Author's Note: College is why I haven't updated. I'm sorry. Also, I was forced to change the title due to a dispute with another user who had a panic attack over someone using the same title as them. If you were reading this under it's former 'Building A Mystery' title, you may have to update your favorite/alerts list. Sorry!

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"Hello, Yagami-seonsaeng, Takenouchi-seonsaeng. I am Ko Hyo, the Digidestined of North Korea."

It was surreal, Taichi thought, to hear this kid speak. The formal, lengthy honorifics and solemn, stoic tone made him feel like the voice shouldn't belong to the speaker. The words would've made sense coming from an adult, but, as he and Sora realized quickly, Hyo was not an adult. He was, at most, ten or eleven, and he was small for his age. His bowl cut black hair was dull and thin, with a brittle look to it. His sunken in eyes were a shade of dark gray that was a lot like the Chinese Digidestined. But while their eyes were bright and alert, his were half closed and dim. His face was gaunt, and he was so thin he was swimming in his clothes. His legs shook slightly, as if it took a lot of effort to stand.

Hyo met Taichi's gaze steadily. The blankness in his eyes made the Japanese boy shudder as he continued, "These are my partners, ToyAgumon, SnowAgumon, BlackAgumon, and ShadowToyAgumon."

Biyomon reached forward to shake ToyAgumon's claw. "It's very nice to meet all of you. My name is Biyomon."

Agumon stepped forward uneasily, looking at the four with confusion in his eyes. "Uh, I'm Agumon, but I guess you already know that since we're practically cousins."

Taichi's mind was a sea of confusion. Four partners? It wasn't unheard of for people to have two, or for one Digimon to have two Digidestined. He'd seen that. But either North Korea's kid was a miracle or these weren't all his. They knew Taichi and Sora would see something wrong with this picture, though, so if three of these weren't his partners, why were they here when they could've been hidden? He eyed the four warily, noting how ToyAgumon took Hyo's hand in his and looked at him with concern. Was that Digimon really Hyo's? Something wasn't right here. They'd known that much going into this. But he hadn't expected this.

Sora leaned down to shake the hands of each Digimon, and Taichi did so as well before taking Hyo's. The Korean boy's hands were cold, he noted, and the palm was skinned and cracked. His eyes met the boy's, and at that moment he realized Hyo wasn't the evil North Korean he'd pictured in his head. The kid was just that, a kid, and even though Taichi wasn't fond of where he was from, that didn't mean this whole thing had to be formal. He offered the boy a warm, genuine smile, receiving a small one in return. It was a start, at least, and for a second there was a flicker of awareness in the small boy's eyes that hadn't been there before.

One of the many guards in the building escorted them to the dining room, where they sat in what might have been a second lobby, once, before it had been remodeled. Taichi and Sora instinctively helped Hyo's digimon into their chairs, partly because they did so with their own digimon and partly because Hyo didn't look like he could lift them. He was too thin, and although he was trying to walk fast enough to keep up with them and speak firmly, it was clear he wasn't quite right.

It occurred to Tai that most North Korean children were malnourished if not severely malnourished, with less than half the population eating enough to maintain a healthy body weight. Was that how they'd gotten Hyo, he wondered to himself as they sat in silence, watching each other. Had they bribed him with food, giving him the options of coming here or starving otherwise? Taichi felt sick at the thought, thinking of the food so readily available in South Korea. It struck him that he didn't really want to be here, watching Hyo sway in his seat, eyes dull and lifeless. He suddenly wanted to be home, with his family, watching his mother make dinner in their kitchen where there was always food.

Hyo's ToyAgumon climbed into his lap and nuzzled him. Hyo took a second to even realize his digimon was there. Slowly, his arms curled around his partner, and when he peeked over ToyAgumon's head he looked for all the world like a child holding a giant toy. Taichi wondered to himself how old Hyo really was, but there was no way of knowing. The guards in the room wouldn't let him tell the truth to them, not even if he was coherent enough to do so.

"Which of your digimon is oldest?" Taichi asked on a whim. "In Japan, at least, not all of them met their partners right away. So, who's oldest in your group?"

"I am," ToyAgumon said immediately, "And ShadowToyAgumon is the youngest. Other than that, we don't know. We got here mostly at the same time, but time flows differently in the Digital World, so it's hard to say by human standards..."

Biyomon nodded sympathetically. "It's hard getting used to human measures of time. My friend Tentomon wears a watch to help with that."

"We tried that, but it keeps getting broken since someone is a klutz," ShadowToyAgumon said, looking meaningfully at ToyAgumon, who glared back.

Sora smiled warmly at Hyo as she asked, "How long have you had your partners? I'm sure you know about us since we were on the news, but I feel we barely know you."

Hyo glanced at the guards, a flicker of fear in his eyes. "Uh, I've known them a year, Takenouchi-seonsaeng."

"You don't have to be so formal," Agumon informed him brightly. "We're diplomats, but we're not snobby or anything. You can call us whatever you like."

Another glance at the guards before speaking. "I see. Thank you, Agumon-seonsaeng."

