She exhaled a low breath, steeling herself to stick to the plan. It had seemed like such a good idea hours ago when she'd thought about it, but now that the time had come she felt butterflies dancing in her stomach. I'm supposed to be unflappable, she goaded with shake of her head. Alicia didn't understand why she suddenly felt nervous. Maybe it had to do with the fact she was about to sneak about a building that created assassins on a daily basis. If anyone caught her. . .

She couldn't think about it now. Her mind had been made, and she readied herself to slip out of her room. It wasn't very difficult to slip down the halls unnoticed. The place was relatively dead at night, and save for active Agents coming in for briefing or debriefing, there wasn't a reason for anyone to be in the halls. That happened to include her, and she momentarily wondered what her excuse would be if caught. Something as simple as I needed to stretch my legs, or I couldn't sleep would probably suffice. After all, she hadn't done anything to raise suspicion to point towards another answer.

Recruits weren't allowed out of their rooms after lights out, yet Division didn't find it necessary to lock them in. When she'd discovered it her first night it had been the one thing that had brought her to the reality of the situation she'd been thrown into. There was no reason to lock the recruits in. Division wasn't a prison, it was a second chance; one that included the threat of being cancelled. Cancelled. Alicia loved the sound of that word. Along with the title of those that did the actual duty; Cleaners.

The one Cleaner she'd met had fit the image she'd paired with the title perfectly. Roan, one of Percy's right hand men, had been introduced to her in a spur of the moment decision by Percy. At least she thought it had been an impromptu meeting. Little did she know it had all been orchestrated by none other than Amanda. The woman had wanted to see what the girl would do when faced with one of the men who were responsible for removing problematic Agents.

Overall it hadn't been such a bad meeting. Though the man was reserved and seemed to lack any emotion, she'd seen past it instantly. There was a fierce loyalty to Percy evident in regards to the air about him. Alicia had always been good at reading people, and equally as good at handling them. She'd met his eyes with confidence while making sure not to exude an iota of cockiness. Instantly she could tell Roan was one who worked on a strictly respect based rating system. Emotions and unneeded attachments were something that he'd look down on. It wasn't until she'd turned to part that she'd flashed him one of her classic smiles, wondering just what affect it would have on him. The Cleaner had returned it with one of his own, albeit a much more toned down version.

I wonder if he smiles after a kill, her mind wandered as she ducked around a corner, eyes darting up towards the Command Center. It was too dark to see anything besides the glow of the computers, and she decided it was best if she move on. Her plan would only work if things went as they were supposed to. Unlike with the Operation she'd had to improvise on, she didn't have any back up she could call on this time. It was only her and the empty halls of Division as she made her way to her target.

On the opposite side of the building Birkhoff was making his way back from the bathroom. Massaging his temples, he told himself today's the day, today is the day I give up energy drinks for good. He knew it would never happen. With all of the late nights he found himself pulling he was surprised he didn't have a caffeine IV drip to wheel around with him. It seemed like more often than not he wound up crashing on the couch in the computer room that was supposed to be his office. The Command Center usually had his attention until he managed to sneak his way to the otherwise deserted room, using it mainly for sleeping. Most of his real work was done straight from Operations.

It looked like another night for the couch, and he stifled a yawn as shuffled into the room. The moment he did the ping of his computer chased away any hope of sleep. The sound could only mean one thing; once more his attention was needed. Seymour approached the computer, lazily clicking about with his mouse on autopilot. He didn't even look at the screen as he went through the motions he was so used to, his eyes instead on the clock. One in the morning, he observed, it's official; I no longer have a life.

"All right," he muttered to his computer, sliding into his comfortable computer chair, "let's see what has you all riled up."

The moment his navy blue eyes took in the message he'd pulled up on his screen his brow furrowed in confusion. What's someone doing in the lab at this hour? He wondered, groaning as he stretched his back out. A series of pops followed. Sitting in a chair all day made for more knots in his back than he could count. If he'd had a say in things he would have demanded a personal masseuse be on call 24/7. That was about as unlikely as getting a capable temp to take over while he caught up on some much needed sleep.

