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d1ana-m0nd · 1 year ago

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╭─► ❝The Servant: Umbrella Academy's Servant❞

Five Hargreeves × Female! Reader || Written by Diana (d1ana-m0nd)

➢ Description : It's a well known fact that Sir. Reginald Hargreeves adopted 7 children to save the world from it's impending doom. Though, the number of children will change from 7 to 8 once a close friend of his, Rita Rossweisse was on her death bed and requested him to take in her child, who fortunately was born on October 1st 1989.

➢ Word Count : 9,537

➢ Links : Masterlist && Character Profile

➢ Note : I just wanted to give a heads up for people who like Luther, he's going to be a bit antagonistic towards the reader because she's an accomplice. Also, in S1 of TUA, the writers' focused on his mission driven trait which led to a snowball effect on his decisions and how he treated others (ex: Vanya), though that does not mean I will be writing him off as an antagonist throughout the whole series, just this season since he is still learning and growing. I mean no harm Luther simps / stans / fans. 🏳️

Also, it's been three years since I have done Wushu (Chinese martial arts) so the fighting scene might be crappy. It will be inaccurate as well since I never reached orange belt lol, I just watched YouTube videos of Agatha Wong and other Wushu martial artists. ;-;

Chapter 3: Extra Ordinary

Blue light streamed through the window as Allison sat on the windowsill, a cigarette in hand; she took in the scenery from the place she once considered home. The sound of car horns beeping accompanied the lively city atmosphere, whilst the lights of the streetlamps came off harshly. Oddly enough, this loud environment felt homely to her. The rumor inhaled the cigarette then exhaled it, letting the flares of the smoke blow out the window. She let herself be more immersed to the atmosphere, which led her unaware of someone else's presence in the room.

"Ah, Miss Allison." The advanced chimpanzee announced his arrival. Allison hurriedly put out the cigarette, leading it to fizzle out. She faced Pogo with a sheepish smile, as though she was not caught red-handed.

"I was looking for you." Pogo returned her smile, then took a small step towards her.

"How did you, uh… did you know I was up here?" The rumor scratched her nape. She really wasn't expecting anyone to walk in on her smoking and emoting to herself.

"Oh, it wasn't hard. This is always where you used to come when you were upset."

"Who told you I was…" The girl in curls paused, then sighed as a certain someone came to mind.

"Luther." She said fiddling with the aged locket that was given to her by the same person.

"Actually, it was Miss Vanya."

Allison was taken aback by his words. Vanya… cared about her? For a moment, she felt regret come over her because her sibling went out of her way to check on her… then she recalled the book. The rumor would have openly showed her grimace at the thought of her sister but, Pogo’s next words took her by surprise.

"She called to make sure you were okay and if it weren't for Y/N reminding me, I would have forgotten to check in on you." Pogo said with a small smile, as though he was silently thanking the girls for caring about Allison's well being.

The girl in curls stood up from the windowsill as she inhaled deeply, stuffing her hands into her pocket. "Yeah, I, um… said some pretty unkind things to her." Though it sounded like she said it out of defeat.

The well dressed chimpanzee frowned at her words, but tried to be optimistic. "She's your sister. She knows you didn't mean it."

Allison scoffed as she looked away. "Doubt it. She doesn't know anything about me, which is fine, cause I don't know shit about her either."

"Language." Pogo said which brought a small smile to the rumor's face followed by a soft chuckle. "Sorry."

"It's just…" The woman breathed through her nose. "It's been a while since we've all lived under the same roof."

"Almost 13 years." He added, which added onto the emotional baggage that Allison was carrying at the moment.

"How did you do it? Alone in this huge house for so long?"

"Well, one grows used to things, even if, sometimes… one shouldn't." The chimpanzee looked away, not wanting to give away the sadness in his eyes.

Wanting to divert the young lass’ attention to something else, Pogo decided it would be a great time to bring her over the CCTV room and to follow through with Master Hargreeves’ plan till the truth is finally revealed.

"Come with me. I want to show you something. It might just cheer you up." The advanced chimpanzee was about to head out the room but he suddenly turned to where Allison stamped out the cigarette earlier. "And make sure you fully extinguished that cigarette. Wouldn't want to start a fire."

The girl in curls chuckles to herself as she now recalled Pogo never lets his guard down, it’s almost like nothing goes under his radar, he acted more father-like than their own father. She then quickly extinguishes the fire and hurriedly catches up with Pogo. The two walked side by side towards the CCTV room, and entered the room together.

The chimpanzee approached the monitors and turned them on to show the familiar memories the academy created back in their youth. "Your father stopped recording years ago. But, I still come here from time to time. When I'm missing you kids."

"Pogo, this is…" The woman was too stunned to speak but she managed to choke out a few words. "Most families have home movies to look back on. We have surveillance footage."

"I hoped it might cheer you up."

"It does…" Allison laughed, letting her guard down and allowed her inner child to be lured in by the memories being replayed by the monitors.

Suddenly, Allison's gaze turns to a monitor of Vanya playing the violin as a smaller Y/N sat beside the violinist cheering her on, though it looked like Vanya wore a fake smile accepting every compliment you gave her.

"And Vanya…" Her smile fell. Vanya was telling the truth.

"Why didn't we include her? I mean, if anybody ever treated Claire like that, I can't even imagine…"

"You were a child, Miss Allison." Pogo pointed out but Allison rebutted. "Yeah… but I'm not anymore and neither is she."

"If you're not in a hurry. The rest of the tapes are in that cabinet." The advanced chimpanzee gestured to the nearby cabinet, while his other hand took out the keys and left it on the table. "Make sure you lock up when you go."

"Things have been disappearing lately. These are too important to lose." He added as Allison softly chuckled at his words. She has a feeling, she knows who might be responsible for it.

Whilst she was busy reminiscing, Pogo stood beside her, double checking at the breadcrumbs he left. He needed the secrets to be unraveled as soon as possible, he can only pray it wouldn’t be too late. The chimpanzee took one last look at Allison then left the room.

Once he left, the woman in curls rummaged through the tapes and found a tape that stood out. It was oddly placed, it even seemed like that it was purposely placed there. She played the footage not expecting much. To her surprise, her expectations were surpassed by the content of the footage.

Her eyes widened, then she straightened herself. "Oh, God. Dad…"

Allison paused the tape, without hesitation, she began to frantically look for Luther in the academy. She checked from door to door only to be frustrated that Luther wasn’t home. She was about to give up until she heard the front door open then ran - more like fast walking - to where the footsteps came from.

The woman in curls grabbed onto Luther’s arm. "There you are! I've been looking everywhere for you."

"What are you still doing here? I thought you were gone." He raised his brow in her presence.

"No, I was gonna go, and then Pogo showed me this -"

"Well, listen…" The larger male interrupted her with a defeated sigh. "I was wrong about Dad's death."

The woman was astonished by his words, it wasn’t like him. "What?"

"Yeah. I was wrong about Diego. You know, to accuse my own brother of that is just-"

"No, I, I know, I get it." The rumor tried to cut in but got interfered once again.

"- Seeing all of you and being back here… I should be the one who's trying to bring us back together, not tear us apart." Spaceboy said but it more or less it sounded like he was talking to himself in the mirror.

"Would you shut up?!" Allison shouted angrily.

"What?"

"You were right, about Dad." She stated, now it was the male’s turn to be confused by the sudden turn of events.

"Come on, I gotta show you something."

Even though the larger male was silent, she took his arm and guided him to the CCTV room. As they head to the CCTV room, they happen to passby Y/N and Five. Luther and Allison checked on you guys - since you guys looked kinda messed up - but Five had a sudden outburst and you had to make random excuses to bring him to his room, whilst juggling to not drop Delores. Once they were a bit far, Luther finally had the courage to speak up.

"Does Y/N having a mannequin have something to do with whatever you were going to show me?" He asked.

To which Allison threw a look at his direction. "No, and I have no idea where she got that. All I know is she's been glued to Five's side since he got back."

Once they had arrived, the rumor was quick to replay the footage. Luther couldn’t believe what he was watching. At first he was in denial but, as he replayed the clip again and again, he was able to digest the information but he still doesn’t understand… Why would their mother - er robot, rather, “Grace” kill their father? He kept replaying the scene trying to understand what occurred during the night of the murder but, got no answers in the end.

"Play it again." Number one ordered again…

Allison had to refrain herself from rolling her eyes because of how mind numbing it was to replay the same scene over and over again.

"We've watched it over and over, it's the same thing every time." She pointed out.

Luther sighs, she wasn’t wrong, they weren’t getting answers. Reluctantly, the rumor rewind the clip, the VCR whirred indicating it was being replayed.

"Er… what is she doing?" He asked, gesturing towards Grace on the monitor.

"The tea. Did she poison him?"

"Uh- I don't know." The woman in curly hair uncrossed her arms, unsure of what she was witnessing.

The larger male sighed exasperated then turned his gaze towards hers. "Where did you find this?" He gestured to the footage.

Allison stopped leaning against the cabinet then sat on the chair beside Luther's side, "I was looking at old footage of us as kids, and I just saw the footage sitting there."

"Yeah, Dad must have started using the security system again." There was a pregnant pause present in the room.

"He was getting more and more paranoid. He thought people were out to get him." He muttered, recalling the call he had with his dad a month prior.

Back then, He didn’t think much of it but it did worry him that Grace and Y/N weren’t taking care of him. However, after calling Y/N, he felt reassured by her words and assumed that their father was just becoming paranoid for nothing. Now, he regrets taking his words for granted.

"Well… I guess maybe he was right."

"But Mom?" Allison refused to accept this.

"I mean she's not capable of…" She gestured to the footage but as her eyes landed the footage she began to have second thoughts, she sighs. "Is she?"

Suddenly, a memory from the funeral played in Luther’s head.

"Then there's the issue of the missing monocle." The ape hybrid added to his conspiracy. Even though it was silent, you could hear the others internally groaning as more words came out of his mouth.

"Y/N, while you were cleaning up Dad's room, was the monocle still there?"

"Last night I wasn't assigned to give him medicine, it was Mrs. Grace's turn. So I can't be too sure if he wore the monocle. Though the crime scene cleaners and investigators did let me know that they made sure to keep everything in the same spot." You reported, as your thinking pose shifted into your default one.

"Make sure to check the cameras around the time they were cleaning." He commanded, you bowed in return to confirm you will do as he says.

Spaceboy’s eyes widened at the revelation… What if…

"Where was Y/N last night? Why didn't she inform me about the footage?" He bombarded.

"I already told you! Ever since Five came back she's been stuck to his side." The rumor answered not catching onto Luther’s wavelength.

"But, it doesn't make sense, she had the time to check the footage whilst they were preparing the funeral, and didn’t Pogo and her switch shifts in monitoring the CCTVs?”

Suddenly, Allison went silent, as she began to piece the puzzles and see where Luther was coming from, now that he pointed that out, Y/N could be a possible suspect and lately, she has been avoiding the academy for days, ever since Five came back, she could be using him as her alibi. Which makes her even more suspicious but she highly doubts she has something to do with it murdering their father.

After all, it is a well known fact that the servant has always been neutral, that’s why she is given a number that is neither a prime nor an odd number. It would be rare of her to step out of line. Plus, she only does what needs to be done, she wouldn’t do anything if it wasn’t under someone’s orders.

ㅤㅤㅤ❲ T H E ☕ S E R V A N T ❳

It was silent as the duo- trio rather, headed to Five’s room. Five’s head was flooded with ways on how he should retrieve the information to stop the apocalypse with Delores’ assistance. While Y/N’s head was filled with questions for Five, you wanted to ask him questions about the masked people and the people who tried to shoot them down at the doughnut shop but it didn’t feel like the right time to do so.

If only Five was open with you as he was to Vanya then you wouldn’t be reluctant to ask him questions… The only good thing that came out of this was that he trusted you enough to keep you around which made it easier to monitor him.

Once the three entered his room, you placed Delores on a nearby chair as Five stumbled his way to the bed. He fell face first onto the pillow; It sounded like a fart but you had to keep your lips pressed into a thin line or he’d bark at you. To distract yourself from laughing, you glanced at the mannequin, expecting it to do something. Alas, it did nothing but look into where it was painted to look at.

"It might be of use later…” You told yourself but you highly doubted it would be more useful than you.

The servant sighed then turned her gaze towards the boy. “Master Five, let me patch you up.”

“No, I can deal with this myself, I’ll just sleep it off.” He shrugged you off.

Unfortunately for him, you were determined, the look on your face supported that notion. “I’m afraid I won’t allow that. Your wound might get infected if you neglect it. Plus, seeing as you are hell bent on avoiding others, I am the only one who you can order around who wouldn’t try to look over your shoulder.”

Five’s thin lips were ready to bare the teeth that were hidden underneath his lips but his mind intervened before he could do so. You had a point, even though you were unexpectedly dragged into this, you could be of use to him -

"Hey, you know, I've just now realized why you're so uptight. You must be horny as hell!" He laughed then added, "All those years by yourself. It's gonna screw with your head being alone."

"If you want to let the stress out, why not ask Y/N for help?"

"Y/N seems like she'd be good in bed, if you're the type to have a corruption kink and all. I wouldn't be surprised if you have one because you seem the type-" Klaus snapped his finger, "And, andd~! She wouldn't get arrested for dating you."

Warmth creeped onto Five’s cheeks as he recalled Klaus’ words from earlier. He was lucky that his face fell first, you wouldn’t be able to see how much you - correction, how much Klaus’ words affected him. In case his ears were reddening as well, he decided to bury his face further into the pillow to hide it but it was a poor attempt on his part.

“Do whatever you want.” His words were muffled by the pillow.

“What?” You asked, unable to hear his words.

The brown haired boy sat up and glared at your direction, which made you regret your words. “Do whatever you want but don't even think of watching me sleep.”

You nodded then, left his room to go get the first aid kit from the infirmary. Which made the boy sigh in relief then returned to lying on the bed but, this time he made sure to avoid lying on his injured side. As he stared into space, he began to silently plan out how he would get more information only to be disturbed by his beloved, Delores.

“Others would take a rest the moment their body hits the mattress yet, here you are letting your thoughts consume you rather than exhaustion.” Delores mused as she laughed at Five's situation.

“I assumed you would be grateful that I took the time to take you out for a stroll. That was no easy task.” The boy retorted, he knew she was going to piss him off for fun, she’s always been like that since they got together.

“Yeah I am grateful but, I would rather get to know my in-laws than be stuck in this room all day.” The mannequin teased with a knowing smirk, she knew Five was easy to play with when he's needy for someone's attention.

“Getting tired of me already? I thought you loved me.” The brown haired boy joked with a grin on his face. It was a rare sight that only Delores got to witness more often than the others.

“I do love you but, I recall you numerous times telling me off that I shouldn’t disturb you when you’re at ‘work’.” She rebutted which made her beloved chuckle in response.

“Smartass.”

“Master Five is everything alright?” You tilted your head, confused by what you had just walked in. The brunette was talking to someone just earlier…

“Oh! Is she the one you mentioned that’s always stuck by Vanya’s side?” Delores was ecstatic to finally meet one of the people Five grew up with. Even though he wasn't fond of you, Delores grew to love you whenever you were brought up with Vanya. She thought you both had a cute dynamic.

The physically young man wordlessly nodded to Delores, which you mistook as him saying that everything was alright. Assuming that everything was alright, you were quick to settle down by his bed and prepared what you needed: bandages, a surgical needle, a synthetic suture, a bottle of hydrogen peroxide, a clean washcloth along with a small bowl of lukewarm water. Once prepared, you took care of his injured side. The room was silent as the boy let out small huffs and your breathing were the only thing audible but, Five was hearing other things besides your breathing.

"Sweetheart, why don't you introduce me to her? I'd love to get to know her. She seems like a nice girl." The mannequin requested.

The brunette could not tell if she was trying to press his buttons or not. They both knew perfectly well that Delores trying to interact with others would just cause confusion but, his beloved is quite a chatterbox. Five might as well play along, or she would make his ears bleed from constant pleading. The thought of doing so made him roll his eyes, which you caught.

Thinking you did something wrong, you raised a question. "Did I do something wrong, Master Five?"

"Nothing, Delores wants to get to know you." He reassured, as an imaginary grin on Delores’ face grew. If you were not so observant, he would have thrown a quick glare in the mannequin’s direction for her cheekiness.

The mannequin bursted out laughing which made the brown-haired male flustered. "AHAHAHA! We've been together for 31 years and I never knew you had this kink."

"Oh right!" The servant was weirded out by this. You knew that you had to play along if you didn’t want to be torn apart. "I didn't introduce myself. Hi Ms. Delores, I'm Y/N, also referred to as Number Zero."

"I won't lie, she is very adorable. I can see why you'd want to keep her around." Dolores added, a finger ghosting on her cheek that complimented that cheeky grin of hers.

"I'm not keeping her." He hissed at Dolores.

You didn't know what he meant by that so you ignored it, and decided to ask another question. "So uh, what did Ms. Delores say?"

"She said that you seem like someone she'd hang around." The boy lied through his teeth but the blush across his face said otherwise.

"That is a complete 180 from what I said Five~" The mannequin sang then giggled.

For a moment, the room went silent, you were busy with Five's wounds whilst the boy was busy keeping his eyes on the mannequin. Dolores watched from her chair, as though taunting the brunette. The silence was comfortable at first but then it began to grow awkward because it felt like you had to do something to fill in the silence.

Out of nowhere, you blurted out a stupid question. "So, Ms. Dolores, do you like cooking?"

The moment you were able to process what you just blurted out, you wanted to smash yourself into a bloody wall. How could you be so stupid? Who in their right mind would ask if a mannequin - a flammable object, mind you - if it loved to cook. Even if it did, how was it supposed to cook? It would make sense if you were asking a robot or an advanced mammal - actually, anything that is capable of mimicking human behavior - but, of all things you just had to ask, you asked a flammable object if it liked to cook!? You were on the verge of running away at this point and let Five deal with his injury.

"Is she serious?" Dolores asked, surprised by what she heard as well.

Five didn't know what to say to his beloved. Trying to look for confirmation of your sincerity, he turned to you and saw that you were covering your face out of embarrassment. It was kinda cute. Watching the usually blank-faced girl wear a different expression… it made you more human rather than a puppet that the other's usually claimed you to be.

