If someone had told Tayeon, less than a week ago, that she'd be spending every afternoon in Yoongi's apartment learning how to control her telekinesis, she simply wouldn't have believed them. She told herself that she still wanted to keep her distance from both Yoongi and Jimin, mainly because there was so much going on in her life that she didn't have the first clue of how to handle. But she couldn't get the two of them out of her head, and now that she was no longer afraid of Yoongi, she was afraid of what that meant. She could not force any distance between them, and despite her attempts to hold them at arms length, all it did was make the two of them even more determined to be there for her when she needed someone.
However, her practice was definitely paying off.
"You're getting so much better at that," said Yoongi one day, about a week later.
Tayeon was perched beside Jimin on the edge of Yoongi's dining room table, where it was easy for her to concentrate, and they'd just watched her pick up six individual cups, stack them up, then open the cupboard, and place them on the top shelf. All with her mind, and almost without a sound.
"It feels a lot smoother as well," said Tayeon, focussing on a plate that had been left on the drying rack in the kitchen. Yoongi almost never ate in his apartment, preferring to join the rest of the faction in the dining hall, but lately he'd been spending more time there to keep Tayeon company. And every so often, Jimin joined them.
"How's the control going?" The latter asked her. "I haven't noticed you exploding anything, so..."
"I've never exploded anything, as you put it," she stated haughtily, watching as the plate hovered in the air, whilst she hunted through the cupboards for a tea towel. "But yeah, it has been better. I've been letting it out of my skin a lot more, if that makes any sense at all. Instead of bottling it all up inside me I let it just sit in the air, and that seems to give me more room to express my emotions without anything bad happening. I swear it's got a mind of its own sometimes, though, so I can't do that so much when there's a lot of random objects close by."
"I've noticed that," Yoongi nodded. He'd been able to sense that her aura was there during training, which was new. He still couldn't read it, but it was definitely there now. "What are you looking for, by the way?"
"A tea towel," said Tayeon, frowning in concentration. "Do you not keep them in your kitchen?"
"You gonna do my dishes for me?" He chuckled, watching in amusement as his kitchen cupboards randomly opened and shut.
"I just figured I'd see if I could effectively use the tea towel or not," the blonde retorted, trying to hold back her smile.
"Cupboard on the far left should have one hanging inside the door," said Yoongi.
It turned out that Tayeon was more than capable of using a tea towel, but after Yoongi's earlier comment, she couldn't resist turning on the tap and dipping the dish back under the water, before stacking it neatly back on the drying rack. Jimin dissolved into giggles, and Yoongi rolled his eyes.
"Should have seen that one coming."
"Do your powers do things on their own without you telling it to?" Tayeon asked the two of them, leaning back on her hands, and turning to look at them.
Yoongi smiled a little, feeling happy that she was so relaxed with him now. It had taken almost every ounce of his patience to get her to open up to him.
"It does," he said, moving to stand beside the two initiates, one hand resting on the table. "It comes directly from your own instincts though, so although it feels like it's an extra persona, it's actually just an extension of you. You've been letting it out so much in this room, I bet subconsciously you know every inch of it, and you would automatically use that to your advantage if you were threatened. That's how it works with me as well, but I don't have to learn a new room every time I enter a place I'm not familiar with. It's more learning different emotions. I got to know what a normal level of excitement is, for example, or what's a normal level of anger or hatred. If I want to dial it up or down, I can tell how much I can do it without it looking suspicious, and I can tell what level of emotion would make someone act on what they're feeling. But I couldn't tell you how I know that."
Tayeon was nodding, but there was a slight frown on her face, and Yoongi knew there was a loaded question coming.
"Okay," she said slowly. "But like... how much can you actually change what someone's feeling?"
"I don't think there's a limit," Yoongi responded. "I've never tried, never had a reason to."
"So can you make someone love you? Or make someone fall in love with someone else?"
Yoongi and Jimin laughed.
"There it is," said Jimin. "I knew there was a big question coming."
"Well, can you?" Tayeon insisted, smiling a little.
"One hundred percent," said Yoongi. "But I never would. Sometimes it's hard for me to know how much is morally okay to mess around with, but as far as love goes, that's a hard limit."
"I have to agree with you," Tayeon nodded. She met his gaze unflinchingly, and Yoongi wondered what she was thinking. She couldn't possibly be worried he'd do it to her, since he couldn't even tone down her fear when he wanted to. "So," she continued, sitting up straighter. "Change of subject, what are we doing for our final assessment this evening?"
"Oh, so that's what this is about," Yoongi exclaimed. He shook his head at her, giving her a smirk. "I'm not telling you any more than I told the others this morning, which is exactly nothing."
Tayeon and Jimin both pouted at him, causing him to chuckle. He reached over with both hands, and slid his fingers through their matching blonde hair. He hid his smirk as the two of them leaned into his touch almost automatically. They were the cutest things he had ever seen.
