InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "...no dark side of the moon..."

Peter Petrelli (thegoodbrother) wrote in colligo_threads,
@ 2009-08-16 02:29:00

Entry tags:

!closed, chris halliwell, claire winchester, peter petrelli

WHO: Peter Petrelli, Claire Bennet and Chris Halliwell (Other Petrelli-folk welcome).
WHAT: Peter is waking up from his ~~dramatic emo nap~~ coma.
WHEN: Sunday, August 16.
WHERE: The clinic.
RATING: TBD.
STATUS: In progress.

For the past six days, Peter had been unconscious, teetering on the brink of a heart attack and burning up with fever. At least he was breathing mostly on his own again, but that was a small consolation to the people who had been waiting for him to wake up. The doctors couldn't explain his state and they couldn't fix it, so all that was left to do was wait, and hope that he would wake up soon. They, of course, knew why he was in his current state, but how could they explain to a doctor that Peter was an empathic mimic and had absorbed too many powers at once? It would lead to too much confusion and too many questions, and they didn't want that. Last time had been two weeks, and they could only hope that this time wouldn't be longer.

Meanwhile, Peter remained unconscious, mind plagued by visions that might or might not come to pass. He couldn't even say whether they were meant for here or their own reality, or whether he would remember when he woke up. All he knew was that he needed to get away from what he was seeing. Peter's eyes snapped open and he screamed, fighting against the tubes and wires as the machines suddenly came to life in a cacophony of beeps. He was disoriented and panicked, wondering what had happened and where he was. His eyes darted around the room, though his vision wasn't quite clear just yet, trying to make sense of things.

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x_clairebear_x
2009-08-16 03:22 pm UTC (link)

Claire had been thumbing through her PDA when the scream echoed throughout the room. Her head snapped up, the device falling to the floor and sliding across the hard, slick surface until it came to a stop underneath the very bed upon which Peter was lying. Peter, who had been unconscious and near death for almost a week now. Peter, who was scared to death and thrashing wildly.

Peter, who was awake. Awake!

With a gasp, Claire surged from her seat and crossed the few steps to the bed. "Peter!" she exclaimed. There was relief in her tone, but worry as well. She wanted to hold him in place, wanted to make him stop moving before he hurt himself, but she was worried that grabbing him might just make it worse. So instead she said his name again, her voice a bit more calm and controlled, yet filled with a steel reserve that she hoped would make him pause and take notice.

"Peter, it's me. It's Claire. Calm down. You're okay." She didn't look away from him as she spoke, didn't glance toward the door and call for the medical staff, didn't even blink. She was afraid if she did he'd fall right back into his coma and she wasn't about to let that happen if she could help it.

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notunreasonable
2009-08-17 02:25 am UTC (link)

Chris had been leaning against a wall not too fair from Claire in a poor attempt to stay awake. He'd done well in those attempts for most of the week, but last night and most of this day, he'd been a bit frayed at the nerve. More than usual. He barely left Peter's side. Aunt Paige bought him change of clothes and food, there was a bathroom in the clinic .. brushed his teeth there, and he slept .. minimally. Very minimally. However, he'd been on the verge of entering nodding off when a scream startled him completely and utterly awake.

Straightening immediately, Chris didn't fully process moving to his charge's side, wanting to stop the paniced alarm and the frantic movements. However, he managed to stop himself from still Peter's movements. Who knew what the other male was seeing in his mind's eye.

When Claire's reassurance didn't seem to work, Chris edged a bit closer, pushing past the feeling that he was intruding, and spoke up. "Peter. You've gotta calm down." He was surprised at how calm his voice managed to be. It was low, and comforting, yet at a level that was still audiable. "You're safe, Peter. It's alright now."

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thegoodbrother
2009-08-17 04:03 am UTC (link)

It was always hard, snapping abruptly from those visions to waking, and it took Peter a few moments to realise that he wasn't dreaming anymore. Claire's voice helped, but Chris's presence threw him off. Maybe he was still dreaming, or hallucinating, because the whitelighter wouldn't have been there if this was real. He was just a job, a responsibility, and Chris didn't care. He'd made that much perfectly clear before. He closed his eyes tightly, willing himself to wake up to the real world and not any more visions or strange dreams. This was like that dream in Odessa. He'd thought he'd been awake then too. He hadn't been.

He wanted to believe Chris's voice, that he was safe and it was alright, but he couldn't. This would all fade away, because it wasn't real. When he opened his eyes and Chris and Claire were still there, he couldn't help staring at the other man with a mix of unease and confusion. Why was he here? Why did he even care? He was just a job, just a...that was it then. Chris was here because it was his job to be here. Right. That made sense. It hurt, in unexpected ways, but it made sense.

He turned to Claire, cautiously taking her hand. She felt real. She was real. This was real. It wasn't another dream. "I'm sorry," he asked her, his throat dry and voice rough with disuse. "I should have realized that might...I didn't make you guys worry, did I?" He hoped it hadn't been too long and that nobody had been upset. "How long was I-" He broke off, gesturing vaguely with his hand.