To the other numbers (Five was no exception), the servant seemed inhumane, too perfect to be human, you were practically a doll. If we are talking about what kind of doll would describe you, then "barbie" would be a suitable description. A doll that every girl dreamed to be, a doll that was suitable for every job it came across.

However their assumption of you changed when they noticed the cracks you were trying to hide from them, like how you stiffened and forced yourself to smile despite the insults being hurled at you, how you did want to go against their father but decided against it because of hesitance, and how you try your best to not cry or scream whenever their father needed your blood or for experimentation.

You were just as messed up as them…

From that point on, they recognized that it didn't feel right to label you as a doll. Though it didn't diminish the fact that you acted like a puppet, how you wouldn't act unless someone pulled the strings, how you mimicked others to look natural, and how you spoke like it came out from a script instead of saying what you actually think or feel.

Though, Five supposes this is the reason why you were given the "Number 0", it is neither even or odd. A number that represents balance, you stood on neither side, you were just someone who’s responsible for neutralizing issues before things could escalate. Strangely enough, despite you trying to act normal, you were the one that stood out among the dysfunctional family, because of how mentally unaffected you were by the household. Even Vanya had difficulty expressing her anger for you in her memoir.

Whilst the two numbers were busy with their own thoughts, someone was watching the scenery before her, amused by the silence that settled within the room.

The mannequin internally laughed at what she was witnessing. She found it rather ironic that despite Five being blunt about his distaste for you, you kept chasing him and made sure if he was alright. It was even more hilarious that he was beginning to open up to you but his hostility is still present. He hated you, you disliked him yet, you both cared for each other in your own way.

Even though she didn't have a heart, she felt envious of you. To be able to hold Five, to be able to run after him, to be able to stop him from overworking. You had everything Dolores wanted. But, alas, those are merely musings of a soulless husk.

Although this was an unspoken truth, Five knew his beloved "Dolores" wasn't real, she was merely something that manifested out of thin air because he wanted to keep himself sane during the apocalypse. She even recalled that time when some people from the commission found out about Dolores' existence, and they judged Five's mental state for it, even though Five acted like it was nothing, She was worried for him. They both knew it was the truth but he refused to acknowledge the reality of her existence.

Putting aside her jealousy, the mannequin was glad that despite all the weirdness Five carried, he found someone who did try to understand him. The thought of your open-mindedness and kindness warmed Dolores' non-existent heart.

"Thanks." Five broke the silence, his gaze elsewhere.

"Huh?" You tilted your head, not expecting his words.

"I know you heard me, don't make me say it twice or I'll give you a reason to be deaf." The brunette threatened, usually his threats would make you flinch but, this time it made you smile, not a forced one.

Your genuine smile went unnoticed but the tone of your voice didn't fail to express your sincerity. "You're welcome, Five."

The boy froze up as he realized you were calling him by his name again. He didn't know whether to call you out on it or just let it go… In the end, he failed to notice you had already left his side.

"I didn't think you'd warm up to her considering you told me how much you disliked her." The mannequin teased a knowing look on her face.

The brunette merely rolled his eyes at her then laid down on the bed, avoiding to ruin the stitches you made. "She's one of the tolerable ones, I have no choice."

Dolores smiled to herself knowing that was a lie.

ㅤㅤㅤ❲ T H E ☕ S E R V A N T ❳

The next day, both the boy and the girl exited the house through the fire exit, with Dolores carefully placed into the duffle bag along with alcohol. The seance noticed you guys sneaking out and tried to join in but Five declined his offer. As Klaus was busy whining about how much he loved his 'little brother', you managed to hijack a nearby van and let Five drive to his desired location while you sat at the back with Dolores.

The brunette parked the van in front of the prosthetics building, watching people come and go while he fiddled with the glass eyeball in his hand. He mindlessly watched as a woman walked past the stolen van whilst a group of children played ball.

Seeing normalcy made Five sigh, he was envious of those people. People who lived a normal life had it better than him. He could not stop the feeling of envy creeping up on him. After all, they didn't have to worry about putting their lives on the line for others. Unlike them, the boy grew up in a dysfunctional household and got thrusted into the apocalypse at a young age. He was forced to grow up early and prioritize his life over others, which went against the old man's teachings.

As Five was busy with his own demons, he didn't notice you had let in uninvited guests.

You were bored out of your mind, and began to look out the window in hopes of finding something interesting, until you saw a familiar lanky figure heading towards the van. It was Klaus heading towards the van with Luther in tow, you opened the back door and waved at them to come in.

The lanky man skipped his way to the backdoor and began conversing with Dolores. As you tried your best to stop him from harassing it - because you had a feeling Five would rip him to pieces.

"I didn't think I would find a beauty like you in here." The seance whispered into Dolores' ear.

"Master Klaus you shouldn't-"

"Shh shh, let her speak." He said as he caressed the mannequin's cheek, even though it didn't say a word, Klaus giggled and started cradling Dolores in his arms.

"Does everyone in the Hargreeves family like talking to non-living things or something?" You questioned yourself as you bit the inside of your cheek.

At the front of the truck, it seemed like Luther was planning to sit in the passenger seat but it was locked. You unlocked the door for him since Five was unresponsive. You silently watched as the larger male struggled to enter the van due to his frame.

Suddenly, the brunette in the driver's seat screamed.

“No!” Five's scream caught you and Spaceboy's attention, you hurriedly went to his side and rubbed the small of his back.

“Five.” You murmured not wanting to overwhelm him with loud sounds.

“Five!” Luther called out, the volume of his voice made you flinch and cover the ear he screamed at.

“Hey Five!” The male shouted once again yet, it wasn't effective.

“NO!” The younger male screamed as he grabbed onto his hair whilst his eyes widened in fear, his breathing becoming ragged.

“Five!” You shook Five awake as the larger male shouted his brother's name like a mantra, trying to bring back the boy into reality.

When the brunette finally calmed down, you continued rubbing his back, concern etched into your features. “Are you alright, Master Five?”

He disregarded your words as he began to process the uninvited guest that sat on the passenger seat, "You shouldn’t be… How did you find me?”

“Um…” Space boy gestured to Klaus, who sat at the back of the van, cradling Five's beloved in his arms.

The seance murmured, “Hey baby…”

Once the lanky man noticed everyone's eyes were on him, he shooed away their lingering gazes. “Hey, a little privacy, guys. We’re really hitting it off back here.”

Out of irritation, the boy throws the nearest object at Klaus. The lanky man screamed and used the mannequin as a shield, in an attempt to protect himself. Luckily, you caught the object before Klaus got injured and threw Five a side eye, which made him roll his eyes.

“Get out! You can’t be here! I’m in the middle of something." The physically younger male hissed at his barely sober brother.

The seance dismissed his threat and approached his brothers who sat at the front of the van. “Any luck finding out your one-eyed man?”

“No.” Five whispered, internally groaning at the fact he even trusted his idiot of a brother with the secret of the apocalypse.

“What’s he talking about?” Luther brought up with a raised brow.

“Does it matter? It’s Klaus.” The boy quickly shot down.

At first, Klaus looked hurt but, he redirected his gaze to the larger male as though silently asking Luther to defend him but, nothing came out of Spaceboy's mouth. Defeated, the seance breathed through his nose and acted as though he wasn't hurt. Out of pity, you rubbed his back.

The small brunette sighed, “What do you want, Luther?”

“So…” Dirty blond male cautiously glanced at you, “So, Grace may have something to do with Dad’s death.” He paused and glanced at you again trying to read if you have a reaction. “I need you to come back to the academy, all right? It’s important.”

"Is something on my face?" You asked yourself as you started to feel your face if there was a bloodstain you forgot to wipe away from Five's wounds.

“It’s important.” Five mocked his brother’s words then scoffed. “You have no concept of what’s important.”

“Hey!” Klaus interrupted, “Did I ever tell you guys about the time I waxed my ass with chocolate pudding?”

The lanky man laughed his stomach out, sadly, the others weren't laughing along with him. “It was so painful!”

Luther and Five grimaced at their brother's words, while you looked at the seance as though he had committed a sin. Despite everyone's obvious disgust, someone else - besides Klaus - managed to laugh because of his shenanigans, it was Five. You witnessed the boy turn his head then hid his giggle underneath his breath. It was oddly adorable.

“What are you still doing here?” The larger man scrunched up his brows, his gaze on Klaus.

“I- What? I need an excuse to hang out with my family?” Klaus placed a hand on his chest, offended by the other male's choice of words.

“We’re trying to have a serious conversation here.”

“What, and I’m incapable of being serious? Is that what you’re saying?”

At this point, you couldn't help but frown and feel bad for Klaus. No one in the family took him seriously just like how they treated Vanya. He acts as though he isn't bothered but, you know it hurts him, just as much as how the others treated Vanya differently.

“Luther’s got a point, you should get out.” Five added.

“What?!"

Reluctantly, the lanky man crawls out of the van murmuring how it was unfair. Once he got out of the van, he screamed “FINE!” then slammed the door closed.

"I- I should go after Master Klaus…" You said quietly then followed Klaus to the convenience store. You had a feeling he'd cause trouble and it would be best someone would be there to prevent it.

Once you and Klaus left, the atmosphere in the van became tense. The unspoken rivalry, rather, the one sided rivalry between Luther and Five was becoming more evident to the naked eye. Since you left, Luther felt like he could finally bring up his suspicion of you to Five.

“What the hell are you up to?” Luther questioned whilst he observed the seance and the servant head to the convenience store together.

“You wouldn’t understand.” The younger male stated, his eyes narrowing at the prosthetics building across them.

“Try me. Last I checked, I’m still the leader of this family.”

“Well, last I checked. I’m 18 years older than you.”

The larger man inhaled deeply then turned to his 'younger' brother. “You know what your problem is?”

“Really hoping you’ll tell me.” Five sarcastically remarked, his hazel eyes never leaving the building across the van.

“You think you’re better than us. You always have. Even when we were kids. But the truth is, you’re just as messed up as the rest of us. We’re all you have and you know it.”

The brunette lets out a dejected sigh. “I don’t think I’m better than you, Number One. I know I am.”

Spaceboy chuckled at his words, Five just proved his point.

“I’ve done unimaginable things, things you couldn’t even comprehend.” the boy pointed out as his grip on the steering wheel tightened but it came off as an exaggeration to Luther, “Right…”

“Just to get back here and save you all.” Five added.

Unexpectedly, the convenience store from across the street was experiencing a commotion, catching the passersby's attention along with Five and Luther's. Out came Klaus carrying a huge amount of food in his arms followed by the security guard screaming for him to halt.

“Whoa!” The seance runs with the food he shoplifted as the security ran after him.

One of the security guards screamed with a baton in hand. “Stop!”

“Hey! Stop right now!”

The lanky man waves at the van, some of the food he stole fell behind. Due to his carelessness, he almost gets run over by a taxi, luckily it stopped halfway, though he managed to narrowly dodge the vehicle.

As for you, you were held back at the convenience store as you paid for the food your master shoplifted. You internally grumbled about regretting ever feeling pity for him and how you should have known he would have pulled a stunt like this.

After that whole fiasco, Luther was about to leave the van until he remembered something he had been planning to tell Five once you weren't around.

"Since you don't plan on showing up to the family meeting, I'll give you a heads up, Y/N might have something to do with dad's death." Luther said, his back against the boy.

Five's eyes widened and his grip on the steering wheel tightened as the puzzles in his head began to fall into pieces. "You have nothing to worry about. I've dealt with people like her."

ㅤㅤㅤ❲ T H E ☕ S E R V A N T ❳

Luther and Allison gathered every family member in the living room, except Five since he was being stubborn. The monitor that he and Allison were playing with last night, currently sat on the bar, the video tape already in it. All he needed to do was play the footage…

The large male took in a deep breath then played it. The monitor replayed the night of the murder, Grace was taking care of the Monocle's needs, suddenly he started twitching and fell on his back, amidst him experiencing a heart attack, Ms. Grace did nothing but look down at him instead of doing what she was programmed to do.

The whole room went silent, Luther observed the other's reactions and noticed that only Vanya and Klaus were mortified. Number one expected that he and Allison were the only ones who wouldn't be surprised but you and Diego didn't seem surprised by the footage. Diego seemed a little too satisfied whilst you looked away from the monitor.

The dirty blond male narrowed his brows, "Suspicious."

“I mean, do you really think that mom would hurt Dad?”, Vanya broke the silence.

“You haven’t been home in a long time, Vanya. Maybe you don’t know Grace anymore.”

“If he was poisoned, it would have shown up in the coroner’s report.” Diego remarked with a matter of factly tone.

“Well, I don’t need a report to tell me what I can see with my own eyes.”

“Maybe all that low gravity in space messed with your head.” The lad in black leather approached the monitor and replayed the footage. “Dad has his monocle. Grace stands up. Monocle’s gone.”

Klaus laughed, “Oh, yeah!”

The Latino turns his back, “She wasn’t poisoning him. She was… taking the monocle, to clean it.”

“Then where is it?”

Everyone went silent not having an answer to that question. You, even as an accomplice, didn't even know where it was. You were pretty sure disposing of the monocle was not part of the plan…

“No, I’ve searched the whole house, including her things. She doesn’t have it.”

The kraken looked down as he took out his knife and fidgeted with it, till his eyes met Luther's. “That’s because I took it from her. After the funeral.”

“You’ve had the monocle this whole time? What the hell, Diego!” Allison exclaimed.

“Give it to me.” Luther commanded, taking a few strides towards Diego, his hand out awaiting for the monocle to be returned.

“I threw it away.”

The rumor scoffed at her brother's admission.

“You what? ” Number one’s voice boomed.

“Look, I knew that if you found it on Mom, you’d lose your shit. Just like you are doing right now.” The latino menacingly pointed at Spaceboy's direction with the pointed edge of his dagger.

“Diego, you son of a bitch.” Luther walks over to Number two but Vanya interrupts him before another fight starts, you mirror her actions as well and walk in front of Diego to prevent him from doing anything reckless.

“Hey. no. calm down.” Vanya said, “Look, I know dad wasn’t exactly an open book. But, I do remember one thing. He said Mom was, well, designed to be a caretaker but also as a protector.”

“Well, if her hardware is degrading, then… We need to turn her off.”

"Oh no." You thought. This was definitely not part of Mr. Hargreeves' plan.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait. She’s not just a vacuum you can throw into a closet. She feels things, I’ve seen it.” The kraken angrily said as his glare hardened, along with the finger pointing becoming more abundant.

“She stood there, and watched our father die.” The dirty blond male pointed out as he gestured to the footage.

“I’m with Luther.”

“Surprise, surprise.” Diego sarcastically retorted.

“Shut up.” The rumor barked back.

Suddenly, the whole room looked at Vanya, expecting an answer out of her. “I- I don't-”

"Yeah, she shouldn't get a vote." Diego interrupted her before she could decide but Vanya snapped back at him. "I was gonna say that I agree with you."

"Okay. She should get a vote."

The Latino turned to Klaus, "What about you, stoner boy? What are you thinking?"

"Oh, so, what? Do you need my help now? Oh 'Get out of the van, Klaus!', 'Well, welcome back to the van.' -

"What van?" The woman in curls interjected, not following through with this whole van thing. Fortunately for her, she wasn't alone as Vanya didn't know what the van metaphor was for.

The large male released a sigh and changed the topic, "What's it gonna be Klaus?"

“I’m with Diego because screw you Luther! And if Ben were here, he'd agree with me." The lanky man replied while looking Luther in the eye, as though to intimidate him.

"So, that's three to two."

"Vote's not final yet." The actress stated which caused the whole room to raise eyebrows.

"What?"

"Five's not here." She pointed out. You could hear everyone - except Luther who was silently thanking her - internally groan at her words. At this point, she was just stalling!

The lad in black leather scoffed and then argued, "You really think Five would show up to something as stupid as this?"

"Why don't we just let Y/N vote for him?" Klaus suggested as he pushed you forward like a sacrificial lamb.

"Master Klaus, I'm afraid I can't do that-"

"She doesn't have a say in this." You stiffened at Luther's words, "I don't like the sound of that."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean? That she is not one of us? She is treated like an experiment and got traumatized because of that bastard! How is she any different from us?" Diego fought back on your steed, while you looked at him like he had grown another head.

"Because we-"

"Just you, Luther." Allison corrected, looking away from the scene before her.

"I think she might be an accomplice in Dad's death." The larger male finished her sentence which made the living room feel unwelcoming as dead silence followed.

The Latino scoffed then taunted the big man, "I'm surprised your mouth hasn't retired from carrying all that shit your ass couldn't handle."

"And here we go again." The rumor muttered under her breath.

Luther ignored his brother's taunts and began providing arguments, "During dad's funeral, Y/N was supposed to check on the footage and report to me if there was anything suspicious but she didn't inform me."

"That's because I was with Five, I'm supposed to be watching over him in case the effects of time traveling were kicking in." You hurriedly replied which unknowingly raised suspicion in Luther's eyes.

"Didn't you and Pogo switch shifts whilst monitoring the CCTVs?"

"Yes but, I didn't have time to check on the tapes-"

"You didn't have time yet the tape was conveniently placed on top of the cabinet." The dirty blond male pointed out, your eyes widened in fear because you didn't know how to defend yourself… You felt helpless.

You were well aware that you were not the one who placed the tape there, so it could have been Pogo. As much as you would love to defend yourself, you couldn't exactly speak out either since this would ruin the plan but you were itching to stand up for yourself. In the end, you sucked it up and didn't say a word.

"You even told me that I should 'broaden your scope, especially your list of suspects'. " Luther's eyes felt like lasers being burned through your skull.

You gulped, looking down at your feet as your tears were ready to cascade down your cheeks. You even regretted leaving those clues for him because you didn't think you would be put into this position, "I- I was… I was trying to cheer you up…"

"Is that the only excuse you can come up with?" Luther scoffed, he almost sounded like his father… It scares you.

"Vanya, please keep an eye on Y/N for now." The larger male ordered the petite woman.

Desperately, you walked up to him, "I know it looks bad but, Can I at least attempt to get Five back? His decision might help finalize what to do with Ms. Grace."

