Author's Notes: Sorry, guys! I know I'm late. I am bad.

GinaStar: Yes, I do love my cliffies. I have to make sure you'll be back!

kitsune: Yeah, I am nasty to them. Hey, what's TT mean? I can't figure it out!

Terrific Tina: Gonna havta read and find out I'm afraid...

gaap237: I'm glad mine's the first. Hope it lives up to your expectations!

markim: The answers are within.

Kitsu...Hey, I talked to you already!

Heroes Don't Always Wear Spandex

Chapter 4

The group were in Command, now, Kat analysing Boom's results as they came in, Syd and Z trying to entertain Micah. Nathan, Mohinder and Matt were all on their phones; Mohinder was attempting to explain to the DMA what was happening without actually telling them, and arranging to have Niki and Micah picked up. Matt was trying to track down DL and Hiro and Ando, and Nathan…well, no one really knew what he was doing. He was very carefully not letting them overhear, and Matt kept blocking them when they wandered close enough to listen.

"Sir?" Jack said quietly. Cruger tilted his head to listen, but he didn't look away from Nathan. "Z and I could go see if we can find anything out. Piggy might have heard something…it's worth a try, sir."

"I believe that is Matt's plan," Cruger said neutrally.

"So we'll have somewhere for him to start. He's still got to get his people here."

"Hello, Newtech!"

Everyone spun to look at the two Japanese men who had literally appeared in the centre of the room. Jack and Sky both drew their weapons when they saw the sword slung across one man's back, and he paled, backing into his friend. Matt lowered his phone, stepping forward hastily.

"Hiro! Great…Commander Cruger, this is Hiro Nakamura and Ando Masahashi. They're part of our team."

"The getting past security part, apparently," Jack said pointedly.

"Oh! Apologies." Hiro bowed. "Was told, emergency. Stopped time to get here." He looked at Matt. "Wrong?"

"No, it's fine. We just didn't have time to warn them," Matt said. Looking back at Cruger, he continued, "Hiro can stop time. I'm literally just off the phone with them."

Cruger growled mildly, and he added, "But they should have stopped outside and gotten permission to come in."

Ando had been murmuring a running translation for Hiro, who now stepped forward again. "Very sorry. Was hurrying for Peter Petrelli, yes? Very worried."

Nathan finally switched off his phone, coming forward to greet Hiro and Ando. "That's my fault, Commander," he told Cruger. "I didn't make it clear to them. But I'll vouch for them."

"Sir, the car is here for the Sanders," Mohinder said.

"Good," Nathan said, running a hand through his hair before crossing to hunker in front of the Sanders. "I'm sorry you got caught in this. Probably wasn't as much fun as you were hoping, huh?"

Micah grinned. "I got to see the Zords."

"That's good." Nathan smiled genuinely at him. "That's good. Niki…"

"I know. None of it happened." She smiled faintly. "Please let us know?"

"I will," Nathan agreed. "Thank you."

"Sky," Cruger said, "take the Sanders up to their car, and have Nakamura and Masahashi checked in properly."

"Aye sir," Sky agreed, gesturing them out of the room.

Niki hesitated in the doorway, looking back at Nathan. "I could help."

"No, Jessica. Take your son home." He crossed to say something very quietly to her, and she nodded, eyes fierce.

"Yeah. I will."

"Thanks," he murmured, turning away as she left.

"Was that wise?" Matt asked quietly.

"She's the only one who can," Nathan told him. "What about DL?"

"He's waiting for Hiro. He's ready to go."

"OK then." Nathan grimaced as his mobile rang, turning away. "Petrelli."

Jack glanced at Z, who'd been standing much closer to Nathan, and raised an eyebrow. She shook her head, spreading her hands, and he shrugged.

"Ah well…sir? Can Z and I go?"

Cruger nodded. "Stay in contact. Constant contact, Jack."

"Aye sir," Jack agreed. "Syd! Z and I are going to find Piggy. Keep your morpher open, we're staying on the line, ok?"

Syd nodded, pulling out her morpher. Jack made the connection and then nodded, heading away.

Halfway up the corridor they met Sky, leading Hiro and Ando back. Halting them, he drew Jack to one side.