Pulling up the intercom linked in to the computer lab with a few strokes on the black keys with his capable fingers, he readied a smile on his face. Whoever was in the lab was in for a surprise. One of his favorite perks of being able to hack into any feed imaginable was startling people out of their wits. Only, here at Division, he didn't even need to hack to have a hotline direct to the room in question. After all; Birkhoff had access to everything Division had to offer when it came to technology. If there was a spark of electricity in the circuits then he had complete control.

Keeping the line muted to hold on to the element of surprise until he had a visual on the unsuspecting sod who had wandered into his territory at such a suspicious hour, he pulled up the video feed. Though the room was dark, he only needed to press a few more buttons to illuminate the screen in the green glow that night vision provided.

"Great beards of Zeus," a taken aback breath of air rushed from his lips, "it's Alicia."

He didn't even need to zoom in to confirm that fact. One look at the petite girl casually spinning in slow circles as she relaxed in one of the leather computer chairs was all he needed. He'd seen her enough times to recognize her in a heartbeat. Having complete control over the video feeds had proven useful in his new hobby of watching her. One of the biggest rules he stuck to when it came to the recruits was; You can look, but you can't touch.

Now, staring at the girl on his screen, he didn't know if looking was going to be enough. All it would take was a few words over the intercom and he'd have her scrambling back to her room in shock. He'd be able to trace her retreat the entire way, only losing visual when she ducked into the safety of her room. Only he couldn't bring himself to do it.

"You know better than this," he spoke out loud, a habit he'd gained from spending most of his time with computers. Nonetheless, he kept his mike muted. Surely she wasn't so naive as to believe the cameras were turned off just because it was after hours. Granted, it wasn't like they were constantly monitored. It wasn't as though anyone was about to break into Division, and the halls that could be accessed on this floor were relatively open for a reason. The only areas actively monitored during the night on the recruit level were the rooms that were off limits; the computer lab being one of them.

An Agent sneaking into the lab at night wouldn't even receive a slap on the wrist, as unlikely as that occurrence was. Unlike with the recruits none of the active Agents would have a reason to use the computers without authorization. Besides, there were so many other ways to go about getting computer access without getting caught on camera. "Spy 101; avoid cameras," Birkhoff breathed, tilting his head as he observed the girl on his screen, "you know that as well as I do sweetheart."

Alicia had to know that she was risking a great deal by not only breaking curfew, but loitering in a restricted area after hours. The oddest part was that she hadn't even booted up one of the computers. All that she was doing was sitting in one of the chairs, one of her knees drawn up to her chest as the other softly nudged the floor, spinning her around in slow circles. Without realizing he'd done it, Birkhoff had a close up of her open on her screen. The girl's green eyes were hidden behind her lids for her eyes were closed, head tilted lazily back as her long auburn waves dangled over the back of the chair.

No; looking was not going to be enough this time. Seymour couldn't bring himself to startle her out of her relaxed state, nor could he very well let the incident go. The cameras had already picked up on her as had he, and there could be no pretending he hadn't seen her. That left only one option; to go down to the lab himself and rectify the issue. He'd personally escort her back to her room, making sure to pound it into her head just how thoughtless she'd been.

Face drawn towards the screen, he bent over the keyboard before him. His fingers flew, tapping out commands accompanied by a few clicks of the mouse. Without so much as a second thought he manipulated the feeds with skill and ease. "Shazam," he beamed at the screen before him before relaxing back into his seat, "the invisible man has nothing on me."

While Alicia was no longer on his screen, she was still in the computer lab. Slowly spinning herself on the chair, she felt an odd level of ease. The only place in Division she felt comfortable, other than on the sparring mats, was in the computer lab. She knew it didn't have anything to do with the usually lively computers that now held nothing but blank screens as they slept. To be truthful, the work that was done in this room was the most stressful of all. While she loved the thrill that would course through her veins after successfully completing a simulation, the actual task of completing it was nerve-wracking. It took so much concentration and focus that she felt like every press of the key was winding some coil in her tighter and tighter.

Active work didn't phase her however. If anything she was more at ease risking herself physically than in some cyber world. As she spun around on the chair she marveled in how relaxed she'd become the moment she had made it into the computer lab. Even the sound of the door opening didn't bring her from her peaceful state. If anything, it was the reason behind the small smile playing at her lips.

