I do not own Heroes
Sheer Coincidence
Sheila was a girl, a 5'4, snarled, red head with a monstrous attitude; and a heavy limp in her left leg. She tapped her wood and bronze cane on the ground and she sat on a filthy road side street. It was dusty and little lizards were scampering past her. She looked up at a dark night's sky and sighed, her hair was matted and dirty, her skin even darker than usual from the dirt and sun exposure. She had no home; it was gone and destroyed, wiped off the face of the earth with no more noise than a heavy wind. A large black hole, if you're willing to believe it, had sucked it up never to be seen again. The only thing she had was a backpack full of old memories, her clothes and a cane. No one knew her name, no one knew what she was, and apparently no one could tell she was trying to hitch hike.
"Why Jesus don't got love for me, I do not know
Why my daddy gotta make fun a me, I do not know
Why my home ain't got no windows, I do not know
But I do know that my daddy ain't got fun for me
And Jesus don't love anyone…."
She said in a quasi poem she made on the fly. Something to pass the time. For the first time in 20 minutes a set of head lights made their way towards her. She got up fast as she could and waved, picking up a cardboard sign that said, "Civilization or Bust" on it. The car slowed down and Sheila breathed a sigh of happiness. She bent down and the car window rolled down. A man around his twenties with thick curly black hair and dark skin looked at her with a meaningful smile.
"Going somewhere?"
Sheila smiled and in her thick Australian accent said;
"Anywhere."
He opened the door and she got in. The car was black and in good condition, a car not to fancy, just to get you where your going. She reclined and let out another sigh. Warm, it was warm in the car and put her icy fingers in front of the vents.
"Thank you so much you don't know how much I appreciate this."
The man smiled again and laughed a little at her eagerness to be near the heat. Her jeans were ripped and dirty, her shirt in the same pathetic condition.
"I think I have an Idea, Backpacking? Hitchhiking across the country?"
He asked still smiling. Sheila didn't smile though, she only rubbed her hands together faster.
"Homeless."
"Oh…."
The mans face fell and he tried his best to switch topics.
"I didn't catch your name."
Sheila leaned back in her seat and tapped her cane deciding whether or not to use her real name but he might have heard it in the papers, a house just didn't disappear without notice. She resigned herself.
"Names Sheila, Sheila Hogan."
His eyebrows scrunched together as if thinking or perplexed.
"Mohinder and, Hogan? I saw that name in the papers, did your house disappear?"
"Nice to meet you Mohinder and yeah, in a black hole if you can believe it."
She said non-chalantly, apparently this was an everyday occurrence. Maybe it was for her. It disturbed Mohinder that she could be so calm when everything she ever had was gone.
"A black hole? How is that possible? Did you do it? Are you-?..."
"Am I What? Different? Dangerous? A Murderer? A Freak?"
She said looking out the window, a town was coming up in a few miles.
"No. Genetically challenged."
"I guess you could say that."
She said looking at him with large green eyes and smiled again. A glint in her eye set apart from her dusty ragged appearance, made her seem less like a homeless teen and more like a kid who's up to no good.
"I study People like you, if you don't mind, I'd like to take you to New York and run a few tests, maybe a demonstration of your powers in a controlled environment."
Sheila's eyes widened, this was a pretty decent offer, maybe she would be able to get a decent job in New York and maybe find a small apartment. Far fetched, but possible. But the controlled environment was unnecessary; she could do that in the desert.
"If you go off road a little and into the bush I could show you here."
Mohinder shrugged and rove off road. There were bumps and scratches on the car after wards. Sheila Got out and supported herself on her cane looking at them.
"Ohhhh, Sorry bout your car mate."
"Its okay, Rental."
Sheila laughed and started searching on the ground.
"What are you doing?"
"Looking for a rock."
She said picking up one about the size of her fist. She took a big breath and Mohinder waited for something to happen.
"So?….."
"Patience is a virtue."
She said, a low humming sound emitted from the rock and it turned red as if burning. Mohinder watched in wide eyed fascination as the rock as well as her hands turned ember red, then, with a sound like two bowling pins hitting each other. The rock emitted a bright flash and disappeared; leaving in its wake a hole, a black space that was the size of Sheila's palm.
"I can't believe it, this-this shouldn't be physically possible, your hand it would've been incinerated in the heat it takes to make a black hole."
"Believe it. And does anything in the world make sense anymore?"
She asked looking at him and picking up a pebble. She threw the pebble in and in a snap, it was gone. She then closed her hand, when she opened it there was nothing there.
"No I suppose not, but this is extraordinary; I mean we've never been able to encounter a black hole before, not able to study them up close ever. You may prove to be beneficial to The government, NASA maybe!"
"We is?"
"Scientists."
