The other part...

Chapter 6

Please read and hopefully enjoy. :)

"Ok first question… Why Biochemistry?"

"Biochemistry—high school sophomore biology; we learned about regenerative properties in newts, it made me wonder if a person could splice animal genes with human genes to give them certain properties. There's this virtually immortal jellyfish that can revert it's cells back to their infantile state in the face of death; it can never die that way.

"Interesting," he looked carefully at her as if trying to read something from her face. "Second question… Why did you pick up cheerleading if you are interested in Science?"

"That's easy; I wanted to fit in."

"Did you ever feel like you were destined for more than just this?"

"Honestly I've never really thought about it. I guess I always felt like I was here for other people."

"What is more important to you? Love or the truth?" Claire thought that it was a strange question coming from him, but she had made a promise to answer all of his questions.

"Love," she decided.

"Why?"

"My father lied to my family for years; he still does. They're happier that way. I think love is the only thing that can make a person find true enjoyment in life as opposed to merely being content."

"Your favorite book." Claire blinked at his sudden change in seriousness.

"Pride and Prejudice," she admitted reluctantly.

"And I suppose you want your very own Mr. Darcy."

"That's not a question," she pointed out.

"Do you?" It occurred to her why he had asked about her choice in literature.

"In a manner of speaking," she wondered what she wanted in a man. "I like a little mystery in my man; someone dark. I'd like to be the most important thing to him."

"I see," the corner of his mouth twitched in the beginnings of a small smile. "Why is that pocket watch so important to you?"

"It reminds me that I come from somewhere. I feel a connection to it."

"Does it strike you as odd that the name on it is also Sylar?"

"I suppose it does," truthfully she hadn't thought much of it.

"Does he scare you?"

"Yes," more than words could explain.

"Why?"

"My father wouldn't be after… him—you," she corrected, "…if it wasn't important."

"He's important to you," Gabriel observed. "Will you leave me if it ends up being worst case?"

"I might have to. I won't want to."

"What if he killed someone you cared about?"

"You," she clarified for the second time, "and I care about you; so I can't be sure how I would react."

"Why were you so familiar with that hospital?"

"The first time I'd been there, I had to identify a body. My friend Jackie was murdered in front of me during my Homecoming senior year."

"How?" Claire inhaled deeply and braced herself for the brutal emotional impact of what she was about to tell him.

"He thought she was me… he sliced her head open and he—he took her brain."

"Her brain…" he repeated thoughtfully. "Why did he want you?"

"He said…" she swallowed and looked warily at Gabriel. "He said I was special."

"That sounds familiar. What if that was me?" Claire held in a gasp at that; the reality hit her like a wrecking ball. The faded memory of the man who had attacked her friend came back in a depository of flashing images. Tall and dark; almost recognizable, but it was the eyes that she remembered. She looked into his eyes and tried to convince herself that he wasn't the same person, but she failed.

"It was—you… It was you," her eyes were wide with horror.

"No… Claire I would never hurt you."

"That was you," she choked on the words, "that's how you do it… the key is in the brain."

"Claire no… I love you," he tried to pull her into a hug, but she slapped his arm away.

"You tried to kill me. You killed her… and your mother; the others… that's why he wants you." She took a shaky breath and backed up; her foot slipped at the edge of the cliff, but Gabriel caught her before she could fall.

"No Claire, that's him, that's not me."

"You're the same person," she croaked and looked into his eyes with fear; it made him let go.

"Get away from me," she screamed at him through tears. "If you stay he will catch you. I will tell him. Go away."

"Claire…" He half extended a hand toward her, but he stopped and took a few steps back. "I don't have to be him anymore. You can help me."

"No! I don't want to help you," she ran past him through the forest but she didn't make it very far. Claire found herself thrown into a tree by an invisible force; she panicked as she commanded every muscle in her body to move, but they all refused; she was trapped. Gabriel approached her slowly, looking every bit the predator that he truly was.

