D.L. Hawkins

D.L. Hawkins
Portrayed by	Leonard Roberts
First appearance	Hiros
In-story stats
Known ability	Phasing
Gender
Age	31
Home	Las Vegas, NV
Residence	D.L. Hawkins's home
Occupation	Construction worker
Significant other	Niki Sanders
Parent	Paulette Hawkins
Child	Micah Sanders

D.L. Hawkins is a sometimes construction worker who is the husband of Niki Sanders and the father of Micah Sanders. He was at some point involved with Mr. Linderman's criminal enterprises in Las Vegas. Hawkins possesses the ability to phase through solid objects.

About

D.L. is very devoted to his family. After initially deciding to participate in the plan to rob Linderman of the $2 million in order to better provide for Niki and Micah, he backs out of the plan out of fear that Linderman will seek retribution against them. Even after he discovers Jessica set him up, he remains very much in love with his wife, and ultimately succumbs to Micah's pleas to return and help Niki overcome her alter ego.

Unlike some of the others, D.L. seems to actually enjoy using his powers and has made no effort to conceal them from those close to him.

Character History

Genesis

Micah tells Niki that if they are in any trouble they should contact his father. Niki replies that his father is in no position to help them.

One Giant Leap

Niki claims D.L. robbed Mr. Linderman of 2 million dollars and then killed his own crew. He apparently was almost captured, but managed to escape, perhaps through the use of his powers. Micah later reveals that he might be in contact with D.L.

Hiros

When Niki returns home from Linderman's casino, she finds several police officers waiting for her. The officer tell her that D.L. has been spotted nearby and that he may be trying to reach her and Micah. After the officer leave, D.L. appears in the hallway.

Graphic Novel:Snapshots

In April 2006, D.L. is interrogated by a LVPD detective about a robbery his crew committed. Using his power for the first time, he slips out of his handcuffs and assaults an officer. Later, he uses his love for Micah and Niki as a focus and phases through the walls of the prison.

Better Halves

D.L. returns home in order to help raise Micah and to prove his innocence. He claims that he backed out of a plan to steal $2 million from Mr. Linderman but was framed by an unknown woman who stepped in and stole the money herself. He's found a man who he believes knows the woman that stole the money, however when he and Niki show up they find a room with several dead men in it. D.L. later catches Niki with a briefcase containing the $2 million and realizes that she stole the money. They fight and just when it seems Niki may have the advantage, he uses his power to phase his hand into her abdomen, knocking her unconscious. D.L. takes the money and leaves with Micah.

Nothing to Hide

While driving away from Las Vegas, D.L. tells Micah they can never return home. Micah accuses him of being a "bad guy", because only bad guys run. Later, D.L. uses his powers to rescue a woman from a burning car fire, and Micah tells him he's a hero after all. At a motel later that night, D.L., unaware of Micah's powers, finds him apparently playing around with a broken pay phone, and does not realize that Micah has told Jessica where to find them.

Homecoming

Still running away from Niki (who became Jessica), Micah tells D.L. that his mom has changed, and sometimes a woman named Jessica takes over her body. When they stop by a restaurant, D.L. goes out to buy some food, and tells Micah to stay inside. He suddenly notices a police officer entering the restaurant, and hides his face. When he comes back to the car, he discovers that Micah is gone. After a long search, he finds Micah, who tells him that now D.L. knows how Micah felt when his dad left. Outside of another hotel, Micah tells his father that he called his mom and told her where they are. Jessica, who hides on a top of a tree, holds a sniper rifle, aims on D.L. and shoots.

Six Months Ago

At Jessica’s grave Niki tells D.L. that Hal is back. They decide to have him over for dinner. At dinner, D.L. jokes that if Hal were trying to make up for the past by giving Micah a computer, he was skimping. D.L. then tells Niki that she is doing great (confronting her father). When Hal yells at Micah, D.L. intervenes and physically intimidates Hal.

Fallout

D.L. phases to avoid a bullet.

Jessica's first shot hits D.L. in the shoulder, but by the time she is able to fire a second shot, he has phased, and the bullet passes through him harmlessly. D.L. grabs Micah and the money and runs off into the woods. He shrugs off his jacket and leaves it on a branch, carefully backtracking through his footprints to throw off pursuers.

Micah tells him that it couldn't have been the police. They find a locked cabin, and D.L. phases inside to open the lock. As Micah continues to insist that it's Jessica, not Niki, who is responsible, D.L. blacks out from his wound.

Following Micah's cries for help, Jessica arrives at the cabin, pretending to be Niki, but D.L. is ready for her. He hits her with a shovel and she picks him up and hurls him aside. When Jessica hurts Micah, Niki is able to regain control, and she apologizes to D.L. and Micah.

