I think we've found someone who can help us fix the past. I need you to send me back. You have a rare gift, you know. To right the wrongs of your life, undo your mistakes. You can never change the past. It's bad, always. Everything is connected. It's the butterfly effect. IN JAPANESE: I had a friend once. She knew she was dying but that didn't push her off her path. Her name was Charlie. Oh, my god! I can't believe I left her off the list. You promised you would stay in bed. # Stop the world and let me off # I'm tired of going round and round... # Charlie! Cute butt, hon. # ..So stop the world and let me off... # Freeze! Them's my daddy's clothes you're stealing. Oh, I'm sorry, but this is a matter of life and death. Destiny has sent me here to save the life of the woman I love. Love? There ain't no such thing! Oh, yes, there is. My love's name is Charlie. You've heard the story before. PING! Boy meets girl. Hey, anything looking good, guys? What's that on your jacket? SHE SPEAKS JAPANESE "I don't belong here," right? 'Boy falls in love with girl.' SHE SPEAKS JAPANESE Perfecto! You ready for disco. 'Girl dies.' 'Boy travels back through time to try to save her life. 'Charlie was my heart, my world. My happily ever after. 'I did everything I could to try and save her life. 'But life isn't a fairy tale. 'No matter how hard I tried, the Brain Man, Sylar, always killed her. 'When she died, I lost a part of myself.' My greatest failure. Now I've come back in time to try again. To save Charlie and this time I will defeat the Brain Man. What's a Brain Man? It's OK. I will make sure he doesn't hurt anybody. I'm the good guy. Good guys wear white hats. Bad guys wear black hats. Do you mind? BELL JINGLES (He was wearing a black hat.) Oh, boy. How's Arnold? Dying. It might be tonight. Sooner, I don't know. My family is shrinking and our graveyard's getting bigger. We need Hiro Nakamura. You said he was on a path. And it's a damn long walk. We need him now. It's not going to be easy. Oh, come on, you can convince an apple that it's an orange. I know. We need him to fix the past. It's just... I don't know how I'm going to convince him. Desperate times, desperate measures. And all of that. He's in love. Her name is Charlie. Hmm. There's a problem. She's dead. Three years ago. That's not a problem. That's a...opportunity. There's more. There's a lot more. Now, how are you going to get back there? I'll have to ask my dying friend to help me again. You can't. We all have sacrifices to make. Desperate times, desperate measures. And all that. # What you lost when you left this world # This sweet old world... # Warm you up? Well, if you please. Oh, nice watch! That's a, um, Sylar field edition, right? Those were modelled after the watch Allied Commander John Pershing brought back from Russia after WWI. Are you a collector? Um...no. No, I just... I read about him in a magazine and just remembered. Just something my brain's been doing, remembering everything. Everything? I'm my very own Wikipedia. OK, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964? Martin Luther King. 1986? Elie Wiesel. What's the most common cause of death? Heart attacks. What's the best thing on the menu? Tahitian pancakes. Fruit cocktail with coconut shavings. It's yummy. Do you think that your genius memory is because of that blood clot in your brain? How did you...? I have a gift too. I can see how things work... and how to fix them if they're broken. One look at you, it's plain as day. SYLAR MIMICS AN EXPLOSION Uh, I will try Tahitian pancakes, thank you very much. Smart move, hiding like that. You, from the carnival, Butterfly Man. We need to talk, Hiro. Now. No, that's not what I'm saying, Sandra. Of course I want to be there for Homecoming. I don't want to disappoint Claire, but I don't control my work schedule. I'll pick up milk on the way home. And the greenies for Muggles, right. OK. Love you. Bye. Sorry I'm late. Traffic was actually a bitch. Homecoming, hooray! Everything OK? Yeah, fine. You're making the face. I'm not making the face. - Yeah, you are. - I don't make faces. Every time you lie to Sandra. Your eyebrows furrow and you get this line right here. I wish that I could tell her. I wish I could tell her that the reason I'm going to miss Homecoming