"His decision won't save you."

At this point, you were trembling. The ringing in your ears became louder, your mind zoning out until you felt a hand on your shoulder, you turned to see it was Klaus wearing a reassuring smile though it didn't do much.

"That's enough Luther, you're scaring her." Allison finally stepped in.

The violinist approached your side cautiously then gently whispered, "Y/N, I believe it's best you listen to Luther for now."

"For now, let's wait for Five to return. The whole family has to vote. We owe each other that." The rumor ended the discussion and everyone began to part their ways.

Once Vanya finished conversing with Diego about Ms. Grace, she - gently - took you by your wrist and headed to your room. You were so busy in your head that you didn't realize that Vanya was the one taking you to your room.

The violinist wore a concerned look on her face, "Hey, Y/N, you alright? You seem so out of it? It's very unusual for you… I'm assuming you are bothered by what Luther said? You looked like you were about to cry earlier."

"I'm not bothered, just worried about Five. I was supposed to be by his side but I ended up getting house arrest instead." You answered jokingly but you could not bring yourself to fake a smile.

Vanya laughed, not noticing that your energy didn't match your tone. "If it helps, I don't think you would kill dad."

"You wouldn't know that…" You wanted to say that but kept it to yourself.

"So don't beat yourself up over this, if you're innocent you have nothing to lose."

You briefly replied with a fake smile, "Yeah. Thanks."

The petite brunette noticed the brief reply but shrugged it off then changed topics. "So, I've heard from the others that you and Five have been hanging out, is that true?"

You nodded.

"I didn't think he'd open up to you… with how he openly hates you and all- Not saying that it's a bad thing that you guys are getting along now! It's just… unexpected is all."

You relaxed for a bit and chuckled. You knew for a fact neither of you guys were getting along. At most, you guys were just tolerating each other because you all saw how you guys benefited from each other.

"That's one way of putting it." You murmured.

You and Vanya arrived in your room and sat on your bed. In sync, you guys laid down on your backs and stared at the ceiling above you guys.

"So how's Five doing?" The brunette questioned, probably worried about his mental state considering what happened the day before… or was it earlier?

"Well, from what I can tell, he's getting used to people…" you answered, trying to evade the topic of the apocalypse when answering her question.

Vanya exhaled through her nostrils, "I really should have insisted for him to get help."

"I understand your concern Miss Vanya but, you can't help someone who doesn't recognize they need help. You would only be wasting your energy."

"I'm sorry," She murmured, a habit of hers that she never got over.

You smiled then added, "You have nothing to be sorry about, you're just doing what you think is right."

"Y/N can I ask you something?"

You nodded giving her the go signal.

"Why would you try to comfort Luther by advising him to look into other people as well?"

You froze up. You couldn't lie to Vanya, something was telling you that you couldn't go against someone's orders. "I can't-"

Unexpectedly, a myriad of gunshots were coming from the hallway.

"Hide!" You shouted, before Vanya could protest, you urgently hid her in your closet as you hid under the bed.

Once the sound of gunshots and blades clanking simmered down, you got out of your hiding spot and readied your retractable bo staff. Vanya got out of the closet as well once she heard you got out of your hiding spot.

"Miss Vanya, I will be heading out to assist the others," You grabbed a ballistic shield you have been hiding behind the closet, "I'll be giving you this ballistic shield for your protection. Please don't make any sound."

"Wait, Y/N you shouldn't-" Number seven grabbed your wrist in an attempt to stop you but the determined look on your face made her grip loosen.

"I have to Miss Vanya, I'm sorry. It's my responsibility to protect you- I mean, protect the academy. I can't just stand by and watch them throw away their lives like that."

Vanya was left speechless with your words. You did not outright say anything about her being ordinary or not having powers but, it felt like the term "responsibility" became synonymous with the word “power”. It made her think that she didn't have the power to protect others nor herself, that's why other people had to get themselves hurt to protect her.

"Remember, do not open the door for anyone even if you know it's someone you think you can trust; We don't know what the intruder is capable of, so trust no one. I will let you know if the coast is clear so keep a lookout for my messages." You told her then left your room, unknowingly leaving Vanya to her thoughts.

You cautiously surveyed the hallway, you held the bo staff's body with high alert including your other senses actively looking for the intruders that entered the academy. When you reached the stairs, you witnessed Diego and Allison simultaneously attacking a familiar pink masked person. You were about to jump into the action until you heard Vanya's voice from the living room.

ㅤㅤㅤ❲ T H E ☕ S E R V A N T ❳

"Hello?" Vanya went down the stairs, worry in her voice and facial features.

"Guys? Is everyone okay?"

"Hello? Guys?" She entered the living room unaware of the danger emanating from the lounge.

Once the violinist entered the room she tried to look for any signs of life but only saw the result of the fight, which was gun residue and bullet casings littering the area. As she was about to leave and investigate the other rooms, she heard chains rattling behind her.

The petite woman turned and was met with the intruder who wore a blue cartoony mask, who was wielding a morning star. He swung it towards Vanya but she ducked just in time. As he was about to hit her with his arm, a two-pronged spear stopped him midway, which created a distance between Vanya and the intruder.

The spear was a surprise to everyone in the living room except you, they turned their gaze and met your hues. Once the masked man's attention was set on you, Vanya quickly hid not wanting to be a liability.

"If you're looking for someone to fight, at least pick someone who can fight." You taunted the larger man.

With ease, you jumped from the second floor then dash towards the masked man, using the momentum you've picked up, you raised your foot and pushed kick his torso away. The impact made him stumble backwards and pause as he tried to gather his footing.

The spear that you threw at him earlier is now in your hands, you pressed the button that would retract the prongs and swung it towards the mask - his head was your main target - which made him stagger back again.

"This brat is too quick, I should've left her with Cha cha." Hazel grumbled to himself.

Despite the obvious large distance, you cautiously took a few steps backwards and used the staff as a boundary. An open hand supporting the head of the bo staff whilst a closed fist on the butt of the staff holding onto it with a strong grip.

Seeing as the double attack to his head was making him fall behind, you quickly withdrew from your defensive stance then, taunted the masked man by spinning your bo staff. Once he regained his footing, he swung the ball of spikes onto the body of the staff, so it would fall apart.

However, you decided to take a gamble and retract it. You dashed forward to tackle him but, due to the frame and weight differences, your attack didn't affect him. Unknown to him, this was all part of your plan, this was the distance you needed for your next move. You made the staff face upwards then unretracted it which propelled his chin thus leading him to fall backwards.

By now he was outside the living room, you were out of breath and so the masked man. Your main objective was achieved, Vanya wasn't within his reach but, you were not sure if you could hold him off any longer.

"Hey, asshole." Luther greeted. Despite what he did to you earlier, you were thankful for his presence.

"Y/N go look for Pogo and Grace!"

You nodded and headed off to where you usually see Pogo and Grace. Once you have met up with the advanced chimpanzee you guided him to the basement and reassured him that everything was under control. You were planning to go out and look for Grace this time but, curiosity got the better of you.

"Did you hire those people?" You questioned as your grip on the retractable bo staff tightening.

"Master Hargreeves never hired an outside party to get involved… It must be someone who knows what he is planning, or people after his fortune." He replied but you were not satisfied with his answer, it was evident on your face.

You scoffed then exclaimed, "What the hell is he planning?! Vanya almost got killed out there!"

"I'm afraid I can't tell you. Master Hargreeves made me swear to not speak of it, unless the truth is finally revealed to the whole academy."

You were livid but walked away from him with a huff, to go look for Ms. Grace. At this point, you have given up on trying to find out the truth. Even though you were one of the Monocle's loyal servants, he treated you like the other numbers and kept you in the dark despite his hesitancy to trust you, he gave you little to no information, so you would be left to figure it out yourself.

Once you received Vanya's text, you went out of the basement and surveyed the house if there were lingering intruders. Suddenly, you ran to where you heard the crash come from and saw a fallen chandelier along with the other numbers who looked like they were still processing what they witnessed.

"What happened?" You broke the silence, it seemed like they were hesitant to answer but Allison managed to speak. "A chandelier fell on Luther, please check on him."

You bowed to the rumor, as you were ready to leave Vanya, Allison and Diego to their own devices.

Suddenly, the violinist's question made you freeze, "Who were those people?"

You were well aware that the question was not directed towards you but, the instinct - a rumor - told you to answer her but, then you saw Diego narrowing his eyes at you, as though silently questioning why you haven't left. You tightened your lips into a line then silently went to the clinic to prep for Luther's wounds.

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mychoombatheroomba · 8 months ago

Text

Hard Truths

Between the Bones (Leon x GN! Reader) - Chapter 37

The squad learns what they're up against, and Krauser gives Leon some brutal advice. As per usual.

(Cross-posted from Ao3)

Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Chapter Index

There was no return to normalcy. No getting back into a comfortable cycle of pain and perseverance. How could there be, when the squad reported for First Call and you weren’t there? Leon had always felt galvanized in your presence. Your strength was his own. When he felt like he wasn’t sure he could go on, you’d been there, urging him forward. As morning drills began that first day, it wasn’t just his aching muscles and bruises that held him back.

You can’t let yourself fall behind with me.

His time in STRATCOM had taught him that he had a bit of a problem with authority, but he obeyed your words anyway.

Even if it would mean moving past you.

Even if it meant listening to the teachings of the men who did this to you, because true to his promise, Hellman was there to greet the squad for morning drills. Krauser looked just as angry as he had the day before. If the Major’s smile meant a world of hurt for the recruits of the US Strategic Command, then what did his scowl mean?

Leon supposed he would be finding out soon.

It was the final phase of training. That was what Krauser announced that first morning; that in eight weeks, if he and the others could pass the tests, they would graduate and be assigned into service. He would be an operative of STRATCOM. An agent of the United States.

Not a soldier.

Not what you or any of the others had been before this, but an agent, like Reed and Hellman. The two would indeed be assisting Krauser in training, offering lessons in the more shadowed of services. Secrets and broken locks and false names. The blacked-out text on a report. That was what he would become.

That was what he would become without you.

Six weeks until you recovered.

Eight weeks remaining in training.

The number was sobering. Staggering. The other recruits, the rest of his squad, didn’t know what that meant yet. They weren’t aware of what they were about to be facing down.

They would learn soon enough, though.

They would learn about Raccoon City, about the bioweapons created by Umbrella, and then they would graduate and be sent off to fight nightmares made flesh. They would be forced to see and fight and kill things that Leon had never imagined before that one night last September.

Eight weeks before they were all sent to hell.

And while he would be out there, fighting, you would be stuck here, trying to catch up for the time you lost. He tried not to let himself get lost in that thought too much as he pushed his injured body through Krauser’s ever-more difficult exercises - and Krauser’s still-sharp glares. The pain of it all was familiar enough now that he could endure it. He ran harder and faster, strained through the near-failing of his muscles as he carried the ammunition case across the obstacle course, not letting himself drop the added weight. He did all of that because he knew that, in eight weeks, his newfound strength and speed might be all that saved his life from some newfound horror.

And, however he felt about them, he knew that whatever skills Reed and Hellman were here to teach might do the same. So, he swallowed his anger when he reported to the two agents with the rest of the squad later that day, gathered together in a room that reminded Leon of his time in the police academy, with desks and a projector.

He didn’t bother to hide his sneer when Hellman began his speech. Even as he was reminded of who the real enemy was.

“You were all chosen for STRATCOM based on exemplary performance or impressive feats,” Hellman began, and again, Leon was put off by just how different he sounded, now. How genuine. “Most of you have served with distinction, and I have no doubt that you would have had impressive careers - that you still will . . . but now that you are on this path, it isn’t glory that you’ll be getting. There won’t be medals or ceremonies. What would have brought you accolades before can never be spoken of, now. Your service will be hidden from the world, because you will be keeping that world safe from threats that it can never know are real.

“You will be the first line of defense against things the world has never seen. You may not receive glory for it, but your country will owe you a debt it can never repay.”

The noble sacrifices.

Leon tried not to scoff at Hellman’s wording, because he made it sound so heroic. Leon knew better. He knew that they wouldn’t be the unsung knights in shining armor. They would be the living shields for the world. Ones that would be cast aside when they broke at last, just as Andersen and the others already had been.

But who else could it be?

“And what exactly is it that we’re going to be fighting?” Valeria asked, not bothering to offer respect to the man who hadn’t earned it. “Who was so dangerous that you had to fucking torture us to test our strength?”

Hellman didn’t react to her insubordination, but Leon tensed because Valeria very nearly hadn’t been allowed to be here.

Just like him.

We’ll need every soldier we can get.

That and Krauser’s influence had been all that spared them. That knowledge that the fight they were preparing for was unlike anything the world had seen before, against an enemy unlike any other.

“The Umbrella Corporation.”

Confusion was the first thing that Leon felt in the room. “The pharmaceutical company?” Alejandro clarified with a raised brow. “We’re going to be taking down people in lab coats?”

He didn’t know. None of them did. But Leon had reacted the same way, once. He’d not believed Ada when she’d told him that the company had created the horrors that now haunted his dreams and waking moments alike. Then he’d seen it firsthand. He owed a bullet-sculpted scar on his shoulder to one of those people in lab coats. And he owed months of restless nights to them too.

“Not the scientists, necessarily,” Hellman shook his head, and Reed stepped forward.

“Breathe a word of what you see in this room, and you will be tried for treason.” That was all the warning that was given before he reached forward. The agent flipped a switch on the projector to turn it on, and laid a semi-transparent image over the glass. There were murmurings of disgust. Surprise. Confusion. For Leon, though, it wasn’t some newfound terror. Even blurred and black and white, the image was one Leon recognized immediately. Rotting flesh falling away from bone and muscle. Teeth bared and darkened with viscera. A hand with bloodied nails reaching towards the camera.

Leon’s body reacted before his mind. Muscles tensing. Heart stuttering. He had to repress the urge to run. To aim his gun and fire desperately, even if he was sitting in a room miles and months away from Raccoon City. Even if he was just looking at an image taken from what had to have been that night or the days before it.

It was good - or, perhaps, not so good - to know that his memory when it came to the zombies was clear. Crystal and cruel.

“You’ll be fighting the bioweapons they create.” Hellman announced, letting the knowledge sink in.

There it was. The truth that Leon had wanted the men and women around him to know. And now that it was there, he almost felt guilt for that, too. Guilt, because he wished he didn’t have the knowledge he possessed.

No. Better they know. Better they’re prepared.

“This image was taken during the Raccoon City outbreak, and is just one of many reported variants of bioweapons that were found in the city.” The energy in the room shifted, then, because even if they didn’t know the truth of the matter, everyone in the country had heard of Raccoon City. The strange disease that had broken out, and the city’s destruction to keep it from spreading. Not untrue, Leon supposed. Just omitting key details. Redacted information. Cover-ups. He supposed he shouldn’t have been surprised that this was the path his life would take, going from one ghost-story to another. And even now, it seemed there would be more lies of omission. “According to our intel, there was an accidental release of viral weaponry in Umbrella labs beneath Raccoon City. Reanimation of corpses as well as drastic, fast-acting mutations were characteristics of said viruses. They were transmitted through water contamination and, later, through bites or scratches. The viruses escaped into the city and reports of violent individuals started popping up in mid September. By September thirtieth, the situation was deemed uncontainable.”

And then Raccoon City, along with the monsters in it and those people still trying to survive within it had been wiped off the map. Nevermind that this had happened because one doctor had offered the US that same viral weaponry in exchange for his safety. Nevermind that maybe none of this would have happened if they’d just taken the man into custody from the start.

Leon supposed he shouldn’t have been surprised by the exclusion of that information, either. These men needed everyone in this room on their side. On the country’s side.

“This is what the Major’s been training you for. Fighting against something that can wipe out a city in a week,” Hellman went on, clasping his hands behind his back. "We will endeavor to teach you how to avoid that fight. How to find the people responsible for the creation of these bioweapons before they can utilize them.”

Tracking down Umbrella before another outbreak could happen, in other words. Cutting the head off the snake before it could bite anyone else.

Too little, too late, Leon knew, because the cat was out of the bag, now. If the US knew, then other countries probably did too. Umbrella was a company. They would protect their interests, their assets. Viral weaponry that could “wipe out a city in a week” had to look good to someone out there. It had looked good to the US, after all.

“The training we give you in the following weeks will never be complete,” Hellman warned, pale eyes sweeping the room of soldiers in front of him. “We could never give you full CIA-level instruction in time to send you after Umbrella. What we can give you are the tools we believe will help you to find and stop them.”

Not soldiers. Not CIA. Something else. New weapons for a new war.

“They have facilities across the world,” Reed said, speaking in that usual cold timbre that made Leon’s hackles rise. “You’ll need to learn to adapt to new environments. Speak new languages. Pass where you’re not supposed to.”

“And if we’re caught somewhere we’re not supposed to be?” Alenko asked from Leon’s side, picking up on what Reed was implying immediately.

Leon already knew the answer before Hellman even spoke it. “The world can’t know about our operations any more than they can know about Umbrella’s research,” he said, adding to the gravity of the room. “But you were all chosen for your skill, and allowed to continue this training for the strength of your wills.” For holding out under interrogation. Leon didn’t miss how Reed’s eyes landed on him, then. He ignored that biting gaze, just as he’d been ignoring Krauser’s all day.

“So if we get captured, if we die out there,” Alenko went on, his usual jovial tone gone, “then we shouldn’t expect anyone to come get us. That’s what you’re saying?”

To his credit, the look Hellman gave in return actually looked understanding. Sympathetic, even. That didn’t change the fact that he was promising them unaided struggles and unmarked graves. “As I said, your work won’t bring you glory. But it will be more important than anything you’ve done in your lives.”

Lives that could be turned into hollow shells. That could be warped and mutated into mindless violence.

With or without the influence of a virus.

But with nowhere to go but forward, Leon tried not to let those thoughts rule him. There were other things to think about.

Things that the rest of the squad were thinking of too, by the time dinner rolled around.

It had been quiet for so many reasons since the interrogations, but now there was an added layer of heaviness. Worry had carved creases across the foreheads of Leon’s squad, a sharp contrast to the exhausted but otherwise unburdened lower-level squads sitting at other tables. Young men and women who didn’t know yet what they would be facing.

