wanted to love his daughter, he wanted to be part of her life. However, circumstances caused a rift that I had a feeling would take years to fix. Unless I could give him a little push, of course.

"She's your daughter," I spat, and he looked at me, pain in his dark eyes. "and she saved my life."

Claire found the piece of glass that nearly killed me, embedded into the back of my skull. When she tore it out, I could see light again, and it illuminated her concerned face as she hovered over me. Her features were definitely Patrelli based, no doubt about that; she looked so much like our mother.

"I can't do this now," Nathan replied, his voice low, but firm. "I can't risk..."

"What? Your election status? God forbid people find out you had an illigitimate daughter?" I asked.

"I'm not asking for much."

Both of us whirled around at the sound of Claire's voice, and saw her standing in the doorway. She looked upset, her blue eyes narrowed, and her lips pursed.

"Claire." Nathan replied, that single word containing quite a bit of emotion.

"Can you give us a few minutes, hon?" I asked, hoping she wouldn't mind, and Claire frowned. "I promise, just five minutes. Then you can have him."

She nodded, backing out, and I carefully shut the living room door to avoid any further intrusion.

"I dont know what you want from me," Nathan hissed. "She doesn't exactly seem willing to bond."

"You're just going to let her roam the streets, then?" I asked. "I might as well adopt her myself!"

Nathan's eyes bulged, and he stood up so we faced each other at eye level. "What?!" he exclaimed, and I raised my arms in the air.

"You clearly are in no hurry." I shrugged. "and she trusts me."

"You'd adopt her. Now. Seriously." He cocked his head to one side. "and you think that would be safer than sending her to Paris with Mom?"

I threw my arms in the air, and could see Claire watching us through the glass from the corner of my eye.

"Haven't you forgotten one minor issue?" Nathan continued. "You're going to be blowing up New York in the near future."

"That's not definite," I growled, clenching my fists together. "she's not happy, Nate. You should be able to at least see that."

Nathan sighed, running his fingers through his hair, and flopped down on the couch. "All right." he looked at me, his eyes darker than usual. "Bring Claire in, ask her yourself. I want this to be her decision. She's old enough."

I motioned for Claire to come back into the room, and she did, though slightly hesitant. "Sorry," she apologized, blushing, and I smiled.

"For what?" I asked, and she shrugged.

"I was spying," she whispered, and Nathan merely laughed.

"We've both done worse, so no worries there," he admitted, and I raised an eyebrow.

"What's going on?" Claire asked, folding her arms, and I stood, clearing my throat. My head still throbbed from where the shard of glass sat, and it was hard to imagine I'd escaped death so narrowly.

"I'm going to be straight forward with this," I began slowly, "Claire, would you like to live with me?"

Silence filled the room, and she looked from myself to Nathan, her eyes widening.

"Claire, I would love to keep you," Nathan continued, and I smiled faintly at him. "but I can't. Not now, anyway...and I know you don't want to go to Paris with your grandmother. I can see it in your eyes that you're happier in New York."

"I have a nice apartment," I added, "and there's a spare room that we could turn into yours. I promise to keep you safe, and we'll just lay low for a while. You can enroll in school, and..."

Claire choked on a sob and leapt into my arms, nearly knocking me down to the floor. Nathan stood slowly, stunned by her reaction, and watched as the two of us continued to embrace.

"Are you serious?" she asked, when I finally had to set her down, feeling a little dizzy and weak from all the effort. Nathan could see this in my face, and encouraged me to sit and rest for a few minutes. "oh my...again, sorry," Claire breathed, chewing on her lower lip.

"And yes, I'm serious," I chuckled. "you're obviously a Patrelli." I kissed her forehead, and she looked at Nathan, frowning slightly.

"Are you okay with this, Daddy?" she asked, and he smiled, pulling her into a hug as well.

"I may come off as a cold hearted ass, but honestly, I want what's best for you, Claire. I wish I were in a better position to take you in, because honestly? You've blown me away. I'm furious I didn't know about you sooner."

Claire blushed, and I could see the tears filling her eyes.

"Do you have all of your things?" I asked.

"I don't need a lot of stuff," Claire admitted. "actually...I don't have much. Our house kind of...burned, so all I have in the suitcase is it."

I frowned, squeezing her hand, just as mother walked in.

"So, what have we been discussing in here?" she asked, her expression firm as always. Nathan asked to speak with her in the hallway, and she shot Claire and I a curious look before following him. When they were gone, Claire sat down, and squeezed my hand.

"Are you feeling all right?" she asked, noticing how tired I appeared, and I looked at her calmly.

"Yeah," I promised, blinking. "considering I nearly died again."

"You have to stop that," Claire giggled.

"I don't think that'll be much of a problem when you're living with me given your powers," I replied, and she blushed again.

A few minutes later, Nathan came back into the room with Mom, and it was difficult to read her face.

"So, Peter, is this true?" she asked, her voice icy, and I pulled Claire onto my lap.

"Mom, I think I can handle a sixteen year old. I'm not adopting an infant. She can run if it gets too dangerous, or I'll put her on a plane to Paris myself."

Mom shared a glance with Nathan, who seemed actually quite content with the situation at hand. He was in no position to become a true father anytime soon, and I was. I needed a distraction from what was happening to me, or I would honestly go stir crazy. I always thought about becoming a father someday, though I hadn't had the luck of finding a woman to settle down with.

"Peter, I do trust you," Mom answered, "but I want you to think very carefully about what you're about to take on."

"We're going to lay low," I promised. "I'll put Claire in school, and we'll live like normal human beings for as long as we can. It's what both of us need, I think, afterw hat happened."

Mom came to Claire, and touched her cheek tenderly with her palm. "If you're all right with this, then I am," she replied, and Claire hugged her newfound grandmother, insisting it was more than she'd ever wanted in her whole life.

"All right, then. And I hear you are traveling with just one suitcase full of clothing?" she asked, clucking her tongue with disapproval, and Claire shrugged. "one suitcase does not a teenage child make! I insist on taking you shopping, especially if you will be starting in a new school. I wont have any grandchild of mine looking like a rag-a-muffin."

Claire giggled at the comment, and hugged me again, breathing deeply.

"I love you, Uncle Peter," she whispered into my ear, and I felt my heart swell.

"I love you, too," I replied, and Claire hurried after Mom, curls bobbing as she moved. Nathan stood watching her with a smirk on his face, and raised an eyebrow at me.

"I hope you know what you've gotten yourself into, little bro," he announced, and I grinned. "but I'd probably mess her up worse than you." he clasped my shoulder. "thanks. This means a lot, Pete."

I nodded, blowing out my breath. "I think I'm going to lay down," I admitted. "If Mom and Claire are going shopping, they'll be gone a while."

Nathan encouraged me to do so, his eyes following my figure as I left the parlor, heading towards the second floor of our large house.