"Do you have a death wish?" Birkhoff's voice filled the room, following the clicking of the door closing behind him.

Slowly lifting her head, Alicia opened her eyes to take in the man who'd stopped a few steps in to the dark room. His eyes were trained on hers, narrowed in a clear display of curiosity mixed with frustration. It was a reaction she played around with in her mind, working over what she knew of the computer hacker. Assuming that the signs she'd been picking up on were real had been taking a risk. When it came to a place like Division it was difficult to know what was what. One look at him and all of her worries vanished. "Hello to you too," she responded, greeting him with a smile.

He stared at the recruit in disbelief for a moment. "I don't have time for this," Birkhoff scolded her, unable to take a step closer. He stood rooted in spot with his gaze steadily meeting hers. Even in the dark he knew there was a sparkle in those green eyes of hers.

"Time for what?" she questioned, her voice laced with the ignorance she was feigning.

"These shenanigans," he motioned to the empty room nervously. Coming down and dealing with the situation in person had seemed like the way to go, but now that he was actually faced with Alicia he was having second thoughts. She hadn't so much as gotten up at his arrival and he stared at her, unable to formulate how to handle the entire thing. "You should be in bed," he tried to keep a tone of authority, but it was hard to do when she was smiling up at him like that, "in fact I should be in bed. Do you even know what time it is?"

"Late," she replied easily with a small shrug. Alicia couldn't drop the smile on her face. Birkhoff hadn't yelled at her so far and, from the way he ran his fingers through his hair to calm himself, she could tell he wasn't about to any time soon. He didn't report me, she basked in the satisfaction of things going according to plan.

"Late she says," he muttered to himself, rolling his eyes. He didn't know what he'd expected to happen when he showed up in the room, but it hadn't been this.

Hearing him talk to himself was oddly comforting for her. Despite the fact he was trying to play the authority figure it was quite clear that he had no intention of getting her in trouble. "So why aren't you?" she asked, filling the silence when he didn't say any more.

"What?"

"Why aren't you in bed," she gave another one of her little shrugs, the smile tugging at her lips, "if that's where you're supposed to be?"

Closing the gap with a few strides of his plaid pajama clad legs he peered down at her. No matter how dark the room was the young woman before him was easy to see. His eyes flickered over her, taking in her form before meeting her eyes. "I'd like to be in dreamland," he informed her, "but that's not possible with you breaking out of your cage."

"I didn't break out," Alicia pointed out, that little smile still on her lips, "the door was unlocked."

He groaned. This was not going as he'd hoped it would. In fact, he didn't even remember what he'd wanted to accomplish in the first place. One quick scan of their dark and deserted surroundings sobered him up quickly. She'd started to spin slowly in the seat again, and he watched for a moment, faltering on what he was supposed to say. He knew he had to get her back to her room, but he couldn't very well just drag her off without a word. "It's past your bedtime sweetheart," he stopped her mid spin, his hand latching on to her shoulder.

Staring up into his navy eyes, she realized for the first time how close he'd gotten. "But I'm not tired," Alicia's soft voice formed the words slowly. All she'd meant to do was get information out of him, but now that he was actually there she found herself genuinely surprised. The frustrated look on his face was alarmingly adorable.

Birkhoff's eyes narrowed in on hers with determination. "You don't get to make that choice," he intoned. When she just blinked up at him he realized his hand was still on the warm skin of her shoulder that the tank top left exposed, and he quickly withdrew it. "At least not yet," he continued, shaking his mind to clear the thoughts that had flooded in. That had been the first time he'd ever actually touched her.

"But when I'm an Agent I can?"

"If you become an Agent," he corrected her. The urge to point an accusing finger towards her won over, and so he did so. "Sneaking around after hours," he waved the finger in a scolding manner, "is a big no-no."

The talk of Agents reminded Alicia of what she'd set out to do in the first place. Get him talking, she reminded herself, and stop getting distracted. "How big?" she asked, her eyes going wide in mock worry.

Not finding her blatant lack of worry amusing, Birkhoff sent her a pointed glare. He loomed over where she sat on the seat, one leg drawn up with her arms wrapped around the bent knee. "Big enough to ruin things," he warned her.