“So,” Williams finally said, trying to break the silence with hushed humor, “I guess we’ll all be able to put ‘monster hunter’ on our resumes after this. Not that anyone will ever see those resumes.”

Leon wanted to smile at that, but all he could think of was dead hands and rotting breath and gnashing teeth.

No one else laughed, either, their thoughts no doubt stuck on the images they’d seen earlier. The agents hadn’t told them everything yet. They’d have a hard time doing that in one day. Today was about fear, Leon knew that. Scaring everyone shitless so they’d respect the reality of the situation, like at Fort Benning when Cortez explained how a wrong move in a tank could earn you crushed limbs. With tanks, though, there was a field manual to understand; a list of knowns. With bioweapons . . . “How the hell are we supposed to fight those things?” Alenko asked, keeping his voice down so those cadets who didn’t know what awaited them couldn’t hear.

And Leon knew then that he could help. That he could give his friends an edge before even the CIA did. So, he answered quietly, trying to adopt the easy authority you used when giving corrections in sparring. “The zombies, you shoot in the head,” he said, and all attention at the table turned to him. “Higher-caliber rounds work best. The more of the brain you can destroy, the better.”

His squad looked at Leon like they were seeing him in a brand new light, realization slowly dawning across their faces.

“There are other things, though. Different weak spots. None of them go down easy.” Because even once you knew where to shoot, where to place those bullets, it all came down to whether there was actually an opportunity to do so. Whether one had the ammunition required, or the moment needed to aim. “You have to be smart,” he warned, letting memory weigh down his words, “and you have to know when to run.”

There was a beat of silence as Alejandro leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table. “Sounds like you’re speaking from experience, brother.”

All sorts of secrets coming out lately, Leon thought as he nodded once.

“I am. I was there. In Raccoon City.”

He knew how he’d been thought of when he first arrived. He wasn’t blind to the judgmental stares when he’d struggled. The whispers that that kid’s gonna get himself killed. It was strange to be seen by everyone as you’d seen him so early on.

“Son of a bitch,” Alejandro muttered, in disbelief.

“How the hell did you make it out of there?” Alenko asked, and Leon wished he had a better answer.

“Luck.”

That was what it had come down to. His skill with a gun, his ability to think on his feet, they’d helped, but it had been luck that he’d been near those who could save him when skill alone failed him. Luck that had given him the tools he needed to survive. Skill, certainly, but luck was the reason he was still alive.

He couldn’t change luck, though.

So, he would focus on the two of those things that he could control.

⧫⧫⧫

The Major didn’t look happy to see him. Not that it surprised Leon at all.

He’d held out for a few days. He’d been focused in that time on throwing himself into the new lessons Reed and Hellman led. Languages, communication, codes, hell, even some hacking and lock-picking. All skills that may save Leon’s life, but not the ones he’d need if he ever came up against another monster that could fold a helicopter in two. Not that a knife would do much against such power either, he supposed. Still, he wanted to be ready. Had to be. For a while, he thought that he could get away with only sparring with Williams, Valeria and Alenko. Alejandro had joined them, and every so often so would the other members of the squad. Sparring while Leon told them of the hard-earned wisdom he had collected that night in Raccoon City. They were good, there was no denying that. But they weren’t you. They lacked your speed. Your instinct. Your gift for violence, earned not because you were a violent person but because you’d had such unspeakable violence done to you. You’d been a whetstone for his skill, and if all he had was eight weeks, then he needed them to be sharper than ever.

So, he took your advice because you were right. Krauser was the best fighter on base. If you couldn’t spar, then Leon had to find other ways to become better. Even as Major Krauser scowled at him as he approached and all Leon could think of was the fact that he knew.

He knew, and he wasn’t saying anything.

Why wasn’t he saying anything?

How long had he known?

What had he seen?

Another set of thoughts to be set aside. If Krauser wasn’t going to make trouble for you and Leon, then it was a situation that Leon could ignore.

God, he really hoped he could ignore it.

It was a little difficult when the Major kept on looking at Leon like he wished he would cease to exist. Leon thought for certain that the man’s mood would brighten a touch when asked to spar. Beating the shit out of Leon had to be something he’d be interested in, right?

“What? Your friends can’t be bothered?” Krauser grumbled.

“My friends are taking the night off,” Leon shot back, because, frankly, he was tired of the angry glares. Tired of all the bullshit. His time here was ending, and it was Krauser’s job to make sure he survived after the fact. “I need a sparring partner.”

What he got was an ass-kicking. Not that he’d expected otherwise.

Still, Leon allowed himself to be proud of the fact that he actually put up a fight. He remembered sparring with Krauser all those months ago, how easily the Major had wiped the floor with him. It made each strike he earned against Krauser’s skin feel all the more vindicating. He’d gotten used to defeat thanks to you, and he’d always been able to get back up, even before that. A good thing, too, because Krauser was fighting like he had a score to settle.

A kick with the force of a freight train hit Leon in the stomach, sending him falling backwards with a grunt. The Major didn’t waste any time, rushing to the ground with an overhead stab. Leon rolled out of the way just in time, hearing the scraping of metal against dirt. Dust washed over him, sent in a wave by the blade of Krauser’s knife, just enough getting into his eyes that his vision wavered.

Unable to see, his heart rate spiked, trying to urge him to get up. To defend himself. He felt Krauser’s hand close around his wrist - the one whose hand held the knife.

Leon acted quickly, bringing his other hand up, taking the knife. Slashing out almost blindly. Luck was on his side once again as he felt steel scrape against steel, parrying Krauser’s attack. The force of the blades meeting sent tremors through Leon’s arm, and it was through sheer will and memories of your words that he held onto the knife.

His vision cleared and he was in a better position to attack, so he slashed at the Major’s wrist, freeing his own in the process.

The two men got to their feet, putting some distance between each other.

Krauser didn’t look impressed. “Thought with all that extra sparring you’d be better than this,” he said, and Leon wasn’t sure if it was a good sign that he was talking shit. Was it a return to form? Or just more anger? He might have gotten his answer when Krauser went on with words like a slap to the face. “Guess you weren’t really paying attention to the fights though, were you?”

Leon knew it was bait. He could recognize that. Still, it was a shock to the system to hear Krauser imply it so openly. Even as a taunt, Leon hadn’t expected to hear it. It was just enough of a surprise that when Krauser rushed him, the younger man fumbled.

The feint was just fast enough for Leon to fall for it, and as he chased Krauser’s blade with his own - or where it would have slashed across his stomach - he nearly didn’t move fast enough to avoid the slash across his throat. You were fast, but Krauser? It was fighting you but dialed up to eleven, and it was too much for a fatigued and still-bruised Leon to handle. The blunted blade grazed his neck as he threw himself backwards. Off-balance, he nearly found himself losing his footing as Krauser pressed the attack, switching the knife to his left hand and thrusting it forward. Leon twisted his arm, getting his knife on the inside of the attack, his other hand going for the replacement . . .

Too late, and he coughed and sputtered as Krauser swung his knife up and over Leon’s shoulder and sent it point-first into the side of his throat. Even if the Major was pulling the blow back, it landed hard enough that Leon knew he’d have a new bruise tomorrow.

“Sloppy,” the Major shook his head as he pulled the blade away, stepping back.

Leon retreated away, pressing a hand to the newly hurting spot on his neck. The pain was kindling for his anger - he’d moved past the frustrations of losing in these sparring matches, but he felt it now all the same.

So he attacked first, this time. Hoping to catch the Major off-guard.

He nearly had him, too, after a quick exchange. Nearly. Krauser twisted his knife inside Leon’s guard and switched hands again, kneeing the younger man in the gut and then running his blade up Leon’s arm in a move that would have filleted the flesh from his bones if it had been real. Then he pulled the knife away and drove it into Leon’s chest. Another bruise.

“Where’s your focus?” Krauser snarled into Leon’s ear. “Your Sergeant isn’t here. Keep your head in the game.”

Why the fuck was he pressing the issue?

Leon shoved Krauser away - no small feat to make that mountain of a man move - and dropped into another ready stance. Resetting into another round, even as his muscles pleaded with him to stop.

No. He wouldn’t be given a break out there. There would be no mercy.

That was why you’d told him to do this, Leon knew. Krauser was as close to the real thing as he was going to get, if you were unable to fight.

So, Leon charged again. Over and over, even if he ended up on the ground nearly every time. It was those first few weeks with you all over again. Near-victories followed by crushing defeats. All ushered in, Leon knew, by Krauser’s taunts. The Major was all too aware of that fact, as he swept Leon’s legs out from underneath him. His back hit the ground yet again, and this time Krauser didn’t even bother to go for a pin or a finishing move.

“What did I tell you about being distracted?” the Major sneered, tossing his knife up and catching it in one smooth motion. “Because it’s the people who get distracted out there that end up dying.”

“I’m not-”

“Don’t bullshit me. You have a weak spot and you’re letting me exploit it.” A weak spot. Leon had never once thought of you that way. You kept him going. You’d given him strength in the worst days at STRATCOM. Even during the days spent in those cells, the silent looks you would give him often felt like all that was keeping him sane.

And then they’d beaten you in front of him, and Leon had broken.

“You think I’m the only one who will figure it out?” The question was quiet, but cut straight to the bone. It was what you and Leon had talked about, all those nights ago. The last time in days that he’d seen you. And it was killing him. It hurt not to train with you. To get those reassuring looks when no one else was looking.

You’d told him from the beginning that this life didn’t guarantee that the two of you would be together.

He couldn’t let your absence drag him down.

But he was frustrated and hurt, so he looked up at Krauser from the ground with a glare. “Why not report it, then?” Leon challenged, because that question had been eating away at him. “Why not let Reed and Hellman kick me out like they wanted to?”

Krauser’s eyes flashed, and Leon knew that he’d overplayed his hand, admitting that he’d heard that conversation.

“Get up, rookie,” the Major ordered, “and focus, or maybe I’ll change my mind and let them send you home.”

Leon wasn’t sure if Krauser was serious or not, at this point.

Whatever the case, he pushed himself up with a groan anyway, part of him debating just walking away. No. He wouldn’t give in that easily. He never did. So he stood his ground, meeting that disapproving stare that had been fixed on him for the better part of a week. The Major wanted focus? He’d get it. He wanted to talk shit? Leon could give as good as he got.

So the younger man raised his knife, still keeping his gaze locked on his opponent. “Maybe you’re the one who needs to focus. Sure are taking an interest in something that’s none of your business.”

Krauser didn’t take the bait, but Leon saw his expression shift. His brow creased further, his eyes glinting. He thought that maybe he'd hit a nerve, but that moment of emotion was gone quickly. “That the best you’ve got?” he asked, and then Leon was on the defensive again, blocking quick strike after quick strike. Their hands moved fast, and Leon’s mind never once wavered from the task in front of him. Right up until he ducked under a swing, his blade held parallel to the ground, and ran it straight across Krauser’s side. He followed the move through, ending up at the Major’s back, going for a killing blow to the spine. It didn’t quite land as Krauser whirled around, knocking Leon’s arm out of the way. Another side kick distanced them, but Krauser looked down at his side for a moment, looking at where Leon’s knife had connected.

When he looked back up, he gave an almost reluctant nod of approval. “Not bad.”

It wasn’t much assurance, but Krauser wasn’t you. Leon would take what he could get.

Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Chapter Index

A/N: Leon said "Why are you so up in my business?" and Krauser did not have a good answer to that question.

Speaking of Krauser . . . I did in fact cave and started writing his lil spin-off, it'll switch between Operation Javier and flashbacks of before, during and eventually after Between the Bones. Because I'm a hooligan. First chapter is out already! Even though I said I was gonna wait but I have no self control, oops. It is absolutely nonessential to the plot of this, and any references made to it will be fully explained in context but uhhhh I like the goofy beret man, so it exists now!

#leon kennedy x reader #leon s kennedy #leon kennedy #resident evil x reader #resident evil 2 #resident evil 4 #resident evil #between the bones #gender neutral reader #leon kennedy x you #no y/n #jack krauser

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thejakeformerlyknownasprince · 2 years ago

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Could you review The Revelation? I want to hear your thoughts on this whole dramatic development

Short answer: This one is proof that there are plenty of good ghost-written Animorphs books.

Long answer: You know what stands out to me every time I reread #45? How well it balances the different moods of the series. It isn't easy to include humor in a story that is first and foremost about a kid sacrificing his entire life as he knows it in order to save his parents from being enslaved by invading aliens... and yet, there's a pretty good balance of humor in here.

We open on a light sequence, where Marco is bragging about his unsurpassed culinary talents as he pulls a freezer pizza out of the oven. We get a hard left turn from silly family talk into horror, when Marco realizes the family talk is about z-space. We get the tense sequence that ends with Peter quietly telling his son "I get it. You've been through hell", even as Marco plots his stepmother's end. We get a hilarious sequence with Ax failing at piloting a broken Bug fighter, with a few heartwarming notes about Marco's affection for his friends. We go straight back to horror when Marco has to contemplate sacrificing his team to save his mom, and realizes that the mom he's getting back is more damaged — and way more bloodthirsty — than the one he lost.

This isn't mood whiplash between humor and horror (see: Justice League). It's not the characters randomly forgetting the stakes of the story long enough to get out a snappy one-liner (see: Umbrella Academy). It's actually quite balanced.

But, like, it's all one story. Because the light-and-funny sequence over dinner starts with:

The front door opened. Dad's... cheeks were flushed. He looked like he'd just struck oil. "Hello, family!" Okay, that was more enthusiasm than I wanted to see. And the word family, when applied to anyone but me, Dad, and my real mom, would always sound very weird. To worsen the nausea, Dad pulled a bouquet of flowers from behind his back. They were not for me.

This is sweet, it's funny. Flowers in the U.S. are overwhelmingly a romantic gesture, so Marco's unnecessary exposition about "they were not for me" reads like a sarcastic aside. Marco's also getting a positive response to having cooked, and is basking in the appreciation of his efforts. But. There's the "weird" feeling. There's the "nausea." Because Marco also knows that his dad's second marriage is built on a lie, one told by yeerks to forward their own planet-destroying goal. This isn't Justice League putting the "What's your superpower?"/ "I'm rich" exchange 30 seconds after we watched hundreds of Amazons sacrifice their lives trying to contain an unstoppable threat. It's ambivalence: a mixture of positive and negative emotion, not even bittersweet so much as some bitter, some sweet.

Later on, when they're stealing the Bug fighter, again there's that shift to the silly. Ax is trying to claim it's going so badly because "I think the cockpit was modified for a mutant taxxon... with twice the normal number of appendages" (suuure, kid). Rachel is grumbling about how he has "the makings of a great heating-and-cooling engineer" because he can only seem to get the climate control working. Finally Ax resorts to flying as wildly as possible in the hope autopilot will kick in and stop him, putting the ship in freefall straight toward the water, and Marco thinks:

Great. Killed by autopilot. Totally humiliating death. Then — the image of my mother popped into my head, as I'd seen her in the Yeerk pool, at the trial, bones broken... She'd begged me to let Visser One continue to control her. Because she knew it might give Earth a better chance for survival. If she could take that... I could deal with being at the mercy of autopilot. I glanced out one of the windows. Ocean and forest and city lights were dropping away, like a high-speed pan-out from a satellite camera. For just an instant, I could make out the dots of lights that were the city. The stadium, the business district, the 'burbs, and the boonies... It was like we'd reached the end of some massive, invisible rubber band. I'd shot off too many rubber bands during math class not to know what would come next. Was I distressed? Yes. Oh yes, I was.

There are a lot of moods in that half-a-page. Marco's hysterical and almost giddy over the ridiculousness of them all being tossed around inside the Bug fighter by a yeerk program's shitty cruise control. And then he remembers the stakes of this mission, and that his mom is awaiting execution alongside Visser One because she chose to go back right now. The shift to determination and anxiety leads into the almost magical moment of weightlessness at the top of the Bug fighter's trajectory, when they're up so high they can see the whole California coast stretched out below them. And then it's straight back into giddy-hysterical-terrified, as gravity inevitably reverses now they're out of momentum.

This is a lot of emotion to get into about half a page. Marco's giddy with fear and sarcastic about it, when suddenly he remembers why he has no right to complain. That moment of shifting from terror to resolve as he remembers his mom leads into another moment of unexpected calm, as the kids travel high enough to see the whole California coast below them. And then the pause stops as the ship runs out of momentum, and the inevitable swing back into terror takes over.

This isn't Umbrella Academy, where machine gunfire is meant to be sweet/silly when it's the Handler firing at Liliah and horrifying/violent when she's firing at the Hargreeveses the following episode. The stakes remain the same throughout this sequence; it's just that Marco's focus goes from the immediate to the broad and then back to the immediate.

And the shift from one mood to another is logical. It makes sense, and we can follow Marco's thoughts. He's afraid for good reason, he shifts from fear to determination for good reason, he shifts from determination to melancholy, and then he goes back into fear. And his mental journey is paralleled by the physical motion of the Bug fighter rocketing up to the edge of the atmosphere, hanging there for a second able to see the streetlights and the stars, and then plummeting toward the Earth. Anyone who's ever ridden a roller coaster can relate.

So, like, this one isn't perfect. The writing is rough in a handful of places. But I think it has a lot of what makes Animorphs good going on as well.

#animorphs #animorphs reviews #the revelation #45 #marco animorphs #the one and only #animorphs spoilers #if you squint #honestly i do actually like both umbrella academy and the dc movies #but i have to take both in small doses because either one can drive me up the wall at times

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nightskyfangirl · 5 months ago

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In The Dust that as a City - Umbrella Academy Fanfiction - Chapter Two?

Summary: What if Five didn't time travel to the apocalypse, but Diego did?

