Eunwoo's POV

Watching my soulmates and friends disappear from sight, my soulmates now feeling distant and out of range, it's crazy the relief that floods me even as a body jumps on me and pins me down to the floor.

"Where did they go?!" the man above me screams into my ears, but I just smirk. "Wouldn't you like to know?" I say with a hint of sass that I don't regret, even when I get my arms pulled to my back roughly, my wrists twisted unrelentingly as they get handcuffed.

"You're coming with us and we'll be getting answers out of you" someone growls from the door as I'm pulled to my feet with a strength mixed with an ability.

"Oh please, use me all you want, you won't find anything" I speak back before being pushed forcefully towards the entrance of the house.

"We'll see about that. You'd be surprised the things we can do to make you speak".

Your POV

After making sure that my brothers all make it to our room safely, it's at least some relief off my shoulders to know that although Eunwoo didn't make it here, the others did. They're here. With me.

So when I show the guys to the room they'll be using, knowing that just like us, they'll all share the same bed, it comes to no surprise to me when Moonbin pulls me behind him so we can cuddle on the bed, Sanha, MJ, Jinjin and Rocky coming in behind us and snuggling around us as if making a nest.

"He'll be fine, peach, I know he will be" Moonbin says as his hands come to run through my hair gently. I look down at my lap. "You guys are the ones who got a soulmate taken from you, yet here you are taking care of me. I should be the one reassuring you" I say, my voice filled with guilt.

"Shh, none of that now, peach, we'll get him back. We'll make them pay for what they've done, but not now. We need a plan" MJ says, his hands coming to massage my shoulders and neck, something my soulmates have been very regular about taking care of since Eunwoo showed them how.

"They really have been listening" MJ muses as his thumbs relax my tense muscles. I hum. "They take great care of me" I say with a smile as Sanha plays with my hands in front of me. "We can see that, they really cherish you" Jinjin says, his tone and face happy.

We keep talking softly like that for a while and I tell them as much as I know of this place, I tell them of the deal I made for them to come over, which I feel really bad about but they say that's a good thing, it'll keep them busy and also work for a good cause, so overall, my worries remain pretty much only about Eunwoo throughout the next hour.

And I know there's only one thing I can do to get him back. I have to make use of my ability. I have to allow the boss to make use of me. The sooner we find a way to get back at the government, the sooner we get Eunwoo.

So when I realize that the guys are all sleeping around me, their emotions and shock finally subsiding to let place to a restless sleep, I stand up from the bed and quietly head out of the suite, soft talking reaching my ears from my soulmates in our room as I walk past the door. I don't dare make noise, I don't want them to know that I'm walking away. Not yet. They would be against it and it's something I have to do.

Once in the corridor, I greet a few of the neighbors and make my way to Seo-joon's office. I want to get started as soon as possible. I'm not going to stay still when terrible things could be happening to Eunwoo right now. The others believe he'll be fine, but they haven't experienced first hand what the government is capable of.

On the way, I stumble upon Rain who makes a beeline for me as soon as our eyes meet. "Y/N, I heard about your friend, I'm sorry" he says with a pat on my shoulder, eyes sad for me. I give him a small tired smile and point towards the door I'm headed to. 

"I'm going to get to work now. I don't want to waste time" I say, watch his frown take place on his face. "Your state is slightly better thanks to your soulmate, but it's still too soon to do anything relating to memories" he counters, his hand on my shoulder tightening as if to keep me in place.

I nod, knowing full well what using my ability includes. "Eunwoo is worth it. He's been there for me from the very beginning, gave me hope through my worst days and never, absolutely never left me alone when I was in trouble. I'm not settling for any less for him. I know what the government is capable of and imagining what they can do to him makes me sick" I retort, watch as he bites on his bottom lip, deep in thoughts.

"Do your soulmates know?". I guiltily look down and shake my head. "They might not let me and I wouldn't be able to go against their wishes, so I came here straight away" I mumble, his sigh in response one a father would have for his daughter's bad decision.

