Vanya wasn't entirely sure how it had happened, finding the entire turn of events bewildering. Yet somehow, in the months since Reginald had sent her to school, she'd become popular.
It had started when her English teacher, Mr Paige, had read an assignment she'd written for her homework, one describing her passions: the only one which came to mind was playing the violin. He recommended Vanya join the school orchestra. The conductor was impressed with her skill considering she hadn't participated in an orchestra before and happily admitted her to the club. Not long after that, the school orchestra was asked to provide music for the drama club.
The director had already chosen the score pieces he wanted, which were heavy on the brass and percussion instruments. There were only two other people in the orchestra who played stringed instruments, not enough to justify changing all the music, so they largely sat apart from the others while the practised the main pieces during drama rehearsals. One day, the director had asked them all to take part as they were short on sign-ups that semester. They didn't even have enough members to have understudies.
Vanya, a permanent wallflower, had tried to protest but her own shyness undermined her attempts to avoid the stage. At first, she was only given a non-speaking role – which she tried to convince herself she could handle, after all, no one would be looking at her – but, when a girl from the drama club moved to another city, she was asked to take her part. She was the only girl from the strings section and, at the behest of the director and conductor, she soon had lines to stumble over as she filled the vacant role.
One of the people she shared scenes with – Louisa, a pretty blonde over a head taller than her – found her shyness adorable and suggested they read their lines together at lunch. Louisa was also on the cheerleading team and so popular Vanya tried to avoid eye contact with her whenever possible; the popular kids at her school uncomfortably reminding her of her family.
She always sat at the same table right in the middle of the cafeteria, surrounded by all the other popular people. The kind of people who always intimidated her.
Terrified the first time she sat down, waiting for an outpouring of criticism for the ordinary girl having the audacity to join them, she was flabbergasted by how warmly she was greeted.
"Oh, you're in the play with Louisa? That's cool, what part are you playing?"
"Your name is Vanya? Are you Russian too? I'm a quarter Russian, my grandma moved here when she was a girl."
"I love your bangs. I've been thinking about getting some too, but I'm not sure I can pull it off. I don't have your cheekbones. What do you think?"
"You're new right, where did you transfer from? Did you just move to the city?"
Vanya had answered all of their questions, unable to shake the nervous tone from her voice as she still waited for the inevitable moment they would realise just how unremarkable she was. Instead, more questions flowed and she was quickly invited into their jokes. When they stood to go to class, everyone asked if she would join them the following day and she shyly agreed.
Just being seen in the company of the popular crowd, people had started taking more notice of her after that. She didn't know whether to be thrilled or terrified. One of the first things Father had told her when she was unceremoniously informed about her transferral – to an environment better suited to her kind – was to keep a low profile. People couldn't become aware of her connection to the Umbrella Academy under any circumstances, which Vanya understood. Why would they want to be associated with her?
The next day at school, people started to say hello to her in the halls or when she sat down in classes. She'd become so flustered that she was rosy-cheeked for most of the day. When she left to go home, several people had then wished her a good night and she had to lie to account for her blush and tell Five the car had been really hot.
He was the only one, besides Grace and Abhijat, who asked about her school day. When Vanya had been told she would go to school, she had rushed to inform Five who spent the next week fruitlessly trying to convince Reginald not to follow through with the plan. As always when he had made up his mind however, it was impossible to make him change it.
The separation was hard for them both; Vanya had only ever really had Five for company and Five worried how Vanya would survive without him. At home, he often had to intervene when his siblings began to pick on her and, with only missions and stifling formal events to shape his perceptions of the general public, he had no confidence that her classmates would be friendly.
Vanya had struggled the first few weeks, barely speaking unless spoken to, and taking her lunch in empty rooms alone. Strangely though, the more her social life improved, the worst she felt.
Five clearly still didn't like them being apart and she hated the idea that he would think she liked being away from him. So, as her popularity grew, her accounts of her school day grew more exaggerated. Vanya wouldn't say she was lying per se, she just focused on the parts of her day which she could honestly say was boring: math lessons which she had to struggle through without his tutelage, physical education classes – a first for her, which had left her constantly short-breathed at first – and the lacklustre food they served in the canteen.
