"What...wh-what..."

Jiyong smirked at Haeun, tilting his head and waggling his fingers mockingly. As he did, his face seemed to melt, like taffy being pulled, and Haeun couldn't stop a little scream as it reformed into a perfect copy of her own.

"Meet Teddy-hyung," Seungri said.

"B-but...but he just..." Haeun closed her eyes tight, and when she opened them, it was Central City's mayor grinning at her. "How?"

"What do you mean, 'how'?" Teddy said, his voice a strange echo of many voices at one. "You're a Peacekeeper pig, shouldn't you know?"

"Shut it, creep," Seungri snapped harshly, startling Haeun further. She could feel a fluttering, though, amusement and friendship, and tightened. Friends, she thought. They were friends. She thought bck on Seungri's vehement warnings with new understanding. Those people, the ones he never saw again, were they in the dome somewhere, out of his reach? Or were they...

"What this is," the old man began clinically, jerking Haeun from her thoughts, "is a remnant of a project the government undertook in an effort to give the more undesirable element of society a purpose. They were trying to create a new breed of human - figure out all the genetic tricks to produce useful traits. As you can see," he continued, gesturing to Teddy, who know looked like the scientist himself, "while it was a technical success, there were some lingering behavioral problems."

"Lingering?"

"Mmhmm." Seungri leaned back against the cell's plex door uncaringly. "The undesirable element mostly means those who already had behavioral problems. You know, speaking against the government, partaking in banned media, advocating harmful ideas like pacifism or government-sponsored financial assistance. That kind of thing."

"Exactly," the man picked up. "But those sorts of behavioral quirks were not so easy to correct, and there was an incident leading to the escape of most of the test subjects."

"And that's what this wing is - what the main purpose of the Peacekeepers is," Seungri finished. "We're here to recover these highly dangerous convicts and detain them here, where they can be rehabilitated."

Oh, god, Haeun thought, staring at Teddy and praying the horror she felt wasn't showing on her face. This was worse than she expected. this wasn't simply cop corruption or overzealous methods of supressing free thought. This was...this was a government conspiracy. This was using people as guinea pigs, as disposable science projects. This was the government sentencing all those it couldn't control to like imprisonment, or death.

Haeun thought back to the school explosion. How many had they killed already? There were thousands of cells here - were they all full? How could they have kept something so large-scale quiet? Her head spun. This was too big. It was too much.

Teddy looked back at her and grinned, and Seungri fed her the prisoner's determination and confidence. She allowed herself a little smile. It was comforting in a weird way, like he was trying to reassure her that he was okay. That everything would be fine. It would, she promised him, and herself, silently, watching Seungri's reflection in the plex as it shifted from foot to foot uneasily. It would be fine. She would see to it.

"It's nice that they're being helped," she said, looking over at Seungri with a hardness in her eyes. "I'm sure this has been an educational experience for them."

"Yes," he replied. "There's no better way to learn the cost of making trouble for your betters."

There was a wave of warning with his words, but Haeun brushed it aside, telling it apart from her own more easily than ever. Seungri's emotions tended to feel a bit like...well, the only way she could think to describe it would be like putting on a pair of shoes that weren't her size. They're still shoes, still cover her feet, but they pinch at the toes and slip at the heels, and she knew they weren't right. Now that she knew, it was pretty impossible to miss.

"It'll be ten years tomorrow," Seungri said, abandoning his projection and looking at Teddy with strange, conflicted eyes. "A lot of good people died that night."

Ten years, Haeun thought. Seungri would have been, what, fourteen? Fifteen? She didn't want to believe it, but she remembered the boy downstairs, twelve years old and telekinetic. How young had he been when they'd brought him into the program? Had he been born there?

"Sometimes the quest for scientific advancement creates monsters, I suppose," the old scientist remarked.

"Yes," Haeun agreed, meeting his eyes steadily. "It seems so."

The next stop they made was an apartment downtown. Seunghyun's apartment, to be more specific, which was large and brightly-lit and, to Haeun's surprise, decorated with high-end furniture and surrealist art. It was also incredibly clean, and she raised her eyebrows at her Senior Officer as she and Seungri slipped off their shoes.

"Daesung-oppa sneaks in and cleans when you're asleep, doesn't he?"

