Hongjoong tapped on the desk in front of him nervously as he waiting for his fellow officers to come in. Yunho was beside him, his mouth in a hard line as his coffee cup shook in his hand, and Hongjoong didn't know if it was from nerves, or the fact that that was cup number six and it wasn't even ten o'clock in the morning yet.

But today was not a day to scold him for his addiction. Hongjoong knew that this was already hard enough for him since he had a hard time dealing with...

Hongjoong was grateful he was here though. He didn't think he could go through this without his best friend.

They had started interviews at eight that morning. He would have one criminal brought in at a time and ask them a series of questions to see if he and Yunho felt they would 'qualify' for the program.

Although he didn't fully know what he wanted the qualifications to be. Hongjoong was basing a lot of this off his gut, which his father had always taught him to trust.

The door opened and he heard Yunho sigh before taking a deep gulp of coffee. Two officers walked in with a man between them dressed in an orange jumpsuit with his hands chained together. They were also attached to a body chain that wrapped around his torso and also connected down to his ankles, limiting his overall movement.

Hongjoong opened the file in front of him and scanned it as the black haired boy sat in front of him. "Thank you." He said to the officers after they chained his hands to the table. They nodded and stepped outside the room.

The boy stared at them with a questioning look on his round face. "What's this about?"

"My name is Kim Hongjoong. I am the new chief and I want to ask you some questions. Is that ok?"

The boy smirked a little. "Do I have a choice?"

Hongjoong felt the corner of his mouth rise. "No, I supposed you don't. I'll try to make this quick. You are Choi Jongho?"

"Yes."

"And you were arrested for running an underground fighting ring and illegal gambling?"

"Yes."

At least he was honest. Hongjoong like that already. "Did you fight in these rings?"

Jongho arched an eyebrow. "Yes. Occasionally."

Hongjoong glanced at Yunho, who had been studying Jongho, looking for any off signs or tells. While Yunho was a damn good driver, he was also excellent at reading people. His eyes flicked to meet the older's and gave a single nod of approval.

"Thank you, Jongho. That's all for now."

"That's it?" The younger said, looking surprised.

"For now." Hongjoong repeated, pressing the button under the table to signal the officers to come back.

They quickly unchained Jongho and escorted him out of the room while Hongjoong placed his file off to the side.

"Five more." He said, looking at Yunho.

"I know, they get worse from here. I'm ok." The taller nodded, taking another sip. "I'm going to need another cup after this next one though."

Hongjoong smiled and patted his friend's knee as the next one was brought in.

"Kang Yeosang. Hacker, yes?" He asked, glancing up at the prisoner and taking in his square face, birthmark, and light brown hair.

"Yes, Sir." The boy said, his eyes darting around the room. His fingers shook as he played with them on the table. "And a damn good one too."

"I can see that." Hongjoong said, running his finger over his eyebrow. "A lot of successful bank jobs. What did you do with all this money? We weren't able to find any accounts in your name."

He noticed Yunho's leg stop shaking, a sign that he was watching Yeosang closely.

"That's personal." Yeosang said, his face hardening as he looked at Hongjoong. "You guys managed to catch me. How, I have absolutely no idea. But that's all you need to know."

"You got sloppy. That account you were hacking? It was a false one we set up, so you never actually stole anything." Hongjoong watched as Yeosang paled a little.

"I thought it was a little too easy." He mumbled to himself.

Hongjoong watched him for a long moment, then turned to Yunho for his opinion.

Another nod. These were the first two to get his approval.

The next one was going to be tricky. Song Mingi was a master thief. Hongjoong had to admit he was impressed with some of the places he had broken into, but he did have a couple of murders under his belt. Casualties of his break-ins.

"So Mingi, let me ask you something. We know a lot of the places you've hit, but you've left a lot of the valuables behind, only taking a few pieces here and there. Why?"

Hongjoong shivered as the taller let his eyes drift up and down. He felt suddenly very exposed under his intense stare as a small smile crossed his face. "You sure are cute for being chief. How did you get that scar?" He smirked before shaking his head back and forth, effectively fluffing out his maroon colored hair.