Sheila had a wide grin on her face, Her future had just been secured, a woman who could make a black hole big enough to wipe out an entire city. Now who in their right mind would waste that talent?
" 'Aight then, Now how you plan to bring me into NASA, they just gonna let you walk in the front doors."
Mohinder laughed loudly, Sheila cocked her head to the side and laughed feebly. He was starting to scare her. Maybe he was just another whack job?
"I know the President, A Mr. Nathan Petrelli."
Okay, this guy was definitely a whack job, Sheila tightened the grip on her cane and put weight on her bad leg as to be able to lift the cane easier if need be.
"Okay, Are you just another Psycho? Or are you serious?"
She asked, giving him some benefit of the doubt.
"No, no I'm quite serious. How would I know about people like you if I was affiliated with the government in some way? Actually, he's like you. Gifted."
Sheila's eyes widened and she forgot about holding onto her cane, she put all her weight on her bad leg and fell. She landed with a dull thud on the dusty ground and let out a groan of pain as her leg throbbed.
"Are you okay?"
Mohinder asked helping her up. She shakily got to her feet and steadied herself.
"Yeah, just my bad luck…and leg."
She said, hobbling towards the car, yearning for the warm interior and the posh seats. To her the car was heaven. Mohinder followed and got in, starting up the car.
" Can I be bold as to ask what happened?"
He asked nodding at her leg, hands busied with the wheel. Sheila shrugged as if it was nothing.
"Nothing really. When I destroyed my home a large rock hit me, pretty nasty lookin'."
She said lifting her pants leg to show him a large dirty bandage stained through with blood. Mohinder grimaced, it looked painful.
"Said so."
She said pulling the leg down as they passed the city limits sign.
"We can stop here for tonight. I'm too tired to cook so we can get so take out or something."
Sheila grinned to herself, she had really received a blessing today.
"He can cook? Score! Hot and useful!"
"You seem happy. How old are you?"
She had forgotten how old she was, she didn't really do birthdays.
"Its 2007?...17."
She said shrugging; she seemed to do that a lot. She had nothing distinguishing about her she was ordinary, nothing special in her attitude almost as if she had been ground down like a stone in the river, everything just rolls off her.
"Burgers?"
He asked and she nodded. If everything rolled off her, she didn't get hurt or distracted, but unfortunately every river rock has a crease no matter how small that something will get to and by knowing that crease an enemy will have an advantage and suddenly that Crease doesn't seem so small. That was the only flaw with a river rock personality like hers.
"Yes, please, I've only had roasted rattlesnake for the past few weeks."
She said looking at the diner they had pulled into. They got out and walked to the front door, when they opened the door the few people there looked at them and turned back to their business, Sheila had been holding her breath, her face had been in the papers; obviously these people didn't read it carefully.
"Are you okay?"
Mohinder asked quietly.
"You know how you feel impending doom right before something bad happens?"
"Yeah."
"I that just happened and it really did nothing for my acid reflux."
She said sighing and taking a seat at the counter. She opened the menu all it said was
Menu
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
$3.99
Drinks
Coffee
Lemonade
Soda
Beer
A waitress came to them as asked them what they wanted. Mohinder and Sheila looked at each other and at the same time said:
"Dinner."
The waitress rolled her eyes and wrote down "Dinner" on her little pad.
"To drink?"
"Coffee."
Mohinder said and Sheila reached into her pocket and pulled out a wallet. She pulled out a little white card laminated in plastic.
"Beer."
She said showing it to the waitress, She looked it over skeptically and then wrote it down.
"You look so young for 25."
The woman said smiling at her.
"I know."
Sheila said smiling back; Sheila, master of black holes and the bold faced lie. As the waitress walked away Mohinder gave her a wide eyed stare.
"What?"
"Your 17."
He said lowly, so no one would hear. Sheila put the card back in her otherwise empty wallet. He was starting to see the crease in her personality.
"And? As if anyone's perfect, I've gotten hammered, high, and otherwise."
She said as the waitress came back with their drinks. She placed them on the counter and Sheila picked up her bottle and gave the woman a "Cheers" gesture before sipping from it.
"And you seemed so serene."
"Even Jesus was not as perfect as had seemed"
She said taking another swig; Mohinder eyed the bottle as it was pressed to her lips. Moisture dripped from the neck onto her fingers, mixing with the dirt and making the neck of the bottle dirty. She almost looked as if she was kissing the bottle like a long lost friend, a hint of malice in a priest or a drop of water on dry ground, Thirsty for everything and anything. He hadn't had a drink for a few weeks and the job wore on him. He absentmindedly licked his lips. Sheila noticed and once again the glint of a child up to no good returned to her eye.
"Want some, Mohinder?"