"Jack. Did you hear what Nathan told Sanders?"

"No. What?"

Sky cast a cautious look at Hiro and Ando; Z was blocking them, standing too far away to hear. "He told her if she sees Peter, if we haven't called her to tell her he's safe, she's to kill him."

Jack choked for a second. "Kill…she's supposed to do that?" He frowned. "Nathan told Matt she was the only one who could."

"Jack, if Bridge gets out…"

"We're going to see Piggy. We're gonna find him, Sky."

"Yeah," Sky agreed, but he didn't look so sure. "I'm gonna get these guys back to Command."

"Matt said someone was waiting for Hiro. If he's bringing other people in, make sure he checks them in this time, will you? We have to go."

"Yeah," Sky agreed.

"We won't be long.—Z! Let's go."

Hiro bowed as they passed—it seemed to be his default setting—and Sky sighed, starting back towards Command again.

Peter was still curled into the corner. Bridge had been gone for a long time, long enough that Peter was starting to wonder if he'd actually been there at all; maybe he really was crazy this time.

The drugs were starting to confuse him; he knew, sort of, that he hadn't been in the room all the time, but he couldn't track what had happened. There were bruises in both elbows now, though, so at the very least there'd been more injections.

Footsteps sounded outside and Peter flinched, pulling in tighter on himself. Noise never meant anything good; it was always quiet, unless they were coming.

The door opened, and the light outside burned his eyes; hissing, he threw up one hand to shield himself.

"Peter?" Footsteps came across the room and a hand touched him. Peter flinched despite himself. "It's ok, Peter, it's me."

"Nathan," he breathed, dropping his hand. Nathan nodded, hunkering uncertainly in front of him.

"Yeah, buddy, it's me. Are you…did they do anything to you?"

"No…" Peter leaned forward, burying his face against Nathan's chest. Nathan stiffened, just for a second, before relaxing and wrapping his arms around him. "They didn't…I don't think they had time. They took Bridge…"

He stiffened, suddenly remembering. "Bridge! Is he…"

"We have him," Nathan promised. "It's ok. Peter, listen. We need to know what they did."

"They didn't…do anything." Peter leaned back, slipping out of Nathan's arms. "They just gave me the stuff, they knocked out my powers."

"No." Nathan shook his head. "We know they gave you something, Peter, Bridge told us."

"Bridge hasn't been here forever. What are…" Peter shook his head, scrambling to his feet and stepping over Nathan into the centre of the room. "You're not…"

Nathan rose slowly to his feet but didn't chase him. "Peter, this is the drugs. Remember? This happened before."

"No." Peter was aware that he was swaying on his feet, but the walls seemed to be moving and he was afraid to try and lean on one. His head was throbbing, almost ready to split open, and the lights in the room were dimming and flaring in time with the throb. "No. This…you're not him. You're not. I can…don't come near me!"

Nathan halted, hands up passively. "Ok, Peter. OK. I'm not him, that's fine. Matt's waiting, though. You wanna call him?"

Peter shook his head fiercely; the burst of pain almost put him on his knees, but he recovered before Nathan could touch him. "No! This isn't…"

"Peter. Listen to me. The drugs are just confusing you, ok? We need to know what they did, so we can help you."

Involuntarily, Peter looked down at his arms. "I don't…"

Nathan was directly in front of him when he looked up, eyes on his arms. "They did that?"

"It didn't…it just knocked my powers out."

"And screwed you halfway to hell. Peter, did it work?"

"Did what…"

"What they were trying to do. Did it work?"

Peter backed away from him again, wishing his head would stop throbbing. "You're not…"

Nathan sighed, looking over Peter's shoulder. "It's not working!"

Peter spun; the movement made the whole room spin around him, and when his vision cleared he was on his knees, gasping.

Nathan crouched, studying him. "You couldn't just accept it, could you?" he asked, almost angrily. "You always had to fight everything."

"You're not Nathan," Peter gasped.

"You always were the smart one," Nathan agreed. "Doesn't matter. We'll get there."

