#he has a dumb bushy pony tail

[benetnvsch]

In my defense,,, I forgor

[sirius-archive]

Sneak peek: The Butterfly Effect

A/N: okay so I’m rewatching the Umbrella Academy and I love it soo much I’m like neck deep in this fandom lmao anyway I have this bizzare idea for either a reader fic or a crossover. Maybe both.

My only concern with making it a reader x five fic is that it may attract people who aren’t minors who thirst over Aidan (Number Five) and that worries me. I don’t want to make him a target?? If that makes sense. But anyway, here is a sneak peek at what I’ve been working on. (The first chapter of the fic...maybe)

Anyway, this will be a collection of fics featuring Klaus, Diego, Five, all your faves and will either be Reader fics or a crossover/AU. Anyway I’m not sure what I’m doing but I really like this so far so here we go.

****

High school — Five has recently discovered — is a nightmare.

Not even five minutes into his first day and he’s wistfully thinking back to the time he literally time travelled to the fucking apocalypse, comparing the smouldering rubble and plumes of acrid smoke to the exaggerated laughter of flirty cheerleaders and the clouds of cheap deodorant wafting through the hallways. Jocks bump into him, nerds scamper past, goth kids brood together in knots.

It’s all very...cliche. Obnoxious. Disappointing.

Five shoulders past a group of sneering girls, who wrinkle their nose at him as though he had somehow insulted them with his presence. Five doesn’t really care — their snotty opinion of him hardly matters in the grand scheme of things. He’s been through worse, things that would erode their tiny, shitty, cabbage patch hindbrains. He can survive the tedious scrutiny of whatever High school has to offer.

When he finally finds his locker, Five dips into his pocket and retrieves the four digit code, scrawled onto a scrap piece of paper in barely comprehensible chicken scratch. His fingers fumble clumsily around the lock until it clicks, but nothing happens.

Five sighs, rolling his eyes. He’s not surprised.

He yanks on the locker in frustration. Why did the missing number forty-three have to be hiding at this school? This utter waste of brick and cement and electricity and time, Jesus, so much time invested in this prison of a place where they shit out useless information on nothing that matters and expect people to care and now this locker won’t fucking open—

“You’re doing it wrong,” a voice over his shoulder sighs, exasperated.

Five slants a dismissive glare over his shoulder at the stranger, “I’m pretty sure I can handle the mechanics of poorly manufactured, government-grade tin-can lockers.”

“If you could handle it, your locker would be open by now,” she - the voice is decidedly female - remarks, coolly, “Unless you don’t mind being embarrassingly defeated by poorly manufactured, government-grade tin-can lockers? Not a great start to your Freshman year.”

Five wheels around, his jaw clicking open, prepared to bark at this stranger, this imbecile who, who —

He swallows.

His first thought is that she’s tiny, the kind of tiny that reminds him vaguely of Olympic ice skaters and ballerinas, except she holds herself as though she were a lot taller. Bronze-brown complexion, black, bushy hair tackled into a pony tail, long, thick lashes and syrupy brown eyes, molasses-dark and confusingly bright, a sheer contrast to the dull glaze of most millennials he’s encountered during the time he’s spent here.

Five’s second thought is that she makes corduroy look semi-decent. She’s wearing a brown, corduroy skirt matched with a black, long sleeved top, thigh-high socks and ankle boots. A scarf is wrapped snugly around her neck.

His third thought is that she — this tiny, corduroy-wearing brat — rankles him in a way he doesn’t quite understand.

And Five is used to understanding almost everything.

“Are you going to stand there outside your locker until the bell rings?” She asks, folding her arms over her chest, “Or are you going to let me show you how to open it?”

Five’s nostrils flare. He steps away begrudgingly, allowing her to approach his locker. He catches a whiff of her perfume as she steps closer; caramel smooth and vanilla-sweet, like the cookies his mother bakes him when he’s upset.

Five’s mood immediately sours.

“Paying attention?” She snaps, curling slender fingers around the lock and gripping it, “You lift, push and tug,” She demonstrates, lifting, pushing and tugging with practiced ease and the locker door groans, swinging open, “Got it?”

Five is suddenly, uncomfortably aware of how close he is to her and he has to grind his jaw and swallow his discomfort before he answers, somewhat tartly.

“Yes.”

“Good,” She snips, curtly, “Because I wasn’t going to show you again.”

“Good,” Five repeats, flatly, “I wouldn’t want you to.”

She crosses her arms over her chest again, sweeping an appraising look over him, her gaze travelling from his face to his tie, to his shoes then back to his eyes again. She seems to be weighing something, micromanaging - he suspects - cataloguing and tagging and noting fine details and small mannerisms and whatever it is that she’s seeing in him right now as she stands there with those dumb, brown eyes.

And then, she digs the clunky heel of her boot into the polished floors and whirls around, stalking purposely down the hallway.

The bell for home room blares obnoxiously, bouncing off the walls.

Five sighs deeply, rubbing his forehead with the heel of his palm, feeling older than his sixty years.

