In the days that followed, I kept to myself for the most part. I favoured the Grand Hall and my bedroom, as they were places I was left well-enough alone, and when my thoughts began to veer off in a thousand directions, Kira always seemed to be there to take my mind off of everything.

The two of us had sat in on a beginner's French class – for my benefit more than her own, and she'd briefly showed me the labs that she worked in, as well as some of the other tutorials that the younger crowd frequented.

But while the grounds and the dynamic of Division 27 was slowly growing on me, that didn't mean I was happy.

Besides Kira, most of the people didn't spare me more than a calculating look as I passed them in the halls. Catherine and Finn would stop briefly to see how I was adjusting, while Beckett tried his very best to avoid me at all costs.

I was the new girl – the outsider, and the one that didn't belong.

Then there were the times when I was alone –  usually at night when I had the company of the darkness to hide my tears, where my mind began to drift to all the things that I'd left behind and how, exactly, my life had come to be like this. Each time I dried my eyes, I'd tell myself that things would get better – that it wasn't possible for things to get any worse, and I thought that if I said those words out loud enough times, then maybe, one day, I'd truly believe them.

The night exactly a week after my midnight escape, I'd gone to bed feeling semi-alright, but had woken up in a fright after having the same nightmare that had led to my attempted fleeing. This time however, I'd tried my best to put my thoughts to sleep and rest, though it didn't do much good. I spent most the night tossing and turning, and had been incredibly irritated when someone had decided that morning was a good one to beat down my door.

Grinding my teeth, I slipped out from underneath my covers. "I'm coming," I grumbled under my breath, "hold your horses."

When I pulled open the door, it wasn't much of a surprise to see Beckett standing there, unimpressed, with his arms crossed. I raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"

"You've got five minutes to get ready," he said, nodding down to the loose pajamas I wore, "and then you're coming with me."

Before I had the chance to object, both due to my lack of sleep and the early hour, he turned on his heel and headed down the hallway. "And what if I don't want to?" I called after him.

He paused for a moment, and I saw the vague hint of a smirk as he threw a glance over his shoulder. "I guess we'll find out soon, won't we?"

I huffed in annoyance as I shut my door with more force than necessary. There was a part of me – a fairly large part, that wanted to say screw it and go back to bed, but the remaining part was actually eager to see what Beckett had in store. I didn't expect anything over the top, especially from him, but even the smallest of insights into how the agents here trained and operated would be enough to spark my interest.

So, against my better judgement, I walked straight passed my bed and into the bathroom, and when Beckett knocked on the door again ten minutes later, I opened the door with a smug look on my face. "You're late."

He rolled his eyes. "I had to check on something, and it took a bit longer than expected" he replied vaguely, moving aside to let me step into the hall. "Let's go."

Following him down the hall, I waited a few moments for him to explain why he'd woken me up, but when he didn't, I took it upon myself to find out. "Where exactly are we going?"

"First we're going to stop by the Grand Hall to pick up breakfast," he explained as we turned a corner and veered away from the housing wing, "and then I'm bringing you to one of the labs."

"You trust me in a lab?" I asked with astonishment, raising an eyebrow.

"Not in the slightest," Beckett replied, and as he glanced sideways at me, I saw a flicker of amusement in his eyes.

My curiosity spiked, wondering why that was where he was taking me, but as we stepped into the Grand Hall, the gazes that immediately landed on me had my mind otherwise occupied. Over the last week, while I'd frequented the hall for food, I'd tended to eat at times when there was less of a crowd, and now, despite the fact that the sun had barely risen into the sky, almost every table was full.

"Does everyone here get up early?" I asked, leaning in closer to Beckett as I dropped my voice to a hushed whisper.

"It depends." He shrugged. "Some people are probably still up from having a night rotation, but yeah, most people like to make the most of the day if they can – especially if they're still climbing the ladder to get assignments."

Nodding in understanding, I did my best to ignore the eyes boring into my back as I grabbed a parfait and a small protein shake from one of the breakfast bars, drawing my eyebrows together as I saw Beckett hadn't grabbed anything. "Aren't you eating?"

