Revelations by SLynn
Summary: In the end is the beginning. Sequel to 'Resurrection'.
Spoilers: AU after 'Fallout'
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I'm just borrowing and will return them all when I'm done, virtually untouched.
Chapter 11: Fate
"Where is he?"
"Where is who?" Claire asked in returned, surprised by the sudden intrusion.
Jenny had practically busted through the door seconds earlier with two of her guards right at her heals. Claire and Mohinder had been sitting in the common room at the time; Nathan and Matt were absent from the scene.
"Who?" Jenny repeated, a scowl on her face. "It's like an epidemic of stupid around here. Forget the plague. You'll dumb us to death."
Claire said nothing. She knew exactly who Jenny was looking for; she just didn't want her anywhere near him.
"Matt," Jenny finally said. "Where is Matt? Liked I'd even want to see any of the rest of you."
Claire hesitated, looking quickly at the bathroom door as Nathan exited the room he'd been napping in.
"What's going on?" he asked.
"Sit down," the guard nearest him barked.
"Bob," Nathan said as if greeting an old friend. "Now it feels like home."
"Sit," the man instructed once more.
Nathan obliged, taking a seat on the couch next to Claire.
"Would you like us to search the premises?" the other guard, not-Bob, asked.
"Search the premises?" Jenny repeated sarcastically. "It's four rooms, and we're standing in one of them. Idiots. All of you are idiots. I'll find him myself; just keep these three in place."
"She's not a morning person, I take it," Nathan said, leaning back and appearing perfectly at ease as he watched Jenny stomp off into the room he'd just left. "Not exactly bright, either. Like Parkman is going to share a room with me."
As he'd said that last part, Nathan had given Claire a look.
"What?" she snapped.
"Nothing," Nathan returned.
Mohinder sighed; Nathan and his inability to let this thing go was going to get them all killed.
"You're not exactly a morning person either," Nathan said. "Or maybe you didn't get enough sleep."
"I don't sleep much," Claire retorted. "And what are you trying to say, exactly?"
"Nothing," Nathan said, shaking his head and looking away. "I'm not saying anything."
"Let's keep it that way," Jenny said having suddenly reemerged from the room, making them all jump slightly in their seats.
They watched as she crossed to the other bedroom, stopping as she finally recognized the sound of running water coming from the bathroom.
"Wait," Claire called out as Jenny suddenly made a beeline for the source of the sound. "You can't go in there."
"Excuse me?" Jenny asked, wheeling back around and giving Claire an icy stare. "I believe I can go anywhere I want to go."
"But," Claire stuttered, blushing a bit as not-Bob chuckled, "he's in the shower. Matt's…"
Jenny titled her head to the side, and with a satisfied smirk said, "Don't worry honey, I've seen it."
Claire bit back an angry response, shocked by Jenny's flippant attitude and horrified by what she'd implied.
She knew it wasn't likely that he'd hear it, not from another room away while still wearing that damn inhibitor, but just the same Claire tried to send Matt some kind of warning.
'Matt! She's coming for you! Jenny is coming for you right now!' Claire thought over and over, concentrating as hard as she could on only him and hoping it was enough.
She'd only repeated the phrase three times before Jenny was in there with him, and having not received an answer in return, she had little hope that Matt had heard her.
It was a long wait.
Claire, Mohinder and Nathan all watched the door of the bathroom with a perverse fascination.
At least fifteen minutes had passed, possibly more, when they heard the first signs of a struggle. First it was only raised voices, still too indistinct to make out, but that was followed quickly by the sound of glass shattering.
"Sit," Bob the guard shouted, and for a moment Claire didn't realize he'd been speaking to her.
Mohinder pulled her by the arm, trying desperately to get her back in place, but ultimately Claire remained standing until Nathan stood up with her and physically moved her back to the couch.
"He's fine," Nathan said, just under his breath. "I'm sure he's fine."
