Behind Shu, Leo let out a nervous giggle. "Oh shit."

Shu stayed rooted to his place, heart thudding against his ribcage as surprise transformed into confusion in his friends' eyes. Valt opened his mouth when the voices filtered inside. Frantic yelling of commands invaded the silence for a moment, distracting them from the tension inside the room. Leo and Shu both watched in strained silence until the footsteps faded. It was only a matter of time until the men started pouring into the training room in search of them. Leo sighed, "Okay, fine. Let's call whatever this is-'' he waved at their company, "A blessing in disguise. They'd keep you alive. I'll buy us some time."

"What are you-" Shu started when Valt interrupted in a haste.

"What's going on?"

Shu half-turned to Valt when Leo walked past him to the hazel-eyed blader. The blonde took his shoulders, face exhibiting the sobering emotions playing in his mind. "Shu's life is in danger," He said, eyes searching through the nooks and corners of the training room until they stopped firmly on the vent opening. "That'll do. I need you to help Shu up there as soon as you can. Do you understand?"

Valt opened his mouth to question but didn't get the chance as the male pressed. "Please. We don't have time for this. You have to trust him."

Valt's eyes flickered to Shu who watched the exchange in dumb silence. "Okay?" The male answered. Leo nodded gratefully making his way towards the door when Shu grabbed his wrist.

"And where are you going?"

"We need a distraction."

"You can come with me."

"Shu," Leo sounded exasperated. Shu knew he sounded childish, begging him to tag along, but he didn't care. He couldn't lose another person. See someone walk into danger, not when Liam's death was still a lingering wound in his mind. He grabbed Shu by his shoulder pulling him to a sudden, tight embrace. "Listen, kiddo. I know you're batshit scared. But I'll meet you at the garage in exactly ten minutes. Be there, okay?" He pulled away with a grin.

"But-"

"I can take care of myself just fine. Be there in ten minutes. I'll be waiting."

"Wait-" Shu started again when Leo slipped out and closed the door behind him. Shu watched the empty space he left behind, his mind already reaching for the worst outcome.

"So," Cuza was the one who broke the confusing silence. "What's happening?"

Shu turned, unable to face his friends. He didn't have answers. At least not ones that made sense. "What the hell did you get yourself into?" Surprising everyone, Valt's harsh tone interrupted. Shu winced, it had been a while since he had seen Valt this angry.

"Uh well," He stammered, gesturing. "That's a good question."

"Shu," Valt pressed. "What are you even doing?"

Honcho shook his head, "Well that doesn't matter now, does it? We have to get him out of here. At least, that's what I think we should do?"

Another chorus of shouting echoed from outside. Shu watched surprised as Honcho stood under the vent inspecting the short length from the flat ceiling to the ground. He looked at Shu, back at the vent. "Well?"

"Are you actually helping me?" Shu blurted out, blinking. Why would they even help him? Wasn't all this distancing supposed to break them? What do they have?

Rickson marched over to Honcho and stood beside the blonde. "Well, it seemed serious. And I feel like this is not a drill. Is it?"

Shu really hoped it was, because he had no idea how the information might've leaked. Heck, he didn't have a clue about Norman and Theodore. Were they okay? "Right. It isn't."

He hurried over to Honcho and stepped on the fist he formed with both his arms, hauling himself upward. He jammed his elbow across the vent and thankfully it cluttered to the inside, rattling to the side of the vent. Shu grabbed the edge with practised ease. The hours of training sessions has heightened his flexibility. He was thankful for those rigorous hours of hanging from monkey bars and training his arm muscles for any kind of situation.

He looked over his shoulder, eyes surveying each member of the room until they stopped on Valt's worried hazel. "Be careful," he told Valt. "They might come after you too."

Valt didn't understand but he nodded. "You too. And you owe me an explanation."

Shu smiled, "A big one." He said, hauling himself upward to the vent. The darkness crowded his vision and Shu had to wait until his eyes adjusted to the darkness. He listened intently as a knock sounded just as he replaced the vent. Through the cracks of the metal he watched Rickson opening the door and several black clad men questioning them about his whereabouts. Shu shivered, his eyes darting to his best friend one last time before he started his crawl towards the exit. The vent was cramped, if he was any bigger, he wouldn't have been able to pull himself through. He dragged himself forward, making as little sound as he could.

