InsaneJournal

Things aren't the way they were before

Why did these things always happen to her?

It wasn't enough that Sylar had murdered her father and tried to slice her head open. To top it all off, Angela Petrelli had thrown her out of the Company. Now Elle's one chance at fixing what was wrong with her was at some place called Pinehearst, and frankly, she didn't like the looks of it so far. It screamed 'shady things go on here,' but she shook her paranoia away, 'cause really, this kinda thing wasn't widely accepted worldwide or anything. People with abilities was a hush, hush topic that no one ever talked about, so no facility that dealt with 'special' people would be rolling out the red carpet. That would just be asking for trouble. Though was it too much to ask to get a little attention around here? Anyone could just walk in.

Since Elle wasn't the most patient person in the world, after calling 'hello?' a couple times and getting no answer in return, she decided to venture off into the building herself. Eventually she'd run into someone, and whoever it was would have to help her. Piece of cake, right? Wrong.

Truth was she didn't really like being here in the first place. Some girl had shown up out of nowhere, handed her a card, and disappeared before she could ask any questions. Suspicious much? But what were her options? There was Bennet, who might or might not be feeling generous enough to help her. Other than that, she didn't even know anyone else she could go to, especially no one that could make her better. There was Peter Petrelli; he was cute. But the last time she'd seen him, she'd set his shirt on fire. That's right before he'd disappeared, so she doubted he'd welcome her with open arms. Even if he was dumb enough to forgive her, there was nothing he'd be able to do but offer his pity, and that wasn't what she was after. What she needed was a cure.

Speaking of Peter, how trippy was it that when she'd first come to after Sylar attacked her, one of the prisoners on Level Five had asked her if she was okay, claiming to be Petrelli? Surely she had been imagining things, because there was no resemblance whatsoever, and she hadn't read anything about body swapping in either of their files.

Then again, maybe if she could find Peter, he could talk his malicious mother into letting her come back to work for the Company. Who gave her the right to just barge in, take over, and start laying off people? Elle's father had been in charge. They couldn't treat her like this. They couldn't throw her away like some useless employee and ban her from returning. They had no idea what she was capable of: what she could do if given the chance. Where did they get off ...?

Elle froze as a surge of electricity passed through her body, shocking her from head to toe. She'd learned how to stifle any highly noticeable noises of discomfort by clenching her jaw tightly and gritting her teeth. Her face scrunched up as she tried to calm herself down, knowing that was the only way to regain control - until the next time. Honestly, she didn't know how much longer she could keep doing this. That's why she was here; she was desperate.

Once she was able, she continued wandering the halls until she heard voices up ahead. Finally.

She was just about to interrupt when one of the men mentioned a name that caught her attention, causing her to stop suddenly and listen instead. Adam Monroe. He was here? Why? The last thing she needed was to be bombarded with his snarky remarks, and if this was his turf, maybe coming hadn't been such a great idea. Is that how these people knew about her and what she could do? Food for thought. All the more reason for her to turn around and get the heck out of there before someone noticed her. But then she heard the rest of the conversation - no easy task for someone trying to stay successfully hidden around the corner, and her attention span was pretty short.

All the same, she heard enough to get the grand jest of everything.

Elle's eyes widened. So ... he would die? That seemed a little extreme, not that she cared - or did she?

Hmm. Guess that was really the question, wasn't it? She certainly didn't owe him anything. Maybe her father had been in charge of making sure he'd stayed locked up, but that hadn't been her doing. In fact, she'd even tried to keep him entertained until he'd gotten flat out rude about it, so she'd left him alone like he wanted. Whatever happened to him now he probably deserved: brought it on himself somehow. He wasn't all that popular. It was a shame, actually. Adam was a hottie, and that accent? If she didn't know him any better, she'd instantly be turned on by the charm, and her heart would be doing somersaults over so much as a glance from him. Alas, she knew him fairly well.

But death was so ... final. Come to think of it, he might be able to provide her with the answers she was looking for if she could get in his good graces. And what better way than saving his life? Maybe he wasn't aware of it yet, but some super psycho ring leader was about to steal his powers all away, and as they say: ashes to ashes, dust to dust - and that's exactly what he'd be. 'Cause he was what: four hundred years plus? Yeeeah. That was old. Forget old. That was ancient - prehistoric even.

