IC Contact

[cargojet]

You've reached Senator Nathan Petrelli. If I'm not answering your call please leave me a message, and I'll get back to you just as soon as I can.

Comments

[cargojet]

[ He closes his hands gently around the bottom of the chair, and a moment later it lifts off with him still on top of it, raising about a foot off the ground. ]

How's that for a magic trick, huh?

[parallels]

One of the best I've ever seen.

[She laughs a little but it hurts her stomach so she stops.]

So were you born that way or bitten by a radioactive bird?

[cargojet]

[ He puts the chair back down on the ground, and smiles kindly at her. ] No, unlike my brother I was born without them. My parents gave them to me.

My brother was born with them, my parents, my daughter, but not me. Claire's invulnerable, my brother Pete, he does much cooler things. Electricity from his fingers, mindreading, invisibility.

[parallels]

I dunno, flying sounds pretty cool to me. Not that I'm the go to on super powers.

[She returns to resting her head against his chair.]

How'd they do that? Give you powers, I mean?

[cargojet]

I don't really use it. Not much. It crippled my wife, almost killed her--my power, I mean. I flew out of our car.

[ But that's very grim. ]

Science stuff. Genetics. Then they split the formula up to make sure it couldn't be used again. It had the potential to change the world...or destroy it.

[parallels]

[Her face darkens. She can't imagine going through that. And so, though it's a little awkward, she touches his knee to show her solidarity.]

Nathan, I'm so sorry that happened. I didn't mean to pry.

[cargojet]

It's fine. [ His smile warms, and he turns the full heat of it down on her. ] I wouldn't talk about any of it if I wasn't comfortable doing so. It's in the past.

Your Doctor, I had the opportunity to talk to him a few times, while he was here. You knew he was here, right?

[parallels]

Yeah.

[She nods knowingly. Some things are just like that. In the past and their barbs don't hurt anymore. While others still do, but you don't talk about those unless you have to.]

I knew he was here, yeah. Though it goes back the "you wish your friends were but also that they weren't".

[She shrugs as best a girl can with a little puppy in her arms.]

[cargojet]

Smiley would tell you that he'd never left. Not very reassuring, I know.

[parallels]

Not at all.

[Clara shuddered and held the puppy closer to her chest like a little security doll. His statement, or it seems like it was, makes bile rise in her throat.]]

[cargojet]

Good. Good, it should frighten you.

[ A reassuring hand on her shoulder. ]

That's the healthy reaction. Wanting to charge out there and find them, that would be crazy. Make sure you don't do that, and you'll be fine.

[parallels]

[She manages to swallow the sick feeling and gives him a weak grin.]

I'm definitely not the "charge in" sort anyway. Not usually.

[cargojet]

[ He rose to his feet, squeezing her shoulder as he moved around her. ]

She's asleep. The puppy. The sound of your heart. I reckon she'd stay put there for as long as you wanted. But I tell you what. You pop her down, I'll show you where you can sleep and make you up some lemon tea. How about it?

[parallels]

[Clara looks down at the little thing and smiles fondly. It really is the most precious sight. Very gently, as though the puppy were made out of glass, she puts her down next to her siblings and mother. Then she stands, a little shakily, and looks over at Nathan and nods with a little sniffle. Her allergies are finally kicking in.]

Sounds brilliant. Though I'll definitely need those tissues I was promised.

[cargojet]

Here.

[ That's the one thing he can do, reaching across to the desk to pick up the box beside his screens, and pressing it into her hands. ]

C'mon upstairs.

[parallels]

Thanks.

[She mumbles before grabbing a tissue and sneezing into it as she follows Nathan. She's not sure if it's just from finally being able to sit and relax and it's all in her head or if she really is feeling better, but she manages to keep mostly upright as she follows him, only having to grab him for support a few times.]

[cargojet]

[ He's there to catch her when she needs to be caught, a source of steadiness, and even considers flying her up to the balcony briefly before deciding against it. They reach it, though, and he guides her into one of the small bedrooms, which is just a normal room with a door carved through from Comms (ergo no actual door, more an archway with a blanket hung over the open space). ]

Here. There's a bin there, if you need it. I'll fetch you the tea.

[parallels]

[And Clara appreciates it even if she feels extremely embarrassed about it. Thankfully, he doesn't mention it and she doesn't get sick anywhere. She looks around the room from behind when she enters. It's cozy enough for her and she's extremely thankful for the bin.

She sneezes again and sits down on the bed with her tissues and adjusts the bin so it's closer to the edge of the bed.]

You really don't have to get me tea.

[cargojet]

Rubbish, it's the least I can do.

[ He smiles, and steps back, hovering on the inside of the curtain door for a moment to look back at her. ]

Gotta look after you all so you can care for me in my old age, huh? And at the very least, you can get a cut of babysitting duty.

[parallels]

[She gives him a soft grin and nods before doubling over and heaving into the bin. Once the fit finishes, she wipes her running eyes and nose and nods.]

I definitely owe babysitting duty after this.

[cargojet]

There's a cup by the sink, you can wash your face. [ Apologetically. ] I'll be back in a minute.

[ It's more like two, and the scent of lemon precedes him. ]

[parallels]

Thanks. [She shuffles over to the sink and does just that. It feels nice to wipe the sweat off and the dog danger out of her eyes. When Nathan comes back she's curled up on the bed, with her knees to her chest, looking like she's trying to pretend she's not as miserable as she feels.]

[cargojet]

[ He comes over, carefully setting the tea on the shelf behind her head, then crouching down beside the bed, reaching a hand to settle on the back of hers. ]

Good enough to delude a pre-teen, but you're gonna have to do better with me. I talked about it, think maybe it's your turn.

[parallels]

[She looks at his hand over hers and then back up at him. She looks tired and just plan sick. She hates talking about her feelings but Nathan's right. He talked and now she has to match that.]

I just... miss the Doctor. Never really had a friend like him before. Before, I met him, I wanted to travel but I just couldn't get myself to go. Always had an excuse as to why I couldn't. I was scared to not have control. But he came and took me away and I've never really been anywhere madcap without him. And don't get me wrong, I'm managing. It just feels a bit... empty.

[cargojet]

Managing isn't the same as thriving.

[ He stays close. He does have one advantage over the Doctor - he's much more empathic. 1200 years old, you'd have thought he'd had time to work out what feelings were. But he could tell when they'd talked about the Doctor earlier that it wasn't just an empty fancy: she really missed him. He thought about what it was like to be alone her, for more than the three weeks he'd gone without seeing his own sibling, to be cut off from one's own universe entirely, with nothing familiar in sight. ]

You went on a lot of adventures together, and going on this one alone isn't really what you had in mind.