In reality, though, those parts were easy to live with as the rest of her days became increasingly fun. Vanya got better at reciting her lines and became friendlier with the other people in her orchestra. People knew her name and would say hello to her in the hallways. On a Monday morning, they'd ask how she had spent the weekend. She'd even started to get invites to go and hang out at the mall or cinema. It was an invitation Father would never allow her to accept, but the offers thrilled her anyway. She was never included in those kinds of activities before – not unless Five forced the others to ask her. But her friends at school actually wanted her there.
"You know what would be so much fun?" Louisa said the next time they sat down to lunch. "You should totally join the cheerleading squad."
"Yes!" Ellen, Louisa's best friend, responded enthusiastically. "We're holding try-outs in a few weeks."
"Oh, I couldn't…" Vanya protested. Had they not seen her in gym class? Sure, she was starting to do better but she wasn't nearly talented enough to become a cheerleader.
"Don't worry, it's not like in the films. We keep our routines pretty simple, it's mostly just chanting and supporting the sports teams." Louisa reassured.
"Yeah, we don't compete or anything. Our squad was only formed, like, six years ago." Ellen explained. "The girl who founded it actually had a prosthetic leg, so she wrote into the club's constitution that it should be accessible to everyone."
"And thank god," Niko, a boy from the drama club, said, "or I never would've gotten in."
"I'll help you practice. I have time after fourth period." Ellen encouraged.
"Me too! Oh, come on. It'll be fun!" Louisa added. "And we can spend more time together. Come on. Please?"
Vanya told Grace the orchestra were meeting for extra sessions once she relented, certain Sir Reginald would consider cheerleading a frivolous waste of time and effort.
She went into her first practice session convinced she would be terrible, so shy she'd nearly knocked Ellen into a wall when she tripped over her own feet. Everyone was patient with her though and, after a couple of weeks, she found herself loving every minute of it. She gradually improved, becoming more confident to try the more gymnastic elements, especially when she – rather nervously – decided to ditch her second pill of the day. They had always made her slightly drowsy and, given her popularity, she was sure she could handle a lowered dose of anxiety medication. Not that she asked Father for permission – she couldn't without him finding out about her cheerleading.
The team were biased by the time try-outs came along and, once people Vanya knew were far better than her, had been sent packing she was handed the uniform. Its full skirt was a vivid red, with a blue body and long white sleeves. Their school's emblem was emblazoned across the shirt and Louisa had already stitched Vanya's name into the collar. She loved it.
After she'd tried it on, taking a few twirls before the mirror to admire it, the uniform was carefully placed in her locker for safekeeping; Vanya was too terrified at the thought of anyone finding it at the Academy to take it home with her.
"So practice is every Tuesday and Thursday after school," Louisa reminded. "Thursdays the guys will be playing on the field too. It's good, helps us learn to stay out of their way when they're playing for real. But it'll just be us on Tuesday."
Vanya smiled at her, still timid but getting brighter every day. "Sounds great."
"You did great today, Vanya. You really did a great job. I bet your family will be super proud when you tell them tonight."
She smiled blandly at that, sending up a secret prayer that the others would never find out.
"Don't forget Mr Constable has a full dress rehearsal on Friday too."
"Right."
"When do you have orchestra practise again?"
"Monday and Wednesday lunch," Vanya said with a slight sigh. At this rate, she'd have no time to finish her homework. Granted, she had the time when she was at home but Five got annoyed if she was too busy to spend time with him. They rarely saw each other since she had been sent to a regular school. At least, as Five regularly consoled her, Reginald hadn't sent her to boarding school as he had once threatened. She would still have him in the evenings and on weekends – how bad could it be, they'd reasoned?
Never in a million years would she have thought things would turn out like this.