So maybe there was also the tiniest smidgen of something else that motivated her to boldly, yet silently follow the guy in the white coat ( assuming a doctor? ) towards the room this would all take place in. Only thing missing was-

Adam! There he was. With some big-eyed black dude who looked way tough. Definitely didn't want to get caught lurking by him, so she dipped out of sight once she made a mental note of the room number. Now if she could just remember it ....

To be completely honest, Elle wasn't sure she wanted to risk it. What if these people overpowered her? What if she'd been spotted, and whoever was behind that door knew she was coming? Was Adam Monroe really worth it? Again, not a friend. If anything, he was a foe - on principle. Personally, he'd never done anything all that awful to her. 'Course he'd been locked up. There was only so much he could do. Out in the real world, the possibilities were endless. What would probably end up happening is she'd rush to his defense, they'd make a run for it, and once they got away from this place, he'd pull the wool over her eyes long enough to break away from her and bid her good riddance before ever repaying the favor of even making the offer. Then she'd be back to square one, and these people would not be the least bit willing to fix whatever was broken inside of her.

Decisions, decisions.

She distinctly heard the word 'no' repeated in that oh-so-familiar accent, which snapped her out of her mental debate. Enough thinking. It was time to act. Elle was rather impulsive, so she could've stood there and rationalized all day and did the complete opposite of what made more sense. This was probably why she was usually the one left out in the cold.

Her powers were on the fritz, but that didn't mean she'd lost any of the oomph behind her zaps or that her accuracy was any worse. The problem came with shutting it off, which might actually be a good thing in this scenario.

Looks likes she came bursting in just in time. First things first, she knocked out the guy that'd been blocking Adam from leaving. The stuffy lookin' fella in the lab coat didn't appear to be much of a threat, so she hit him with a less lethal bolt after the other was unconscious on the floor, and she didn't stroll far enough into the room to notice who was in the bed. Really, she didn't care to know who the head honcho was.

"Come on!" Obviously that instruction was directed at Adam who looked either stunned, relieved, or impressed.

Whatever. This was so not the time to try and figure out what emotion he was conveying, if he was even capable of expressing them anymore. Running would be a good idea, and they both quickly agreed that was the best route to take. Neither of them were too proud to retreat instead of stand and fight. At least she wasn't. If he wanted to stay and finish this, then hey, she'd tried. But a glance to her left confirmed they were on the same page: escaping was the only plan either of them had at the moment.


Two part series. Next installment posted below.



Ah, yes. Elle's tragic tale continued: one she felt compelled to share despite his best efforts to show her how disinterested he was of hearing about what he'd missed. How had he done this, you might ask? By staring blankly out the window and failing to respond to anything she was rambling on about. No need to encourage her, but she was the one behind the wheel, so he figured provoking her wasn't wise either. If there was an accident, he would survive. However, he doubted Arthur Petrelli would give up easily. What was safest wasn't necessarily the most tolerable route to take, not with his crazy companion's incessant babbling, but compared to the alternative ... let's just say he was along for the ride, no matter how far she chose to take them. It wasn't that difficult to tune Elle out which he did occasionally, though there were intriguing tidbits of information in her dramatic monologue that grabbed his attention from time to time.

A satisfactory smirk curved its way across his face. Ha. He'd been right all along. Did anyone ever listen to him? Oh no. They chose to lock him up: silence him for decades, and where had that gotten them? Exactly where they deserved to be. There was a kind of poetic justice in all of this, and it easily soothed Adam's nerves. After all, his brief stint at Pinehearst had been a close call. Too close for his liking. He'd been visibly rattled when they sprinted out of there, but now he was beginning to relax - ironic, considering who the navigator was of this speedy little automobile. Where had she learned how to drive ... or had she?

