Sylar held the door open as he stepped outside, and Hiro cautiously followed a safe distance behind him. Sylar heard Angela's protestations of "be carefully not to let Peter see you all!" and ignored her. His mind drifted back to the rushed conversation he had with her the late evening prior.
"We haven't heard from you at all, we were beginning to think you weren't coming. Peter would be really disappointed if you didn't show."..."Will you be sure to pick the package up by 6 before they close?"
Here he had been thinking she was talking about the black tie event, even when Claire had brought up Peter's birthday and cake. How could he have possibly misinterpreted her? Stupid, stupid! This whole beach house plan had been laid out for them and they missed it completely. With his incredible skills of intuition, he couldn't believe that he hadn't clued in. However, it was clear that there had been important distractions recently, like Claire's assault. It suddenly dawned on him that miscommunication was bound to happen with the way he had been avoiding the group lately. He had become so accustomed to keeping everyone but Claire at arm's length that anything outside their sphere just became white noise. Perhaps this was due to his discontentment with the desk job work or his fixation on Claire over those lonely months in her absence. Either way, his distraction had caused the first threads to unravel. Now this social circle that he had so longed for was on thin ice, not to mention his shaky position with Claire. If things were to go sour tonight, he feared his waking life would soon transform into that lonely city.
He walked around the corner of the veranda and scanned the garden. There was no one else in sight in the dim evening glow. When he turned back to face his guest, he wasn't surprised to find that not only had Hiro followed, but Ando as well. He wasn't too thrilled about this, but he didn't have time to debate it. The two observed at him apprehensively. It was now completely dark except for the moon hiding behind the willow. The sea was a faint glimmer beyond the silhouettes of lilacs, its slumbering body shifting and breathing slowly against the shore. For a moment Sylar found himself breathing in synchrony with its inhales and exhales, yearning to share in its contentment. Instead, his blood thrummed and he found his sensitive ear's deafened by his own racing heartbeat. Sylar glanced at the sea longingly for a moment more before turning his attention back to his two companions.
"Hiro," he sighed, "I need your help."
"OK, Brainm– Sylar, what do you need us to carry?"
"Not with that, actually. I lied before. I need your help with something else."
Hiro's cocked his head before exchanging an inquisitive glance with Ando. "OK, with what?"
After a heavy breath, Sylar met Hiro's attentive gaze. "I need to borrow your powers."
Hiro's eyes widened and he took a step back from Sylar, while one of his hands reached for the paint-chipped veranda post. "My… powers?" His face was flushed with fear. Ando took a defensive stance in front of Hiro, and Sylar saw his hands briefly sparked red. Oops.
"Not like that!" Sylar quickly jumped in, and he could see the color slowly returning to Hiro's face even in the evening light. "I need you to take me somewhere in time. It's really important. But really?" Sylar continued, "Two years with no murdering and you still jump to that? C'mon Hiro, I thought we were buddies."
"We're not buddies."
"OK fine, friends then."
"No. A real friend would spend time with the other. A friend would call their friend on his birthday."
Shit, that was last month. Claire had reminded him to call but he totally blew it off. "Right. I was pretty busy that week, sorry about that. Well I saved Charlie, didn't I?"
Hiro crossed his arms to his chest. "Yes. But you already brought that up when you asked me to take you to Switzerland to buy a watch part."
"Shit, I did, didn't I."
Now Sylar was zero for two. He made a mental note that in the near future he was really going to need to work on his relationship building. Maybe there's a power for that, he thought briefly before shoving the hungered thought deep into the recesses of his mind. The group stood awkwardly in silence, and Hiro must have sympathized with Sylar's strained expression when he added reluctantly, "Fine, where do you need to go?"
Sylar sighed in relief. "Great. I need you go back before 6 pm today and pick up that cake from some bakery in New York." He had considered asking Hiro to undo this whole mess by warning a past self not to go to the beach house this weekend, but he was a bit fearful about the consequences of changing the fabric of universe in this way. Plus the chances of Hiro going for that favour were infinitely small. He would be lucky enough if he could even convince Hiro to carry out this simple time traveler task.