is because I'm trying to catch a serial killer with super powers. You know what? I'm trying to save our daughter's life and I can't even tell her. The lying sucks. It does. Especially to family. I mean, I wish I could tell my mom that I missed my nephew's bar mitzvah because I was busy bagging a guy who can shoot fire out of his nose but I can't! So what'd you tell her? PMS. I don't think that would work for me. This is nice. What is nice? Being able to, you know, not be so guarded, not be on... Just nice to have a friend I can talk to. Is that what this is? Two friends talking? What would you call it? Flirting. It's just been so long, you don't recognise it. No, it's not. We've been having breakfast twice a week for months now, miles out of town. I mean, the pancakes are not that good. No, they're not. You and I, we can talk about anything. It's more than friends. And you're such a cowboy you'd never admit it. So I'm taking the initiative, and I... ..booked a motel room. Crazy, right? Or not. PHONE RINGS Yes. No, no, no, no. I will be right there. Don't do anything until I get there. Ethan's here with the Sylar paintings. Go. I'll meet you at the office. BELL JINGLES Are you a time traveller too? Are you following me? What are you doing here, Butterfly Man? What are you doing here? I'm here to save Charlie. And why would you be doing something like that? You told me I could right the wrongs of my life by stepping on the right butterflies. This is the biggest. It's Mothra. I'm here, Hiro, to make sure you understand the magnitude of your endeavour. To protect you. This isn't a simple spilled slushy. Look. You were on a specific path. Everyone was. Sylar and Peter and Claire. I'm making a tremendous sacrifice to make sure you succeed, Hiro. This place is a mine field. One mistake here and it's kablooey history. Awful lot of trouble for one girl. Pretty as Little Susie Flapjacks is, is she absolutely worth it? Yes. THUD AND BANG HIRO GRUNTS AND PANTS IN JAPANESE: Greato Scoto! Ye ta! Isaac? This is Mr Bennet, the man I told you about. This girl, the one you've painted here. And here. And there. She's my daughter. You're not the only one with special abilities, Isaac. There are others. Sylar is killing them, one at a time. If you know who he is, then why can't you stop him? Because nobody knows what he looks like. That's why I need your help. To do what? You know, 14 years ago, a woman left behind a baby girl with no-one to take care of her. My wife and I had been having trouble conceiving a child of our own at the time and it was like... ..God had reached down and given us a miracle. Isaac...this is my daughter we're talking about. I-I was eavesdropping. Sorry but I heard everything. I had no idea. You and I will handle this, OK? Oh, I'm such an ass! I'm sorry. Look, Homecoming isn't for 37 hours. 37 hours and 17 minutes. We're made of time. We'll nail this guy. And this thing here - just pretend it never happened, OK? - I'm Haitianing you. - No, no. Don't Haitian me. I don't want to forget. Everything all right, Hiro? Ah, A-OK, cowboy. Now why do you look like the cat who ate the canary? I did it. No kablooey, see? Sweet! Now I'm beginning to understand why you're going to all this trouble. Yes. I don't want to waste another minute. - Got your Is crossed and Ts dotted? - I'm sorry? Charlie? Hiro, hey! SHE LAUGHS Oh! Hiro, what's wrong? Nothing's wrong. Not any more. You're acting like you haven't seen me in forever. Come on. Let's go. Go where? Anywhere, everywhere. Pick a place. Your trip around the world starts today. I don't have anything packed. We can buy clothes when we get there. You're serious. I don't want to spend one more minute apart from you. Come with me. Right now. Where are we going, Charlie? Um... ..Otsu, Japan. It's where Takezo Kensei was born. In the Shiga Prefecture, Otsu is a favourite destination for relaxing on the beaches of Lake Biwa. We can take nice long walks. The average rainfall in Otsu is 13 inches. The average temperature... Charlie? The Emperor Tenji built the Omi Otsu Palace in 672 and the famous haiku writer Matsuo Basho wrote that the city smelled like fish. Charlie! What was I saying? You were on autopilot, talking about Otsu. Charlie! Oh, wait. What's going on? Stuporous. Decerebrate rigidity. Vegetative disturbance. I don't understand. It's the aneurysm. It's rupturing. I'm dying, Hiro. Not yet, you're not. PA: 'Your attention, please! Local bus service from Odessa to Lubbock, 'Plainview, Amarillo, and Dumas will be leaving in five minutes. 