"You're so lucky." Louisa gushed. "Your college application will look amazing with all these extracurriculars. Colleges always love musicians too. Do you know where you want to go?"
"Not yet," Vanya said, taken aback. College was years away. "Do you?"
"I was thinking I'd go to Albany," Louisa said decisively. "If they'll have me."
"I'm sure they will." She assured her, unable to imagine anyone could turn someone like Louisa away. Vanya was still in a perpetual state of shock that someone so popular enjoyed spending time with her.
Except for Five, her family were always eager to escape her company.
"So the team and I were thinking of going to this pizza place in midtown on Saturday. I know you said you're usually busy but…"
Vanya cut her off before she could finish her invitation, feeling too guilty about all the lies she had to tell about her life outside the school grounds.
"Sorry, Louisa. You know I'd love to but with all these clubs, I'm really falling behind on my homework. My Father is really strict about grades so I need to get it done."
Louisa chuckled. "You're the only person I've ever heard call their Dad Father. It sounds so old fashioned."
"Oh," she mumbled, feeling her cheeks heat up again, "it's what he tells us to call him."
"Don't worry about it." Louisa laughed, glancing at her. "Aww, you're blushing again. You are too cute. No wonder we keep drawing crowds at rehearsals."
Vanya's blush deepened even though she knew Louisa's teasing was light-hearted. The only people who sat in the pews were orchestra members and some of Louisa's friends, who did their homework while occasionally shouting words of encouragement. They'd started doing it for Vanya too, while she was still stumbling over her lines, making her – somehow – even worse. The director had booted them from the theatre for a while until she got them right; now they were a semi-permanent fixture.
They passed the theatre crowd then who, like Louisa, always delighted in seeing their newest member bright red.
"What did you say to her now?" Niko asked, throwing an arm around Vanya's shoulders. "Were you complimenting her pike jump again? I told you, girl, you nailed it!"
Gabriel, who, like Niko loved seeing her blush, joined in.
"Did you finally point out how big a crush James from biology clearly has on her?"
They all laughed as Vanya turned so crimson she nearly became light-headed.
"Relax," Louisa said, as Vanya pressed her cold hands to her face to try to cool down. "They're only teasing you."
"She's so cute," Niko said to Gabriel, who Vanya had only just found out yesterday was his boyfriend.
Apparently, her naivety was adorable, they all kept telling her so.
Vanya was constantly amazed by how little she apparently knew about the real world. She thought Mom had taught them everything they needed to know in their classes, yet she was constantly amazed by how out of touch she was.
Luckily for her, the others knew she'd previously been home-schooled and were patient with her. They seemed to presume her family were rather religious, apparently as most home-schooled children came from religious families, and Vanya didn't correct them; it worked quite well as an excuse for her inexperience with the real world.
When she'd first joined the drama crowd they'd explained how schools really worked – telling her what cliques were and which were the ones she wanted to join and which ones she should avoid. She'd already been able to spot the popular ones – a lifetime in the Umbrella Academy's shadow had made it easy to recognise that – but she'd had no idea what some of the other groups were like. Niko was especially amused when he had to explain what grass was – evidently different to the variety which grew on the lawn – and which students sold it. Once Vanya had been made aware of the signs of drug use, she had to admit, it was fairly obvious. She also now understood why Ben and Five were always so concerned about Klaus.
"How are you getting on with your lines?" Gabriel asked as they walked to the canteen. Unlike Vanya, he had a leading part in the play yet that never stopped him from helping everyone else out at rehearsals. He'd practised lines with Vanya over the lunch table several times, even though they had no scenes together, always happy to help the other cast members out.
"Okay," she said tentatively, "I think I've got them memorised. I'm still a bit nervous about performing in front of so many people though."
"I'll ask the cheerleaders to sit in on a rehearsal," Louisa suggested, "it might help you get used to a crowd."
"Oh, that would be helpful. If they're not too busy." She clarified, always terrified of being an imposition.
"Relax! What are friends for?" Louisa assured her.
They all trotted off to lunch, grabbing their food before sitting around a bustling table of people all ready to ask how they were and talk about their day.