Peter dropped his head, blinking hard as the lights flared brighter. When his eyes cleared Nathan was gone; a dark haired man was hunkered there, watching him. Peter recoiled, banging into the wall. The man pushed to his feet, stepping over him to head for the door.

"Wait," Peter pleaded. "I can't…"

"Your friend'll be back soon. He's not been as stubborn as you." The man grinned. "Enjoy yourself."

The door clanged behind him, locking Peter alone in the darkness.

"No. There was no surgery," Mohinder said. "Peter bore no wounds when we retrieved him, save for where he had received injections or IVs. Whatever they did was chemical in nature—which I suspect may have been deliberate."

"Why?" Kat asked. Boom, beside her, was quiet and pale, but he was listening every bit as intently as she was.

"There is a Meta who heals herself, instantaneously." Mohinder was being deliberately vague, Kat thought absently, but she couldn't blame him for that. "When Peter is near enough to—this Meta—he can heal himself, too."

"But it doesn't work for drugs?" Kat asked.

"It didn't, no." Mohinder smiled faintly. "Peter was training to be a nurse, once. He wanted very much to help others. Now he cannot tolerate needles, or IVs. I wore a lab coat, once, and he refused to speak to me for three days."

"You're a doctor?" Boom asked.

"My training was in genetics. A long time ago, before I met Peter. And Nathan." He glanced away as he spoke; Nathan was dozing uneasily, head pillowed on his arms on the central console. Matt sat next to him, trying to concentrate on a report Boom had given him; he hadn't turned a page in at least ten minutes, though, and his eyes were focused somewhere far away.

"How'd you go from genetics to PA?" Boom asked.

Mohinder smiled again. "Things have a way of rearranging themselves around Peter Petrelli. The DMA needed me."

"But you weren't going to take the job," Kat said slowly. "You were going back to India, I remember reading it."

"Like I said. Things have a way of rearranging themselves around Peter Petrelli. He…sees things differently than most people. And when you speak to him his vision becomes yours." He glanced at Nathan again. "I must speak with Nathan. Excuse me."

Nathan jerked awake when Mohinder laid a hand on his shoulder; well used to dealing with him, Mohinder offered coffee and waited for him to drink it before beginning to speak.

"Jack called in a few minutes ago. They have a possible lead. Hiro and Ando have gone to meet him."

"Ok," Nathan agreed, scrubbing his face. "That's good. What else?"

Mohinder shrugged. "You seemed uneasily. I thought it best to wake you, before anything—untoward happened."

Nathan grimaced, dropping his eyes. "Peter's in trouble."

"Yes. I believe we established that," Mohinder agreed.

"No, I mean…" Nathan rubbed at his forehead. "He's really in trouble."

Mohinder nodded, leaning over to poke Matt. When Matt didn't respond he formed the thought as clearly as he could—Matt, come back, we need you—and held it in the front of his mind until Matt said, startled, "What? What."

"Find anything?" Nathan asked, lifting the coffee cup again.

"A headache," Matt muttered. Mohinder dug out the painkillers he habitually carried, passing them over with a glass of water. "Nothing useful, though. Sorry."

"Nathan feels Peter's situation is deteriorating," Mohinder said neutrally. Nathan and Peter had demonstrated, time and again, that they didn't need to be contact to know what the other was experiencing. But it seemed likely Nathan was projecting this time. Mohinder would have believed Peter, if the situations were reversed, but Nathan always had a harder time with it.

"Great," Matt sighed, swallowing the last of the water. "Time limit…Jack's lead didn't pan out. They're on the way back."

"Good. That's all we need," Mohinder commented, passing Matt a cup of coffee.

"I heard what you were saying," Matt told him. "You believe that?"

"What were you saying?" Nathan asked, looking from one to another.

"That destiny bends in the presence of your brother." Mohinder's gaze was serious; they'd had this conversation before.

"Right," Nathan said tiredly. He hadn't believed it the last time, either.

"Yes," Mohinder added to Matt. "I believe it."

"Why aren't they back yet?" Nathan said abruptly. The raised voice caught Sky's attention, and he came across to the group.

"Something wrong, Secretary?"

