Nicolas looked almost bored when Joonmyun opened the doorto his father's office. They'd come up with a strategy of sorts. Only really a plan to each do their own thing and meet back in the library. Joonmyun would talk to his father and uncle to see why they had been drugged before supper. Yixing and Baekhyun went to the hall of monitors to hopefully contact Xiumin and the others. Maybe Kai could come back to take them away or bring reinforcements. It wasn't a thought out plan. Considering that Sehun's part in it all was to continue to watch Dr. Science. Mainly, Joonmyun had the important part. They couldn't act unless they knew they had to. 

He'd knocked on the big wooden door and waited for his father to tell him to come in. Nicolas sat at his desk looking at a monitor. The kind that Joonmyun had never seen before. He'd never been in this room ever in his life. It was always off limits and locked. 

Books lined one wall and another set of large wooden doors took up half the wall on the opposite one. But no other furniture except the large metal desk and the strange monitor that was just a frame and clear glass like a window. Except with pictures and writing. 

"Uh.. " He started. Could he really accuse his father of drugging them? And what kind of reason would validate doing it anyway?

His father put his finger to his lips and reached for the edge of the monitor with his other hand. The flat surface blurred with color and a strange buzzing filled the room. Nicolas touched the frame again and the noise got much quieter. 

"I guess you have some questions about earlier. But I have one important one. Why him? Why did you think Dominic's son was the best choice to bring over?" Nicolas seemed agitated. 

Joonmyun was confused. What was wrong with Yixing? Had Dominic been evil or something? "They chose him, I think." He answered truthfully. "He can.. "

"I know well enough what he can do. That's Kenneth for you. Trying to keep his upper hand. But that's just stupid. Sloppy." Nicolas was almost talking to himself and Joonmyun was even more confused. 

"Is there a problem with Kenneth? Should we warn the others? They're all gathered at his house." Xiumin was there. He realized he'd just thought that with a lot of anxiety. 

"Calm down." Nicolas held a hand up. "Both Kenneth and Arthur need you guys. They wouldn't think of killing any one of you if that's what you're thinking. We drugged you all during dinner for your own good. This whole place is filled with vocal and visual surveillance. Now, we've done as well as we can to disturb the hallway, but at some point even that will get found out and we'll all be in trouble. Me and Philip have a sort of loyalty to Arthur but you will always be top-priority in our lives. A sentiment that I believe Arthur and Kenneth don't share. They have and will always try to gain the upper-hand. And even use their own sons to get it."

Joonmyun didn't really have anything to say. It was obvious there were still so many secrets the two brothers were hiding from him and Baekhyun. Even after all that they had revealed in the last couple weeks. He couldn't fully trust that his father wasn't doing the same thing as he suggested D.O's was. "How can I believe you? How can we believe anything you have to say when what you've told us up till now is only a very little part of the truth?"

Nicolas opened a drawer of his desk and pulled out a knife. A very sharp looking knife. Joonmyun backed away in fear. 

"What.. What are you...?" He tried for the door but Nicolas got there first. But instead of making the movement to stab at his son, he opened the large door and called out into the hallway. "You two can come in."

Baekhyun stomped into the room with a look of annoyance. "You better tell us why you turned off the monitors." He huffed angrily. Yixing looked a little peeved too but didn't say anything which surprised Joonmyun. If anyone cared about Xiumin as much as he did, it was Yixing. 

Nicolas closed the door and looked between Joonmyun and Baekhyun. "It's time for you to start fulfilling your destiny." He handed the knife to Joonmyun and led them toward the large doors on the adjacent wall. At one side he flipped a panel of wall open and repeated it with the other side as well. "Now, stand here Joonmyun. And cut a bit into your thumb. You'll need to draw blood." 

Joonmyun looked at him in shock. Was this a trick? But Nicolas just waited patiently until after shooting both Yixing and Baekhyun questioning glances. He took a deep breath and poked the tip of the knife into the flesh of his thumb. 

"Put it on this circle." Nicolas showed him where on the lit-up shelf to place his now bleeding digit. Then gave the knife to Baekhyun in order to do the same.

 
"You've got to be kidding me." His cousin growled but copied Joonmyun's actions. As soon as he placed his thumb on the little shelf, the giant doors made a creaking sound and shuddered a bit before starting to slide open. 

They could already see a glow of white-blue light coming from behind the doors before they were all the way open. 

"I haven't seen her in a very long time." Nicolas' voice was quiet and full of reverie. 

"Who?." Yixing voiced their collective question. 

"The tree of life. Our mother. And your mother now too. The one that controls all the little things and dictates the big picture as well."

Joonmyun hadn't pegged his father as a very spiritual man, but seeing his eyes light up with more than the glow of what was before him, made him seem so weak-minded in Joonmyun's opinion. But as he looked at the tangle of glowing enormity of the branches in the room, he started to feel a bit dazed himself.