A/N: Reading through snippets of my story, I've just realized that I accidentally changed the name of Kyoto (the Japanese girl rescued by Claude's group) to Kyoko. That was unintentional, but in the future I will be using the name "Kyoko". I hope this didn't confuse anyone too greatly.

SYLAR

NEW YORK

Her laughter rang through his ears like daggers. Every hint of happiness only reminded him how much pain he had caused. When he had set out on this mission, he hadn't realized how difficult it would be to follow through. Giving his promise to Emily had felt simple—obvious. He loved her so much, and he knew he would willingly die for her, but this was too much. At the moment, he would rather take death. Staying carefully cloaked in the shadows of a large oak tree, Sylar listened to their conversation.

"What do you think your mom will say when she finds out we skipped school?"

"She's been pretty preoccupied lately. I doubt she'll ever find out."

"The school will call, Micah. Absences are always reported!"

"Then I'll just make sure and intercept the phone call!"

"Do you really think she'll be upset, then?"

"No. Not really."

"I bet Matt will freak when he finds out."

"Molly, this was your idea!"

"Yea, well, school is boring!" Molly laughed again and Sylar took a deep breath to calm himself. "Besides, that guidance counselor was creeping me out."

"Mr. Watkins?"

Sylar's ears perked up at the change in Micah's tone. The carefree laughter the kids had been indulging in moments before had suddenly been replace by caution and fear.

"Yea, him."

"Molly, I told you to tell me if he came and talked to you!"

"I know." Molly's voice was almost trembling. "He told me that our conversations should be kept private though."

"I don't trust him."

"Me either."

"What did he say to you?"

Molly hesitated and Sylar listened even more carefully to be certain he didn't miss anything.

"He asked me a lot of questions about my parents and how they died. And then he wanted to know about Matt and how I came to live with him, and he even asked me about when I used to live with Peter and Claire. He actually had a lot of questions about Peter and Claire."

"How much did you tell him?"

"Not much. I told him I had to go to class and then I came and found you."

"I think we should talk to someone about him. I already mentioned him to my mom, but she just told me to be careful."

"Who should we talk to then?"

"Maybe Matt."

"Or Dr. Suresh. He knows everything."

"Do you know how to get a hold of him?"

"Claire does. She should be out of school by now. Come on!"

Sylar stepped further behind the tree as the kids started running across the park in his direction. He watched them pass by, oblivious to his presence, and then he followed them at a careful distance. He didn't like the sound of this Mr. Watkins any more than the kids did, and if there was someone asking questions, he knew it was likely connected to the company. He had made a promise to Emily, and he wasn't going to let the company get to Molly now. Emily had gone through too much to lose her daughter again now.

NIKI & JESSICA SANDERS

NEW YORK

"Hello, I'm Niki Sanders, Micah Hawkins' mother." Niki held her hand out to the principal and gave him her most winning smile.

"Of course," he returned the smile easily. "Are you here about Micah missing school today?"

Niki's smile flickered briefly, but over the years she had become expert at hiding her emotions, so she fixed it quickly, but made a mental note to discuss it with her son later. "Oh that? No. I'm sorry, there was a thing with his dad…I meant to call…"

"Not at all." The principal motioned for her to take a seat. "As long as we have your permission, his absence won't be counted."

"I'm here actually to discuss this new guidance counselor…"

"Guidance counselor?"

"Yes. Micah mentioned that there was a new guidance counselor who has been trying to make him talk a lot lately. I understand the importance of counselors in a school, especially at this age, but Micah's not comfortable speaking with counselors, really."

"Of course," the principal nodded. "We don't require our students to talk to counselors if they prefer not to."

"Really?" Niki shrugged. "Good. I hoped it wouldn't be an issue. It's just the way Micah made it sound…it's as though this counselor was being a little insistent."

"Do you know his name?"

"Mr. Watkins."

The Principal frowned. "Mr. Watkins? Are you sure?"

Niki nodded. "Positive." She didn't like his expression. "Why? What's wrong?"

"I'm afraid there's been some sort of mistake Mrs. Sanders. We don't have anyone here by the name."

"Are you absolutely certain?"

"Of course. I know my staff." He seemed a little offended.

She nodded apologetically. "Right. Naturally. Perhaps Micah got the name wrong."

"I do apologize for any discomfort Micah felt about this, however. I assure you I will make certain that he never feels forced into speaking with a counselor against his will in the future."

