"Hurry up, we need to go. I think it's about time we tell you something."

"W-what?" Zitao sniffled, his hand limp in the elders as he was dragged recklessly through the Pit, many of the people giving them strange curious looks, but not speaking even one word. "What do you mean we?" he asked, dragging his free hand across his cheeks in an attempt to dry the tears that had fallen. "I don't even know you, what is there to tell me?"

"Zitao, there are things going on here that you don;t know about, but I think it's time you learn. Luhan and I have been waiting for the right time, and it's probably too early, but we're running out of time."

"What do you mean were running out of time? And what do you mean Luhan and I? What could there possibly be that you both need to tell me?"

"Would you just quiet down? You're attracting too much attention." Zitao was about to refute, when he realized that most of the people were indeed staring at them as they rushed away from the Commons. He wanted to tear himself away from this near stranger, but something inside him knew that he would have to follow the man. And even if he didn't, Zitao wouldn't know what to do with himself.

So with the sky dark and the silence of the Pit around them, he let himself be torn away from the crowded place. He found that he couldn't focus on where the two were going. For one he didn't want to know, he didn't care, because the Yifan was still an ignorant fool in his eyes. One who had tried to take his place in Luhan's life. But the other side of that was the fact that he couldn't believe he was actually being helped.

Even in the Halo no one had helped him, he had had friends- people who knew what was going on- but none of them had helped him.

Not even Luhan.

Yet here was this man whom Zitao had taught himself to hate, and without realizing, as he continued to stare at his wrist where the taller had his hand firmly holding onto, he began to feel something. He wasn't certain, all he knew was that he couldn't focus on anything but the man in front of him.

They're feet pounded across the hard ground and not long after they left the Pit, Yifan stopped and let go of Zitao's wrist. Before he even had time to comprehend the fact that they had stopped running and he had his hand to himself now, the Angel was being taken up by another pair of strong arms. His eyes widened when he saw that he was being taken up by a pair of Guards. He would've cursed at the man, belittling himself for thinking that this man of all men would be the one to help him, but before he could even flinch Yifan leaned closed to him and the warmth of his breath grazed across Zitao's ear.

"Stay here, they won't do you any harm, just stay with them and wait for me to come back. I have to go find Luhan."

"Luhan? Yifan what are you-" but he was already out of sight. Leaving Zitao alone with a warm ear and two Guards- whom he didn't know or trust- standing just behind him.

Cautiously, he turned to face them, his hands shaking and his eyes still red from crying.

Around the three of them were trees; he had been so distracted by the presence of other people that were strangers to him that he hadn't noticed where Yifan had taken him. Something was strange about this place, although the night had lain a blankets atop everything, there was grass between his toes. Soft, green blades of grass that Zitao had never had the pleasure of setting foot upon- surely this couldn't still be the Encampment? He looked up at the sky and sighed when it was still the same dirt-ridden, grey atmosphere floating above him. He wasn't dreaming.

Dreams would imply nighttime stars and clear skies. There would be no Guards staring at him blatantly. A part of him was glad that it wasn't a dream because if it was he knew that he would have to wake up at some point, and just being here, feeling grass between his toes for the first time was something that he wouldn't want to wake up from. If he was awake, this was real, it wouldn't be gone when he opened his eyes and for that Zitao was grateful. He felt free.

"Hey, Kid." The panda looked back to the Guards, they were grinning at him but for once it didn't seem menacing- it was almost as if they... were admiring him. Zitao would wonder why but he couldn't care at the moment because after getting distracted by the grass and the trees he had almost forgotten they were there. Quickly, on instinct, he backed away, stumbling over his feet as one of the two stuck their hand out and took hold of his elbow. "Kid, didn't you hear Kris? We're on your side. We won't hurt you; we're here to help you."