"Let me go," Claire implored. "Please Gabriel…"

"Congratulations Claire," he purred. "You found the monster in the man."

"Gabriel," she pleaded weakly. "What are you doing?"

"No…" he spared her a ravenous look beneath dark eyebrows. "Not Gabriel. He didn't love you Claire… but I do."

"No—no you don't," she attempted to convince him as best as she could.

"Yes I do, and I'm going to prove it to you."

"Please don't," she croaked between tears."

"Claire…" He reached out and stroked her face. "You silly girl; I never tried to kill you—I couldn't even if I wanted to." He leaned in and brushed his lips lightly against hers. "You're special."

"So you've said," she ground out, "different contexts."

"It doesn't matter."

"Yes it does. You're not him; I love Gabriel," Claire protested.

"We're the same person Claire."

"No," she sobbed.

"That's enough Claire," he said in typical Gabriel fashion, and stepped in closer to her; bringing a handful of her hair up to his face. He inhaled deeply. "Just say it Claire; it will be better for the both of us."

"Say what?" she muttered.

"Tell me you love me." He brushed a hand along her jaw and down her neck. Claire shivered; she loathed this man, but he still felt like her Gabriel; touched her the same way. Still she knew that he wasn't the same, and she could never do that to Gabriel.

"I won't do it," she spoke up in defiance.

"That's too bad," he lamented. "You can call me Gabriel if you want to." Sylar gave her a sad smile.

He took her hand and allowed her to walk with him. Claire knew better than to try and run. As they reached the edge of the cliff though, Sylar looked away for a split second, and Claire took the opportunity to leap into the dark ocean below. She did not anticipate the current being so strong; she had meant to swim to shore and call her father from somewhere, but it seemed that the night had different plans for her.

The waves sent her crashing into the rocks at the base of the cliff side before they pulled her under. The icy water forced itself into Claire's lungs; every brain cell she had was screaming at her for oxygen, but then they were silenced, and she felt an overwhelming sense of peace.

The next thing Claire felt was a burning pressure in her chest and throat as the water was forced out of her lungs.

"Damn it Claire," someone growled.

She choked and sputtered as the world came spinning back.

"Gabriel?" she murmured softly.

"Close enough," he sighed in relief. "That was really stupid Claire! You just died; as in dead, gone from the world," he rambled. "Do you know what you just did to me?"

She just stared at him with wide eyes.

"Well do you?" It was the most stressed out she had ever seen a person, but she remained speechless besides. "I finally find someone I am able to love, and you go off and kill yourself!"

"You're angry with me?" Her voice was still hoarse from the water that remained inside her lungs.

"Look at you," he looked at her with apparent disapproval, "you're a mess." Claire noticed then that he was also entirely soaked.

"You came in after me…" her voice was weak.

"Of course I did. Though I had half a mind not to," he folded his arms and turned away from her. Claire had to laugh at how childish the action seemed.

"Gabriel," she tried to get his attention, and slowly managed to push herself off from the sand. She crawled over closer to him. "Gabriel?" she tried again; he still wouldn't respond. "Sylar." He immediately turned toward her.

"What?" he asked sharply.

"You said I could call you Gabriel," Claire thought to remind him.

"Well that was before you threw yourself off of a cliff."

"So…" she looked around, and sat back on her knees. "Can I go now?"

"I really don't care," he muttered. Claire got up to leave, and he stood up with her. "So you're actually living then?" he asked in bitter hurt, "After I saved you?"

"You killed my best friend," Claire spat angrily.

"To be fair; that's not my fault."

"What did you slip and accidentally remove her brain from her skull?"

"Don't be ridiculous Claire. This is serious—it's my power."

"What did we decide that was, intuitive aptitude?" She leveled him with a glare. "That doesn't make any sense."

"It creates this hunger inside of me," he started to explain. "I can't stop… It's an evolutionary imperative."

"Sea turtles die on the same exact beach where they were born, lions slaughter gazelles, spiders eat their young…" she quoted something he had said to her earlier.