Characters: Diego Hargreeves, The Handler

A/N: I'm reposting my old fanfictions since AO3 is down. Hope you enjoy! :D

Diego watched as Five and Luther disappeared behind the machine. It seemed to have its own gravity, pulling everything around it into its gaping, blue mouth. “Back up,” Diego ordered. He put his arms out in front of the others, keeping himself between them and the... Diego didn’t know what to call the machine. Luther had called a wormhole, but he didn’t want to use the same term. Besides, if Luther came up with it, it was probably wrong. Five looked around the machine and yelled for them to back up. No shit, Sherlock. Diego started to take another step back anyway, when movement caught his attention. A tall person in a bulletproof vest walked towards Luther and Five, a pistol in hand. The scientist had warned them that people wanted his machine, but Diego hadn’t thought they would get here so fast. It’d only been in meltdown a few minutes. The woman with the gun yelled something at Five and Luther but there wasn’t any way they’d hear her; not over the machine. Diego sprang forward. Two knives instantly in his hands, then gone just a quickly. They flipped, end over end, until they found their target in the woman’s chest. She fell back, dropping her gun. Diego glanced over to Luther and Five. A long tube from the machine was in Luther’s hand. It didn’t take him long to break it, did it? They both stared at Diego, wide eyed. Five was yelling at him, but Diego couldn’t hear anything over the machine’s hum. He just saved Number One. Dad would notice that. He’d have to rethink their numbers. He’d make Diego the leader. “Diego!” Klaus yelled. Diego looked over his shoulder. He was a lot further from them than he thought. Oh. Diego looked to the machine. It was glowing, getting brighter and brighter. It looked like it was about to explode. Shit. Diego turned and ran back toward Allison, Klaus and Ben. “Run!” Diego yelled. He didn’t know what Luther and Five had done, but the entire machine was going to blow. Ben was the first of the trio to get the memo. He grabbed Allison and Klaus by their jackets, pulling them to the exit. Diego felt the knives leaving his holsters and flying towards the blue worm– No. He would not call it a wormhole. He ran faster. Ben stopped when he reached the door and yelled for Diego to hurry. Couldn’t he see Diego already was? Ben gaze flickered over Diego’s shoulder and paled. The machine made an otherworldly screech and Diego felt it tug against him.His feet left the ground and the blue surrounded him.

The air was knocked from his lungs when he hit the ground. Diego coughed, sending dust everywhere. Dust? He jumped to his feet. “Guys?” Diego asked. He didn’t see them anywhere, but that didn’t make sense. They were just there. The warehouse was gone too. The machine, the building, his siblings, everything. Everything was gone. His foot bumped something metal and he glanced down. His knives laid scattered at his feet. Diego picked them up and put them back where they belonged. “Guys?!” He called again. No one responded. Sand, ash and fire covered everything. Death covered everything. A spot of green caught his eye. Diego walked over to it, recognizing what it was before he got close. The green street sign read, Lamp Rd. He frowned. Lamp Rd. That was right down from the Academy. A quick spin helped him identify his surroundings. The collapsed buildings around him – they were just down the road from home. Diego turned on his heel and broke out in a run. He ran up piles of rubble and across roofs of cars. Soon he stopped in where the Academy should have been. The brick had crumbled along with everything else. Diego shook his head. It didn’t make sense! He’d just been in there. It’d been okay. Everything had been okay. Then that stupid machine. He stumbled over the fallen pieces of concrete, walking into the remains of the building. He wished Dad could see it. See what the Academy came to. But mostly, Diego didn’t want to be seeing it alone. “Mom?” Diego yelled. She could survive this, couldn’t she? She could survive everything. She was the strongest person he knew; if she couldn’t survive this no one could. “Mom?” Diego foot hit something soft and he looked down. It was a hand and it was holding an eye. Diego almost stumbled back. The eye was covered in blood. Diego looked away before he puked. He closed his eyes, centering himself. It didn’t matter. There was only so many breathing exercises he could do. He was in the remains of the Academy. His home. And all he could find was some dude holding an eye? After a moment he looked back at the man and carefully avoiding looking at the eye. Seriously, who dies holding an eye? Diego’s question was quickly answered. Giants. The man was huge. His shoulders were three times as wide as Diego – but then that wasn’t saying much – and most of his body was crushed under what looked like a fallen piece of the ceiling. Diego swallowed. The man was long dead. Diego stepped away from him and noticed someone else a short distance away. The next man was face down and considerably smaller than the giant. He wore a dark suit and blood had dried on his face. A girl was next, followed by a man in a long coat. Diego tilted his head. The man had ‘Goodbye’ tattooed across his hand in bold letters. Diego frowned. Klaus always talked about getting one like that— Another tattoo caught his attention. A tattoo of an umbrella wrapped in a black circle. Diego couldn’t breathe. The mans hair looked like Klaus – same curly hair, same thin frame, same horrible fashion taste. Diego couldn’t remember falling, but he was on his knees. He couldn’t think, he couldn’t breathe. If they were dead, so was he, cause he couldn’t feel his heart beating anymore. His hands shook and his ears were ringing. It didn’t make sense; it didn’t make sense. “Hello, Diego.” Diego spun, two knives already in hand. Everything was blurry and he blinked to clear it. “Oh!” She laughed. The sound was so wrong. How could she laugh?

“No need for those. Not against me anyway.” The woman lifted a black veil from her face. She looked dressed for a funeral and had cigarette in her hand. Diego wrinkled his nose. He hated the stench of cigarette smoke. “Who are you?” Diego demanded, surprised when his voice didn’t shake. “Where is my family?” He kept his knives ready to throw. “I am the Handler,” she said, taking a puff from her cigarette. She cast a look around. “And it seems you’ve already found them.” Diego’s heart plummeted. “What? No. Y-You’re wrong. These—” “I don’t think I am.” He didn’t know who this Handler was, but he already hated her. She glanced at the bodies Diego had already checked. She pointed to each of them in turn. “Luther, Five, Allison, Klaus.” Diego shook his head. “No. This isn’t them. My siblings are thirteen—” “Your siblings were thirteen. It’s 2019, Diego. Year of the apocalypse.” She said the word apocalypse with a smile. “It-it’s 2002.” “Where you came from, perhaps, but not here. That scientist created quite the machine. But time travel—” She tilted her head, giving Diego a pitying look he could tell was fake “—it never goes right.” She took another drag of her cigarette and extended her hand to Diego. “You wanna get out of here?"

Thanks for reading! Please leave a comment if you enjoyed :D

#Umbrella Academy #Archive of Our Own #Diego Hargreeves #The Handler

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spectral-honey · 2 years ago

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@bibimimii HH okay idk why but i tried to save the post with your ask abt the vid essays to drafts so i could make sure the links worked right and tumblr OBLITERATED it i cant find it anywhere ;~; BUT i luckily had written down my video essay recs elsewhere so! i have them but i have no idea what comments i originally meant to pair with them i am so sorry

i tried to choose favorites but i am just very bad at that so i have like a long list of recommendations and then i chose like a few top ones from said list so here are the “favs”:

Understanding Kingdom Hearts (and every other story)

Man in Cave

The Rise And Fall of Frenemies

Abortion vs. infanticide: is there a moral difference?

I Emailed My Doctor 133 Times: The Crisis In the British Healthcare System

i also split the rest of this into interesting or fun ones and ones that deal more with politics for ease of interaction

Fun/interesting ones:

Evermore: The Theme Park That Wasn’t by Jenny Nicholson

How ARCANE Writes Woman by schnee

Our conception of love is messed up. by oliSUNvia

Queerbaiting Celebrities: An Overanalysis by Alexander Avila

The Modeling Industry: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly by Mina Le

Small Quick Ordinary Look at The Umbrella Academy by Quinn Curio

The Rise And Fall of Frenemies - Trisha and Ethan’s Impossible Podcast | TRO by The Right Opinion

TempleOS | Down the Rabbit Hole by Fredrik Knudsen

Furries | Down the Rabbit Hole by Fredrik Knudsen

What The Internet did To Undertale by Super Eyepatch Wolf

What IS Nathan Fielder? by Super Eyepatch Wolf

‘00s Bisexual Chic by verilybitchie

Your city is full of fake buildings, here’s why by Answer in Progress

Envy | ContraPoints by ContraPoints

A masterclass in gaslighting - i wanna marry harry by Jordan Theresa

The Craziest Moments In Brony History by Izzzyzzz

Understanding Kingdom Hearts (and every other story) | Unraveled by Polygon (Brian David Gilbert)

Man in Cave by Internet Historian

The Cost of Concordia by Internet Historian

The Supernatural Finale Aired, And Tumblr Exploded by Sarah Z

and the more political ones:

How Social Media Changes Your Mind by verilybitchie

Aborting the sun: the facts, the feels, and the action | Khadija Mbowe by Khadija Mbowe

Abortion vs. infanticide: is there a moral difference? by oliSUNvia

The Problem With “Google is Free” Activism by Rowan Ellis

I Emailed My Doctor 133 Times: The Crisis In the British Healthcare System by Philosophy Tube

also i think any trigger warnings are either self evident from the topic of the videos or are mentioned by the creators of the videos but i am always here

#video essays #video essay #theres some other channels that i didnt find a specific video i wanted to rec but i generally like #like shaun; we're in hell; tee noir and shanspeare #also i kept considering putting one of grayson's projects batman videos in here but im honestly not sure the exact line between like #video essays and just commentary videos or review videos #as always i am overthinking everything #like i didnt include as many political ones bc im lowkey worried some random tumblr user is gonna show up in my inbox like #UMM that person is actually CANCELED you should never consider anything they have to say interesting or informative???#and then i would die not because i care abotu their opinion but mostly because i have anxiety and it would make me sad #um anyway i hope enjoyment is found from the videos hehe?

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ironchef13 · 1 year ago

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Spiderverse Crossover Ideas Pt 1

Below you are a list of ideas for spider-man: Spider-verse crossovers starring Miles Morales. They mostly involve Miles getting sent to different universes and trying to survive in that world making new friends, being a hero and finding a way home. The good news is he doesn't experience cellular decay like the other spider-people, the bad news is that he slowly starts to lose hope of ever getting home. these story ideas are available for anyone interested in writing them or using their ideas as a base. so here they are.

"SPIDER-MAN OF ANIMA CITY" (Spider-verse x BNA: Brand New Animal) plot: Miles Morales winds up in a world with humans coexist with people that can turn into animals called beastmen. He ends up in anima city a place where beastmen can live free from human prejudice. While in anima city he meets up with Michiru Kagemori a human turned tanuki beastmen. they end up forming a friendship with miles trying to help Michiru become human again and her helping miles get back home. Eventually Spider-man has to step up and help Michiru and wolf-beastman Shirou Ogami save anima city from certain destruction.

"SPIDER-MAN OF NEW MERIDIAN" (Spider-verse x Skullgirls video game) plot: Miles ends up in New Meridian in the skullgirls universe. while trying to find a way home he meets many of the unique skullgirls characters. he even makes friends with characters like Umbrella, peacock, filia, and frees painwheel from Brain Drain's mind-control (using his venom blast). it ultimately leads to a final showdown with the infamous skullgirl. will he use the skullhearts wish to go home? or will the price be to great to pay?

"A SPIDER-MAN OF REMNANT" (Spider-verse x RWBY) plot: Miles Morales ends up in the world of remnant and becomes the unofficial fifth member of team RWBY. there he attends beacon academy to learn about being a hunter (which is the same as being a hero but a different title) and fighting monsters called grimm. Will the world of remnant be changed with Spider-man's Prescence? Will miles get a semblance along with his spider powers? And are any of his spider-friends looking for him?

"ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN MEETS INVINCIBLE" (Spider-verse x Invincible) plot: Miles Morales ends up in a world where there are heroes and villains much stronger than the ones in his dimension. he finds friends in Mark Grayson aka Invincible. When that earths equivalent of the Avengers, are brutally killed by one of their own can Ultimate spider-man step up to be the hero that world needs? or will he be crushed like a bug under Omni-Man's foot

There you have it I hope all you fanfic writers out their find my ideas inspiring.

#across the spiderverse #miles morales #invincible #rwby #skullgirls #bna #bna: brand new animal #spiderverse #spiderman atsv #atsv #story ideas #beyond the spiderverse #ultimate spider man

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valkerymillenia · 2 months ago

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Happy Birthday! Sorry you can’t be with who you want to celebrate today, but I hope it’s a good one and you enjoy your cake 🎉🎂🥳

What did you think of s4 of The Umbrella Academy? Best things/ worst things?

Any fics or stuff you’re workin’ on now?

What are your favorite headcanons for your fav ship?

Thanks ❤️

Hey!

Sorry I took so long to reply but this whole week was hell, every single thing went wrong and I was having trouble focusing enough to answer.

Still, you're the only one that messaged me here and I'm deeply grateful 🥲

Either way- THANK YOU SO MUCH 💕💕💕

My birthday was horrible: couldn't be with my loved ones and the people I have close by didn't care, I barely slept because of pain on my wrist, got woken up way too early by telemarketing, got heavily rained on on my way to see a lawyer about the debt of house (to reason with them so they don't put us in courtb right now), lawyer turned out not to be there because she made a mistake with our appointment and went out of town, got rained on again, all my fun plans had been cancelled and narrowed down to just go with my one friend to a park with some caves (in another city) for the afternoon but the storm got so bad that the park closed down so that got cancelled too, we went to the mall to kill some time before the dinner we were going to have at the sushi restaurant but then her brother got stranded in another district and called her to come get him so all our dinner plans got cancelled too. We cut the cake in a parking lot in the rain so she could take some home with her and I ended up going home and having tasteless leftovers for dinner.

The only things I got for my birthday were the things I got for myself- cookies, cola and one single eyeshadow (couldn't even buy my meds).

It's also been a bad week in general for other reasons too (got sick, the lawyer thing threatening to make us loose our home, money issues, health issues, work issues, and so much more, just everything went wrong).

So yeah, it was terrible but that's why nice messages like this mean so much to me. Thank you.

On the plus side, I made my own cake (goth red velvet) and it was fun and delicious.

(actually made an extra cake too for my neighbors and coworkers because I had enough dough and fondant for it).

As for your questions...

Umbrella Academy s04?

Oh god, it was so bad, it disappointed me so much.

This was one of my all-time favorite shows, I even have an umbrella tattoo (helped by the fin fact that the siblings were born literal hours before me and how much I saw myself in the dysfunctionality of their lives at my age).

Here's the thing- the actors were still great, they always are and they put their whole heart into it, but Blackman fucked everything, it literally feels like he didn't actually want to do this season, the plot just felt so so so lazy and lacking in effort.

I was so happy that we were getting a final season to wrap up instead of cancellation but now I think I would have preferred the loose ends of season 3.

The bad:

Erasing character and relationship growth, the siblings grew so close and did so much to save each other but then in season 4 that didn't even want to be around each other anymore? Blackman took "dysfunctional family", threw away the "family" part and only kept the "dysfunctional".

Ray being handwaved away, Sloane being completely forgotten

Luther not even mentioning Sloane and becoming a happy little stripper, of all things?

The monkey body coming back with Luther's powers???? Wtf? His ape body mutation had NOTHING to do with his powers but they pretended not to remember season 1 at all. Plot hole right there. SO. GODDAMN. LAZY!

Everything about Diego and Lila's relationship and how much they hate their lives after children

Five and Lila???? Wtf???? And then Blackman saying it was because Five deserved love too and Lila was the easiest character to use that wasn't related to her? That's SO goddamn lazy??? And also, as if Five's live wasn't what moved the entire plot for the first season, and why does he need a romance? Ace people exist too and this romance just broke his heart anyway

Allison having no talent, not really learning anything from the previous seasons and making the same mistakes again

Klaus' whole growth tossed away for no reason, season 1 showed us why he needed drugs and season 2 showed us how he could stay sober with the new control he gained but season 4? Nah, let's nerf him, he's too well adjusted and wise now (if too paranoid), so he gets his powers back and goes straight back to drugs and terrible decisions for no real reason, his powers aren't even as terrifying and overwhelming as season 1, it's just there to cause drama

Five being willing to give up his family for a wasteland with Lila? So out of character

Ben... I don't even know where to start with Ben but honestly I could overlook his character's writing issues because of the context

Viktor always wanted to desperately to be a part of the family and then just straight up moves far away and avoids them all for years? Viktor turning so cold and distant and douchy?

Lila's fucking laser eyes? What a lazy way to nerf her character

I actually liked Abigail so much, the reasonable leash on the dog that is Reginald and actually kind, and then they give us that lazy plot twist? She could have been the desperately needed family member to actually show admiration and kindness to the siblings, something softer to lighten the atmosphere and make the ending more tragic and bittersweet but no, let's make her a manipulator

Trying to redeem Reginald not by teaching him a lesson and giving him growth but by presenting someone worse to the plot. Lazy

No musical number for the siblings, and a rather lazy (though not totally bad) soundtrack selection. I'm overusing the word lazy but it's the best word for this season

The fucking giant squid that could have been quirky and interesting but they NEVER EXPLAIN IT

Nobody really remembered the Jennifer incident but then who drew that picture of Jennifer from one of the previous seasons?

Really lazy explanations to fix plot points where they wrote themselves into a wall (including giving the siblings their powers back)

Scraping the Commission entirely

Pogo was done dirty too

The way they started calling it "marigold" as if that had always been a thing (and not a name Harlan came up with)

The "opposite magical particles" thing felt like a pretty lazy way to justify a new world ending threat too

THE GODDAMN FUCKING FLOWER ENDING????? What a slap in the face to the fans!!! Have these beloved characters go through hell and suffer so much for 4 seasons and then give us no catharsis, no balance, only more sacrifice "for a greater good"

The plot hole that even with the flower ending, all the people that exist because of the siblings are still there and their influence is absolutely not gone so why are they???

And so much more, if I keep going I'll give myself am aneurism.

Honestly, I tried to keep an open mind, I kept hoping all the bad was going to pay off in the end, that there would be a good plot twist or some degree of healing or something rewarding in the end, but there wasn't. I tried so hard to like it but by ep 5 I was just angry (should have known something was off when I saw that the episode count for this season was much smaller).

This season made me cry with how bad it turned out.

