Once again the four dark shadows were gathered around the luminous table. Red light glinted upwards to meet their faces. One pale shadow with white hair that hung about his face, just barely hiding the glint of sunglasses. One dark shadow, also with shades, who constantly sat contemplating the board before him. One shadow with a mass of curly hair above and the glint of braces below. And one tall, dark shadow that sat, silent and ominous at the head of the table.

Once again it was the dark shadow that spoke first. "Well. That seems to have gone without a hitch."

"Indeed, Numbuh Infinity." The tall shadow nodded. "Numbuh T went through decommissioning without any difficulties whatever."

"I don't see why you always make such a big deal about this." Braces glinted in a frown as the third shadow spoke. "Every time we get a potential candidate, you insist we wait until they are decommissioned before we approach them. And every time it goes perfectly fine. Why all the fuss?"

"I agree." Numbuh Infinity said. "It seems unnecessary. We have never had a problem with our operatives."

"Numbuh 74.239 and you tend to only remember the successes." The tall shadow inclined his head. "Numerous 'potential operatives' have actually failed this last test, which, as you know, would make their work with us impossible. The fact that we have never had problems is a testament to the system's strength."

"Hey Abby."

"Yo sis." The slim teenager grinned at her sister. "What's up?"

"Not much." Cree replied, flopping to the couch. "Taking a break from chemistry. Can't understand that stuff for the life of me. All equations and boiling points and conversion rates."

"Yeah, I hear ya." Abby nodded. "I ain't never had no head for that stuff neither. Too complicated."

"Yeah, but at least you got that one chubby weirdo to help you out." A grin curved Cree's mouth as she continued. "What's his name again? Hogarth? Higgins?"

"Hoagie." Abby coldly ticked off some answers in her history book. "And he ain't a wierdo, Cree."

"If you say so. Sure seems like it sometimes, though." Cree arched a mocking eyebrow. "He must've followed us for like two weeks, telling us all sorts of corny jokes and stuff. And THEN he asked you out, though at least you had enough sense to turn him down. But this tutoring business now... I don't know, Abby. I think..."

"I know what you think, and ya can stop thinking it." Abby threw a glare in her sister's direction. "It's just common sense. I need hel.p in Physics, an' he's the biggest brain in the class. That's all there is to it. Nuthin' more. He ain't the type to try any moves on me."

Cree laughed. "Whatever. I suppose it's not all bad. I'm getting a little used to his jokes, and he seems to behave himself all right while he's here." She allowed herself a sly grin at her sister. "He's kinda cute, actually."

"Cree, I swear..."

"Oh, keep your pants on, sis." Cree waved it away. "I'm just kidding ya. Tell him I said hi when he comes by tonight."

"Oh? Where you gonna be?" Now it was Abby's turn to smirk. "Oh wait. Maurice picking you up tonight?"

"Not that's any of your business, but yes, he is." Speaking in as unconcerned a tone as possible, Cree stood and brushed off her pants. "He should be here in an hour, to take me to that burger place down the street, and then we're going to see a movie. And that's all we're doing, so you can stop wiggling your eyebrows like that."

Abby laughed. "Whatever. Have a good time, sis." The cell phone on the table suddenly began to ring.

"You sure get a lot of calls." Cree noted, as Abby picked up the device.

"What can I say?" Abby shrugged. "Abby's a busy girl."

"Hmph." Numbuh 74.239 folded his arms and glared at the screen. "Don't see what's so important about this last test anyway. What's the point of taking away their memories if we just pop them right back in?"

"The willingness to give them up." The pale shadow finally spoke, leaning somewhat into the light. Long white hair hung from either side of his face, and the red light glowed against blue sunglasses. "Their willingness to renounce the memories, and with them, the world of the Kids Next Door, implies that they are ready to face the new challenges and responsibilities of the real world." He paused a moment to push his glasses up his nose. "We give them their memories back to aid them in their new responsibilities, not to return them to their old childishness. We remind them what it is like to be a child so that they can better become an adult."