He shook his head, tucking his thumbs into the front pocket of his pants. "I ate earlier," he said, nodding his head towards the doors. "Come on, you can eat once we get there."

Although I was curious about how long Beckett had been awake, I didn't question it as I followed behind him, glad to be leaving the packed hall. Beckett, true to his character, didn't speak much as he led me through the small crowds of people making their way around the building to get a start on their day, and when he stopped in front of a large glass door, he typed a five-digit code into the keypad to the side and pulled on the door handle when the light flashed green.

Strolling in behind Beckett, I stopped short when I saw Kira look up from where she sat in the corner, a microscope and two laptops in front of her, appearing slightly shocked to see us. "Hey guys," she greeted slowly.

"Hey," Beckett greeted. "I hope you don't mind, but Catherine wanted Aspen to get more of a feel for what goes on around here, so I thought she could hang around the lab today."

"What?" I asked as my eyes widened and my gaze swivelled towards him. I thought he'd woken up and actually wanted to show me something himself, not watch over me because of the director's orders and drop me off the first chance he got.

And just like that – with no effort at all, Beckett had succeeded in causing a bubble of annoyance to flow through my veins.

"Did you think I had extra time to play teacher for the day or something?" Beckett asked, directing his question towards me, to which I ground out a harsh no before he turned back towards Kira. "So, is it okay?"

Kira's eyes flitted between Beckett and I for a few seconds, but she eventually nodded, a smile pulling at her lips. "Sure, I don't mind," she replied. "Plus, I can use an extra hand or two with some of this stuff."

"Great," Beckett said. "I'll see you guys around."

And with that, he left.

When the door buzzed shut behind him, locking automatically, I let out a frustrated groan. Dropping my food on the empty counter closest to me, I dragged a stool up next to it and sat down in a huff. "He's so fucking annoying."

"Beckett?" Kira clarified, walking over to me.

"You know, I bet he doesn't even have something he has to do. He just doesn't want to deal with me, and I don't get what I did to piss him off so much."

"Maybe trying to run away your first night?" she suggested teasingly, to which I narrowed my eyes and she laughed. "I'm just kidding. It's probably nothing you did – that's just how Beckett is. But as for having something to do, I know he was out most of the night with a few other agents, so he's probably headed to catch a few hours of sleep before he hits the training barn this afternoon."

The annoyance dulled slightly as I raised an eyebrow. "What was he doing out all night?"

Kira shrugged. "Special assignment probably," she guessed. "Around here, if you're not directly involved with something, you're left in the dark unless it's a large mission, and even then, we're only told the bare minimum to stay safe."

"Like the Gemini Clan?"

"Yeah." She nodded. "When activity leading back to the Gemini Clan increased, Catherine held an assembly to let everyone know to always be on the lookout, and then when your name was thrown into the mix, the senior agents were brought into a rotation to watch over you."

"But what about you?" I asked as I ate. "How do you know all of this if you work in the lab?"

A flicker of sadness crossed her features, though it was quickly masked. "I trained as an agent," she said matter-of-factly, "and I spent two years as a junior agent before I made the choice to switch over to lab work. I wasn't cut out for the front of the line work that some agents do, so I thought I could do some good behind the scenes."

I could've pushed further, figuring there was a definite story as to why she'd suddenly switched paths, but I kept my questions to myself as I glanced around the room. It was large – with several work benches and cabinets full to the brim with different handheld gadgets, as well as a wall devoted solely to computer screens that currently looked to be running some sort of code.

"What are you working on?" I asked as my eyes fell on the bench she'd been working at when I'd walked in with Beckett.

"Well I don't know exactly how much I can tell you," she trailed, walking back over to her work station and grabbing one of the laptops, "but I was examining a few of the different concept devices I had put together over the last month to see if they'd be good fits for a project me and a few of the other people are working on." Bringing the laptop over, she scrolled through the beginning of a document she'd created that had basic charts and graphs, as well as a lot of technical observations written in point form. "If you're interested, I could use some help with some of the basics, or I could get you set up with labelling some of our equipment and materials."

