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❛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴀʀᴛʏ ᴍᴄғʟʏ ᴇғғᴇᴄᴛ​​​​​​​​​​. ❜ ° . ༄
- ͙۪۪˚   ▎❛ 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐘-𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄 ❜   ▎˚ ͙۪۪̥◌
»»————- ꒰ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴀɴᴅʟᴇ ғᴇᴇᴅs
ᴛʜᴇ ғʟᴀᴍᴇ ꒱　


❝ WE CAN TOTALLY JACK UP
OUR PRICES AS TWO-TIME
WORLD SAVERS! ❞

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Emotions had never come easily to Five Hargreeves. As a person so based in scientific fact and mathematical equations to explain existence, something as intangible as feelings would never be his strong suit. Forty-five years alone in the apocalypse certainly didn't help. Still, there were several memories that came with sentiments so strong that even he knew they were important.




𝐢. 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐄𝐄𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆

At age three, Five already knew he was brighter than the rest of his siblings. He'd mastered the basics in half the time any of them did— particularly Four, who'd taken almost a year to get his ABCs. His father had seen that, too, and he set him on a more challenging course (no one could say that Reginald Hargreeves was not an attentive parent. Careless? Yes. Cold? Definitely. The one parental trait he had was being observant.) Therefore, even at an early age, Five had already separated himself from his siblings in leaps and bounds— a phrase that would soon become literal for him.

Their father often assigned quiet partnered study when they were younger. It was a chance for the Academy to bond and kept the noise, fidgeting and distractions to a minimum. (Most would not think this was not the case but with the competitiveness he was already breeding in them, self-monitoring in the face of other members did wonders for their developing social habits.)

These were the usual pairings: One and Three. Four and Six. Seven and Eight. And due to lack of an odd number, Two and Five— this was just them being in the same room together; no actual talking took place. So, it was an easily explained surprise that on Monday, instead of Two entering the library and taking a desk far, far away from him, the couch he was sitting on dipped slightly and the warmth of a solid body pressed against his arm, making him give an annoyed look to the interrupting blonde.

"What do you want?" he snapped. (At this moment, he and Eight had very rarely spoken.)

The girl turned her big, blue eyes on him and in a quiet, enthusiastic whisper (he had to admit that he was pleased she was trying to respect the rules), announced: "I'm Eight."

Five gave her a 'really?' sort of look. "I know."

She stuck out her bottom lip but persisted, "well, I was just thinking that it's kinda weird we all woke up one day and were like, oh yeah, you live in my house. I'm your sibling. We never really got introduced to each other. So, I'm Eight."

He shifted away from her slightly. "I don't care. I'm busy. What happened to Two?"

The blonde huffed. "I asked him to learn with Seven today. I want to get to know all my siblings. You're very prickly."

The blunt observation made him blink. "That's because I don't like you."

To her credit, she didn't seem to be hurt. "Well, that's because you don't know me. I'm Eight," she repeated.

The boy sighed. "I'm Five. Are you happy now? Send Two back in. At least he doesn't talk."

"I can not talk."

"Doubt it." Out of all of his siblings, she had the most energy and often got into trouble with their father. He didn't want any part of it.

"I bet you," she pulled a thoughtful expression before her face lit up. "I won't talk to you ever again if I can't be quiet for two minutes."

"Seven minutes."

She frowned thoughtfully before she nodded. "Okay. Starting now."

They fell silent and the girl swung her short, slightly stubby legs against the end of the couch as she wiggled quietly next to him. Occasionally, the blonde strands of her hair would tickle his nose and he'd have to bat them away. Then, the warmth against his arm returned and long hair fell across his shoulder. "What are you doing?" he asked irritably.

The girl looked up, opened her mouth, and then promptly shut it as a triumphant look appeared on her face. She shook her head and pointed to the words on the page.

"You can't understand this. It's high school level." She shrugged, still not talking. The boy rolled his eyes and shifted the book. "Whatever, just don't touch me."

