Title: Connecting Roses
Author: Bunny
Rating: T
Disclaimer: Really not mine.

Summary: Post- Let it Bleed. Sylar leaves Claire a trail of breadcrumbs so she will discover what he needs.

A/N: At the moment it looks like this is going to be about 14 chapters, but I'm still tweaking the ending. Anyhoo, here's a short chappie, but I'll be posting again on Saturday.

Claire sighed scratching her neck. Ever since the earthquake the previous night she had been agitated and a little moody. The dorm still stood intact, but everything had fallen off shelves and desks in all rooms. Unfortunately, classes hadn't been canceled so both Claire and Gretchen had to leave their room an utter mess.

And her moodiness also stemmed from that kiss that had been interrupted.

She groaned thinking of it again, rubbing the back of her neck. Gretchen thankfully had been preoccupied by the tremors and state of the dorm that she hadn't had a chance to ask what happened between her and Sylar.

Stepping around the piles of trash bags in the hall Claire unlocked her door, not looking as she tossed her book bag on her bed. The loud "Ooph!" made her spin around and shriek. Sylar sat up off her bed dropping the bag to the floor.

The happiness to see him was overshadowed by her annoyance of being startled. "What are you doing here?"

"Gretchen said I could wait here for you."

"Not your smoothest entrance," she replied, sitting on the foot of her bed. "Sorry about how everything looks."

"It's fine."

Scooting back to lean against the wall Claire sighed. "I really wish I had a number for The Carnival. To ask what happened or even just to know they're okay." Remembering her short time there, she looked over to Sylar. "What did you think of it? The Carnival, I mean."

Sitting up beside her, he delayed his answer. "My memories there are fuzzy since I was there when my mind was split. But everyone had a purpose and they embraced it. They thrived in their roles and supported each other." He confessed softly. "Their bond was something to be envious of."

"I know." Slipping his hand into hers she shared in his revelation. "When I was there the first time Samuel showed me his plans to create an Eden. He found a man who could manipulate plant growth, so the valley transformed into a paradise." Leaning her head on her shoulder, Claire sighed. "Even though he's hiding something else, it's a nice plan. Giving people with abilities a safe place."

"It would be nice if it wasn't so difficult to find them."

"Not unless you have a compass guide." Going over to her desk, Claire pulled the compass out of a drawer presenting it in her right hand. Sylar came over to where she stood. She flipped open the cover, both watching as the rapid spinning arrow stopped suddenly pointing just to the left of her. "Sometimes it's nice to remember there's a place you can go where you'll be accepted no matter what."

Placing his hand over hers, Sylar closed the compass. He took his fingers to lift her chin up to face him. "What makes you think you aren't accepted?"

There wasn't anything particularly sexy or alluring about the way he said it, but his tone of voice made the statement genuine.

That was the reason Claire took a quick step towards him, pressing her lips to his. Sylar's initial shock was taken care of promptly as his arms snaked around her waist holding her firmly against himself. Claire gripped his shirt with her right hand while her left reached up to wrench his head closer to her. Gasping for air she opened her mouth, giving him opportunity to explore it. The only sound the room held was their frantic pants for air as the two grasped at each other more.

That was why Claire barely heard the knock on her door. "Ignore it," she whispered, in between kisses. "I locked it when I came in." She was able to disregard the knocking once more, as she was happily distracted by Sylar's mouth trailing up her jaw. But the voice she heard made her freeze all actions cold in their tracks.

"Claire?" asked Noah, knocking once again. "Are you in there?"

"Oh, crap." Pushing Sylar away she couldn't help but panic slightly, frantically looking around the room. "Can you go out the window? Or hide in the closet? Or –"

Catching her head in his hands, Sylar kissed her once more causing her spine to melt slightly. How could such a simple kiss like that make her so weak? "Answer the door."

"Claire?" knocked Noah. "I can hear someone in there."

"But what about –"

"Just answer the door."

His incredible calm bothered her, but she went ahead and turned to the door. Opening it a crack she beamed. "Dad! What are you doing here?"

"We were supposed to have lunch, remember?"

"That was supposed to be Thursday," she corrected, inwardly cursing his inability to tell time.

"And it is Tuesday, isn't it." Looking apologetic, Noah continued. "Is today a bad time? I could come back on Thursday if its better."

"No, today's fine. Just let me grab my bag." Swinging the door closed, Claire expected it to click, but Noah pushed it wide open. "No!"

"Hello, Noah," came Gretchen's voice from behind Claire. She swallowed the anxious laugh that bubbled from her throat. Of course. Shape-shifter. Duh.

"Hello, Gretchen," greeted Noah, before turning back to his daughter. "Claire, is everything alright?"

Taking a moment to catch up she nodded. "Yeah. I'm just really embarrassed about the room. That's all." Smiling tightly, she picked up her purse.

"It's not that bad." Noah switched back to address the other person in the room. "You're more than welcome to join us if you'd like."

Gretchen's form shook her head. "No, I have to be somewhere else about now, so I'm going to go." Waving, 'Gretchen' exited the room. "See you later, Claire. Bye Noah."

Once Sylar left Claire exhaled a long breath she didn't know she was holding. "Dad, would you mind waiting in the lobby? I just want to freshen up real quick."

"No problem," smiled Noah, leaving her alone.

Claire let out another long sigh. This thing with Sylar certainly wasn't going to be easy, that was certain. Grabbing a change of clothes from the closet Claire saw a single stemmed red rose sitting on her desk. Picking it up, she inhaled the fragrance deeply.

Wouldn't be easy, but in the end more than worth it.

***

Noah walked around the lobby a few times waiting for his daughter. He had been extremely relieved when his Claire-Bear called saying she wanted to have lunch, even though he had caught the wrong day. Lauren had been right, burnt bridges could be rebuilt.

"Hi-ya, Mr. B!" He turned around surprised to see Gretchen standing behind him, backpack over her shoulder. "Are you here to see Claire?"

"Yes, I am." He paused looking back to the stairs, checking if his daughter came down. "I thought I just saw you upstairs."

Appearing perplexed, Gretchen shook her head. "No, I've been at class the past two hours. I'm actually just cutting through to get to my next one."

Panic clenched Noah's stomach as he smiled tightly. The Gretchen in the dorm room hadn't been Gretchen. "Well, it was good to see you anyway."

Waving enthusiastically she headed down the hall. "Later, Mr. B!"

Also waving farewell, Noah pulled out his phone hitting speed dial. "It's me. Sylar's already made contact with her." Waiting, he listened to the reply. "I'm not sure if she realizes it yet." Again, he listened to the response pinching his forehead to relieve tension. "Angela, it would help if you just told me what you saw." Glancing up he saw Claire bounding down the stairs. "I have to go, but I'll try to get her to talk."