The place was massive. Tables were all over and covered in papers and notepads with various people talking or focusing on something behind them. There were what looked to be some rooms in the back next to a bar; a large poker table was stationed in the middle of the Warehouse. To the right was a huge set up of technology - computers, TV screens, the works. To the left was a floor-to-ceiling weapons rack mounted with just about everything pointy or dangerous under the sun... was that a rocket launcher?

Myungsoo laughed to himself and nudged her inside, closing the door behind him. He put his fingers to his lips and created a loud sound that very closely resembled that of a bird. Several people looked up from what they were doing and waved, but only two girls actually approached them. One looked pretty cheery and upbeat, the other not so much.

"You're back, and you brought someone with you." The girl with long, straight hair and a serious face spoke first. She eyed Snitch suspiciously. She had every right to - after all, the new girl was an intruder to her home.

"Yubin, this is Snitch. She's my new partner. She's also the one who got me off death row."

Yubin's eyes widened and her face quickly contorted in anger. "You brought a cop here?!"

"Ex-cop." Snitch felt the need to make the correction. Even so, it was obvious she wasn't going to be getting a warm welcome from the other woman. Yubin grit her teeth and grabbed Myungsoo's jacket.

"L, can I speak with you for a moment?" She hissed. L was quickly being pulled along towards the weapons rack.

"Sohee, show her around, yeah?" He called out behind him. The happier of the two smiled and nodded, turning to face Snitch.

"You heard the man - let's start the initiation ceremony!"

Well that sounded a little omninous....

"As you heard I'm Sohee, the resident technological geek. Welcome to Warehouse 9 - home of Scorpion!"

"I'm guessing that's the name for everyone?"

"You got it! Started by Max and U-Know two years ago, that's us. Now, first things first. We need to get you set up with a phone and then I can show you around." Sohee led Snitch over to the opposite end of the Warehouse where all of the technology was. She walked over to a shelf holding nothing but different models of cell phones in plastic cases. She regarded Snitch for a moment before mumbling "hmm, you look like a smart phone kind of person" and taking a device out of its case, handing it to the other girl.

"This model isn't even out yet."

"That's the point - manufacturers won't even know it's missing. Completely off the grid. Of course, the bossmen are just a teensy bit paranoid about this kind of stuff so I run bug checks on both the phones and the network I created. 10 to 12 am and pm. Just leave your phone on that table over there and pick it up when I'm done. Here, I'll get this baby set up with the network."

"You created it? From scratch?"

"Mmhm. Took a while but we decided we needed an exclusive, secure network. It's easier to keep in touch that way."

It was hard to believe, but Snitch nodded nonetheless.

"I have a question: L mentioned somethin about nicknames?"

"He didn't explain did he?" When Snitch shook her head, Sohee rolled her eyes. "Figures. He's not much of an explainer. Okay, here's the deal. All Scorpion members have nicknames we call each other outside the Warehouse. Another 'security measure,' if you will. Mine is Zatanna, or Z."

"Zatanna as in... the superhero?"

Sohee grinned and raised an eyebrow. "You know your nerd stuff."

"More or less, yeah." Snitch shrugged.

"I like you." Z turned back to the phone and unplugged it from the computer, handing it to Snitch. "There! You're all set up. Like I said just leave it on that table at the same time every day and you'll be good. Let's start the tour, shall we?"

Sohee led the new recruit everywhere. The weapons rack, the different tables all around the Warehouse (turns out they had blueprints and newspapers on them), the shooting range close to the bar in the back right corner, the bosses' offices, and finally the living spaces.

"And these are the dorms. Since we built these walls from scratch they're not exactly sound proof and don't have the best insulation, so bundle up when it gets cold. Each one of us has a partner, and we share our dorms with them. This is yours and L's room - 18. I can tell you now that you'll probably never be in here." She winked at Snitch and allowed her to glance inside the room. It had two beds on either side with blankets stacked on the mattresses and a corkboard L had already put to good use. Sohee was right, it wasn't much. But it was a place to sleep, so she wasn't about to complain.

"Well, I think that's just about it. We eat everything over at the bar, but other than that it's pretty straightforward."