"I can help you," I offered quickly, not wanting to do grunt work in a lab this early in the morning, "just show me what you need me to do."

Smiling with encouragement, she ran me through the fundamentals of the work she was doing, though I did notice she left out what exactly these technologies would be used for.

When she brought me over to her work station, pulling up an extra stool, Kira asked if I'd be okay with recording any important information while she did the main analysis – which I was, and then she put me to work. Not wanting to throw me right into the pages of files on her laptop, she brought out a notebook for me to write in, and as the time passed, multiple pages began to fill up with my scribbled handwriting.

After three hours had passed, my hand was beginning to cramp and an ounce of boredom had clouded my mind. It wasn't that the work wasn't interesting – watching as Kira switched out the small devices was actually something I enjoyed, but the lack of energy and movement wasn't my cup of tea. I often found myself eyeing the other people that dropped into the lab, trying to figure out what they were doing before they turned back and headed for the door, none of them staying longer than a few minutes.

"Aspen."

My attention snapped back to Kira as the door to the lab clicked shut for yet another time, and a sheepish smile grew on my lips. "Sorry," I apologized, knowing it wasn't the first time she'd noticed my wavering concentration. "It's just, how do you do this all day?"

The corner of her lip tipped upwards. "You mean work?"

I shook my head. "No." Glancing out the window that overlooked the back courtyard, I watched as several of the agents – old and young, headed towards the training barn. "I mean, how are you able to sit in a lab while almost everybody else is out there training and in the middle of the action?"

"Not every day is like this. Sometimes I'm working on other projects, manufacturing new technology, or dealing with a secure environment," she explained, "and like I said before, the action just wasn't for me."

I waited a few seconds before I allowed my next words to slip through my lips. "But what if it's for me?"

She leaned back from the microscope and turned towards me, her eyebrows drawn together. "What do you mean?"

"This whole week people have been looking at me like I don't belong here – like I'm not good for anything. Even Beckett," I said, gritting my teeth as I said his name, "thought the only place I'd be of any help was here, doing grunt work with you." I sighed, ducking my head. "I know I'm only here as a safety precaution, but at least I'm trying."

"So, what? You're saying you want to train to be an agent?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. I mean, I'm here aren't I?" I'd never had a set path in life – having decided after high school that it was best to just to live paycheck to paycheck and hold down good paying jobs, but this was a chance for me to spread my wings a bit. "I know it's not something that I can just pick up and go with, but even something small, like sitting in with the trainees or learning basic fighting skills would be better than this," I continued, gesturing to the work in front of us. "No offense."

A laugh escaped Kira's lips. "Non-taken."

"And at the very least, I could learn to defend myself better in case I get attacked again."

There was definite skepticism etched into her features. "Okay," she said slowly, "have you talked to anyone about this?"

I bit my lip. "I didn't really know who I could talk to, besides you."

"Well I can't really do much for you," she replied, "but you could always ask Beckett about it."

Rolling my eyes, I said, "Really? All that would do would get him to laugh in my face."

She smirked. "If not him, then I'm sure there's someone else you've been introduced to that you could talk to about it."

Just as I was about to reiterate the fact that there wasn't really anyone else I was comfortable talking to, a loud buzz sounded throughout the room as the door was pulled open. Finn stepped inside, a laid-back smile on his face as he spotted the two of us across the room.

"Hey Kira, do you mind if I take a new comms device? Mine's been acting up for the last couples of weeks since I got stuck out in that rain storm across state."

"Sure Finn," she replied, standing up to head over to one of the locked cabinets on the other side of the room.

Finn however, walked over towards me and leaned back against the work bench next to ours. "So," he started, raising an eyebrow inquisitively, "you're a lab rat now?"

I shook my head, my lips tilting upwards. "Not really, but I kind of got stuck here today helping Kira."

"And if you wanted to leave?" he trailed, flitting his eyes between Kira and I.