He saw the light filtering before he saw the next vent. He pressed his lips together, crawling over the vent, praying to all the gods the thunder of his heart was only audible to him. He decided to carry on when he heard Theodore's voice. Shu frowned, looking down the narrow stripes of openings. He could make out Theodore standing with... was that Ethan? The latter seemed to be yelling, he had his face twisted into a scowl, lips throwing out words in rigorous blows.

Theodore gave out an exasperated sigh. Shu couldn't make out the exact words, but he shook his head, grabbing his coat. Shu hoped it was to get out of here, this place crawling with enemies. Ethan didn't stop him, just watched in frenzied silence as he walked away. Why didn't Ethan stop him? Shu wandered, resuming his journey. Wasn't he supposed to be the enemy?

He strained to hear any sound that might capture his escape but found himself listening to nothing but silence. Comforted, he slid down the vent towards the empty janitor's closet right beside the back exit. He edged closer to the door, pressing his ear against the cold metal door. He couldn't hear anything. Not footsteps. Not voices, intercoms buzzing. He twisted his knob and opened the door, peering through the crack. Clear.

He stepped out, making his way towards the exit. The door opened to the dingy parking lot. Shu frantically looked around, trying to catch a glimpse of blonde but found two black cars and one white Defender staring back at him.The albino rubbed at his arms, walking through the empty parking slots, beating back the urge to call out Leo's name. That would give away his position. Standing alone in the gloom, Shu had time to think. He was alone. He had no idea who the spy was. He was completely underaged to meddle with this shit. And because of his own selfishness he might've dragged his best friend to this. That last one made his blood boil. A silent fury aimed at himself.

But he also knew there was no point backing away. He had come this far, expected all this torture as his bitter reality.

"Shu! Run!" Shu snapped out of his trance as Leo almost crashed to him. Shu saw the reason for the agitation, he was being chased.

"Catch the kid!" One of the men ordered, their gun aimed at them. In a split second they were running towards the exit of the parking area. Would they shoot? Shu found himself wondering. He was more worth alive than dead, he knew that to be a fact. The mere memory of going back to the Snakepit and laying naked under those fluorescent lights letting all those mad scientists mess with his body was enough to make him nauseated. No thanks. He'd rather choose death.

"How are we going to get away?"

Leo pointed at the black minivan racing towards the end of the parking lot. "That one, that's the salvation baby." He panted. Shu would have laughed if not for the men chasing them screaming bloody murder.

"Stand down!" They yelled, a deafening echo of a shot penetrated the air. Leo dived down dragging Shu with him. They crashed onto the cement floor. Shu winced, feeling his elbows scraping raw from the impact.

"Fuck," Leo muttered, pulling them both to their feet. "That was dangerous, motherfuckers. You might've killed him. Jesus christ." It was almost comical Leo was yelling while they ran towards the minivan.

Shu let himself be dragged away as the minivan door opened revealing an agitated Lucas gesturing frantically for them, his arms extended to grab them towards the vehicle. It was only when they were safely inside and the sound of men faded to the background Shu relaxed.

"Fuck," Leo whispered, staring at Shu. "Shu, you're-"

Shu frowned looking down to see the matter when his eyes caught the sight of his elbows. He hadn't just scraped them raw, there was practically no skin, only red angry flesh and blood blossoming down his pale white skin that were still intact. The pain bloomed upon staring and Shu gritted his teeth.

Lucas pushed Leo aside, crouching in front of him. "Get the first aid box," He said.

"There's a first-aid box inside this?" A new voice piped up. Shu was relieved to find out it was Theodore, Norman beside him, his eyes firmly on Shu's. There were no seats inside, just the empty floor flagged by nothing. Shu couldn't see the driver from his angle and he didn't care. It hurt. He should be used to this now, but it was the open wound that made it worse. Shu knew he could handle pain, not when it's out in the open to his eyes to see.

A bewildered Theodore handed him the first-aid box. Lucas grimaced, pulling out bandages and disinfectors. Shu winced at the sight of them. He kept his eyes focused on Theodore instead. "Is everyone okay?"

"I doubt you can afford to ask that question," Norman sighed, "But yes, everyone's safe. We haven't found who leaked the information...yet."

Shu yelped when Lucas dabbed alcohol against his ruined skin. The sheer pressure burning through. "A little more," He murmured. Leo was now sitting behind him, blonde hair dishevelled as he held onto Shu's shoulders keeping him balanced.