"Let me at least come with you so I can keep an eye on your condition. I know Seo-joon has many pictures ready that await you" he says as he runs a hand through his hair.

Thankful, I nod and allow him to lead us to the door, the man guarding it bowing lightly before opening the door for us. Seo-Joon is at his desk and the angry frown he makes as he looks up fades into a concerned frown when he sees the two of us enter. That's a new expression I'm seeing on him, I tell myself, but it quickly disappears into a more neutral face.

"What can I do for you again?" he asks, his annoyed tone suddenly not as menacing as it would've been had I not seen his previous concern.

"Make use of my ability. Use me, get as much out of me as you can. I don't care the types of pictures, the types of pain I'll endure nor do I care about the amount. They have Eunwoo and who knows what they'll do to him, I can't stay aside and not do a thing to get him back" I tell the man, watch as he pokes the inside of his cheek with his tongue, his eyes on me going to Rain.

"Is she in any state to do so?" he asks the doctor. I shoot the man by me a look, hoping he would take my side. "No lying. Is she in any state to endure some mild pain?" Seo-joon asks again. Rain hums. "Do we have death to deal with?" he asks.

Seo-joon leans back into his chair and shakes his head. "No, just fighting and running. Some of my informants sent me pictures of themselves while on the run, I know some of them were a bit wounded. A broken arm or leg, a burn here and there, there are others a bit rougher but those can wait".

"I can handle those. I'll be fine" I say before the doctor can say anything. Heck, I've dealt with a lot worse, yet here he is being concerned about whether I can handle this or not. Seo-joon tsks his tongue but keep his eyes on Rain. "So, can she? Is it safe?". I roll my eyes, annoyed to be ignored but I don't say anything.

"If I stay by her side to keep an eye on her state, it should be safe. She's doing a lot better, she just can't handle any pictures with death yet, we need to stay away from those" Rain says, his words making me release my breath I didn't know I was holding.

The boss stands up from his chair with a nod and comes to stand by the two of us. "Let's go now then, no time like the present. I'll tell you as soon as I get any info on your friend, you have my word" he says, his hand awkwardly ruffling my hair.

I stare up at him, just as awkward but I nod, thankful for the promise. I guess Mark was right, he's a scary teddy bear, but not a bad one.

We step out of the room and start walking down the corridor to take a path I haven't seen before. "So, in those pictures, you'll have to read the informants' minds and give us any information they have gathered. You'll know which ones to look for, they're made aware to make this easy for you. Mostly they'll have made a monologue just for you before taking the picture" Seo-joon explains and I nod. 

"That does make things easy" I reply, calmer than I would ever believe possible considering what I'm about to do. It's not the same context as with the M.I. and to be treated with respect and concern makes me believe that I have nothing to fear. It's nice to make my ability be useful without having to suffer that much because of it.

"It does. They'll tell you whether you should go back to the fight or not. Don't go too far unless they tell you to, I trust their judgement. Let's not get you in pain for nothing" he continues and I get a strange 'old brother' care feel from him.

We enter a wide room with a desk in the middle surrounded by a few other desks. It doesn't take too long before a few men and women enter the room with papers and pens, a small nod and smile my way before they take a seat at the surrounding desks.

"They'll be here to take notes, we don't want to miss anything so I have more than one write as you talk. You don't have to immerse yourself too much into the picture, stay connected to reality as well" Seo-joon says, but his words have me tilt my head in confusion.

"I can't. It's either a full immersion or nothing at all" I tell him, see him look at me with pursed lips. "So you're not in full control of your ability. Probably don't know much about it as well. We can start trying today then. When you're about to connect to the picture, try to imagine yourself putting only one foot in the bath. That allows for a better transition in and out without struggling too much" he explains.

I can do that?! Knowing that would've saved me so much trouble in the past with the government, but then again, would I have been allowed to use the method easiest for my body and soul? That allows for me to get distracted, missing information, the connection to the main subject of the picture will also be weaker so I might not be able to get too far in the memories.

