Participants:
| Scene Title | A Meeting of Minds |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Claudine attempts to delve into Niki's mind while Peter and Gwen discuss the current situation. |
| Date | October 3, 2008 |
Primatech Research — Cell Block B
It's been a full hour since the incident in Sanders' cell, and by now the security lighting in the main halls have returned to the neutral white shade that bleaches out portions of the gray concrete. Leaning up against the wall across from the window that views into Niki Sanders' room, Peter is at his most discontent since the incident took place. Sipping tea from a paper cup, Agent Petrelli watches the woman on display, now bound down against a bed with reinforced straps across her chest and waist, restraints on her arms and shackles on her legs. Two security team members are stationed in the room with her, each armed with tasers, and two more watch the door outside. Peter had hoped for a much gentler re-introduction to the Company, but Jessica's actions have forced things in a manner he has no control over.
Taking another sip from the paper cup, Peter looks over to the hallway, hearing the sound of the elevator signaling the arrival of more onlookers to the situation. With Doctor Knutson unavailable, there's hoping that Claudine will be well rested enough from her ordeal to make some headway, but at the same time there's an apparent nervousness on Peter's face. He knows Salonga's tactics first-hand, and he's worried about how her time being Jessica's prisoner will affect them.
Gwendolyn is also sipping from a paper cup, though from her expression she considers it a travesty. "Do you really think it's a good idea," Gwendolyn posits ever so gently, "To have the kidnapper's victim serve as medical personnel with regard to her monitoring and care? Even under normal circumstances, it would be a strain of ethics at best."
The blonde starts to stir. Everything hurts again. OW. She opens her eyes, and looks about, considering the room. She starts to sit up, and finds she can't. She looks at the security people. "It's all right. It's me." she says.
"I have taken the Hippocratic Oath. I hope you don't think that I would go against it. Being beat up is nothing compared to a psionic lobotomy, for you…" she says. The young Filipina has definitely been hardened by her experience, and it's quite apparently that she's annoyed that someone should suggest that she wouldn't be profession otherwise. The click clacking of her heels can be heard as she starts making her way down towards the cells. She's dressed in a white lab coat and her usual businesswoman attire and makes a beeline towards Jessica/Niki.
"Miss Sanders, I hear you've been naughty since you got back. Your plans didnt exactly turn out how you wanted them, did you?" she says with a coy grin of amusement on her features. "Restrain her.." she says to a few guards, "I'm going to come in."
"We're not exactly bursting at the seams with psychiatrists here, and I don't have nearly as good a handle on her ability as she does." Peter furrows his brow, looking over to Agent Wickham with a lopsided grimace. "Jessica has forced my hand in a way I'd rather it not have gone, and with Doctor Knutson busy, she's the best alternative there is. Seeing Jessica begin to stir on the bed, Peter shakes his head, hearing her voice over the intercom. His expression hardens more so when he heard Claudine's voice, his brow tensing with a twitch as he looks up to the psychiatrist. "Good evening Doctor." As he watches her move over to the door and order the guards, one brow slowly raises at her request. He shoots a glance over to Gwendolyn, then back to Claudine.
"You're sure you're up for this?" He asks quietly, walking towards Claudine, steaming cup of tea still held in one hand as he motions with the other towards the window. "She's restrained, I mean, unless you wanted one of the men to sit on her." He cracks a smile, clearly trying to lighten an otherwise tense mood. "You just got back, I'll understand if you need to take a couple of days to get your bearings… I mean, it's not that I don't appreciate the effort, I just…" Peter dithers, shaking his head slightly as that gesturing hand comes up to rake his fingers through his hair.
"best alternative there is."
Gwendolyn murmur, "I believe the doctor also has certain obligations to the licensing board of this state, but I suppose that's neither here nor there." Gwendolyn doesn't seem bothered by the possibility of Claudine's annoyance. She watches Peter and Claudine with a neutrally mild smile, her gaze occasionally flickering over to Niki.
Niki's already quite restrained. "Peter? Everyone's all right, aren't they?" she asks, concern in her tone. "No one got hurt?"
"Mr. Petrelli, I don't think you understand. I am an agent of the Company, and I have been one a lot longer than you have. We don't take days of rest. I've been shot by PARIAH members and I went back to work after I was sewn up. Bruises and concussions are nothing. I heal fast.." she says firmly and resolutely as she peers curiously towards Niki and enters the cell, closing the door behind her.
"Miss Sanders, I will be entering your mind. We shall be having a conversation. You, me, and Jessica. I want to see if there are any other personalities in there that have yet to be released. Do I have your permission in entering your mind?"
Peter strains a sigh as Claudine enters the cell, and when she does he turns off the exterior intercom, to allow the conversation between himself and Gwendolyn to go unheard. Peter looks back over his shoulder to the dark-haired agent, brow furrowing, "Even Bob is taking time off after what happened." He says sharply, once the intercom is turned off. "Wickham, you've been with the Company a lot longer than I have." He doesn't answer Nikki's question, and the crackling pop of the intercom cutting out on her end would be clear enough answer that he heard her, but simply refused to answer. "Is there anything I should be worried about here, that you might not be saying? I don't know Salonga's operative history, and it's way above my head to look at those files. The last thing I want is her doing some damage because she's mentally or physically exhausted…"
"I really can't speak for Dr. Salonga." Gwendolyn says, watching the interaction through the glass. "The only thing I can suggest to you is that you use your own experience as a guide. I'd suggest that with any of us, really. The doctor's term of employment surpasses mine, but we are also in very different departments."
