SWAPPING STORIES

AN: Hey Guys! I was just watching Season 2 again. The episode entitled 'Need to Know.' And in that episode, which is one of my favorites, is the hotel scene with Neal and Diana. I just love their interaction, and it inspired me to write this. Enjoy!

Also, a special thanks to ccluvshorses101 for your beta skills and story ideas.

Diana looked down at her companion. She was very worried about him. He was quiet and Neal Caffrey was not a person anybody who knew him would describe as quiet. The case had gone so unbelievably, horribly wrong that they were all still in shock. Neal's cover had been blown, and he had paid for it. His ribs were broken and he had a concussion. He had been beaten and then left for dead when his tormentors heard the wail of sirens approach. Diana had been the first to find Neal. But now she and Neal were on their own. Charges had been set in the building and were, seemingly, going off at random. They were now, as much as Diana could figure, trapped. They were in a basement in a warehouse and their escape was now blocked by a huge pile of concrete, brick and twisted metal.

"There's no way…." Diana coughed, the concrete dust in the air thick. She couldn't finish.

Neal was still lying at her feet. He had started to cough also, aggravating aching ribs and causing him to hyperventilate.

Diana didn't know what to do. She just knew she had to find some way to stop him from coughing. She tried to elevate Neal's head, pulling him closer to her. She watched him as his coughing eased. She leaned her head back against the wall. They sat that way for a long while, until Neal finally spoke.

"Diana." Neal said, breaking the silence.

"Shut up, Neal." Diana said, wanting him to not talk any more than necessary.

"…too quiet." Neal stated.

"You need the rest, and so do I." Diana admitted.

"You…saying…talk too…?" Neal asked. He grabbed his ribs as he coughed.

"Only to excess."

"Fine…a story." Neal requested.

Diana looked at Neal unbelieving. "You are not five, and this is not your bedtime."

"…I'll…talk." Neal broke into a coughing fit. He then groaned and shut his eyes, his chest hurt so bad.

Diana shook her head. "Okay." She grumbled.

Neal seemed to relax a little more in Diana's arms. He closed his eyes for just a moment as a wave of pain hit him.

"What kind of story are we talking about here?" Diana asked.

"Anything. ….you, Christie… first met,…first day…with Peter…anything." Neal suggested.

"I…was nervous. Even back then, Peter Burke had a reputation. Out of the academy he had done so well. When he joined the bureau, he rose through the ranks quickly, youngest ever to be Senior Agent over a division. He was quite the agent, and everybody wanted to work for him. I had to wait in a long line. But he saw something in me. Some…I don't know what. He hired me at my interview." Diana stated.

"I know."

"What do you know?" Diana asked, looking down at Neal.

"I know why he hired you." Neal revealed.

"Why?" Diana asked, very curious as to what Neal would say.

"…loyal…good heart." Neal replied.

Diana smiled at him, a little surprised by his answer. He was right, of course, but she was still surprised.

"Stop trying to get on my good side, Caffrey." Diana warned, smiling.

"…am on…good side…speak…truth." Neal replied.

"Caffrey!"

"…like me." Neal paused and began to cough as the dust entered his lungs again. "Admit it."

"You're a charmer. It's your job to get people to like you." Diana stated.

"…fell for it. …surprised you…." Neal replied.

Diana shook her head "I admit nothing."

"…Peter…on his game… back then?" Neal asked.

Diana nodded. "He was, and I thought I told you not to talk so much."

"…dust's…not bad…." Neal replied.

"Anyway, I was so nervous. I kept calling him Sir. Yes Sir, Agent Burke. No Sir, Agent Burke. And he hated it. He hated the sirs. He…by the end of the day he had me calling him Peter. I...I was uncomfortable with that, and he could tell. I had never had a superior allow me to call him by his first name. I just…it was too weird." Diana paused. "But he was also unlike any other supervisor I had ever had. He was human. I mean…a lot of bosses don't let you get to know them. They want a professional distance and that's it. He just…he talked about El and Satchemo from the start. A week later I met El. He dropped by his house to pick something up and he invited me in. It was strange, so I hesitated at first. And, over time, I got to know Peter and I got to know El. I had, I have more than a boss. I consider him a friend." Diana explained.

"Aww." Neal stated.

"Shut up, Neal." Diana said, blushing when she realized she had revealed more than she had intended.

Diana thought she heard a noise. She was trying to listen as Neal began to speak.

"Shhh." Diana said as she heard voices approach.

Neal heard them too and followed her lead. They both listened intently until they heard a single familiar voice.

"Neal…Diana." Peter called.

It had taken construction workers two hours to break through the rubble. Peter could only hope that his agent and his C.I. were still alive somewhere in the structure.

Peter called out again. "Diana! Neal!"

Diana coughed and tried to answer, but her voice came out weak. She tried again. It was a little louder this time.

"Wait!" Peter said and the workman stopped. "I thought I heard something. Let's give it another minute."

Peter heard Diana's voice again, a few seconds later.

"Diana!?" Peter replied even louder.

"…that Peter?" Neal asked.

Diana nodded. "I think so." Diana called again. She was a little louder this time.

"There…over there." Peter said, directing the men to start digging in another pile of rubble. "I think that's where I heard them."

"This is it!" Peter said as he heard Diana's voice again. "This is it!"

The men broke through a few moments later. Peter climbed down into the hole the men had made when he saw Neal, bloody and immobile.

"He passed out a second ago." She coughed out. "He was just talking." Diana replied, not realizing Neal had lost consciousness.

Peter nodded. "It's okay. We'll get him out." He looked at his agent. "Are you okay?"

Diana nodded, unable to speak from the cloud of dust the workers had stirred up.

"You sure?"

Diana nodded again. "…scrapes and bruises. Neal took the brunt of it."

Peter nodded again. Neal was on his way out of the hole, carried by the EMTs who had crawled in after Peter, as Peter helped Diana to her feet.

TBC