"How do you know all that?" I ask him, curious. He crosses his arms as he looks at the ceiling. "We managed to break into the M.I.'s data once. They gather a lot of information about the abilities they need and we copied them all before we were kicked out. I have a full folder on your ability" he explains.

My eyes widen. "Could I possibly look through it as well? I want to know more about my ability, they don't teach anything about it at school". He hums. "More than letting you read it, we'll teach you as we go. I don't want you to attempt everything on your own after reading the file" he says and I pout a little. I would definitely do that, I can't even deny it.

"Alright then, let's do this" I finally say, hear his hum in return as the two men lead me to the desk in the middle where a few piles of pictures are set. Seo-joon makes me sit down on the chair and grabs the pile on the left before searching through it to slide particular pictures in front of me.

"These are easy ones, let's start with them. They gathered little bits of information that we need. Hopefully we can get a bigger picture once we put them all together, so don't leave anything out. If we get lucky, we might be able to find out where they keep your friend along with some of our men and other people like you. Not everyone is that lucky that they get to live on their own. Some are locked up for a constant use of their abilities" he says and I feel my blood boil at the thought.

"They're really bastards for using us however they want just because they're in a position of authority" I growl as I take a look at the pictures. Selfies, faces filled with cuts and wounds, but other than that, they don't show any sign of being badly hurt.

"And that is exactly what we're bringing to a stop. We're going to destroy them, make sure every ability users are free and safe" Rain adds to my speech as he comes to my desk with a chair of his own. He sets it down by mine before taking a seat.

"This might make it hard to concentrate at first, but deal with it, I'll be scanning you as you connect to the pictures. There's no way we're losing all the progress we made with your soul" he says as he brings his hands closer to me.

I nod, about to let him but at the same time, I feel Yoongi try to get in contact with me. "Wait a minute please, my soulmate is trying to contact me" I say, wait for a nod from Seo-joon before I accept the link.

"Y/N, snowflakes, where are you? We peeked into the room when it got awfully quiet and saw that they're all sleeping but you're not with them. Where did you go?".

"So about that... don't get mad okay?" I start, feel the bond shift and I bite on my bottom lip. "Snowflake, where are you?" he asks again, his tone between anger and concern. He must be imagining the worst situations right now. 

"Don't worry, it's nothing bad. I'm with Seo-joon and Rain. I'll be connecting to pictures to gather information" I tell him. It's an instant shift for the whole bond, going from concerned to freaked out. "No you're not. We're coming to you right now, don't move".

And he's out before I can say anything. I slowly look up to meet Rain's curious eyes, then Seo-joon's bored eyes.

"So... my soulmates might be coming over... in fury?".

Seo-joon sighs and starts rubbing his temples. "You didn't tell them about you coming to me?". I sheepishly shake my head. He turns to Rain. "And you knew?". The doctor sheepishly nods. The boss groans and and grabs a chair that he sets by my free side. "Let's wait then" he says with a sigh.

"I'm sorry... I just didn't want them to refuse, I knew they'd react like that" I mumble, feel eyes on me from all around the room. The bond tells me that they're really anxious, they must be expecting the worst, understandably so.

I try to send them soothing waves in return, calm and loving feelings to tell them without words that I'm fine, that I'm not scared nor am I hurt and it does work a little. A tiny little bit. What I get in return is a mix of love and silent scolding. They're not happy. At all.

"I get it. But they'll have to understand that we're not here to stay in our rooms forever and have it easy. I know you went through a lot and they must somehow expect the same from me so let's reassure them now to have it easier the next time. Today was supposed to be a free day after all so I won't be too hard on them" Seo-joon says as he leans back into the chair, his legs crossed to be more comfortable.

It feels really weird to hear him talk like that. Voice soft and without anger. I guess he's getting used to me? Or am I getting used to him in a way that allows me to see beyond his gruffness?

Either way, I don't have time to analyze this much longer when the door slams open. Oh boy. There we go.

This book has got to be the one I manage to write the fastest I swear. The guys are mad 🤡