The Umbrella Academy is not mine.
Extra Ordinary
ii
"The star makers says, it ain't so bad
The dream maker's going to make you mad
The spaceman says, everybody look down
It's all in your mind."
- SPACEMAN - The Killers
LIKE ALL FAMILY MEETINGS at the Hargreeves, the one currently being conducted was just as convoluted and strange as any other. Halyn leaned on a marble pillar beside Allison, the actress nursing a glass of whiskey while the teen had her arms folded over her chest. The whole of the Umbrella Academy—sans Five of course—had been rounded up and forced to watch the footage of the night Sir Hargreeves had ultimately perished.
Luther had moved one of the old televisions into the parlor room, propping it up on the bar where it was currently replaying Sir Hargreeves death on what felt like was a never-ending loop. Halyn had grown numb to the mildly disturbing scene one or two repeats ago, and she had locked her gaze on the floor while the others watched it in shock. She was just glad there was no volume.
Vanya blinked a few times, digesting the footage before glancing at her brother, "I mean, do you really think mom would hurt dad?" There was an air of disbelief to her voice.
"You haven't been home in a long time, Vanya." Luther was quick to dismiss the powerless woman with an eyeroll, "maybe you don't know Grace anymore."
Halyn clicked her tongue, dark eyes flashing with annoyance, "And you do, spaceman?" She felt a warning nudge in her side from Allison, but ignored her as she met Luther's furrowed brows with a harsh glare, "Didn't you just get back from four years in space?"
Though she was still upset with Vanya for her own reasons, Luther's blatant dismissal of Vanya didn't sit well with the teen, and she wasn't really known for holding her tongue. Now that Sir Hargreeves—their once fearless and fearsome leader—was no longer in the picture, Luther clearly felt like he had to step up. Vanya had been written off and ignored by Reginald for her whole life for not having powers, and Halyn would be damned if she'd let the same thing happen to her with Luther.
Number One bristled at her words, curiosity and animosity swimming in his light eyes. This 'hot and cold', 'are we friends, are we not friends' vibe Halyn was giving off towards him was mildly irksome, and the fluctuations almost made his head spin, but that was something he could address at a later date. They had other matters to attend to, "Well, yeah but-"
"If he was poisoned, it would have shown in the coroner's report." Diego interrupted; gaze pointed as he stared at his brother.
With one last irritated glance at Halyn, Luther's gaze flashed back to the TV, "Yeah, well," He huffed out his nose in ire, his 'I'm better than you' demeanor returning full force, and he faced Diego, "I don't need a report to tell me what I can see with my own eyes."
Juliet scoffed, "Yeah, why listen to a medical expert's report when I can trust some fuzzy-ass video footage instead." The burly man didn't bother responding to Number Zero, but watching him tense at her words was enough for the woman.
Diego snorted, tossing Juliet a bemused smirk before turning on his brother as well, "Maybe all that low gravity in space messed with your vision," Halyn snickered at the insult, and Luther huffed in indignation, "Look closer." Number Two commanded, rewinding the video footage and starting it yet again, "Dad has his monocle. Mom stands up, monocle's gone."
At this, Halyn herself took a closer look at the video footage. Watching Grace intently, she could just barely make out their robotic mother figure removing the monocle from Sir Hargreeves face before pocketing it and walking off. Luther's face scrunched up, clearly displeased with the fact he was wrong and to further add salt to the wound, Klaus cried out.
"Oh, yeah!"
Satisfied at proving Luther wrong, Diego nodded his head triumphantly, looking rather pleased with himself as he paced back and forth, "She wasn't poisoning him. She was taking it. To clean it." He declared almost matter-of-factly, moving to lean on a nearby side table.
Even though Halyn loved seeing Luther speechless and practically put in his place, all the cockiness and ego Luther had been sporting had suddenly shifted to Diego. The knife-wielder fiddled with a knife, gaze lingering on his speechless breath and lips quirked upwards in jubilant smirk.
Luther shook his head, lines in his forehead prominent as he frowned, "Then where is it?" He spoke once his thoughts had been collected, "No, I've searched the house, including all her things. She doesn't have it."
A brief flash of guilt tainted Diego's celebratory features, and he pursed his lips before admitting, "That's because I took it from her. After the funeral."