"And cooks," Seunghyun added, but he was distracted and distant where he was usually witty and weird, so Haeun didn't push it any further.

Everyone was gathered in the living room, which was awash in a sunset glow. She was a little surprised at the wide-open curtains and the casual setting, having expected something more covert, but Jiyong caught her eye and shook his head.

"People who draw the curtains are people with something to hide," he explained.

Daesung brought out a tray of cups and saucers and a teapot, Seunghyun following behind with sweets, and Seungri rolled his eyes even as Daesung insisted that tea was what people drank when things were tense and stressful. He seemed so earnest, everyone accepted their cups with a smile, whether they liked tea or not.

As the six of them gathered around the coffee table with their tea and cookies like some kind of book club, Haeun looked around, taking the boys in carefully. Something about this felt like meeting five strangers for the first time. It was jarringly unpleasant, and she couldn't help but squirm uncomfortably.

"Seunghyun-oppa likes sweets," she blurted out suddenly, and they all turned to stare at her, startled. She couldn't blame them - she'd surprised herself, too - but she also couldn't stop herself from continuing. "Jiyong-oppa hates hot weather. Youngbae-oppa has dogs. Daesung-oppa is afraid of ghosts. Seungri-ya..." She trailed off, face flushing as they all waited, amused. "Seungri-ya is very conscious of money matters," she finished, clasping her shaking hands together in her lap.

"All true," Jiyong noted, one eyebrow raised. "So?"

"So," she plowed on stubbornly, "you aren't suddenly strangers to me. I know you all. I-" She stopped. She'd been about to sa 'I trust you all,' but that wasn't exactly true. "I know who you are," she said instead. "This is just something new to add to what I already know. I'm not...I'm not rewriting what I know. Okay?"

They nodded, smiling at her oddly. She had no idea what they were feeling - Seungri wasn't sharing, just grinning down into his teacup - but the air seemed less close and suffocating than before, Haeun didn't know if she'd said it to reassure them or herself, but as it seemed to have done bother, she supposed it didn't matter.

Jiyong rotated his cup in its saucer slowly. "I suppose, first of all, we should do a demonstration?"

Haeun straightened intently.

"Before we do, I..." Expression turning somewhat pinched, Jiyong sighed. "You heard the clinical stuff at the Dome, right?" he asked, the capital 'd' clear in his tone.

She nodded.

"And you're still intending to do...whatever ill-advised thing you're planning on doing?"

Another nod, this one firm and decisive, communicating all the irony inherent in the fact that the trip to the Dome had only made her more determined.

"You should know," Daesung cut in softly, "that we're trusting you with this because Seungri has vouched for you. Repeatedly," he added with a little eyeroll.

Haeun twitched in surprise, turning questioning eyes towards Seungri, who was now practically facedown in his drink, trying to hide his blush.

"Well," she offered hesitantly, "with his ability, it's probably easier for him to pick out trustworthy people." Tapping her chin, she considered that fact. "Of course, people are unpredictable, but it must come in handy in deciding who to tell..."

"We've never told anyone else," Youngbae corrected. "You'll be the first person who wasn't already part of this that's been told. And you're also the only person we've ever heard Seungri vouch for. Ever."

"Oh." Haeun looked down at her hands, ears turning red. "Um...why? Why me, I mean?"

Seungri shrugged, blinking nervously and trying to sip his tea nonchalantly, cringing when he scalded his tongue. "No reason," he replied, eyes watering from the pain. "You're just the first person I felt was worth trusting."

Haeun's blush spread down over her cheeks until it felt like her entire face was smoldering. "Oh," she said again. "Okay."

There was an awkward silence during which Jiyong and Youngbae exchanged significant glances, Seunghyun refilled his tea, Daesung folded his napkin into a tight, tiny square, and Seungri and Haeun each did their best to pretend the other was invisible.

"Well," Youngbae broke the tenseness with mock-cheerfulness. "I guess I'll go first."

He winked at Haeun, and Seunghyun's television .

"Oh, cute," Seunghyun remarked bitingly.

"Thanks, hyung." The television turned off, and the microwave went on. "Not very impressive, granted," he admitted, "but it covers the basics of it. Technokenesis, see?" He waggled is prosthetic fingers at her. "My 'secret ability', remember?"