"They don't want to. They have to," he finished for her.

"You don't have to do anything—no one does."

"I wish that was true… I don't want to be a monster Claire."

"So don't," she replied calmly.

"I need you to help me do it. Don't you feel it?" He took her hand in his, "we are connected Claire."

"No… No I don't feel it," she lied. He took his hand back and pulled something out of his pocket.

"I can prove it," he told her; he certainly sounded like he believed it to be true with every fiber of his being.

"How?" she breathed.

"Take this," he handed her a small compass.

"That's cute," Claire sneered, "what do I do with it?"

"There's a lot more people like us out there Claire. That will lead you to them; they may have answers… for you."

"I need some of those," she pocket the trinket and started to walk off, and then something occurred to her. "So if there are so many others out there, then why are they still alive? Why isn't this place an open buffet for Sylar?"

"I told you… I don't want to be a monster." Claire nodded and opened her mouth to say goodbye. "And Claire—" he cut her off, "one more thing." He threw her his keys, "I'd rather you didn't tcatch a ride back home from a complete stranger." Yeah like there was anyone more dangerous than him.

"How are you-?"

"I'll be alright," he reassured her. Claire came up to him and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Thanks," she said. "Don't kill anybody?"

"I'll try," he replied sarcastically before he watched her retreat into the woods.

Claire dialed a number when she got back to her room.

"Claire? What's wrong?" Noah's groggy voice answered the pohne.

"I need to talk to you. I'm coming over," she informed him; her tone was urgent.

"You haven't returned my calls. Are you alright? Where are you?" he was starting to overreact, just as she expected; she meant to keep this brief.

"We'll talk about it when I get there."

"Ok," he agreed hesitantly. "See you soon Claire-bear. Be safe please…"

Claire clicked her phone shut and replaced her keys with Gabriel's. Somehow she knew that he would find them.

It was a short drive to her father's apartment. He had relocated to San Francisco after he and Sandra had split up. She had heard enough of his lies; and their marriage failed because of it. Claire wasn't surprised to see her father dressed in his usual black suit when he answered the door. She bet he slept in them these days. The dark circles under his eyes were the only indicator that he had been deprived from sleep in any amount.

"Claire," he breathed in relief and pulled her into a hug.

"Did you know about me?"

"Know what?"

Claire walked past him to the kitchen and grabbed a knife off of the counter; she ran it through her hand and pulled it back out, wincing with the pain that she was so grateful to feel; it was the only natural thing about the action.

"Claire!" Noah exclaimed. "Do you always have to do things the dramatic way? You could have just asked."

Well there's my answer…" she glared at her blood soaked hand, "why didn't you tell me?"

"I wasn't sure if your ability would ever manifest at all. I was trying to protect you Claire."

"Protect me," she cried and gave him a look. "Which brings me to my next question; why didn't you tell me about Sylar?" Noah froze at the name. "You knew it was him that night, and you didn't tell me."

"What did he do to you?" he demanded.

"Nothing," everything…

"Right… but he isn't Gabriel anymore?"

"No… he's… him, but he told me that he doesn't want to be a monster anymore," Claire looked at her father meaningfully, "I believe him." She reached into her pocket, "and he gave me this," she held out the compass in her palm to show her father. He picked it up and examined it.

"I've seen this before."

"What is it exactly?"

"A man named Samuel Sullivan put together a carnival full of people with abilities. This is supposed to reveal its location," he glanced up at her slightly confused expression. "It moves around a lot," he explained.

"I see…" something was still bothering her. "If you knew what Sylar would do to someone like me, why would you leave me with him?"

"You're a grown woman now Claire-bear… Trust me when I say that was not something I liked to stumble upon," he looked away embarrassed; it was something Claire had seldom seen on her father's face.

"You would have let him cut open my skull?" Claire asked in disbelief.

"He already had your ability… when I shot him; I could see that."

"How did he get my ability if he didn't take it from my head?"

