Levine Home, Manhattan

After working all night, non-stop, ingesting nothing but black coffee and stale bagels, Melony left Nathan's office around five-thirty in the morning.

She'd have time for a "nap and a shower", he'd said, and then she had to be back by atleast seven-thirty.

Thinking of ways to prove to her sister that Nathan Petrelli was a good guy, Melony opened the door to their home and stopped abruptly as the smell of bleach hit her like a brick.

Covering her nose and mouth with her hand, Melony stormed into her office and threw her briefcase down before heading into the living room, where she found Autumn asleep on the couch in front of the tv.

"Autumn!" Melony snapped, shaking her awake. Groaning, Autumn flung her sisters hand away and sat up, "What the hell are you doing? What time is it?"

Melony shook her head, "What did you do while I was gone? It smells like you tried to cover up a murder in there!" She gasped dramatically, "Did you finally do it? Did you finally kill the neighbors' pervy son?"

Autumn shrugged, turning the tv off and standing up to stretch, "I was bored. The floors were dirty. I thought I'd clean them. Did that really cause you to need to wake me up?"

"Yes. That, and the fact that it's almost time for your shift."

"Damn, it's that early?" Shaking her head, Autumn headed to the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee, "So, did you 'assist' Governor Petrelli all night long, or what?"

Ignoring the subtle dirtyness of the question, Melony sat down at the counter and smirked, "Not at all. You know why?"

"Enlighten me."

"He fired me as his assistant. Then hired me as his senior political advisor."

"No way!" Eyes wide, Autumn smiled, "I'm not down with politics, but that sounds pretty damn important!"

"Still think he's all bad?"

"Hey, the guys' still a douche--but congrats!"

Mel laughed, shaking her head, "Whatever. All I know it, career-wise, the man just sky-rocketed me ahead, further than I could've ever dreamed. I have no reason to dislike him on any level."

Autumn nodded, pouring a cup of coffee, "You have a point."

"Speaking of careers," Melony shrugged, "Have you looked into that thing we talked about?"

"No, not really."

"Why not? I mean, do you really want to work part-time at a county hospital the rest of your life? Think about..."

"Look, I'm not in the mood for an Autumn pity party, ok? I'm glad you want so much more, and I'm glad you have the opportunity for what you want, but right now, I just..." She sighed, "I have to get ready for work." She picked up her coffee and stormed off to her bedroom, leaving Melony to wonder if maybe it was her sister who was in need of a psychologist.

As Peter Petrelli opened his eyes, a million questions swam through his aching head.

Where was he? Why? Was this heaven, hell, or purgatory?

Neither. It was his bedroom.

Sitting up, looking around, examining himself for injuries, he never would've guessed that he'd blown up in the sky above New York. But he had.

After the initial shock wore off, only one thought entered his mind: Nathan.

His brother had been right there with him in the explosion. Had he survived? He didn't have the ability to regenerate the way Peter did. A sickly feeling came over him, but he pushed it away. He had to find out where Nathan was--and whether he was dead or alive.

He didn't bother showering, but changed his clothes and washed the dried blood off his face before rushing out the door.

If Nathan was still alive, Peter didn't know where the hell he'd be, but since he was in Manhattan, he decided the smart thing to do would be to check the Manhattan offices first.

The doorman knew him instinctively and let him in, but once Peter made it to his brothers' main office, he ran into trouble in the form of a 5'6" redhead with an arm full of folders and coffee, "Can I help you?"

Peter didn't recognize her, and wasn't in the mood for introductions, "I need to find my brother. He's..."

"Who are you, sir?"

"Peter Petrelli." He snapped, "My brother is Nathan Petrelli, and I need to find him!"

She raised an eyebrow, "Mr. Petrelli is downtown prepping for a press conference."

"So he's ok?"

"Yes, sir."

Relief flooded Peter so strongly he thought he might pass out. He looked at the brunette and managed a small smile, "Can I ask where exactly he is?"

"Well, I'm heading there now and I'm already late, so why don't you just come with me?"