'Please have your tickets ready.' HIRO SCREAMS You. Who are you? I was just in a diner and then... what did you do to me? What do you want? You said you could fix things. I need you to fix Charlie. You told her you understand how to fix things that are broken. She's dying. You're dying first. You can't kill me, Brain Man. I have something you want. Yeah, your power. How are you able to do that? I'm the master of time and space. - But right now, I'm freezing time. - Well, that must get tiring. I can do this all day. Can you? If you kill me, you will never learn what I know about the future. Your future. Your life and death. Now I know you're lying. I'm on my way to meet a very special cheerleader. Then I'll be invincible. Immortal. Are you sure about that? I will tell you everything I know if you help me save Charlie. You're dying too, aren't you? A tumour, huh? Well. GIRLS SCREAM - Hiro! - How is she? - Not well. Who's he? He's a doctor. I'm a doctor. We'll help her, I swear. You can help her, right? You saw her aneurysm. You can take it out. No problem. It's like balling a melon. I usually prefer a more invasive style. She dies, you die. Hiro? If it's my time, I'm OK with that. Really, you don't have to do this. No, we are meant to be together. Whatever it takes. You might want to stay still for this. Charlie? I'm fine. I'm fine. He did it. CHEERLEADER: Five, six, seven, eight! ALL CHANT: We are the wildcats! We're here to say hello! To our friends, the roughnecks, from San Antonio. We're psyched and we're ready to come out on top. Don't even try to fight it cos we can't be stopped! Now we say in closing, the best of luck to you! WHISTLE BLOWS The wildcats are number one and we'll prove it too! - Hey! - Hey! Everything OK? Can't a father go see his daughter cheer at Homecoming? - You never see me cheer. - I know. I hate that I might miss Homecoming tomorrow. I was supposed to grab a bite to eat with the girls but, I don't know, we could hang if you want? I would love to hang. So everything's OK at work? Yeah. Why would something be wrong? I mean, do you like it? Do you love it, selling paper? Yeah, I like it a lot. I just... I'm sorry, I can't imagine you being in school and saying, "When I grow up I want to sell paper." Well, no, not exactly. What did you want to do? Tell me. Please! I wanted to teach high school English. Shakespeare. What do you know about Shakespeare? "Now, fair Hippolyta, our nuptial hour draws on apace, "Four happy days bring in another moon: "but, o, methinks, how slow this old moon wanes! "She lingers my desires..." Something. Wow! What is that, Romeo And Juliet? A Midsummer Night's Dream. It's all about falling in and out of love. You're a drama geek! I think you should do it. I think you should teach. I mean, you can wait till I graduate, but I think you should. I don't think it's going to happen. I just think you should do what makes you happy. I am...happy. < Claire, we're leaving. Come on! Wow. You go. I'll see you later. Love you. Love you back. - Are you sure you're OK? - Yeah. I'm telling you, I feel fine. SYLAR: Wow. You're right. These are incredible. Sorry to interrupt this little Hallmark moment but we had a deal. You tell me everything you know. Yes. I will tell you how you die. You die alone. I'm sorry. What the hell is that supposed to mean? It means you collect a lot of powers. You will kill many people. You will become strong. The strongest of them all. But in the end, it won't make any difference. We all gather to stop you. You're alone. No-one will mourn your death. No-one will shed a tear. No-one. I wish I could change fate but you must go on your path. CHEERLEADER: Five, six, seven, eight! We are the Wildcats, we're here to say hello To our friends, the roughnecks, from San Antonio. We're psyched and we're ready... DOOR CLOSES I would love one of those. - I'm glad you came. - I can't do this. I just don't think it's smart for either one of us. Workplace romances never are. - Please don't do that. - Do what? Blame