Haeun's mouth dropped open, forming a little 'o' as understanding struck. "So technology-"

"Is really kind of a part of me," he finished. "Hardware, software, all of it. From the simply mechanical to the most intricate of firewalls."

"Wow."

"That's nothing," Seungrhyun cut in, looking oddly giddy. "Watch this!"

Haeun turned to look at him, but he wasn't there. "Um...oppa?" Glancing around, she couldn't stop a little shriek when she spotted his head poking through a painting.

"Cool, right?" he prompted as he stepped through the wall. "I call it ghosting."

She felt, rather than saw, Daesung shudder, and grinned to herself.

"And," Seunghyun continued, "of course-" He vanished in a blink, and reappeared where he'd started, seated at the table. "-teleportation."

"Ohhh," Haeun breathed. "that's how you always get away from the chief."

The rest of the boys snickered as Seunghyun pouted, clearly dismayed at her lack of awe. She reached out and patted his shoulder, yelping again when her hand slipped through him. It felt...well, like nothing, like patting air. She withdrew and scowled at him, and he stuck out his tongue cheekily.

"How about this?" Daesung asked, pulling her gaze as he gripped the edge of the wrought iron coffee table. Everyone grabbed their cups and plates of sweets, and Haeun followed suit just as Daesung lifted it over his head with one hand.

"Careful with that," Seunghyun groaned, "it's one of a kind!"

"Yes, hyu~ung," Daesung chirped cutely, tossing the table up and catching it as easily as one would a ball of paper. He threw a wink at Haeun, who giggled. "Comes in handy when I have to vacuum hyung's filthy living room, see?"

Haeun nodded, then snorted when Seunghyun scurried back over to them as Daesung set the table down, ghosting through it as it descended and leaning over to inspect it. He gasped.

"You dented it!"

Sure enough, there were a few new grooves in the iron, right where Daesung had been gripping it. Seunghyun stared, seemingly in shock, and Daesung's face fell.

"I'm sorry, hyung. I promise, I was being careful!" He wrung his hands as Seunghyun continued to stare at his table in silence. "I'll...I'll fix it! Or buy you another table! A better table!"

"Better?" Seunghyun finally looked up at Daesung, surprising them all with a grin. "It's got a momento from my favorite dongsaeng on it! What's better than that?"

"Ah, hyung," Daesung huffed off his partner's cheesy lines, "really, I'm sorr-"

"Wait, I thought I was your favorite," Jiyong cut in with an exaggerated pout, not letting Daesung apologize again.

Youngbae cleared his throat. "Um, clearly that isn't the case, because I'm his favorite."

"I'd say I'm the favorite," Seungri put in, "but I'm pretty sure Daesung-hyung is everyone's favorite."

There was a slight pause, then a general nodding in agreement, and Daesung ducked his head, blushing, his coffee table transgression forgotten as intended.

Haeun hid her smile in her cup, finishing her tea and pondering. "But who's Daesung's favorite dongsaeng?"

Seungri raised an eyebrow. "Well, I'm his only dongsaeng, so-"

"Nope," Haeun corrected. "He's older than I am, too. I think I'm his favorite."

"But...but..." Seungri seemed genuinely befuddled, and everyone else snickered.

"That's what you get for bringing in an outsider," Jiyong remarked. He took a sip of his tea and looked at Haeun. "I guess it's my turn?"

Haeun nodded, and suddenly Jiyong's face...changed. She dropped her cup (to Seunghyun's dismay, despite it being empty) and leaned back as the cheif grinned at her.

"But...I thought...Teddy-ssi..."

Jiyong looked away, his face rearranging itself back into his own, only this time with a vivid purple fringe. "Teddy-hyung and I were in the same program division," he said. "So our abilities are very similar. He just has limitations that I don't."

Haeun clasped her hands together again, this time to stop herself from reaching out at the sorrow in his voice. She had no idea how Jiyong, at turns incredibly self-sufficient and incredibly vulnerable, would have taken to her coddling him.

"Tell me," she said instead. "Tell me everything."

A/N - Just a short one - but important! We're really coming up to the meat of it now, folks, so stay tuned!