The good:

The acting was wonderful, you can feel the love these actors have for the roles and each other

The action scenes, incredible action scenes as always (but we could have had so much better one on one fight scenes)

Not awful soundtrack, it's good but still somehow feels half-assed

Reginald finally being told off and the siblings standing up to him, specially Viktor putting the asshole in his place

More of Claire! She finally gets a personality, though I would have loved more Gracie too

Finally addressing Ben and Jennifer

Interesting twists to having the powers back (that were sadly underused, wasted potential)

Klaus being buried alive was horrifying but a truly clever way to torture an immortal, that could have been so interesting for the plot and to address trauma and mental health but no, let's never mention trauma or lasting effects

Jennifer's town

Klaus calling out his siblings

Allison being a protective sister

The special effects

So yeah... I didn't like season 4 and I prefer not to think about it.

As for the other questions...

Any fics I'm working on?

Been on a bit of hiatus due to work, stress and health but I do have plans and will been posting updates to several of my fics soon.

Fav headcanons for my fav ship?

Look, this ask is long enough already, if I start talking about this we'll be here all day. Ask me again some other time 😉

#rach rambles #birthday #tua #tua s04 #tua s04 spoilers #tua s04 pissed me off #anon ask

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hargreevesenterprises · 5 days ago

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Umbrella Academy Logos [TUA Comics]

#Publicity Post [AESTHETIC MUSISMS]#Here to save The City! [THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY]#The Umbrella Academy #TUA #tua comics #gerard way #gabriel bá #luther hargreeves #diego hargreeves #allison hargreeves #klaus hargreeves #five hargreeves #ben hargeeves

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onegianthotmess · 4 months ago

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Resident Evil OC:

Alessandra “Alice” Giovanni

Backstory Overview:

Alice is a D.S.O. agent employed by the U.S. government of Greek and Italian heritage. She was close childhood friends with Leon Kennedy and the two have retained their friendship through many years, considering each other siblings in arms since childhood. Both Alice and Leon enrolled in police academy together and were both assigned to Raccoon City Police Department.

After trying and failing to wake up Leon after a long night of heavy drinking so he wouldn’t be late, Alice arrived on time for her first day in Raccoon City by herself on September 30, 1998 and was visiting her sister on her break when the outbreak happened. In order to save Alice, her younger sister was eaten alive as she held zombies back so she could escape, her ladybug hair bow being the only thing left behind for Alice to remember her. And after reuniting with Leon and escaping Raccoon City as it was nuked, both her and Leon were interrogated and then paired together on missions from then on, being known as “the Sibling Package Deal” as their code partner name for missions by the president.

I’ve only made Resident Evil 4 Alice since that’s where my hyperfixation is at the moment.

So please enjoy these images of her along with a good amount of dialogue lines I came up with for her-

(Beginning of RE4/pre getting kidnapped by Mendéz)

“Sometimes I wonder if anything was worth it. The Incident, hellish jungle training and missions, the massacre. I wonder if any of that pain had purpose for me. But, as Mami used to tell me, everything has a purpose and a reason for being, you just have to look for it sometimes.”

“I promise, Leon, this time it’ll be different. I swear it on my baby sister’s grave that it will be different this time.”

“It just has to.”

“This is creepy. And I lived through the Raccoon City Incident.”

“I may have loved to copy my Papa as a bambini, but no way in hell am I gonna copy his smoking habit.”

“I naturally have two different eye colors. And if you comment on my body again, I’ll gouge out both of your perverted eyes.”

“Let’s go, Leon.”

“Cazzo, this place smells…”

“What’s with these weird charms? They look like spiders or some kind of insect from a horror film.”

“Oh, you startled us!”

“What on earth is in that pot? Rotten cannibalistic stew?”

“Maybe he only speaks Spanish?”

“I don’t think this is jam or paint on this badge…”

“Oh, shit!”

“There’s hair cooking in that pot, Leon. Hair…”

“What the hell is going on here?!”

“Who is still alive after having their neck snapped?!”

“These people are not right in the head!”

“Leon, duck!”

“A chainsaw maniac? They have a fucking CHAINSAW MANIAC?! Is the Texas Chainsaw Massacre now?!”

“Cazzo, my knife!”

“What kind of town has breakfast and bingo all together in church?”

“Don’t think I’ve seen a whole town so excited about bingo…”

“Leon, duck!”

“Well, someone ate his vegetables…”

(After escaping the basement/after initial Las Plagas infection)

“Oh, I gave you that jacket for last Christmas!…I don’t care, I’m going to be upset because it was an expensive one made from REAL sheepskin leather!”

“Well, I found our gear… Now to find how to get to it without getting killed…”

“Shit, duck!”

“Just go ahead of me and I’ll cover you!”

“How many bullets do you need?!”

“Oh, Mami, help me…”

“Thanks, Leon!”

“Who can survive five head shots?!”

“I’m out of shotgun shells!”

“Would someone give us a fucking break?!”

“Well, hello, stranger…Do you have a name?”

“‘Gun rhymes with fun for a reason’? I like this guy!”

“This house isn’t too shabby. Looks like a family home that’s been passed down a few generations.”

“Cazzo, the tall man is back!”

“Gift? Blood? What the fuck kind of cult crap are we really dealing with here?”

“He worked for Umbrella?! Oh, I’m killing him the next time I see him!”

“Oh, poor puppy… Let me help you, bambino…”

“Run along now, bambino. Go on.”

“Well, now we’re back in the hellhole we started in…”

“Okay, I might love dogs, but what the hell are those things?!”

(When goggles are in use)

“It’s dark in here, goggle time.”

“I think I see a way down this hall…follow me.”

“Condor One, I have a visual on the church. Those creeps are nowhere to be seen, so that’s good.”

“They were regular night vision goggles, but I fixed a few bugs and upgraded them a bit myself. They’re really handy for finding secret entrances and all that fun stuff. Still need to upgrade them to have an infrared setting to help with seeing those monsters better in dark quarters without use of a flashlight.”

“Leon, if you don’t get out of the way, I’m gonna shoot you!”

“Die, you figlio di puttana!”

“There’s a fake wall behind this bookcase here. Leon, help me move it.”

“There’s something in the water!”

“Why is it always bugs?! Ugh!”

“Oh, this new upgrade makes even the new infrared setting less fuzzy! Didn’t know the merchant was handy with support items like goggles.”

(Talking with Hunnigan or Leon over radio)

“Roost? This is Condor Two. To make it short and sweet, things went to shit and now I’ve been separated from Condor One and Baby Eagle. Could you send me Condor One’s location? I’ve been trying to reach him, but he seems preoccupied since he isn’t picking up.”

“Condor One? Hello? Come in? Condor One, come in! Come in! Leon? Leon! Leon Scott Kennedy, answer me!…Shit.”

“Roost, could you pull up some intel on a guy Condor One was just with? His name is Luis Sera and, from the way Condor One described him, he seems a bit questionable at best.”

“Sorry about that, Roost. Condor One and I ran into a bit of trouble out on the lake. We’re back on track and continuing our search for a key to the church in town. Talk in a bit. Condor Two out.”

I don’t know how to end this, so-

I hope you liked her?

Also, I want more Resident Evil girls with long hair tied up!!!

#resident evil #resident evil oc #re #re oc #alice giovanni #alessandra giovanni

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kris-mage-fics · 1 year ago

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The Canadian government gives tax breaks to studios for filming here, that's why so many tv shows and movies are shot in Canada. And recently the passed a bigger tax break for filming outside of Toronto or Vancouver. Which means a lot more filming in cities like the one I live in (where there was already quite a bit of stuff filmed here, like Umbrella Academy).

It still super sucks for the actors. Though at least once you are outside the big cities the rent is a little cheaper, it's not much but I hope it helps them a bit. Because that's the only thing they'd get out of it. It's not like the savings are passed on to them!

This is WILD.

#sag aftra strike #it was so weird watching Umbrella Academy and going “oh that's downtown” over and over again!#and there have been things filmed at the house next to the apartment building I live in and the house across the street #I don't even live in a nice area but there are some cool looking old houses so they make good film locations #the Masonic Lodge just around the corner also has a lot of stuff filmed there #and last fall I watched part of a shoot from my balcony because it was just two houses over from me #so there's lots of filming here and the actors and anyone else who has to move for it get the shit end of the stick

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mikasimaginairyworld · 2 years ago

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The Umbrella Academy: Firecracker - The Day that Was (7/30)

Umbrella Academy Masterlist

warnings: blood

word count: 2655

"So who the hell is Harold Jenkins?", Nailah asked.

Five emptied his second cup of coffee and promptly threw it behind him:"I don't know. Yet. But I do know he's responsible for the apocalypse. So we have to find him. And we have to do it now."

"How is he connected to what's gonna happen?", Luther asked still a bit in disbelief.

Five sighed: "I don't know."

"So what, you just know his name? That's it?", Nailah asked.

"That's enough.", Five shrugged.

"There's probably dozens of Harold Jenkinses in the city.", Diego commented.

"Well, we just better start looking then.", Five shot back.

"I'm sorry, am I the only one sceptical here? I mean, how do you know all of this about, what's his name?", Allison an asked while Five's face scrunched. Nailah tiled her head observing Five carefully but didn't say anything.

"Harold Jenkins. You know those lunatics that attacked the house?", Five asked clearly annoyed.

"Oh, yeah. I think I remember those guys.", Klaus confirmed scratching the back of his neck.

"Yeah, the ones that attacked us while you were getting drunk.", Diego added in an accusing tone.

"Yeah. Them. They were sent by the Temps Commission to stop me from coming back and preventing the end of life on Earth.", Five explained.

"The Temps what?", Allison asked confused.

"My former employer. They monitor all of time and space to make sure whatever is supposed to happen... happens. The believe the apocalypse is coming in three days. So I went to the Commission headquarters and intercepted a message that was meant for said lunatics. 'Protect Harold Jenkins'. So he must be responsible for the apocalypse.", Five finished and for a moment there was complete silence.

Then everyone started to talk all over each other.

"Do you have any idea how insane you sound?", Allison asked. Five discreetly put a hand on his side and again scrunched his face. Nailah narrowed her eyes.

Five scoffed: "You want to know what else is insane? I look like a 13-year old boy. Which I hope won't last long. Klaus talks to the dead, Luther thinks he's fooling everybody with that overcoat and Nailah can theoretically conjure fire from nothing. Everything about us is insane. It always has been."

"He's got a point there.", Klaus agreed from the sofa.

"We didn't chose this life. We're just living it. For the next three days at least.", Five continued.

"But the last time we tried to stop it we all died. Why is this time any different? Why shouldn't I go home to my daughter?", Allison intercepted.

"Because this time I'm here. And we've got the name of the man responsible. Guys, we actually have the chance to save the lives of billions of people. Including Claire.", Five continued.

Allison's head jerked towards him: "You know her name?"

"I do. And I'd like to live long enough to meet her.", Five said softly.

Allison took a deep breath: "All right. Let's get this bastard."

"You had me at Gerald Jenkins.", Diego admitted.

"Harold.", Five corrected.

"Whatever. I've already lost two people this week, I'm not losing anyone else."

"Luther?", Five asked.

"Yeah, you go. I'm gonna stay and look through dad's files. I think this has something to do with why he sent me to the moon.", Luther declined.

"Seriously? You wanna make the end of the world about you and dad?", Diego asked sceptically.

"No. 'Watch for threats'. That's what he told me. You think this is a coincidence? This all has to be connected somehow.", Luther defended himself.

"We don't have time for this. Nailah?", Five interrupted.

"All on board, as usual."

"Let's roll. I know where we can find this asshole. Klaus, you're with me.", Diego ordered.

"Yeah, I'm good. I think I'll pass. I'm feeling a little under the weather to be honest.", Klaus said stumbling forward and disappearing upstairs.

Diego, Allison, Five and Nailah all sighed heavily and left the Academy.

"I know this Jenkins dude has to have a file. We gotta get out hands on this file.", Diego said as soon as he and the rest of his siblings arrived in front of the police station.

"And your plan is to what? Walk in there and just ask for the file?", Allison asked from the backseat.

"I know the station like the back of my hand, Nai. I got this. I've spend a lot of time inside.", Diego countered.

"Yeah, In handcuffs. Doesn't count, amigo.", Nailah said from next to Allison.

"Whatever. Here's the plan.", Diego began.

"Plan? I'm just gonna blitz in and get the file.", Five looked at him amused.

"No, that's not.. You don't know the ins and outs of this place, okay?", Diego protested.

"I literally just did this yesterday. My yesterday, not yours. It'll take two seconds. Why don't just go?", Five said.

"Listen to me. You are not going in there. I made a call. That's what a leader does. He leads.", Diego said in a low voice.

"For gods sake just go and get us that file before I do it.", Allison said.

"Yeah and be quiet about it, I'm trying to concentrate.", Nailah added scribbling even more in her notebook.

Diego took his sweet time getting that file. Nailah, Five and Allison had decided to leave Diego's stuffed car and wait on the curb. Allison tried repeatedly to call Vanya but to not avail. The call always went to voicemail. Nailah was still adjusting the equations.

"How's it going with it?", Five asked peeking over her shoulder.

"Fine. Do you happen to know your exact cholesterol level?"

"No? Why would you need that?"

"Well, I'm pretty sure I've managed to complete the parameters to age up a human, I just need to adjust them to you."

"And why do you need my cholesterol level?"

Nailah sighed: "In my earliest research I've managed to make out the main biological components that allow you to time travel. Most are so small deviations from the normal humans that they can be ignored but your cholesterol level is surprisingly high. I guess it helps you materialise safer and faster or something. I'll just put 600 for now."

"So you think you can actually age me up?", Five asked.

"Maybe. But I still need to run some tests.", Nailah confirmed.

"You're welcome.", Diego approached his siblings with a blue file in his hand. Allison took it and opened it. Her eyes immediately were. caught between surprise and shock.

"Holy shit. Nailah, you need to look at that. That's Leonard. The guy Vanya's been going out with.", she said. and Nailah confirmed.

"And we know where he lives.", Nailah said with a small smile.

"What are we waiting for, then?", Five asked getting back in the car.

"Let's be careful, okay? We don't know what Peabody's capable of.", Allison asked as the four arrived at Leonard's house.

"Yeah, he didn't seem dangerous the first time I saw him.", Diego commented.

"Yes, well looks can deceive. You for example look very dangerous but are harmless like a little bunny.", Nailah said opening the zipper of her blue sweater revealing a black bralette top.

"Love you too.", Diego snapped back.

"Besides, most serial killers look harmless at first. Just look at Five.", Allison added.

"Fair point. What does this Leonard want with Vanya anyways?", Diego asked while Allison disappeared at the side off the house.

"I don't know. How about we ask him after we kill him?", Five proposed following Diego and Nailah up the porch stairs.

"Okay, so. I'm gonna burst through...", Diego began but stopped mid-sentence when realised Allison was gone.

Diego sighed: "You know, it would be nice for people to stick...", he as cut off by Five who just blitzed inside. "...the plan." he finished.

Diego took a few steps back and jumped through the glass part of the backdoor landing brutally on his side. Groaning his slowly stood up.

"Subtle.", Allison commented walking past him.

Nailah peeked through the hole in the door and calmly turned the knob letting the door spring open without as much as a sound: "You do. realise the door is open, right?" Nailah chuckled walking inside.

"Yeah, well my way works just fine. Spread out. Yell if you're in trouble.", he said walking towards the kitchen.

"Ah, inspiring leadership.", Five commented.

"One of the greats.", Allison added to which Nailah only chuckled.

The group spread out looking for any lead they could find.

"Guys, you need to see this!", Allison called from the attic.

Everyone rushed towards the attic. The sight was disturbing to say the least. Figures, posters, comics and ads of the Umbrella Academy. were mutilated and crossed out all over the room.

"All out faces are burnt off.", Allison sighed.

"A bit ironic, don't you think?", Nailah said holding up a figure of her with clear burn marks where her head had been. Since snickered through the disgust.

"Not creepy at all. This guy's got some serious issues.", Five commented but paled.

"This was never about Vanya. This was about us.", Allison said. Right then Five collapsed.

"Five?", Allison asked kneeling next to him.

"Blood from his side.", Nailah said seeing her hand stained red after touching Five's lower torso.

"Jesus, Five. Why didn't you say anything?", Diego asked softly.

Five coughed: "You have to keep going. So... close." Then he lost consciousness.

"Yeah, I'm not buying that hero shit. Let's go. My apartment's closest.", Nailah said and with her siblings' help they transported Five to her apartment.

Diego and Allison dragged Five up into Nailah's apartment.

"Put him on the couch. You can throw the papers on the floor, we'll pick them up later. Allison, bandages are in the bathroom, Diego take his shirt off.", Nailah ordered making her way to the sink to wash and disinfect her hands.

Allison brought her the first aid kit and bandages just as Diego finished taking off the clothes from Five's torso. Nailah began inspecting the wound. Her siblings knew that even though she wasn't a doctor she was still the most qualified to tend to any wound. A painfully slow hour passed but Nailah managed to clean the wound and sew it shut.

Nailah sighed heavily and approached her siblings who were sitting the the table watching her every move. "And?", Allison asked.

"He's lost a lot of blood. I really don't know what to do. A blood transfusion won't work because neither one of us has his blood type and. besides, his blood composition is so much different than ours it would more damage than good.", Nailah explained.

"So what we just do nothing?", Diego asked and when Nailah neither answered nor looked at him he knew she had an idea. "You know something. What is it?", he asked.

Nailah sighed: "It's the pod. Our only option is wait for Five to wake up. And we don't even know when he wakes up and if. I could adapt the pod and age him up. We would know if he survives and he would have an older body. If it works."

"So why are we not doing it right now?", Allison asked.

"It's complicated. I don't even know for certain if it'll work. Of course I'm gonna do tests but even with them I have no idea how it will affect his wound. It could infect it or it could speed up the healing. I really have no idea.", Nailah explained.

"Do it.", Diego said and Allison nodded.

Nailah inhaled and made her way to the lab after taking a small sample of blood from Five's unconscious body. Allison tried to call Vanya again to warn her from Leonard.

"Anything?", Diego asked in the living room watching Five lay on the couch unconscious.

"There's still no answer at Vanya's place. And the receptionist at the music school said she was a no-show for her lessons today.", Allison said. Diego nodded and began making his way towards Nailah's lab.

"Hey, you okay?", Allison asked.

"Yeah. I don't know. It's just surreal, this whole situation. We don't have much time. We gotta go.", he said.

