"Ever heard of the Majestic Twelve?"
"They're a secret organisation," Elliott said, sliding her a cup of coffee.
Ris taking it gratefully, taking a long deep breath of it. She never usually drank much coffee, but she was feeling particularly lonely today. Besides she had a long night, of partying with Klaus's cult.
Unfortunately for her; happiness was always short-lived. "So, you have heard of them."
"Briefly," Elliott said, sitting down, sipping his own coffee. "Apparently their filled with the world's best scientist and military officials; well twelve of them. Hence the name. They don't even exist; it's just a myth." he said taking a long sip. "Why you'd ask?"
"Because it exists." Ris said, sliding her fingers along the rim off her mug.
Elliott chocked on his coffee. "What?" he choked out; Ris handing him a napkin. "They exist, El. And I already found one of their members: Robert Alpin."
"The scien-wait, wait…How'd you figure this out?" Elliott breathed out, leaning closer towards her. Ris dug in her pocket, fishing out a picture sliding it across to him.
"Found this in dear old grandfathers building. Hidden away with a bunch of pictures of showgirls." Ris spat, shaking her head. "Typical."
"Wait, your grandfather?"
"Long story, my mother's a nasty piece of work to if you're wondering. So for future reference stay away from her, if you can." Ris said, finally taking a sip of coffee once of the steam cleared.
"I can't believe it, Majestic Twelve; there just…Wow…I mean…" he said, grinning from ear to ear, Ris shrugged, not really sharing his excitement.
"Anyway…um…" Elliott said, trying to regain some control of his excitement. "How's the search?"
"Pretty good, I've found Klaus. He's a cult leader now."
"Five." Ris said, lazily opening her eyes. Dawn was just starting the break. And the air was fresh with the sound of roosters. "Go shoot those chickens!"
"Believe me, if I could I would." Five grumbled, holding a pillow over his ear. "Damn birds." he hissed, falling back under the covers.
Ris shut her eyes, rubbing them before looking up at the ceiling. "This is so—weird."
"What is?" Five asked, poking his head out of the covers again. "This," Ris said, gesturing around the room. "House. Neighbours. Working. Cleaning house and sewing patterns. I mean it's so…domestic. Do you ever imagine yourself actually—you know living normally?"
Five turned on his side facing her. "I—I guess the idea of it. Never thought I'd do it."
Ris nodded, turning facing him. "The whole, get a house, settle down, Commission package plan after we safe the world…What happens after we save the world?"
Five paused, as another rooster made a particularly loud coo. "Might as well, get up. Never gonna sleep with these birds." he mumbled, rolling off the bed, disappearing down the hall.
His footsteps echoing throughout the quiet house.
Ris sighed, leaning back massaging her forehead. Before pulling off the covers, following him too.
"I'll ask around, see what I find." Elliott said, walking her out, leaning against his doorframe. Ris nodded, pulling on her cardigan. While she still wasn't used to the bright colours and lack of sneakers, she was glad clothing for 'young girls' wasn't bad.
It was definitely better than what she wore in the 1800's. Then again most things were better than insanely tight corsets.
"Alright, but be careful. These people are dangerous, I don't want you to get hurt in this, you understand?" Ris warned, pulling some of her hair from behind her neck.
'Haircut, Ris. You need to get your hair cut!'
"I don't want anything to happen to you, Elliott."
Elliott smiled bashfully, looking down. "I'll be careful."
"Good," Ris said, tucking some stray hair behind her ear. "I'll see you soon."
"Bye, Ris!" he called back, closing the door with a light click. Jogging down the steps, back into the usual busy Dallas street, Ris turned about to make her way home, before spotting something strange.
Across the street, dressed in dark clothing a woman was watching her. The woman seemed to notice she was watching her, as she turned around talking to her waiter. Ris bit her lower lip continuing on her walk, disappearing down an alleyway.
She wasn't stupid, she spotted the briefcase a mile away.
Today was the day. Well, technically the night, but that really didn't matter right now. This was the day/night that Jonathan Heyden died.
Everything was planned. The dog was asleep curtesy of Ris slipping a light sedative into its food. She did the same of his wife; Five doing it to their target at 'work'.
Breaking inside was fairly simple, they didn't even need to spacial-jump. Ris simply used one of her many hairpins that had become stuck in her hair since coming here.
Opening the door, walking to the Heyden bedroom, she and Five carefully picked up Mr Heyden. Being sure to leave there bedroom window open.
Ris pulling a knife out of her boot, making a few scratches on the end of the house.
In the morning when it was going to be reported, it was going to be the way Mr Heyden 'escaped' from his home.
Five dumping the body into a car (obviously not there's) and driving them to a lake. Pulling out a thin needle; from her bag; Ris carefully injected Heyden with a muscle relaxer.
"Ready?" she asked, glancing at Five.
As much as they said they enjoyed this; or pretended like it was nothing. Sometimes when all was quiet and it was just them, it never really felt like it.
Ris figured she didn't feel it as bad. Death was something that she'd been around for, for years. Blood on her hands, bruises on her knuckles. Death at her fingertips. It was part of her, as much as she hated to admit it back then.
"Yeah," Five nodded, dragging Heyden from the boot of the car onto the ground.
After a while, she sort of numbed herself to it. Accepted it. She knew deep down, what she truly was; a monster. Someone was alright with bloodshed when it was needed.
She knew deep down she wasn't a good person. And she knew deep down, Five was.
She knew this bothered him far more than it bothered her. She envied it, his guilt. Guilt meant you cared. Her lack of it…was quite clear…
Wading in Ris held his head, Five balancing his body. The water lapped on her clothes, pressing them closer to together like a second skin. A wet one.
