There was only one bed. That wasn't a problem for Pj, as she readied herself for the night. After their kiss on the rooftop, she figured something like that was in the future for them. He clearly had feelings for her, and she definitely had feelings for him in return. It was a little confusing and sudden and sort of a whirlwind. But she wasn't expecting anything besides sharing a bed as they slept. James wished she'd share her thoughts with him- all of her thoughts, not just about the bed. Whatever had happened to her didn't magically disappear once they ran off together. She might have been more of herself, but there were times where she seemed lost to some sort of fog. The two had to have some sort of discussion before starting anything else. Whether that was in regards to their mission or their new (yet undefined) relationship, it didn't matter. They just had to talk.
But she was already settling under the covers by the time he gathered himself. They had been non-stop all day. Maybe it'd be better to rest and clear their heads before diving into serious concepts. Awkwardly, James climbed into the bed next to Pj. He thought it'd be best to place pillows between them, not wanting to take advantage of her while she wasn't completely herself. She watched him curiously. Yet once she understood his actions, she burst into laughter. Yes he was being ridiculous, but he'd rather be safe than sorry. He was going to say as much, but she kissed him. The affection was small and sweet- an appreciation for how kind he was. Except, when they parted and their eyes connected, a spark was lit.
It burned through any hesitation and small gestures of affection left lingering between them. The two had already gone rogue together, so why not just devour one another with a passionate kiss. That was what Pj thought, anyway. James had stopped thinking. He gave up on thought and decided to simply act. Overthinking had gotten him nowhere. But following her into the unknown and kissing her thoroughly felt amazing. Unfortunately, the blissful moment didn't last long. They were so consumed with one another, they didn't notice the lock on the door being picked. They did, however, hear Max's shout. It forced them to startle apart and ready themselves for an attack. Seeing it was only their team didn't ease them in the slightest. Pj snapped, "Max! What the fuck? Jamie, did you call them?"
"No. No. I don't know how they followed us," Lowering his makeshift weapon (he and Pj weren't able to grab their guns before they bolted, so they were armed with knives they lifted from a nearby store), James answered her demanding question. He was wondering how the others had found them as well. Yet there were no answers. Max glared at the two, fuming as though he was going to rip James' head off. Oliver, Kara, and Felicity remained silent as they closed the door behind them. Apparently their sibling and friend taking off wasn't dramatic enough. More and more waves of emotion were going to crash into them.
"We're going home, Piper. Now," Max's irritation was working well for the rest of the team; they could let him handle the rogues. However, Pj stalked towards her brother, a knife still held tightly in her grasp. Under normal circumstances she probably would've responded to being caught in bed with a boyfriend (that didn't seem like the right word just yet, but she wasn't sure how else to describe James) with a quip. Her brother probably would've had the same reaction as well. Yet things weren't normal- far from it. Her emotions were unchecked, overwhelming everything. She couldn't think past the rage that filled her.
"No. We're not going anywhere. We're onto something," The burning butterflies she felt while kissing James were long gone. Pj was furious at the idea of being deterred from her mission. She tried to shake it off. Fighting with her team wasn't going to help. They needed to think and plan and work as one; that was the smartest way they could take down the Shop. Yet it was just so hard for her to focus on anything else. Max's annoyance wasn't making it any easier. It was exactly like her parents- no one understood. She had to make them. But the words wouldn't form. Everything fizzled out in frustration, causing her to steadfastly stand her guard and grip her weapon even tighter.
"You're mind controlled. You don't have anything," Until Max sharply informed her of what was occurring. Or, at least, what he thought was happening. While Kara shot him a glare that expressed he shouldn't have said that, James glanced at Pj. The knife was loose in her hand, and bewilderment crossed her features. They thought she would've been outraged at the assumption, but she simply seemed lost. It could've been that fog she found herself in whenever it was too much. Yet it was different somehow, almost like she was frozen.
James tried to get near Pj, but she quickly backed away. The knife fell from her hand, and she moved as far from her team as possible. Even the slightest attempt to talk to her or calm her had her head shaking. She started to talk to herself as if to figure out if Max's statement was true or not on her own. She had had her suspicions that something was wrong with her. But it couldn't have been that. The others didn't know what to do to help; she wouldn't stop and she wouldn't let them in. So James settled on a distraction. She'd snap out of it if she could think about the mission, right, "We've gotten this far. We have solid leads."
"What kind of leads?" Understanding what her brother was trying, Kara asked for more. Pj had her hands in her long dark hair like she might be able to rip her thoughts out of her head and study them. Although that was concerning, at least she wasn't yelling at them or trying to run again. They might have been able to do something productive for once. They could keep going, move past it, break free of all of the things holding them back. Or, they might just get swallowed whole by whatever was occurring, and no one could be safe and sound ever again.
"Whatever Amanda's planning now started all the way back in Division. We were going to check it out in the morning," James shoved those thoughts aside to deliver Pj's idea. She was able to shake herself out of it enough to slightly nod along with him. Despite believing it to be true, she had to fight Max's words and focus. With Sam and the Doubles out there under Amanda's influence, who was to say she wasn't under the same conditioning. Yet standing around, allowing it to shake her up and frighten her, wasn't going to fix anything. Even though she wasn't certain if her thoughts or her drive were her own at the moment, she at least knew enough that she had to keep fighting to make everything right.
"'Check it out' as in Division?" Eventually, Felicity's question snapped Pj back to the moment. The hacker didn't appear completely against the idea, she was simply confused. Kara and Oliver, on the other hand, were seriously considering the plan. They didn't hate it. It was one of the better schemes to grab some intel on Amanda and the Shop. Their parents might have known a lot about the bitch, but it obviously wasn't enough. They needed to know what exactly they were warring against if they were going to keep up that damn crusade. Running and gunning wasn't working anymore; they needed something new.