"Thank you." Niki stood and shook his hand again before leaving.

"I told you there was something weird going on here."

"Quiet." Niki snapped at the voice in her head as she walked the few blocks back to her house.

"Come on Niki, admit it. Micah's in danger."

"I said, shut up." Niki refused to agree with Jessica, despite the evidence.

"Micah is in danger." Jessica's voice was low and insistent. "You can't ignore that. You have to do something."

"I will." Niki's voice was hardly convincing. "I just don't want to overreact. We don't know what's going on. We need all the facts."

"What else do we need to know?"

"We don't know who the man is…"

"We know he's not who he says he is. And we know that he's been asking a hell of a lot of questions."

"I know…"

"If you're not going to do something about it, I will."

"What? No! Jessica, no!"

Niki fought for control, but Jessica had been growing in strength, and Niki was rarely a match for her anymore.

"That's better." Jessica smiled as she passed by her reflection in a window. Niki was glaring at her from the other side. "Don't fret doll. Just sit back and enjoy the ride. I'll take it from here."

PETER

NEW YORK

"What the hell was that?" Peter sat up in bed after suddenly waking from his strange dream.

Peter sat for a moment with one leg over the edge of the bed, rubbing his eyes as though that would somehow bring more sense to his dream. A glance at the clock told him it was still a couple hours before dawn, but his hand reached automatically towards his cell phone. He pulled back his hand, reconsidering.

He wanted nothing so badly as he wanted to talk to Claire. She was the only person he could think of to talk to about this, but their renewed friendship was still too new. He didn't want to risk pushing her away so soon. Instead he called Dr. Suresh, figuring that he might need a doctor for the problem he seemed to be having.

"Peter? Is everything all right?"

"Umm, yea…everything's okay, Mohinder." Peter hesitated. "Where are you now? I hope it's not late there."

"No, it's late morning here. Is everything really all right, Peter?"

"Well, you know, I don't want to cause alarm, but I've been having these strange dreams and I'm not sure what to make of them. I thought maybe you'd have some insight."

"Dreams? Well, I can't guarantee insight of course. Dreams aren't my particular specialty, but I'll give it a go. What have you been dreaming?"

"I keep dreaming about a man…" Peter paused and he could hear Mohinder breathing on the other end, but he didn't say anything. Clearly he was waiting for more interesting information. "At first I could just see him, but he wasn't very defined. Then he started speaking to me, but I couldn't make out what he was saying. Lately though, he's become much more clear and I can hear him better."

"And what's he say?"

"He's asking for my help."

"Your help in what?"

"I'm not sure. He just keeps asking for help."

"I'm afraid you haven't given me much to go on, Peter."

"Well, there's more…"

"Yes?"

Peter hesitated, wondering how crazy he would sound when he spoke his dream out loud. He had tried a while ago with Nathan and Claire, but he had laughed it off along with them. He wasn't laughing this time.

"Peter?"

"Mohinder, the man in my dreams is my dad. I'm positive."

"But I thought your father was…"

"Dead, I know. That's why I'm concerned."

Mohinder was silent for a moment, and Peter wondered what he was thinking. When he did speak, his words were carefully chosen and articulated. "There is a possibility that what you have believed to be true may not be so."

"You mean, about my dad or my dreams?"

"I suppose both, but I am referring to your father."

"You thinkmy dad might be alive?"

"I'm only saying that we have been wrong in our assumptions before. It might be wise to keep the possibilities open. After all, this could be a manifestation of the ability you took from Molly. She's been reporting similar dreams."

Peter didn't know if he was relieved that Mohinder didn't think he was crazy, or concerned with what Mohinder proposed. "Thank you for listening Mohinder."

"Don't hesitate to call me anytime Peter. I want to hear updates about your dreams."

"Of course, I will."

"Peter, before you go, would you mind updating me on Claire's status? I've been talking with her, but she rarely mentions her boyfriend, and I can't bring it up without thinking about how I want to warn her."

"She won't listen to you."

"I am aware, which is why I avoid the topic altogether, but I must know that she is all right."

Peter sighed. "I'd like to say she is, but to be honest, I'm not sure. We're talking again, but she's very quiet about Jaden. I'm worried about her."

"But you're keeping an eye on her, correct?"

"Of course." Peter sighed. "I'm taking care of her."

