InsaneJournal

Noah was beyond spent. Between being constantly on alert for Sylar and doing everything he could to keep his mother's ability under control, he was lucky if he got more than a few hours of sleep a night. So when Elle had opted to lay down for an afternoon nap, he'd had no real choice but to do the same. He couldn't keep feasibly going on such little rest and knew Maddie would sleep for another few hours, easily.

It was odd. Noah had grown up an only child and mostly in the company of only his parents. Yet he'd adapted to having Maddie around without too much of an issue and, thanks to needing to be present when his mom handled her, had gotten used to her schedule as well. Which meant that when he woke from his slumber around the time that his little sister should be crying, only to realize that she wasn't, he'd gotten concerned and had gone to check on her.

Hesitating in the doorway, he watched as his grandfather spoke quietly to the baby. Had he stumbled across such a scene a few scant days before he likely would have insisted on taking Maddie from the man. However he now knew, if only because of the close quarters they'd been sharing since Sylar decided to start killing again, that Bob had no intention of hurting either of them. That wasn't to say Noah trusted him enough that he was willing to lay back down while Bob tended to Maddie all on his own, particularly after hearing the last little bit of what the man had to say to the four-month-old in his arms, but he didn't see the cause for a scene either. He just alerted the other man to his presence by speaking, his tone lightly sardonic and his gaze trained on the duo.

"Wow, make sure to tell her how you really feel."

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There was a skeptical gleam in Noah's eyes at Bob's comment that he was allowed to have his own opinions. Clearly there was something there that wasn't being said, something Bob didn't want to discuss. He let it slide, for now, and switched gears to the change in conversation without missing a beat. What could he say? He wasn't exactly the type to press for information unless it seemed pertinent and any issues Bob may or may not have with Maddie's namesake just weren't at the top of Noah's priority list at the moment. All in due time, he supposed as he gave a nod at the question.

"It doesn't make much sense if you ask me," he replied with a faint shrug as he stepped a bit closer to the duo. He smiled lightly as Maddie did her best to turn her gaze toward the sound of his voice, but he made no move to take her away from Bob. Instead he just looked back to his grandfather.

"Genetics never have made much sense. Too much luck of the draw haphazardly wrapped up in science."

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When Bob first began speaking, Noah felt the same faint beginnings of a headache that he got whenever his dad back home would start in on some discussion about a topic he thoroughly enjoyed that Noah really could care less about. Fortunately all of the years of practice he had let him keep his expression neutral and only briefly entertain the thought that he still thought genetics was rather ridiculously complicated. However, he realized by the time Bob had finished speaking, that for the first time in quite some time he actually half-understood what was being said on the subject.

His brow furrowed a bit in thought and he had to admit he could see what the man was saying. That it wasn't quite as random as it appeared to be, when you looked at more than just a very narrow picture. Granted he wasn't sure what to add, or even ask, without sounding like some kind of moron, but at least he didn't feel like a total idiot either.

"You, uh, really know your stuff," he finally intoned. His gaze dropped to Maddie's and the teenager studied her for a long moment before looking back to the man holding her. "So what sort abilities could she get, if she got some sort of combination?" he asked, purposefully avoiding bringing up his own ability for the time being. He was sure Bob likely had questions about it but, as far as Noah was concerned, the man was going to have to ask.

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Noah sighed softly and offered a faint nod of his head. "Yeah, I figured as much," he muttered as his own gaze fell back to the infant in question. He would be lying if he said he wasn't at least a little grateful that those 'regrettable side-effects' might fall to whoever Maddie might hypothetically focus on rather than her, personally. Not that he wanted to see anyone have any adverse reactions, but he'd rather some nameless, faceless stranger (in his mind, at least) than his little sister.

Of course, then came the flipside of that. The guilt that came from hurting someone else, especially if it was unintentional or unavoidable. He thought of his dad's initial ability and the way he spoke of a near-compulsion to know how things worked. A drive powerful enough to lead him to murder, in fact. A life lived with remorse and regrets that could never be truly faced. Noah wouldn't wish that on his little sister either.

"I shouldn't be surprised," he admitted as he peered back up at Bob. "I mean, it's not like any ability is easy to deal with. Mine sucks, most of the time. I just hope, whatever it is that she winds up with, it isn't something that dad needs to understand how it works." Because that was, really, the biggest worry of them all as far as he was concerned. Everything else could and would sort itself out, but if Maddie wound up with something that wasn't already in their dad's arsenal and wasn't rendered impossible to take like Noah's own ability? Things could quickly reach a point of absolute horror the instant it manifested.

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"It's not a selfish desire," Noah automatically pointed out. He couldn't help it. It was a bit like a knee-jerk reaction. He'd been told enough about his father's ability over the years that it was one subject he felt fairly confident in discussing. He sighed softly and met Bob's gaze. "I mean, there's more to it than just that."