After she gave a nod and moved away from him, her eyes focused back on the page. At what was presumably seven minutes, the blonde suddenly burst out: "what's Marlborough?"

The boy let out a long-suffering sigh. "It's a town in Wiltshire, England. That's a country," he added rather condescendingly.

"I know that. What's Oxford?"

"It's a college. It's also a place in England."

The girl frowned, "so your book is about England? I guess New-New-New-find—land," she stumbled over the word, "and Hudson Bay are English too?"

Five was almost impressed. "It's Newfoundland," he corrected her, "and both that and Hudson Bay are Canadian."

She gave him a curious look. "So someone found new land and just mashed the words together? What if I found a place? Would it be called Eightfoundland?"

Against his will, a smile flickered across his face. "No, goof." That was at least more gentle than his usual moron. "It's only one country like that."

She narrowed her eyes. "What about Greenland? And Iceland?"

He sighed. "Iceland is livable. It's a misnomer, which means it's an incorrect name," he added after seeing her confused look. "Greenland is all ice. It was a trick that a Viking called Erik the Red came up with because he wanted to keep the good land for himself."

The blonde pouted slightly. "He sounds like a big meanie. Maybe Dad will find land and call it Freedom but there's lots and lots of rules, and he'll find another and call it Jail and it won't have any."

It was the boy's turn to frown. "Rules are mostly a good thing, Eight. Have you ever read Lord of the Flies?"

"Is that another book?"

He nodded and her eyes grew round. "Do you know everything?"

Five couldn't help but smirk. "Almost. I plan to."

She tilted her head. "What will you do when you do?"

He shrugged. "I'll figure it out."

--

After that, Eight came to him with most of her questions. At first he thought it was annoying and she was just pestering him but he was surprised to overhear her telling Seven most of the things he said.




𝐢𝐢. 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐖𝐈𝐍𝐆

At age five, partnered study was still enforced by their father but now the pairings had changed: One and Three. Four and Six. Seven and Two. Five and Eight.

The final pair had long since claimed the library as their study space. While they weren't close yet— more along the lines of agreeable siblings than anything else— that would soon change. Currently, Five was standing in front of the girl at a chalkboard as he helped her with the math assignment they'd been given. Eight was sitting, curled up, against the arm of the couch with a clipboard holding her assignment and scratch paper. The girl's pencil was moving quickly across the page and Five was pleased with the attention she was giving him (he was very wrong about this. At least, in the sense she was avidly listening to him explain math.)

When he sat down next to her, he instantly gave her his best disappointed look. In exchange, Eight gave him her best 'what?' one. "Your entire page is blank," he said flatly. "I don't mind helping you but you have to put in the effort."

The blonde looked down at her empty exercise sheet and sighed. "But I hate numbers. It gets all jumbly in my head and, well—" Her excuses faltered as she hesitated.

Five gave her a faintly annoyed look. "And well what?"

She wouldn't meet his eyes as the papers on the clipboard shifted to reveal the scratch paper she'd been writing on underneath. It wasn't blank like he'd been expecting. Instead, in surprisingly exquisite detail, was an almost exact replica of him and the chalkboard he'd been 'teaching' from.

His mouth dropped open slightly. "But— I'm smiling. I never smile."

The blonde shrugged. "Math makes you happy. Everything changes about you when you talk about numbers. You sort of. . . light up." She gave him a quick smile. "But don't worry, it's not obvious. You still look super grouchy." Then she looked back down at her drawing. "Maybe you're right, though. The smile isn't really realistic."

She flipped her pencil upside down to erase his expression and start over, but was stopped when a hand landed on the wood. Five didn't know why he suddenly didn't want her to change it but something shifted inside of him and that was the worst thing she could do at that moment. "It's alright, Eight," he said quickly. "I don't mind."

"Are you sure? I don't mind."

His eyes narrowed. "Don't."

The girl gave him a slightly puzzled look but nodded. "Okay." Then she gently tugged it out from the clip and pushed it towards him. "You can have it, then."