it on the job. Come on. You do that with Sandra and Claire, not me. You know how complicated it can be. You know... I've been to the human resources training. Come on! That is not this. This isn't a, "Let's go have sex in the supply closet because we're bored with our lives" thing. You care about me. Yes, I do. We are such good liars. We've convinced ourselves everything is OK but it is not OK. Taking the long way home, you know. Having that extra beer with dinner. Don't you want to be yourself? Don't we deserve a little bit of happiness? I love my family. And, as complicated as it is, as much as I lie to them, I-I still love them. And maybe one day I can tell them the truth. I just don't want to destroy that possibility. And that is the truth. I know. You're a great agent. Yeah, I can bag and tag with the best of them. I'm a regular rodeo queen. I need you, Lauren. I need your help with this Sylar mess. I need your help with Claire. Of course. Of course. And I will always be there to help you, Noah. Let's get back to work. What's wrong? I don't know. I, um, I kind of have a knot in my gut. Oh, then, allow me to untie it. You're the one that put it there. Look, Hiro, I was OK with dying. Really, I'd accepted that, but... Gosh, this feels like cheating. No, it's OK. It's not. It's not OK. I mean, that man, Sylar. You said he'll kill a lot of people. I don't understand how you could let him do that. You're supposed to be one of the good guys. I had to preserve the time-space continuum. But you didn't. You changed it. You saved me. But this is our happily-ever-after. We're going to Otsu. Yay! Otsu! Hiro, 300,000 people die every single day. Young, old. There are accidents, murders. Why am I any different? Why do I get to live? Because I love you. Then that's just selfish. Excuse me. I, um, I found this on my desk. I guess somebody delivered it by mistake. You planning a sting at the Midland Motel? So we're pretending that we've never been to the Burnt Toast Diner? Everything OK, Bennet? Yeah. Yeah, it's my mistake. I, uh... thought I saw you there. Have a good night. You too. Beer, please. Root. The course of true love never did run smooth. Charlie. I was just so terrible to you. After everything you did, risking your life. You must think something awful of me. No, never. I understand what you think. That I was selfish. Well, maybe I was. But I'm not. I know the world is a better place with you in it. Well, thank you. Thank you for saving my life. Aw, shucks, ma'am. It was no trouble. Oh, were you crying? No, it's folding paper. I was trying to make 1,000 origami cranes. Here, Charlie. Butterfly Man. What's going on? I've done something very bad, Hiro. What do you mean? < I've taken Charlie. I had to. Had to what? Where? Where have you taken her? Back to my carnival. Rather, forward to our present. Why? Why would you do that? To get to you. It's all been about you, Hiro. Take me to her. Where is she? Where is Charlie? You have to dig deep and take control. You have to take us back if you ever want to see her again. HIRO SCREAMS You did it, Hiro. You're gaining control back. That's great. Well, she's not exactly here. Charlie? Charlie. Have you seen Charlie? Where is Charlie?! His name was Arnold. He was a time traveller. Just like you. His body couldn't take the strain. He had a tumour, just like you. The last thing I asked him to do was to take your Charlie and trap her... somewhere in time. It killed him. You're a murderer. Yeah. Tell me where Charlie is. If I told you, there would be nothing to keep you here. You manipulated me. This whole time. You left me no choice. You've got too much... what do they call it in Japan? Honour. I respect that. I respect you. But I had to do something... to get you to work for me... to fix my past. But why me? If you had a time traveller...? If anyone here found out about my transgressions, all the good work I've done would unravel. You are not Butterfly Man. You are Evil Butterfly Man. I am the only one who knows exactly where your sweet Charlie is. And you can save her but only if you do exactly what I ask you to do. I got my own butterflies that need crushing. What must I do? I made a mistake... ..about eight weeks ago. Sorry. So sorry. Captions were made with the support of NZ On Air.