A/N: i was supposed to say this in the first chappie, but no, i didn't realize that Tatiana kinda has a look of Claire cuz she's strawberry blonde and has green eyes, but she's leaner than Claire. there, have at it. new chappie! enjoy!

Chapter 2: Chance

"Bennet."

"Hello, Noah."

"Sylar?!"

"Call me Gabriel, won't you? I've given up Sylar."

"Like hell, you have. How did you get this number?"

"Thanks to you, I have Nathan's memories, remember? Your number was one of them."

There was silence on the other end of the phone for a moment that made Sylar smile.

"What do you want?" Noah finally asked, not really caring.

"The Haitian," Sylar replied, simply.

"What the hell for?" Noah shot back, but Sylar could hear the interest in his voice.

"I have a bit of a problem, Noah," he explained, using his telekinesis to lift his empty cup from the table as he leaned on it to move it to his sink as he said, "This girl attacked me at the carnival for killing her brother."

"I'm not surprised," Noah shot back.

"I know you're not," Sylar retorted, looking toward his living room where Tatiana now sat on the couch, staring at the TV which had been shut off a long time ago from his lack of payments which stopped months ago. Thank goodness the water was still going and just the electricity was shut off. As it was now he was surrounded in sunlight from the open windows and talking on the girl's cell phone, not his house phone. "Anyway, she won't leave me alone, and I need the Haitian's power to keep her from attacking me so that I can talk to her civilly."

"And you called me to tell him to go to his death which is currently located at your location?" Noah shot back.

"My apartment," Sylar enlightened him. "And you can come with if you'd like. I don't plan on killing him for it."

"I don't think so, Sylar," Noah snapped back, mockingly and Sylar sighed in exasperation, leaning forward on the table.

"Look, I know you won't believe me, but I've stopped killing," he explained. "Ever since I got my body back I've been too---What's the word?---Guilt-ridden, I suppose, to kill anybody. I've changed, Noah. Peter and Matt can vouch for that."

"I know all about your little play at heroics at the carnival," Noah replied. "That doesn't change who you are. Who you were. We've played this game before, remember? When you came to work for the Company."

"This is different," Sylar argued. "I wasn't manipulated, or made to do it, it just happened. I'm sure it's hard for you to understand, but try, just a little."

There was silence on the other end as Sylar willed him to stop arguing and he smiled when he heard a defeated sigh on the other end.

"Fine," Noah groaned. "But I'm coming with René, and you had better leave me alone after this."

"Cross my heart and hope to die," Sylar smiled, and without a good bye, the phone clicked in his ear.

He hung up the phone and shoved it in his pocket as he leaned back in his chair for a moment before glancing around and he stood to head toward the couch and stand behind it, sighing in satisfaction at the fact that he was getting his way with Bennet as he leaned on the back of the couch.

He looked down at Tatiana and frowned slightly, saying, "You're awfully dirty. Go take a shower."

"I'll go take a shower," she said, absently and stood to head toward the bathroom.

Sylar followed her to give her towels before he headed into his room to look for something she could wear. It wasn't long before he heard a knock at the door and he rushed out of his room to answer it to find Noah looking very unhappy with René next to him as stoic as ever.

"Where's your 'problem,' Sylar?" Noah asked, shoving past him and into the room.

"Nice to see you too," Sylar muttered as he moved out of the way for René to step into the apartment. "She's in the shower."

"The shower?" Noah frowned in wonder. "I thought she wasn't being civil."

"Well, thanks to Eden's power I have her under control, somewhat," Sylar replied and smirked deviously when he saw Noah tense up even more at the mention of Eden. "Didn't think I'd remember who I got my powers from, did you?"

"It would be easier…" Noah began, changing the subject, "if we just erase you from her memory."

"It would," Sylar agreed, glancing to René. "But I've done enough damage already." Noah frowned but said nothing as Sylar continued, "When she comes out, she'll be really angry, but with the Haitian here, she won't be as much of a threat as she was when she caught up with me."

"Just out of curiosity," Noah chimed in. "What can she do?"

Sylar gave a devious smirk before heading toward the kitchen and said, "Wouldn't you like to know?" Noah glared at him before he called, "Want some water? I don't have anything else."

"What the hell?!"

Sylar gave a smirk, filling a glass with water from the sink as Noah and René looked to the hall to see Tatiana dripping wet and in nothing but a towel, her short, drenched blonde hair whipping around her face as she glanced around at them before turning a glare to Sylar.

"What the hell did you do to me?" she ground out as he looked up at her, swallowing to keep his composure at seeing her in almost nothing. He had to admit, even if she hated him, she was still pretty hot.

"Technically, nothing," he replied honestly, taking the glass of water he'd served to set it on the table. "I just persuaded you not to kill me for a while."

"Well, now that that's over…" she trailed off, lifting her hand, the other holding onto her towel, and rolled her wrist to claw at the air but nothing happened. Her shield didn't envelope Sylar like they had before, and even as she attempted it again, it still didn't work, making her stare at him in disbelief and wonder. "What the hell did you do?!"