"Really?"

She shrugged. "Why not? I can make another one."

The boy took the drawing in his hands and was careful not to crumple it. The longer he stared at the pencil sketch of himself, the more he liked it— and not just because it was of him. "Do you really see me like that?"

When he looked at her, the confusion in her blue eyes was obvious. "Like what?"

He couldn't even begin to explain.




𝐢𝐢𝐢. 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐈𝐁𝐑𝐀𝐑𝐘

Somehow over the years, Eight— Alexa— had grown on him. He wasn't sure exactly why; her enthusiasm had dimmed over time but she'd always remained cheerful, something that should have irked him but had become rather endearing. She had no head for numbers but was far smarter and more determined than his siblings and they were complete opposites in academics. She was emotional and he was factual; in almost every way, they should have been the worst of enemies, not the best of friends. Still, he would never regret her persistent efforts to talk to him.

In the same amount of time, he could also admit that his feelings for her had shifted— not even he was blind enough to ignore this. At first, he'd disregarded her as he had all of his siblings. Then, he'd tolerated her. They became partners in academics and in training. Acquaintances came next and lasted the briefest amount of time. As he adapted, she adapted with him; by no means was she stupid. As she called them, the title of 'best friends' lasted the longest. Even he knew that step was just a lie.

While he was never one for outward affection— she was always the initiator— there were other things he did for her without the girl ever noticing. It started off as sharpening her pencil when he noticed it was dull, filling out her notes so their father would find them acceptable, finding scraps of blank paper and spacial jumping into her empty room for her to find later or adding extra marshmallows to her sandwich. Then when they got older, he began watching.

He saw how One respected her and gave her both a harder time when she didn't meet expectations and praised her when she did (One often found his homework missing if he was too hard on her.) He saw how Two stuttered less when she spoke to him, the girl's patience making it easier for him to answer (Two sometimes— though rarely— found printed out articles on speech exercises.) He saw how Three glared venomously at the blonde whenever the girl wasn't looking (Three often found single pairs of socks in her drawer.)

He saw how Four seemed calmer in her presence and watched as she treated him like she did the rest with a patience that Five almost envied. (Four occasionally found his math assignments completed before he even thought to look at them; he suspected Ben.) He saw how she and Six often discussed their favorite fantasy and sci-fi novels whenever time allowed (both Six and Eight found new books on their nightstands to read and then talk about; they suspected each other.) Seven was the only one Five sought out independently and sat to listen to her practice when he had time to spare. For some reason he couldn't fathom, Eight— while she didn't ignore Seven— wasn't particularly kind to her either and the dark-haired girl was usually forgotten about. 

So, when Eight— Alexa, he had to remember that— asked him for library help, he suspected something was up. He, Six— Ben— and Alexa knew the library better than anyone; the blonde didn't need help. He followed her out of curiosity.

"What do you think of the book that Dad gave us to read for English?"

He frowned as he tried to figure out what she was asking. "It's kind of boring, I guess. I thought there should be more action. Why, what did you think?" Maybe her answer would clue him in.

She paused before she responded: "I wanted to research one of the topics the book had."

That almost made him laugh. "And you need my help for that?"

He watched her nod, the action causing her blonde hair to fall in front of her face. His fingers itched to pull it back and tuck it behind her ear. They'd reached the library by now and with a gentle tug on his arm, she led him to the far back corner of the library where none of the hidden cameras could see them. There was a small space between the end of the bookshelf and the wall where two small children could fit comfortably. Pushing the boy lightly into the gap and against the wall of the bookshelf, she occupied the other space before she looked into his green eyes. They were about the same height which made it much easier to do so.

"Your research is back here?" Five questioned her with confusion. There weren't any books in this tiny space.

Alexa licked her lips nervously before she said, "the, uh, research can't be found in books."

"Where can it be found, then?" His eyes watched as her tongue darted out to do the action. Where else was he supposed to look?

"With us," she answered. "I, um, wanted to do some. . ." She hesitated.