"In addition to his intuitive aptitude, Sylar also has an ability we call empathic mimicry. If he forms a connection of some kind with a person, he picks up their ability by relating to them."

"That's—mildly disturbing, but it explains a lot. It figured that the only person who would be able to understand her was a psychotic killer.

"I thought he was your boyfriend."

"He was—well Gabriel was; I swear I didn't know…"

"I know Claire," he wet a towel and handed it to her so she could clean off her hand. "There's one more thing; your birth mother Meredith; she is part of the carnival… please tell me you won't go. I have answers for you."

"Just not the ones I'm looking for," Claire added. "I need to know more about me; where I come from." She looked at him meaningfully. "I came to tell you that I'm leaving."

"Claire please… please stay. Most people who go to the Sullivan carnival—well they never come back."

"It's a trap?"

"No—most are seduced by the idea of living out in the open with their abilities. Claire you don't have to; you can live a normal life here."

"Normal," she snorted derisively. "I think it's pretty clear at this point that you don't actually work for the government, and I'm not exactly a Mary-Sue either."

"Right on both accounts. I work for a company that protects people like you from people like Sylar; people with abilities that have gone terribly wrong. I'm sorry Claire… but you have to understand; I'm going to take him in."

"But he wants to be better," she protest weakly; knowing full well that her father spoke the truth. Whether he was Gabriel Gray, or Sylar; that man was dangerous.

"I'm sorry Claire."

"I know… be careful," she ceded.

"I always am," he gave her a hug, "is there nothing I can say that will change your mind?" he asked hopefully.

"I have to go."

"At least take somebody with you."

"Who are you thinking," she looked at him skeptically.

"My old partner?"

"The weird Haitian guy that doesn't talk? No way!"

"You've always gotten along well with Peter," he supplied unwilling to give up.

"Peter… as in uncle Peter? Does he have an ability too?"

"He has a variation of empathic mimicry; his is temporary."

"Wow…" she breathed. Her whole life was based on a well constructed cover-up, "and my real father?"

"Trust me when I say; you don't want him involved in this."

"Why not?" Claire frowned.

"Nathan Petrelli works for the opposite side so to speak."

"We study people with abilities; he helps imprison them for the government, or at least he is the head of an organization that does."

"You're kidding! But wouldn't he have to…"

"Yes it's a bit morally corrupt." A shiver ran down Claire's spine. "What time is it in New York?" she hoped to have some time to herself before her father got Peter involved.

"It's five o'clock in the morning."

"Right… I guess that gives me time to prepare for my trip."

"I'll send him over."

"Send him over?" Claire was confused, "I thought he was in New York…"

"If I'm not mistaken; at current he has the ability to fly."

"Fly?" Claire's eyes grew wide. "You're kidding! People can do that?"

"It's a lesser known ability."

"Cool…" Claire shrugged, and an awkward silence fell between her father and her. "I guess I better get going; let you get back to bed and what not!"

"Like I could sleep…"

"I love you dad," she gave him an apologetic smile.

"I love you too Claire-bear. Please be safe," he begged and gave her a kiss on the top of her head before ruffling her hair.

When Claire got back to her dorm, the first thing she did; was to check and see if Gabriel had picked up his keys yet. Sure it had been less than an hour since they parted, but he was a man full of surprises. As expected, the keys were gone, but something else was in its place; it was a watch, the one that identified him as Sylar. She picked it up and examined it. The watch was newer than hers, but it seemed to hold so much history; memories of all the things that he had done, and all the things he may have regretted.

Claire found herself wishing she knew more about Sylar, and strangely enough not even on a biological level; she wanted to know what made him tick. One word stood out in her head in association with both Gabriel and his darker counterpart; love. They were both starved for it, and Sylar was the one who was willing to do something about it. She wondered what he would have done to her if she hadn't pulled her attempted escape stunt; how far he was willing to go to prove his love for her.

Whoever he was at the moment; one thing was for sure, he was a man caught up in his feelings and strong emotions that he could not recognize in himself. There was something precious in being the person that matters most to another; to be the one who teaches someone what it is to be truly alive.