"You're just plain weird, Numbuh 7." Snorted Numbuh 74.239 "Being an adult is a disease, a slow one, but one there nonetheless. It deadens children so they can no longer have fun. It ruins their innocence, and it makes them unbearably arrogant."

"Being an adult, in the sense of being pompous, strict and unyielding, is certainly a disease." Numbuh 7 mused, leaning over the table and studying it. "An adult who remembers nothing of the joy and wonder of being a child is a truly sick person. But a child who remains selfish and petty, bound to no one but himself, is by no means well."

"True." Numbuh Infinity nodded. "That is our purpose, is it not? We who watch… we who guide… We guide children toward the larger world of adulthood, even as we remind adults of their origins. We stand as the mediators, between two worlds."

"Not two worlds." Numbuh 7 frowned. "It is one world, of which the other two are distortions."

The sunglasses might have been strange on anyone else, but on her they looked... fitting, somehow. It was a shame they hid her eyes, of course, but they leant her an air of mystery, of detachment. Only he knew that she was anything but.

The sunglasses glanced up as he came up to the table. "Lenny!" She exclaimed with surprise. "What're you doing here?"

With a shrug, Lenny pulled up a chair. "Needed a place to study, and the park seemed as good as anywhere. Plus, I thought I'd find you here."

"Beats my apartment." Sophie seemed a little nervous. "And it's nice to come here after work and just watch all the kids playing."

"Yeah." Lenny nodded, gazing at the playground, where a crowd of six-year-olds were running about. "Sorta brings back... well, not really memories, but... well..." He fumbled for words. "You know."

Sophia did not reply, and the two sat in silence, watching the play of the children. Lenny's eyes narrowed thoughtfully at a certain pair playing cops and robbers, who were running between the trees and pretending to shoot each other.

Shaking it off, he turned to Sophie. "So... the daycare work still going well?"

"Well enough." She shrugged noncommittedly. "A little boring, but the kids keep you moving. And the pay is helpful." She raised an eyebrow at him. "What about you? How's college treating you?"

"Piece of Cake." Lenny grinned. "Some of the differential stuff is confusing, but I'm pretty sure I should pick it up soon enough. And my roommates are good... they keep to themselves pretty much and don't bother me. And, of course, David hangs out there too, so it's sorta nice."

"That's good." There was another short pause, then she asked. "Heard from any of the others?"

"Just Andy." Lenny shrugged. "He dropped by last Thursday to talk to us."

"Andy?" Sophie's voice showed her confusion. "What about?"

Lenny did not answer right away. He was frowning at the table, as if he was not certain what to say. Finally, with a sigh, he looked up into Sophie's eyes. "He's thinking of asking Mandy out."

"What!?" Sophie swung around to face an obviously uncomfortable Lenny "He's... He's... But... she... What's he thinking?"

"I know, I know." Wilting from the declaration, Lenny held up a placating hand. "I know, and so does he. That's what he came to talk to me and David about. He said he's wanted to for a long time, but never did because... well, y'know. But lately it's been getting worse, and he wanted our advice." He looked at Sophie's face and winced. "Strictly speaking, it's not so bad, you know. I mean, we looked up the adoption records. None of us are actually related."

"Well..." Sophie huffed. "No... but still! I mean, even if we aren't... it's not really wrong, I guess but... isn't it illegal or something? And how awkward would that be, to..." She shook her head and sighed.

For a moment there was silence. Lenny sat on the edge of his seat, throwing nervous glances at Sophie every so often. Sophie simply sat, apparently thinking very hard, and shaking her head occasionally.

Finally, she sighed again and looked squarely at Lenny. "What'd you tell him?"

"Pretty much what I told you." Lenny glanced away, the sunglasses were too intimidating. "I told him it's not really wrong, and from all I could tell, it's not even illegal, considering how we all left Dad last year and filed that suit. It's wierd, sure, but..." He shrugged. "That's never really stopped any of us before."

