A/N: BARK BARK WOOF WOOF BARK BARK BARK BARK

Taehyung can't see it, but he knows something changed on that plane. 

He can sense the aroma of terror dripping off his friends; more particularly, Yoongi and Hoseok. They departed a few minutes ago, Taehyung sandwiched between the two friends while Y/n, Jimin, and Ariel are apparently scouting ahead. The trio is walking together, no words being exchanged. 

"Anyone want to tell me what's going on?" Taehyung asks as he goes. He wishes he had one of those staffs. Those staffs that help guide the way. He can't rely on people forever, he needs to be independent again. Hm, independent. A word he never considered ever since he met-

Jungkook.

A wash of envy strikes him. He isn't sure where it came from, or better yet, why envy is the feeling his body chooses. Regardless, he brushes it aside. The more he dwells, the more likely he never moves on. Which, to be fair, isn't going to happen anyway. But Taehyung can dream.

"Nothing," Hoseok replies.

"Just because I'm blind doesn't mean I can't smell the God damn sweat. Don't lie to me because you think you can take advantage of my disabili-"

"I told him," Yoongi says, cutting off Tae.

Taehyung freezes up, his breath leaving in huffs out of his body. "You did... what?"

"Listen, I had to, okay? I couldn't just keep it in. If I did, I would've exploded and that's the last thing anyone needs right now. I'm sorry Tae, but if I didn't tell him, then-"

"No no, shut up it's not that. Who knows?" Tae asks, hoping he masks the fear in his tone.

"Uh... you, Y/n, Hoseok."

"So you're telling me... you've told everyone except the little girl and the one that's actually involved in your stupid fucking secret?!"

"I can't tell him, okay? I don't have the heart to."

"Yoongi. Whether you like it or not, Jimin's going to find out on his own, and when he does, it'll be even worse than if you were to tell him now," Tae says, patting the air until he finds Yoongi's shoulder. "I know it's scary, but you don't have much choice. Just get it off your chest and it'll get better."

"This isn't something that gets better. Besides, he probably won't believe me. It's not like I have proof."

"He'll believe you. That isn't something you lie about."

"Obviously, but he's an emotional man, he might not. I don't know. I'm making excuses for myself, okay? Is that what you want to hear?"

Taehyung sighs, giving him a squeeze as they continue their stroll. He isn't sure where the others are, but surely they must be close. They need to stick together if they are to survive. 

"Yoongi, I just want to know if this is what you think is right. Do you think it's fine to hide this from him?" Tae asks.

"I don't know. I don't want to tell him at all. My entire life I've fucked up everything, Jimin's the last one I haven't fucked up with. I mean really, Y/n and I were rivals for years, Hoseok and I hated each other, I almost killed Namjoon and Jin, I hated Jungkook and now he's..." Yoongi lets out a small breath. "And I barely talked to you, Tae. You were the person I used when I needed you, then cast you aside and didn't care afterwards. Jimin and I started off on the wrong foot, but for once, it wasn't because of anything I directly did to him. He just hated me because the woman he loved did. Him and I are... friends. We're friends. I'm sorry if I want to preserve that."

"Hoseok? Your thoughts on this?"

"Honestly, not to scare you Yoons, but I think you're fucked," Hoseok says.

"Exactly! That's what I'm saying," Yoongi replies, grunting. "I don't know what to do. It's eating me up inside. Every time I look at him I just see..."

Taehyung doesn't pry despite how much he wants to. This is Yoongi's battle, not his. Taehyung shakes his head. "Let's just go. Where are the others-"

"Guys, we found a way," Y/n says, her footsteps approaching. "London sucks the biggest ass and tits, but I think I know a way. Or, more particularly, Ariel does."

"Ariel?" Hoseok asks.

"Her parents were higher ups in the mafia, and Ariel knows a lot about their operation. She remembers London a bit, but more particularly, there's this weapon stash in an old construction site. It's hidden in plain sight, outside. Problem is the area is like two miles long."

"Jesus Christ, seriously?" Yoongi asks.

"We're gonna have to split up." He can sense the hesitation in her tone, but he doesn't speak on it. "Yoongi, Jimin, Ariel on one side. Me, Hobi, Tae the other. We still have a bit of a walk before we get there, but it's nice to have a plan now."

The walk was indeed lengthy. Taehyung felt every beat of it, his muscles contracting and throbbing from the pressure. Or maybe that's his heart that's throbbing. He's not sure from what anymore. Regardless, when they slow down 20 minutes later, he assumes they're there.

"Huge construction site that looks like it came out of a horror movie. Great. What could go wrong? Well, there's a left side and a right side. We'll meet here in an hour, split off into your teams," Y/n says, the sound of shuffling filling Tae's ears. Taehyung can hear a lot of things as it's his primary sense now, and the backpacks they have are jingling, blocking his eardrums from anything else. "Tae, over here."

