Thea was tying her long blond hair into a messy ponytail as she gazed into the mirror in front of her. She could see Klaus in the background, jumping and hopping on one foot as he tried putting on his sock.
Thea huffed as she tightened her ponytail before turning to her brother who now lay on the floor with his legs stuck in the air.
"How do you manage to trip over nothing?" she asked sarcastically.
"I don't! God is just out to get me, I swear," Klaus whined.
Thea rolled her eyes, "Klaus, if God is real I can promise you he isn't wasting precious time on your idiotic ass. Now get up, we were supposed to be downstairs, like, 5 minutes ago."
"Yeah, yeah, gimme a minute," Klaus muttered as he pulled on his other sock, looking around the messy room for his shoes.
Thea walked over to their bathroom and pulled the shower curtain back, sighing as she saw Klaus' shoes dangling from the shower head.
"Klaus! What did I say about hanging these here?" she shouted.
"But they dry-" Klaus tried explaining but Thea cut him off.
"I don't care, don't get them so dirty in the first place!" she stalked into their room and threw the shoes at him. "I'm going down. Hurry up or you'll have to explain to Dad why we're so late."
Thea pinched her nose in stress as she walked out of the room and down the stairs. She loved her brother, she really did, but sometimes he was too much even for her.
Once downstairs, she made her way into the training room where the rest of her siblings stood in line. Hargreeves stood at the front of the room with Vanya beside him, both had clipboards in hand and Vanya had a whistle around her neck.
"Ah, Number Zero. Would you like to explain why you're," he looked toward his watch, "6 minutes and 32 seconds late?"
Thea rolled her eyes as she walked over to stand at the front of the line by Luther. "Babysitting, as usual," she muttered.
Hargreeves eye's narrowed at her figure before nodding curtly and looking back at his clipboard. "Well then, we shall wait until Number Four deems it appropriate to grace us with his presence."
Just as he said that there was a loud crash before Klaus came springing into the room, his tracksuit messy and off centre and his shoes untied.
Thea closed her eyes and took a deep breath. If there's a Lord up there, give me the strength to deal with these idiots. I beg you.
"Number Four! In line," Hargreeves ordered.
Klaus shuffled his way over between Allison and Five, adjusting his tracksuit as he went. Hargreeves gave them all a stern look before nodding in satisfaction.
"Now, for today's training, we'll be focusing on hand-to-hand combat. Without powers," he announced.
Groans could be heard from Allison, Klaus and Ben while both Thea and Five simply shrugged. Luther had a smug grin on his face, but it was soon wiped off when Hargreeves spoke next.
"Number One will of course not be participating as it would not be a fair fight. Now, you'll be paired up. Number Two with Number Three. Zero with Five, and Four with Six," he rattled off.
Thea looked down the line towards Five and grinned. Five grinned back. They both knew the other would be the best partner they could ask for.
Other than Diego and Luther, there wasn't anybody else that would be a fun fight.
However, unlike Diego and Luther, Thea and Five didn't play by the rules, and they both loved to fight dirty. Thea grinned in excitement, she'd finally found a way to de-stress and have fun at the same time. Bring it on.
"Now, we'll be having these pairings fight one at a time, so that you can all witness and take notes on strengths and weaknesses. Up first is Number Two vs Number Three. Step forward both of you," Hargreeves ordered.
Diego and Allison stepped toward the mat that covered the area where they'd fight. The rest of the siblings stood against the wall to watch.
"Before we begin, can anybody tell me the strengths and weaknesses of both Number Two and Three?" he asked.
Luther raised his hand immediately.
"Yes, Number One?"
"Diego has perfect aim whereas Allison is smaller and quicker," he answered.
Hargreeves nodded his head in agreement. Thea raised her hand to answer the second part.
"And their weaknesses, Number Zero?" Hargreeves prompted.
"Well, Diego's lame and sticks to the rules and Allison punches like a girl," she drawled.
"I am a girl!" Allison shouted.
"So am I, but I bet I could deck Luther if I really tried," Thea shot back, smirking at the thought.
Klaus laughed loudly at her joke and the others tried to stop their chuckles.
Hargreeves coughed to bring their attention back to the matter at hand, "Yes, well, despite your particular choice of words, you are correct. Number Two doesn't allow variation, whereas Number Three is weaker in physicality," he lectured.
"Let's see how they overcome these issues. The first to pin the other to the floor for a total of 5 seconds, wins. Begin," he told the two.
Diego immediately lunged at Allison, who jumped to the side narrowly dodging his grasp. She continued to dodge his attacks and Thea was already bored as they played cat and mouse.