"Why didn't you do that earlier?" Ando interrupted. "Aren't you from there? Did you forget to pick it up or something?"
"No, I just like to bank on friends who can bend space and time because I'm too lazy to walk down the block and pick it up while in the city. Of course I fucking forgot it!"
Ando took a step back. Ooo, right. Even after two years, it seemed very probable that he still feared him. Better lay off the psychopath a little.
"Sorry, I'm just a bit stressed right now."
After a moment Ando regained his composure and ground, and Sylar could hear the man's heart racing. "Then why did you lie to Angela and say that you have it in the car?"
"It's a long story. She can't know why not, no one can." There would be so many questions. It was bad enough now that Peter found out, but without that damn cake there was no doubt that suspicions would arise and questions would be asked. And without Peter, his other responsibility this night...well, he would deal with that eventually. Under the moon's watchful gaze, Sylar took a moment to take in any sign of his best friend (for now). He still hadn't come back yet. Shit.
Hiro stood with his neck raised high, trying to measure against Sylar's looming height. "I'm sorry, Brainman, but a Hero uses their powers for good, not to cover up lies about forgetting to pick up food."
"Oh c'mon Hiro, it's not a big deal, just a quick trip; you wouldn't even notice. This is a bigger deal than you can imagine, Hiro. Please."
The time traveler stood stoic and unmoving. Desperate times called for playing on Hiro's weakness, so Sylar added, " But don't you want cake? If you don't do this, there won't be any dessert. Plus," he lied with a seductive tone, "I hear its ice cream cake." This oughta do it.
He could see by the way Hiro bit his lower lip that he was contemplating this potential loss. However, Hiro finally muttered softly, "I'm sorry. I can't."
Damn, he sure was stubborn. Sylar glanced at the door impatiently. "Ok, but would you do it for Claire?" This was a long shot, but they were closer and maybe she would have better power of persuasion.
"What does Claire have to do with it?"
"Like I said, it's a long story."
Hiro looked lost in thought. "Ok, I will consider it."
"Great, thank you! You are doing us – me – a huge favor."
Hiro narrowed his brows at him and repeated, "I will consider it."
"Alright then, let's go inside, but first I need to grab something from the car."
~o~
The three entered the house again and Sylar urged them quickly and quietly down the hall to avoid attention. Suresh called something out to Sylar but he ignored him completely. They made their way down the back hallway to the guest room, where he knocked twice.
"Who is it?" A nervous voice returned.
"It's me, hu– Claire. Can I come in?"
At the muffled sound of her approval, he stepped inside.
Claire smiled with relief at the sight of the bag in his hands until she noticed the two guests step out from behind him. "Oh my god, SYLAR, What are you doing!? Why did you bring them here?" She jumped up from the bed and grabbed her coat to cover her form as if she were completely undressed.
Oh shit! In his haste he had completely forgot what she was wearing. Whatever points he may have gained from retrieving her clothes were probably now voided.
"Cheerleader? Why do you look like that?" Hiro scowled. Ando grinned and looked Claire up a little too long for Sylar's comfort, so he jabbed him in the shoulder with his fist. In response, Ando instantly took interest in a seascape painting on the wall.
"Seriously! What are they doing here?"
"It's OK! They're here to help!"
"Help me get CHANGED?" she gaped incredulously.
Sylar walked up to her next to the bed and handed her the coveted duffel bag. "No... Remember that cake? The cake we were supposed to pick up but forgot?"
It took a moment of confusion, but soon it seemed that Claire had registered his implication and nodded slowly. Calming down, she wrapped her jacket around her and he could see her reading his plan. "Right... The cake."
"Well I asked Hiro to go back and get it for us – me, but I'm all out of favors. He needs some convincing from you."
Claire turned to her friend. "Hiro, we really need your help now but you can't ask any questions, OK?"