My side? Zitao thought. What exactly is my side? The dark sky didn't illuminate the Guards so they were faceless silhouettes, but the way the stood in the shadows of the moonlight was lax and calm. Something took over him, something that he shouldn't have let himself do, but in that moment he trusted these two strangers. There was something about the man's voice and his stance that put Tao at ease; it couldn't be explained, something about them just felt right. One of them was sitting in the grass, the one that had spoken and he looked like he was leaning back on his hands with his legs crisscrossed, he was the one who had spoken, the other was still standing, silent and stoic, his arms crossed over his chest, but he gave of an air of serenity. Zitao closed his eyes and let the breeze whisper softly into his ears as he lost himself in this new environment.

By the time Yifan had come back to the two Zitao was laying in the grass, arms under his head, idly asking the Guards about the environment- things like if the land had always been like this, why didn't the encampment have grass, how tall were the trees, and such. One of the Guards, the more relaxed one, whose name was Yixing, Tao had learned, was explaining the types of trees that were around them when suddenly Zitao could hear someone calling his name. Zitao shot up and met the voice with his arms, embracing him with a smile. He didn't even ask why he was here, he was simply glad that his little brother was finally out of the Halo and in reach where he could be protected.

"Luhan..."

"Tao, I-"

Luhan escaped his arms, bending away from the older with a frown. "There's something we need to talk about."

"Well I figured that out, Lu," Tao smiled. He waited for the small boy to smile back but it didn't come. Luhan shied away from him, a frown still sewing his lips shut. Something was wrong, and it wasn't simply the fact that the three of them had left the encampment; it was something much deeper. "Luhan? I-"

"Alright," Yifan interrupted, coughing awkwardly as Tao had seemed to forget that there were three other people watching- three people who knew what was actually going to happen within the next twenty-four hours.

They walked in silence, no one spoke, not even Tao with all of the questions he had in his mind. He knew he shouldn't trust these people, but Luhan seemed to so now all he was left to was following the strangers through the trees. He wished he could've kept track of all the trees he passed and how it felt to walk with the grass under his feet, but he couldn't seem to focus on it.

Tao was worried something tugged at his gut, making him want to stop and just ask where they were going, why they were helping him, and mostly why was no one coming after them?

There were noises all around them, not only were there branches cracking underfoot and wind howling through the trees. There weren't many, but it was still more than Zitao had ever seen and in them were creatures unseen, but the hoots, croaks, and growls they heard were still numerous. As they continued to trek in the darkness glowing yellow eyes watched them from the trees and as soon as the tree was out of sight the same eyes would appear in another. Yixing had several stones in hand that he would throw at them occasionally and the creature would screech at him before flitting away on giant wings, fear would crawl up Tao's spine every time, but after the fourth time and still not having any attack the group he stopped worrying too much about it. 

Yixing was the only one that wasn't walking around stiffly, he didn't seem to have any worries on his mind except for the occasional animal he would throw a stone toward. Zitao found himself walking next to him in order to avoid the thick air that seemed to be hovering over everyone else, it was stifling and while they were in the encampment Tao had always been comfortable with Luhan now he was more uncomfortable around him than he was around Yifan. It was strange, he just wanted to know what was going on but he couldn't bring himself to open his mouth and let the words roll off of his tongue just like that.

At some point the trees began to get tall, thicker, and more abundant, but even sooner than that he found that they were almost climbing up something, whether it be a steep hill or a mountain Tao would never know, but it was tiring after not having to do any laboring while in the Halo. it kept getting darker and steeper and more crowded with shrubbery and giant, towering trees, when suddenly there was nothing left. The trees vanished at that point and the ground beneath his feet was barren and flat.

"We're here."

Yixing and the other Guard lead them, Zitao still didn't know where they were going or where they were, and it was so dark outside that he could hardly tell what his feet were walking on. What ever it was, it was soft like the grass when Yifan had brought Luhan to him. It was cold and dirt or dust, sometimes what felt like small pebbles stuck to the bottom of his feet.

They stepped through shadows, the moon finally coming out from behind ashy clouds to reveal that they were on a dirt path, and a few paces ahead was a heavy metal door that was easily pushed open by the second Guard with a scratch across the cement inside that made Tao cringe and clinch his jaws they walked in, feet thumping against the cold cement. LED lights lined the corners of the damp ceiling. Everything was cold and being able to see that there was nothing but cement walls around them made it obvious as to why.