After that the voices died down, and it was another ten minutes before Jenny finally opened the door, leading Matt out with that sick smirk of hers still firmly in place.
Claire hardly noticed Jenny at all; it was Matt she immediately set her eyes on. Matt who looked shaky and pale and had his right arm wrapped in a towel soaked through with blood.
Pulling herself out of Mohinder's grip, Claire sprang to her feet and rushed towards him.
"Claire," Matt said, a slight edge to his voice. "I'm fine. It's alright. It's a scratch. You don't have to…"
"No, let me…"
"Sit down!" Jenny barked.
Claire ignored her, still advancing on Matt where he stood.
"Don't touch me!" Matt yelled.
Absolute silence filled the room.
Claire stood there, only half a foot from Matt, staring in complete disbelief. All the while Matt couldn't even look at her; he just twisted silently on the spot.
It hurt; it physically hurt her to here him speak that way. To speak in that tone, as if he was afraid of her or… or as if he couldn't stand the thought…
Claire dropped her head, feeling stupid and embarrassed, before returning to her spot between Mohinder and Nathan on the couch again. Choosing not to look up any more and just waiting for whatever was going to happen to be over with so that she could hopefully be alone.
"Come on, Matt," Jenny said, obviously enjoying herself. "We've got things to do."
'Claire, I'm so sorry,' she heard Matt say in her head. 'Please don't…'
"Matt," Jenny snapped, already standing at the door and waiting for him.
He looked over, seemingly confused as Jenny eyed him with extreme interest.
"Are you talking to her?" Jenny asked, moving not to Matt, but to Claire instead with an awful intensity.
"No," Matt said quickly, but firmly.
Jenny cast him a look full of suspicion, but seemed to think better of perusing it. Perhaps she recalled the fact that Claire was still a valuable property, or else she was simply waiting for a better time to prove her point. Either way, Matt looked relieved when Jenny walked back to the door and beckoned for him to follow.
Matt did so without a backwards glance, and as soon as they were gone, Claire bolted for the bedroom, intent on being alone.
Matt wasn't so fortunate.
Jenny talked incessantly as they took the now familiar path out of the prisoner wing and to the courtyard towards Anthony's home. She rambled on and on about how things were finally moving forward, how her plan was working, and how relieved she would be when they finally reached the end.
Matt couldn't even pretend to share her enthusiasm. His head felt like it was about to split open, his arm had finally stopped bleeding but throbbed continuously. And then there was Claire.
He wanted to explain it to her, hoped she'd let him when he got back, but knew how much he'd stung her and hated himself for it.
"Anthony," Jenny was soon calling out, having thrown open the door without ceremony this time. "I've brought him. Where are you?" she asked, adding in an undertone. "You creepy little mouse."
"Good," Anthony said, popping up unexpectedly from behind two filing cabinets to their immediate right. "Good. Nice to see you again, Officer Parkman. Nice. Very nice."
"Okay then," Jenny said with great hesitation. "I'll just leave you two here for your talk."
Matt couldn't hide his surprise. He hadn't known what to expect on this little trip, but he never would have guessed Jenny would leave him unsupervised and alone in this fashion.
"Yes," Anthony said, actually ushering her to the door. "Just like it says. Officer Parkman and I have a chat. Alone. We talk alone. You know how it goes. You know. You've seen it. Now, out. Out."
"I'll be back in an hour," Jenny said before the door was closed in her face.
"We'll be waiting," Anthony called through it before rushing back to Matt with a huge grin. "Can't believe it. Can't. She left. She really did it. It's going to work. After all this time. We'll get to the end. We'll finally get to the end."
Matt watched, fascinated as Anthony took his arm and dragged him back to his desk, practically laughing from joy.
"I should explain first," Anthony started, offering Matt a chair as he spoke. "I should tell you how. How I do what I do. I know how you work. I've read it and wrote it a thousand times or more. I know what you do and how strong… how good you've become. Not many can do that. Not many at all. Some of us change with our gifts; your gift has changed with you."