"No one's there. It'd be empty. It's the only place we'll find the files," A rare quietness filled Pj's voice. She mostly explained herself to Max. He had calmed down after watching his sister spiral. But he still wasn't thrilled with what was happening. He'd much rather have the entire team (parents included) work on those ideas. Hadn't he been separated from his family for long enough. Reuniting should've brought them together and ended things once and for all. They were divided once more, however, fighting the war on two separate fronts. Despite claiming they couldn't let the Shop tear apart the world, their family was constantly ripped to shreds. That couldn't have been the sacrifice they had to make to ensure peace was possible.
No doubt, those thoughts were in the rest of the team's heads. And no doubt, they felt the same despair, panic, and frustration. But they were pressing forward. Some called it determination, others called it stubbornness. The agents just saw it as their life. If they kept marching, then the tidal wave of their enemies couldn't catch them. It had to end one day; that was awaiting them at the finish line- the oh so promised happily ever after. Kara clung to that hope, wondering how they were going to raid the deserted Division, "Do you know where it is?"
"Some farmland in Jersey. Nerdette, can you…" Pj didn't have to finish her request. Felicity took out her laptop from her backpack, secured it to the motel's WiFi with her added encryption, and began to search for possible Division locations. Although their parents knew where it was, the young agents only heard snippets about the surrounding area. Honestly, Max, Kara, Oliver, and Felicity should've called the second they found Pj and James. They still had the chance to; they could keep them informed of their next move like they wanted from them. Except no one moved a muscle.
Maybe they were still upset about discovering the mission their parents were planning without them. Or maybe they were afraid they'd be stopped. It was a good idea, but it wasn't that safe. The team also desperately needed information. And if it halted Pj from going off the deep end for a while, then why not wait until later to tell their parents. In the meantime, Felicity dug through past and present satellite images, as well as property ownership records of all the farmland in New Jersey. It took some time, but eventually she had a few locations they could examine more closely, "This is all I can narrow it down to."
"This looks like a good isolated place. Marines could've swarmed without anyone noticing," Pointing out a specific area, Oliver had a strong feeling that was where Division had been built underground. He and his siblings had heard the story of how their father asked their mother out while they were hiding in a barn surrounded by Marines countless times. So if that tale was to be believed, they had to have been in an area where the military could conduct a raid without civilians noticing. There was only one place they found that fit that criteria.
"More importantly, people were able to come in and out undetected," Kara expanded on the other attributes of Division that lent to where it was located. Of course it was underground. But if the black ops group wanted their agents coming and going completely undetected, they needed to have a truly isolated location; that fact could also help trap the recruits they basically kidnapped. It wasn't anything definite, yet the majority of what they did was based on slim leads and intel. Besides, what harm could come from roaming around deserted farmland. They were just empty fields. The real horror was underneath.
"This is stupid," However, Max continued to have reservations. He couldn't keep hesitating; he had to call their parents. Their missions should be together- a whole bunch of them couldn't be rogue. No one else necessarily agreed with him, though. They weren't rogue, simply following their own line of investigation. The team would let their parents know what was occurring as needed. And they would return to them whenever they were called. It was just that sometimes, to get the job done, they had to do things they weren't comfortable with.
"Well do you have any other bright ideas, jackass?" Instead of explaining that rationally, though, Pj exploded in fury again. Max bit back his own anger, aware that matching her tone would set her off once more. At least that time she was willing to let the others comfort her. She was near enough to allow them to refocus her lividity. There had to be a permanent solution to her raging, uncontrollable, unstable emotions. If all the conditioning had to do was run its course and burn her out, then her team would help her with that. But if it was something that could last forever, then they had to figure it out immediately. It was simply one more thing to add to their saving the world checklist.
"Hey. Hey. Let's just calm down and think. How else can we go about this?" James ran a soothing hand along Pj's defined bicep, while he offered Max an opportunity to suggest another plan. Obviously, fighting made things worse- mind control wise, and team wise. Talking and solving problems together was their only chance to survive until their next mission. Although they were aware of that, it was always hard to put talking into practice. You couldn't control what another person said or did. You had to face every consequence. No one liked to give up control like that. Yet they had to try for their family's sake.
"I think crashing Division's a good idea," Kara voiced her opinion before Max could decide on another plan. She received varied glances, from acceptance to confusion. So what if the idea was created without a sound mind. That didn't mean it should've been dismissed. There were positives as well as negatives to raiding the old hellhole. The possible outcomes they could achieve was worth the risk, "We can gather past intel, finally understand the things we've been told, and maybe get in Amanda's head a bit."
"If we go as a group, and actually think things through, it could work," Oliver built off of his sister's points. They could explore Division as a team and dig up something useful. Felicity found herself finally agreeing with the others. With their combined skill, it shouldn't be any more dangerous than previous operations. Besides, it wasn't as though they were waltzing into hostile territory. The place had been abandoned decades ago. The worst they might find were old boobytraps and information they didn't want to know. The team would be alright.
Facing all the determination and stubbornness around him, Max had to fold. He'd follow the others around on whatever daring scheme they thought up, as long as they stuck together. James was probably right in deciding to go rogue with Pj. Encouraging her thoughts seemed to help her settle and breathe. She still needed people by her side, and for them to refocus her when she snapped. But Max would do that for his little sister; he'd do anything for her, including going out on insane missions, "Fine. But from now on, we stay together no matter what."