"You've had the monocle this whole time?" Allison cried out in disbelief, and even Halyn felt her brows shooting upwards. What a plot twist. "What the hell Diego?"
Luther's jaw clenched, "Give it to me." He demanded; hand extended expectantly towards his brother.
"I threw it away." Diego shrugged.
Number One looked instantly offended at Diego's deadpanned words, face scrunched up in confusion and anger. Klaus meandered his way out from behind the bar, a bag of chips he stole from the convenience store earlier in one of his hands, a tall glass of scotch in the other. As Luther berated his brother, Klaus extended the open side of the bag to Halyn.
The Sioux teen stared at him for a moment before, with a shrug, she went to reach for a chip. Just before she could snag on, Klaus grinned smugly, and the bag was yanked away from her hand. Halyn's brows furrowed, confusion flickering in her brown eyes, and he snickered.
"People who kick me out of their van don't get chips."
Halyn rolled her eyes. Leave it to Klaus to be petty, "Okay, Klaus." She refolded her arms over her chest, and the necromancer maintained firm eye contact as he popped a chip into his mouth, crunching it loudly for extra emphasis. Halyn scoffed.
Pulling her attention from a petty Klaus, Halyn's gaze fell back to the two bickering brothers. They had begun hurling insults at each other, harsh words flying like artillery in a war zone, and she silently noted how the two had closed the gap that had once been between them.
Diego pointed his knife at Luther accusingly, "Look, I knew that if you found the monocle on mom, you'd lose your shit, just like you're doing right now."
"Diego," Luther's voice had dropped to just barely a hiss, and he didn't bother to try and hide the disdain from his voice, "You son of a bitch." Diego goes on the offensive as the spaceman glares darkly down at him, fists brought up for attention.
The tension in the air thickened tenfold, and the two's fight during Sir Hargreeve's funeral briefly flickered in Halyn's mind. All their lives it had been One fighting Two and vice versus, each doing whatever they could to piss the other off, despite the fact they were both supposed to lead the others. For what is a Number One without a Number Two?
Yet, Diego had always been undermining Luther, doing whatever he could to get under his brother's skin. They both suffered from their toxic ideas of leadership, both so focused on proving themselves to a man that was now dead—and they didn't give a damn how it impacted their family and friends.
Making quick to deescalate the situation, Juliet stepped between the two men on the cusp of an all-out war. Luther still made an attempt to advance, having quite the height advantage on the woman, but Juliet gritted her teeth before activating her powers, "Enough!" Luther was levitated a few feet back, so he was now pressed up against the bar. He glared darkly at the African-American woman, and she met his glare with a steady gaze, "You both need to calm down!" Juliet turned her glare to Diego, who was still scowling at his brother.
Vanya stepped into the fray, voice pleading, as Juliet kept herself a physical barrier between the two, "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."
Allison blinked, "What does that mean?"
"She was programmed to look out for us," It was Halyn who spoke up this time, "to intervene if ours—or someone's—life was in jeopardy."
"Then why wouldn't she have saved Reginald?" Juliet questioned, to which the Sioux teen could only shrug.
"Well, if her hardware is degrading," Luther surmised, gaze flashing between each of the gathered Umbrella Academy members, "we need to turn her off."
The tension in the room quickly melted into panic, though the feeling was mostly on Diego's end, "Woah, woah, woah, woah, wait!" He harshly protested, "She's not just a vacuum cleaner you can throw in a closet! She feels things, I've seen it."
Halyn found herself agreeing with Number Two, and she stood at apt attention as they dissolved into another heavy debate. Even if she wasn't as emotionally attached to Grace as Diego clearly was, she had a soft spot for the robotic woman. She was their caretaker after all, and when Halyn wouldn't be with her birth mother, Grace filled that hole.
"She just stood there, Diego, and watched our father die." Luther stood firm.
Allison nodded her head, "I'm with Luther." Halyn snickered, but covered the noise with a quick cough.
"Oh, surprise, surprise." Diego sneered at her. She glared at him.
"Shut up."
The hostility in the room was slowly rising once more as both Number One and Two put people on the spot, looking to collect vote for their side of things. Halyn hated the animosity the two created, and the irritating competition that neither one wanted to concede. It was a miracle the Umbrella Academy somehow functioned with these two at the head when they were younger.