"So, no introductions?"

"Nah, most everyone here is pretty friendly. They'll say hi on their own terms. Oh! I almost forgot-" She cut herself off and checked her phone. Snitch raised an eyebrow. It was just more information after another today, wasn't it?

"Sorry about that. Anyway, once you meet Max and Yunho, you're going to have to do a field test. It's not that big of a deal, I mean, it doesn't make it or break it for you to be a part of Scorpion, but it does help them, and your partner, find out where you'll be the most useful."

"Field test... thanks for warning me. I'd better brush up on some old skills then."

Sohee told her a few more things about the place like poker nights whenever they had free time and how the partner thing worked out. Her phone kept beeping so she excused herself back to the computers, leaving Snitch to wander about on her own.

It wasn't long before Sohee's prediction held up. She had barely made it two steps out of the dorm hallway when a new face approached her. He was young and a bit girly-looking. L was tagging along behind him, mumbling something she couldn't quite catch. The boy in front of her smiled at her and offered his hand.

"Snitch, right? I'm Sungjong - the youngest." He had a nice smile. It was very bright, the kind of smile that could light up a room.

"Outside we call him Cheetah, or Cheets. He's our fastest runner - holds the record." L spoke up and slung his arm over Sungjong's shoulder. Snitch wasn't about to ask what the record was.

"Do you do any free-running? I'm sure L could use a fast partner..." The kid laughed.

"Yeah, I did. It was a long time ago though."

"How good were you?"

"I won a lot of races." She shrugged.

"Well, you can't be that rusty. It's like riding a bike - you never forget." Sungjong beamed again. It was practically infectious. She liked him.

"May I join the acquaintance circle?" Someone else - a older man - suddenly appeared next to L. Snitch jumped; when did he get there? She assumed "eerily stealthy" must come with the job description. L laughed at her reaction and patted the man on the back.

"Gyu, this is Snitch. She's my new partner."

"I'm Sunggyu, or just Gyu." He smiled and shook her hand as well. He had small, friendly eyes, and his was the kind of face that was hard to forget.

"Or you can call him Gramps." Sungjong chimed in, earning a slap to the back of the head from his elder. Mental note: don't call him Gramps.

"I'm one of the oldest and the leader of Infinite."

"Infi-who?" Snitch was suddenly lost again. More names? The three laughed at her reaction.

"Infiinite. L didn't explain did he?"

"No, he hasn't really explained anything." She shot a glare in his direction, but the accused merely shrugged and smirked.

"Okay, then I will. Stop me if I'm going to fast, yeah? Everyone here is split up into different groups - minimum number of members, four. Like I said, I'm the leader of Infinite, that's these two and the idiots at the poker table." He gestured to four other boys laughing amongst themselves and making wild hand motions. They looked like fun, at least. "The three girls over at the bar are miss A. They're missing a member so it's more than likely you'll be put in their group. They're pretty friendly, so don't worry. The other five girls are part of Wonder Girls, L said you met Z and Yubin already?" He paused, allowing Snitch to nod her head.

"Yubin was the one who wasn't too thrilled about me being here, right?"

Sunggyu nodded, "Yeah, she'll warm up to you eventually though. Anyway, MBLAQ is over by the weapons rack, see them? They're the ones talking with the blonde girl. That's Yenny, by the way. And the last group is Beast, but only their leader, Doojoon, ever comes here, since he's Jia's partner. The other's stay out doing whatever it is they do. We consider them to be more like our outside source. You'll probably meet them on a field assigment or something. Max and Yunho aren't back yet, but you'll probably be one of the first people they talk to when they are. And that's everyone."

Snitch could feel her head spinning. Granted, Gyu didn't talk as fast as Sohee, but it was still a lot of information to take in.

"Sorry if that confused you. It made me dizzy the first time I came here." Sungjong laughed and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Everyone has nicknames though, right? Is that part of individual introduction or do I have to ask personally?"

"They'll tell you, at least, the rest of my boys will. We don't call each other by our nicknames too often, except for L. His is just the easiest to say." Sunggyu playfully jabbed Myungsoo in the ribs jokingly. He gestured for the three to join him at the poker table, along with the rest of Infinite. Oh boy, more introductions.