Sophie nodded reluctantly.

"David agreed, too." Lenny continued, studying the tabletop. "He said, for all we know, Father didn't even raise us together. I mean, we don't really remember... so we don't even really have the shared memories thing. Essentially, we're just five strangers who lived in the same house for the past year."

"Except that that's obviously not all we are." Sophie glared at him. "You know, my psychologist doesn't know what to do with me. She can't explain half the things I say, or any of the dreams I have. And the neighbors DID say we lived there for many years."

"Sure." Lenny nodded, shamefaced. "But anyway, the point is, intrinsically, that's all we are. We aren't related by blood, and not really even by memories, though that's not even a legitimate problem. So, there's nothing really in the way, except for..."

"It's wierd." Sophie finished for him.

"Yeah." Lenny nodded, relieved "See, its easy for David to talk about it so detached like that, because he doesn't have to work it out himself." He snorted. "Shoot, he's probably the only one of us who isn't going to have this problem."

Sophie froze. "Wait, what?"

"We stray from the main question." The tall shadow spoke. "Shall we induct Numbuh T as our newest operative? I wait to hear from the rest of you."

"I dunno." Numbuh 74.239 frowned. "He's smart enough, but he obviously likes to be famous and in control. He always wants to be older than he really is. He might easily give us away, or he could turn all arrogant."

"Eh, I don't think so." A stocky teenager stepped into the light, the red light gleaming off his goggles. "He's like that, sure, but it's because he always sees himself as being small and unimportant. And he has a very strong imagination. He sees every day as new and fresh, and he wants to move toward it."

"That is what concerns me." Adjusting his sunglasses, Numbuh Infinity frowned contemplatively. "He is always living for the moment and looking to the future. He has no time to focus on the present. And as you say, he is lost in a world of his own. Does he have the commitment and the ability to take on the responsibility we would give him?"

"You kiddin'?" Another figure appeared on the edge of the light, eyes shaded by her baseball cap. "The kid been leading KND for the past four years! He ain't just been twiddling his thumbs this whole time. Obviously he got the ability to manage responsibility, and obviously he can make the sacrifices we want him to. He's got commitment, and a whole lotta sense."

"Interesting." Mused the pale shadow of Numbuh 7. "But will he join, do you think? Will he be willing to do as you four have done, and join the final ranks of the KND? He will be able to live his life as usual, of course—grow up, go to school, meet friends—he will still be able to do that. But he would be able to do that without us. Slowly he might even return to his old friends and old ways, for not all memories can be surpressed. Would he be willing to lose this comfortable ease and always be alert, always be on call so he might help guide children and admonish adults? Does he have the passion, the desire, to be a true adult?"

"Difficult to answer." The last voice was, thin, shrewish, but there was a hint of the old emotion beneath it as a raven-haired Asian stepped into the light. "But I believe so. Numbuh T is very conscious of the idea of service. He is willing to do anything to help out, and he thinks of himself very little. But more importantly, he know both sides and loves both. No one has perhaps had more of the joy and excitement of being a child, and yet possessed all the self-sacrifice and responsibility of an adult. Surely his account…" She gestured to a book on the table, "…as well as his behavior shows that.

"Then I am for it."

"I sure am."

"As am I. The decision rests with you, Numbuh Eleventy Billion. What do you decide?"

"Yo! Kooks! Over here!"

"Kuki. KUKI. My name is Kuki." The Asian sighed as she swept into the side booth. "Honestly, Wallabee, must you ALWAYS make such a scene?"

"What?" The tall blonde at the table spread his arms innocently. "You ashamed to be seen with me?"

"Sometimes, yes." Kuki snapped, but there were just the hints of a blush on her face.

Wally laughed and spread his arms over the back of the seat. "Whatever. So how's the school's prettiest perfectionist doing?"

The blush was yet more pronounced, but Kuki did not falter. "Quite well, thank you. And you?"