Finally able to see, Zitao could breath again, not realizing until now that the darkness had had an affect on everyone's mood. They all seemed to sigh, their bodies instantly relaxing the minute they set foot in the tunnel. "Where are we?" he finally had the courage to ask.

The stoic Guard finally spoke, for the first time since they'd met and his voice echoed across the walls. "We're in the Caverns; this is the upper half, all of it looks like this because the Riders and Folk try to keep intruders out by making it look like this place is abandoned. If this place is empty they would bother trying to find anything else."

Yifan spoke next. "Yes, but not many people even bother coming here after what happened when they tried to kill of the Dancers and take control; a lot of people think there's no one left around here."

"Boy, were they wrong..." Luhan muttered.

Tao looked at the boy, wondering how he would know anything about life outside of the Halo and the Commons, but decided not to question. Obviously there was a lot that he didn't know about the kid.

Yifan went on to talk about the raids they used to do on the Halo, killing of the Dancers in their sleep and such but it was nothing that Tao didn't already know so he drowned out the man's voice with empty, silent thoughts until they all came to a halt. He looked up to see them all staring at the cement wall. This one looked the same as everything else except for a slight crack that ran from where it met the hard floor to the up into the ceiling. Yixing sighed and muttered something under his breath before pushing it back to reveal a dark chamber behind the fake wall. Tao looked around in surprise but couldn't see much until Yifan flipped a switch on the wall and lights flickered to life; some of the bulbs were out, but the dim lighting was still bright enough to see clearly. Directly across from where they entered was another metal door that the second Guard opened as well revealing a stair well, a plethora of wires dangled from the walls, going down and wrapping around the railings. The lights flickered off after them and when the door was shut behind them Zitao could hear gears clunking inside it, locking it safely in case of intruders. Zitao followed the two Guards and Luhan in the descent with Yifan right behind him. He tried to look down but it was like being at the top of a twenty story building and looking down the stairwell- the end was just a speck of dust from where they were now. He sighed and began the descent. Yifan didn't talk anymore and his face revealed no emotion, but none the less he didn't ask another question and no one spoke as they started down the stairs.

Zitao still didn't understand the problem with Luhan. He had hardly looked at him since they left the encampment and when he did it was only for a split second and he was always wearing a frown. He stared at the back of his little brother's head and tried to ask him all of these questions in his mind, hoping that the younger would get the vibes he was trying to send to him but it was a useless cause.

Zitao sighed and stepped down once more but yelped as he tripped over a wire and fell forward. His eyes were squeezed shut in preparation to fall all the way down but a hand gripped his arm and pulled him back before he fell. Zitao turned to look at Yifan, his eyes starting on the hand that held him up and traveling up his arm until he reached his chin, his lips, and then finally his eyes. Yifan looked back at him blankly, and Tao felt heat rushing to his cheeks.

"Are you okay?"

Flustered, Tao nodded his head quickly and pulled himself out of the Worker's grip and rushing down the stairs to catch up to the others before he could say anything else. He nearly crashed into Luhan but stopped himself and calmed himself, wishing the pink off of his cheeks but thinking about it only made his face flame up more. Zitao told himself repeatedly that Yifan was no one to get flustered around, but why did he still find himself thinking about how his hand felt holding onto his arm and the concern in his eyes when he looked up at him?

By the time they got to the bottom Tao was still only thinking about Yifan, but it had gradually turned into thoughts of him trying to convince himself that he disliked the man. "It's not too far now," Yixing said. He shoved open the double doors that announced the end of the stairs and as soon as they walked through, sounds met their ears. There were people a few people rushing back and forth, but others sat at desk, monitors in front of them as they typed away on keyboard like the office workers Tao had seen in one of the movies he had watched in Minseok's room. None of them spoke much but there was a ringing from somewhere, like a cell phone being called, but it didn't ever stop, and the noise of all the typing was a sore on his ears.