"I don't know, Diego. Five is laying here, unconscious. We need him.", Allison intervened.

"We can do this ourselves.", Diego assured.

"We already did, remember? We all ended up dead.", Allison said in a dark tone.

"Yeah, well we can't give up now.", Nailah appeared in the doorway to her lab.

"Look, if you guys help me get him out of his clothes and into the pod, I'll stay with him. You can go and help Vanya.", Nailah assured.

"You think it'll work?", Allison asked hopefully.

"Well, all the sampled look good. No damage, all healthy. I think he has a pretty good chance.", Nailah said.

Diego, Allison and Nailah stripped Five from his clothes and gently placed him in the pod.

"How much are you going to age him up?", Allison asked.

"Five years. That's the absolute maximum I can do in one sitting. Not just because the pod needs refreshing but because I have no idea what could happen after that. The equations stopped making sense, especially with his genetic code.", Nailah said strapping Five in tightly,

Nailah inhaled deeply before checking the parameters again. She then pressed the button initiating the process. The machine whirred quietly for a moment then silence spread through the lab. Slowly a grey coat of particles occupied the glass lid of the pod making it impossible to see the change inside.

"What's that? What does that mean? Did it work? What do we do now?", Diego asked with slight panic in his voice.

"Now we wait. Calm down. That's totally normal.", Nailah assured.

"Go find Vanya. I'll be here the whole time watching the pod. Don't worry.", Nailah said with an encouraging smile calming Allison's and Diego's worries.

Diego and Allison left the apartment swiftly after deciding on checking out Jenkins' grandmother's old house. As soon as the door closed Nailah exhaled shakily. She looked at her hands. They were violently trembling and uncontrollable small sparks were spraying out of her fingers.

Nailah took deep breaths trying to calm herself down. She cursed. She leaned other desk glancing at the pod. "This better work.", she whispered to herself shakily.

"Nope, come on, this way.", Diego redirected Allison as soon as they exited Nailah's apartment building.

"But the car's that way.", Allison protested but Diego gently pushed her in the other direction.

"Just trust me, okay? Come on"

"But what's going on?"

"They're here for me. They think did something."

"What do they think you did?"

Diego sighed: "Murder."

"Did you?"

"No! Of course not! Why would you even ask me that?"

"You do carry knives everywhere."

"We're gonna have to split up, okay. I'm in charge. Remember? Vanya needs you."

"Don't do anything stupid, okay?", Allison left Diego.

Diego put his hands up and let himself get arrested.

Vanya's heart was beating faster than ever before.

She had used her powers.

She had fought back.

She had lost control.

She had hurt Leonard.

She had hurt people.

She had ... killed.

And now she had to live with the consequences of it.

-> Umbrella Academy Masterlist

#the umbrella academy #umbrella academy #tua #luther hargreeves #klaus hargreeves #allison hargreeves #diego hargreeves #five hargreeves #vanya hargreeves #nailah hargreeves #five x oc #series #netflix

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xviruserrorx · 2 years ago

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Title: "The Rain Before The Rainbow"

Chapter 3/7: "Hush Child, The Darkness Will Rise From The Deep And Carry You Down Into Sleep"

(Prev Chap-Edited) (Next Chap-Edited) • (Prev Chap-Non Edited) (Next Chap-Non Edited) • (Edited Chapter) • (Story Masterlist)

This fic was originally written around late 2019-early 2020 ish, but was abandoned for reasons and now I'm gonna re-write it to but I have a no-delete rule so I'm posting all the original drafts here for anyone who still wants to see them. "But Virus these are terribly written" you may say and, yeah I know, this story was one of the first things I had written after a 5-6 year writing hiatus... But here they are terrible Grammer and all!

Fandom: The Umbrella Academy (Tv & Comics)

Relationship(s): Five | The Boy & Everyone

Character(s): Five | The Boy, Klaus Hargreeves, Diego Hargreeves, Allison Hargreeves, Vanya | Viktor Hargreeves, OC - Ymir Cyprus

Important Tag(s): Alternative Universe - No Sparrow Academy, Comic Book Elements, Time Traveling, Five-Centric

Rating: Teen and Up

Warning(s): Major Character Death, Cannon Character Death

Word Count: 3,593/41,006

The Hargreeves return from 1963 and find they have averted the initial Apocalypse. The siblings return to life as it once was but now together and not expecting impending doom. Five begins to adjust to life with his siblings how it used to be but knows something is missing. By something, he means someone. What happens when Five decides to jump back in time and try to save Ben. Is he successful? Or will he face the consequences of his actions?

"The End To The Beginning, The Beginning To The End" - Tumblr | Ao3

->Next: N/A

Continue reading below or read the edited version on Ao3

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Five (POV)

Five tried to land on his feet, but wherever he was proved that to be difficult. A blue flash appeared and quickly disappeared as Five fell on his bottom, in the middle of a pond.

'Great'

He got up and trudged through the water over towards a nearby ledge, avoiding any fish, and climbed up on it. Five's bangs stuck to his forehead and His uniform clung to his body.

If only Dolores could see him now, he would have received some sarcastic comments on how this could have been prevented if he'd just waited.

He stood up and pulled a Lily pad off him that was stuck to his shorts and pulled his socks back up from where they had fallen down due to the weight of the water.

He slid off his blazer and vest before attempting to wring as much water out of both pieces of clothing. He straightened out his button-up and tie, then slid the checkered vest back over his head.

Five gave a second thought to putting his blazer back on given it had the emblem of the academy on the left-hand side. He threw it over his arm and just opted to carry it, hoping no one recognized the colors of his vest as well.

Five looked around the area, he had landed in some park( given the pond) and was near some lesser busy roads.

He definitely wasn't anywhere near the umbrella Academy, he at least hoped he landed in the same city.

It was bright wherever he was, obviously daytime unlike in the present. He crossed the street from where he was and walked over to a nearby corner store.

He was about to go in before realizing a soaked, 13-year-old boy, with what looked like a school uniform on looked a bit suspicious.

Five at this moment didn't even know if he was in the right year, date, country, city, anything. Five kept looking around at anything that would give him a clue of where he was at.

A younger woman walked out of the corner store carrying a newspaper in her hand along with an umbrella. Five knew he needed the date and where he was at, which the newspaper for sure had. The woman reminded him of Grace by the way she was dressed and her appearance.

Five hesitantly walked up to the woman, "Excuse me, Can I see that?" He pointed to the newspaper in her hand.

The woman looked down at Five then at the newspaper in her hand. Five guessed he probably looked like some teen who'd ran away from home.

She smiled and handed him the newspaper which he quickly skimmed through, seeing something about spinach killing people and other nonsense things that were happening in the world.

Five caught a glimpse of a picture of all his siblings lined up with the subheading reading, 'The Umbrella Academy saves multiple people from a break-in at a museum.'

'At least he knew he was in the right decade'

He continued to flip through the pages till he found what he was looking for.

He was in the right city, just another part of it. As for the date he was back in 2006 just 4 days a little too early.

" Dear, Do you need a ride home or need me to call someone for you?" The woman asked him.

She looked concerned for Five when he realized he was still soaked, and still had the scratches from this morning when he had fallen out of the tree.

Five hadn't thought any of this out, he was gonna have to stay somewhere for the next 4 days or until he was gonna figure out his next move. He had only been thinking about saving Ben but didn't exactly know how to at this moment.

This wasn't the Apocalypse In the idea that he could go anywhere he wanted to and do what he wanted to without messing up the timeline in some way or form.

'Was he making the right choice?'

Five folded the newspaper back up before handing it back to the lady, "Uh thanks and no." Five started walking, he didn't know where exactly he was walking but he knew his destination was the academy.

Five kept walking till there were more buildings and people littering the walkways and streets. Everyone had sweaters and coats on, That's when Five realized he's been shivering this entire time.

It was definitely too cold outside to be summer when Five remembered it was during the fall when this all happened.

Five put his blazer back on, even though it was still soaked and risked him getting recognised by people who knew of the Umbrella Academy, it blocked the wind from hitting him.

He could feel the squishing of the water in his shoes every time he stepped down.

'Of all places a pond!?'

He knew he should have waited and perfected the equation before jumping to a time and place he didn't exist in at the moment.

But he never listened to anyone, not even Dolores even though she was usually right. Five never even listened to himself sometimes.

So here he was shivering, drenched in pond water, and with no exact plan of what to do.

Five considered hailing a taxi but knew they wouldn't let him in the vehicle with the way he was.

Five continued to walk for what felt like hours in the direction he hoped the Academy was in. He was never on this side of town as a kid, much less in the 8 days he had to stop the 1st Apocalypse.

The sun started to set, which meant any warmth he had was now gone. The wind gradually picked up as the temperature started to drop. Every gust of wind that hit him made his body rattle even more and his ribs ache.

He could feel the exhaustion starting to nic at him, and the fact that he couldn't stop himself from shivering was draining more of his energy.

Five ducked into an alleyway where the wind was blocked off from hitting him. He wrapped his arms around himself, hoping to conserve as much heat as he could. He didn't know how his clothes hadn't already dried from all the wind, they weren't soaked but they were still 100 percent wet.

Five looked up as all the street lights flickered on.

'At least he wasn't in the dark'

The glowing sign in the dark caught Five's attention as he peeked out from the alleyway.

Griddy's Doughnuts

Finally, somewhere he recognized.

He must have walked farther than he thought being as the bakery was close to the Academy. Five got out from the alleyway and walked over towards the bakery.

Five stopped at the front of the place and took off his blazer and vest. He wasn't risking anyone recognising him. Five threw his uniform over his shoulder and walked into the bakery. his leather shoes squeaking slightly against the slick floor as he walked over to one of the bar stools.

There were a couple of other guys in there also, but no one Five could recognise.

Five sat on the stool and laid his blazer and vest over his lap and leaned on the counter. He was still wet, cold, and shaking but not so much to be shivering as harshly as he was outside.

"Is there anything I can get for you young man?" An older woman, the owner, stood in front of him with a pen and notebook in hand.

Five now knew her as Agnes, the lady Hazel had fallen in love with and soon lost. Five knew she was a kind lady.

She looked up from the notebook and her smile fell at seeing the young boy much closer now, who was shaking and was obviously wet.

Five could see her expression and he didn't want any attention to be brought to him.

"Coffee, Black" He quickly answered her hoping she'd go away.

" Would you like something to eat? A doughnut, eclair, any pastry on the menu we can make for you." She sounded frazzled and almost insisted on Five eating something.

Five grumbled to himself in frustration

'Curse this 13-year-old body, adults wouldn't just take him seriously or leave him be'

He probably should eat something, even though He technically just had dinner last night…….This morning? Whatever it was he had just eaten at least 8 or more hours ago.

Five glanced over at the menu and instantly saw what he wanted.

"Creme filled Doughnut, with chocolate, ....and sprinkles."

She smiled at him," Coming right up."

'Did he really just order that?'

'Darn sweet tooth!'

Five slumped more down in his chair and put his arms down on the counter so he could lay his head down.

".......So there's 7 of them?" Five quickly turned his head towards the guys sitting at a nearby booth who had been talking.

'They couldn't have been talking about the Umbrella Academy right?'

" Well yeah, but one disappeared almost 4 years ago, and another never fights so technically only 5 we need to worry about."

'Worry about?'

Five laid his head back down, as to not draw attention to himself from the two men.

"So how exactly are we going to take down a group of 5 superhero kids?"The taller of the two men put his hands on the other's shoulder."Don't worry, me and the other guys have got it all worked out, we've been planning for weeks. "

Five shivered

He didn't know if it was from how cold he was or the thought that his brother's death was planned weeks before it actually happened. Five heard a clink and jerked his head forwards.

"One black coffee, and one creme-filled chocolate doughnut with sprinkles. And don't worry it's on the house."

She smiled down at Five before going back to what she was doing before he had come in. The mug and a small plate with the sugary confectionary laid in front of Five.

The steam from the mug told Five it was fresh, He picked up the mug which quickly warmed his trembling, cold hands. Five looked down into the dark brown liquid and continued to hold onto the mug, hoping it would warm the rest of him too.

Five stayed looking down at his coffee for who knows how long until the ringing of the bell above the door brought his attention back into the present.

Five looked towards the booth and both guys were gone all that was left was a crumpled up dollar and some quarters left on the table. He turned around on his chair towards the entrance of the doughnut shop as the door finished swinging shut.

Crap!

He could've followed them, they obviously knew what was gonna happen. Five turned back around and gritted his teeth before tilting the mug of coffee to his lips. He felt the warmth of the coffee warm him up temporarily till he took another sip.

Five quickly finished off his doughnut and coffee before getting up and exiting the doughnut shop.

'What were those two guys on about?'

Five walked in the direction of the Umbrella Academy, He wanted to jump but knew if he ran into any trouble he'd need the energy.

He put on his blazer and vest again for what seemed like the 10th time today. He was still wet and cold but not nearly to the point where he was dripping water like before.

Five continued to walk in the direction of the Academy till he reached the familiar black gates. Five didn't know exactly what he was doing here, he didn't want to wait around 4 days till they left, but he didn't exactly know anything his 16-year-old siblings were doing right now.

He looked down at his watch only to remember it was still set at present time, not 2006 time.

Whatever time it was it was dark out, Five guessed it was about 9 ish maybe later. His siblings were all probably asleep about now.

Including Ben

If all this failed he could still go upstairs and see Ben right now, of course not talk to him or anything but just…..see him.

Five debated against himself on if he wanted to risk being seen in the house just to see Ben one last time.

Fuck it

Five blinked into the foyer and quickly hid, he knew where all the surveillance cameras were placed. The house was completely dark, but Five knew this place like the back of his hand. He couldn't risk getting caught on one of the cameras much less by anyone in the house.

Five walked along one of the walls and stayed there, that was where one of the blind spots were.

He could just blink into his room, but he was not confident in his jumping to land in the right place. Five made it by the kitchen when he heard footsteps.

Crap!

Five ran into the kitchen and hid behind the lounging chair in the corner of the room. The footsteps got closer until someone walked into the kitchen. Five saw the bottom of their pyjamas and realized it must be one of his sister's, the two girls had gowns while all the boys wore a button-up shirt and pants.

Five heard something clattering and peeked more around the chair. It was Vanya who was there, she had a butter knife, a peanut butter jar, a loaf of bread, a bag of marshmallows, and a plate in front of her.

Five knew HE was always the one to have all the items whenever they all made their individual sandwiches.

But Vanya?

Five could recall many times when they all grimaced at Five as he ate the sweet and sticky sandwich. He remembered Vanya always liking grilled cheese sandwiches.

Vanya finished making the sandwich and laid it back down on the plate before moving across the room turning on all the lights.

What was she doing?

Five held his breath as she reached over the chair he was hiding behind and switched on the lamp.

She picked up the plate and excited the kitchen into the main room. Five waited a couple of seconds before getting out from behind the chair and following his sister, hiding behind stuff along the way.

She put the plate down on the coffee table in the middle of the room before walking over to the picture of him that was hung up.

"Please come home Five," Vanya whispered while continuing to keep eye contact with the painting. She stayed there a couple of seconds before switching on all the lights in the living room.

Five crouched more behind the bookcase so she wouldn't see him. Vanya left the plate and went back up the stairs to her room. Five swallowed a lump he didn't realize formed in his throat.

Realization dawned on him that the sandwich Vanya had just made was for him, Five didn't know the reason for the lights but figured it was something she always did.

'They all waited for him to come home for 16 years, and this was all because he wanted to prove their father wrong out of teenage anger.

Then Ben goes and dies way too young which leaves the other 5 siblings mourning the loss of their two youngest brothers.

Five thinks back to these past few weeks since they've been back and no more Apocalypse. Diego's constant mother hen like attitude towards the 3 youngest siblings, and Allison treating them all like they're her kids. They're both just glad all the younger ones are safe and not almost dying anymore.

They were all Dead to Five for 45 years then he had them back for 8 days, Then they all died again only to be brought back AGAIN. Once that happened another time but this time bullets pierced holes in his sibling's bodies, Five didn't think he could handle another time. He has seen his siblings die one too many times and now he has the power to prevent it.

Five waited a couple of minutes before going up the stairs case, in the direction he knew Ben's room was. Five opted to go in through the door because the giant flash of blue might be a little too noticeable.

Five slowly turned the doorknob and peeked into Ben's childhood bedroom. 16-year-old Ben was laid out on his bed, cuddled up in his sheets in front of Five, he wanted to go over and hug him but he knew that would be the stupidest thing he could do.

Five took a few steps forward to try to get closer to Ben, Then there was a loud slam which came from the main part of the house. The sudden loud noise made Five jump as he looked back towards the noise then back over to Ben. Ben began to stir and started to rub at his eyes.

'Fuck!'

Five hurriedly ran out of his room not bothering to close the door and blinked back to the foyer. He ducked behind the bookcase once again to hide from whoever had walked in the house.

He peeked over and saw Klaus and Reginald

" I hope you learned your lesson Number 4," Reginald said to Klaus as he walked away from him back to his study, leaving Klaus in the middle of the room.

Five looks over Klaus, he's shaking with his arms wrapped around his petite frame, the Hem of his pyjama pants have mud on them, his fingernails are broken and bloody with his black nail polish mostly chipped off. Five looked at his brother's face and saw dried tear tracks along with new tears running down his face.

'The mausoleum'

Klaus stayed shaking and crying in the middle of the living room not minding the footsteps that could be heard coming down the staircase once again. Five looked towards the staircase and saw Diego slowly coming down the steps.

"K-Klaus?" Diego walked over to Klaus and softly put his hand on Klaus' upper arm. Klaus slowly lifted his hand and grabbed at Diego's sleeve.

" Come on let's get b-ba-back to bed," Diego's voice was soft and gentle, the same voice he used in the present-day that he only reserved for his siblings. He reached out and wrapped his arms around Klaus before coaching him slowly up the stairs.

Five felt a pang of guilt of how Klaus was always treated by their father, was never enough, always picked on for his choice of clothing and how he acted, was told not to be afraid of ghosts and the dark even though they haunted him every second of his life.

Five remembered when they were all very young Klaus had a cat that he named Oswald. One day he had gone missing and of course, Klaus was devastated, a couple of days later he returned from the graveyard with their father and told them Oswald was dead.