"It's not what I'm doing," he corrected and gestured toward René and Noah who'd been standing silently to watch the scene, and she shot her gaze to them as Sylar continued, "Tatiana, meet Noah Bennet and the Haitian. The Haitian has this wonderful ability of neutralizing other's abilities. So as long as he's around, you can't use your power and neither can I. So for the moment, we're on a level playing field."

Tatiana shot her wide-eyed gaze back to him as he smirked triumphantly but her shock turned to a glare as she ground out, "You can't keep him here forever."

"No," Sylar agreed with a nod. "And I hadn't planned on keeping him here forever. Just long enough for us to have a nice conversation."

"What makes you think I wanna talk to you?" she ground out again.

"Because I know a lot more about you than you think I do," he retorted, making her look at him in shock again as René and Noah gave him frowns, all making him smirk at their expressions but he kept his focus on the blonde. "And now, you're intrigued." He gestured to the chair next to him and said, "Have a seat."

Tatiana glared at him for a moment then looked down at herself and decided to head back into the bathroom first. Sylar smirked as he took the glass on the table and took a sip, Noah and René looking to him.

"I see why you're keeping her around," Noah smirked, making Sylar give a slight frown as he set the glass down and stood to head toward the hall.

"What do you mean?" he wondered, honestly.

"Oh, come on, you're not blind," Noah retorted.

Sylar said nothing as he headed toward his room to find some clothes for Tatiana, only to have the bathroom door slam in his face as she heard his footsteps approaching. He gave a snicker and continued down the hall to his room to pull out a pair of shorts and a shirt she could wear.

He stopped at the bathroom door and knocked, calling, "I don't have any women's clothes, so these will have to do---"

"I'm not wearing any clothes of yours," she snapped through the door.

"Well, you're gonna have to for now," he called, noticing the clothes she'd been wearing sitting on the floor outside the bathroom. He smirked as he kicked them across the floor and through the door to his room as he flatly lied, "Your other clothes are in the washer downstairs."

Noah rolled his eyes as he decided to have a seat on the couch, but René remained standing. Sylar's super hearing picked up a curse on the other side of the door, making his smirk widen before the door opened slightly. A hand came out to snatch the clothes he was holding before the door slammed shut again. He strolled back to the kitchen and sat at the table, waiting for her to dress and come out.

"So who was her brother?" Noah wondered, shifting on the couch to face him as René leaned back on it, glancing around the apartment.

"Brian Davis," Sylar replied, taking another drink of his water. "His was the first power I stole."

"She's been pissed off at you for a while then, huh?" Noah smirked and Sylar glanced at him but said nothing as he heard angry footsteps march out of the bathroom and saw Tatiana scowling, her hair still damp as she marched toward the kitchen to sit herself in the chair next to him.

"Alright, I'm here," she snapped and leaned a little on the table, demanding, "Now what the hell do you know about me?"

"Funny that you didn't ask how I know so much about you," Sylar began, making her frown. "You asked what. The how doesn't matter to you, does it? It's never the how. Always the whys and whats of things."

"What are you getting at?" Tatiana spat, glaring at him and he smirked, deviously as he leaned on the table.

"You've never killed before, have you?" he asked and Tatiana's eyes shot wide before she looked away from him. That was all the answer he needed as he nodded and sat back in his chair. "That's what I thought. You acted like a rookie. You had me twice and you got cocky."

"You got to him twice?" Noah suddenly chimed in, drawing Sylar's attention. "Getting slow in your old age, are we Sylar?"

"Well I'm not you!" Tatiana snapped at Sylar, glaring at him and making him look at her again.

"No, you're not," he agreed, but said nothing else, knowing she had more to say.

"I'm not a psychopath who kills and takes what he wants from other Specials! From his own kind!" she ranted. "I've never killed, and I know I wouldn't even enjoy killing!"

Never know until you try, Sylar thought to himself and kept it to himself as he glanced at Noah, leaning on the table again and pointed out to her, "You're still alive. You think it I was still killing you'd be here talking to me?"

Tatiana opened her mouth to reply, but found herself without an answer as Sylar nodded when he noticed her loss for words.

René looked at Noah who glanced at him and admitted in a mumbled, "He has a point."

Tatiana closed her mouth again, casting her gaze down to her lap to twiddle her thumbs. He'd called on Lydia's power when he took her hand back on the street to look into her soul, and he decided it was time to use what he'd learned.

"You want your brother back," he voiced his findings, making her look up at him with wide eyes. "I can't give you that, and I know saying I'm sorry a thousand times won't make it any less painful, but if you give me a chance---try to see that I have changed, maybe you can find it in your heart to forgive me?"

Tatiana glared at him for a moment before looking away from him in thought. She didn't want to be around the man who'd killed her brother and so many other people, but she had no where else to go. She's been living at Samuel's carnival for weeks, and now that was gone too. If she didn't stay there, she'd be wandering the streets, still waiting for a chance to get Sylar while he was out and about. Then again, if she stayed there, she'd have a fair shot at him when he let his guard down.

