When Lyle had gotten sick, the Bennett's decided it was in his best interest to move to New York for the best treatment. It was then that Claire enrolled into NYU and began taking classes there. Over the past few years, since Sylar's death, Claire had been taking self defense classes. Nathan thought she could learn a few things, so Claire took the classes and learned a couple of techniques. She also had been to shooting ranges, discovering how to handle, maintain and aim with a gun.
Her gunmanship was good. But she was more skilled with knives. They were silent, much easier to conceal then guns. She preferred her blades over the firearm, but she was even happier to know she could defend or attack somebody with either.
The Bennett family moved a few blocks away from Nathan's home, in a townhouse with 3 bedrooms. It was small, but it accommodated all of them well enough. Sometimes, tempers would flare. The blonde just left and went over to Nathan's for a night or two, then went to school in the morning. She shuddered now, knowing it was Sylar all of those times she hugged him, all of the nights he tried to emphasize with her, and all of the days they had a brief lunch together.
Staying at Nathan's house now that Nathan was no longer with them wasn't an option. And staying at Claire's house wasn't something any of them wanted. So they looked to Angela for an answer, and she opted on buying an apartment for Claire. Soon, Nathan would be considered missing, and not long afterwards, he would be declared dead. Even though Claire wasn't his legitimate daughter, Nathan had still left her a lump sum of money in his will, Angela had seen to it.
As Claire and Angela went to look at the apartment, the blonde felt a bit of suspicion towards her grandmother. Why would she personally go with Claire? Why was she buying her an apartment now? When they got to the apartment, Claire was immediately dazzled. It wasn't one of those run down shabby apartments she had imagined, in a bad neighborhood that most people would be afraid to go into.
It was literally around the corner from Nathan's apartment. Why she had expected something run down from Angela, she didn't know. When they got to the apartments, there was a doorman waiting outside. He greeted them, he knew Angela apparently, and asked about her young friend. Angela, doing something completely out of character, pulled Claire in a one armed embrace and introduced her as her granddaughter. The motion shocked Claire, and it was obvious to the doorman, who she found out was named 'Jim', that she was surprised.
He let them in, instructing them to go to the eighth floor. In total, there were about ten floors to the apartment building. The hallways were cleaned, very well maintained. When she got onto the eighth floor, the first thing she noticed was the silence. There were no children running, no couples screaming, and no squeaking floorboards. The carpet was a dark green, to match the walls crème color.
"This floor is mostly vacant. There are a couple of people, but you'll find it's much different then the apartment buildings you've been too." Angela informed her, sensing her surprise again. Angela found the keys, opening the door labeled 804. Claire couldn't hide the astonished look on her face, again. The walls were the same crème color as the hallway, but along the wall at the top was a deep burgundy color border, with little black swivels and swirls.
The room they first stepped into was meant to be the living room. It was spacious, and the windows were wide, allowing a lot of light to get through. The carpet matched the burgundy colored borders, and Claire found herself thinking how convenient it was that the carpet wasn't white. Less blood would be seen on the carpet. She'd have to be careful not to get anything on the walls though. To the left was the open kitchen, the tile was white and black checkered, and the counter tops were black marble.
The refrigerator matched the counter top, and there was a black electric stove next to it. An island was set in the middle of the tiled floor, and there was a deep sink in the counter against the wall. Everything looked so exquisite, Claire was afraid to touch anything. She turned to look at Angela, to ask if she was in the wrong room, even the wrong apartment building. Angela directed her to the right, where a hallway was that lead to the bedrooms.
The first door on the right was the bathroom. The tile and color theme was basically the same as the kitchen, black and white. The first door on the left was a small bedroom. The carpet was a deep blue, and the walls were light beige. If it wasn't destroyed by the time Sylar was finished with it, she could turn it into a spare room or an office. It delighted her knowing she would get to choose.
The door at the end of the hall led to the master bedroom. This room was as big as the living room, with wide open windows and a walk in closet. The carpet was the same deep blue from the previous bedroom, and the light beige masked the walls. She found herself wishing it were the beautiful and bold burgundy color like the living room carpet. Claire turned, smiling at Angela.
She was met with a solemn face though. She raised a brow, asking her in a hush whisper, "What's wrong?" The woman just continued to gaze at her, and then a few moments later she lifted her hands to Claire's face. Placing a hand on either cheek, Angela sighed quietly. "You're the only thing I have left of Nathan, Claire. His other children don't want anything to do with our family unless there is money involved… but you," She paused, seeming to look at Claire for the first time ever. "You're like him. Special." Letting her withered hands drop to her side, she looked away from her granddaughter.
"Please don't blame me if I'm not any good at this. I'm trying to be the grandmother I never was to Nathan's boys. Or the mother I never was to my sons." Her eyes came back to meet her granddaughter's confused gaze. "This isn't something I'm accustomed to. But I'm going to try harder to be there for you, not just as a financial supporter, but emotionally too." She tilted her head to the side, her eyes showing a bit of sympathy.
"You haven't had it easy, Claire. I can't picture it getting any easier on you, especially now. At least you'll know exactly what you're made of, and you'll strive to become stronger. There's a fire in your eyes, and I hope you let it burn. You've got a bit of fight in you; it reminds me of a girl I once knew…" Her thoughts trailed off, and Claire took a step closer to Angela, embracing her gently. "We can both take a stab at this together." She drew back and smiled faintly.
Clearing her throat, Angela got back to business. "Well, I've deposited a bit of money in your account. The apartment came furnished, but it was all a bit too bold. I can't imagine you would have liked it. The money I got for the furniture I put into your account. The apartment is paid for, at least for the next few months. It'll give you time to get on your feet and acquire a stable job."
She swallowed hard, feeling her eyes betray her as they became a bit glassy. Claire looked away, licked her lips, and then looked back at her grandmother. "Thank you… I really don't know what else to say." Angela smiled at her sadly. "Come, we don't want to be late for lunch," she insisted, leading Claire out of her new apartment.