High school truly is exhausting.

****

[sapphirescripts-mumblings]

Dancing with a Stranger

Bamboo felt her palms start to sweat as she stared at the surface of the table. Her throat struggled to swallow and a sharp pain kept threatening to bring her to tears. Her heart beating against her chest she stood up abruptly. Climbing the steps of... who's house she wasn't sure. Throwing open the door to her room she plucked through her closet, indecisively picking a few outfits out. Taking off her shirt she fanned herself and pulled her blond hair into a pony tail. One deep breath and she started to get ready. Stockings on freshly shaved legs, a new necklace she rarely wore, fancy heels that straightened out her posture... It felt... nice. She looked at herself in the mirror and watched her own green eyes, wondering if the person inside knew better then she did.

She was unable to break contact with her own gaze, even when her mind went to insult her features she was too entranced. The sudden realization of her own mortality clawed up her legs and wrapped around her throat. As fast as the dread set in it quickly dissipated and her eyes blinked a few times to somehow clear the clarifying.

Her eyeliner was uneven so she pulled some her hair forward to cover the other eye. Lipstick was uneven so she drew it bigger. Mascara always made her the happiest because she couldn't fuck it up and it looked beautiful. Sometimes after the effort of cosmetics she actually found herself attractive, she knew she wasn't ugly but wasn't as perfect as some girls were. The thought struggled in her mind, years of having to bottle in her self hatred and choke on the idea that everybody is beautiful. Kinda detested the whole ideal but it's not like she would tell somebody not to fall in love with themselves. Her lips tightened and she stared back up at herself. Fall in love... how could anyone...

She threw her makeup brush back into the case harshly and grabbed her lip color and some cash. Her heels clicked on the ground and the anxiety of leaving the house suddenly seeped into her knees. The adrenaline pumped her legs faster, keys, coat, glasses. She checked her pockets, she checked them again. Pacing by the door until the sound of a creak caused her to bolt out the door. She thought she heard the sound of flapping wings as she skipped across the driveway awkwardly.  Keys shakily shoved into the ignition and she watched the front door like a cornered animal. It's not rational, there was nobody home, nobody could come after her. Still, the stick quickly shifted into reverse and the car backed out onto the dirt road, kicking dust up.

She paused at an empty four way to punch in the club's address into her phone, propping it against her dash to lead the way. It was starting to get dark as she got into town. All the tension made her have to go to the bathroom but instead she continually circled parking lots with her leg bouncing against the car floor. When she finally found someplace further away then she wanted from the club she grabbed her phone.

"Wanna get drinks?"

"Drinks? Uh, Sure, where?"

"Sugar Claws down town."

"...Give me 5?"

She nodded, turning up the music in her car and nervously nodding her head to the beat. Phone, keys, glasses. She tucked the cash and lipstick into a small clutch and swallowed. It was incredibly hot yet her fingers felt frozen to the touch. No sweating in the outfit yet, does the perfume still smell good?

Getting out of the car and into the empty smelly parking garage was weirdly deafening. She cracked her neck and started walking, chin in the air, shoulders back.... Phone, keys... Glasses... It was dumb to check if you're wearing glasses when the world is blurry without them.

The muffled sound of the club could be heard as she rounded the corner and saw the neon sign. Bubblegum pink flooded the area, she wanted to run, go back home and hide somewhere. She could barricade herself in the sea of boxes and sleep the whole day away and make Anemone and Amber worry. Her lips contorted, she walked towards the club doors.

The bouncer opened the tall wooden door and the music physically embraced her like an overzealous friend. She almost stumbled back as she tried to adjust. The dark club gradually came into focus as she looked around. It wasn't crazy busy yet so she easily made her way to the bar and sat on a rotating stool. One elbow on the bar and eyes on the stage. Somebody was possessed by the music, she had a bright yellow bushy tail that snaked around the pole as she emoted exactly what the crowd wanted. Bamboo was enthralled until she realized the bartender had come over.

When Bamboo looked at her she felt a blush rush across her face. Beautiful, piercing blue eyes, but also fangs that poked out from their top lip. The girl grinned showing even more of her large fang, cleaning out a glass with a towel strapped to her belt. Bamboo ordered a drink and watched the bar tender leave, her gaze lingering on the shoulders exposed by the black, tight tank top.

She nursed her drink for a few more songs before Seth appeared by her side. He got her attention before placing a hand on her shoulder. His eyebrows were furrowed, why wasn't he getting a drink. "Are you okay?"

Bamboo scoffed and swiveled to push her empty glass on the bar, motioning for another one.

Seth sat beside her and got a soda, eyeing the girl beside him awkwardly.

They were committed to small talk and watching the dancers until the club started to get even busier. Bamboo had a few drinks in and it was becoming apparent her tolerance was very low. "Hey! I wanna dance!" Seth barely had time to disagree before Bamboo toddled off the tall bench and onto the dance floor, awkwardly bumping to the music. Seth downed the last bit of his drink and followed her, exasperated.