Hiro's brows narrowed for a moment before he looked up and her with his typical grin. "No!" He firmly stated, "Friends must trust each other to tell the truth."
Claire's golden locks flew across her shoulders as she spun to face Sylar with a look of shocked resignation. This was not expected. Although, after all, it was Hiro.
"Because something does not make sense." Hiro continued, "If you were planning for the party, how come you could forget something so important?"
Claire's eyes screamed to Sylar to find an appropriate lie, but he felt a lack of resolve. Maybe it would be easier having an ally. He shrugged at her, so she sighed, "OK, the truth is that we completely forgot there was even was a party."
"Then why did you come to the beach house together if you weren't coming to the party?"
Damn, he was good. "Well, we both just wanted to get away." Claire answered.
"Together?"
"Yes. We're.. friends. "
"If that is true, why did you need to be so secretive?"
Claire signed in resignation and glanced at Sylar with eyes that said it's ok. "Are you sure?" Sylar asked, apprehensively. However, if anyone else had to find out, he would want it to be Hiro. The time traveler always seemed to the see the best in people, and of all in the group, he seemed the least likely to judge. This was all based on Sylar's empathy power though... It was still a relatively new toy and he could still be totally wrong.
Claire turned to Sylar and nodded, and he felt it before it registered completely. She had grabbed his hand lightly and brought it up to her chest. "Sylar and I… well. We're together."
"Going together where?"
"No... We have been seeing each other... romantically...for a while. We just aren't ready for everyone to know just yet."
Both Ando and Hiro gaped.
"Huh?" was all Hiro could muster with a blank face.
"But he cut off you head!" Ando gasped.
"We could spend all day talking about all the heads I cut off. But right now we really need your help." Sylar stated. Begging was a last resort, but he felt that neither of them had any other options. Claire let go of his hand but for a few moments he could still feel warmth where her fingers held his. He tried to ignore the sensation, and continued, "we need you to help us go pick up that stupid cake back in time before the store closed or else people are going to find out about us."
Hiro's eyebrows narrowed and Sylar could watch his internal debate. "But a Hero uses their powers for good, not to cover up lies." he repeated from earlier.
Claire looked solemnly at Hiro, her expression pleading. "Hiro.. Please. This isn't about hiding a lie. If others find out, it could mean the end of us." She looked at Sylar. "If that happens, I don't know what I would do. With Sylar's track record, and the age difference... They would try to keep him away. Please, it would destroy me. Please, do it for me."
Destroy her.
Hiro seemed unconvinced, so she added. "You would be saving us!"
Hiro's eyes darted from Claire to Sylar. The agony of the wait felt like drowning.
"Claire, why?"
"Because we can't let the others know."
Hiro shook his head. "No, I mean why is this, Sylar, so important to you?"
Claire stood in silence and rubbed the red sleeve of her uniform anxiously. She glanced up at Sylar without a word.
Hiro placed a hand on her shoulder. "He makes you happy?" That's a loaded question, Sylar thought.
After an unnerving pause, Claire nodded slowly and smirked. "You could say that."
"Ok, Claire. That is good enough for me. Brainman, since you saved Charlie, I can save you both."
"Hiro, you are amazing!" Claire ran to hug him, while Ando instantly appeared at his side for a hug as well. Sylar felt himself sneer slightly.
"Wait, on one condition." Ando quickly added. He muttered something quietly in Japanese to Hiro, who grinned ear to ear.
Uh oh.
Hiro turned back to Claire and looked at her sternly. "We will only help you... if you make me and Ando homemade waffles one day. Just like Sandra's."
Claire laughed. It made Sylar's heart skip a beat to hear a hint of her happiness again. "Ok. Deal," she replied and shook Hiro's hand.
Turning to Sylar, Hiro pressed the bridge of his glasses and stood tall. "When and where do you want to go?"
"Oh, I need to check." Claire pulled out her phone and passed Ando her phone. "Can you fix this?"
"I am not a battery!' he whined.