Mohinder quickly shook his head. "We're waiting for the others to return. The Secretary is simply—worried."

"They're on the way back in," Sky offered. "They won't be long."

"We're used to Hiro coming and going straight away," Matt explained. "He can't do it with your friends along."

Sky shrugged apologetically. "They won't be long. Do you need anything?"

Mohinder smiled. "Coffee would be nice, thank you."

Sky nodded, glancing once at Matt and Nathan before turning away, leaning out the door to catch the nearest cadet.

"I like him," Nathan said abruptly.

"The feeling is not mutual, believe me," Matt said.

"No, I don't suppose it is." He glanced at Mohinder. "There are laws, Mohinder. We wrote them."

"Laws should never be absolute, Nathan."

"These laws are there for a reason. Peter could have been in real trouble."

"Maybe Peter needs to start getting in trouble," Matt commented, swallowing another two painkillers. Nathan glared at him, and he shrugged. "You've all but had him locked up for the last three years, Nathan, and yeah, he's better than he was then, but he's not getting any better. He hasn't for a long time."

"I'm not discussing this," Nathan said sharply, turning away.

"That would be the bias, then," Mohinder murmured, smiling innocently when Nathan turned to glare at him.

"I am not biased, alright? I hire plenty of normal people."

"You do now, to spare Peter," Mohinder agreed.

"Well at least I'm not hiring petty thieves!"

"DL will be so glad to hear it," Matt muttered.

Mohinder shook his head. "The DMA was founded only by Meta, Nathan. You know it. You founded it."

"This is not the time to discuss this," Nathan warned him.

Mohinder looked away innocently; Matt choked on his drink, glaring at him, but they were spared explaining when Sky came back with three coffees.

"The others just checked in upstairs. They'll be here in a minute," he told them.

"Good. Thank you," Nathan said wearily, reaching for the coffee.

Matt's phone rang, and he pushed away from the table to answer it. Nathan stretched, rising to his feet as Jack and the others came in.

Hiro was already babbling as they came in, Ando half a step behind him. Z trailed them towards the table, dropping into an empty seat and propping her head up on her hand.

"We tried many sources," Ando told Nathan and Mohinder, ignoring Hiro's agitated babble. "Z and Jack tried very hard. But no one knows."

"Someone's got to know something," Nathan protested. "What about...what, Hiro, what?"

"Ah..." Hiro hesitated, turning to Ando and speaking rapidly.

"He thinks Matt should come and talk to one source. He thinks she was untruthful, perhaps afraid of SPD."

"Alright," Nathan agreed. "Where is…Matt! Hiro, can you teleport yourselves there?"

"Teleport?" Z repeated. "I thought Hiro stopped time."

Nathan blinked. "Slip of the tongue. Hiro?"

"We go right now," Hiro agreed. "Not be long."

"Ok," Nathan agreed. "Matt, you up to date?"

"Enough, yeah."

"Good. Go."

Both were gone before Z could react and she grimaced, settling back into her seat as Nathan walked away again, back on his mobile. "You people are very confusing."

"We do it deliberately," Mohinder told her seriously, and she smiled.

"Yeah. Ando, do you want a coffee, or something to eat?"

"No thank you!" Ando bowed; she mimicked the movement somewhat awkwardly, and went to talk to Syd.

"Really nothing?" Mohinder asked.

Ando shrugged. "Snatches. Nothing helpful. Some knew something had happened; Jack and Z are well respected on the streets, it seems. But none had anything helpful."

"Damn," Mohinder muttered.

"Mohinder," Ando murmured. "We are concealing their powers?"

"Not exactly. We just…don't want to share everything."

"We do not trust these people?"

"We trust them. We simply do not wish to share everything with them." He shrugged. "They are not sharing everything with us."

"They are afraid of us. Jack wished to know much about the DMA and how it operates."

"And what did you tell him?"

"That I could not tell him. We do not work for or with the DMA."

"Good."

Matt and Hiro reappeared; Hiro looked tired, sliding into the nearest chair.

"Nathan!" Matt called, glancing around the room. "Where's Cruger?"

"He had to go deal with something in the living quarters," Jack offered. "What is it?"

"We may have found them."