Claire fastened the watch around her wrist where it hung loosely, it looked completely wrong on her, and somehow that made it more special.

"It's a little to big don't you think?" a voice said behind her. Claire released an exasperated sigh.

"Doesn't anyone knock anymore?"

"Nice to see you too Claire." She turned around to face the tall dark and handsome man the voice belonged to.

"It's nice to see you Peter," she managed a weak albeit somewhat mocking smile. She remembered when she first met him and she thought he was positively divine; only to find out that he was her uncle. She vowed never to meet men at her real father's parties again; the embarrassment still had yet to subside. Worse yet was that Peter also blindly returned her affections until they both uncovered the truth; things were awkward between them to say the very least. However a friendship was not completely out of the question as they had yet to become physical at all before they realized they were family. Claire picked up a bag at the front of her bed and began shoving random articles of clothing inside, and trying to appear busy and preoccupied.

"I thought you would be ready," Peter supplied to coat the silence with small talk.

"I guess I assumed you would be here later… sorry… Time difference and all," she offered in return.

"I'll let you finish packing, coffee?"

"I um… don't really need—ah what the hell. Yes please," she gave him a dazzling smile; truthfully it was a fake one. Claire needed a few more minutes of alone time. When she turned around , Peter was gone. She wondered if coming and going unannounced was common in people with abilities, or even anyone in knowledge of them. Her father and Gabriel certainly had the stealthy factor down, she supposed she would have to work on being more guileful if she was to live some semblance of a life without interference from the rest of the world.

She managed to get changed into some more suitable clothing before Peter came back. He handed her a cup of coffee, "5 creams, no sugar; right?" he checked.

"That was fast," Claire noted surprise, and then her expression melted into a smile, "you remembered."

"You're the only person I know who takes that much cream without sugar in their coffee," he shrugged and sat down at the end of her bed. It was the same place Gabriel had put himself the night he woke up at her apartment, but it seemed so different. "So Claire…" he took a sip of his coffee and looked at her, "if I'm going to go on this grand adventure with you; don't you think I should know why?"

"It's a long story that I'm tired of not only telling, but trying to figure out," Claire muttered.

"Give me the cliff notes then."

"My boyfriend ended up being a psychotic serial killer with split personalities who takes peoples' powers, and I found out that I have a power. So we talked it over and he gave me this compass. I guess I'm supposed to go look for answers at this carnival." Peter blinked and gave her an incredulous look.

"You're kidding right?" he burst into laughter. "You have the worst luck with men Claire!" Claire flushed and grew angry; the truth hurt.

"Don't start with me!" she warned.

"How did you end with Sylar?"

"Did everyone know about him but me?" she cried.

"I'm assuming you didn't meet him at a nightclub."

"He was my tutor," she admitted.

"Your tutor," Peter repeated slowly and tried to keep from laughing again. "I'm sorry Claire. It's really not funny-"

"No it's not!" she agreed.

"But seriously… you could have any man you want, but you managed to find the worst super-powered serial killer out there."

"I'm glad someone is amused!"

"You should know that I disapprove though," he gave her a stern look. Claire ignored him went to sling her bag over her shoulder, but Peter snatched it from her.

"Well aren't you a gentleman?" she gave him a saccharine smile.

"Always," he grinned. "Now let's see that compass of yours." Claire reluctantly handed it over to him. It didn't feel right for someone else to be holding it. She didn't think Gabriel or Sylar would look too kindly upon her leaving it in the possession of her sort of ex-boyfriend, even if he was her uncle now. Peter studied the trinket for a few seconds and held it steady in his palm. "Looks like we're headed Northeast. Are you ready Claire?" He opened up her window and held out his arms for her.

"And strangely enough… heights still bother me," Claire gulped.

"I won't let you fall Claire; you know that."

"Alright let me know when we're there," she muttered and squeezed her eyes shut, putting her hands on his shoulders.

Tbc.