"Here's the new device," Kira interjected, handing over a new walkie-talkie and an ear piece as Finn exchanged them for his old ones, "and if she doesn't want to stick around any longer, Aspen's free to go."

He thanked Kira as she settled back into her work before turning back to me. "What do you say?" he asked. "You wanna grab something to eat?"

Glancing quickly to see an encouraging smile settled on Kira's lips, I stood and nodded. "Sure."

With a quick goodbye to Kira, I followed Finn out of the lab and kept up a mindless conversation with him as we headed to the Grand Hall. It was clear that he was one of the more popular agents around here, as he was stopped by people both his age and years older – all wanting a quick word with him as he smiled politely and took it all in stride.

It was more than twenty minutes later when the two of us had finally made it to the Grand Hall, and with not that many people occupying the space, it didn't take long before we'd both filled our trays and headed towards the far back corner.

"So, what have you been up to so far this morning?" I asked, dropping my tray on a free table while Finn took a seat on the other side.

"If I told you, I might just have to kill you," he said, causing my eyes to widen. When he laughed a second later, I relaxed and dug into my salad, realizing he'd been joking. "No, but really, I was getting briefed for a new assignment by one of my advisors, so – "

"You can't talk about it," I finished for him.

"Exactly." He paused. "But I do want to know how you ended up working with Kira in the lab. I thought you'd kind of just been doing your own thing."

"I was," I replied, "but Beckett showed up at my door this morning on Catherine's order, supposedly, and dropped me off there. It's not like I minded much, because I'm friends with Kira, but I'd rather be doing something more helpful."

"Actually, the labs are really helpful in getting us prepped for assignments and developing new surveillance and gadgets for us to use," he countered.

"I didn't mean it like that," I rushed out.

"I know you didn't." His lips turned upwards as my shoulders sagged with relief. "Though if you're looking to do something other than lab work, I could probably talk with one of the advisors for the junior agents and see if they would be willing to help you out."

"Seriously?"

He nodded. "Yeah, if that's what you want."

"That'd be great," I chirped excitedly, my mood instantly lifting.

I noticed his gaze drift sideways and over my shoulder, his eyes lighting up with an idea. "In fact," he started before yelling out a name and lifting his hand to gain someone's attention. Turning my head, I saw that the man he was flagging down was the same one I'd seen talking to Catherine in her office my first day here. As he walked over, I found myself fidgeting in my seat. "Joe," Finn greeted as the man sided up to our table, "this is Aspen."

"Ah yes," the man said, holding out his hand in greeting. "I believe we met briefly last week. I'm Joe Thompson."

"Aspen Rigby."

"Aspen told me that she was interested in getting a bit more involved with the Division, and I thought maybe you could help her out," Finn explained to Joe before casting a smile my way.

"Well, what exactly are you interested in?" Joe asked, directing his question towards me.

"Um, I'm not really sure," I stuttered honestly. "I was in the lab this morning with Kira, but I didn't think I fit in there very well. Are there lessons I can step into that new recruits get taught specifically, like how S.I.C.O is run, and tips to help their covert skills along? Or even learning a new language?"

Joe nodded, seemingly understanding what I was looking for. "There are a lot of things that our new recruits get tossed into right off the bat, but I could probably put together a lighter schedule for you once I have time to talk to some of my colleagues," he said.

"That'd be great," I said with elation,

"Why don't you come by my office later tonight and we can talk things over?" he continued, which surprised me, as I hadn't thought things could be pulled together so quickly. "It's over in the east wing, and if you get lost, just ask anyone and I'm sure they'll show you where it is."

Excitement and thanks filled my voice as I nodded and said, "I'll be there." When Joe was far enough away, I looked back to Finn with my eyes gleaming. "I can't believe that just happened."

The corner of his lips twitched upwards. "You're welcome."

a/n: I just wanted to say a quick thanks to all of you who are reading this complete jump in genre by me, as you've helped it soar up to 71 in action already! That's insane to see, and I hope you guys are excited for what's in store!