Hey guys not so long with the update this time, I am trying at any rate. Anyway this is something of a slow chapter since I'm trying to think of a reasonable way to get all of these characters to meet. So far I think it's working out nicely, but you won't hear much from Sylar maybe another two chapters. I am following the storyline (albeit roughly). And until Sylar actually meets Tehya there will be mum from his POV. It'd be kind of pointless really because it would be like me telling the show over again. Oh yeah, and the reason that I keep changing Tehya's name is because of the way that she thinks. She won't think of herself as Tehya because she's afraid of stepping backwards into her past. She wants to try to forget and be strong for her brother. Anyway I don't own Heroes it belongs to Tim Kring...read and review, on with the show!
Andrea shuffled nervously in her seat. She was still adapting to the fact that she was going back to New York, back to where all of the problems had gotten to be so big. Her stomach clenched as she thought of what she left behind. She wasn't even positive that going back to New York was a good idea in the first place. They had changed their names, walked on glass for a good ten years of their lives and now they were about to face it all again. However, the stakes were higher this time. Claude had said that if Peter lost control there was a good chance that New York would be completely destroyed. Nothing would be left. And Andrea wasn't entirely sure, but if Gabriel were still there she couldn't imagine just leaving him to his fate. Andrea glanced over at her brother. He was sleeping by the window seat, but looked completely uncomfortable. The chairs were too small for his lanky frame to fit comfortably and the woman in front of them had reclined the chair slightly making his knees scrunch up slightly. She didn't want to drag her brother into this mess again. She had thought about letting him stay in Europe and finish out his courses, but then she thought of leaving alone and what had happened the last time. The last time had been ten years ago, but the damage had ruled over their lives. Zaya didn't have very many friends, she had never discouraged it, but she thought that maybe he had been too afraid of upholding their identities. She did it too, at work. She found that she enjoyed nursing and that she was quite good at it and coupled with her ability she could save many lives, but at the risk of being noticed she hid her talents, and never tried to become a doctor.
"What's the point, Tehya, I mean really!?"
"Zaya..."
"No! Look at us, we're always hiding! I can't-I hate this, and you-you can't even be a doctor because we both know that you'd be too good at it. People would notice, we'd get caught end of story!"
"I know, I know, but we have to stay hidden. Claude did this so we could be safe!"
"Safe? Look around Tehya, we'll never be safe! We're Aida and Jayden, and as for Tehya and Zaya they're as good as dead!"
Andrea remembered grabbing her brother by the shoulders. He had only been twelve, why did she have to force this life on him? She knew that this life meant never living up to their full potential and that they would always be living cheap half lives. He could never be too smart in class, she could never be too talented, and she could never open her heart to anyone else again. When Zaya had ranted and screamed about their fate she had wanted to do the same thing. She wanted to fly back to New York and make Gabriel remember. She wanted him to wake up and know how much she loved him. And really wasn't that the reason she was heading back to the States? She could say that she wanted to save the world, but she also knew that when she was done with the Company she would seek him out. She wondered what he was like now. Did he still fix watches? Did his brows still furrow anxiously, and were his hands still gentle? She could have told Claude to keep an eye out for him, but at the same time she couldn't. She would have wanted to go back at any sign of his troubles and put her brother's life at risk. She had hated choosing to lose him, but it had been the only way. At night she would close her eyes and pray that he was safe and that his parents loved him the way the should have.
-------------------------
The plane touched down about twelve hours later and at that point Andrea realized there was no way she would ever voluntarily step into such a long flight again. She had forgotten how horrible it was to sit still for so long. She drowned out the droning voice of the flight attendant, and shook her brother awake. He always seemed to be asleep in the most awkward positions. One leg was hoisted up onto the seat and the other one was stretched out crookedly beneath her seat. He mumbled softly as he tried to shrug away her hand, but she remained persistent.
"Kid, we're here. Come on!"
"Nggghh..."
"Oh, no not this again! Come on Jason, wake up!"
Andrea began to tug at his energy, running it over his own. She knew that it was the weirdest sensation having your lifeforce being pushed and pulled back into your body. She grinned when he woke up with a shuddering gasp. He glared at her but couldn't get himself to be angry.
"Here...already," he yawned as he stretched his arms over his head.
"You've been knocked out for the better part of nine hours."
"We don't all have boundless amounts of energy ya know."