He nodded and without waiting for a verbal response, she was speeding down the hall and Peter had to jog to catch up with her. Once in the car, the brunette dumped the pile of folders in his lap before speeding out of the parking structure, then handed him a styrofoam cup of coffee.

"You look like you need it." She said, and he gratefully accepted the cup.

"What's your name?" He finally asked after several minutes of silence and several sips of coffee.

"Melony Levine." She replied quickly, passing a slow car on the road and then hitting the gas pedal harder, "I'm your brothers political advisor, as of last night."

"Nice to meet you." He checked to make sure his seat belt was secured tightly, then adjusted the folders in his lap before they fell, "So he was working last night?"

She nodded, "All night, actually."

"And the night before?"

"Well, I wasn't there, but I'm assuming, yes." She turned her head to look at him, "Why did you ask if he was ok?"

"Hm?" Peter gripping the door handle, "Eyes on the road, please."

She directed her attention back to the road before continuing, "Earlier, you asked if he was ok--did something happen?"

Yeah, we blew up. No, literally! Peter shrugged casually, "No, I just...I haven't heard from him, thats all.

"Oh." Melony turned the car sharply and parked abruptly, causing him to almost bash his head against the dashboard. He gathered up the folders in his lap and got out of the car, amazed that this woman was already ahead of him while wearing high heels.

After being instructed to hand the folders off to "the guy with the polka dot tie", Peter followed Melony back, past security, to hair and make up where Nathan was seated, going over some notes. Peter watched as Melony walked over, whispered something to Nathan, then walked away while talking to someone else.

Nathan looked up, and Peter could only imagine what he was thinking, "Hey, Peter. What brings you here?" Damn it, what is he doing here?

Peter shook his head. Or not. "Oh, y'know, stuff." Peter sat in the chair next to his brother and leaned closer, lowering his voice, "Nathan, what the hell is going on?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You know what, Nate! How the hell did we survive?"

Nathan shrugged, "I don't know--we did, though, and that's all that matters."

"Aren't you the least bit curious?"

"No, Peter, I'm not. We're ok, and we shouldn't question it anymore."

"But, Nathan...last night..."

"Last night?" Nathan shook his head, "Peter, what happened was two nights ago. You must've been out of it."

"Two nights ago?" Peter scoffed, "Well, how would you know? Apparently, you didn't even bother to check up on me. Meanwhile, you were the first thing that came to my mind when I woke up this morning. Nathan, what's going on with you?"

"Mr. Petrelli?" A stage hand peeked behind the curtain, "You're on in five minutes."

"Be right out." Standing up, Nathan looked down at his brother and sighed, "Peter, promise me you'll let this go."

"How can you ask me to do that? What happened to being a hero?"

"For me, that time has come and gone. I have another life to live, and so do you. Now, let it go." With a final glance, Nathan smiled softly before walking out in front of the crowd.

Shaking his head sadly, Peter wondered if his brother would ever chance, then remembered he was late for work. A day late, actually.

"Is everything ok?"

Peter looked up just as Melony sat down, "Yeah, I guess."

She smiled, "Tell me, honestly--is Nathan a harsh big brother?"

Peter laughed softly, "What makes you think I'm younger?"

"I'm a big sister. I know these things."

He shrugged, "Nathan's not harsh. He's just...stubborn, y'know? I try to get him to see one thing, and he sees the exact opposite."

"You mean, he's a pain in the ass?"

Peter laughed, "Yeah, yeah exactly."

She nodded, "I know how that is."

"Listen, I hate to be rude, but I'm late for work. I have to go."

"Where do you work?" She asked, glancing at her watch, "Maybe I can drive you."

He eyed her suspiciously, "Won't Nathan be needing you?"

"Not until after the press conference, and it could go on forever. Now, yes or no to the ride?"

"Yes, please. I'm a nurse at Manhattan General.

"You've gotta be kiddin' me. Do you know any of the psychologists there?"

"No--why?"

"One of them is my sister."