D.L. decides to take everyone to a hotel, but when he stops to assist a fallen Micah, Niki leaves the money and slips off. He watches helplessly as she turns herself in to a Utah highway patrolman for murder.

Godsend

D.L. gives the money to Linderman's accountant, Aron Malsky. When D.L. asks if this is the last time they will contact each other, Aron responds no and that Linderman will demand a service to be done at a later date.

Later, D.L. and Micah visit Niki in jail. D.L. phases through the glass between them to hold his wife's hand.

The Fix

D.L. feels financially pressed; his fiscal responsibilities weigh heavily on him, and strain his relationship with Micah. He visits Niki in her padded room, and expresses his concerns. When he sees Micah, D.L. tells him that they need to work together; he is surprised when his son shows him a backpack full of money.

Graphic Novel:Bully

D.L. notices a mark on Micah's face and asks him if he was in a fight. He tells Micah that he only cares if he won or not.

Run!

At the Sanderses' home, Micah asks D.L. and Jessica, who is impersonating Niki, if they should use their powers to fight crime. She tells him just to worry about school for now, and D.L. and Micah leave for the day.

Parasite

D.L., finds a photo of Nathan left by Niki. He confronts Jessica (who is still posing as Niki) about this, just after Micah leaves for school. Jessica accuses him of rifling through her drawers, but D.L. keeps the pressure on Jessica. She tries to convince D.L. that all is fine, and seemingly succeeds, but as D.L leaves, he wears a face of disgust.

.07%

D.L. argues with Jessica outside their home about taking Micah away. He tells her that Micah isn't safe as long as Linderman owns their lives. D.L. states bluntly that she hasn't turned into Jessica but into "her old man." He warns her, "I will die before I let you do to Micah what he [her father] did to you" and tells her that she can say goodbye to Micah tonight.

The Hard Part

D.L. confronts Jessica back home, infuriated with Micah's kidnapping, and he places the blame on Jessica. Jessica denies having anything to do with letting Micah go off with Linderman, but D.L. remains focused solely on Micah, and heads to the Corinthian Casino to find him. With some prodding from Niki, Jessica accompanies D.L.

The two manage to enter Linderman's gallery by phasing right through a wall. There, they discover a painting of Micah trapped in a building, surrounded by flames. But even more shocking is an entire wall of documents and photos of Niki, Jessica, D.L., and Micah. D.L. realizes that their entire lives have been nothing more than a "science experiment", orchestrated by Linderman. Still, this does not deter the two from finding Micah, and they realize that Micah is in New York City with Linderman, and is somehow linked to Nathan Petrelli's campaign. The two leave for New York.

Powers

D.L. has the ability to phase some or all of his body through solid objects. He has used his ability to walk through walls, pass his arm through a window, open locked doors, and injure other people by phasing through their bodies.

Notes

• Before D.L.'s introduction, mentions of him made him sound like he was a full-time member of Mr. Linderman's organization. However, as of Better Halves it's less clear that this was the case. Based on his conversation with Niki about the robbery, it now seems just as likely that D.L. was primarily a construction worker who did at best a few jobs for Linderman on the side. This has led some fans to question whether D.L.'s "crew" refers, as originally assumed, to a criminal gang, or merely to a construction crew who were involved in only the one robbery. However, Snapshots indicates that D.L. considered his crew a bad influence, which seems to indicate the former context. Stolen Time further reveals that he used to be the gang's safe cracker.
• In Six Months Ago, Niki describes D.L. as an "ex-con" at her AA meeting. This was before Jessica stole Mr. Linderman's money and D.L. was framed for it.
• According to Snapshots, D.L was incarcerated at the Nevada State Penitentiary.
• D.L. is on the list.
• In a possible future timeline, D.L. was rescued by Mr. Bennet with the help of Hiro Nakamura. He is subsequently killed, probably by Sylar who possesses his phasing ability. (Five Years Gone) Aron Coleite and Joe Pokaski confirmed this chain of events in an interview.
• D.L. appeared to be dying after being shot by Linderman at the end of Landslide, but it is unclear at the moment whether or not he survives. If he does die, then this may indicate a discontinuity with the possible future timeline, as in that timeline he seems to have been killed by Sylar.

Trivia

• D.L.'s last name, Hawkins, is of Old English origin and means "little hawk".
• According to a tax return in Linderman's archives, D.L. lives at 1430 Martel Avenue, Sparks, Nevada 89432. His phone number is 617-555-0187, and his social security number is 569-3451-081. (The Hard Part)
• According to D.L.'s inmate record card, D.L. doesn't have more than a high school education.

See Also

• For articles related to D.L., see Related Articles:D.L..

Fan Theories

Please refer to Theory:D.L. Hawkins for fan-created theories and other speculation. Template:Jessica's victims