Agumon gave Taichi a look that said 'I tried'. Taichi gave him one that replied 'I know'. In silence, they waited as the smell of fresh food wafted towards them. Korean courtesy was to prepare a meal for travelers, and Japan's rule of manners was to never refuse prepared food. In fairness, North Korea had no way of knowing when their guests last ate. They were attempting to be polite. Of course, they also knew it was yet another moment to bribe the diplomats as best as they could. Taichi eyed the North Korean Digidestined, wondering what the boy ate.

A year was a lie, one everybody at the table saw through. If he'd known them a year, he'd have been in the government's custody for that long because that's just how this country was. If he'd been well fed for a year – and any sane country did everything they could to feed their Chosen – he wouldn't look like this. He would probably still be underweight, but not to this degree. He was listless, taking several seconds to respond to questions and speaking slowly, as if through a haze. They were feeding him, that much was clear, because otherwise he wouldn't be living in a luxurious place like this. North Korea was taking care of their Digidestined.

But he hadn't been in their care for a year. It was, like his age, the minimum required to get membership in the Digimon World Alliance. (The age limit had been Taichi's idea, to help keep out the elementary aged children who were Digidestined.) In reality, Hyo had been here for less than a year, maybe only a month or two at the most. Taichi tried to picture what the boy had been through, being taken from his home after receiving a digital monster (or four) and suddenly being fed real food so long as he did what the government said.

The sick feeling in his stomach returned full force. Food shouldn't be used as a weapon like that, Taichi thought, and even though the dishes they were presented with were freshly made and delicious, he ate automatically, out of courtesy alone. The whole time, he felt a growing pit of hatred in his heart for this country, and something akin to righteous indignation of behalf of Hyo. This was no way to live, not for a child who had no choice. Noting the eager way the North Korean boy ate and the way ToyAgumon hissed for him to slow down, casting wary looks Taichi and Sora's way, Taichi cringed.

They weren't meant to know that Ko Hyo had come here on threat of starvation. They weren't meant to know life here was every bit as bad as they'd been told. The food, the rooms, this whole building was supposed to convince them North Korea was great and wonderful and should be treated extra nicely in negotiations. All it did was piss off the Japanese Digidestined, with Tai silently fuming and Sora looking utterly ill, unable to really eat anything. They had a hard time restraining themselves, keeping from screaming their outrage and disgust. But Taichi knew that this wasn't a place where screaming would trigger a reaction. People here would smile and reassure him that he was mistaken as they repeated their old lies.

"We will show you around the city," one official, named Ri Pae stated loudly, interrupting the awkward silence that filled the room. "But first we must talk to Hyo-ssi."

There was something about the way that he said 'talk' that made the already ashen boy grow even paler. A flicker of terror crossed his face before he glanced at Sora and Tai and became listless again. Tai felt his stomach twist, but it was Sora who objected out loud. Before he could stop her, she was on her feet, eyes narrowed dangerously. The look she sent that particular official was so cold it could have frozen fire.

"We're never going to get to know him if you drag him away from us every three seconds," she snapped. "Why don't you just leave the poor kid alone?"

The tension in the room went up like a rocket. Hyo pulled his knees up to his chest, wrapped his arms around them and shut his eyes tightly, as if bracing for an impact. SnowAgumon was saying something about staying calm to his partner, who didn't so much as twitch. On the opposite end of the table, Agumon was tugging on Tai's sleeve and whispering something. Taichi felt his old boldness flare up as he stood, leveling a firm look at the assembled guards and officials who were there to monitor them.

"What Sora-ssi means," he said quickly, "Is that most countries trust their Digidestined enough to let them talk to us alone. Assuming he is your Digidestined."

At this, Ri Pae's face went a magnificent shade of scarlet. "What exactly are you implying, Ambassador Yagami?"

"That if he was really your Digidestined, and you really wanted to ensure North Korea's entry, you'd play by the same rules everyone else does. We're not going to let you coach Hyo on what to do and say. No one gets to do that." He folded his arms, drawing himself up to full height even as his heart hammered in his chest. "If you're going to break entry rules before you're even in, consider North Korea rejected."

There was a moment in which Taichi's entire life flashed before his eyes. Ambassador Yagami Mysteriously Vanishes, say North Korean officials. Japan Suspects Foul Play. For a second he pictured Hikari sobbing hysterically, Yamato crying and punching walls and cussing them out for being so stupid. He pictured Hyun-Seo's horror that she couldn't save them. A glance at Sora showed that she was picturing roughly the same things. Everyone knew that negotiating here was tricky, and they had probably just signed their own death warrants. He slipped his hand over hers, silently.

Then Ri Pae gave them a fake, rather disturbing grin. "But of course. We will leave you, and you can all talk, okay?' He looked over at the silent, motionless Korean boy. "I trust Ko Hyo-ssi will be good." The words 'or else' hung in the air like a knife ready to strike, and almost imperceptibly, Hyo nodded.

And then, when all the officials and guards were gone, he began to cry.