Klaus had talked about how their father said he had gotten run over by the milkman which none of the siblings believed aside from Luther. It turned into an argument between Luther and the rest of the siblings on how much they should believe their father.

Klaus never told them what happened to him during his training seasons after that, but Five knew whatever it was nobody should have to endure what he went through.

Five shook the thoughts from his head as he waited till both pairs of footsteps could no longer be heard.

He jumped to the top floor where the hallway to his room and the attic connected, but also where the fire escape was. Five couldn't risk almost running into his siblings anymore. He opened the window and climbed out, carefully sliding it back closed.

He climbed down the ladder as he had once before to avoid his siblings. Five slid down the last few steps of the ladder and landed on his feet. He held onto the railing of the ladder for balance longer than he would have liked to.

He couldn't ignore the exhaustion that was slowly taking over him as he sucked in a deep breath of the crisp air. His body once again shook involuntarily as his breaths quavered. With each inhale his diaphragm ached more and more, digging into what little energy he had if any.

'He's endured way worse, he could take this.'

'Right?'

Five slumped against the brick wall, letting it support him and take all his weight. The jump had surprisingly taken a lot out of him and everything on top of his situation wasn't helping.

Five eventually let himself fully sink to the floor near the trash cans behind the Academy. He tried to push himself up but his thin, scrawny, 13-year-old arms shook under him as they tried to bear any of his weight.

He let his head lull back against the red, brick wall as another gust of wind passed over him. Five wanted to get up and find the guys who were in Griddy's Doughnuts but his body was telling him otherwise.

Five curled in on himself where he was on the ground and let the calming exhausting of both yesterday and today envelop him. He tried to fight against his body's needs till his eyes fluttered closed and he let his body go limp, and slowly like a spell succumbed to the soothing darkness.

#virusfanfic

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asteriismos · 2 years ago

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closer - ben hargreeves

PAIRING ◆ sparrow!ben hargreeves x umbrella!reader

WARNING(S) ◆ SMUT, rough sex, choking, me losing my sanity, unedited, piv sex, unprotected sex, fingering,

SUMMARY ◆ instead of luther getting held hostage by the sparrows, it’s you, and you and ben do not get along. hate sex basically.

WORDS ◆ 3.9k

NOTE ◆ . . . i have nothing to say tbh. this is justified in every way.

»»————-　✼　————-««

It was unlike you to get yourself into these types of situations.

If anything, you thought that you were one of the more responsible members of The Umbrella Academy. You didn’t get yourself into harm's way like your other siblings did and you were notorious for being the one with your head on your shoulders, even throughout the mess of the apocalypse – or both of them, for that matter, as your family seemed to be stuck in the sticky situation of constantly saving the world.

You thought that you were finally done with all of this. Five had finally figured out a way to get you all back into the future, away from Dallas, and back to the way that things were supposed to be without the apocalypse. You could finally go back to your normal life and maybe make something of yourself. But things were never that easy and when your family made their way back to the future and back to your childhood home, you were met with the same house, the same absent father, but a different group of superheroes. As if you thought your father couldn’t get any worse, he hated you so much in Dallas that he adopted a whole other group of children, and renamed them The Sparrow Academy. And to make matters even worse, they were a bunch of assholes.

Your siblings and you had gotten beaten to a pulp by them less than a day ago, and no one seemed to be doing anything productive. Allison wanted to get back to her family, Diego wanted to start a new life, and Five seemed like he was ready to leave and start his so-called ‘retirement.’ And to be honest, that didn’t sound half bad. You thought that maybe it was time you did the same thing, since there seemed to be nothing wrong anymore.

And that’s exactly what you tried to do, you really tried. You were minding your own business, walking through Central Park when you were taken by The Sparrow Academy. You couldn’t put up much of a fight either, since that floating cube of whatever (who they called Christopher, but you were still confused as to how it was an actual person) was able to lift you up and the one who looked like Ben but wasn’t actually Ben put his foot straight to your face, knocking you unconscious. That had been three days ago, and since then, you weren’t really being treated like a hostage – but you were one, in your own home. Well . . . was it your own home if you technically don’t exist in this timeline? Seemed like a question you should ask Five, if he was here with you.

The Sparrows weren’t actually half bad. In some ways, they reminded you of your own family. They grew up the same way as you, technically, but they didn’t rebel against your father like you had. They liked being the center of attention of the city and they liked being a part of a team. You could respect that, if only all of them were nice like Sloane or Alphonso and not the raging cunt that Ben was.

It was hard for you to believe that Ben in this timeline was such an ass, because the Ben that you knew was nothing like that. He was kind, always there for everyone, and the glue that really held the whole family together. There was always the notion that if Ben hadn’t died, there was a chance that the Umbrella Academy would still be together and things wouldn’t have gotten so messed up. But the Ben in this timeline wanted nothing to do with you, and he was an overzealous ass that only cared about himself, it seemed like sometimes he didn't really even care about his own family. And he wanted nothing to do with you, but always made it a point to give you a hard time, no matter what you did, he always found a way to be a bitch to you.

He had yet to show up to dinner, where you're at the table despite being a hostage. Oh well, it was better than being locked in some type of cellar handcuffed. And then you heard the door open and it took everything in you not to groan out, and instead you rolled your eyes to yourself and waited for him to sit down next to you, which he always did. Ben found every way to get on your nerves.

Ben walked over in his usual fashion, which you deemed as strutting, but others didn’t see the humor in it. Maybe it was just because every time he was even in the same room as you, you felt the need to insult something about him, you had to keep him grounded, right?

“Good evening, Y/N.”

“Oh, it was,” you said to him, glancing in his direction and then instantly going back to your food. from the corner of your eye you could see as his face feigned hurt, then he immediately went to talk with Fei about some mission that Reginald had assigned them on a while ago. It was something that they had been working on before you and your family had shown up and ‘ruined everything’ as Ben liked to say. You wanted to quip that you found it funny that he still listened to the orders of his father, being old enough to go on his own and take lead if he wanted to, but you didn’t want to get into a fight at the moment. Your position here was complicated anyways.

Dinner was, for the most part, uneventful. The only thing that happened was Ben threatening to throw his chicken at you because you rolled your eyes at one of his comments, which didn’t end up happening because Sloane gave him that look and a stern ‘Ben.’

For the rest of the night you retired to your rooms, telling your captors that you would meet them in the morning, as if you had a choice on that matter.

You sat at the edge of your bed, kicking off your shoes and stretching your arms up. You set your phone (that seemed to not work no matter how many times you called your family to come and get you) down on the small nightstand you had and got dressed in something more comfortable for sleeping. The sun was fully down now, and the only thing that lit up your room was the tall lamp in the corner of your room and the distant lights of other buildings through your windows.

As you slipped into bed under the covers, you allowed your mind to wander. First, to your family, where you silently went over the details in your head to make sure you had them all memorized for when you came back to them and could tell them all you learned from being in the same home as your newfound enemies. Or were they frenemies? And the more you pondered, the more they landed on Ben.

It was strange, thinking of him. Typically you would be cringing at anything that included anything to do with Ben Hargreeves, but this time you allowed your mind to expand instead of bringing up the protective barriers like you always did. The calming effect of finally not clouding all your judgment with anger was almost enough to lull you to sleep.

That was until you heard a whisper, just the faintest, tiniest little sound that you were almost uncertain that you had even heard anything at all.

Your eyes stayed closed. There was a presence there, just on the outer barriers of your mind. There was silence, complete and utter silence and you were about to call it a night when-

You’re thinking about Ben?

You jolted up to sit, eyes snapping open and your head getting dizzy from the sudden shift in position. It was Fei’s voice, clear as day in your mind, that was what you were hearing. You heard the noise of a crow cawing from the corner of your room and your head turned, seeing that you were face to face with one of Fei’s crows, a bright, glowy aura presenting off of it. You knew that she was powerful, and she definitely could sense that you were thinking of Ben. The crow cocked its head to the side and you scowled.

And the worst thing was that she was still there. You could feel it. you put your hands on either side of your head and closed your eyes, opening your mouth and saying, “I was not.”

It was the weakest lie you had ever made in your life.

You’re such a liar, Fei chided. you could practically feel her smirk. Just admit it.

You groaned to yourself, feeling a bead of sweat drop down your face from the focus. “Goodnight, Fei,” you said to the crow and then reached to the bedside table and threw a book at the crow, which made it squawk and disappear into thin air.

Now you were wide awake, you were sure that there was no way you could get any sleep after that. You weren’t even angry at yourself for doing that, but more embarrassed that your thoughts had been exposed to Fei and there was no way that Ben wouldn’t find out - because you were thinking about him and he would take the opportunity to use it against you. You knew there was no way you were getting out of this tomorrow.

You busied yourself by looking through the room that they had given you, seeing if you could find any lore or information that would be of use, trying your best to basically bore yourself to the brink of sleep. And just as you thought it was beginning to work, you heard a knock on your door. Glancing at the clock, you saw that it was a little bit past midnight. Who the hell was at your door at this hour?

For a moment you stilled, thinking that perhaps it was a mistake and they would leave then you could finally try and sleep, but there was again another knock a few moments later. You finally stood up and made your way to the door, opening it and being greeted by none other than Ben. He was dressed in his comfort clothes and his hair was messy, like he had been awake for way too long.

He didn’t give you any time to say anything, instead pushing his way past you into your room. Your eyes widened and you took a peek outside into the halls to make sure that no one saw that. Luckily, the halls were dead. Closing your door and turning the lock, you faced him and stood there deadpanned, waiting for some kind of explanation.

“Well, don’t act all happy to see me,” he said sarcastically.

You laughed. “I'm not. What are you doing here? Do you understand what could happen if someone sees you and me in my bedroom alone?” There would be rumors spreading like wildfire, something that you definitely didn’t need to be confronted by the Sparrows or your own family. You hated to admit that you knew the exact reason he was here - because Fei seemed to spare no time in telling her brother what she had witnessed. But that still begged the question as to why he cared so much about it in the first place.

Ben rolled his eyes, running a hand through his hair. You took a second to look him over, seeing that the black shirt he was wearing was sheer enough for you to know what he was hiding under it. You shuddered, coming to your senses again and frowning. “You were thinking about me, and I think I deserve an explanation,” Ben told you, shrugging his large shoulders and cocking an eyebrow up. “You were thinking so loud. At least, that’s what my sister tells me. You know you should learn to know when crows are in the room. She’s always watching”

“I wasn’t trying to, I was trying to go to sleep.” you countered.

“You think of me while trying to sleep?”

Damn. Wrong thing to say. and now he was giving you a look, one that you’ve never seen before from him. His eyes were almost dark, filled with lust. You felt like your fucking legs were going to give out at the look that he was giving you. it was enough to make your face heat up and clear your throat, not having anything else to say, there really wasn’t anything to defend yourself with.

And it all happened so fast. One second you were both standing there, staring into each other’s eyes, and the next you both were walking towards each other and colliding your lips onto each other. The kiss was hot and searing, instantly making your head go dizzy at the feeling. His lips were soft, albeit a little harsh as his tongue forced its way into your mouth and prodded against your own. Ben’s hand came to grip your jaw, the other on the small of your back.

You attempted to grab onto him, get your hands on him as much as his were on you, but he didn’t let you, using the hand on your back to pull you closer to your bed. You were still kissing, lips starting to swell with the aggressiveness of the kiss.

You still hated him, you had to keep telling yourself that, even though just by kissing he was making you feel so good. No attachments were to be made, this was purely just acting on normal human instincts, right?

Soon enough the backs of your legs were hitting the edge of your bed, Ben pushed you down onto the bed like it was nothing and you were silly putty molding in his hands. He fell on top of you, instead of kissing you on the lips, he went for your neck, one of his hands came and grabbed a handful of your hair and yanked it down, exposing your neck for him.

And he made sure that you would have to somehow cover all the marks he was making, because his teeth seemed to graze over every inch of your skin and lightly nip anywhere he wanted. And you felt dirty because you let him. You would let him do whatever he wanted to do to you.

Ben pulled away from you for a moment to pull his shirt off, discarding it to the floor and helping you to do the same with your shirt. You took a moment to look him over, seeing that his body was practically sculpted and personally handcrafted by the gods themselves, basically knocking the breath out of you. He noticed and you didn’t even care, instead of cringing at his smirk, you found it incredibly hot.

Your hands came to his torso, wrapping your legs around his waist as his mouth began kissing along your chest. You pressed your hips up against him, trying to get friction against your already wet core. Sadly, it wasn’t enough and you were left with whatever he decided to give you.

“Ben, please,” you whispered out towards him, looking down to watch him slip one of your nipples into his mouth, your mouth hung wide open. He came off of it with a ‘pop’ and tilted his head, waiting for you to finish whatever you were going to say.

“Please what?” Ben asked, going back to kissing your chest until he landed on your stomach and started painting masterpieces on your skin.

You made the tiniest sound, feeling sparks send right down below. “Just touch me already,” you stated, putting your hands in his hair and giving the locks of hair he had a good tug. He groaned against him, the vibrations going through your entire body. Ben came up face to face with you, pressing yet another kiss against your lips and pushing down your pants and underwear to the ground. You were now all exposed to him, while he still wore half of his outfit. You pouted at the unfairness but you knew it would get you nowhere now.

He held his hand out in front of you and for a moment you looked at him confused. He sensed this and said blankly, “spit.” You did what he asked and spit into his hand, watching as he took that same hand and touched your clit, feeling the wetness of your spit and your own mixing together. Your mouth hung open as he rubbed his fingers around, experimentally pushing the tip of his finger into you then immediately pulled it out.

You felt yourself almost whine, needing him to give you more or you felt like you would simply die on the spot. Right as you were about to say something, Ben’s other hand came and grasped onto your neck, his fingers digging into your skin and putting pressure on your throat.

Holy fuck.

Typically, you would be angry with how much control Ben had over you right now, but now you were just giving into it, liking that he was being rough with you. It was like a form of argument without the words and you were becoming addicted to it. He was able to make you feel so good and you were completely in his power.

Finally, as if he was putting some pity on you, one finger slipped into you, curling up and hitting a spot inside you that made you moan loudly. The hand choking you became stronger against your neck, his mouth coming to your ear and whispering, “Be quiet, you don’t want anyone to hear us and have this be over too soon, do you?” He was looking for an answer.

You shook your head, understanding that this would not be the best time to get caught by anyone else. You tried your best to keep yourself quiet as one finger pumped in you, the thumb of that same hand pressing against your clit and making your toes curl in pleasure. You could feel how hard he was against you and that made the fire in your stomach ablaze, nearing that edge desperately wanting some kind of release.

As soon as you felt yourself getting higher to that point, his hand came off your throat and his hand stopped moving, your eyes opened up and looked at him, who was busy pulling down his pants and grabbing his cock with his hand.

It didn’t take long for him to position himself at your entrance, his tip teasing you by rubbing it up and down against your slit. “Is this what you want?” Ben asked you, his other hand tracing down your body and coming to grip the side of your hip.

You nodded your head fervently. “Yes, Ben, please just fuck me already,” you said to him.

And that was all he needed before he was ramming himself into you, giving you no time to adjust, which was expected. You took the pain that came with his harsh motions, both of his hands gripping your hips with such force that you were sure that you were going to have bruises there in the morning in the shape of his hands.

Ben pounded into you, your voice was already hoarse from his choking and you made as quiet sounds as you could. All that anger you had for each other had bubbled up onto the surface and there was only the desire left, the sickly sweet feeling that you had only dreamed about with Ben in your deepest and darkest fantasies. You could never get tired of this, perhaps you should’ve initiated this sooner, or pushed his buttons so he would take it out on you this way.

“God, you’re so fucking tight,” Ben said in that deep, gravelly voice that basically sent you into orbit the second that it came past your lips. You were so far gone, head empty of any incoherent thought other than Ben Hargreeves. And he continued to move into you shamelessly, neither of you caring about anything in the world except this feeling both of you were chasing.

You were close, you could practically feel the tidal wave starting to form inside your stomach. His pace would not let up, practically tearing into you with all the energy and stamina that he had from years of training. and Ben looked so good like this, his mouth hung open and sweat forming on that tanned brow of his. His muscles worked overtime and flexed with every single movement he made. And his eyes, which were so dark and intense, were staring right into your own, almost like they were telling you to give everything to him.

You were so worked up, that it only took his hand to come down and rub down against your clit, the pressure enough to push you over the edge. It was like a firework went off inside and the scream you wanted to make died in your throat, wishing that you could be as loud as you wanted. Your back arched up and your hips faltered against his own, cumming around him and squeezing, earning a moan from his lips as well. You looked so good coming undone that Ben basically was just sent into fucking orbit with no trace of coming back down.

The second you regained your composure and came down from your own orgasm, you watched as Ben hit his own, hips shifting and releasing right inside of you. You felt him fill you up to the brim, Ben falling down with his chest pressed against your own. The room smelled of sex and you wouldn’t have it any other way.

The only thing was the sounds of your pants throughout the room, and soon enough Ben was pulling out of you. You frowned at the sudden loss of not being filled up anymore by him. Just a second ago you felt like you were on fucking cloud nine and now you were crashing right down to reality at what you had done, and whom you had just done it with.

You propped yourself up on your elbows, watching as Ben pulled his pants back up and started gathering the rest of his clothes in his hand. He was still shirtless, about to go towards the door when you said, “Are you seriously going out there half naked?”

“No one is up this late, trust me,” he said back.

You bit the inside of your cheek. “Well I don’t know about that after all the noises coming from here.”

“That wasn’t me making all the moans,” Ben says in such a casual way you stare daggers back at him. He stifles out a laugh and then turns, leaving the room and closing the door behind him. you can hear his footsteps recede from the door and you are left here alone, thinking about what the hell you had just done.

Once you regained your composure and felt like you could walk, you stood up on your wobbly feet and made your way to your small mirror. the second you got there, you gasped at your appearance in the mirror. Hair all messed up, marks all along your neck along with bruises from his hands, and the bruises on your hips. And to top it all off, you could feel what he left in you trickling down your thigh.

That may have just been the best sex of your life. But you still hated the new Ben Hargreeves…

… right?

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