The two men turned on Vanya, gazing at her skeptically as the poor woman stared back at her brother's. They were sizing her up, trying to gauge her reaction, and their intense gazes had her fumbling for words, "I—I don't—"
Diego was quick to brush her off, "Yeah, she shouldn't get a vote." Halyn's jaw ticked.
"I was gonna say that I agree with you." Vanya pointedly shot back with a glare at the knife wielder.
"Okay, so she should get a vote." Diego conceded now that he had someone on his side. He was quick to turn his attention on Klaus, who still stood beside Halyn. Pointing his knife at the necromancer, he asked, "What about you, stoner boy? What do you got?"
Klaus blinked in surprise, gaze briefly flickering to Halyn before he stared back at his brother, "Oh, so what? You need my help now? Oh 'get out of the van, Klaus!' 'Well, welcome back to the van.'"
Halyn smacked her forehead in frustration, dragging her hand down her face until she was pinching the bridge of her nose. She knew Klaus was definitely the petty type, but this was just insane. Yeah, she felt a bit bad she didn't fight for his right to stick around a bit more, but Klaus also didn't grasp the fact they were—and a currently—in the middle of a serious conversation.
"What van?" Allison questioned, perplexed.
Luther glanced at her, but neither he nor Halyn explained anything. Instead, with a light scoff, he attempted to draw Klaus back into the matter at hand, "What's it going to be, Klaus?"
Jaw clenched defiantly, Klaus pointed a condescending finger at his burly brother, "I'm with Diego because screw you!" Diego pointed back at the necromancer in solidarity, and Halyn shook her head, "And if Ben were here, he'd agree with me!" There was a pause, and then Klaus turned and hissed at the empty air on the other side of Halyn.
"Klaus?" She asked, but he waved her off with a flick of his wrist.
Diego then turned towards Juliet, "Juliet?" His gaze on her was expectant, clearly looking for an easy point to his side of the tally, and Luther gritted his teeth.
"Why are you even asking her? We all know she'll be on your side!"
Juliet whirled on Luther, "I'm my own person, jackass!" She practically seethed, voice dripping with venom. The burly man didn't stand down or apologize, but he did find it hard to maintain eye contact with the gravity manipulator.
"So?" Diego prodded.
A hesitant pause sat heavy in the air, and Halyn could tell how unsure Juliet was of her response. She looked torn, brown eyes a flurry of mixed emotions, and when she exhaled heavily to give her answer, her tone was almost apologetic as she held Diego's gaze, "Look, maybe, for the time being, it's best if we shut Grace down, o—"
Diego's eyes blazed, "What do you know? Grace isn't even your mother!"
"That doesn't mean I don't care!" Juliet shot back, any signs of guilt at not having sided with Diego now long gone, "I still look up to her, and she did help raise me alongside my own mother! Just because you have mommy issues doesn't mean you can pit them against me!" Her sneer was dark, eyes threatening, and some time during her rant she had closed in on Diego, the two practically chest to chest. Diego seethed down at her.
Halyn clicked her tongue before the knife-wielder could further antagonize Juliet, and she called out to him, "'Suppose you think I don't get a say then, either right?" Diego's head snapped to her, but the Sioux teen didn't give him the pleasure of responding, "And before you start on me as well, Grace may not be my mother either and my connection with her might not be as strong as yours, but she is still important to me and I'm sick of people writing off my feelings for her just because she's not my mother!" A sharp breath slipped past her lips as Halyn's chest heaved. She had to admit, it felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulder's, but she wasn't quite done yet. Tone quieter this time, she started, "Grace is the caretaker for the Umbrella Academy and last I checked, Juliet and I are both members still and you, Diego, don't get to silence us."
A silence hung heavy over the room like a thick blanket as they each digested Halyn's. Her chest heaved slightly as she recovered from her mini speech, but not a single ounce of regret sat in her body at her outburst. Her and Juliet had constantly been written off as 'outsiders' to the Umbrella Academy, and it was, frankly, sickening. Maybe their ties weren't quite the same, but that didn't mean shit when it came to their ability to care.
When it became clear Halyn was done, Luther glanced at her expectantly, "Well?"
Halyn blinked, confusion marring her features for a moment, before it registered what he was talking about. She had never really said where she sided.
"Oh," She waved her hand flippantly, "I'm with Diego."