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x_clairebear_x
2009-08-17 05:06 am UTC (link)

Tears blurred her vision as Peter finally seemed to become aware of his surroundings. She squeezed his hand lightly when he took it, reassuring herself as much as him that this was really happening, that he was actually awake and speaking to her. Even if he was apologizing.

"Not your fault," she replied in a half-laugh, half-sob before she leaned forward and hugged him tightly. Her eyes squeezed shut as she listened to his heart beating inside of his chest. He was going to be okay. She just knew it.

Straightening back up, Claire used her free hand to wipe at her eyes. "Six days," she answered, the words sounding a little less grim given the wide smile upon her face. She couldn't help it.

"We made sure not to leave you alone," she added, glancing at the whitelighter before looking back to Peter. Her smile had lessened to more of a loving look, lips turned upward slightly as she stated, "Chris and I were both here, the entire time." Then she looked back to the other man in question, willing him to speak up and giving a tip of her head in Peter's direction to urge him along even more.

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notunreasonable
2009-08-17 05:20 am UTC (link)

Chris had been perfectly fine with not infringing upon the family moment. He had no right, and even if he had-for some obscure reason-guilt from what he said to Peter wouldn't let him. Rationally, and Chris was mostly always rational (or so he thought), it wasn't his fault ... still hadn't kept him from mentally berating himself the entirety of the six days.

He'd been watching the seen with his hands in his pockets, and his shoulders almost hunched up around his ears. His eyes on both of them, but mostly on Peter, when he looked up when Claire mentioned him. If it wasn't enough she had to look at him. It was an obvious signal and while he could ignore it, probably would have in any other situation, Chris found himself speaking. Peter deserved that much and more from him, even if he felt horribly out of place about it. "I called the clinic and orbbed you here. Haven't left since." He replied holding Peter's eyes as he spoke. He didn't even try asking apologizing or asking for forgiveness, not the time. However, his tone was sincere, "It's good to see you're awake. You freaked us out for a moment." Him. He'd freaked out. They'd dealt with this before, but he never wanted to go through it again.

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thegoodbrother
2009-08-17 05:36 am UTC (link)

"Six...wow...I'm sorry." He still felt bad for worrying them for so long. At least it hadn't been two weeks this time. "Is mom okay? And Nate?" He paused a moment. There was something. "Where is Gabriel? Is he alright? There was...I don't know...but...who is he right now?" It was easier to focus on other people than himself. It always had been.

"Thank you, Claire," he said, kissing his niece on the cheek. It meant a lot that she had stayed. He looked down at his hands until Chris spoke, then looked over at him with confusion and shock in equal parts, which quickly faded back to an odd sort of apathy. He couldn't bring himself to believe that the other man had actually cared. "You're good at your job," he said softly. What else could he say? He didn't harbor any illusions that Chris had brought him to the clinic and stayed for any reason beyond obligation and the fact that Chris was a good person. He'd have done the same for anyone who collapsed in front of him and fell into a coma. And he could accept that. He gave Chris a small, awkward smile, meant to show that he was fine with just being a job. "Thank you. I'm sorry for inconveniencing you...and making you freak out." No comments about Chris being high strung this time.

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x_clairebear_x
2009-08-17 05:42 am UTC (link)

"Everyone is fine," Claire assured him after he'd finally finished speaking. "Angela and Nathan both stopped by. Gabriel..." She paused, sighed, glanced down at the sheets on the bed before looking back up at Peter. "He's struggling with the memories of who he was - his alternate self. I think he's going to be okay, though." She hoped so, at least. She didn't actually have any confirmation for that though. Just a very long conversation that was so surreal she still had to look back over it on her PDA just to make sure it had really happened.

Squeezing Peter's hand, she glanced briefly at Chris once more before looking back to her uncle. "You really need to stop apologizing, Peter. You couldn't help what happened," she stated before offering another smile. "But hey. At least your original ability is back. That's good, right?"

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notunreasonable
2009-08-17 05:53 am UTC (link)

He deserved that. It clearly hadn't said to sting, but sting he did and he deserved it. He was ... he wasn't even sure. He knew he shouldn't have said it. He'd meant it but .. not like that. Not, he'd been upset. However, there was no excuse for it. His dad and his aunt Paige would have been so disappointed in him if they ever learned he'd said that, all his family would have been. What's more, Chris felt horrible because, for the past six days he hadn't felt any of that, any of those three words at all. Peter was his charge yes, but he'd been concerned about his charge as a person and not just a thing that he had to do.

Chris looked away for a moment, jaw flexing, but he had no right being upset. When he turned back to Peter, he shrugged. Going for nuetral and managing to succeed. He spoke when Claire finished speaking. "There are people who would probably argue that point." His family his first few months as their whitelighter, for example. "It wasn't an inconveniance. I wanted to be here." Chris stated calmly.