Taehyung goes, taking Y/n's hand. "Thank you, I appreciate you helping me."

"Tae, I'd help you with anything no matter how big or small." She gives his hand a squeeze, his singular eye softening. If it can even do that anymore, that is.

He hears receding footsteps, most likely Yoongi's group heading in their chosen direction. "Where are we going? Left or right?"

"Well, Yoongi just claimed the right side, so left it is. Still with us, Hobi?"

"Unfortunately."

"That's the spirit. Come on, the quicker we finish this, the quicker we can live our lives somewhat normally again."

"You think it'll ever be normal?" Taehyung asks before he can stop himself.

Y/n sighs, keeping a solid grip on Taehyung's skin as they stroll through the site. He can feel the gravel sinking into his shoes, creating friction on his soles. He wonders how long his shoes will hold up, or if they're already torn and he can't see it. Maybe it's best if he doesn't get the answer to that.

"I don't know Tae, I really don't." He can sense her staring at him, them slowing their pace. "But you know what?" He tilts his head in what he hopes is a questioning manner. She leans a bit closer to him, giving his side a nudge. "I'd love to find out."

~~~

"Alright, I'm ready," Jimin says as they go, Ariel narrowing her eyes. "No no, really, I'm ready this time." Yoongi snorts as he watches, noting how Ariel is so obviously seeing through Jimin's bullshit. "What? Why are you giving me that look?"

"Because you're full of shit."

"Excuse you, if I was full of shit, I'd be on the toilet right now."

"Old man, do you ever stop talking?"

"Not necessarily." Jimin pauses, clapping his hands together. "Okay, this one will be a hit."

"No the fuck it won't," Ariel replies, Jimin hissing at her. Jeez, what is he, a dog?

"Okay okay, listen. I'm ready, I promise." Ariel nods, motioning for him to continue. Jimin clears his throat. "Why didn't the skeleton climb the mountain?" Dead silence from Ariel and Yoongi. "He didn't have the guts." Jimin laughs at his own joke, Ariel slowly blinking at him. "What? Was that not a hit? I'd say that was a hit."

"Not a hit. Come on, a deal's a deal."

"No."

Yoongi grabs Jimin's small hand and points it towards Ariel's, her thanking him before forcing Jimin to form a fist. "Come on, the longer you fight, the longer this takes," Ariel says, holding up her pinky.

"I hate my fucking life," Jimin mumbles, sighing before holding up his pinky and comparing the sizes of the two. Yoongi bursts out laughing when he sees Ariel's is bigger, Jimin flipping him off. "Fuck you," he says to Yoongi, then, he shifts to his finger, "fuck you too." Next, Ariel. "And especially fuck you."

"Someone's bitter," Ariel says.

"I'm not bitter, I'm being sassy, there's a difference. Co- oh wait! I have another." Ariel groans, Yoongi doing the same. "Did you hear about the kidnapping at school?"

"I've never been to school."

"Ariel, I'm trying to make a joke, stop being depressed for two seconds." Ariel flips him off, mirroring what Jimin did to Yoongi not long ago. "Ouch, I'm hurt. Anyway, did you?"

"I literally just said I've never gone to school."

"Tough crowd. Well, it's okay, he woke up."

Ariel blinks, then, she tilts her head. "Wait, I don't get it."

"Wow, you really never went to school."

"Why you little-"

A fight breaks out, Yoongi facepalming as Jimin and Ariel have a motherfucking thumb war. Jimin wins, doing a cheer while Ariel groans in defeat. "Ha! I may have small hands, but I know how to use them!"

"Y/n says otherwise," Ariel replies.

"You're grounded."

"We have no home. Where are you gonna put me? The corner?"

"Yeah actually. Go to the corner and shut up for 5 minutes, you're in timeout." Ariel rolls her eyes, Yoongi doing the same.

"Why did I have to end up with you two of all people?" Yoongi asks in a mumble, not expecting an answer. Seriously, why him with these two? They're insane and don't pay attention. Yoongi's doing all the work right now, investigating the site with all his might. It'd be nice if dumb and dumber could help too.

Jimin eyes Yoongi, Yoongi doing the same. "Hey Ariel?" She turns to Jimin, raising a brow. "Can you walk ahead a bit, I want to talk to grandpa for a minute."

"Sure thing old man."

The pair watch her take off, still in eyesight and shouting distance; not far enough to be hurt without them seeing her first. "What'd you want to talk about? Plotting my execution or something?" Yoongi asks, Jimin chuckling and patting him on the shoulder. They slow their pace, Jimin's eyes on the ground.

"How long have you and Y/n been together?"

"Oh boy-"

"No, no really. How long?"

Yoongi purses his lips in thought, shaking his head. "I don't know. Ever since we've been on the run, I lost track of time. Has to be well over a month now, maybe two? God, maybe even three. Has it been that long since this shit happened?"