The lingering silence in the room was suddenly broken by uproar, and Luther faltered, "Wait—"
"So that's four to three," Diego grinned smugly at his brother, holding up the tally on his fingers for emphasis.
"Hate to disagree with you there, brother," Klaus stepped forward, head lolling to the side, lazy gaze flashing between his brothers, "but I'd like to abstain from this vote."
Diego looked taken aback, "What? Why?"
"Because," He drawled and then turned, pointing a finger at Halyn, "Screw her too!"
Halyn exhaled sharply, "Would you drop the stupid van thing already?!"
"No, I deserved a place in that van!"
Allison glanced between the two, "And I ask once again, what van?"
Diego squeezed his eyes shut, ire contorting his features. He took in a deep breath, and when he opened his eyes, he seemed a bit more at peace, "Okay, so then it's three to three. A tie. Which means, we do nothing. We are not shutting mom off."
"Five's not here." Allison pointed out.
"So what?"
"Vote's not final yet."
Halyn snorted, "Not like Five actually wanted to be here." She knew what his response would be, too. He'd be irritated at being dragged into the matter and would ultimately side with whoever pissed him off the least; and these days, with Luther and Diego fighting for command, that could go either way.
"Regardless," The actress glared pointedly at Halyn, "The whole Academy has to vote. We owe each other that." With a hesitant sigh, Halyn nodded her head. She couldn't preach about them being a team and acting like one and then not agree when someone said as much as well.
"Right." Luther seemed to agree as well, which surprised Halyn to a small degree—though not terribly so. After all, he did flag both her and Five down for this meeting.
Diego simmered silently, eye twitching as one by one those gathered agreed with Allison, and the final decision was ultimately postponed. A dejected expression flickered across his face, and Juliet had half a mind to comfort him, but his words earlier rang heavy in her mind. They stung, and the fact he seemed to think so lowly of her when it came to Grace sat heavy in her stomach.
With a pointed glare at Diego, Juliet departed the parlor after Allison and Luther, looking to make a beeline to Anisa—her birth mother—and just get the hell away from the dysfunctional group.
Halyn watched her friend storm out with conflicted eyes. This was only the second Umbrella Academy meeting that had dissolved into pitiful fights and storming out in the span of a few short days. Granted, this one ended on a more unified note: with the fate of Grace up in the air until they could get Five's vote.
"Some family meeting, huh?" Klaus chuckled sardonically. Taking a deep swig of his scotch, the burn feeling so right in his throat, he met Halyn's quizzical gaze, and suddenly his darkened in realization, "Hey! I'm still mad at you."
A sound— somewhere between amusement and irritation—slipped past Halyn's lips as the necromancer made to walk off, "Klaus, where are you going?"
"To find a van I'm actually welcomed in!"
Halyn's tongue poked the interior of her cheek and she shook her head with a light laugh, "If I give you twenty-bucks, can we be friends again?"
Klaus's interest was piqued, and he shifted his body so he was facing Halyn. Waving the hand that held his scotch outwards, he feigned indifference, but the light in his eyes gave him away, "I could be so persuaded."
Pulling out her wallet from her back pocket, she snagged a crisp twenty before handing it over to a waiting Klaus. Chips tucked into his armpit so he had a freehand, he snatched the twenty out of Halyn's grasp. He held it up to his nose, taking in a deep whiff, and Halyn's nose crinkled, "You're ridiculous, Klaus."
The necromancer waved her off with a chuckle before ruffling her hair. He hardly seemed phased when she swatted his hand away, faux glare levelled up at him, "Pleasure doing business with you, Halyn." After neatly folding the bill, he slipped in into the waistline of his pants and grabbed the bag of chips from under his arm. Holding it out towards Halyn like an olive branch, he quirked a brow, "Chip?"
She snorted, but grabbed a chip regardless, "I hope you know this is the most expensive chip I've ever had."
"Worth it though, right?" There was a sparkle in Klaus's eye.
"Definitely."
The word was followed by a loud crunch as Halyn popped the salty snack into her mouth. Her eyes flashed with amusement as Klaus beamed at her, waggling his fingers her way in a small wave before sauntering out of the room, muttering something about cleaning himself up before treating himself to a night out on the town. Halyn shook her head. Klaus would always be Klaus, and she appreciated that fact.