Vanya was still unable to comprehend how she had gotten there as she was greeted by the group, but was slowly starting to feel that she belonged there.
Abhijat always collected her from school, the only person at the Academy who could without drawing any questions or a crowd.
Usually, he was only around the children when Reginald was also in the car. For years he had sat behind the wheel, always a stonily silent presence who Vanya had found intimidating. It was only once it was just the two of them that she realised he only acted that way because he was in front of his employer.
"Good afternoon, Vanya." He greeted cheerfully as she slid into the car, feeling slightly sore from her first official training session on the cheerleading team.
Vanya had started to ride in the front with Abhijat after a few weeks of them driving to and from school together and he waited for her to secure her seatbelt before easing them into traffic. "How was your day? Did you get up to anything fun?"
Like everyone at the Academy, Vanya couldn't risk revealing too much about her extracurricular activities for fear Father would hear of them and make her quit. Still, she was able to talk about the orchestra and what she'd had for lunch. They chatted happily as they drove, Abhijat eventually filling her in on a mission the Umbrella Academy had that afternoon.
Immediately concerned, she asked, "Was everyone okay afterwards?"
"Yes, Vanya." He assured. "They didn't even have any blood on them and you know that's always a good sign."
Letting out a sigh of relief, she asked if he knew what they did on the mission.
"I'm sure they'll tell you when you get home."
Giving him an exasperated look, Abhijat smiled at the increasingly brazen girl sitting beside him. He had barely been able to get eye contact from her when Mr Hargreeves had first instructed him to drive her to and from school.
"I believe," he conceded, "there was a hostage situation. Miss Allison rumoured the abductors into submission and Mr Luther escorted them to the police waiting outside. That's all I know. Remember, I was in the car the whole time."
"Thanks, Abi." She said, using the nickname he'd suggested she use the other week. Apparently, his family called him that. He talked about them sometimes. They sounded nice. Especially compared to hers who usually referred to her by a number.
"Have you made any friends yet?" He asked, slightly worried that she didn't seem to be socialising as a girl her age should be.
She would love to tell him all about Louisa, Niko, Ellen and Gabriel and all the other wonderful people she was happy to call her friends but, no matter how comfortable she got with Abhijat she knew he always worked for Reginald first and foremost. Five had reminded her of that when she started travelling with him – using the same speech he'd first issued about talking freely to Grace and Pogo – and she knew she needed to be careful about what she revealed about herself.
"The people in my orchestra group are nice. They seem excited about the play we'll perform in. It's only a few weeks away now."
"That will be nice. Have you ever thought about auditioning to take part in it yourself?"
"No," she lied, feeling guilty as she did, "I don't think I could stand having all those people looking at me. I'm happier by the side of the stage."
In reality, she would only be in the orchestra section for the opening and closing pieces, before running backstage to prepare for her part. It was only small, barely a page full of lines in total, but her character would be in the background of a few scenes and the director had decided it would be easier if she stayed backstage when she wasn't needed instead of running to the orchestra section.
"Well as long as you have fun, that's all that matters." Abhijat encouraged. "Is Mr Hargreeves planning to see the play."
"No," Vanya said, almost snorting in amusement. "He probably doesn't even know about it. I told Mom and Pogo though, they said it was all right." She tacked on at the end, not wanting Abi to think she was participating without permission.
"Maybe one of them will attend." He said, even though they both knew they wouldn't be able to.
"Yeah." She mumbled, keeping her fingers crossed the entire time she spoke to negate her words. "Hopefully."
They pulled around the back of the Academy. Abhijat didn't get out with her but watched until she was safely through the kitchen door.
"Vanya." Grace greeted warmly. She was standing over the stove preparing their dinner. "How was your day?"
"Good, thanks."
"I made you a snack." She said, gesturing with a sweeping arm towards the kitchen table.
"Thanks," Vanya said, sitting down to eat.