She had put emphasis on his name, straining it. Coaxing it; she was an expert on it, obviously she had done this before. Mohinder stuttered slightly, torn between a certain feeling of stressed need and moral decency.
"I-I Mean, you- you shouldn't ha-"
Sheila had rolled her eyes and pressed the rim of the bottle to his lips before he could finish, as not to mess he swallowed and she put the bottle down.
"Better?"
A warm feeling stirred in his stomach as the Alcohol mixed with stomach acid. He had to admit a certain comfort came with the warming sensation in the pit of his stomach.
"…Yes…"
She resigned himself and gave in. Sheila smiled and reached into her backpack, pulling out a silver bottle.
"If I had drunken this in the desert I would've dehydrated and died."
She opened it and poured some into his coffee without even asking. Mohinder didn't complain, this was actually a favor to him. He himself was starting to feel like a river rock and this was only to return the edge.
"Thank you."
Their food came, A Burger, a pickle on the side, a serving of Potato Salad. Simple, home style, undoubtedly artery clogging. They dug in and finished off their liquors, Fuck fight the demons, this was a demon worthy moment. They finished their food and paid their bill, They left wordlessly. Checked into a Motel a few miles down and settled themselves in.
"I'm taking a bath."
Was the first thing Sheila said as stepping into the door. They had decided that they could share a room like respectable mature adult and semi-adult. Mohinder decided it was best; he had work to do anyways, besides he had yet to tell her about Sylar. He listened to the water running. And Sheila stuck her head out the door, even under the dirt he could see her face turn red.
"I don't have anything to sleep in cept my underwear… so could I-uh?..."
"Borrow a T-shirt?"
"Yes."
Mohinder smiled, how coy, if he didn't know better he would've thought she was flirting. Either that or nervous, but rocks didn't get nervous so she was probably actually embarrassed.
"They're in my bag."
He said and Sheila moved over to his bed where he had tossed his duffle bag. He carried his laptop separately. She opened it with shaking fingers; it was just odd to be this close proximity to a full grown male, especially one so attractive. She rifled through it until she found a plain looking T-shirt. Large, white, same as the rest of them. Underneath them a flash of color caught her eye, a red jacket, high collar, very exotic looking. She couldn't help her self, she felt the fabric, it was smooth, soft, well worn; she smelled it, a deep rooted scent of jasmine filled it. Mohinder hadn't noticed and she replaced the jacket carefully.
"Thanks, Uh, I have to wash my clothes and I can do that by hand, I won't make a mess so if you have any that need washing I'll gladly do them for you."
"Uh no I'm good, more clean ones than dirty."
"O-okay, I just feel I should do something to repay you. I mean, I'd probably be sleeping on the road again if it wasn't for you."
Mohinder turned away from his laptop that was warming up and not quite operational yet. Sheila had her mask on again, a frozen smile; eyen her eyes seemed painted and glazed right now. She reminded him eerily of a Kabuki Mask he once saw in one of his fathers world books when he was a child. The mask was called "Za Rai Shojo" The Lying Maiden. A tale of a faithless wife who murdered her husband, keeping her smile in place through the whole process, at his funeral she cried so hard that she formed a small lake, and she never stopped smiling, to this day there was a statue of a beautiful smiling maiden somewhere in the mountains, she was drowned by her own tears. Mohinder mentally shuddered at this thought, he wondered if she was familiar with Kabuki if she wasn't it was just and eerie coincidence, if not, well she was sending one hell of a mixed up signal.
"I do what I can."
With that, Sheila went into the bathroom and turned on the shower. She stripped out of her large white sweat jacket, jeans, boots, T-shirt, Tank top, and underwear; All of them dirty and dusty. She threw her underwear in the shower with her washing them out and leaving them to dry, wringing out what she could. She groped at a silver chain at her breast, on the end of it was a watch, a Sylar brand watch, she put it on the sink counter. She got into the shower and brown water ran off her body, forming muddy pools at her feet, washed away by the constant flow. She grabbed the complimentary shampoo and scrubbed her hair, irritating her sunburned scalp. She hissed lowly, it burned like hell. But it was better than having heavy greasy hair. Her normally frizzed out, bright red, curly hair was now semi straight and heavy with water. She scrubbed the rest of her with vengeance. After she was done, she got out of the shower and looked in the mirror, a airbrushed tan face looked at her, slightly sunburned, her lips pink and chapped, a few minor scratches and scars here and there, all would heal. She had a pretty face, but in a strange way like how when you look at one of M.C. Escher's pictures you never catch everything the first time and you have to look at it again. Never quite able to tell what it is or about. An Illusion from the very start, nothing completely real; and she knew it. After sighing at her reflection, she started to wash her clothes, if nothing more than to busy her hands.