"Th-That is irrelevant. Please answer my question." Hongjoong said, feeling heat come to his face. Yunho chuckled next to him and leaned forward.

"I only take what needs to be taken. I've always been that way. I'm not a greedy person, Chief." Mingi tilted his head a little. "I also know how to play the game and get in and out without being noticed, so why would I spend more time than necessary on something that seems pointless?"

He then started to chuckle before holding up his now unchained hands, the keys that the guards were supposed to have dangling from his fingers.

Hongjoong jumped up from his seat, pressing the button as he did, but Mingi just kept his hands in the air. "Just trying to prove a point." He said, now letting his eyes travel over both Hongjoong and Yunho before drifting back to the shorter.

The officers came in and quickly restrained him again, although Hongjoong was pretty sure Mingi could break out again if he really wanted to.

"I like him" Yunho said. "He's ballsy. I feel like we need that for this ridiculous task you have planned."

"True. So another yes then?"

"Yeah. I need a quick break before the last three. Do you want anything?" Yunho asked, staring down at his cup.

"No, I'm good. You've got fifteen minutes."

"Right-o." The taller said, hurrying from the room.

Hongjoong sifted through the last three files. These were going to be the toughest ones to get a pass from Yunho, but he felt they would be good assets for the team. They all had a horrible background and only managed to get caught because by chance.

When Yunho returned, he looked nervous. "Are you going to be ok?" Hongjoong asked softly.

"Yeah, I've got this. You can count on me."

"Ok. Let's do this then."

Hongjoong pressed the button under the table and a few minutes later, the next prisoner was brought in.

He looked young, and like someone that could be easily mistaken for an innocent with his wide eyes and soft blonde hair. His eyes quickly flicked over the officers in the room before looking down at the floor. He seemed tense.

"Jung Wooyoung?" Hongjoong got a nod in response. "My name is Hongjoong. I wanted to ask you about yourself. You have a pretty long list to your name. Why?"

Wooyoung lifted his eyes and Hongjoong thought he saw a flash of pain there. "Why does it matter? I killed them, you caught me. I already know the penalty is death. Why do you have to drive the knife in deeper?"

"Interesting play on words since that seems to be your weapon of choice." Hongjoong said, glancing back down at the file in front of him.

The younger let out a little laugh. "Yeah, well. You stick with what you know." There was a sudden dark tone to his voice.

"You know... We only caught you by accident. If we hadn't gotten a tip about that whore house, we would have never have shown up there and you would have gotten away with another murder. We might not have even been able to connect it to you."

Wooyoung pursed his lips at the words. "I always have had bad luck." He muttered, looking down at the table. "Look... If there isn't a point to this, can I go back please? I rather spend my last, whatever I have left, alone."

"Yeah, if that's what you would like." Hongjoong said, his forehead creasing a little. This boy definitely did not give off the vibe of a murderer. He seemed almost scared, but resigned at the same time.

That must have been what earned him a nod from Yunho.

The next one, Hongjoong was particularly curios to speak with. He was the only person he knew for sure was related to the mafia, so he was hoping to get a lot of insider information.

Park Seonghwa had a cold, uninterested look on his face as he was chained to the table. His black hair was messy and covered his left eye.

Hongjoong introduced himself quickly, trying not to feel intimidated by the cold grey eyes looking at him. "Why did you turn yourself in?"

Seonghwa's face didn't change at all as he blinked slowly.

"I asked you a question. Why did you turn yourself in?"

"What do you want with me? Are you wanting to make a deal? I doubt you truly want to bargain with me seeing as you know who I am and what I've done. I already know you want my life, why should I give you anything else."

Hongjoong pursed his lips. The older was definitely smart, and wasn't interested in playing games. "All I want is a simple answer, and then we can be done. Why did you turn yourself in?"

Seonghwa studied him for a long moment, then glanced at Yunho. "I got tired." He lifted his hands off the table, indicating he was ready to leave. "You should lay off the coffee, your eyes are bloodshot... Yunho."