"I lost track of time too, but it definitely has been a while. Well over a month, my bet is on two and a half. This shit has been going on long enough. I only hope we're close to finishing it." He shifts his head at Yoongi, a guilt gnawing up his spine. The urge to scream swells inside his core. But for some reason, he holds back. "But I wouldn't have it any other way."

"You wouldn't?"

"No, not really."

The younger man watches Ariel, Yoongi softly chuckling at the sight. "You love her, don't you?"

Jimin's eye smile gives Yoongi the answer. "Sometimes you have to lose everything to find what you really are. Now I've found myself, and everything I think I want to be. I'm slowly but surely getting there, and Yoongi, it's been 5 years since I could even think something like that, let alone say it." He pauses to shake his head, glancing at Yoongi's face. Their eyes lock, Yoongi pretending he doesn't feel like crying. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For taking care of her. Y/n, I mean." Jimin stops, patting Yoongi on the shoulder with a soft smile. "You're the best man I know, and I mean that. There's no man I'd rather have by my side right now, not even Hoseok and I've worked with him for years. You're special to me, Yoons. You're special to her too. I don't trust you, but... I do trust you to take care of her. And Ariel, if the situation ever arises where you have to. Take care of my girls, Mr. Min."

"Only if you promise to take care of yourself, Mr. Park."

Jimin snorts, waving the air. "Never happening, but I appreciate the sentiment."

The duo grin at each other, but Yoongi's heart only falls more to his feet. Say it. Say it, Yoongi. Tell him everything and explain yourself. But Yoongi doesn't want to see that smile disappear. Seeing Jimin even partly happy brings a warmth Yoongi cannot describe. And that's what makes him bite his tongue for just a little while longer.

"Hey slowpokes, I think I found it!" Ariel shouts, Jimin nodding to Yoongi before rushing ahead. When he parts from Yoongi's body, a breath forces itself past his lips. Holy fuck. Yoongi's so fucking screwed.

He follows Jimin and sees there's a few weapons on the ground, scattered around. "It's an old site my parents talked about all the time," she says, picking up one of the pistols. 

Because of the plane, they weren't really allowed to bring big weapons, only knives. They managed to sneak Ariel's spare pistol in, Jimin insisting on it, but that took a lot of time and planning. By that Yoongi means they had to forge a concealed weapons permit and give it to security. It was too difficult to make one for all of them with the limited resources they have, but hey, Ariel got to keep Jimin's gun. So there's that. But the rest of them? Nothing.

"There's not much left," Jimin says, taking the pistol from her and checking it. "It's not even loaded. Check for ammo, Yoons."

Yoongi does, finding a small box hidden behind one of the large cylinder tubes. Looks like a sewage pipe if it were three times larger. He pretends not to be intimidated by the large structure, him glancing up and realizing how low they are. They're at lower elevation, dirt all around them. The site is gigantic, bigger than Jimin's ass and Y/n's forehead (he's planning on not telling her that joke), the gravel sinking into his shoes.

"Found some, but not much. Any pistols for me? They're really just scattered everywhere, aren't they?" Yoongi says, coming back over and handing some magazines to the gun expert.

Jimin shrugs, humming as he loads the pistol and clicks it in place. "I have one for you. Carries the same rounds." He tosses the metal at Yoongi, him catching and loading it. "Not much ammo, so don't shoot randomly. Be careful and don't be stupid, got it?"

"Got it."

The man kneels in front of Ariel, placing his hands on her shoulders. "And you. Don't shoot unless you absolutely have to, okay?" She goes to nod, then, she freezes, her eyes widening. "Baby?" Jimin asks, shaking her, "what's wrong?" When she doesn't reply, Yoongi can see the sweat forming on Jimin's skin. "Baby girl, talk to me."

"Jimin..." She points, her hands trembling as she does. Jimin stands, getting in front of her before shifting to see what she's terrified of. Yoongi does the same, and that's when he sees her. Someone he never thought he'd see in person.

A singular woman comes trekking down the space, her dark lips tilted up in a grin. Her sari follows her, the intricate details pricking at Yoongi's eyes as she goes. Her hands are folded in front of her, the jewelry clinging together, her earrings swaying back and forth and highlighting her dark, pinned-up hair. 

"Mr. Park," she says, stopping not far from them. "Your group was always so evasive, but fake passports can only get you so far. Your entire group isn't very hard to find on my turf."

"Your turf," Yoongi mumbles, his body paralyzed.

She keeps her grin, the welcoming nature of it having Yoongi's body flustering in disgust. "Welcome to London," she says, extending her arms to motion to the area. Yoongi swallows his tongue when he realizes who it is.

Madam Avasa.