Because You Found Me
By obi's girl

Summary: Betrayed and confused, Claire runs away and winds up at Peter's doorstep. What she doesn't realize when she arrives in New York several people are after her for various reasons.

Claire Bennet stared blankly out her bus window as small droplets of rain ran down over the glass. It didn't have to come to this, but Claire knew that she couldn't stay there anymore and pretend that nothing had changed. Six months ago, when she discovered her little "abnormality," she thought it was a fluke and enlisted Zack to help her understand.

What she didn't realize at the time was that her father already knew about her and hid it from her. After homecoming, when she finally came clean, Claire was horrified to learn that he knew about her but hadn't said anything. He promised her that her secret would remain a secret. Claire didn't think that her father would wipe her brother's memory or Zack's, but he had, and at one word from him, and her memories would be gone, too.

But…but Claire realized that, even if her memory was wiped, it wouldn't erase the fact that she would still be a target. That's why she had to leave. The memory of Jackie's murder during homecoming was still fresh in her mind, as were the events of that whole night, including meeting Peter. He was someone she didn't wish to forget. Claire wasn't even expecting him, but he knew to find her.

//Save the cheerleader, save the world. //

Claire still couldn't understand that. When she met Peter again at the police station, she hadn't had much time to ask what he meant, but at least she knew that she wasn't alone. Now she was heading to New York to be with her hero.

"Excuse me, passengers," a voice said over the intercom. "We'll be arriving in the Port Authority in thirty minutes. Please make sure you have all your belongings, and enjoy your trip!"

Claire checked her bag, and at the same time removed a small notebook from it. She'd jotted down Peter's name, notes about her father, the Haitian and other information. All she needed to do was look through a telephone book and find Peter.

"Claire, the school bus is arriving in twenty minutes. Come down and have a little breakfast before your brother eats it all," Mr. Bennet called up to his daughter. Lyle was already sitting at the table, eating pancakes. "Claire…" he warned again.

Suddenly, Mr. Bennet remembered the conversation he had had with Claire before she went to bed. She'd barely eaten her dinner, and he knew the events of homecoming were still bothering her. After dinner, he promised her again that there was no need to worry about anything. Her powers would remain a secret, and he had taken steps to make sure that no one knew about her. No one. Claire had only nodded, kissed him good night and quietly went to bed. Mr. Bennet looked at Lyle. "Check up on your sister, and tell her to come down for breakfast before the bus comes."

Lyle shrugged and ran upstairs, pounding on Claire's bedroom door. Mrs. Bennet stopped feeding the dog and looked at her husband. She knew that he felt that something was off. Before she could ask what was wrong, Lyle came back downstairs in a hurry.

"She's not there," Lyle said, panicked. "She's gone,"

"Sandra, call 911," Mr. Bennet instructed his wife, as she left the dog alone and went to the telephone. Lyle looked at his father, worried. "Get your things together. You don't want to be late for school," he said.

Lyle frowned. "But what about Claire?"

"Don't worry," he said evenly, "she'll be back." He smiled.

Lyle nodded okay, grabbed his backpack and went out to the bus stop.

Mr. Bennet sat down and started tapping his fingers lightly on the table. "She'll be back," he repeated. "She'll be back."

tbc