"What's there to ruin?" she shot back, surprised to find that the words came out frustrated. "I can't even decide if I'm tired or not, according to you."

"Not me, Division," he corrected her. "And your future for starters," Birkhoff pointed out the obvious, "you're risking a trip to the Cleaners, and I'm not talking about laundry here sweetheart."

"You're saying I could get cancelled just for being restless?" Alicia asked, not needing to fake the worry there. She'd known that the course of action she'd decided on was risky, but she hadn't known it was that risky.

Pleased she seemed to be taking things seriously for a change he relaxed the slightest bit. "Moonlighting in the Computer Lab of all places isn't something you want to get caught doing," he informed her, "it could be perceived as suspicious." Though he said it he knew he was being a bit overdramatic. She hadn't even turned on the computer after all. If anything she would have been scolded and made to understand that it wouldn't happen again.

She peered up at Birkhoff through her long lashes. Before that moment she hadn't realized that he was clearly dressed for bed. The man donned a pair of navy blue plaid pajama bottoms paired with a teeshirt that was a little tighter than his usual apparel. With a silent appreciation she took him in before meeting his awaiting eyes. Though it was too dark to see the color to them, she could clearly picture the two navy blue orbs before her. Ever since that Operation last week she'd wound up with more than a handful of opportunities to examine the computer genius. What she saw she liked, but it was more than his looks that had her heart beating faster by the second. "I did get caught," she breathed, "by you."

At this Birkhoff drew a sudden blank. He was lost for a long minute, staring down into her beautiful face. The wonder in her wide eyes floored him. He knew she was right; he had caught her doing something off limits. Even though she didn't show a flicker of fear as she gazed up at him he could almost feel it in the air. "Don't worry, I'm not going to rat you out," he assured her, running a hand through his hair as he often did. It was a habit he'd developed back when he'd first joined Division. Something about the action soothed him; probably because he was so used to his hands always being busy.

"But the cameras-"

"Trust me," he cut her off before she could complete whatever she'd been about to say. The few words were enough to hear the worry he'd felt in the air now laced her voice. "I've got your back."

It was his soft smile that made her believe him, and all of her worries instantly evaporated. One look into the eyes that were gazing into hers and she knew that she could trust the man at his word. More than that, it was the way he said the last part that burrowed deep into her pores. She'd counted on him scolding her over the intercom and being the one to make her shuffle back to bed; the Computer lab was his domain after all. It wasn't until everything was actually happening that she suddenly found herself questioning the reasons behind the invisible bond she felt with him. "Why?" the question made its way out of her lips in a whisper. "I'm just a recruit."

Alicia's question caught Birkhoff off guard. That was one answer that he didn't have. He had a vague idea, sure, but it wasn't something he could put into words. There was a flicker of something between them that he simply couldn't explain. He knew it was crazy, hell, he knew it was insane, but something in that smile of hers got his heart to slow down every time he saw it. That was saying something considering all of the sugar and caffeine he took in on a daily basis. The girl relaxed him and brought down his guard just by talking to him. He couldn't very well explain feelings that he couldn't quite comprehend, nor risk looking into it any further. This was Division for god's sake! So instead, he supplied her with the only method of avoiding the question he could muster up. "Not for long," he murmured.

As he'd hoped she would, Alicia took the bait and steered the conversation from reaching a level he wasn't prepared for. "What do you mean by that?" she whispered, her eyes flickering over his face.

He hesitated for a minute, letting his eyes scan the empty computer room. What was she even doing down here? He wondered wildly. The question had been lost the second he'd seen her smile. When he looked to her now, it was nowhere to be seen. All that was there was curiosity and silence as she waited for his answer. "It means you need to get your ass to bed," he commandeered one of her elbows, cupping it in his hand, "before we both get in trouble."

She frowned, letting him guide her to her feet without any resistance. "No we won't," she gave him a pointed look, "no one knows we're here."

"You see that?" he withdrew his hand from her elbow to instead point up to one of the corners. She followed his finger towards where a security camera rested, nestled into the ceiling. Looking back to her, seeing she had eyes on the camera, he watched her face for reactions. "There are babies like that all over Division doll, and I mean all over," he shook his head as the frustration of finding her on the security feeds earlier returned.