Diego lunged again at Allison but stopped himself suddenly, making her lose balance and fall to the floor.
He quickly pinned her to the mat, but Allison bit his hand and he yelled in pain. Allison tried twisting her way from underneath Diego, but he leant all his weight on her as he cradled his hand to his chest.
Vanya's whistle rang throughout the room as Hargreeves declared, "Number Two is the winner."
Allison huffed and blew her hair out of her face and Diego rolled off her and got up, extending his hand to help her up.
"Next up, Number Four and Six. Same rules apply," Hargreeves announced.
Klaus and Ben walked over toward the mat.
"Strengths and weaknesses?" he asked the children again.
This time, Diego's hand shot up alongside Luther's. Hargreeves nodded toward Diego.
"Well, in terms of strengths, Ben is bigger than Klaus meaning he could knock him over, right? And I guess Klaus...is taller?" his voice rose at the end, not quite knowing what to say for Klaus' strengths. It was well known Klaus didn't care for anything exercise related.
Hargreeves nodded, "And their weaknesses?" he prompted.
Allison spoke up this time, "Ben is hesitant in his movements while Klaus' height makes him clumsy."
Thea snorted at her description of the two boys. Ben was too timid to properly throw a punch - something she found adorable, honestly - whereas her twin was all skin and bones. He'd grown so much in height and gained no fat that he'd become gangly.
Like a baby giraffe tripping over its own legs, Thea chuckled to herself.
Hargreeves seemed pleased. "Correct. Number Six must not hesitate to make the first move, while Number Four must become more coordinated."
He turned to the two boys on the mat, Klaus had a bored expression on his face whereas Ben bit his lip in worry.
"Go, Ben!" Thea cheered from the sidelines.
Klaus shot her a glare, "What the hell, sis? Shouldn't you be cheering for me?"
Thea shrugged, "Five can cheer for you," she said as she nudged the boy next to her.
Five had a blank look on his face and he spoke with no enthusiasm whatsoever, "Woo. Go Klaus."
Klaus pouted at the lacklustre support and Thea giggled at Five's display.
"Go Klausy!" she shouted, "I'm rooting for you both!" She grinned and gave them both thumbs up.
Ben gave her a small smile and Hargreeves ordered them to begin. Neither of them moved, Klaus even slouching in boredom and Thea snorted at their lack of effort.
Ben's eyes flickered between Hargreeves and Klaus before he sighed and charged at Klaus, pinning him to the ground. Klaus made an 'oof' sound but didn't bother trying to defend himself.
Thea knew her twin hated training days and he'd often put in minimal effort to get it over with. Hargreeves seemed to agree as he shook his head at their display and wrote on his clipboard.
Vanya blew the whistle after a couple of seconds and Ben was announced the winner. Both boys walked back toward the wall where the others stood.
"Enjoy the fight?" she whispered to Klaus.
Klaus snorted, "I just want it to end, I need a smoke."
"Wait a little longer and we'll sneak out to the shop, yeah?" she whispered even quieter, so their father couldn't hear.
Klaus grinned and nodded his head. It was always easier to buy cigarettes when Thea came along, being able to convince them they were of legal age, and not actually a pair of kids.
"Finally, Number Zero and Number Five. Step onto the mat," Hargreeves ordered.
Thea smiled at her twin and walked toward the mat with Five. They were both grinning at one another at the thought of fighting.
"Now, I'll ask again. Strengths and weaknesses?" Hargreeves directed toward the others.
All but Klaus raised their hands. "Number Six?" Hargreeves prompted.
Ben glanced between Thea and Five nervously. "Well, they're both quick and fast. I-I'm not sure they have anything that can be used against the other. Without powers, at least," he admitted.
"Excellent, Number Six!" Hargreeves exclaimed.
"This is the exact reason I paired up Number Zero and Number Five. I want you all to watch how two people fight who are on an equal level. Watch how they overcome this hurdle," he instructed them all with a serious expression.
Thea raised a brow at his comment. He paired them on purpose to watch how'd they act? Five glanced at Thea with a bemused expression at the man's words.
"Now, this time, it will be the first to pin the other for 10 seconds. Begin," Hargreeves ordered.
Thea narrowed her eyes as Five wasted no time before lunging at her. She twisted out of his way and turned back to face him. She smirked at his glare.
He lunged again, and this time Thea ducked and swiped his feet from under him. Five used the momentum to grab hold of her arm and pulled her down with him.
They both quickly rolled away after falling, and Thea knelt as she waited for his attack. Five didn't move and Thea grit her teeth, knowing he was making her initiate the next move.
She lunged from the floor and pinned him to the mat, her knees either side of his body and her arms aside his head.