The pair looked at each other in shock as the officers came to collect Seonghwa. How did he know Yunho's name? He had never been introduced in any of these sessions.

"Do you think he had info on us before he turned himself in?" Yunho asked, his eyes wide.

Hongjoong rubbed his eyebrow. "Probably. I wouldn't be surprised."

"I don't like him." Yunho stared into his cup and picked at his bottom lip. "He gives me a bad vibe..."

"I think... He's going to be a hard one to control, but honestly he's our best bet if he is willing to give insider information. Which he might once we offer him the deal. I think we need him." Hongjoong glanced at the taller.

Yunho hissed and ran his hand over his face. "If you say so. Him and this next one I instantly want to say no. I don't trust them. Any of them."

"Neither do I, hence the reason I made the bracelets. But he need to try something."

"I know. I know... Ok. Let's do this."

Hongjoong pressed the button again and their final prisoner was brought in.

He was another one that had an innocent look to his face. He had red and black hair that framed his face a little but also fell into his narrow eyes. And he was trembling.

"Choi San?" Hongjoong asked.

"Y-Yes." The younger answered with a small voice.

"My name is Kim Hongjoong, and I have a few questions for you."

"Ok-k." He looked so small as he cowered in his chair.

"I've looked at your record, and it seems that you've been able to pull off some... Intense break-ins. How?"

"Just skilled I guess." The boy said, looking down at the table. Then he tilted his head away, looking at the wall. "Of course I'm not going to say anything." There was a pause. "No. I won't."

"Excuse me?" Hongjoong said. "No, you won't what?"

"Huh?" San asked, looking back at him with wide eyes.

"You said you weren't going to say anything. What won't you say anything about?" He glanced at Yunho, who was staring at San with a curious look.

"I don't..." San started, but then he turned his head away again. "Yes I know... No, please..." He whimpered.

"San? Are you ok?"

Hongjoong watched as the younger rolled his neck, then looked back at him with a dark gaze. "Yes. I'm fine." His voice seemed different. More... Confident. A sneer crossed his face. "And to answer your question... I don't have an answer. I just do."

"So you make it up as you go along?"

"Yes. We do."

Yunho leaned forward. "We?" He asked.

San turned his head to look at him, his eyes widening a little. "Wh-What?" His voice was timid again.

"You said 'we'. Do you have a partner?"

"N-No!" San said, straightening up as his head twitched. "N-No partner. I work alone. Always h-have." He looked at the wall again. "Just let me do this, please... No I don't know what they want."

Hongjoong looked at Yunho. The taller looked as confused as he felt, but he also looked concerned.

"Yes I'll be strong." San hissed at the wall.

"San?" Hongjoong leaned forward a little. "Be strong for what?"

The younger's head snapped back to him. "S-Strong? Oh, yes, th-that's how I do it. I'm strong." He said, looking down at the table.

Hongjoong didn't believe a word of it, but it was obvious that the boy was uncomfortable, so he pushed the button and had him escorted out.

Then he and Yunho made their way back to his office. "So?" He asked once the door was closed.

Yunho paced back and forth, his hands shaking in front of him as his pace increased. "Well, IF this were to ACTUALLY work... I'd say we have a pretty solid team. I mean we've got a hacker, one or two strong arms, a gun make, thief, and knife man. Plus you and me. Just the eight of us right? You weren't planning on adding anymore?" Yunho was talking a mile a minute, his hands flying in all directions. "I think eight is a good number. Not too many, but a good amount that we cover our bases and have a wide skill set. San seemed off, so we will need to keep a close eye on him. And come up with other rules. And run tests on all of them to find out other strengths and weaknesses. And make sure they can get along. And, and, and, and..."

"Yunho!" Hongjoong finally said, walking over to him and blocking his path so he'd stop pacing. "Breathe."

"Sorry." The taller said, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.

"So?" Hongjoong asked again, arching an eyebrow.

Yunho chewed on his bottom lip. "If we can get them to cooperate..." He flashed his wide, perfect smile. "I think we might have a chance."