One by one, the parlor room slowly emptied of people and the tense silence melted into an almost unnervingly quiet one. The air was still thick, but Halyn figured that was due to the clearly agitated Diego that stood in the middle of the parlor room. His body was tense, shaking ever so slightly, and his gaze lingered darkly on the floor beneath his feet. Halyn was almost positive the floor would be on fire if his power had been laser vision—that was how intensely he had been glaring at the floor.
Diego's irritation was palpable, but before Halyn could say anything, her eyes caught site of Grace. She had been hovering in one of the back entries to the parlor room, perfect lips stretched wide in a brilliant grin. Eyes glossy and glazed, they were distant at best, and every now and then Halyn could make out the flurry of electricity that coursed through the wires in her body flickering in her eyes. The expression on her soft features was almost unnerving, almost too fake, and definitely too cheery for the current atmosphere of the room.
Halyn wasn't sure how long Grace had been standing there, or if she had heard anything they had all discussed, and her facial features didn't give any inkling as to what she may have been feeling. However, knowing her programming and special features, the Sioux teen was almost positive the robotic woman had heard the entirety of their conversation in regard to her. Her ears had, after all, been programmed to pick up on the smallest of sounds, and since their conversation had gotten a bit heated, and voices had been raised, it was safe to assume she hadn't missed a word.
But with her face sporting just about the only emotion she seemed to be able to muster lately, Halyn wasn't quite sure Grace fully comprehended their dire topic.
Grace stepped further into the parlor, heels clicking softly against the hard ground, and Diego's gaze immediately snapped upwards. A flurry of emotions flickered across his hard features before his eyes uncharacteristically softened, "Hey," He moved across the parlor, placing a gently hand on her shoulder, "How long have you been there?"
The smile on Grace's face didn't falter, and the only inclination that she heard Diego's words was the swivel of her head as she faced him, "You all seem upset," She stated matter of fact-ly, completely ignoring the knife-wielders question, and Halyn's brows furrowed, "I'll make cookies!" She declared brightly before turning promptly and leaving the room.
Grace didn't leave any room for Diego to protest nor question her further, and he gaped after her. His expression was quick to sober up as Vanya stepped up to him, and Halyn had honestly forgotten the other woman was still in the parlor with them, she had been so quiet.
"Do you ever wonder… all those moments with mom, the things she said. Like, was it her, or was it really dad?"
Diego looked confused, "What are you talking about?"
"Well, he built her," Vanya shrugged as she carved her explanation, "And he programmed her to be a mom, to be our mom. Sometimes, when I look at her, I just see him."
Staring back at the retreating figure of Grace, Diego silently pondered over his sister's words, "Maybe that was true at first," He countered, "but she evolved."
"How do you know?"
Diego turned back towards Vanya, lips quirked in a jeering smirk, "because dad only loved himself."
The comment made Halyn snort, and she shook her head as the two adults looked back at her, "Yeah, I don't think Sir Hargreeves ever gave an actual shit about any of us."
"See?" Diego taunted, pointing at Halyn in a 'thank you for agreeing with me' kind of way as to hold it over Vanya's head, and the Sioux teen regretted her words immediately. Diego's ego was just as infuriating as Luther's, if not more so.
Vanya shoved her hands in her pockets in defeat, lips quirked downwards, and Diego took her posture as a sign of submission. With the conversation now dropped, the knife wielder departed the parlor, leaving just Halyn and Vanya, and the teen shifted awkwardly.
Vanya was still facing the direction her brother had left, and anxiety began to bubble up from within, leaving her nerves on edge and heart thrumming. Halyn watched with concerned eyes as Vanya suddenly began to become fidgety, but her irritation with the woman had her hesitating to reach out to her. Hand digging through her pocket, Vanya pulled out her signature pill bottle before popping one in her mouth. Almost immediately her nerves began to lessen, body stilling, and in her momentary distraction, Halyn made haste to sneak away.
"Wait, Halyn!" The ordinary woman called out, and she froze. Halyn didn't turn, back towards Vanya, and the lack of actual acknowledgement stung, "Can we—can we talk, please?"