When she met his eyes there was a smile on her face, one laced with mischief. "I know that," she acknowledged with a little nod. He opened his mouth to say something or another, but she cut him off before he could get a word out edgewise. "I also know that you're too smart to get caught on camera doing something you shouldn't."

He opened his mouth to scold her some more when her words sunk in. She knows about the cameras, he mulled over that fact, closing his open mouth. "I-" he fumbled for something to say.

Alicia saved him the work, and once more cut him short. "If you're here that means you erased the feeds," she stated matter-of-factly. Pleased with his flabbergasted expression she flashed him a smile. It was obvious she'd deduced the situation correctly.

"If I didn't know better I'd think you were trying to get me in trouble," Birkhoff's eyes narrowed, expression darkening the slightest bit.

"That's the last thing I want," Alicia was taken aback by his accusation. When he didn't look convinced she couldn't help but frown. "The whole reason I came here was so you wouldn't get in trouble!"

"Luring me down here to-"

"You weren't supposed to come down," she cut him off, huffing in frustration as she dropped back into the computer chair. Staring up at him, she crossed her arms over her chest. She honestly hadn't meant for him to put himself at risk. The entire point of sneaking around after hours had been to avoid just that. "I didn't lure you anywhere," Alicia added, trying to keep her voice even. For some reason it hurt that he'd jump to that conclusion.

Birkhoff couldn't help his eyes from wandering around the empty room. He half expected Roan to come slinking out from behind one of the computer desks, gun pointed at his heart. This is ridiculous, he gave a shake of his head to clear it, they couldn't cancel me. I'm the whole reason this place is running! No longer worried about the threat of a Cleaner lurking in the room he focused on Alicia. "Just-" he faltered, a bit overwhelmed by the entire situation, "just what are you doing down here?"

"I wanted to talk to you," she admitted, aiming for the truth. Of course she wasn't about to admit that the reason she wanted to talk to him was to figure out what he'd been hinting at the past two days.

He didn't know what to do with that one. Tired and confused, he ran his hand over his hair, staring down at her as he tried to make sense of it all. Normally he would have been happy to hear her say that, but under the current circumstances he wasn't about to let it get to his head. "It couldn't wait until morning?"

"It wouldn't be safe then."

"Safe?" he scoffed. "You think either of us would be safe if someone spotted us right now?" he asked. Not waiting for an answer to the rhetorical question he continued on, "You may be in Amanda's good graces, but she'd love to have my head on a silver platter."

"Like I said, you weren't supposed to come down," she sighed, one of her hands covering her eyes.

"But you wanted to talk to me?" Birkhoff asked, skeptical yet again.

Explaining her plan seemed like the only option now. While it had been a pleasant surprise to see him come walking through the door, she couldn't help but wish that he would have just done what she'd expected of him. "I thought you'd get on the intercom. You know, since you're the eyes and ears of this place and all."

Birkhoff was surprised by the young recruit before him yet again. Had she been anyone else that was exactly what he would have done. "Alicia," he sighed, still not quite certain of what exactly was going on, "that was a stupid risk to take, and for what?"

"You may be the eyes in the sky, but during the day there are always twenty more pairs around," her words came out a rush. All the frustration at not being able to talk normally with him suddenly taking over. This is my chance, the thought washed over her. For the first time she realized she had Birkhoff to herself. There was no Samson watching her every movement, no other Division member trying to eavesdrop on their conversation. In the dark computer room it was just her and Seymour. Though she'd never imagined he would come down to talk to her in person, it was too late to change that now. Instead she'd take advantage of what was in front of her while she had the chance. "I wanted to talk to you without feeling like I had to stick to some script," the words came tumbling out. "Every time I get to have a word with you all I can think about is who can hear what, and what they're going to twist it into."