"Can't believe this was all just a distraction," he murmured. He met each of their gazes, allowing himself to stare for a few seconds, noticing the hitch in Tayeon's breath as he did so. Then he moved away to the kitchen, picking up the tea towel and beginning to re-dry the plate on the top of the stack, leaving them to stare after him in disbelief.
"Did you just..." Jimin began, but then broke off, thinking better of it. Suddenly, Yoongi felt the water droplets leap off the plate he was drying, and splash him in the face.
"Wow, okay then," he chuckled. "You know I'd be impressed with that if you weren't mocking me."
"Well, I'm done practicing for today then," said Tayeon, leaping off the table, and heading for the door. "Coming, Jiminie?"
Jimin began to follow her.
"See you this evening, hyung!" He called out.
"Oh no you don't," Yoongi turned around quickly, halting their progress, and Tayeon paused with her hand on the door. "Just hang on a minute. Hobi will be here in a sec with a few others. We need to talk to you guys."
"About what?" Asked Tayeon.
"You'll see," said Yoongi, turning back to his dishes, but he didn't have to look at the two blondes to know they were pouting again.
"What's with all the secrets today?" Jimin complained, as the two returned to their place on the table.
"Hey, it's not a secret, okay?" Said Yoongi, turning to give them a smile, a genuine one this time. "It'll just be easier to explain when everyone's here."
"Okay," Tayeon nodded, relenting.
Across the room, a book suddenly jumped off the shelf, and three pairs of eyes shot towards it simultaneously. When Yoongi turned back to look at Tayeon, she wore an expression of shining innocence, and he shook his head.
"You scared me for a second there," he said.
"You? You're not scared of anything," she retorted. "And I told you, it's got a mind of its own. It wanted to read a book, apparently."
Tayeon was in the process of returning the book to it's original position on the shelf when the door opened, and in walked Hoseok, closely followed by two others whom Tayeon did not recognise. The three new comers stared in surprise at the book floating in the middle of the room, but Tayeon calmly returned it to the shelf, before turning to look at them.
"Well done Tayeon," said Hoseok, moving over to give the blonde a hug. "You're amazing at that now, and it's barely been a week."
"A week of constant practice," Tayeon corrected him, but smiled nonetheless.
"Tayeon, this is Jin, Taehyung's older brother," said Yoongi, laying down his tea towel finally, and coming over to join the group. "And this is Jungkook. He was an initiate last year, he's also a shield. And Jin is another telekinetic."
"Oh, they're also Divergent?" Asked Tayeon, in surprise.
"Dauntless-Candor cross," Jin grinned at her. "Any friend of Yoongi's is a friend of mine. You're welcome to call me Oppa."
"Ay, Oppa," Tayeon grinned at him, holding out a fist bump, which Jin immediately reciprocated. "The best kind of cross."
"And the loudest," said Jimin with a smirk, causing them both to glare at him.
"Anyway," Yoongi said, "I wanted to introduce you to one another, but also to ask a favour. It'd be a lot easier for the three of you to work together in this, Jimin, Tayeon and Jungkook. Keep an eye on Taehyung, Ae-cha, Nu-ri and Aeri. We think all four of them are Divergents, but we can't be sure. It would be easier for you to find out than for us, since Kook is around Taehyung a lot, and Jimin and Tayeon are around the rest of the initiates when I am not. I especially need you to keep an eye on Ae-cha. If she's a Divergent, it's highly likely her brother Namjoon isn't as oblivious as he would have us believe, and she may be useful in getting through to him."
"Woah, hold on a sec, you can't just use someone like that," Jungkook objected.
"What? Of course he doesn't mean it literally, Kook-ah," said Hoseok, as everyone looked at Jungkook in surprise.
"Ae-cha's really close to her brother, you know," Jungkook retorted. "She won't let anything happen to him."
"And you would know this how?" Jimin looked at him in incredulity.
"Oh wow, you've got such a beautiful pink aura at the moment, Kook," Yoongi smirked at him. "Mind telling us exactly how you know Ae-cha so well?"
"I hate you for being that powerful, Yoongi," Jungkook glared at him. "My shield was literally skin tight! How the hell did you get through that?"
"I know," said Yoongi, ignoring his question. "Go on. Spill the beans."
Jungkook sighed, glancing around at the four curious faces before him.
"Okay, so we may have gone on a date. Or like, four. She's just really smart, and kind, and..."
"Yeah, yeah, we get it bro," said Hoseok. "Erudite cross. We're clever."
"I don't think so," said Jungkook. "She's more Abnegation, if anything."
"Really?" Asked Yoongi, raising an eyebrow.
"Yes, really. Not gonna lie, I've used my shield on her a bit. She's lowkey clumsy."
"Jungkook!" Exclaimed Hoseok, with a laugh. "Are you serious?"
"Yah, Jungkookie!" Jin reached out to smack the younger on the back.
"That's adorable," Tayeon grinned. "He just wants to protect her!"
"Guys! Shut up!" Jungkook complained. "I don't think we came here to discuss my love life."