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thegoodbrother
2009-08-17 04:26 pm UTC (link)

"Good," he said. "Mom cried last time...and Nate worries too much...and neither of them needed to go through that again." He listened as she talked about Gabriel, smiling slightly. "Of course he'll be okay...we'll make sure of it." Because, somewhere along the way, Gabriel had become like a brother to him. And if he became Sylar again, they'd find a way to help him. They wouldn't abandon him like before. Because family didn't do abandon each other and, whether Gabriel liked it or not, he was family. Not blood, but family nonetheless.

"Stop apologizing?" he said with a wry smile. "Right...have we met?" He shook his head. "As for my ability...I don't know what to think...it feels good to have it again...it always felt wrong after dad...but last time, I ended up overloading and you nearly had to shoot me in the head. Nathan almost died. Not exactly the greatest thing." He was scared that it would happen again. That he would lose control and people would be hurt.

The idea that Chris had wanted to be here confused him. Why? He put it down to misplaced guilt. He had, after all, gone comatose immediately following their fight. Chris was probably doing something stupid like blaming himself. He didn't say anything in response, just looked down at his hands and tried to process everything. He had his power back, and it was like something had slotted back into place, but with so many empowered people around, he could still lose control and hurt people. Maybe it would be best if he got as far away from them as he could.

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x_clairebear_x
2009-08-18 03:00 am UTC (link)

Claire refrained from speaking about Nathan. She was still upset with him over his behavior lately. She knew he had his reasons for being so standoffish, but that didn't mean she had to like it. And while he had showed up to check on Peter, part of her almost felt like he'd done it solely out of obligation rather than any real concern. She hoped she was wrong, of course, but she doubted she was.

She didn't comment on Gabriel, either. She wasn't sure he was Gabriel anymore, and she didn't want to tell anyone - not even Peter - about the specifics of the conversation she'd had with him. Not because she was embarrassed but rather because he'd confided in her and she wasn't going to blab what he'd told her. It wasn't her place.

So instead she squeezed Peter's hand one last time and pressed a light kiss to his cheek. "We'll get through it," she assured him. "You have practice keeping everything under control now, and you aren't alone. Like you just said about Gabriel. You'll be okay too. We'll make sure of it."

Then she glanced to Chris, and back to Peter, before sliding her hand away from his. Dropping down she snagged her PDA from underneath the bed and slipped it into her pocket. "And now if you'll both excuse me, I need to go to the restroom." Not to mention let the two of you talk.

She didn't voice the thought, and didn't meet Peter's gaze either. Gabriel - the alternate one - probably had telepathy and that meant Peter might have it now. So just to be safe, she avoided looking directly at her uncle and instead squeezed his shoulder slightly, ducked her head so her blond hair was curtaining her face, and left the room with the intention of sending out a message to everyone else that Peter was fine and giving him and his... friend, plenty of time to talk.

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notunreasonable
2009-08-18 04:06 am UTC (link)

Chris had been kind of planning on making the smooth exit. However, it seemed that Claire had been beaten him to it and while, effectively and pretty easily, he could have just followed her out. He didn't like the idea of leaving Peter on his own after the other male had just woken up from a six day coma. Not to mention, he owed Peter that much.

So, he just stepped back away from the door to let Claire pass through, and turned his attention to Peter. Saying nothing for a long moment. "I'm really glad you're alright." He said, sincerely. Not really giving much away but it was a good place to start.

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thegoodbrother
2009-08-18 05:42 am UTC (link)

Peter felt uncomfortable when Claire left, not really prepared to suddenly be left alone with Chris. It wasn't that he didn't want to talk to his whitelighter, he just didn't want Chris to feel obligated to be nice to him because of what had happened. He looked over at the younger man, then away quickly, not sure what to say. He'd half expected Chris to lecture him for not being more responsible and not warning him about this possibility. The concern confused him.

"Um...thanks," he fidgeted, wishing that Claire hadn't left. "Look...you don't have to be nice just because...that just happens sometimes...or...it happened once before. I'm sorry for not realizing sooner that...if I'd known I had my original ability back, I would have kept away from people until I knew I wasn't going to overload." He was tripping over his words, and he knew that Chris probably thought he was an idiot.

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notunreasonable
2009-08-18 06:37 am UTC (link)

Peter was right. Chris momentarily, for a quick second, think he was being a bit of an idiot. But the thought wasn't malicious, it only caused Chris to sigh. And surprisingly caused him to relax a bit. For someone who seemed to have his personality all summed up he was missing the huge part of it. Even if he'd been 'just being nice' Chris wasn't the type to act in any manner unless he wanted to act in that manner. Chris could deal with an awkward Peter. He hadn't known what to do with the neutrally polite one, not at that moment, not in this situation.

"It's not your fault." Chris said easily yet the words had a certain finality to them. "It's not like you could have guess, or even would have thought, that your ability would carry itself over. You were dealing with other things at the moment." Like Chris being a complete ass to him. "And it's not like there's rules for this type of thing." He didn't touch on him being "nice". Not just yet. He wanted to get the rest out of the way first. For Peter to understand that no one blamed him for it, for not forseeing this. Not even, especially not, Chris.

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