Before she'd started school, the thought of an afternoon snack had never appealed but since she started gym and practising cheerleading, her appetite had become ferocious. The first cheerleading practice session tonight had been especially difficult, as the opening game would start in a few weeks and they needed their routine perfected, so she eagerly set into her snack feeling absolutely ravenous despite having a full meal for lunch with dessert.
"Where are the others?" She asked around a bite. "Abhijat said there was a mission?"
"Yes, dear. There was a hostage situation. The other children are debriefing Sir Reginald now." Grace answered serenely. "Would you like some milk?"
Nodding, she said, "Yes, please. Is everyone okay?"
"My medical programme was not activated. Here you are."
She sighed, conceding that she would have to wait for Five to tell her what had actually happened.
After finishing her snack, Vanya headed upstairs to put her books in her room and do some homework.
She would have liked to practice her violin some more – her new activities at school were wonderful but sometimes she feared it distracted her from her main focus. If she didn't keep improving, Father might take the violin away from her.
Her homework needed doing though. When she'd first started school, spending most of her time alone, she'd finished her homework during her solitary lunch or free periods – always eager to set aside as much time as she could to spend with Five once she got back to the Academy.
That was before she joined the orchestra. Then got a part in the school play. Then became a cheerleader.
Vanya grimaced as she spread out her books on the desk in her room, shuffling through everything to find the English essay she needed to finish for Mr Paige.
Hopefully, Five wouldn't be upset that her time was becoming more constrained. It would be easier if she could explain why she'd become so busy but, as far as Five thought, Vanya hated school.
While the rest of the Academy hadn't thought twice about Vanya getting sent off to regular school – only feeling that it was fitting the ordinary one finally go and spend time around other ordinary people – Five hadn't been happy. With time, it had gotten easier for Vanya. She made friends, spent time doing things she enjoyed instead of being side-lined all the time. Five's feelings hadn't changed however and she didn't want to upset him. She didn't want him to think she was happy they were apart because she wasn't. Despite her feelings towards the Academy, she would eagerly trade in attending her new school to resume spending her days with him.
Still, it was hard hiding such a large part of her life from him. Vanya wanted to tell him all about her new friends, bring him into her new world and share it all with him. It wasn't possible though. He was with the Academy and Vanya wasn't. There was an entire part of him he couldn't share with her; her ordinariness prevented that. And now her ordinariness kept him from a part of her.
Sighing, she started on her homework. Mr Paige – Frank, as he insisted his students called him – was the person who had first suggested she join the orchestra. He was always interested in his student's work and had quickly become one of her favourite teachers. As such, no matter how busy she was, Vanya worked hard on her essay. Giving it more time than she really had to spare, determined to give him her best.
Five jumped to her room as she was finishing off the conclusion of her first draft, lighting up the room.
As soon as he appeared, her pen dropped and Vanya bounced up from her chair to greet him. While she had only seen him that morning – exchanging subtle smiles over the dining table – it felt like an eternity.
"Hi, Five." She said chipperly, turning to look at him. After a careful assessment, she was relieved to see he looked unharmed. He didn't even have a scratch.
Five gave her the same look even though she was at no risk of being hurt.
"Is that a bruise?" He asked, pointing to her elbow.
Confused, Vanya twisted her arm around to try and see it. As soon as she saw the vivid purple bruise, she remembered a hard landing during practice. It was the first time she'd attempted a backflip and, while she'd managed it by the end of the session, the first few times had led to some painful falls.
Tugging on her sleeve to cover it, she shrugged it off. "Must have banged it at some point. I didn't even feel it."
Five didn't look convinced. "It looks pretty sore."
Vanya chuckled nervously. "It's fine. I didn't notice it until you pointed it out."
"If you say so."
"How are the others? Abi said you were on a mission today?"
"Abi?" Five questioned, looking at her curiously.
Did no one else call him that, she wondered? Strange, before Vanya started going to school, it was the Academy members who spent the most time with him.
"Abhijat." She amended. "Is everyone all right?"