"At least we didn't get hit by a bullet," Shu said, much to comfort himself. "That's better, right?"

Theodore smiled, "Indeed," He reached out to pull out his tablet, "But I wouldn't say we're exactly safe until we've reached our hideout."

Suddenly, Shu's mind drifted away from the wound. "We're going to the FBI?"

"Hardly. We're using a temporary base for now."

"Oh..."

"You sound disappointed," Norman pointed out as Shu screamed to his teeth. The hell was Lucas doing?

"I-I'm not."

Lucas wrapped the bandages in and patted his cheeks. "There, all done."

"Thank you."

Lucas stared at him for a long second, Shu shrunk to the seatless floor of the van unable to hold his gaze. "What?"

"Everytime I see you like this my murderous intent against Theodore deepens a little."

"Second that opinion," Leo added, pulling out his phone. His blue eyes trained on the device as he scrolled past whatever he was looking at.

Theodore sighed, "We didn't have much of a choice, did we?"

"We didn't," Shu agreed, "It's not his fault, you know? I don't blame him for that."

Lucas ruffled his hair, "You wouldn't blame someone even if they hit you with their car, Shu. We can't really take your opinion on that."

Shu scowled, He was not that forgiving. He hadn't forgiven the psycho doctors and the boss back at Snakepit. Nor did he ever intend to forgive Ethan for everything. He leaned against Leo who had settled himself beside him. Pocketing his phone, the male wrapped one of his hands around his shoulder. "Since when did you know about me and well, the other members of the UUC?" Shu asked. He knew Leo was conducting a solitary investigation and didn't have any knowledge about their situation until recently.

"A couple of days ago," Leo admitted, "I had an idea though. One of the superiors already told me they are conducting a separate investigation on the Requiem Project, so I had a brief idea."

Shu hummed, "Oh, okay." His eyes wandered back to Theodore —now on his phone— his mind crossed to his exchange with Ethan, how he had swiftly walked away and Ethan had let him. But he couldn't bring himself to suspect him. He had always tried to protect him, make his life easier back in the Snakepit. And the FBI is not mad enough to hand over this job for a person who had a suspicious background, right?

They soon lost the men chasing behind them. Shu couldn't make out their way through the black tinted windows. He felt the van taking swift turns until it slowed to a stop. Lucas took the initiation as he opened the door and stepped out. The deafening screech of crickets slipped into the van, Shu gingerly moved his hands as he made his way to the exit. They were inside a patch of wood. He frowned, his eyes darting along the tall pine trees. "Where are we?" Leo asked, raising his brow. "I wasn't aware we had a secret base in the middle of nowhere?"

Theodore gestured to the van and the driver stepped out, a tall dark-skinned man. He spoke with a heavy accent Shu couldn't quite place. They watched in silence as he pulled out a silver set of keys and walked towards a pile of dried leaves on the ground. He cleared them with his foot, revealing a square steel panel on the ground. Shu blinked, heart racing. He couldn't help but be excited. It was just like in the movies.

"It's more dangerous than a movie," Lucas ruffled his hair with a grin.

Shu flushed, "I didn't say that out loud."

"No," He agreed, "But it's easy to read your face, Shu."

Shu scowled. Norman had said the same thing. Either these people were strangely attentive or his friends back at school didn't pay any attention at all. He remembered parents and peers commenting on his lack of expressions and emotions. They followed the driver into a dingy set of staircases and he opened another door with a fingerprint reader and an eye scanner. The door hissed open as a green light flashed on the top corner of it.

Shu held his breath as a sterile room came into view. They walked in, Shu's eyes darted across the flat massive screen on the wall, depicting a map with red blinking lights. Computers scattered the room. Three men and two women in black coats watched as they walked in. All of them saluted Theodore before their eyes took in Shu. He had the urge to hide behind a wall, or just sink to the floor.

"He's small," One of the women commented, "Like... really small."

Theodore shrugged, "He's twelve, you know that."

Shu wondered if he should take offence to the fact that they were discussing him as if he was not present in the room or be marvelled by the technology around him. There were graphs displayed on screens, pictures of people —criminals? A box of half eaten doughnuts littered one of the dark grey desks, empty mugs of coffee decorating several more desks.The UUC emblem was embossed to the farthest wall, dark against the sterile walls.

"Any information about the spy?" Theodore asked. One of the young officers led him towards the flat screen. The map changed to a list of distorted faces.