"This is the Lower Caverns," the stoic Guard said. "After the raids they needed a new place to control everything from. The Riders needed a new headquarters to work from and the Folk needed a new place to work at. What better place than hundreds of feet below ground?" Again they kept following until they were past all of the people that Tao assumed were either stray Riders or low-ranked Folk. It was only that room where there were so many people as soon as they left that room the people thinned out and the noises quieted the further away they went.

The walls were still made of cement, but the floor was made of glass and shining gems shimmered beneath the surface, making it sparkle and the light that came from it was the only light in the hallways, but it was nearly as bright as the LED lights had been in the cement hallways in the upper half of the Caverns. The doors they passed were no longer made of thick metal but made of frosted glass and slid open when you put your hand to the lock next to them. Cords and wires no longer scattered down the walls or randomly throughout the halls, but were tucked neatly away and the ones that were on the walls had silver lining wrapped around them and were put up to create swirling patterns along the walls. Yixing and the other Guard walked side by side, leading the others to a glass door that slid open at Yixing's hand.

"I think Junmyeon and I will take our leave now," Yixing announced with a bow and the two Guards walked back to the cubicle area leaving Zitao alone with Yifan and his little brother.

"I'll go with them Lu," Yifan said with a sigh.

"Kris, please don't make me do this alone..."

"Luhan, you'll be fine. I'm honestly more worried for him than you," he said and Tao wondered if Yifan realized that he was speaking loudly enough for him to hear. "If he loses you, there's no one left for him," he added with a whisper so that Tao couldn't hear this time. "Be gentle with your words, he doesn't deserve to be alone in what's coming."

Yifan left and Tao wondered what he had whispered to Luhan because what ever it was seemed to only have made him more nervous and Zitao still didn't know why he was so tense in the first place.

The room Yixing opened for the two of them was pretty sparse. There were two soft-looking couches that Tao sunk into as soon as Luhan told him to sit. He studied the red rug on the floor as the younger sat stiffly on the couch opposite of him and pulled on the loose threads on it with his mind. Other than that the room was empty, the shining floor lighting up the room happily even though the aura floating in the air was much less so. Luhan looked up at him and sighed, from the corner f his eye, Tao saw him ruffle his hair in frustration.

"Look, Zitao," Tao looked up in surprise when he heard his full name escape the boys lips. "I don't know how I'm supposed to tell you anything of this. It's a long story, but hear me out, okay?" Tao nodded and the room was quiet again. Tao didn't know what could possibly be so hard for him to say, but Luhan was family, any of his problems would eventually be Tao's own, so what ever it was would be accepted. It was as simple as that.

He waited for the younger to talk but the room stayed as silent as the Pit. Zitao held his mouth shut until the silence drove him to say something. "Luhan, you know there's nothing you should be scared of telling me right? We're family, you shouldn't have to-"

"Zitao, I'm not your brother."

a/n: im sorry, I know I've been gone a very long time and it was irresponsible of me and I should've thought of you guys rather than just what I had to do, so for that I am sorry. I actually wrote a blog post about it if you want to read why I've been gone and I'll link it right >here< However if you don't want to read it I will shorten it for you all because you deserve to hear an excuse of some sort. I've been out of inspiration and if any of you are authors I think that you might understand that having no inspiration or having writers' block can have a huge impact so even when I did write, I wasn't happy with it and would start over. Secondly, school started and I've been busy with all of my AP classes and Pre-AP classes. Other than that I am just really lazy, which is a stupid reason and I had to admit that that's part of why I've been gone but it is.

Right now I'm on break though and at some point in December I will have two weeks off of school so I will be writing during that period of time as well. However if I am gone I do apologize and hope that you understand my reasons.

I will finish this story no matter what though, so I hope you guys will anticipate the ending even if I do leave for a while again. I don't want to; I really enjoyed writing this chapter, I miss it and I'm proud of myself for finishing, so I hope you guys enjoy.^^

PS. I will be writing a bonus chapter from Yifan's point of view at some point since I was gone for so long and I think all of you deserve more than just this one lousy chapter.

Peace out>>