It was true. Before the trip she and Claude had gone over their new identities with him until they were out the door with their luggage in hand. They had to remember their fake social security numbers, places of birth, old schools, past friends, all sorts of tidbits that real lives held. Shedding their old identities was almost as trying as their real ones, they had had them so long. She knew that Zaya had been so tired and frustrated that he couldn't remember every detail. Claude was patient with them both though. And now here they were touching down in JFK airport.
-------------
Zaya remained silent throughout the taxi ride. He peered out of the window and looked around at the people, all of them moving, with somewhere to be, with someone to meet, with some purpose to their lives. He didn't feel like that. He couldn't remember the last time he had ever headed toward something, and now... For the first time that he could look back on they were meeting their fears head on. He wanted it though. He wanted to meet the people that ran the Company and shove ten years of suffering, fear, and anger down their throats. He wanted to see them squirm for once. He was tired of the lies that he had to tell, that now came so easily to his lips. He wanted to use his power and show them what he could do. Tehya was always angry when he used his powers. He knew that she was simply being the oldest and being afraid for him. She didn't want them ending up like their parents. Even in the light of day a ripple passed through him as he thought of that day. He had never seen blood like that, and the frozen look on his parents faces, that look of horror, it wrenched at his heart strings.
He looked over at Tehya whose eyes were closed, but he knew she wasn't really asleep. He knew that she was searching out for others like them or for danger that they would have to avoid. He could feel little wisps of her energy move over him comfortingly and out into the city beyond. His power didn't work quite the way hers did, but he could still feel hers at work. Despite her admonishments he had trained hard with his gift because he had been certain this day would come.
"Anything," he whispered to her softly.
"Nothing spectacular. Claude said that he'd feel...full."
"Full?"
"Yeah, he can take in all sorts of ya know, talents, and copy them. So if he's been around a lotta people, he should be...full."
"And you think you can find him like this, in New York City?"
"I dunno, but I am rusty and it doesn't hurt to try," she said grinning at him. Zaya couldn't help but smile back at her. It was rare seeing a real smile coming from her. There had always been a twinge of bitterness since they had left the States. She took her happiness with a grain of salt and then some. He knew it was partly their lifestyle and partly because she had to leave Gabriel behind. She didn't speak of him much, hardly even let the word Brooklyn pass her lips, but there were times when she would stop whatever she was doing and just stare off into space. He knew then that she would never forget Gabriel.
----------------
"Found him," she whispered as she sat in her hotel room. He felt strange, a lot different than she had expected. He was powerful. She sent the energy she borrowed back to the sleeping guests of the hotel, back to the plants scattered throughout the area, back to the pets that some people had cleverly snuck into the hotel. She danced over the energy she had found carefully examining it like a jeweler over a particularly precious piece. He was someplace familiar, not to her, but someplace quite famous. She never told her brother that she had gotten better at her power, a lot better. Her powers had grown exponentially as she had grown older. It took more energy for her to lose control, and she could scan miles and miles of territory before hitting a limit, in fact there really wasn't a limit. She was only stopped by fear. Her power fed off of energy and that certainly wasn't in short supply so in theory her power didn't have boundaries.
"Hey!"
"Zaya! Don't scare me like that!"
"Sorry. You find this Peter guy, yet?"
"Yeah, he's in some mansion."
"A mansion?!"
"Yeah, guess the guy's well off. But it's strange I'm picking up another power, not as bad a his, but still it's a little creepy."
"Whaddaya mean?"
"Well the other one reminds me of...me. It's hungry and it wants more."
"Hmm, think maybe somebody has an ability like yours?"
"I dunno, this is New York, could happen right?"
Zaya shrugged and glanced at the door.
"Fine, let's just go meet this Peter guy and get this over and done with."
"You sure you can keep tabs on him once we're on the move?"
"Pretty sure."
Zaya lifted an eyebrow at his suddenly confident sister. She smiled nervously under his scrutiny.
"What?"
"You've been training your powers haven't you?!?"
Andrea frowned guiltily her green eyes lowering. She raised up hand and made a small space between her pointer finger and her thumb, "Just this much."
"I knew it!"
Andrea looked at her brother her eyes taking on a puppy do like quality. Zaya sighed in exasperation, she was too good at diffusing his anger.
"Fine, I'll get my jacket," he huffed," but I wanna drive the rental!"
