#aofd

title: anatomy of defection  genre: spy!AU, angst pairing: sehun x reader

Five years ago, before he disappeared, everything was so much simpler. It was easy to lose yourself in those memories... 

Title: Anatomy of Defection

Length: TBD

Genre: Secret Agent AU, Action/Adventure, Romance

Summary: Before their mandatory military enlistment, the youth of New Goryeo can try to gain entry to elite paramilitary organizations, which promise lower death rates and higher pay. Of these, the most prestigious is Security Militaire. SM agent Kai is sent to hunt down a lone defector from the elite organization. Along the way, he starts to question their entangled past.

Excerpt: 

Every time Kai got close, his prey vanished.

The man he was hunting had an uncanny ability to disappear. Kai knew he was close. One time, he even found a cup of tea in the man’s hotel room, still warm.

Kai waited there for hours in case the man came back. He didn’t, but before Kai finally left, he bugged the room, just in case.

The game of cat and mouse continued northward up the peninsula. Every few days, Kai would manage to uncover his new hiding spot, using surveillance cameras and old-fashioned conversations. The man wore AI-scrambling masks that mostly deterred the cameras’ facial recognition technology, but whatever he had wasn’t perfect. Wherever the cameras picked up a glimpse of the man, Kai would find a likely convenience store or kiosk and ask the clerk. He would show them a picture: soulful eyes staring deeply into the camera, heart-shaped lips just slightly downturned, a tiny frown. Sometimes they’d recognize him and give useful information, sometimes they shook their heads and he moved on.

The chase finally reached a shelled-out city near the border. His prey had set up semi-permanent accommodations throughout New Goryeo – nests, that was what Kai called them, because unlike the spare hotel rooms, they had some semblance of inhabitation, clues to the man’s habits and preferences. Kai had already mapped several of these nests and kept close watch on them in case the man ever went back.

Here in this border town, all signs indicated another nest nearby. The dance had gone on too long – this time, Kai’s eager teeth would finally close around something. 

[keep reading on AO3]

title: anatomy of defection genre: spy!AU, angst pairing: baekhyun & reader

You were both silent on the ride and even your walk back to your shared barracks. You were planning to just lay in bed the rest of the day and avoid thinking about the traumatic undercover assignment you had just finished, but as you reached the barracks, Baekhyun spoke.

“Hey, can I show you something?” You eyed him balefully. “Or somewhere, actually. There’s a nice hike and a waterfall near here.”

Well, it wasn’t like you had much better to do. You were still confused by him, but since you were cooped up at the Seorak base together, you might as well make an effort.

You followed him through the trees to the head of a thin trail. He was calm and reserved now, quite unlike his earlier bubbliness. You didn’t know which  personality was the real him, though maybe that was the point. You both walked in silence for a while. Seorak was heavily forested but for dramatic, austere rock faces. The stunning scenery was indeed a good distraction from the chaos this morning had stirred up in your mind. You never wanted to do undercover work again, no matter the promise of advancement.

Ahead of you, Baekhyun’s maroon hair glinted in the shafts of sunlight coming through the trees. The afternoon warmth steeped around you. He didn’t seem to mind the heat, keeping up a good pace. You wondered how far it was, but when you opened your mouth to ask, you instead found yourself saying, “How do you do it? The espionage, I mean. The risks. The lying… to everyone.”

Baekhyun slowed and turned to look at you, shadows dappling his face.

“Well, it certainly takes getting used to,” he said sadly. He started walking again. “But, playing a role comes naturally to me. It’s easier if you think of it like a movie. Lights, camera, action.” He mimed rolling a video camera. “I discovered that at the academy.”

...fast forward to today, he has this discussion group he meets with once a month, and apparently this month's topic of discussion is ISIS, and he came to me to ask for "intro to Islam" recommendations! websites mostly, since he doesn't have the time for like books and documentaries and stuff, but I found a handfull, some on the basics of what exactly Islam is, and some that go further into detail on issues like jihad and relations with non-Muslims, with the offer to answer any questions he might have or provide any other links etc.