Noah watched the girl carefully. He could tell she was thinking very carefully about this and he couldn't help but wonder why Sylar was keeping this girl around. It seemed like he had changed, but he knew Sylar wasn't one to tie himself to anyone whether he had changed or not or whether they were out to kill him or not. What was his angle with this one?

"Fine," Tatiana muttered, not looking at him. "Only if I can stay here. I have no where else to go."

"Certainly," he nodded, leaning back in his chair with a satisfied smile. "The couch is a pull-out. Make yourself at home."

She kept her gaze to her lap, still twiddling her thumbs as she muttered, "I need clothes."

"We'll go shopping a little later," he said, standing from his chair. "There's no food, so we'll have to eat out for now."

"Whatever," she muttered and looked over her shoulder at Noah and René before looking back to Sylar and saying, "I've already agreed to give you a chance, I think you can let these guys go now."

"Just getting to that," Sylar replied, heading toward the door and opening it, saying, "Thank you for your services, you can go now."

René headed toward the door as Noah stood from the couch but stopped in front of Sylar, making him frown, but the former Company agent only said, "Don't ever call me again, got it?"

"Yes, Sir," Sylar saluted, sarcastically with two fingers, and Noah only headed down the hall. As Sylar closed the door, he couldn't resist calling, "Say 'hi' to Claire for me."

He quickly shut the door and smirked deviously as he turned back to head down the hall to grab Tatiana's clothes and headed back to the door.

"I'll be right back," he called from the front door. "Gotta…check on your clothes."

Tatiana only nodded and when she heard the door shut, she sprung into action. She started looking for anything that could give a clue as to a weak spot. Something to bait him with. She'd have her revenge, she thought, and it would be a sweet as honey.

Sylar sighed as he used his telekinesis to lift each piece of clothing from the washer and twirled his finger in quick circles, making the clothing spin in the air until it was dry. He finished quickly and gathered the clothes to head back up to his apartment only to find it in half of a mess, Tatiana frozen in the middle of the living room. He frowned, looking around his apartment as he shut the door behind and looked up at Tatiana.

"What happened?" he asked, setting her clothes on the couch.

"Nothing," Tatiana cracked, and though a slight tingle ran through him, he didn't need his lie detecting power to know she was lying.

He heard her swallow as he stood directly in front of her and said, "You're lying. And you're not very good at it."

Her gaze shifted and she flopped onto the couch, knowing she was caught and she snapped, "Ok, ok. I was looking for something. Something to take you down with but you don't have anything revealing in this shit apartment. Just bloody hand prints on the door."

She gazed at the door and he heard her swallow again. He didn't blame her. He knew it looked creepy having his bloody hand prints on the door. It was the mark of his second kill and he made a mental note to clean that up when he got the chance.

"Well, I'm glad you got that out of your system," he smirked, picking up her clothes again and handing them to her. "Here are your clothes. Fresh from the wash."

Tatiana glared at him, snatching them from him and walked around him to head for the bathroom without a word.

"You're welcome," he called, but the only response he got was the slam of the bathroom door.

Sylar sighed and headed down the hall to his room to find his stash of emergency money on a high shelf in an old tin can. It may have been cliché, but it worked. He used his telekinesis to take it down and blew on the lid, dusty from neglect. He popped the top and pulled out the wad of money to stuff it into his jacket pocket and head back down the hall. Just as he passed the bathroom, the door opened and Tatiana stepped out, combing her fingers through her still damp hair, and he finally got a good look at what she'd been wearing.

She wore a tiny white shirt beneath a short denim jacket with purple short shorts and knee high black boots that had purple laces at the top. He guessed she'd been part of the carnival by her dress, but he couldn't help but wonder how she'd ended up still there, and not with the others, wherever Hiro had taken them. He shrugged it off and headed to the front door, knowing she was glaring at him, but he didn't care.

"You coming?" he asked, opening the door and facing her as she frowned at him.

"Where?" she asked.

"The store," he replied. "I don't know what you'd wanna eat so you're gonna have to tell me, unless you come with."

Tatiana glanced around and suddenly felt her stomach roll with hunger making her nod and step toward the door as he still held it open. She stepped into the hall and he closed it behind him as he stepped out as well and locked the door.

"Can we stop somewhere to eat first?" she requested a bit reluctantly and he only nodded, pulling out the money from his pocket and counting through it as they headed down the hall.

"Here," he said handing her some of it and she frowned at it before taking it.

"What's this for?" she wondered, counting it.

"In case you decide to ditch me," he shrugged.

"What do you care if I have money?" she wondered.

"Just hold onto it," he replied, irritably. "Can you do that?"

"Whatever," she shrugged, shoving the money into her pocket and Sylar sighed. This was going to be fun, he could tell already.

A/N: yeah, i couldn't remember how his apartment was laid out, so i wasn't too specific about it. reviews?