Alex was sitting on her bed when Thom knocked on her door. She let him in, and he sat next to her to comfort her. Just hours ago, she had stopped Robbie, a rogue recruit, from running around and killing a bunch of guards. He was their peer, their friend, and she felt terrible about it. Thom did his best to console her, "He needed to be taken down, Alex. You did the right thing." But his words weren't getting through to her. She hugged him, and suddenly, Thom flashed back to something Michael had told him, before they infiltrated Division:

"You will form attachments to the recruits, Thom. It's inevitable. I'm just telling you that you have to be prepared for all aspects of this mission." Michael cautioned him for seemingly the millionth time.

"Relax, boss. I'm not going there to make friends - I'm going there to take Division down."

Michael snapped at him, "You don't know what it's like down there! These people aren't Division, they're recruits. They're innocent, and they will be brainwashed by Percy. When you're down there, I won't be able to come and rescue you, so you have to stay on your guard, all the time. And, I'm telling you, you will make friends while you're there. Just, be careful is all."

Thom was suddenly very aware of the proximity of his body to Alex's. She was still hugging him, and he realized all at once just how much he had grown to care for her. He pulled back from the hug, and without warning, plunged forward and kissed her. It lasted about a second, until Alex broke the kiss, "I... can't", she said, and gave him an odd look. She mumbled something about being late to meet Amanda, and left her room hurriedly. Thom was left sitting on the bed alone, and he could feel his cheeks flush, and his heart pound in his chest with utter confusion.

It had been six weeks since the Victor Han Hong Kong debacle. Michael had captured him and turned him in to the police. Nikita had come back to Division empty handed – no Han, and no Michael. Percy was not pleased. Thom secretly celebrated the victory, but he found himself feeling bad for Nikita. She had a different air to her upon her return from Hong Kong, and he noticed a slight shift in the atmosphere in Division. In his short time there, Thom had risen up as a star recruit, earning the attention of Nikita. He reminded her of Michael, and she couldn't shake the feeling. They were so similar, and she found herself thinking about Michael more and more often. How can two people be so alike? She wondered to herself whenever she saw Thom do something that she deemed inherently Michael. Nikita decided she was just projecting her feelings of Michael onto Thom. She drew the line when she caught herself watching him spar with some other recruits, and was starting to feel a bit creepy, but suddenly she saw something. Had it been any other day, she would have dismissed it and said her eyes were just playing tricks on her. But she was positive she saw what she saw. Thom had just done Michael's signature kick-fakeout-jab-and-takedown move. She should know – Michael himself had taught her the move all those years ago when he had trained her. Nikita suddenly thought back to Hong Kong. Michael had anticipated her every move. Of course, he had trained her, and knew her tactics, but she had felt almost as if he had known she was coming. It was as if he tailored his plan to execute perfectly with her showing up at the right time. How could he have known that? Is Thom a spy? But how could Thom have known I was sent to Hong Kong? He's just a recruit... But there's something about him... But I told Michael that I wouldn't pursue him to Hong Kong... But maybe he thought I'd double-cross him? Maybe he told me his plans to lure me out there to trap me! Nikita was thinking a mile a minute, and slowly her suspicions shifted from Thom back to Michael. I should have known I couldn't trust him. He set me up! He played on my emotions, and he used it to leverage himself. He wanted me there all along, so that when he took Victor down, I'd come back empty-handed and Percy would blame it all on me. You really are ruthless, Michael. Nikita sighed to herself. She had been tricked again by Michael. She glanced over to Thom again, and couldn't shake the feeling that something just wasn't right. After watching him for a minute longer, she decided that Michael's paranoia must be finally rubbing off on her, and that Thom was in fact, just a recruit.

That night, as Nikita lay in bed, she replayed (for what she guessed was the 600th time) in her mind the events that transpired in Hong Kong:

Michael had chartered his own plane to Hong Kong, and was lying in wait, getting ready to make his move. Somehow, word had reached him that Nikita was on her way there – to "protect" Victor Han, and also to eliminate Michael. She was patrolling Han's estate, combing over every inch of his property, when she was suddenly pulled into a thicket. She tried to disarm her attacker, and in the process, realized that it was none other than Michael. Both stopped squirming immediately, and locked eyes.

"What are you doing here, Michael?" Nikita whispered to him harshly.

"As if you don't know! Nikita, I told you I was coming here. Better question is, what are you doing here?"

"Percy sent me," Nikita defended herself, "he found out that you were going after Han."

"Hmm, wonder how that happened!" Michael glared at her. She was hurt that he'd think she'd go back on her word, but she realized they weren't exactly in positions of trust with one another.

"I didn't tell him, Michael! Victor Han did!" Nikita shot back at him. She was angry, and she reached for her gun. "Make this easy on yourself, Michael. Turn yourself over to me, and I'll take you in to Division alive." Michael almost laughed. He looked at her again to make sure she wasn't joking. Here they were, crouched in a thicket of bushes on Victor Han's estate, arguing. It was simply ridiculous. He suddenly shushed her, and slouched down, pulling her under him and resting gently on her.

"Michael, what are yo-" But he cut her off by placing his hand over her mouth. She heard her own team walk by, maybe not even 6 feet away. She could also feel Michael's breath on her cheek. She tried hard to think about anything else. When the Division team was far enough away, Michael whispered softly to her,

"Nikita, please let me do this. I know you want Victor Han shown to justice too. Tell them your sweep of the area was clean, and to move out. I'll make my move, and I'll be in and out in under five minutes. No one has to know..." His eyes pleaded silently with hers. Nikita thought really hard about her decision at hand. She wasn't quite prepared to betray Division the same way Michael had, yet she so badly wanted Han to reap each and every bad sow that he had seeded. Finally, she relented, and nodded her head. Michael removed his hand covering her mouth. He lay on top of her, pinning her down, unmoving, and the two looked into each other's eyes until the crack of a branch nearby broke them from their trance.

"Michael..?" Nikita breathed.

"Yeah?" Their faces were centimetres apart.

"If you want to make your move, now would be the time to do it."

Michael looked at her, slightly aroused and slightly confused for a moment, until he realized she was talking about Victor, and not something else. He wanted so badly to kiss her, but he knew she was right – now was the time to strike, and he couldn't afford to "waste" any precious time. He sidled himself off of Nikita, double-checked to see that the coast was clear, and took off in a run towards the house. Nikita was left lying in a heap on the ground in the thicket.

Nikita sighed. Was it really all an act? After Danielle, she just wasn't sure anymore. They had both been trained in the art of seduction. Had she simply been played by another player? She simply refused to believe that Michael could stoop so low and resort to such personal tactics. Of course, she didn't deny that there was some sort of electricity going on between her and Michael, but she couldn't define it. It wasn't even anything tangible. A kiss a few years ago – it meant nothing! He was just saying goodbye, and their emotions were running rampant.

Or so she kept telling herself.

She sighed, rolled over in her bed and went to sleep.