"What are you…"
"No questions," Anthony snapped, pacing circles around his desk. "No time. If you listen, no need. I'll get it all out. I will. Just takes me… takes me minute. So many thoughts. So many pictures and words flying through my head. Takes me a minute."
Matt nodded, growing dizzy from watching the other man's progress.
"I see the future," Anthony said, for the first time sounding sane. "I see it in my head. In words and pictures. I've been doing it for years. I'm not sure how long. I can't remember. But it's been years. She's told me that. Years ago is when it all began. I don't believe much she tells me, but that I do."
Anthony stopped pacing, leaning on his desk with a wild look in his eyes.
"I can think of a person and write down what they are doing at this moment, in a week, in a year… at any time as long as it's in the future."
"And she's had you do this for me?"
"No questions!" Anthony snapped.
"I'm sorry," Matt returned.
"No, it's not your… People change things all the time," Anthony said desperately. "They do little things that completely upset all… I tried to save you all. I did. I knew that once she sent that man Franco up that it could all go so very wrong. Sometimes I see it different ways. I tell her I only get one vision, but really… really I see many. I just write the one that's strongest. The one that's most likely to happen. I write the one I think she'll want to read."
Matt shook his head, not wanting to ask anything in case it upset the other man even more, but not getting what he was being told in the slightest.
"Okay," Anthony said, understanding Matt's dilemma. "I didn't want… this is what I mean! I knew this could happen and I didn't want you to ask questions because I knew… I knew that this… Now I have to tell you. Now I have to make you understand… And now… now it could all change again. Now. Now it's bad. Very bad."
"Anthony…"
The other man held up a hand for silence and Matt readily complied.
"The colony," Anthony said, returning to his desk and dragging out an accordion folder stuffed full of papers. "The colony. I told her when that man Franco left that this… that this was the end. That if she brought you all back, it would be over. That Dr. Suresh would make the vaccine and you'd all be saved. Not all. She doesn't care for all of you. But she'd be saved and that's what she wants."
Matt took the papers that were now being thrust at him, but didn't bother to skim them.
"It'll take me…"
"Forever to read them," Anthony finished, with a nod. "Yes. Yes I know. Don't bother. Don't bother to read. Just listen. I'll tell you everything. Listen."
Matt nodded again, trying to follow what Anthony was all about.
"That ending," Anthony went on. "That happy ending she wanted would have happened if she'd just followed through. If she'd just went along with her own plan, it'd be over. Over. All done. But she couldn't. She couldn't help herself. Ms. Yi can never help herself. She's jealous and full of spite and she doesn't want competition."
"Competition?" Matt asked. "You don't mean…"
"It's why she couldn't help it," the younger man said. "She wants you to herself. She hates you, Officer Parkman, but she needs you just the same. For herself. It's why in ending after ending, she kills Ms. Bennet. It's why she didn't listen. I told her exactly what to do, and she didn't listen. She killed Agent Hanson to get her out of the way. It wasn't supposed to happen like that. It wasn't supposed to happen at all. But she couldn't help herself."
Matt stood up and turned away, feeling angry and confused.
"She's better now. Now that she knows she was so close. Ms. Yi was so close to ruining herself. She's more careful now, but still… I write everyday, Officer Parkman, and still… it's there. The chance."
"She doesn't know any of this?" Matt asked quietly, still unable to face him.
"No," Anthony said in an awed voice. "No. She doesn't. She can't know. If she knew about all the possibilities… If she knew about all the futures out there… There's a reason we don't last long, Officer Parkman. People, with gifts like mine. It burns you out. It rips. It tears. You can't understand what it's like to know how limitless the future is. How out of control our own destinies can be. How out of our hands fate is. If I told her that, if I tried to explain…"
"She'd kill you," Matt finished.
"No," Anthony said in a hush. "She'd kill us all."