Under normal circumstances, talking was one of Halyn's go to things. She didn't like harboring feelings of ire for someone, but in this case, she just couldn't seem to let them go. Vanya's words hurt a lot—even more so since Vanya was someone Halyn thought so highly of—and that extra sting laid heavy in her mind. Not many people could say something that would truly get under Halyn's skin, but harsh words from someone whom she was extra close to felt like daggers.
Part of her anger may have laid in the fact Vanya's words had harbored some truth to them. Halyn did have a habit of following Five around like a lost puppy, but she was usually always questioning him at the same time. It wasn't blind devotion that caused her to stick so closely to Five, no, it was something deeper—and something that scared Halyn to her core.
With a roll of her shoulders and some slight hesitation, Halyn turned towards Vanya, "Uhm, sure." She had tried to find an out without seeming rude, but at this point in time, Halyn was kind of stuck. She'd have to take her own advice and just suck it up and work it out.
Besides, Halyn did actually miss Vanya. Before Five's return, she had been the person the Sioux teen was closest with, and a relationship like that doesn't just go away overnight, even if there are some ill feelings tainting things. But childish feelings be damned. Everyone in the academy had a tendency to write Vanya off, and Halyn couldn't stand to see herself fall into that group.
"Penny for your thoughts?"
Halyn's eyes widened as she stared at Vanya, the woman holding up a slightly tarnished penny. Her dark eyes were hopeful, and Halyn couldn't help the small grin that split her lips at the attempted ice breaker.
"Think that's my line, Vanya." She spoke, but her words carried no ice. Halyn accepted the penny, holding it close and watching as a feeling of relief flickered across Vanya's face.
She shrugged, hands tucked into her pockets once more, "No, I know, but I just figured that maybe it could, uh, help get the conversation started, I guess…" The confidence in her voice had faded away, giving way to her typical meager temperament, and Vanya found it hard to maintain eye contact with Halyn.
A silence settled over the two, one that was on the cusp of becoming awkward, but Halyn refrained from breaking it, curious as to what Vanya had wanted to talk to her about. The ordinary woman glanced up after a few second reprieve, realizing her friend wasn't going to be the first to speak, and she sighed. The fact Halyn was currently holding the penny Vanya had brought as a peace offering was a good sign, and inhaling deeply, she broke the ice.
"Look, Halyn, I'm sorry for what I said the other night; about you and Five." Vanya fidgeted uncomfortably under the Sioux teen's gaze, though her look wasn't intense in the slightest. No, it was more curious than anything as she listened to the woman's apology, "There's no excuse for what I said, no reason for me having said it, but I guess I just—" She played with the hem of her sleeve, pulling her gaze to the floor as she struggled with her next words, and Halyn's gaze softened at her vulnerability, "I just felt a bit jealous is all and lashed out."
Halyn's brows raised, "Jealous? Vanya, why—"
"Growing up, you two and Juliet were really the only friends I had here. Now, seeing you both still so young and hanging around each other like nothing has changed, it's just… a painful reminder of what I lost all those years ago, of what I could have had had Five not disappeared and you not gotten trapped." Vanya met Halyn's eyes, and the Sioux teen was surprised to see them brimmed with unshed tears, "Don't get me wrong, I am incredibly grateful to have the both of you back, but I guess it just feels like, you two don't have room for me anymore?"
With her heart-shattering revelation now out in the open, Vanya curled in on herself, looking even smaller than she normally did. The meek demeanor she gave off had Halyn's ire diminishing immediately, and she lurched forward to pull the shorter woman into a hug. Vanya seemed surprised by the sudden reversal in the Sioux teen's persona, but she melted into the hug regardless, grateful for the comforting feeling.
"You'll always be one of my people, Vanya." Halyn cooed into her friend's ear, stroking her hair, "You're one of my best friends, and no asshole boy will ever change that." Vanya snorted at the comment, and Halyn took that as a mini victory. She pulled away some, arms still wrapped around the woman's shoulders and she sighed, "I guess I've gotten a bit caught up in Five being back, enough so that I've been neglecting my best friends, and I'm sorry for that."
Vanya frowned, "You're sorry? Halyn, no you don't—"
"But I do. We agreed to be there for each other when this whole mess started, and then Five came back and I kind of just ditched you. Your father died and I've been off running around with your brother instead." Halyn huffed in bemusement, "Some friend, huh?"
"The best, actually." Vanya laughed, pulling Halyn back in for a hug.