MOHINDER

PARIS, FRANCE

Mohinder's heart pounded hard as he quickly rummaged through Sasha's belongings. She would be gone for only a short time, and he was determined to take advantage of that time. She rarely left things lying around, but she had been in a hurry when she left to take her phone call and had left her bag on the table. His eyes drifted to the closed door frequently, as he flipped through loose papers, scanning quickly for words that seemed important. When the papers failed him, he moved on to her wallet, hoping for some clue to indicate what her true motive was. He knew there was something more to Sasha and her boyfriend then he understood at the moment, but he was fairly certain that her agenda went beyond that of the company for which they both worked. There were too many pieces to her puzzle that didn't fit.

Bzz…Bzz…

Mohinder jumped so hard when his phone vibrated that he knocked the purse off the table. Quickly answering the phone, Mohinder spoke quietly while trying to put the purse back in order.

"Hello?"

"Mohinder!"

"Maddie, this isn't the best time."

"It's never a good time with you."

Mohinder sighed. Madeline was right. He hadn't been to Seattle in almost a month now, and their phone calls were becoming sparser each week. He wished he could figure out how to express how much he missed her, but a long distance relationship was proving more challenging than he had anticipated, and he knew she felt the strain as well.

"I'm sorry I haven't been able to talk much lately, Sweetheart, but work has been…"

"Time consuming. I know." She sighed.

"I really miss you though."

"I know."

He didn't believe her. "I really do. As soon as we're done here in France, I'm going to make a visit to Seattle a priority."

"I want more than a visit, Mohinder."

"More?"

"A 24-hour visit every few weeks is not a relationship."

He couldn't argue her very valid point.

"It's been almost eight months now, and you've been gone for seven of them."

"That's not true. I was in Seattle for at least three months at the beginning." He knew that wasn't the point she was trying to make. "I'm sorry, Maddie. I want to come back. I really do, but you know that I have a job to do. I warned you how demanding it would be before we started anything…"

"I know."

"You were fine with it then." He hesitated. "Have you changed your mind?"

"No." She answered after a short pause. "I don't think so."

Her answer wasn't as reassuring as he would have liked.

"I just need to know that there's a point to this."

"To what exactly?"

"Our relationship. Will your work ever end? Will you ever be able to come back to me, or am I wasting time believing that this is more than just phone calls and sporadic booty calls."

"Madeline, you have never been a booty call for me."

She laughed, but didn't sound completely convinced.

"You know I love you. This job won't last forever, and as soon as I have fulfilled my commitment, I will come back to you. I promise." She was silent and he was worried she wasn't listening. "You do believe me, don't you?"

"I want to."

"Please do."

The door opened suddenly and Sasha entered. The phone call had distracted Mohinder from putting her purse back completely, and she spotted him instantly, with a hand on her purse and a few of its contents still scattered on the hardwood floor of their hotel room.

"What the hell are you doing?" She slammed the door and marched over to him, snatching the purse from his hand.

"Maddie, I have to go now. I'll call you later." Mohinder hung up quickly and stood to stare down at Sasha. He had always felt that his height had been one of his few advantages over Sasha, and he used it frequently. "It fell."

"You were snooping."

"I wasn't!"

"It didn't fall on its own. You were looking through my things. What were you looking for?"

"Nothing!" He continued to protest. "I didn't touch your things."

Sasha picked up the few spilled items and held her purse tightly. "I better never catch you near my stuff again." She hurried from the living room, into her bedroom and slammed the door.

Mohinder let out a deep breath and sank onto the couch.

CLAIRE & JADEN

NEW YORK, PROM NIGHT

"Baby, what's up?"

"We've got a problem."

"Another one?" Jaden slowed as he approached Claire's house, and turned down a side-street to give himself time for Sasha's phone call. "What's wrong now?"

"I think we've been discovered."

"What do you mean? By whom?"

"Mohinder. I found him going through my things just now. He denies it, but his eyes were lying. He was clearly looking for something."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. He must know I'm hiding something from him. He might already know about you."

"How could he?"

"You said he met you in New York. He has lots of connections. He could have found out."

"I'm sure we would know if he knew. He would tell Claire. He cares a lot about her and he would want to warn her."

"Maybe he's planning to. We can't take that chance."

"What do you want me to do?"

"We have to act now to secure Claire's loyalty or we might lose her forever, and then our plan will be ruined. We can't do it without her blood and you know it."