"Yeah, we're fine." Five said, reluctantly letting Vanya's injury go. He still eyed her bruise as he spoke. "They'd snatched a family – wife and three kids – to try to blackmail this guy. Held them up at a warehouse downtown."
She cooed sympathetically. "Were they all okay?"
"Allison got them out. The kidnappers were easy to take care of. No injuries. It was easy." He shrugged, glancing around her to look at the books on her desk. "What are you working on?"
"English essay. I've nearly got my first draft done then I've got my math homework."
"Why didn't you do it at school?"
"Orchestra overran." She excused.
"I thought you only had orchestra during Monday and Wednesday lunch?" He asked suspiciously.
"Oh, I do," Vanya admitted, feeling flustered. She hadn't expected him to remember that. "But we're performing in the school play in a few weeks so we have extra sessions."
Five looked at her, curious about her agitated response.
Vanya blushed under his stare and turned back to her homework.
"I really should get this done before dinner."
"Give me your math homework." Five said, snatching it off her desk before she could say anything. "I'll do it."
"You don't have to…"
"I know. But if I don't you'll have to work on it after dinner and I wanted to talk to you about some equations. Budge up."
Relenting, Vanya did as he asked. They shared her desk chair, working side by side until Grace called them for dinner, enjoying the rare moment of uninterrupted closeness.
Five finished first – she thought he was too smart for his own good sometimes – but stayed sitting with her. Looping an arm around her shoulders, careful not to jostle her as she wrote, he leaned his head on her shoulder and made suggestions as she revised the paper. English wasn't his preferred subject, he'd always been better at science and math, but she appreciated his input. He also spared her some embarrassment by catching an obvious spelling error.
What would Mr Paige have thought if she'd turned that in, Vanya scolded herself, quickly erasing the word and rewriting it.
"You seem distracted lately." Five mused, his warm breath fanning against her cheek as he spoke.
Vanya did her best not the shiver from the sensation, answering him as evenly as she could, "Have I?"
"You have." He affirmed. Lightly, Five tugged on a strand of her hair. "Is everything okay at school?"
She looked at him out of the corner of her eyes.
Everything was perfect at school with one notable exception. Luckily, it was something she could be honest about.
"I just miss you," Vanya admitted. "It's hard being apart so much. I wish you were there with me."
Five was still for a moment and she feared it was finally the moment he would rebuke her; say she was silly or that he didn't miss her at all. As always, however, Five proved her insecurities wrong.
"I miss you too." He said, wrapping his free arm around her waist and pulling her into a hug.
"I'll try to talk to Dad again," Five promised, "ask him to transfer you back here. I can make it sound like a security risk or something, but I'll keep trying until you're back at home."
Vanya dropped her pen and returned the embrace, allowing Five to cuddle her closer. Sticking her head under his chin, she mumbled, "You can't do that, Five. You're always saying he can't know how close we are or he'll use it against us. If you keep asking him about my school, he'll get suspicious. You know he will."
He sighed heavily, knowing she – or more accurately, he was right about that. Still, Five hated it when things didn't go his way.
"I'm sorry, Vanya." He said, laying his cheek against the crown of her head. "I'm sorry you're not happy there. But it's just a couple more years, then we'll leave this place and nothing will get between us again. Okay?"
"Okay." She agreed easily. They'd talked about this before but it never failed to thrill her when Five included her in his plans for the future.
"We'll leave," Five said, as he had told her so many times, "we'll get out of here and we'll move far away from here, where he can't find us. Okay?"
"Okay." Vanya concurred, smiling against his throat.
This has been on my prompts list for almost a year! I had aimed to make it a one-shot but, as is so often the case with my work, that didn't happen. I'm going to try and keep it under 5 chapters though. The next chapter is already at nearly 2500 words and I haven't even gotten to the main part of it yet so... I don't know when I'll get around to posting. It's my birthday tomorrow (well, in a few hours now as it's late) and then I've got a job interview the day after that, so we'll see when I can find time to finish it!
I hope you all liked this and it's not an original character overload! 💕