"No, we didn't," said Yoongi, although he too was laughing. "Jimin, Tayeon. Can you keep an eye on those four? Nu-ri is a shield, that much is obvious, and Jimin thinks Taehyung is a telekinetic, which would make sense, as so is his brother. But we don't know about Ae-cha or Aeri."
"Wait, hold on," said Tayeon, glancing at Jin. "If Taehyung and Jin-oppa are the same thing, then surely Ae-cha and Namjoon..."
"Exactly," Yoongi nodded in confirmation. "If Namjoon knows anything about this, he knows we're looking, Hoseok and me..."
"Hoseok and I," Hoseok immediately corrected him.
"...so," Yoongi continued, throwing an annoyed glance at his friend, "It's better if you're the ones looking for it. You know what the six powers are by now. Keep an eye out for anything unusual, and let me or Hobi know if you see anything."
"Are you coming to the training event tonight, Hobi?" Asked Jimin.
"No," Hobi shook his head. "But I'll still be at training most days."
"So why am I here again?" Asked Jungkook. "Was it just so you could mock me about Ae-cha, or..."
"To be fair, we didn't know about that, you brought that one on yourself," Hobi chuckled at him. "We just wanted to introduce you to Tayeon, thought it would be a good idea for you to meet the person Yoongi and Jimin won't shut up about."
"Really, Hobi?" Jimin grumbled.
"Oh? What have you two been saying about me?" Tayeon giggled at him.
"I'm with you, Jungkook, they've just brought us here to mock us," said Jimin. "Come on, let's go."
Yoongi had observed the conversation without a trace of embarrassment, and wasn't above joining in the teasing.
"Lot of pink auras around here," he grinned. "7pm Jimin-ah, train! Don't be late!"
"Don't you!" Jimin retorted, poking his tongue out, as he and Jungkook headed for the door. "You coming, Tayeon-ah?"
"The more I see of this, the more I'm happy you've got no idea how to get through my shield," Tayeon shook her head at Yoongi, as she got up to follow Jimin and Jungkook. Yoongi sighed.
"It's actually so annoying."
"I just love the fact that we've found someone who's stronger than you," Hobi smirked. "It's about time someone stood up to you, hyung."
~.~.~.~
7pm, train.
All of the initiates had boarded, as well as Yoongi and Namjoon, and Namjoon was handing out flash lights to everyone. Yoongi was silently staring out the window, and Tayeon wanted to ask him what he was thinking, but something told her now wasn't a good time. Yoongi was different when he wasn't in training mode, as she'd come to think of it, and she liked the person he was when he was relaxed. In training, she rarely saw him relaxed, but now that she understood the reason behind it, she could hardly blame him.
When Yoongi finally turned away from the window, Tayeon was met with his intense gaze, and she could instantly see the affection that was stirring there, leaping to the foreground when he saw her. He was proud of her, she knew that because he'd told her so. But he was far more invested in her progress than someone who was merely helping her out as a fellow Divergent. They'd gotten pretty close over the past week, and Tayeon had to admit to herself that she cared about him as well, far more than she'd wanted to. It was the only explanation for the hurt she felt in knowing he was blaming himself for every Divergent initiate who'd never made it during the five years he'd been doing his job.
"Alright," said Yoongi, breaking her out of her reverie. "Initiates, listen up! We're gonna be playing a game called capture the flag down at the pier. Gonna split you into two teams, Namjoon and I are captains." He picked up one of the bags he'd been carrying, and unzipped the bag, taking out what looked like a paintball gun. He pointed it around at a few of the initiates, before shooting Yejun in the leg with it.
"Ow!" Yejun exclaimed, doubling over, and grabbing his leg in pain. "What was that for?"
Yoongi reached down, and plucked the dart out of his leg, holding it up to show everyone.
"Stun dart," he explained, and Tayeon could see he was holding back a smirk. She didn't know if that was him getting back at Yejun for beating her up and bullying Jimin, but she fully appreciated the sentiment either way. She glanced at Jimin, who stood beside her, but he was the picture of shining innocence.
"The darts simulate the pain of a real gun shot," said Namjoon. He picked up the other bag that lay at Yoongi's feet, and slung it over his shoulder, before leaning casually against the wall of the train. "You gonna pick first or..."
"I don't mind," Yoongi shrugged. "You can go first."
Namjoon raised an eyebrow at him.
"Alright then. Tayeon, you're on my team."
The blonde's gaze snapped up to him, her power which had been laying dormant in a thin layer over her skin suddenly leaping into the air around her, ready for action, and Jimin's soft hand came to rest against the small of her back. She glanced at Yoongi, who was giving a look that spoke more plainly than words: 'Calm down.' She finally nodded, before moving over to the other side of the train to join Namjoon.
"I'll take Ae-cha then," said Yoongi, glancing at Namjoon out of the corner of his eye. He had the satisfaction of seeing his fellow trainer draw in his breath sharply. He met Yoongi's gaze unflinchingly, before turning back to the initiates.
"Jimin."
This was going to be an interesting night.