The Sioux teen chuckled into Vanya's hair, holding her best friend close with a content sigh. They stood like that for a few moments, the animosity gone and their feelings out in the open, before Halyn broke the silence once more.
"If it's any consolation, you're as short as us at least."
"Shut up."
SEVENTEEN YEARS AGO
Sirens blared obnoxiously through the halls of the Umbrella Academy, signal lights flashing red from their places on the walls. The atmosphere of the academy was electric as its members ran around like chickens with their heads chopped off, panic and excitement humming in the air. Diego bolted down the hall towards his room, Allison racing down the stairs. The former was still dressed in his formal uniform, the latter in their mission uniform.
"Come on, Luther!" Allison shouted before tearing down the hall, heavy boots thunking against the tiled floor.
Sir Hargreeves appeared from an adjacent hallway, irritation etched onto his old features, "How will the Umbrella Academy ever become an effective crime deterrent if we can't even leave the house on time for missions?!" He ended his rant pointedly, voice raised and echoing in the living quarters of the academy.
"Behind you!" Luther called out, shimmying past his father who had begun to clap out of irritation and desperation to get his subordinates moving.
"Come along, children! Come along!"
Juliet half-floated/half-hopped down the hallway, eyes wide but concealed by her domino mask, "Has anyone seen my left shoe?" She called out to no one in particular, ignoring the exasperated glare from Sir Hargreeves, "Anyone?" While she was donned in the rest of her uniform, she was missing a single boot, which lead to her partial floating/partial hopping motion as she desperately called out for anyone to help her.
Just as her powers almost gave out, causing Juliet to almost face plant on the linoleum, Grace appeared, "Here, Juliet." She smiled sweetly, catching the girl by her elbow and helping right her, "Your laces were frayed, and the toe was scuffed." She explained swiftly, passing Juliet her missing boot.
Behind her mask, Juliet's eyes lit up, "Thank you, Grace!" She beamed.
Grace chuckled lightly under her breath as Juliet made an attempt to pull her boot on, nearly falling over once more in the process, but catching herself with her powers before she could do so. Content that Number Zero was taken care of, Grace began to move on down the rest of the hallway to check in on the other children.
Allison frantically tore through her room, desperation tainting her young features, as she searched for the missing piece of her uniform. She dug through the dresser in her closet, tearing clothes out as she searched in a panic through her clothes. Finally, nearly out of breath and downright frantic, she whirled around to run out of her room, "I can't find my domino mask!" She cried out.
Like a superhero in her own right, Grace swooped in, Allison's domino mask in hand, "It needed a little bit of TLC after the last mission."
Allison beamed, "Thanks mom." She took her domino mask and bolted out of her room, Grace staring after her with a light smile. Number Three was ready to go.
Still walking with purpose, Grace exited Allison's room before rounding the doorframe and stepping into Luther's. Number One was doing push-ups in the middle of his bedroom, already fully decked out in his uniform, domino mask and all.
"Ready to go?"
Luther grunted, pausing in the upwards position, "Yeah." He flashed his mom a bright smile and thumbs up. Grace nodded at her son and turned to make her way down the rest of the hallway.
As soft violin music began to flitter down the hall, Diego darted from door to door at the very end, "Where's my knives?" He called out, voice a sharp contrast to the softness that was the violin.
Grace slowed as she approached Vanya's room, soaking in the soothing music as Number Eight played to near perfection, heels clicking softly on the tiles. Grace paused in the doorframe to Vanya's room, a gentle smile on her face as she watched her daughter effortlessly play, "Sounds beautiful, Vanya." She complimented.
"Thanks, mom." Vanya beamed.
With another soft nod of her head, Grace pushed off the doorframe. With most of the children ready for the upcoming mission, there were only a few more for her to check on. Her heels continued to clack against the floor, but the sudden thudding of booted footsteps drowned out the soft noise, and Grace paused.
Halyn came tearing up the hallway, brown eyes wide and dark locks disheveled. One side of her hair was pulled back into its signature braid, though it wasn't as neat as normal, while the other side was a straight up mess. There was an air of panic that surrounded the girl, and Grace noticed how uncomposed she was. It was a stark difference to how Halyn normally was, but Five had been missing for three months now, and Number Four had been hit hardest by his disappearance.