"Hold on, I've got it." Sylar exclaimed as he pulled out his phone and finally listened to the voice mail from Angela. After a minute, he stated, "the Antoinette Cake Shoppe in Brooklyn, for five o'clock."
Hiro nodded. "Ok, let's go."
Sylar glanced briefly at Claire and saw a faint smile of relief cross her lips, although she quickly looked away when their eyes met. "Wait, let's leave while outside... the others saw us come in." he added.
Leaving Claire alone to change, Sylar led the way back to the front door as Ando rejoined the others. No one seemed to raise an eyebrow when he and Hiro walked past the group. Maybe the growing glasses of alcohol on the tables helped with that.
Once outside and standing on the gravel driveway, Hiro placed an arm on Sylar's shoulder. "Ready?"
"As I'll ever be."
Hiro squinted his eyes and concentrated, and suddenly the ebony vegetation surrounding them dissipated into a cool evening street of New York City.
~o~
"Wonderful! Just place it down here." Angela smiled with an arm outstretched to guide him.
Sylar approached Angela with a large red velvet cake at hand and plunked it haphazardly between the spirits on the island counter. With his task now complete, he made his way to the living room and leaned with his back against the buffet. The conversation around him was merely a blur of numbed voices. He briefly turned back to Hiro and nodded, who did the same in return. As Sylar stood among his chattering companions, his old persona chastised himself for his subservience. The brief trip wasn't the worst part of his day by far, and was actually the only first thing today that actually went as planned, but the banality of picking up a cake to save his future with Claire made the entire experience agonizing. From the plastic expression on the cashier's face to the careful small talk with Hiro, fire had seethed through his veins. It was all maddening because he knew the old him would never have put up with this domestic errand. He would have given up completely at that point and stormed out of the bakery to steal a power or two to soothe his hurt ego, the party and Claire be damned. Why was this all so agonizing? Possibly because this desire to please was so unfamiliar and noticeable. Companionship was a foreign language and he was only now learning its semantics, though clumsily and with great fatigue. Regardless of the challenge of this new language, he kept it up for some reason. He actually wanted to succeed in getting the cake. He had wanted to talk and joke with Hiro. But why did he care so much?
On that thought, he heard the clicking of heels on wood and looked toward the back hall where Claire had just emerged from her room, who was now adorned in a green evening dress. The dress hugged her waist, accentuating the curves on her petite form, and expanded at the knees into a slight frill decorated with ivy lace. She looked incredible. It then occurred to Sylar that she had brought this for their weekend. For him. It was more than he could have ever hoped for years ago, letting the days tick by in his lonely watch shop. More than he could have hoped for on the many silent evenings detailing string maps of specials or plotting his way into a shape-shifting body.
"But why did he care so much?" Stupid question, he knew already. It was always Claire.
~o~
The party had begun to get rowdy and the guest of honor had still not made an appearance. It was clear that Angela saw things were getting out of hand so she quickly directed the group back to their positions for the surprise. There were groans of disapproval, but soon everyone was once again in hiding.
Sylar telekinetically spun a half-empty wine glass in his hand and tried to ignore the discomfort in his back from the awkward sitting position. This was insanity. Here he was, crouched in front a couch in the dark ready to jump out at the man who had not long ago threatened to kill him. It all seemed juvenile, so unlike this serious bunch of misfits, but he realized that if it hadn't been for the huge secret looming over their heads he may have even thrilled in this game. It seemed like everyone needed to relax and have a break, especially Peter, who had taken on so much with the Specials movement. After all this hysteria, maybe he needed it too. He had to restrain himself from bursting out laughing and breaking the silence from this surreal thought. He suddenly got a flashback of himself at ten on his adoptive father's birthday, hiding in excitement in the coat closet to surprise him after work with a lopsided cake and scrap watch piece at hand... It felt oddly familiar, except this time he was sandwiched between a driftwood coffee table and his lover, who currently refused to acknowledge his existence. The others were more than an ear's length away, so this may be his last chance to be (almost) alone with her all night to sort out this mess. And yet he wouldn't even be able to say a word.