Mr Heyden's body would be found two days later…drowned in a lake. He would be found; by a couple who had just moved in; on a stroll after a picnic when they would see his body floating there. The police theorised that the stress got to him and in the result he went mad, ran off and drowned in the local lake.
No would have guess what really happened.
Ris opened his mouth, Five submerging his body down, taking hold of Mr Heyden's arms.
"Now." Ris whispered, as the ducked the man's body underwater; watching as Mr Jonathan Heyden drowned.
"Don't you think your being a little bit paranoid?" Klaus asked, sipping him milkshake watching Ris run around the room, boarding up the little crack at the bottom of the door.
"She may be a pathetic assassin, but it doesn't mean I can risk being her next victim." Ris said, giving the door another hard whack. "I hate being a victim."
"You worry too much." Klaus said, leaning back, flipping through the channels on the TV. They really didn't have many options, but it seemed he still couldn't decide what to watch.
"I do not." Ris replied, setting her hammer into her toolbox. "You do too."
"I don't."
"Mmhhmm."
"I don't!" Ris cried, shoving her toolbox into a cupboard. "Five, The Commission, your little alien person, that weird goldfish guy, Five, your crazy grandfather, Five, your crazy mother; you might not even be alive yet by the way, Allison, Five-
"You said Five four times." Ris said sitting on her coffee table, crossing her legs. "You worried about him quite a lot when he was here; I think it just got worse when he's not." Klaus said simply.
"You're really observant aren't you?" Ris said, watching Klaus attempt to grab him milkshake straw with him mouth. Klaus rocked him head. "I got Jane Austen with me, so I kinda have to be."
"Wait Ben's-"
"Delivery for Clarissa Alpin?" knocked a voice from the door. The two turned around, glancing at each other. "Who could that be?" Ris mumbled, jumping up, opening the door.
"Clarissa Alpin?" came the gruff voice of a postman, in his hands a giant cardboard box with wholes on the top and the sides. "Yeah," Ris asked, leaning on the doorframe looking him up and down.
"You're Clarissa Alpin?" the postman said dubiously, raising an eyebrow. "You got a problem with that?" Ris shot back, standing up straighter. The man blinked shrugging as he handed her the package.
"This is for you," he said handing her the box. Ris staggering slightly, it was heavy. "What's inside?" she asked. The man shrugged. "Need a signature; where's your parents?"
"My parents—" Ris said, biting her lower lip. "They…are—"
"Right at the door, Rissie." Klaus said, appearing next a drunken grin on his face. Which was ironic since he was sober for almost two years now. "This girl, so—ditsy." Klaus said, ruffling her hair, taking the pen. "Last week, ran into a vegetable patch coz she thought she saw a rabbit; turned out to be a rat."
The two laughed, Ris bit her lower lip. 'I'm gonna kill him.'
"Another time, bless her soul; she tried to pull weeds out of our old garden and—Ah! Ahha." Klaus cried, when Ris sharply stepped on his foot. Smiling at the postman.
"Thanks for coming. Goodbye." she said slamming the door in his face. Turning her head, glaring darkly at Klaus.
"Sorry?"
"Hey, Ris." Five said, closing the door lightly. She was standing there, arms folded, foot tapping against the floor. She was already in the classic 1952 pj's; but even in pale pink, she was terrifying. Especially when she was glaring at him.
"How was your today?" he asked cheerfully, attempting to put her in a good mood or at least prolong the inevitable blast of fury that would soon come barrelling his way.
Ris nodded, now putting her hands on her hip. "You know it stared pretty good, but—"she said, stepping closer. "Then some moronic degus with the brain of an addled ape decide to piss me off."
"I'm sorry—but-"
"Ditzy, you called me 'ditzy and occasionally airheaded, but overall the love of my life.'" Ris quoted, holding up the newspaper. Showing of picture of the dead Mr Heyden and at the bottom a small photo of her and Five or as he was known here: John.
They had to remain for another 2 weeks, before the stress of finding a dead body devastated them both and they moved.
Unless another dead body showed up; preferably the one of her fake dead husband.
"I had to keep a pretence, you know that some men especially in the 1950's treated their wives like shit-"
"And you thought why not change? No, the power of time travel at your fingertips and you decide; well I'm going to continue on my merry way and insult you fake wife." Ris snapped, flicking though the newspaper. "Ditzy. You called me ditzy. Airheaded and…Oh! Look at that—and an 'occasionally scatter brain as she forgot the picnic mat.'"
"Rissa—"
"I didn't forget the picnic mat-you did." Ris said, tossing the newspaper to Five. "I know and I am so sorry-"
"Tt."
"I am, I am. I really didn't want to say any of this, but—
"But ya did!" Ris snapped, shaking her head. "I did, there's no excuse. I am so sorry. I will do whatever it takes to make it up to you. I promise." Five apologised, giving her his best-I-know-I-screwed-up-please-please-still-like-me look.
"Hmmm." Ris hummed, looking him up at down disdainfully.
Her was loose hair cascading down her back. The moon was high and the night was well, night. Five couldn't help thinking: It would have been quite easy for her to have murdered him right there and then.
Oddly enough that filled him with pride and awe rather than fear.
"You're sleeping on the couch."
Now that filled him with fear.
"Wha-Ris! Can we talk about that-?"
"You can talk, on the couch." Ris said, walking up the steps. "Goodnight."
"Ris! Rissa!" Five whined. "Mellillla?!" he tried.
"Couch!"
"What's the box?"
"I have no idea." Ris replied, setting it on the floor tracing her fingers along the edge of it. Klaus leaning over her shoulder. The box made a noise. "What?" Ris said, sharing a look with Klaus, deciding to screw safety and just open it.
"What the hell?"
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