“It really hasn’t changed much.”

Sooyoung looked up from the book she was reading at the soft murmur coming from the man she shared the backseat with. Closing the book, she reached over and held one of his hands in hers in encouragement. “Sure does bring a lot of memories, huh?”

“Yeah.” But even if there was a smile present on his face, Yunho’s eyes remained distant, clouded by an emotion she couldn’t quite put her finger on.

Sooyoung hid a frown and, after a quick glance to the rear view mirror, she saw Yoona doing the same from the passenger’s seat. They knew enough of Yunho’s childhood… or at least they thought what they knew had been enough. The man himself wasn’t exactly forthcoming with the details and they hadn’t really minded back then. But from what they could see now and from the rather awkward reunion he’d shared with Kwon Boa in the offices of the Psychic Research and Investigation Center, they could tell there was more to his past than he let on. The moment she had explained what was going on, Yunho had pretty much clammed up, answering rather curtly when spoken to, and barely looking at Boa’s way.

It was just a matter of figuring out what was bothering him. Yoona and Sooyoung separately knew the chance of Yunho saying anything without them having to pry the information out of him was slim but both brunettes knew they had cause for worry. If Heechul, who’d been driving, had noticed any difference with Yunho, the shaman was uncharacteristically silent about it. Maybe it was because they all understood even if Yunho hadn’t said a word how this case greatly affected him.

It hadn’t taken long before the team’s two vans reached Little Angels Foster House. Boa stood by the spacious entrance of the orphanage, waiting patiently as the two vehicles were parked; Changmin and Kyuhyun emerging from the other van first to greet their client while everyone else went to collect their luggage and equipment. “Has anything happened since you came to the office?” Changmin asked.

Boa shook her head in the negative. “Nothing so far, thank god. The staff members are constantly on the edge and it’s getting harder to hide things from the children. I’ve got a large common room from your base and the two bedrooms you’ve requested for ready for you to use.”

“Thank you.” Kyuhyun smiled gratefully before he turned to address the rest of the team. “Let’s set up the base first and unpack the luggage so we can figure out what to do next.”

“Yunho!” Boa made her way over to where the dark haired man was hefting a box of cables and wires; a rather hesitant smile on her beautiful face. “Little Angels hasn’t changed much, has it?”

Yunho was silent for a moment before a ghost of a smile graced his face. “Yeah, I guess.”

He left it at that, politely excusing himself before he walked off to bring the box into the orphanage, receiving a rather confused Boa behind and two worried brunettes off to the side. The team set up base in relative silence, a surprise on its own considering they were in a place filled with children but they supposed Boa and the staff had a talk with them about toning things down. They wouldn’t have minded the noise anyway. It was a change of pace and scenery.

“Okay, listen up. This is what we’ll do first.” Changmin’s gaze found the shaman, the priestess, and the medium. “Heechul, Jessica, and Seohyun will go around the whole orphanage with me, Kris, and Kyuhyun. Hopefully we can locate the spirit and make initial attempts to help it pass to the other side. While we’re doing that, Yunho, Amber, Yoona and Sooyoung, you guys should begin the interviews. Talk to both the staff and the children. Anyone who had witnessed the prior incidents so coordinate with Boa noona.”

“And then we’ll all meet up back here, see what we have, and go from there.” Kyuhyun added.

As instructed, Yunho, Yoona, Sooyoung, and Amber collected their notepads, pens, and tape recorders before they exited the base; Yoona and Sooyoung nearly sighing audibly and simultaneously in relief when it looked like Yunho relaxed a bit around Boa, loosening up even more once they were introduced to the kids. Heechul, Seohyun, and Jessica went off to survey the place; the shaman taking Kyuhyun with him while Changmin and Kris followed the two women around respectively.

Seohyun frowned as she and Changmin entered the backyard. “The spirit… it’s full of anger and hatred. Really, really deep anger and hatred. Like he or she had been repeated wronged in life.”

Changmin nodded once. “Pain then? Can you sense it?”

“Yes. It’s very strong too.” The raven haired medium winced. “But the spirit’s hiding from us.”

He merely nodded in reply, silently racking his mind until he got a connection with Kyuhyun. Seohyun says that the spirit is angry, full of hate and is in pain… and he or she is hiding from us.

Heechul hyung’s getting the same vibe too. Kyuhyun answered. Anger plus hate plus pain equals a very powerful and dangerous spirit. We have to be careful, brother.

I know. A beat passed. Tell Heechul to make protective wards and charms, especially for the children. I’ll call Kris and tell him to tell Sica the same.

I can see them all the end of the hallway. I’ll go tell them.

Alright. If you four are done, we should get back to the base and wait for everyone there.

As what Changmin had somewhat anticipated, he, his brother, Kris, Heechul, Jessica and Seohyun reached the base first before the team conducting the interviews; Heechul and Jessica choosing a corner of the room to begin working on the protective wards Changmin had asked for. Kris had disappeared shortly after they rely to return with a rather thick and ancient looking book in his arms. With an appreciative grin on Heechul and Jessica’s faces, they scooted down to make room for Kris on the floor; the two fully engrossed with the book on healing that Kris had set down, claiming that he probably could find something in its dusty pages to help strengthen their wards. It was nearly an hour later when the rest of the team reappeared; Amber and Yoona promptly seating themselves before the laptops so they could begin transcribing the interviews.

“While they are doing that…” Kyuhyun’s gaze shifted from the trio on the floor to the duo by the laptops. “And they doing that, we should probably start setting up the cameras and microphones. We’ll do a séance tonight.”

“Tonight already?” Amber repeated from her spot. “That fast?”

“Unfortunately, the spirit is hiding from us.” He grimaced. “We don’t want to risk luring him or her out some other way and end up putting the kids in danger. So a séance is the next best option. Are you alright with that, Seohyun?”

The raven haired medium nodded. “Just give me enough time to rest and prepare.”

“You got it.” Changmin granted easily. “Everyone else who’s not doing anything, grab a microphone and a camera and let’s go.”

A pointed look and equally pointed clearing of  – both from Yoona – got Sooyoung to volunteer to set up with Yunho; the raven haired man thinki