He didn't elaborate any further but instead smiled faintly at Maddie as she finally seemed to settle against Bob. Out of all of them, she was the one who seemed to take all the change the easiest. He knew that her young age likely had a lot to do with that, but he also felt a bit of pride at the fact that his sister wasn't one of those babies who had to have everything exactly the same, day in and day out. That really would have made this whole thing a lot tougher.

"I was twelve." The admission was made easily, although in retrospect he wasn't sure why he'd offered it. He smirked ever so slightly at the memory. "At least, we're pretty sure I was twelve. That's the first time any of us noticed it." For all he knew, he'd manifested at a much younger age and it had simply gone unchecked, given the root of his ability, for some time. Reaching out, he gently brushed his fingers across the wisps of Maddie's hair.

"Maybe she just won't manifest at all." The odds weren't in her favor for that, of course, but he could hope. One normal member of the family wasn't too much to ask for. Right?

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If there was one definite common ground that Noah and Bob shared, it was in their concern for Elle. It caused him to frown thoughtfully at the other man's words and glance in the same direction. He gnawing absently at his lower lip for a moment before looking back to Bob.

"Back home, a few years back, my dad went missing for almost a week. We pretty much thought he was gone," he said after a moment. His gaze slid down to Maddie as he thought back on the memory. "Mom managed to knock out power across four states before I was able to get enough control that she could regain hers. That's the worst I've ever seen her and it isn't something I want to repeat." He looked back to Bob. Determination shone in his eyes.

"Whatever happens, we'll deal with it. We don't have any other choice." He shrugged lightly, hesitated, then admitted, "Only thing I'm worried about is what's going to happen if my dad decides to show up and... force the issue. There are only so many abilities I can stop at once without becoming more of a hindrance than a help."

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"People."

Noah's voice was flat as he corrected him. "You saw it in people. Real, live human beings." He met his gaze without flinching. "Which is the problem. You can't make someone not feel emotions, not have reactions to situations. You can't even really teach them control if you aren't treating them like a person while you're doing it."

He shook his head lightly and glanced back in the direction of where his mother lay sleeping. "She's losing control right now because she has a ton of emotions tied into this and no idea how to deal with any of them," he said simply as he looked back to Bob. "Getting her to suppress them isn't going to solve the issue. Just prolong the inevitable and make it ten times worse when she finally does face everything." He paused and swallowed, before admitting, "And I can only do so much, for so long. My ability isn't made to work for extended periods of time."

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Ultimately, it was Maddie's whimpering that kept Noah from snapping out a reply he might have later regretted. It wasn't often that he let himself react too strongly to, well, much of anything, but this was a somewhat tender subject for him. Still, getting into an argument wasn't going to solve anything and would, in fact, make an already difficult situation even worse. So he bit his tongue, although he couldn't keep from snorting lightly at the comment about interpersonal relationships.

"Yeah, same here." Which, much like coming from Bob, was quite an understatement. It was also something he refused to dwell upon at the moment, and therefore easily switched gears to the offer the man made next. Granted at the offer, Noah simply blinked in mild shock. Slowly, he looked toward the room then back to his grandfather.

"Wouldn't that be like tossing fuel on the proverbial fire?" he questioned. Pausing, he added thoughtfully, "Which... might not be such a bad idea, really." If nothing else, it'd give him an idea of when his Mom was going to finally lose it, so he could make sure he was there when it happened to offer as much damage control as possible.

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Noah was hardly surprised that there were things his mom had been told that weren't necessarily true. He was even less surprised that there were things she'd been made to forget over the years. He wasn't stupid. He knew the way the Company had worked, in its heyday, and he easily remembered some of the less than pleasant things he'd heard about Bob over the years. Still, it wasn't his place to guess, presume, or even judge. Whatever issues existed were between his mother and his grandfather and he was determined to stay as neutral as was possible.

So he didn't comment. He might not have said anything very productive at all, really, had Bob not tacked on a statement that Noah really had not been expecting in the slightest. It made him pause, and caused a slight frown of confusion to flicker across his face.

"You didn't want her to become you? What do you mean by that?"

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Whatever Noah had been expecting Bob to say, that really had not been it. Not even close. In fact those three simple words made him blink in surprise before frowning in even more confusion than he'd felt before. The weak one? How did he figure he was weak? It really just didn't add up, as far as Noah was concerned.

Then again, he reminded himself, he hadn't known Bob back then. Maybe the man had seriously changed that significantly over the years? It was certainly possible, he supposed. Both of his parents were prime examples of how much a person could change if they put forth the effort. But even if that was true, could he have really been that weak from the onset?

Not sure exactly what to say in response, and certainly not wanting to come across as though he fully understood or even agreed, Noah finally settled on speaking the plain and simple truth as he saw it. "Funny. All of the descriptions I've heard about you over the years, 'weak' was never one of them," he simply remarked as his own gaze fell back to Maddie as well.

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