A/N: Okay, so earlier I know I said Janice was supposed to be due before Christmas, but since I have now established the timeline a little better, and have decided to make it spring, then Janice is technically going to be due in April. Sorry about he confusion.

MATT & JANICE

NEW YORK

"Stop right there!"

Matt paused with his hand hovering above the doorknob. He turned to his wife who had called to catch his attention. "Hi honey. I thought you were taking a nap."

"Yea, that would have been convenient for you, huh?" She took a few wobbly steps towards him; her hands were supporting her very large belly.

"Convenient?"

"Don't play dumb with me," Janice reprimanded him. "You've been sneaking out of here every morning all week, and then you sneak back in after I've gone to bed. I've started to wonder if I really have a husband at all anymore."

"I'm sorry," he sighed. "Work has been keeping me so busy lately…I just want to make sure we have enough money."

"Enough money?"

"Yea, for us, and now for the baby…"

"Matt," Janice sighed. "We would have enough money without your working ten hours a day!"

"Maybe," Matt shook his head. "I just want everything to be perfect."

Janice smiled. "It would be more perfect if my husband was home with me every once in a while. I know this new job has been difficult for you, but it's been difficult for me too. I've had to adjust to a new city, without a job, and a pregnancy, and I don't even feel like I have my husband's support!"

"You do!" He assured her. "You have nothing but my support."

"Then show it once in a while," Janice demanded. "If it was just work, maybe I wouldn't mind so much, but I know you've been going over to visit that little girl too."

"Molly?" Matt wondered how she had figured that out. He didn't know why it had been so important for him to keep it a secret, but he didn't think Janice would understand somehow, and judging by her reaction, he clearly had been right.

"I know she's important to you, but you can't be her father and the father of our baby at the same time."

"I can…" Matt protested, then he corrected himself. "I mean…that's not what I'm trying to do. I don't want to be her father, I just want to take care of her. She has nobody!"

"She's living with those people, Niki and DL, and their son. They are taking care of her. She's part of a family, like I'm hoping our child will be."

"What does that mean?"

"I don't know Matt," Janice stopped herself from rambling on and saying something she would regret. "I just don't know what to do. I'm seven months pregnant, and I feel like I'm in it all by myself."

"You're not," Matt promised her. "I'm here. I am here every step of the way."

"You're not though."

"I will be," Matt pulled her into his arms and pressed his cheek against her hair. "From now on, I will be. I promise. I'm sorry that I haven't been around as much as you need me to be. I'm going to do better."

"I hope you mean that," Janice returned his hug, but she was speaking quietly. "I love you, but I don't know how much more of it I can take by myself."

MOLLY, MICAH & NIKI

"Molly, sweetie, the phone's for you," Niki handed her cell phone to the girl, who took it eagerly.

"Hello?"

"Hi Molly."

"Matt! Are you on your way?"

"Actually, that's what I'm calling about."

"Is something wrong?" Molly closed her eyes and concentrated. She had been practicing finding Matt so often that he had become the easiest for her to locate; she was able to pull up a mental image of him in only ten seconds. "I can see you," she told him. "But I can figure out where you are…" she focused her mind better. "It looks like an office. Are you still at work?"

"Yea, I am," he confirmed. "I'm sorry, Molly, but I'm not going to be able to pick you up today."

"Why not?"

"It's Janice, she needs me to come home after work today."

"Is she okay?"

"Yea, she is, she's just a little lonely. I've been spending so much time with you this past week, and I haven't been spending enough time with my wife." Matt told her honestly. "I've been having a lot of fun with you Molly, but I need to take care of my wife right now."

"I understand," Molly replied. Though she was only ten, she really did understand because she could figure out the importance of priorities for a man and his wife. "I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too Princess," Matt sighed. "Remember, you can call me anytime."

"I know," Molly gripped the phone tightly. "I hope you and your wife have a good time together."

"Thanks."

"I love you Matt."

"I love you too."

Molly waited until she heard the click that signaled Matt had ended the conversation, before she snapped the cell phone shut. With a sigh, and slightly droopy shoulders, Molly turned back to Niki to return her phone.