Five sent her a smug smirk and Thea was about to ask what exactly he found funny about losing when she was thrown aside and her back hit the floor. Five had rolled them over and pinned her to the floor, reversing their positions.
His smirk grew, and his eyes were flickering with mischief. "Got you," he taunted.
Thea narrowed her eyes, Oh, you want to play dirty? I'll give you something to laugh about...
Thea leant up and brought her face up toward Five's, their noses touching and lips dangerously close.
Five's cheeks went pink at their proximity and Thea used his distraction to twist her legs around his and flip them back over. This time, she kept her arms on his chest and her thighs trapping his body.
Thea leant down towards his ear, "Got you," she mocked his earlier words.
Five huffed in frustration, cheeks still pink. Just as she thought he was going to give up, he slipped his arm from her grasp and pulled her ponytail.
Thea head snapped back and Five used his other hand to push on her chest and push her off of him.
Thea rolled away and winced at her sore head. "Seriously?" she asked Five.
Five narrowed his eyes at her, "What? You played dirty first," he growled.
"Not my fault you're a sucker for a pretty girl," she bit out sarcastically.
"Pretty girl? I don't see one anywhere," Five shot back.
Thea glared at him, "Tell that to your blush, dickhead."
Five's cheeks went pink again at the reminder, but he continued his glare, "How's the head?"
Thea lunged for Five and they both went tumbling back, neither being able to overpower the other.
Vanya's whistle cut over their fight and they both paused and looked up toward the direction of where it sounded.
"That's enough. I believe this would go on for far too long if I were to allow it to continue any longer. It's a draw," Hargreeves declared.
Thea and Five panted from where they both lay against the mat. Thea pulled herself off of Five and onto her feet, offering her hand down to him. Five grabbed it and nodded in thanks, their argument already forgotten.
That's how it often was between the two of them. They both loved to rile the other up and regardless of what they said or did, they'd often brush it off once they'd finished arguing. Neither of them liked holding anything against the other, especially during something silly like training.
Thea and Five both walked back in line, Thea deciding to skip staying in order and stand next to Klaus instead.
"Enjoy your fight? Looked very intense," Klaus teased from beside her.
Hargreeves was saying the normal finishing speech about 'working harder' and 'improving themselves' but neither was listening.
"Shut up," Thea mumbled and nudged his side.
Hargreeves finished his speech and let them all go. Thea and Klaus began making their way up to their room to shower and change, passing Ben on the way up.
Thea wrapped her arms around his neck, stopping him from going any further.
"Hey, you coming to our room after? We're off to the shop. We can get ice cream while we're there?" she offered.
Klaus nodded from beside them, pumping his fist at the mention of ice cream.
Ben looked up at Thea and bit the inside of his cheek, "Is Five going?" he asked timidly.
Thea frowned in confusion, "That moron? No, it's you, me and Klausy, like always."
Ben let out a breath and nodded, giving her a small smile. Thea grinned and unwound her arms, kissing Ben on the cheek.
"Okay! I'm gonna go shower, meet you guys in 10!" she shouted over her shoulder as she made her way toward the bathroom.
Klaus and Ben were left standing in the hallway and the taller boy looked toward a blushing Ben. "You know there's no need to be jealous, right?"
Ben jumped at his voice and turned from the direction Thea had left toward Klaus. "What?" he asked dumbly.
Klaus snorted and threw an arm around his shoulder, leading him down the corridor toward his room.
"There's no need to be jealous of Five. They don't like each other like that," he assured the boy.
Ben bit his lip, "B-but in training-"
"They like to rile one another up, and Five's a boy. What boy wouldn't blush if a pretty girl put her face right up to theirs, huh? Regardless of how they see each other, he's bound to get flustered. It's not like any of you are actually related, anyway," he pointed out, waving his arm dramatically to make his point.
Ben hummed. He knew Thea and Five were close, although not like her and Klaus, and Ben didn't want to assume things, but it made him nervous.
Five was outgoing and cocky, never afraid to say what he felt, a lot like Thea. Ben worried that being so shy and timid made him appear weak.
Klaus seemed to be able to tell what he was thinking as he leant down to whisper.
"Don't tell anybody, but I once asked Thea what her ideal type was, and she answered, 'someone sweet, the opposite of me, basically', sound familiar, hmm?" Klaus asked with a smug grin on his face.
Ben blushed at the insinuation and Klaus cackled at his bright red face, he slapped the boy's back and carried on walking toward his room.
"Come on, lover boy. Let's not keep the evil twin waiting any longer."
If you're curious, this is set only a few months before Five disappeared. The next chapter will be a flashback to Thea and Ben's first kiss ;)