Bamboo pushed herself to the middle and swung her head side to side, enjoying the high feeling of vertigo from the flashing lights and pounding music. Somebody took notice and got close, soon they were moving together before Seth grabbed her arm. Her being was sapped towards him like a hazy rush.

"This isn't you!"

Bamboo ignored it, maybe she wanted to be this now, maybe it was her and nobody cared enough to ask. Instead of arguing her arms were thrown over his shoulders and her hips pressed against his. Even in the dark she watched him grow flustered. Is this what everybody else felt when she was embarrassed? It was really nice to make somebody else squirm. Her head lulled back as she grinded against him and sang to the music. "Hey... Hey!" He tried to push her off as he got excited but she spun around and almost sat in his lap.

Suddenly her arm was hurting, her feet could barely keep up with which direction she was heading in and even in her intoxicated state she felt Anemone's overpowering aura. Well fuck.

The cold night air was an unwelcome sober and she winced as Anemone barked at her. "What the hell were you doing here?"  She huffed loud and stumbled to stand straight. "Whatever I want!" Anemone balled her fists. "You're drunk?!" Bamboo laughed and flicked her hair out of her face to feel the wind on her face. Anemone cracked her neck and breathed loudly a few times.

The bouncer cleared his throat and started walking towards Anemone who straightened her shoulders angrily.

Bamboo groaned and her head fell to the side. "She's my girlfriend... Thank you though."

"Act civil or take it somewhere else."

The bouncer went back to his spot by the door keeping an eye on both of them. Anemone stuck her tongue out and he rolled his eyes.

"What happened, I was worried about you."

The words made a toxic potion of guilt and decadence and she almost shuddered from it. "I'm not a kid."

"Exactly, you're an adult who can let their partners know where they went, especially somewhere like here." Bamboo pouted and crossed her arms.

Seth burst out the door and searched for them, quickly joining their side. "I promise I wasn't trying anything I came to help cause I was worried."

Anemone's hair rose with her anger, her tone was soft yet stern. "Look, I don't know what you're going through right now. Give me your keys." Bamboo easily rationed that one out and handed them over. "How am I getting home?" Her body shivered and she felt she already knew the answer. Her mind ganging up on her with intrusive angry thoughts.

"Well I'm not leaving you here."

"I don't wanna go with you!"

Anemone softened and stepped back. Well didn't that just make her feel great... Bamboo tried to get past her brain fog to fix her jackassery but she was dizzy and sleepy and hungry...

"I'm not going to leave you here."

Seth quietly cleared his throat. "I can take her, it'd be better to talk this out while sober."

Anemone turned to Seth and grimaced. She knew their history and she'd be lieing if a pang of jealousy didn't rear its ugly head. Still, it'd be the easiest and safest option....

She nodded and dug through her bag for a minute, handing Seth a bottle of medication. With another glance at Bamboo she sadly turned, hands in her jacket and head hung. Bamboo watched her return to her motorcycle and secretly wished she wouldn't go. Then again she just said she didn't want to be near her so any rational person would go. Her brain mocked her even more. "How dare somebody listen to what you ask." Yea she felt stupid now, but it still hurt more then she thought to watch the cycle peel away down the dark street.

"Come on."

Seth helped her into his civic, closing the door behind her. The few seconds she sat in the car by herself seemed to last too long until he came back in. She wasn't really aware of what was going on for a little while. She didn't come back into focus until he had pulled up to a fast food place.

Few moments later and there was warm food in her lap. She held it in her hands for a long time, not even daring to unwrap it.

"I know you haven't eaten in a while, your stomach has been growling."

She looked over at him, his tone seemed distant but he still had a friendly demeanor. Had she screwed something up with him too?

The first bite seemed to trigger something and she scarfed the rest down.

When they got to his house he helped her out of the car. She had a hard time standing due to exhaustion and still slightly drunk. He carried her piggy back style to his house as she held onto his neck quietly.

He let her sleep in his bed and it didn't take long for her to fall asleep. He pulled the bottle of medication out of his pocket and read the instructions. When he went to go get some water she grabbed his hand.

"Please stay with me."

"I'm just getting some water for us okay? I promise I'll be right back."

Her eyes teared up and she struggled with his hand.

"Hey I promise I'll come right back but you need something to drink or you're going to hate yourself tomorrow."

"Too late..."

They both chuckled and he squeezed her hand before stepping away. She watched him close the door behind him and felt herself get anxious. Everybody was going to leave, she'd be all alone in the dark forever." Tears started streaming down her face, shockingly hot, sobs started to choke her up and her fist struck the bed under her.

Seth came back with some bottles of water and flinched at a loud sob she let out. Quickly striding over to her side he tried to calm her down but she seemed lost in her anguish, breathing rapidly and unresponsive.

He clutched her shoulder, trying to get her to stop before fully pulling her into an embrace. It was so unexpected she stopped crying apart from the occasional bubbled up sob.

Emotions racked her body and so much needed to be said... instead her eyes felt heavy and her body seemed to sink into the bed. She heard him talking but nothing really registered except for the feeling of flowing into sleep.