"I'm good." Wally grinned. "Having loads of fun in biology class. Do you have any idea how fascinating the undersea ecosystem is? All sorts of creatures interacting in such fascinating ways... its like a whole new world."

"Yes, well..." Kuki allowed herself a small grin. "I'm sure it's interesting."

"Man, I hope I get the chance to go scuba diving someday." Wally mused. Suddenly his face brightened. "Hey, that gives me an idea..."

"Oh no." Kuki held up a hand. "Don't even go there. There is no way you're getting me into one of those bizarre rubber suits and breath canned air for who knows how long. It's just simply not happening."

Wally grinned but he dropped the subject. "And how's accounting?"

"Satisfactory." Kuki nodded. "It suits me well, and the teachers this year seem competent, unlike that IDIOT we had last year. My studies have been progressing very well."

"Good." Wally nodded. "Hey, didja hear Hoagie's little brother is graduating? He'll be in high school next year."

"Really?" Kuki mused on that a moment. "My, they grow up so fast, don't they. Wonder how he'll do."

"He'll be fine." Wally waved the question away. "He's Hoagie's bro, ain't he? Come to think of it, Hoagie and I ought to take him out somewhere to celebrate. It'd do him good." He grinned at Kuki. "You should come too. It'd be good. Shoot, Hoagie's started dating this girl Abby... he should bring her along. Make it a double date and an intiation ceremony at the same time."

"That seems unnessecery." Kuki shook her head, smiling at her boyfriend. "And it seems Tommy would be left out somewhat."

"Mebbe." Wally nodded in mock-sadness, then brightened as if an idea had just occurred to him. "Well then, the rest of us can still go out! Whaddaya say, Kooks? A double date with me and my pal Hoagie? Like next Friday? There's supposed to be some new movie coming out, we can go see that!"

Kuki regarded him a moment. "Did you make up that whole story just to ask me out on a date?"

Wally grinned. "Maybe."

"Honestly." Kuki rolled her eyes. "Can't you ever grow up?"

"I try not to." Wally grinned again, but it was a little odd this time. "I like to think there's a little ten-year old running around inside my head. But when I have to be, I can."

Kuki's expression softened, as if she realized she'd hit a sore spot. "Oh, I know." She reached forward and patted his hand. "You're plenty grown up, Wally. At least..." Her expression turned almost humorous. "You're more mature than half those hormone-obsessed immature idiots at our school."

"Hey, those are my fellow classmates you're talking about." Wally pretended to be affronted.

"Shut up and let me console you." Kuki glared at him. "You're responsible, and respectful, and generous. You're plenty grown up, at least for me. And maybe, someday..."

Rather unfortunately, at that moment Kuki's cell phone rang. With a frustrated huff, she picked it up and stared at it for a moment, then stood up and picked up her bag.

"I need to go, Wally." She threw him an apologetic look. "I'm sorry... business."

"You always get more calls than me." Wally frowned, as if jealous."

"What can I say?" Kuki smiled teasingly at him. "I'm a busy girl."

The tall shadow sat deep in thought a moment. "Very well then." He looked up and nodded at a shadow at the far end. "Go, and fetch our newest member."

Stepping into the light, Numbuh 4 nodded. "With pleasure, sir."

The End

A/N: There you have it. I've been carrying these mysterious guys since Operation SEPARATION, and I figured it was time to reveal them. And this also sheds some light onto the final fate of Sector V, connecting it to Operation INTERVIEWS.

It was mentioned (With good reason) that the view of adulthood here seems to contradict Numbuh 74.239's earlier diagnosis. I hope this section answers that, as well as any other questions you might have. Of course, if you do have more, you could always review (I like reviews) and I would answer.

Again, many thanks to everyone, includng bsc999 (who I forgot to mention earlier) who wrote me a wonderful messaage about this story and inflated my ego far beyond what it should be. I hope you've all enjoyed the story.

Thanks.