Darien paused and frowned, the laughter he'd felt bubbling up dying in his throat. Bobby blinked. "What is it?" he asked in a whisper, wincing. Darien waved him silent and slunk to the door. Bobby struggled to sit up, grimacing but managing to shift to a more upright position. "Fawkes…"
"Shhhh!" Darien hissed, trying to peer between the cracks in the spider-webbed safety glass windows. Movement, dark fabric, a flash of white… He sucked in a breath and flattened himself against the wall. "Chrysalis," he hissed, thinking quickly. From what he'd seen they didn't have thermals; he didn't think they knew he was here, which could work to his- and Bobby's- advantage. He stole a quick glance down at his monitor and choked back a curse. He had at least a day if he didn't go see thru, but if he did there would only be precious minutes. He looked from his wrist to Bobby, who regarded him with calm eyes.
Mind made up, Darien crawled across the floor to his partner. "Hobbes, I'm gonna do it."
Bobby shook his head. "I can't let you do that, partner. They can take me. You go transparent and let them find me… Chrysalis won't get nothin' out of Bobby Hobbes."
"Absolutely not." Darien stole a quick glance over his shoulder. The operatives were talking back and forth, their voices getting louder, and Darien decided they couldn't wait any longer. "Here we go."
"Fawkes, I can't let you do this and go berserk on me, the Keep would kill me."
"Hobbes, if I don't do this and they take you, I'll kill me." Without another word Darien let the quicksilver loose, covering Bobby first then himself. The operatives came closer, their voices ringing in the concrete halls.
"…could have sworn I saw that rinky-dink Agency van out there."
"Get over it! You're more paranoid than that agent Hobbes. There's no reason for them to be here; the Fat Man doesn't want anything to do with something he can't see or touch. His loss; if what they say about this Morgan guy is true, all this will be worth the bonus we get from Stark when we bring him in." There was a pause, then the sound of someone pushing at the door. "See anything?"
"No." The door groaned and rattled. "Windows are shot to hell, but all I see is busted up concrete and pipes. No psychic."
"He's a telepath, you moron. You should know the difference."
"Let's go." It was said in a grumble, irritated and annoyed at being made fun of. The footsteps receded and Darien held out as long as he could before letting the quicksilver go.
"Fawkes." Darien's head came up and he blinked at his partner lying prone on the floor. With a suppressed groan Darien unfolded his chilled, stiff legs and knelt next to Bobby, his partner's eyes closing.
"They're gone now. They aren't even after me, Bobby, did you hear that? They want the guy the Keeper came to see." Bobby's eyes drifted shut and panic rose in Darien's throat. "Come on Bobby, stay with me."
"I'm tryin', Fawkes. But I'm cold… and tired…" Darien shucked off his jacket and draped it across Hobbes. He never claimed to be a doctor but even he could figure out that Bobby was going into shock.
"Hobbes, you gotta hang on. Look." He held up his wrist. Bobby opened his eyes slightly, saw the tattoo, and a tiny smile cracked his face.
"You… quicksilver mad… oh God…" The sound that emerged was a wheezing laugh that dissolved into a coughing fit. "Wonderful."
"Talk to me, Bobby. You gotta help me stay sane here." Darien rubbed the back of his neck, trying to will the pain away. He knew that by now his eyes must be good and red- and the only thing keeping him from flipping out was his concern for Bobby. Concentrate on that, he told himself over and over. Worry about Bobby, think about Hobbes, and ignore the pain…
"Not sure… if I can, Fawkes." Bobby's words were down to a whisper. "Keep… coming?"
"She was trying, Bobby. Come on, think about Claire. She'll be here any minute. You don't want to make her cry at another funeral, do you?" Hobbes wheezed again, and Darien fumbled for the cell phone. It was almost dead, he knew, but he had to try. He flipped it open and pushed the numbers for Claire's phone.