The many shifting and breathing shadows remained in place for who knows how long. With so many thoughts pulling him away from his current state of mind, even Sylar's perfect internal clock couldn't say how much time had passed. Regardless, it was long enough to be concerned for Peter absence. He hadn't seen him for nearly an hour or more. For all Sylar knew he was long gone, back to New York to stew in his seething thoughts. After all that he and Claire had managed to hide that night, it would all be for nothing without Peter here. Dizziness and nausea returned, making Sylar groan in pain. Suddenly the darkness felt suffocating.
Sylar stood up and towered above many the crouching figures. From some corner he heard Angela's protestations of, "Please, Gabriel! Just sit down."
He ignored her and strode toward the front door. "I just need some air." Peter isn't coming, he wanted to say.
"Ok, please just be careful and keep a look out."
Sylar stepped into the cool night air and leaned back against the door. Even the moonlight felt bright, so he tilted his head back into the shade of the veranda and closed his eyes. For a moment he wished he smoked because he would probably be craving a cigarette right now. Anything to calm this tension would be helpful. He remembered his watch, so he let his jaw soften and began listening carefully to its delicate and perfect rhythm. His Sylar Field Edition that had once been his cross to bear was now his medal of change. It grounded him. After a few minutes taking in the peaceful rhythm at his side, his breathing calmed and the sense of suffocating subsided. He turned to open the door, but the sound of crunching gravel made him freeze in place as a chill crawled up his spine.
"Sylar."
Dizziness was replaced by relief. Finally! He's back.
"Peter, you're still here. I was beginning to worry you left for good."
"Where is she?" The thunder still shuddered in his voice.
"Can you keep your voice down? She's inside."
"I'm taking her away from here now. From you."
A wave of annoyance made Sylar's ribs tense up. Who did he think he was, some white knight here to save the day?
"She's fine here. Just please let's all talk about this inside." Hopefully the surprise party would be so disorienting that Peter would forget the issue or have enough sense to talk about it later in private... and maybe alcohol would help relax things even more.
"She's not fine as long as she's near you. Christ, you were living as Nathan for months! Her own biological father! Is this some messed up way to give a final 'eff you' to Nathan in his death?"
The implication made Sylar seethe with rage. How dare he accuse him of something so low, so sick, so below even his old murderous self. His old defense kicked in before he could stop himself. "You got me! That's right, Peter, I just want to fuck with Nathan one last time. You have me all worked out. Also, you always said we were brothers, so I guess I just wanted to get with your niece so we could be brother's in blood too! Make a big happy family!" Sylar may have mastered his restraint over killing, but not quite his sharp tongue.
Even in the darkness he saw Peter's a menacing flash in Peter's eyes. Oh SHIT. Before he had time to contemplate what was happening, Sylar found himself being thrown back into the French doors as Peter swung him telepathically with his own powers. He felt his vertebrae crack and blood spurt down his neck as his landed harshly on the ornate carpet in the foyer. His hands throbbed raw from a large wooden stake sticking out through his palm. He squinted through the pain and groaned as he pushed himself to sit up using his uninjured hand. From the corner of his eye he saw a silhouette at the doorway, the body tense and hands glowing with electricity. The bastard was borrowing his powers one by one.
Peter took a step towards him, hands dancing with electric fire. "Sylar, you are a sick son of a bitch!"
For the first time ever Sylar felt legitimately scared of Peter, but he felt no urge to fight back. How could this be happening? This was his best friend. Suddenly, a blinding light flashed above his eyes and he felt as if he were pulled into the tunnel of death. However, there was no pain or electricity tearing at his body. The chandelier above his head had simply been illuminated. A strained "Sur...prise...!" echoed the room once again as everyone emerged from their places.
Peter stood stunned above Sylar in with the same flabbergasted expression that both Sylar and Claire had once before held.
Resigned, Sylar flopped back against the floor amid the splinters of wood and lay both forearms across his eyes. However this mess turned out, it was going to be an evening they would not soon forget.