Claudine and Niki are speaking. Yeah. Keep on going in the meantime. Word.
Peter sighs through his nose, walking back over to lean against the wall by Gwendolyn's side, brow tensed and head inclined. "That isn't much help," he opines, cracking his company a crooked smile, "But it makes sense." Peter raises the cup of tea to his lips, taking another sip before lowering it again. "I just don't want to see Niki subjected to anything unnecessary. I… I really did hope that Jessica would listen to reason, after what had happened. I tried to…" He cuts himself off with a shake of his head. "I don't know, and I nearly got the two of us killed trying to play it nice." His hand grips the paper cup a bit more tightly. "I worry that if we force Jessica away, Niki won't trust us, and that's an asset lost…"
"You've got to learn to read between the lines, Agent Petrelli." Gwendolyn takes a sip of her tea, apparently finding some measure of comfort in it, even if it is badly imitated Earl Grey in a paper cup. "I think you would be doing Niki a service if you stopped trying to deal with her in duality and start helping her to subdue the violent persona. You need to help her help herself, not placate her violent aspect. But I'm not a doctor." She's not inclined to interrupt Claudine's efforts, but she is keeping a careful watch. "I suspect I'll say this often; you really are too trusting."
"Maybe…" Peter mumbles to himself, his head down, staring into that paper cup as if trying to divine something out of the steam. He sighs, blowing the steam away as he does, then looks back up to the scene of Claudine and Niki through the window. He's clearly torn by the situation, and at the moment he's doing a terrible job of hiding that. "We have to get Elle back." It is an unexpected segue from his earlier line of conversation, "The longer she's with those lunatics, the more I feel for Bob." Peter's tone of voice lowers, as to try and not include the security detail, "He's a wreck. I went and saw him the other day, he's just… The poor guy is barely keeping it together."
"Miss Sanders is thinking on my offer.." her voice is crisp as it seems the good doctor steps out of the room once more. She looks over to Peter and then to Gwen before brushing some hair from her face, sighing softly. She tries to maintain her tough facade, but since Peter's absorbed her power, he'll definitely know she's tired and weary and is just doing her best to keep on going. Le sigh.
Gwendolyn nods to Claudine, but murmurs her reply to Peter. "I know. You'll want to brief the agents who volunteer with as much information as you have on her whereabouts. I highly doubt she still has her cellphone, but it can be feasibly be tracked and that may be of use. And there could be a call for a profiler on Monroe and Huruma which may also be of help. And then," Gwendolyn notes musingly, "There's the Walker System."
"I asked Bob about that," Peter says awkwardly, "He seemed markedly disinterested in employing it at all. But he also gave me — " Peter corrects himself, "He gave us carte blanche on handling this. He's hesitant to hand out any official orders, out of fear of reprisal from Munroe…" Peter puzzles over that one, "However the hell that works. Munroe's file is blank." Peter shakes his head, "I got information on Sanders and Huruma, but all Munroe's had was a brief dissertation on his regeneration. Nothing else, not even a photograph."
Peter looks up to Claudine, finally, and offers her a hesitant smile. "Well, that's something at least. I'm sorry you had to get called down here on this, but it wasn't my call. I wanted to try and handle things with her differently than I read in the reports… I just…" Peter's eyes divert to his coffee cup, clearly this is his first recalled failure, and his gung-ho attitude about things seems to have not gone exactly as he planned.
"Miss Sanders suffers from D.I.D. Of all the available agents, I am the only one qualified to deal with this situation.." she says matter-of-factly, sighing a little as she rubs at her temples, wincing a little as it's more difficult to quiet down their thoughts. Her volume 'gain' isnt working as well considering she's a bit fatigued after all. She's a telepath. She doesnt have super strength or stamina. Oh well. "And don't worry about Mr. Monroe. Like I said before, his file is on a need to know basis."
"I rather think if Bishop has tasked Agent Petrelli with finding Elle, then worrying about Monroe is exactly what he should be doing. Or at least taking him into consideration." notes Gwen mildly. She seems content to keep her remarks minimal while watching Peter interact with Claudine, and Claudine with Niki/Jessica.
"It's more Buckley's job than mine. I just…" Peter shakes his head slowly, "The way Buckley is handling things shook me up, and when I reported to Bishop he didn't seem all that surprised. It seems he's putting his trust in us to handle the situation appropriately." Shrugging his shoulders, Peter breathes out a heavy sigh and tips up his cup, draining the last of the tea inside before looking over to Claudine.
"Do you think she'll be receptive to the treatment?" He eyes Niki through the window briefly, then looks back to the doctor, "I told her this would be entirely voluntary, we didn't drag her down here, she offered to come. I just… I want to try and make this as comfortable for her as possible."
"She's thinking on it. I want to delve into her mind to look for any other possible personalities.." Claudine says matter-of-factly and she looks back in the cell. Now that Niki's had a bit to think about it, she just heads inside, opening the cell and entering it before peering towards the restrained blonde.
"So..would I have your permission to search for any other possible personalities? we should all talk I think."
 October 3rd: Cruel to be Kind |
 October 3rd: Mind's Eye |