What troubled him more was the way Elle would suddenly light up mid-speech, shutting her up temporarily. Of course it never took her long to resume, but each time it happened, she possessed a little less gusto than before. Huh. Interesting. After observing the rather bizarre scene with a raised brow for a bit longer, he'd give in to his curiosity and ask precisely what the problem was. She appeared to be malfunctioning - which ordinarily might not be such a terrible thing. All those years spent zapping everyone ( him in particular ), and now her ability was turning on her. Painful, wasn't it? Not nearly as much fun when she was on the receiving end.

Adam's expression never changed as Elle described to him her physical woes. Eventually she got the message, and they completed the rest of their trip in silence.

They'd driven for hours, so both were ready to get out of the car once they finally ran across a hotel up to their standards.

Although they'd checked in, neither of them were looking to settle in for the night. One could probably guess where Adam planned on heading. He'd spotted a quaint little bar just down the road, and he was tempted to go there straight away. There was only one thing stopping him from marching right over: Elle. Naturally, she'd want to tag along, and for the time being, he wanted to stay below the radar. Some stranger breezing through town that lit up like a Christmas tree would make blending in with the local fare virtually impossible. So first things first, he'd have to deal with the clingy blonde before he'd truly be able to enjoy his freedom.

______________________________________________________________________________________________

Elle was so not a fan of needles, so she squirmed when she was injected with a syringe full of Adam's blood. "You really think this will work?" By the way ... ow. Would it have killed him to be a little gentler?

"Not sure. Guess we'll just have to wait and see." He was aware of his blood's capability to heal others. Nathan Petrelli had made a full recovery within a matter of minutes, but Elle's case was exceptional. Was an electrical overload considered an illness or injury that could be cured like any other medical condition? As he'd previously stated, he made no promises. If it didn't work, she would have to look elsewhere for a solution to her problem. At least now she couldn't accuse him of turning her away in her hour of need. You see, as unfazed as he pretended to be, he knew that this rather pathetic young lady was nothing more than what she'd been molded into. She desperately sought the approval of people who would never offer her what she needed the most, and yet she continually failed to recognize the extent to which they'd used her. Now she was sitting in front of him like a small child: hurt, scared, and alone. Yes, you could say Adam pitied the girl, even though she'd failed to demonstrate any compassion for him and his ongoing predicament until he'd managed to escape. Hence why he was stubbornly refusing to comfort her in any other way - though if she hadn't cared at all, she wouldn't have come to his aid.

Out of all the humans he'd studied, Elle was possibly one of the most difficult to understand. Some of her buttons were easy to locate and even easier to push, while others left him without a clue as to where or if they existed.

Speaking of, he'd noticed that agitation generally accompanied these electrical spasms or hers ( perhaps even caused them ), so with a nonchalant tilt of the head, he'd start weaving his usual web of deceit, knowing she'd get tangled up in it. "This is normally the part where I say I told you so."

She was still pouting over the needle prick. You'd think she'd be used to it by now. Her father had constantly pumped her full of God only knows what while they studied her. Sometimes it was just a sedative - as if there weren't other drugs that you could take to serve the exact same purpose. You know, ones that didn't sting like the dickens. Elle was so wrapped up in thinking about all the shots, IV's, and injections she'd received in her life, that she almost missed what he said. But once it registered, the corners of her mouth dipped down into a frown. "What do you mean?"

"Everything I told you about the Company is true. Believe me now?" Adam reclined back in his chair, casually crossing his arms in front of him.

Elle's eyes narrowed. "My father's dead, and you're gloating." Yeah, she had some daddy issues, but at the same time, she had wanted desperately to prove herself. She'd sworn to herself and her dad that there would come a day when he realized that all the time and energy he put into her wasn't wasted, which was what he so often reminded her of. Now he was gone, and she'd never get that chance. She'd never know whether she could've bettered herself or not, and that alone was enough to drive her insane - well, if she wasn't already. The jury was still out on that one.

"That's what happens when one man tries to bite off more than he can chew." Harsh, but true. There was no reason to lie to Elle simply to make her feel better about her dear ole' dad's inability to love her or treat her like any decent parent would. That's right. Adam would be the first to point out every single one of Bob's inadequacies, and that was quite a list. Raising a child was only one of the man's many failures.

"Sylar is a monster."