Every instinct that Division had pounded into him told him to get out while he could. The honesty in her green eyes paired with the way she'd taken in a little breath and was holding it as she waited for his reaction as all Birkhoff needed to make up his mind. She was right; people were always keeping an eye on them when they interacted. The few times he'd been able to loosen up around her were when he'd gone out of his way to make sure no one else could hear. The moments were few and far apart, yet he'd continued to seek them out. He couldn't very well scold her when he'd been doing the same thing, albeit in a much less dangerouss way. "Look-"

"I'm sorry," she cut him off, getting nervously to her feet. The silence that had followed her admission had been the heaviest she'd felt in a long time. "You're right, it was a stupid thing to do."

As much as he loved being told he was right, Seymour didn't get any satisfaction from her worried reaction. She wasn't the perfectly composed girl that he'd been training for the past two months. In the privacy of the computer lab she'd let her guard down and his fell just as quickly as he picked up on the way Alicia was now avoiding his eyes. "Let's get you back to bed," he breathed, his hand finding its way to her shoulder once more. The moment his hand connected with her warm skin he had her full attention.

She nodded numbly, allowing herself to be lead from the room. They walked down the halls, feet softly padding against the ground as they went. Neither one said a word, but she wondered vaguely how he knew which room was hers as they stopped outside of the closed door. He withdrew his hand from her shoulder to pull open the door, meeting her eyes for the first time since they'd left the lab. "I believe this is your stop milady," he said, a hint of playfulness in his voice.

"Goodnight Birkhoff," she muttered, moving to go into the room.

Acting on impulse he turned, stepping into the doorway as he blocked her path. "Not so fast sweetheart," the sullen expression she wore making him smile. If he didn't know better she seemed disheartened that her little suicide mission was coming to an end. When she cocked her head to the side, a few of her auburn waves cascading over her breasts, he knew he couldn't just leave her without a few words first. "You're not getting off that easy."

"What are you going to do, spank me?" she asked dryly. Being dismissed by him the moment she opened up about wanting to talk to him had stung.

The sarcasm in her voice didn't escape him, but he smiled nonetheless. Birkhoff found it endearingly cute that she was miffed about her plan to talk to him going so awry. "Tempting but no," he kept his voice quiet to be on the safe side, but the playfulness in it still remained, "what I want is for you to do something for me."

Though Alicia wanted to remain frustrated so as not to get hurt by the man, she couldn't help but take the bait. "What?" she asked, curiosity blending with a slight eagerness in her tone. She desperately wanted to know what he could possibly want from her.

"Promise me you won't pull a stunt like this again," he asked of her. When her eyes flickered away from his, his hands found their way to her shoulders, peering down as he commandeered her attention. It clearly hadn't been what she wanted to hear.

Nevertheless she nodded, gazing up into his navy eyes. She couldn't say no to him even if she wanted to. For some reason she couldn't explain she would have agreed to anything he requested of her. When he gave her a little pointed look she took the hint. "I promise," she breathed, defeated.

Her warm breath tingled over his cleanly shaven face, alerting him to just how close their bodies were. A shiver ran down his spine and he straightened up quickly, stepping out of her way to put some distance between them. "Be a good girl and sit tight for a week," he reached out, ruffling her hair. The action shocked even him, and it wasn't until his hand was on her soft locks that he realized it was that adorable pout on her face that made him do it.

The action caused her to purse her lips at his teasing, which only made Seymour's smile grow. "What happens in a week?" she asked, trying to push away the odd tingle running through her. A smile had made its way onto her face before she could stop it, and she turned her eyes away from his in embarrassment. Here she was, being trained by a secret section of the government to become a deadly assassin, and Birkhoff had made her feel butterflies in her stomach like some schoolgirl.

In a heartbeat his hand was back at his side, and his back turned on her as he started down the hall. "Just remember your promise," he reminded her over his shoulder, intent on making his way back to his room before he did anything he'd regret. Look, don't touch, he reminded himself in his head. I know better.

"Birkhoff," Alicia's whispered groan followed after him from where she stood in the doorway to her room, "what happens in a week?"

Even if he'd wanted to answer he couldn't have. A grin had taken over his lips and as he turned the corner, chancing one last glance at the young woman he'd left standing there, he knew he was doomed. There was no way he could resist that smile, just like there was no way he could resist leaving her with a question to haunt her. It was only fair after all; if she kept him up all night by invading his thoughts then he could do the same to her.