Rescue Mission
John grabbed his only other shirt, replacing his bloody and singed long sleeve. Bobby’s scream played in his head on repeat, the panic in his eyes begging John for help, the blood seeping through his fingers as he held his side. He couldn’t stand it. He just wanted to think about something else, anything else. He had lost his entire team to Trask’s Registration Division, why couldn’t he think about any of them? Erik. Mystique. Hell, even Pietro. Anyone but Bobby, please.
Logan’s surprised voice carried up the stairs to John’s room “Chuck!” John’s heart picked up. His muscles vibrated with excitement. He rushed down the stairs and into the living room, nearly bumping into Kitty and Alex on his way in.
The room was filled with people: Toad, great; Colossus, fine; Angel, whatever; Gambit, okay; Spyke; Jean; Charles Xavier, wonderful; Johnny Storm; Sue Storm; and Mystique, okay, actually, legitimately wonderful. But no Erik.
John’s heart sank. Erik had taken him in when he had been lost. He had guided him through a vicious world. He had protected him when John had only known fear. Erik was his safety net, he was John’s Professor, so why wasn’t he here? Why wasn’t he with Charles Xavier and Jean Grey like he was supposed to be?
“Hi, Mystique.” John gave her a polite smile. At least he wasn’t completely alone anymore.
There were many greetings and many condolences exchanged around the room. X-23 appeared to keep them all on track, completely hidden behind Colossus. John was grateful for the woman, she kept people from mourning and forced them to focus on taking action.
Charles explained that Trask had a telepath in his employment, which was how the MRD kept finding them, and why Charles didn’t reach out to his mutants sooner.
It was only when Charles stated that their friends were likely being experimented on that John’s ears completely turned off. All he could think of was Bobby and Erik, Pietro and Wanda, hell, even Lance Alvers. He would do whatever it takes to get them back, consequences be damned.
After a long conversation that John was not listening to, Charles and Mystique agreed on a plan of action and the entire group piled into the X-jet that Mystique had mysteriously obtained. She wouldn’t even tell John, which obviously meant that she had stolen it from Charles.
-
Bobby listened to doctors and scientists rush around the room. They had spent hours rifling through documents and being debriefed by the MRD agents that had brought the X-Men in. They filled out charts and gathered equipment that Bobby had never seen before.
The bandaging on Bobby’s side itched at his skin and every fiber in his body wanted to scratch it, but he still couldn’t move anything but his neck. He exchanged a look with Hank as a doctor inspected Hank’s paws. The man’s reassuring stare calmed Bobby slightly, although he knew it shouldn’t. Hank was just like Scott, he would lie a thousand times just to make Bobby feel better.
A soaking-wet scientist rushed into the room to commune with the person Bobby had decided was the head doctor. “I can’t get anywhere near the witch without being blasted with a typhoon.”
Bobby tried to chuckle, but the force got caught in his throat. He hated being paralyzed.
“Separate the two. But take a break for now, let them calm down.” The lead ordered and the scientist rushed off.
The head doctor made his way to Magneto, a second doctor following suit. “Wake him up.”
Scott’s voice, hoarse and strangled, cried out. “No! If you wake him up…he’ll kill everyone in here…including himself.”
Bobby’s heart raced. No, Scott, don’t draw attention to yourself! He was so stupid sometimes.
“Whatever you want to do, do it to me first.” What the hell was he doing!? Bobby tried to sit up, he tensed every muscle in his body but nothing worked. He tried to speak, to call out to Scott to tell him to shut the hell up, but only a strangled gargle came out.
Scott mouthed something at Hank as the doctors heeded his request, dragging the table he was strapped to away. No.
It seemed like hours had passed with no one coming in the room, but in reality, it was likely only one at most. Bobby had regained enough strength to move, although with difficulty. He could now speak with Rogue and Hank, and some big rock guy Bobby assumed was the ‘buzzkill’ Johnny Storm was always talking about. There was another guy there, but he had started as a puddle in a glass cage, and he had only partially solidified.
They strategized a way out, although, in their current situation, it was more like fantasizing. Jean and Logan rushing into the room halted all conversation. Thank god! Wait, they found Jean! That means the Professor must be with them! Woohoo!
“You free the others, and call for backup, I’ll find Scott.” Logan told Jean, clearly answering something Jean had projected to him.
Jean unlatched Bobby and Hank’s wrists. Bobby immediately hopped up, his body still slightly tingly and sluggish, but he felt mostly normal.
“I can help!” Rogue called after Logan as the man ran away, but she was too late, he was already gone.
“Come on, Rogue. We’re gonna need you if we’re gonna get out of here.” Bobby froze the woman’s restraints and offered her his hand. She broke through the ice and took his hand, stumbling onto her feet. The two held each other up as they got used to their own weight again.
Pietro rushed into the room, grabbing Magneto’s table and running off with him in a blur.
“I take Wolverine’s presence to mean that the others escaped. And I take your presence to mean that the Professor found them.” Hank quirked an eyebrow at Jean.
