Chapter 2 (Post 'Light It Up')

"Glad to see you took those dealers in alive, Fetch." Delsin looked to the right out over the blinking lights of Seattle, pulling his vest closer around him. Nobody ever mentioned how breezy rooftops are.

"Think what you want, but you had nothing to do with that, D." She laughed and kicked her feet.

"Sure. Keep telling yourself that." He grinned and she punched his arm. "I still wish you'd stayed around to see that last power I got, man, I've never seen anything like it. Dozens of DUPs, bam, out in a second!" He pumped his fist into the air.

"I'm sure it was great, Smokes, but I do have a life, ya' know." She flicked her hair up.

"In this city? Now?"

"What? My light-shows are a hit at parties!" She snorted.

"Sure they are, Fetch." He leaned back and put his hands under his head. "I'm wondering if I should've chosen a different design for the Space Needle banner." He said. "Maybe I would've gotten a cooler nick-name out of it."

"Fat chance, Banner Man. Besides, at least ya' don't have USTV News calling you 'he' all over the place!" Fetch shook her head.

Delsin furrowed his eyebrows. "They do call me 'he."

"Ya' know what I mean." She turned her head away from him. They could smell steak cooking from somewhere below them. Probably some guy on a roof-top patio. A D.U.P. siren went off somewhere in the distance, blaring. Only just found her handiwork, she guessed. Looking over at Delsin, she wondered how he could possibly be comfortable, lying on a downwards incline as he was. Then again, probably better that way for a rooftop.

"Do you dye your hair, or is it the neon that does that?" He asked, he'd seen the hair dye at her billboard, but her hair was still pink in her memories of Curdun Cay, and he doubted that they let her dye her hair during her seven years locked up there.

"A bit of both. It's just too light without the dye." She pulled at a strand of it.

"It'd probably look good anyway." He looked over at her and sat up a bit on his elbows.

Fetch huffed in response.

"You need to get out more, you know that?" He pulled his legs up and crossed the right over the left, ankle over knee.

"I am out. I go out all the time." She narrowed her eyes at him.

"I mean, to like bars, or something. Shows. Real ones. You know, socialize." Delsin fiddled with the raven pin on his vest.

"Yeah, neon-girl's gonna' be a big hit." She said, scoffing.

"You could be, long as you don't, you know, shoot anyone." He smirked at her.

"Probably not gonna' happen." She pulled his beanie down over his eyes.

"Hey!" Squirming, he pushed his beanie back up. "You're right though, I'm overestimating you." He rolled away, laughing, as a blast of neon hit right where he was laying a second before. "Whoa, Laser-show, I pegged you for the kind of girl who likes to tie guys up, but a rooftop ain't the best place for that!"

"With a mouth like yours, it's the only place!" She stepped toward him, but slipped and fell, careening over the side of the roof.

"Shit!" Delsin smoke-dashed through the vent and onto the ground below, stepping underneath and catching her, although, being a conduit, there wasn't really any danger for either of them. He looked down at her face, breathing heavy, and winked. "What would you do without me?"

Staring up at him, she swallowed audibly. "I, I uh… I don't know." Delsin noticed that she smelled of the same flowers as her billboard, and blinked slowly a few times, feeling her weight, incredibly light, on his arms.

Suddenly, she dashed away, out of his reach by a couple of yards, and her hand went up to ruffle her hair. "I mean, um, I would've survived that fall."

He shook his head, as if waking from a trance. "Yeah, I know, just thought it might be fun to play the hero."

Fetch laughed. "What, like ya' aren't already?"

"Well, I mean, I haven't done any Superman stuff." He said, rubbing the tattoo on his arm.

"Really? That's the character you're going with?" She noticed her shoe was untied, and set about fixing it, so he wouldn't see her smiling into it.

"Right, should've picked Spider-man." He shrugged and brushed his arms off.

"You know how you asked about Curdun Cay earlier?" She blurted out.

"Yeah…" He tilted his head.

"Will you help me free the other Conduits when all this is over?" Fetch looked away, tapping her foot and fidgeting with her hands.

"I really hadn't thought that far ahead…" He started.

"Oh. I understand, ya' know, it's just…"

"No, I mean, I will. I owe you that much. Gives me something to look forward to, too." He grinned.

"Really?" She said, eyes wide.

"Really. You gave me your powers. I should probably repay you somehow." He stuffed his hands into his pockets.

"Gave?" She stepped toward him, both playfully and threateningly. Play-threateningly.

Delsin's phone rang and he sighed. "Do you mind if I get that?"

"Oh no, please." She said, waving her hand.

He turned away, putting his phone to his ear. "Reggie, what's up?" His head swiveled towards Fetch, mouthing 'I'm sorry.'

'It's fine.' She mouthed back.

"Yeah. Yes. Yes. Sorry? No. Really? REALLY? Damn." He pushed the 'hang-up' button on his phone as aggressively as he could. "The DUPs are raiding Queen Anne, I gotta get over there. You in?"

"Yikes. No, I got a meeting with a drug dealer. Reminds me, I think we'll have some work to do one of these days. I'll call ya?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Definitely. Date with a death toll." He absorbed the neon from a nearby 'open' sign and dashed off.

"That's my line!" She yelled after him.

As he sped away, Delsin couldn't help but curse his brother and the D.U.P. Call him crazy, but he wanted to spend more time with Fetch. There were definitely better times than when hunting a government organization with the most powerful Conduit alive at its head, but still. Guy can't help liking a girl when the right one crosses his path, and boy, from what he could tell, she was the right one. Right mix of playful, powerful and passionate. He couldn't help but chuckle at his own alliteration skills.

He leapt to a roof over the square the DUPs had occupied, wanting to get the fight over with so he could sleep, so the day could change and he'd be that much closer to his 'dates' with both the ladies in his life, actually slightly more excited about seeing Fetch. He smiled to himself. Even a Conduit needed priorities.