"What's wrong sweetie?"

"He's not coming," Molly told her.

"I'm sorry sweetie," Niki rested the tray she was carrying in one hand on her shoulder for balance, so she could use her other arm to pull Molly into a brief hug. "I'm sure he wanted to. He cares so much for you."

"He said that his wife wanted him at home."

"Well, he has been spending a lot of time with you lately, and you know his wife is expecting a baby in only a few weeks," Niki tried comforting the little girl. "I'm sure that he'll come around tomorrow ready to take you out to ice cream or whatever it is you two do together."

Molly shrugged, "I hope so."

"I've got to get this tray out to my tables. I'm off in fifteen minutes, but until then why don't you go sit with Micah in the back room and get some homework done?"

Molly smiled and slipped out from beneath Niki's arm so she could get back to her work. She found Micah where his mom had said he would be, busily scribbling out answers to his math homework at a table in the back room where the employees stashed their personal belongings and hung out during breaks. Molly dropped into the chair beside him and started pulling her own schoolbooks from her backpack.

"I sort of miss being able to go straight home after school," Micah complained.

"I know, me too," Molly agreed. "She's just trying to protect us though."

"If you hadn't told her that the bad guy had come back, then she wouldn't be so paranoid all the time."

Molly glared at him. "She should be paranoid! The boogeyman is very dangerous. He kills people. He's tried to kill me." Her voice started to grow with emotion as she remembered her previous run-in with Sylar.

"I know Molly, I'm sorry." He tried to appease her sudden terror. "Don't worry. He's not going to find you again. Mom would never let anything happen to you. Trust me. She could totally kick his ass…"

"Micah! Watch your language!"

The kids' heads spun at the sound of Niki's voice behind them.

"Hey mom…" Micah grinned at her. "I didn't know you were there."

"Clearly," Niki shook her head at him, but returned his smile. "So, who's ass am I kicking?"

"The bad guy that Molly's scared of."

"You mean Sylar?" Niki clarified.

The kids nodded.

"You're not still thinking about him, are you sweetheart?" Niki moved to Molly's side. "You know Matt and I aren't going to let that man anywhere near you…"

"I know," Molly smiled. "I just can't get him out of my head."

"I'm sorry," Niki pulled Molly into the second hug of the afternoon. "I wish there was something else I could do to reassure you, but for now I guess we'll just have to take it one day at a time, right? Anyway, the restaurant's slow, so I'm able to get off early. Are you kids ready to go home?"

Molly nodded. She knew Niki only wanted to help, but the way Molly was feeling wasn't something that she could express very well to anyone else. Sylar had killed her parents and then he had tried to kill her. The fear she had for him was unlike anything she had ever known, and she knew it would never go away.

HIRO & CLAUDE

NEW YORK

"So, you want to save the world too?" Hiro clarified, staring curiously at the stranger who had introduced himself as Claude, once he had stopped being invisible.

"Yes, but we can't do it alone, mate." Claude grinned.

"We?" Hiro frowned. "Who is we?"

Claude shrugged. "If you care to find out, then you and I can take a little trip to headquarters and you can meet the team."

Hiro stared at Claude blankly. Things had gotten too complicated, too fast. He hadn't even been back in real time for a day, and already a stranger with the power of invisibility was trying to convince him that his help was needed to save the world. Of course, Hiro wanted to save the world. It's part of the reason he came back from the ancient past. He hadn't expected to be approached by anyone. The last time he had been dealt the responsibility of saving the world, he had been forced to initiate it all on his own. Having a team could be a nice change.

"How do I know I can trust you?" Hiro questioned.

"You don't," Claude answered truthfully. "I could give you my word, if I thought it would help any. But the truth is, you don't know me, so what good is my word going to be to you?"

"No good at all."

"So, is that it then? Do we part ways here or do you take a chance and trust me long enough to find out what I'm talking about?"