Jean smirked at her friend. “Always so smart. Come on, Alex is worried sick.” She freed the two Fantastic Four members and charged ahead, her pace only slowing when she noticed the others’ speed.
The Thing scooped Mr. Fantastic into his hands and joined them. Bobby placed himself between Jean and Rogue, the two he trusted the most to keep him safe. Rogue placed a hand on Bobby’s shoulder in front of her, to keep from falling behind. The weight was nice, it reminded Bobby she was there, and provided a nice pressure point to focus on as he tried to determine his normal depth of sensation.
Screaming around a corner and the sound of fire lit Bobby’s insides up. They rounded the corner and Bobby saw John and Johnny working together to create a massive semi-truck made of fire barrelling toward a group of MRD. The two cackled as the screaming agents fled.
“Follow those two, they’ll get you out.” Jean ordered before running off, likely in search of her husband. God Bobby hoped Scott was alright; but John’s skin glowing under the fire distracted him from worrying about his brother-figure.
“John.” Bobby rushed John, almost tackling him over with a hug.
John caught his footing, Bobby’s shampoo filling his lungs, his chilled body tight against his. John realized what was happening and squeezed his friend, tangling his fingers through Bobby’s hair. He closed his eyes but felt Rogue watching him and immediately opened them again. “Are you okay?” He pulled Bobby away from him to look him over.
“I’m okay.” Bobby smiled, assuring.
Johnny rushed past them to check on his family, and Ben tried to push Reed off onto the young man, but Johnny rejected the slop with an “ew” and Reed ended up on the floor.
“I’m not touchin’ that.” Rogue pointed to Reed. Ben begrudgingly picked his best friend up again.
John stared at the Fantastic Goop with awe. “Woah, can I touch it?” He asked, his eyes wide and finger outstretched.
Bobby swatted his hand away. “That’s a person, John! Don’t poke him!”
Toad and Morph ran past the group. “Run!” Toad shrieked.
“The Scarlet Witch is gonna destroy the whole place!” Morph explained.
Lights flickered and the walls started to crack around them. Oh shit! Bobby grabbed John’s wrist and bolted down the hall. He followed Morph who followed Toad to the exit. Mutants battled MRD agents outside. Bodies lay on the ground, some mutant, some human. Piotr barrelled through a line of MRD, disrupting their defensive positioning. Evan shot explosive spikes into a group of agents preparing to shoot the escaping Morlocks. Pietro fended off a hoard of MRD, his father laying on the ground behind him.
“We have to help get everyone out!” Bobby shouted.
“We can take them to the X-jet.” John informed his friend.
The group gathered mutants up, carrying the unconscious to the jet, Bobby creating a safe path for them, unable to lift anyone with his injury. It took them countless trips, but they managed to finally get everyone.
Scott, Jean, and Logan reconvened with them and Bobby’s chest tightened at the sight of his leader. Scott was beaten up pretty badly, his shirtless torso covered in bandages. What the hell had they done to him?
“Scott-?”
“I’m fine. How’s your bullet wound?”
“It’s just a graze, I’ll be fine.” Bobby brushed his friend’s concern off. Unfortunately, Bobby had had worse.
John’s stomach twisted with a familiar jealousy he had hoped he was over, but apparently not. Bobby’s eyes scanned Scott’s body, his eyebrows knit together with concern. Maybe if Scott wasn’t shirtless – and maybe if John hadn’t known that Scott was Bobby’s first crush, even if Bobby refused to admit it – he would be fine; but with his extensive knowledge of Bobby, he couldn’t help but seethe.
When they got back to the plane for their final trip, John made sure to place Bobby beside him, away from Scott, which wasn’t hard with Logan and Alex hovering over him.
Bobby jiggled his knee in his seat as the Professor prepared the plane for take off. Pietro’s hushed reminders of Wanda’s therapy techniques added to the noise of everything behind Bobby. He gripped John’s hand in his, interlacing their fingers with a tight squeeze. John’s shoulder leaned into his and his heart settled. They were safe.
Kitty phased through the back of her seat to look upside down at Bobby. “Hey, you okay?”
“I’m good now. How bout you? How’s Rogue doing?”
“I’m totally fine! Rogue is…fired up.” She gave Bobby a look that prepared him for an angry Rogue when they got back to Osborn’s mansion.
“Good to know.”
“Hey.” John whispered beside Bobby to get his attention. “Thanks for helping my team get out.”
Bobby looked at John with a confused smile. “Of course.”
John glanced away. “Well, it’s just…you could’ve gotten your team and beat it, but you made sure to get my team out too.”
Bobby’s smile turned to a full grin. “They’re people, John. I’m not just gonna abandon them because they hold different beliefs than me.”
Why not? It’s what John would’ve done. But he couldn’t exactly tell Bobby that. It was a part of himself that he was proud of, but for some reason, when he was with Bobby, he was ashamed of it. Bobby was a better person than John was, and being around him made John want to be better, or at least, hide the most survivalist parts of himself. Would Bobby still like him if he knew who John truly was?