Noah trialed after Shawn as they all entered the building. Noah was almost taken aback by how many people were there. At the institute itself, he only saw a few other people besides the elementals, including Mr.Night and a handful of cronies that always seemed to be around. The idea of so many people support such a twisted cause. Suddenly Noah felt contempt for the men he followed. He grit his teeth and balled his fist, using all his will to not turn and bolt and never return. Surly they had all been tricked into believing a lie. Yes, that had to be it. How else could so many support the death of children.

Suddenly Sam, who was the front most of the group, paused and turned on his heel to face the other three. They all paused in their track and looked to Sam expectantly.

"Okay! I am mission leader, so any concerns will be reported to me! Today, I say, is a day of adjustment. First, we get settled into our rooms, then, tomorrow, we will begin to form a plan. Noah, Shawn, you two will share room 94, Bill and I will be across the hall in room 96. are we clear?"

"Yes." Bill said simply.

"Crystal clear." Shawn grinned before turning to Noah. "Looking forward to spending some time with you, pipsqueak," he laughed before grabbing the room key from Sam.
"Come on, lets go to our room squirt."

Noah growled under his breath, though too quietly for anyone else to hear as he fixed his hair yet again. He picked up his duffel bag and the small case he had been given and huffed before following closely after Shawn.

The two approached their room and Shawn, who had been spinning the key around his finger, unlocked the door and opened it up. He walked in, tossed his belongings on the ground by the bed on the right and let himself fall onto the mattress, sighing with relief.
"Finally, a real bed! Its been months!" He exclaimed.

Noah was confused as to what that meant, but chose not to question the other man. He shut the door quietly behind him, taking the time to use the door knob to close it, before gently setting his bag at the foot of his bed. He then sat on his bed next to his bag and case. With Shawn still enjoying the mattress, Noah cautiously took out the case to view the items once more. He took out the phone, and opened it up, this time, having expected it, he did not jump at the light. Although, as be stared at the screen, he was at a loss as to what to do.

"You know how to use the phone, kid?"

Finally, Noah became fed up.

"I'm not a kid." He hissed, reaching his breaking point.

Shawn's eyes lit up. "Ah, the kid has a voice after all!"

Noah glared.
"I just told you, im not a kid."

"Whatever you say squirt." Shawn shrugged.

Noah sighed, annoyed at the shenanigans of the man in the room with him, who slowly crossed the room and sat uncomfortably close to Noah.

"So, you need help with your phone?" Shawn asked.

"No thank you, im perfectly f-" Noah started before the phone started to buzz and the screen changed to read a number.

Surprised, Noah dropped the phone on the bed beside him. Shawn tilted his head slightly to one side and raised a brow.
"You're not going to pick up?"

Confused, Noah picked the phone back up, but only held it in his hands.

"Geez kid, you live under a rock or something?" Shawn said as he clicked a button on the small keypad. Suddenly the screen changed again, and Noah could hear rustling noises coming from the phone.

"H-hello? Noah? Is that you?"

"Noah! Hi! I-i mean we have all missed you so much!"

"Ion? Opal?" Noah questioned. He turned the phone over, inspecting it, more than confused on how he could hear them, but not see them.
He turned to Shawn.
"Is this a recording?"

Shawn shook his head.
"No, its a call. Haven't you ever called on a phone before?"

"Hey, don't forget about us!" Another female voice called from the other end of the phone, somewhere in the background, Jane of course.

"Sup man," Lance said.

"H-hey guys!" Noah responded hesitantly, awkward as Shawn watched on. They all responded with a greeting.
"How are y'all doing over there?" Noah asked.
"And how did you get the, uh, what is it called, the phone?"

"We're all doing well enough." Ion stated.

"A nice man gave us the phone!" Opal explained excitedly.

Noah felt his stomach roil as he thought about Opal thinking anyone working for S.I.N. as anything but the cruel man he was. Even Shawn was a threat to their very existence. Nonetheless, he smiled to himself at her innocence.

"So how are you doing Noah?" Ion asked.

Noah hesitated.
"Im okay."

He and the others talked for about half an hour after that about how training and classes had gone for all of them. About 10 minuets in, Shawn had left the room, quietly explaining he was going to go train. Throughout the call Noah became more comfortable with the small device and the idea of hearing their voices of another while not seeing them. Somewhere around half an hour later a gruff voice could be heard on the other end of the phone ordering the others lights out, effectively putting an end to the conversation.

"Goodnight Noah!" Opal called.
"Night man."
"Talk to ya soon darlin'"

"Night y'all" Noah responded, a bittersweet smile on his face as he heard receding footsteps. He began to inspect his screen and keypad for a way to end the call. Just as he found the red button on the left corner of the keypad, Ion hesitantly spoke from the other end.

"N-noah?"

"Yes, Ion?"

"Do you think you could stay on call a little bit longer? Please."
Ion's voice was soft and quiet, unlike the clean-cut strong words that Noah expected from the European boy.

