Author's note: I hope I didn't overdo it on this. I tried not to, but still...
Chris started as Tobias suddenly jerked upright with a gasp. Stanley turned his head to look, but didn't seem surprised as Tobias let out a soft groan and lay back down. The man was asleep again in less than a minute.
Nor was Stanley surprised when Athelney opened his eyes, looked around, and closed them again. Chris tried to convince himself that it was nothing, but the truth was, that was just plain creepy.
At least Roger's sleep seemed to be untroubled, and Giles-
Giles had just let out a low moan. He stirred, and muttered something Chris couldn't quite make out. Stanley sighed.
"See?" He asked quietly. "Roger's the best to work with; he's one of those few who don't seem to suffer from their work haunting their dreams. Tobias is a pretty quiet sleeper, until he jolts awake like that." He was quiet for a moment, but it didn't last long.
"Athelney is just creepy. I don't know what he's been through that caused it, but the man wakes up every fifteen minutes to make sure everything's okay and then goes right back to sleep. Same thing if someone enters or leaves, he wakes up to check it out, decides it's nothing, and rolls over and goes right on sleeping." Stanley shivered.
"And Giles?" Chris found himself asking in spite of himself. It wasn't like he had anything better to do while they waited.
Stanley shook his head as he looked over where the man lay sleeping, his hands curled into fists, his jaw clenched. "He's almost as bad as Athelney, if he's actually tired enough to sleep. I've never known him to sleep without having some kind of nightmare, and however close-mouthed he can be while he's awake, that doesn't seem to extend to when he's unconscious."
As if to prove his point, Giles let loose a string of profanity that ended in almost a whimper. Stanley swallowed nervously. "You can learn a lot about a man by watching him sleep." He finally mumbled.
Chris considered the lad. "Why are you telling me this?" He asked.
Stanley started. Then he shrugged. "I talk too much." He finally said lamely. "Giles says one day I'm going to have to learn when to keep my mouth shut." Another shrug. "I guess maybe you're seeing it too, now, so I'm not breaking any confidences, and to be honest, it bothers me. You'd think G-Tobias doesn't care about half the stuff he has to deal with, the way he acts, but something wakes him up. Something has given Athelney a need to check and make sure he's still safe while he sleeps."
"And what about you, Stanley?" Chris asked. "You said you didn't sleep much."
"I also said I never have." Stanley reminded the man. "But when I do sleep, I sleep just fine. No ghosts haunt my dreams."
"You're still young, though." Chris pointed out.
Stanley barely stopped himself from rolling his eyes. "I'm younger than they are." He clarified. "I'm not as young as people seem to think I look, and I'm not as new to the job as people want to believe. I've seen my share of horrors."
Chris was skeptical. After all, nobody wanted to admit that they were still green. "And what sort of horrors have you seen, kid?"
Stanley didn't flinch. "My last case involved finding the murderer of a man who had been beheaded, disemboweled, and stuffed into an armoire in a room at one of the hotels here in London." He informed the other man coolly.
Chris felt his own eyebrows lift. He was surprised in spite of himself. Stanley was staring out the window again. "Is that your man?" He asked suddenly.
Chris looked. "That's him."
Roger and Athelney were suddenly awake, and Stanley was rousing Tobias. Tobias mumbled blearily for a second or two while he regained his bearings, and Stanley moved on to wake Giles.
The man was up and had a hand on a firearm Chris berated himself for not having noticed sooner, and Stanley froze. A second later both men started breathing again, and the five were slinking towards the window.
Chris was pleased to note that all of them were careful as they each took their own look out the window at the men who were beginning to make their way to the old building.
Athelney swore. "That building? They're meeting there?" He demanded under his breath.
Stanley and Roger were still watching the window as Athelney exchanged glances with Giles and Tobias. "What?" Chris asked.
Stanley suddenly swore, violently enough to startle his four companions. "It's Wilson." He snapped, shooting an almost pleading look at Roger as they scrambled back from the window.
Giles groaned. "He isn't the target here, Stanley." He reminded the younger man.
Stanley fidgeted. "I know, but…" He didn't finish whatever he had been about to say. "Let's just get this over with." He said instead.
Tobias turned to look Chris in the eye. "One thing, if we're going in there. Are you prepared for a fight?"
Disclaimer: Sherlock Holmes and the boys do not belong to me.
