The house was far too quiet that morning when Luther woke up. 'Woke up' meaning finally getting out of bed and starting his day at nearly 11am. He hadn't slept more than a few minutes at a time, being more restless than usual. He couldn't help it, the house felt empty and it's deafening silence seemed to crush him under the weight of it.
His footsteps seemed loud against the stairs as he descended them, heading to the informal dining area where he'd be having breakfast alone. One in a few long line of many to come.
Not even Grace was there to keep him company as he picked at the toast she had made for him. She had gone to attend to the mess his siblings left behind the previous few months. Why she hadn't already gotten to it was beyond him but he never really understood how his mother worked. Maybe she assumed her five remaining children where all still there instead of just one and finally Reginald had taken care of her programming to understand that they weren't, that it was just Luther.
He's peeled off the crust but hasn't eaten in the seven minutes since he sat down, he doesn't feel as hungry as he normally does. Usually he's eagerly awaiting breakfast, ready for whatever meal Mom has made and already planning for a snack later but now it seems like a task. A stark contrast to what he's used to but so are the six empty chairs that stair hollowly back at him.
Luther practically forces himself to eat, starting with the crusts he's peeled off the toast and then the rest of it. Instead of leaving the plate behind for Grace to get, he rinses it and sets it aside to dry. It was just one plate, not seven. It didn't take more than a handful of seconds. Though he wished it had taken hours as he's now faced with his empty schedule for the day.
Sure he had training. But only for an hour or two. And what was he even training for? He was already super strong, already had enhanced endurance, already knew how to protect himself in fights.
If he was lucky his father would have something for him to study, like an animal or a historic event.
As he walks the halls of the grand house aimlessly, his breath becomes more labored. It feels as if the air in the house is thicker than normal and maybe it's the humidity from the looming storm outside or the horrendous silence.
Luther's solution is to go to his room and find a record. It's hard when it brings up memories and thoughts of the siblings he never wholly got along with but eventually settles on a Tiffany album. It's not exempt from memories but it had some good upbeat songs that he needed right now. Ironically, the first song is "I Think We're Alone Now" and wow does Luther feel that deep in his soul. He was alone. All alone in a big empty house that usually had more inhabitants. Sure there were Grace, and Reginald, and Pogo, but no one else.
Luther turns up the amp that's connected to an unholy level, his father be damned. Luther didn't particularly care today. He'd face the consequences at a later date. For now he was more concerned with his loneliness.
He lets the record play as he half heartedly dances throughout the house. The music, though muffled in some rooms, made the house seem less empty. He's surprised when Reginald catches him in the middle of an air guitar motion while standing on the couch in the living room and doesn't say a word.
That was another thing. His father had been seemingly more and more out of character since the death of Ben and the collapse of the academy. Luther barely saw him anymore unless it was at dinner or for mission dispatches. Or even the rare occasion when Lither sought him out himself, daring to interrupt whatever important work it was his father did.
When the music finally stops Luther doesn't bother putting on another record. It's half past three and he's missed lunch, purposely as he still doesn't feel hungry at all.
He's also not sure if he can listen to the music any longer. It just seemed like a noise after a while and he needed something new.
Voices. He needed voices. Anything. Grace and Diego working on the latter's stutter. Ben and Klaus arguing about how to write a cursive Q. Allison accusing Klaus of the reason her favorite scarf was missing. Diego trying to pick a fight with him. The sound of Vanya's violin. Even the sound Five made when he teleported.
Damn did he miss Five. It had been so many years since he disappeared and half as much since everyone gave up hope he'd come back. He could be dead for all they knew. Vanya had held on the longest and if he was honest some part of him still wished he'd come back but it seemed as if that wouldn't happen the more that time passed.
Luther proceeds out to the courtyard and straight to the gazebo, being in a sheltered space just incase the dark clouds released the water they held.
He let himself get lost in the outdoors. The smell of the humidity, the feel of the small breeze that found its way to the yard, the weathered wood of the structure beneath his finger tips where he braced himself against its railing, the sound of the thunder in the distance mixed with the squawking of the crows that sat in the trees.
His gaze was fixed upon a spot that wasn't particular at all. Just a gathering of the fall leaves where they sat decaying on the grass. He did his best to zone out. To not think. He had had enough of thinking the past two days. He was tired of being plagued by the decisions he had made as the leader over the years, the good and the bad, and the life he had lived so far. He was done.
Just as he reaches a moment of nothing in his mind a large clap of thunder startles him, causing Luther to loose his balance and fall backward onto his butt. He's going to get up, embarrassed that thunder still scared him to a certain degree after all these years when a bolt of lightning audibly cracks overhead and that he's scared of. He doesn't dare move a muscle.
More thunder, more lighting, heavier wind, and enough rain to cause a flood being all at once and with the wind blowing the droplets of water into the gazebo, Luther is soon soaked.
He's too scared to run inside, frozen in fear that he's caught in this sudden and terrible storm. He's like a deer in headlights.
He needs to get indoors, that's the only way he'll be safe, he's in more danger if he stays outside. But he can't see the door. He knows the way well but it still frightens him that he can't see where he's going because of all the rain.
And just as he's about to try and talk himself into moving, it all stops as suddenly as it began.