Fic: Storm and Stress (2/3)
Title: Storm and Stress
Characters: Claude & Audrey
Rating: PG13
Warnings: A little violence, cursing.
Word Count: 930
Spoilers: Through "Building 26"
Disclaimer: Not mine, blah blah.
Summary: There is a daring rescue and a missed opportunity that's really very sad.
A/N: Yes, I should be studying, but in all fairness, I wrote this ages ago. So really I'm just posting it now as part of my complicated rewards system. But the next part probably will have to wait till exams are done. [Part one posted here.]
“Get up,” she says with as much authority as she can, and is at least glad that the blue eyes now blinking bemusedly at her aren’t accompanied with pointless questions.
The man sits up; she does a quick scan, thanks…whoever…for the lack of new, significant physical damage, and nods.
“Glad you approve, Hanson, but-“
“Shh,” she murmurs, and nods her head at the open door.
Blue eyes narrow, and seem to take in the situation as rapidly as they can.
Which is all of about a second, and she can’t help but be both impressed and relieved.
Not that she’s ready to show it, though, especially since he doesn’t seem willing to do anything beyond sit up in his bunk and stare at her.
“I’m getting you out of here,” she sighs, and really should’ve expected him to laugh at that.
“And just how’re you going to do that, then?” he says finally, still chuckling.
“Do you trust me?”
“No,” he says, obviously.
“Good,” she says, and smiles slightly, and pulls out a gun. “Take this.”
“What’ll I need this for?” the sound of his genuine bemusement makes her want to grin, but she suppresses the impulse.
“You’re taking me hostage.”
*
He’s much taller than she thought he was.
Most of his height apparently in his legs, and trying to keep up with him as they walk down the hallway, his hand gripping her arm a little tighter than comfort would dictate, is exhausting.
But before she even says anything he slows down, and loosens his hold.
“Explain to me, Audrey Hanson, why it is I’d want to take you hostage?” his voice is low and endearingly conversational, and he leans in towards her as they turn a corner.
“You want to get out of here, don’t you?”
“Depends on where it is I’m goin’, and that’s not what I asked,” they slow for a moment as a bunch of men run past, ignoring them completely. “What is it about you that’d make me think you’d be worth anythin’ at all to these people?”
“I’m part of a team,” she says quietly, holds her breath for a moment, because she thinks she hears another set of footsteps. “A team that’s taken a couple of blows, lately. Even if the chain of command didn’t give a damn about me getting killed, it’d be kind of awful for morale if they let it happen.”
“I’d know that, would I?”
“You know a lot more than you let on,” she murmurs, and looks up at him. He gives her a wary smile.
“In here?”
“Yes.”
The room is dark and dank and, she’s pretty sure, camera free.
“Stay here,” she says. “He’ll be in in a second, just…be as careful as you can.”
“Don’t kill him, then?”
She sighs. “Yes. Don’t kill him.”
“’cos he fancies you a bit, and while you’re willin’ to take advantage of that to a degree, killin’ him’d be takin’ it a bit far.”
“Yeah, it would.”
“’course he’d be more than willin’ to kill me.“
“He’s doing his job.” She’s told herself that more than once, and will keep at it. “And he doesn’t know any better.”
“Good for him,” he gives her a look, almost mocking, and she rolls her eyes.
*
She steps over to Roy’s body quicker than she probably should have and checks his pulse.
Present, constant, perfect, and she breathes out. Looks to Claude, who’s smirking almost fondly.
“We ready, then?” he says, and she nods.
*
They make it past the cells before the alarms start going off.
Claude’s grip on her arm doesn’t tighten, and his pace doesn’t quicken, but she can feel the extra hum of tension before she even says anything.
“Relax, it’s not for us,” she murmurs, and he glances back down at her again.
“Know that for sure, do you?”
She’s about to answer before a phalanx of black-suited men are storming towards them, and Claude’s dragging her into the relative shelter of a doorway.
Then they’re moving past, and she pulls Claude out into the hallway again.
And then the lights go out, and with them, the alarm, and she starts wondering if the glare from her cell phone would be rendered invisible by whatever it is Claude does or if it would give them away, where she to open it.
“What’s the plan, Hanson?”
She blinks to attention and lets out a half-hearted chuckle.
“Hanson, huh?” she shakes her head. “Haven’t been called that since-“
“’m sure wherever it was was quite touchin’, Hanson, but-“ the lights flicker and come back, and with them the alarm.
“Crap,” she says to herself, and Claude gives her a look that can only be described as well, yeah and rolls his eyes. “Well, now,” she takes a breath. “Now we get out of here. Down that hallway, stairs at the end of hall. The garage is only two floors down but-”
“Run?” he raises an eyebrow, expectantly, and Audrey gives him a look.
“Yeah, that won’t look suspicious at all.”
“’cept that it won’t look anythin’, as that is mainly the point of invisibility.”
“So running would be pointless, wouldn’t it?”
Claude rolls his eyes. “What then, proceed at our own bloody leisure?”
“Sounds like a plan,” she lets out a breath, feels herself smile, slightly. “Remember to-“
"Yeah, yeah,” the man grumbles, and she may just be imagining it, but does feel a slight shiver go through her, as if she’d just stepped out into the daylight for a second, before it’s gone.