Jaden sighed. Sasha was always putting pressure on him. Sometimes he felt like she just expected him to do everything, while she just waited for the end result.

"Jaden? What are you going to do?"

"I have an idea."

"Yea?"

"I'll tell you about it after it works."

"And if it doesn't work?"

"It will." He started walking back towards her house. "I'll get her loyalty, don't worry."

"How?"

"I have to go now Sasha. I'll talk to you later." Jaden hung up the phone and slipped it into his pocket as Claire opened the front door.

"I've been waiting for you!"

"Sorry, am I late?" He gave her a kiss.

"No. I was just excited." Claire returned his kiss and then beckoned him inside the door. "I just need to get my coat and I'll be ready to go."

"Actually," Jaden shut the door. "I thought we could stay in tonight."

"In?" Claire frowned. "You said you had the whole night planned."

"I do."

"Oh…" she hesitated. "I just assumed that your big night would include going out."

"If you want it to, I can change my plans, but I had arranged for a night in actually…"

"A night in?" Claire shrugged. "Whatever you had planned I suppose will be fine."

"Good." He held up a large bag he had been holding in his left hand. "I've got some stuff to prepare. Why don't you go upstairs and give me about ten minutes to get it set up."

"Fine." Claire obediently surrendered. "I need to make a phone call anyway." She skipped up the stairs to her bedroom and closed the door for privacy while she dialed her dad. He picked up almost immediately.

"Claire Bear. Hi."

"Hey dad!"

"It's been a while."

"I know, I'm sorry. Life's been a little crazy."

"How so?"

"Oh…you know…"

"Still dating that old guy?"

"Jaden's not old, dad." Claire protested.

"He's older than I'd like for my baby girl."

"He's a good guy. He's good to me…"

"Yea? How so?"

"He spoils me."

"Is that all it takes to make you happy Claire Bear? I thought you would need more than that."

Claire laughed. "No, that's not all. It's nice though…for a change."

"A change from what?"

Claire hesitated. She hadn't meant to reveal so much of her feelings to her father. "I like how Jaden makes me feel special without knowing how special I am."

"You like that he doesn't know about your ability, don't you?"

"It's sort of nice," Claire agreed.

"Claire!" Jaden called from downstairs.

"Dad, I've got to go. He's waiting for me."

"All right Claire Bear. But be careful, okay?"

"I always am." Claire hung up and dropped her phone on the bed before hurrying downstairs to join Jaden. "Jaden?" When she reached the break between the first and second flights of stairs she realized that all the lights had been turned off downstairs. "Jaden, babe?"

"In here."

She followed his voice and found him in the living room, which he had lit with multiple candles set up around the room.

"What's going on Jaden?"

"I told you I had the night planned."

"This is…" she hesitated in the doorway. "This is unexpected."

"Don't you like it?" He held up a glass of wine.

"Umm…yea, but…" she stayed where she was.

"Baby, what's wrong?" He walked towards her and handed her the glass. "I thought this would make you happy."

"I just don't really understand…"

"Well, tonight's your prom, and I know how magical that night is for girls, but since you couldn't go, I wanted tonight to be magical for you anyway."

"With candles and wine?" Claire sipped from the glass, wrinkled her nose, and set it down on a shelf near the door. "What else do you have plan exactly?"

"Whatever you want…" he led her to the couch and they sat down together. "I just thought maybe it was time..."

"Time?"

He leaned in to kiss her, but she didn't respond. "You know…for the next step…"

"Jaden, I think I might know what you're thinking, but I'm not sure I'm ready…"

"But it's prom night. Isn't this what happens on prom nights?"

"Maybe for some people." Claire tried to pull away from him, but he held his arms around her firmly and kissed her again.

"Just relax baby. We'll take it slow, I promise. If you think about it, I know you'll realize this is what you want…"

Claire was quiet for a moment and let him continue to kiss her. She wondered if he was right. She couldn't lie to herself—she had thought about it before. She hadn't made a decision though, because she couldn't make up her mind. It didn't feel right yet.

"Jaden…" she squirmed as he lifted her shirt and started kissing her stomach. "I'm not sure about this…"

"Babe, I planned this whole night…I've put a lot of thought into it. I thought you were ready." He sat up and frowned down at her. "I think I've been pretty patient, you know?"

"You have…" Claire was a little afraid of his tone. "I didn't realize that I was making you wait though. I mean, obviously I knew I was making you wait, but I didn't think it bothered you."