"Halyn, honey, what's wrong?" Grace placed a gentle hand on the girl's shoulder, and the gesture startled Halyn as she stared up at the android.
"I-I can't find a hair tie." She muttered lamely, "Normally they're everywhere and I can find one easily but now they're all just gone, and I can't find them and why'd they disappear on me and why won't they come back like they promised and—and—"
Grace's smile faltered as Halyn dissolved into a rambling mess, her words clearly not being spoken in the context of hair ties anymore, "Take a deep breath, Halyn." She spoke gently, attempting to help the girl compose herself. It was dangerous for someone so distraught to go into the field, but Grace knew there was no way Sir Hargreeves was going to let Halyn sub out.
Halyn nodded and sucked in a shaky breath. Her nerves began to lessen some, and Grace smiled down at her, "I have a hair tie right here." She pulled one off her wrist before passing it to Halyn, who accepted it gratefully, "And you'll always be able to find me, I promise."
Halyn swallowed thickly, "Thank you, Grace." She murmured quietly, already working on braiding the rest of her hair. The android gave Halyn's shoulder another quick squeeze before she sent the girl on her way to catch up with the others.
As Halyn's footsteps disappeared down the hallway, Grace couldn't help but watch the girl's retreating figure with saddened eyes. She was concerned for the health and mentality of Number Four.
Continuing on with ensuring everyone was best prepared for the mission at hand, Grace found herself pausing just outside Klaus's door as juvenile and maniacal laughter echoed from within his room. Finally glancing into his room, Grace gasped. Number Six was jumping on the bed, a fire burning hot in the top drawer of his side table, and Klaus didn't seem the least bit concerned with the flames.
"Oh, Klaus!"
The boy in questioned lessened his jumping slightly, and Grace grabbed a cloth that was draped over the back of his chair. She dropped it onto the flames, dousing them in the process, and Klaus smiled down at her, "Thank you, mother." He spoke, German accent strong, and Grace shook her head in bemusement.
"Boys will be boys." She spoke more to herself than anyone else as she walked out of his room, purposefully ignoring the squeaking of bedsprings as Klaus resumed jumping once more.
Grace glanced up as footsteps echoed down the stairs, "Oh, Ben." She called out as her came to a stop before her, and she placed her hands on his upper biceps to steady him.
"It—it's stuck." Ben muttered, playing with the zipper of his jumpsuit. It wouldn't budge, no matter how many times he tried to pull it up.
Gently moving his hands away from the zipper, Grace gracefully freed it from the cloth material below before pulling it the rest of the way up. Ben smiled at his mother, and Grace patted his chest, before Number Seven raced off down the hallway, "Guys, wait for me!"
Grace smiled fondly as he ran off, and she turned as Diego's voice flittered past her ears, "D-don't mmm—Don't mm… mm… mm…" She paused outside his room, listening momentarily as he struggled with the sentence. Diego sighed and restarted his words once more, "Don't muh—muh—"
Just as Diego gave up, shoulders slouching in disappointment, Grace entered his room. She placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, rubbing his upper back in soothing circles. He looked up at her, "Remember, Diego, just picture the words in your mind."
Number Two sighed once more, composing himself as he returned to looking at himself in the mirror, "D-don't mm—muh—D-don't mmm—Don't mo-move!"
Grace gasped in excitement, "You did it! I'm so proud of you!" She cupped his cheek, and Diego smiled proudly up at his mother.
Sir Hargreeves appeared in the doorway, having come back to look for the straggler. With his hands clasped behind his back, he cleared his throat expectantly, not caring about the tender moment that was occurring within the room.
Grace and Diego startled, turning to look at the eccentric billionaire. He didn't seem to care about Diego's accomplishment in the slightest, and once he had the two's attention, he turned to walk away, a silent command for Number Two to follow him.
Where Grace cared about the health and wellbeing of the children of the Umbrella Academy, Sir Hargreeves did not.
A/N: Slightly early update for ya'll since I normally update on Sunday's!
Episode 3 is going to be a bit shorter than previous chapters, just because some of the content and stuff and the placement of things. Will hopefully have the rest of episode 3 up next weekend and then there'll be a short hiatus! I'm fandom jumping into Attack on Titan because I have no self control, so yeah! Keep an eye out for an AoT fic lmao .3.
Until next time,
Rawwwrchel