"Of course, what's wrong?" Noah asked.

"Its nothing, nevermind." Ion said bluntly.

"Ion." Noah said simply, then spoke again when Ion did not respond.
"Ion, you can tell me anything."

"Goodnight Noah. Sweet dreams." He said sharply before a long, loud beep sounded from the device in Noah's hand, causing him to nearly drop it.

"Ion?" He questioned the device.
"Ion, are you there?" He asked mire desperately.

"Did your friend hung up on ya, Squirt" Shawn offered from where he had appeared in the doorway with a towel in his hands.

Noah whipped his head around to look at the taller man and sat up taller, still uncomfortable around him.

Shawn wiped his face with his towel then shifted it to his neck as he crossed the room to the bathroom.
"Mind if I shower first? Thanks Kid." He said, not even giving Noah enough time to open his mouth to speak as he closed the door to the bathroom.

Noah sighed and set the phone back in the metal case, put the case on the floor by his bed and laid on his back, staring at the ceiling. It was the first night of his mission, he suddenly realized. He sighed heavily and turned to his side, facing the bathroom door. He was going to shower before he turned in for the night, but before Shawn finished his shower, Noah's eyes had shut and his mind took him to a place of indescribable sensations.

Noah laid on a bed, the covers red and velvety were draped over himself and another in his arms. It was a familiar male, but Noah could not make out a face. Although, as the sun shone through the window, keeping them both comfortably warm and casting a glow around the other boy's head, Noah felt more at peace than he ever had before.

When Noah awoke the next morning, he wished more than anything to slip back into that dream and pretend that the last 9 years of his life had never happened.

Noah sighed and shook his head. It was a dream. A fantasy. Not real. Now- now was real, and he had a job to do. He got out of bed quietly, aware of Shawn's slumbering figure lightly snoring from across the room.

As quietly as possible Noah lifted his bag onto his bed and unzipped it. Much like the others at S.I.N, he didn't have much choice in clothing, most of it being uniform supplied by the institution, but he did posses a few personal clothes. He grabbed a t-shirt and a pair of jeans, which he hardly wore at any time during the day at S.I.N., and appropriate undergarments then entered the bathroom to shower.

When he finished and returned to the bedroom, Shawn was gone. Noah sighed relief. It wasn't that Shawn was that bad, he supposed, but it was nice to have a minute to collect his thoughts before the day started. He glanced at the clock above the doorway and checked the time. He faintly recalled the tall man, Sam, saying something about meeting this morning at 9:00. It was currently 8:30.

Noah laid on his back on his bed. It was nice and comfortable and surprisingly warm. He just wanted to curl up and go back to sleep, the feeling of early morning fatigue settling in, despite it already being mid-morning.

Noah laid there for some time before he noticed the time approached 8:50. Noah stretched his arms above his head, slipped out of bed and bent over towards his toes lazily, loosely stretching his back and legs before walking towards the bedroom door, making sure to bring his mission case with him. The exact directions were a little fuzzy but Noah managed to recall how to get to the large common area they had entered into yesterday.

Noah spotted Sam and Bill sat at a table with breakfast, from the food line, it seemed. Noah was intrigued by the commons area. It was a large room with a ceilings easily the height of a two story building. The noise of the room seemed to travel, but without being too intrusive. To the left of the room was a buffet-type set up food line. A few shelves of books lined the wall between the hallway Noah had entered from and the on on the other side of the wall. The right wall was lined with couches, small pieces of furniture, lamp and a few decorative bits. The far wall of course was sets of glass doors and one-way glass windows. The rest of the room was filled with tables spaced out periodically and cushioned chairs.

Noah hesitantly started towards Sam and Bill, the former waving him down as he approached.

"So, tell me young Noah, how was your first night? Are you excited for today?"

Noah took a second to process the fast spoken words. He opened his mouth to respond but was interrupted by a hand ruffling his hair.

"Glad you could make it pipsqueak!"
Noah rolled his eyes and fixed his hair. He didn't bother acknowledging the name, knowing nothing would stop the older man from addressing him as a kid.

Shawn sat down next to Noah at the table still wearing sweaty clothes and a towel wrapped around his chest. Of course he had been training again. Did this man ever rest? Shawn slouched back in the chair and crossed his arms over his chest.

"So, give us the briefing Sami'o'pal."

Well, at least the cheesy names was not limited to him Noah supposed.

Sam pulled out a manilla folder and set it on the table in front of him.
"For this mission you will have a week to devise a plan. You must capture Rachel and bring her back to S.I.N." He slid the folder towards Shawn. "Bill and I have other things to attend so Noah, you and Shawn must work together."

Shawn blinked and for the first time since Noah met him, seemed unsure.
"Sam, are you sure? Where did you get these orders from?"

"From the boss. You've proven yourself well enough Shawn. Don't screw it up." Bill said deeply.

Shawn swallowed and nodded, taking up the folder handed to him, clearly information about Rachel.

Besides. As Sam was saying, they didn't start the mission until tomorrow.