"By whose definition?" Adam let his shoulders rise and fall in a careless shrug. Either way ... "I'm not defending this so-called villain you claim is out there, only pointing out that it's much easier to wave the finger of blame at someone else than take responsibility for one's actions." Excellent example: locking him up and throwing away the key, when they'd all played a part in creating chaos. They were supposed to be saving the world, benefiting it somehow on a grander scale than any basic human mind could comprehend. His idea hadn't been more volatile than any one of theirs, but he was the sole member removed from the Company's founders and imprisoned for life. What a wretched, backstabbing bunch they'd become. Traitors, every last one of them.

"Like you?"

"Maybe." He'd certainly carried a heavier burden than the others. Fortunately most of them were dead now, with the exception of Arthur and Angela Petrelli. Knowing those two, they'd destroy each other, and then he'd be the one left standing. 'Course with the virus gone, he didn't have any immediate plans for the future. Why should he even care about a world so far gone? Perhaps it couldn't be saved. Even if he could rescue mankind from its dreary existence, why should he be bothered by it? Adam would survive, and everyone else would be stricken down by the lives they'd created for themselves. Mortals were particularly prone to making a bad situation worse. All he had to do was sit back and enjoy the show. Did that make him callous? No. It made him a realist. The evils of man were much more prevalent than any good deeds performed by their hands.

Elle slowly but surely figured out that Adam was intentionally trying to pick a fight with her. He'd had plenty of time to say all this already. But why? Could he not see that she was in agony, or did he just not care?

Her lips parted to speak, but were clamped shut when she noticed something. "The pain ... it's gone." She couldn't believe it. It'd actually worked!

Yippee. He was thrilled. Wasn't it obvious? "Looks like luck was on your side. This makes us even." Now she could wipe the tears from her eyes and leave him in peace. On that cheery note ...

"Well, I'm off to find myself a drink. I haven't had one in far too long." His mouth had been ready for a stiff drink ever since he'd run into trouble at the last bar and had to bolt before he could take even the tiniest sip. Such a shame, but he'd be sure to make up for lost time. Tonight would be one for the history books - his anyway. That was the plan, but as soon as he hoisted himself to his feet and lifted his chin to show who was boss, Elle unexpectedly leapt up and flung her arms around him, all the while showering him with gratitude. It was quite awkward, to say the least. This emotion was genuinely felt, or else she had become increasingly talented at hiding what she really wanted from him. He hadn't known 'please' or 'thank you' were words that existed in her vocabulary, but as they say, there's a first time for everything.

A semi-confused glance was cast down to Elle once she unattached herself from his now-wrinkled jacket. Both hands lifted to smooth out the folds before he tugged at the end of each sleeve to make himself look more presentable. One should always look his best. As for that other thing, his previous statement still stood: whether she was grateful or not, nothing was going to deter him from his current mission, as trivial as it might seem.

So why weren't his feet cooperating? He'd only gotten as far as the door before he stopped and did something he knew he was bound to regret come night's end. "You coming?" Adam didn't have to turn around to know that Elle was staring at him like a deer caught in headlights. Unfortunately, she had nowhere else to frolic off to and no one else to scurry around with. He begrudgingly came to the conclusion that her company wouldn't be nearly as intolerable if he had an abundance of delicious beverages available to him. There was a slight chance that he might have underestimated her worth. He at least wouldn't oppose keeping her around a little longer so he could try and guess what exactly was going on in that rather absurd brain of hers.

Adam Monroe liked mysteries. What he liked even more was unfolding them.

When Elle spoke, she was unable to hide the surprise in her voice. "You're inviting me?" This whole time he'd been counting the minutes, just waiting for the moment to arrive when they could go their separate ways, and now he was deliberately asking her to go with him? There had to be a catch ... He didn't strike her as the type that was afraid to go it alone - not that she was about to refuse. She, on the other hand, liked being with someone, preferably someone she already knew so she didn't have to bother explaining what was wrong with her. Yeah. She got that question every now and then, and she found it very insulting.

"Do you see anyone else in the room?" Adam quipped. This was hard enough without her playing coy.

Elle excitedly trailed behind him once he stepped out into the hall. Then she fell instep alongside him as they went looking for a little fun.