"I'm almost five years older than you. Do you really think I don't want to have sex?"

"I'm sorry…" Claire felt like crying, but she felt silly enough already without adding immature tears to the mix. "I'm just nervous…"

"I know you are babe." His tone was instantly different. He lowered his voice and leaned closer to whisper. "That's why I'm going to be very gentle." He pulled her shirt off entirely. "You have nothing to worry about."

Claire tried to take a few breaths to calm herself as Jaden started unfastening her pants, but she couldn't relax. She pushed him away.

"Now what?" He sighed.

"I'm not sure I'm ready, Jaden."

"You really need to grow up."

"Jaden…" Claire frowned "That's not very nice…"

"Well you're being annoying." He started kissing her neck, and then downwards towards her chest.

"Jaden…" she felt helpless beneath his body weight, but she still tried pushing him away. "Please…"

He held her hands down easily and continued kissing her.

"Jaden…" Claire continued to struggle, but he didn't stop. "Jaden stop."

She felt tears leak out of her eyes and down into her hair as she felt her panic overwhelming her. She tried once more to make him stop, but he persisted. Her instincts kicked in and she screamed without thinking. Jaden stopped momentarily and stared down at her, both in shock and anger.

"What the hell was that?"

Before Claire could respond, Jaden was pulled off of her and hurled with incredible strength across the room. Claire sat up instantly and gasped when she saw Peter heading towards Jaden.

"Peter!"

He picked Jaden up off the floor and hit him hard in the face. Jaden seemed too shocked to respond, but when Peter prepared to hit him again, Jaden did manage to block the attack and retaliate with a weak punch of his own, which Peter avoided easily. He hit Jaden again, and Jaden yelped and covered his nose.

"Dammit! You bastard!" His voice sounded muffled and when he pulled his hands away Claire saw that his nose was bleeding heavily.

Peter ignored Jaden's damaged face and prepared to strike again, but Claire leapt to her feet and rushed to stop him.

"Peter, that's enough!" She grabbed his arm and pulled him away. He fought her, but she continued to plead and he gave in, giving Jaden space to mourn his wounds.

"Are you crazy?" Jaden spat out blood, and gently touched his nose. "I think you broke my nose you son of a bitch!"

"You're lucky that's all I did. I should kill you!"

"Peter!" Claire grabbed hold of his arm as he lunged towards Jaden again.

"Get the hell out of this house. I don't want to see you again! I don't want you ever coming near her again!"

"You can't tell me what to do. Claire loves me…" Jaden wobbled to a standing position.

Claire hid partly behind Peter. "Jaden, I think you should go."

He frowned. "This was supposed to be the night and then he comes in and ruins it!"

"I think you ruined it enough on your own," Peter snapped. "Now get out!"

Jaden stumbled out of the room and a moment later they heard the front door slam shut behind his exit. The moment he was gone, Peter turned to Claire, grasped her arms firmly, and stared hard into her eyes.

"Are you all right?"

Claire nodded, but she was trembling. "How did you know?"

He hesitated.

"Were you spying on me?"

"I was worried for you. I don't trust Jaden at all, and clearly I had good reason."

"He just…" she sighed. "He got carried away."

"Claire, don't fool yourself. If I hadn't shown up, you know exactly what would have happened. He wouldn't have stopped."

Claire glanced down, suddenly remembering that she wasn't wearing anything but her bra and panties, and she pulled away from him. "You should go."

Peter pulled a blanket from the couch and wrapped it around her shoulders. "I'm not leaving you alone right now." He wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly.

As much as Claire loved the feeling of his arms securely around her, she knew she was risking too much by being this close to him. Her heart had already started to race.

"Peter…" she whispered, trying not to cry. "Please. You have to go."

He broke the hug and stepped away. He didn't want to leave, but one slip into her thoughts told him that she needed him to leave.

"I'm just a phone call away if you change your mind."

She shook her head. "Just go."

He nodded and started walking away.

"Oh, and Peter…"

"Yea?"

"You can run now."

"Run?"

She nodded. "Jaden has an ability."

"An ability?"

"He runs. Fast."

"He runs?"

Claire smiled a little. "It's cool. You should try it."

"I will." Peter wanted to reach out to her again, but he fought the urge and left quickly, giving her the space she needed.

When he was gone, Claire curled up on the couch and cried.