"We went through the intel we currently have about the criminals from the Snakepit and compared them with all the current employees of our organization. Not a single match." He flipped to another page. "My guess is the spy is a secret weapon up his sleeve. Someone new, or someone who's really great at impersonating."

"Or someone with a split personality disorder," One of the women commented, "I wouldn't put that past them."

"If the information keeps leaking, it's going to be a problem." The young man continued. Shu noticed the glint of his eyes, his messy dark hair swept to the side. His skin was too pale or it was a trick of the translucent lights. He caught Shu's stare and smiled. "I'm Harry by the way. Shu, right?"

Shu nodded, "Yes. Shu Kurenai."

The woman with the black leather jacket stride over to him. "Jeanne," She said, "Nice to meet you."

Shu dipped his head, "Same here."

The honey-blonde woman who earlier interrupted Harry grinned enthusiastically. "And I am Pamella, you can call me Pam. Nice to finally meet you kiddo." Shu noticed that she was wearing a white coat. He resisted the urge to flinch. White coats did that to him now. But she was the stark contrast of Rin. Pam had a dimple on her left cheek, her eyes a hazel brown reminded him of Valt. Her lavender perfume was comforting. He liked her.

Shu smiled, nodding along. He didn't know what to say. These were all FBI agents. What does one say when they meet them anyway? The other two men introduced them as Daniel and Nick.

"Well," Lucas finally interrupted, "Now that everyone introduced himself, I'm going to tuck him in."

Shu flushed at the choice of word," What?"

"What? You're tired, aren't you?"

Shu could agree he was. But tucking him in was a terrible word choice. He was not a toddler. Daniel shrugged, "What happened to his elbows?"

"That would be my fault," Leo piped up, he was stuffing himself with leftover doughnuts while Nick groaned, telling him to stop. "I slammed us both in the ground."

"Trying to avoid a bullet," Shu said.

"Yeah, pretty much."

Lucas sighed, "Well, there's that."

Pam smiled, "How about we put him into bed?" She said, gesturing to Jeanne.

"You don't have to," Shu muttered, embarrassed. Why do they seem intent on babying him? It was weird, and uncomfortable.

"You'd rather have Lucas do it?" Jeanne raised her brow.

"Well, no."

"That was quick," Harry chuckled. They had all abandoned their work and were now crowding around Shu. Shu shifted on his feet, overwhelmed by all the attention.

"Fine," Shu mumbled, turning to Pam. Lucas faked heartbreak as she led him out the door. Shu shot a glance towards Theodore who was in a heated phone call. Shu hunched his shoulders, hoping everything would be fine. He wondered if it was something to do with Ethan. No matter what happened, he found himself coming back to the incident.

Pam and Jean led him through a hallway ending with a small square room with a single bed and a matching nightstand. The walls were bare save for the small mirror to his left. "Well, this is the best we have right now."

"It's fine." Shu mumbled. This room brought back memories. Liam especially. The single bed they used to crawl into, making silly jokes. The birthday cupcake he shared with him. Shu bit back a sob, his fingers rubbing the cold four-leaf clover around his neck. God, he wished Liam was here.

Jean gave him a friendly shove, "Go ahead, little soldier. We'll see you in a couple of hours."

Pam crouched in front of him. She was tall, he initially noticed and her four inch heel made her taller. Another contrast from Rin. "Do you need anything else?"

Shu shook his head.

She smiled, "Don't mind the others and us pampering you. You're pretty much the youngest agent we ever had. And we heard everything about the Requiem Project, "Her voice held worry, "If you ever want to talk to someone," She wordlessly gestured to them. "Now take a rest."

Shu nodded, "Yeah. Thanks." He watched two women leaving. Closing the door, he entered the room, falling back to the soft mattress. He was surprised no one was suspicious of him, if they were, they were pretty damn good at hiding it. He thought they would naturally gravitate the spy theory towards him given that he was the newest member of the team. But contrasting his ideas they seem to... like him? Shu sighed, recalling Pam's words. If only he could talk. If only he could find the words to describe how Liam's death shattered him. How he could still hear his voice, his laugh in his head. He tossed to his side and yelped, the wound crushing under the weight of his body. He welcomed the pain. If Rin taught him one thing, it is that pain made you forget everything else. He curled to himself, cradling his burning elbow. But at least he could focus on this physical pain and take a rest from his mental scars.