*
Characters: Claude & Audrey
Rating: PG13
Warnings: A little violence, cursing.
Word Count: 930
Spoilers: Through "Building 26"
Disclaimer: Not mine, blah blah.
Summary: There is a daring rescue and a missed opportunity that's really very sad.
A/N: Yes, I should be studying, but in all fairness, I wrote this ages ago. So really I'm just posting it now as part of my complicated rewards system. But the next part probably will have to wait till exams are done. [Part one posted here.]
“Get up,” she says with as much authority as she can, and is at least glad that the blue eyes now blinking bemusedly at her aren’t accompanied with pointless questions.
The man sits up; she does a quick scan, thanks…whoever…for the lack of new, significant physical damage, and nods.
“Glad you approve, Hanson, but-“
“Shh,” she murmurs, and nods her head at the open door.
Blue eyes narrow, and seem to take in the situation as rapidly as they can.
Which is all of about a second, and she can’t help but be both impressed and relieved.
Not that she’s ready to show it, though, especially since he doesn’t seem willing to do anything beyond sit up in his bunk and stare at her.
“I’m getting you out of here,” she sighs, and really should’ve expected him to laugh at that.
“And just how’re you going to do that, then?” he says finally, still chuckling.
“Do you trust me?”
“No,” he says, obviously.
“Good,” she says, and smiles slightly, and pulls out a gun. “Take this.”
“What’ll I need this for?” the sound of his genuine bemusement makes her want to grin, but she suppresses the impulse.
“You’re taking me hostage.”
*
He’s much taller than she thought he was.
Most of his height apparently in his legs, and trying to keep up with him as they walk down the hallway, his hand gripping her arm a little tighter than comfort would dictate, is exhausting.
But before she even says anything he slows down, and loosens his hold.
“Explain to me, Audrey Hanson, why it is I’d want to take you hostage?” his voice is low and endearingly conversational, and he leans in towards her as they turn a corner.
“You want to get out of here, don’t you?”
“Depends on where it is I’m goin’, and that’s not what I asked,” they slow for a moment as a bunch of men run past, ignoring them completely. “What is it about you that’d make me think you’d be worth anythin’ at all to these people?”
“I’m part of a team,” she says quietly, holds her breath for a moment, because she thinks she hears another set of footsteps. “A team that’s taken a couple of blows, lately. Even if the chain of command didn’t give a damn about me getting killed, it’d be kind of awful for morale if they let it happen.”
“I’d know that, would I?”
“You know a lot more than you let on,” she murmurs, and looks up at him. He gives her a wary smile.
“In here?”
“Yes.”
The room is dark and dank and, she’s pretty sure, camera free.
“Stay here,” she says. “He’ll be in in a second, just…be as careful as you can.”
“Don’t kill him, then?”
She sighs. “Yes. Don’t kill him.”
“’cos he fancies you a bit, and while you’re willin’ to take advantage of that to a degree, killin’ him’d be takin’ it a bit far.”
“Yeah, it would.”
“’course he’d be more than willin’ to kill me.“
“He’s doing his job.” She’s told herself that more than once, and will keep at it. “And he doesn’t know any better.”
“Good for him,” he gives her a look, almost mocking, and she rolls her eyes.
*
She steps over to Roy’s body quicker than she probably should have and checks his pulse.
Present, constant, perfect, and she breathes out. Looks to Claude, who’s smirking almost fondly.
“We ready, then?” he says, and she nods.
*
They make it past the cells before the alarms start going off.
Claude’s grip on her arm doesn’t tighten, and his pace doesn’t quicken, but she can feel the extra hum of tension before she even says anything.
“Relax, it’s not for us,” she murmurs, and he glances back down at her again.
“Know that for sure, do you?”
She’s about to answer before a phalanx of black-suited men are storming towards them, and Claude’s dragging her into the relative shelter of a doorway.
Then they’re moving past, and she pulls Claude out into the hallway again.
And then the lights go out, and with them, the alarm, and she starts wondering if the glare from her cell phone would be rendered invisible by whatever it is Claude does or if it would give them away, where she to open it.
“What’s the plan, Hanson?”
She blinks to attention and lets out a half-hearted chuckle.
“Hanson, huh?” she shakes her head. “Haven’t been called that since-“
“’m sure wherever it was was quite touchin’, Hanson, but-“ the lights flicker and come back, and with them the alarm.
“Crap,” she says to herself, and Claude gives her a look that can only be described as well, yeah and rolls his eyes. “Well, now,” she takes a breath. “Now we get out of here. Down that hallway, stairs at the end of hall. The garage is only two floors down but-”
“Run?” he raises an eyebrow, expectantly, and Audrey gives him a look.
“Yeah, that won’t look suspicious at all.”
“’cept that it won’t look anythin’, as that is mainly the point of invisibility.”
“So running would be pointless, wouldn’t it?”
Claude rolls his eyes. “What then, proceed at our own bloody leisure?”
“Sounds like a plan,” she lets out a breath, feels herself smile, slightly. “Remember to-“
"Yeah, yeah,” the man grumbles, and she may just be imagining it, but does feel a slight shiver go through her, as if she’d just stepped out into the daylight for a second, before it’s gone.
*