Hiro took another moment to think about it. Every one of his instincts told him to run away as fast as he could. He knew that bad guys were good at lies and trickery. He couldn't be sure if this guy was legitimate. It could be a ploy to get Hiro alone so he could kill him…or torture him for information. Either way, the outcome didn't seem too good for Hiro. He glanced at Claude, trying to read the truth in his gray eyes.

"Come on mate, I don't have all day."

Finally, Hiro nodded. At the moment he didn't know what else he could do. If Claude was telling the truth, then this opportunity would be too good to pass up. "Yes, I will go with you."

"Good, then how about teleporting the both of us across town. It will be faster, and since we've already taken up so much time with you making up your mind, time isn't something we've got a lot of anymore."

Hiro nodded. He didn't see the harm in using his ability with someone who clearly already knew all about it. "Where to?"

MOHINDER & MADELINE

MADELINE'S HOME, SEATTLE

"I can't believe you never came here before," Madeline told Mohinder as she inserted the key into the lock of her front door and pushed it open.

"Yes, I always thought it was a bit strange as well," Mohinder joked. "I started wondering if you were perhaps homeless and were too embarrassed to admit it to me."

"Very funny," Madeline's hand automatically located the light switch on the wall beside the door and she flipped it on, illuminating the entryway of her home with a soft light. "Please, come in, and make yourself at home."

Mohinder crossed over the threshold slowly, letting himself take in all the details of her home. Finally seeing where Madeline lived felt like some sort of reward. They had been together for weeks before he had to leave with Sasha, and he had enjoyed every moment of their time together, but seeing where she lived for the first time was like the next step in their relationship.

"Your house is very nice," Mohinder complimented as she led him into the living room. It was furnished in hues of ivory and red, with dark brown leather couches.

"Would you like something to drink?"

"Sure," Mohinder started following her to the kitchen, but he was distracted by a small animal suddenly weaving around his ankles. "You have a cat…"

"Was that a question?" Madeline laughed and returned to Mohinder's side, bending down to pick up the large Siamese cat. "This is Ruby."

Mohinder stroked the cat's soft head gently. "It's nice to meet you Ruby."

Madeline smiled at him. "Do you like animals?"

"I don't dislike animals," Mohinder replied.

"From that answer though, I'm going to assume that you don't have any pets of your own."

"That would be a good assumption."

"Well, as long as you are accepting of them, then I suppose we won't have any problems." Madeline put the cat back down and took Mohinder's hand, leading him into the kitchen. "Ruby's not my only pet."

"Oh?"

"See, I sort of like animals," Madeline turned on the kitchen light and Mohinder instantly spotted two more cats perched on the counter.

"I can see that."

"Ruby's mine, but these two are technically strays," Madeline told him. "They don't have any homes of their own, so they come around here whenever they feel like having a rest indoors. Plus I feed them, so they come around a lot." She briefly rubbed her knuckles across the heads of the other two cats on the counter. "I've given them names though."

"Of course you have," Mohinder smiled at her slightly childish charm. "Are there any other wild beasts I should be aware? I'd rather not be woken in the middle of the night to find a gerbil nibbling my ear or something."

"A gerbil?" Madeline laughed. "Thank you so much for that mental image. I don't have a gerbil; I do have two dogs though. They're hanging around here somewhere, probably upstairs. They've been sleeping in my brother's room since he's been at the hospital." She paused for a moment. "I also have a few birds, but I let them roam free mostly."

"In the house?"

"No, outside. They like it out there," Madeline told him as she started searching through the refrigerator for drinks. She settled on two cans of diet soda.

"And the birds come back to you?"

"Always."

"That's remarkable," Mohinder decided.

"They just know where their home is," she shrugged. "Would you rather have wine?"

"Whatever you want," Mohinder answered. He had never cared much for wine, but he knew that she enjoyed it every once in a while. It calmed her nerves after especially difficult days with her brother at the hospital.

"Actually, what I really want is you."

Mohinder's lips turned up automatically at her declaration and he crossed the kitchen until he was close enough to touch her. "I was hoping you'd say that."

"So, drinks later then?" Madeline let the refrigerator door shut and looped her arms his neck.

"Way, way, later…" Mohinder agreed as his lips eagerly attached to hers.