The four looked up as soon as Sunggyu approached. Sungjong left L's side to go stand next to a blonde man with a toothy smile that never seemed to go away. The other three eyed Snitch - one had a confident air around him (come to think of it they all did), and the tallest one standing next to him had the chubbiest cheeks she had ever seen. The third seemed completely passive about the whole situation.

"Snitch, this is Dongwoo, Hoya, Sungyeol, and Woohyun." Sunggyu pointed to them in turn and they waved. The first one, Hoya, said that was his nickname, Sungyeol's was Mega (but everyone called him Yeol), Woohyun's nickname was apparently 'Nuclear' (to which he responded with "Call me Namu."), and Dongwoo was called T-Rex, or just Rex.

After the introductory chat, Infinite immediately sat her down and began a poker game with her.

"I'm really no good at poker" was her feeble protest.

"Gotta learn some time" was Sungyeol's response. They played for most of the afternoon, with Snitch losing just about every game. It was until the Warehouse door opened a shrill bird call echoed through the air that everyone stopped and stood up.

Max and Yunho.

At least, that's what Snitch assumed since everyone seemed to stop what they were doing and greeting the two men walking through the door. They smiled and exchanged a few words with Sohee and Yenny. L leaned over to Snitch and whispered that the tall one was Max, the older Yunho. Assumptions correct. Sungjong called out a greeting and Max waved.

But as he scanned the table his eyes immediately snapped to Snitch. There was a brief look of confusion on his face that was quickly replaced by realization, and he wasted no time in striding over to where she was seated. Yunho wasn't too far behind.

"So L," he began, looking her up and down as if conducting some sort of scan. "I see this is your new partner."

"Snitch. For the record he dragged me into this." She shifted uncomfortably, wanting to get away from Max's searching eyes. Yunho laughed.

"She'll fit right in. Got any background?"

"Ex-cop." Hoya, for the first time in the last hour, was the one to speak up, followed closely by Sungjong.

"She says she free-runs, and isn't too bad a pick-pocket either."

Max smirked. "Can you prove that?"

"Name the time." She was giving him an even look. Just because he was her new boss didn't mean she had to be intimidated. A little unnerved, maybe, but certainly not scared. His smirk grew wider and he seemed to be regarding her in a new perspective.

"Tomorrow, soon as your ready."

"Done." She stood up and bumped his outstretched fist - a gesture similar to a hand shake when it came to sealing a deal. Max and his partner left to go converse with the girls at the bar, leaving Infinite plus Snitch to recover from the conversation. She was doing most of the recovering. It was quiet, until she laughed.

"Damn." She shook her head, earning her quizzical looks. Sighing, she decided it was about time she explained her background. "I grew up in a gang. My dad was the boss of his Mob, and he raised me on all the skills a member of his 'family' had to posses - free-running, thieving, fighting. Of course, the shooting bit wouldn't have come until later, but I ended up getting that training in the force. I used to be pretty damn good, too, especially at lifting other people's personal possessions without them noticing." She paused. The boys all looked at her expectantly.

"I was sixteen when he died. I haven't done anything remotely related to those days since except police work."

Silence. Hoya chewed on his lip for a moment before standing up and grabbing his phone and what remaining cash he had off the table.

"Then let's go."

"Go?"

He smiled, revealing sharp canines. "Better be prepared, 'cause we're training, and you're not getting any sleep tonight."

"Oh boy." She sighed and stood up as well.

"I'm the best pick-pocket out of everyone here. We'll start with that. Get you to drudge up some old techniques." The smile never left his face, and he had a mischeivous glint in his eye. Snitch had a feeling she was about to be launched into something that could only be considered 'fun' if you had a twisted dictionary.

And it could only get better from there.

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UNEDITED. Big time.

Whew! After three re-writes it's done! Hope it's long enough. The next chapter probably won't be out for a while but hey, you guys know me.

Chapter Four Teaser: "Your methods are incredibly unconventional." -"Yeah, well, they haven't let me down so far." -"You had to mention pick-pocketing to him?" -"You brought it up first."