"You wanted to do what?" Five prompted. With anyone else, he would've immediately snapped. It was unusual for her to be nervous so he tried for patience.

 His eyes darted away from hers and to her lips. He thought that would be an easier place to look but he was very, very wrong. He watched as they moved when she answered his question, "kissing research."

"Kissing research?" Had he heard right?

She nodded quickly, hoping he'd understand. "The, uh, characters did it in the book. . . and I wanted to know what it was like. . ." She trailed off uncertainly before she hastily added, "you don't have to, though."

His smile widened despite his face turning slightly red. "You don't have to be so nervous, you know. I don't mind participating in this. . . research." He'd read the kissing parts too, after all.

Alexa's eyes met his, wide and surprised. "You don't?"

The boy shook his head, admitting in an almost embarrassed sort of way. "You know you're special to me, Lexa."

Alexa's face reddened. "You're special to me, too, Five. That's why I wanted your help."

He grinned at her, and his eyes moved over her face, examining the way her blue eyes had an almost hesitant look to them and how her blonde hair fell across her shoulders; he could even smell it in this small space, the scent of coconut and lavender that created a comforting aroma. Finding a strange, sudden courage, he asked, "do you want to do it now?"

She nodded but hesitated, as neither of them really knew what to do. Then, they both leaned forward and their lips brushed softly against each other. It was over as quickly as it had begun but they were both smiling now. He liked that. 

Alexa gave him a curious look and asked, "do you, uh, want to do it again?"

They returned to the space often after that. Even as much as he enjoyed it, he wasn't quite sure what the whole ordeal was about. Five supposed that it was nice when their lips touched and she often tasted like some sort of sweet desert that he could never place but over all, he felt it was more of a game than anything. Even if he could admit to caring about her, her reactions to what he did was far more interesting. When they pulled away, her face would be flushed and her eyes would shine even in the dim light of the space.

That didn't mean he wanted to kiss Three or Seven and he certainly didn't approve of anyone else kissing Eight, but it was still just research for him.

☂☂☂

The blue light faded around her as her feet landed on the familiar tiled floor of The Umbrella Academy. Alexa gasped with relief as her eyes quickly flicked to each of her siblings as she counted them, glad that they numbered seven in all. 

"What day is it?" Luther suddenly asked.

The boy reached over with his spare hand to look at the paper laying on the table. "April second, 2019. Day after the apocalypse."

It was over. No more apocalypse, no more near-death experiences, they were safe. 

She turned to the boy next to her and before she could stop herself, she'd leapt towards him and wrapped her arms around his neck in a tight hug. For his part, Five had only stiffened for a second's surprise before his arms had wrapped around her waist in return. The force of the gesture caused them to spin slightly and she finally let go, laughing. "Alright! We can totally jack up our prices as two-time world savers!"

He gave her a faintly amused look. "Hey, Lexa?"

"Yeah, Five?"

"We're not actually getting paid for this."

"Well, damn," she said in mock disappointment. "Someone should really look into that."

Grabbing both of his hands, she pushed up on her toes and pressed a quick kiss to his lips. When she pulled away, he smiled softly at her and he leaned forward to whisper, "can you come to the library with me? I need help looking for something."

The blonde's face turned pink. "Going a little fast aren't we, old man? Shouldn't you get me a drink first?"

He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "Whatever you want, dear."

Behind them, Diego groaned. "Are we going to have to put up with that for the rest of eternity?"

Alexa turned and gave him a mischievous little smile. "Eternity is an awfully long time isn't it, darling?"

Five smirked. "Yes, you're right, dear. Almost as long as forever."

"Kill me now," their brother pleaded.

The blonde laughed. "After we worked so hard to save the world? You're being a little ungrateful, aren't you Go-Go?"

"Wait, so we stopped it?" Allison asked.

"Oh my god, it's over," Vanya put in, relieved.

"Did we actually succeed at something?" Klaus sounded amazed. "That's incredible! I don't know about you guys but Lexi had the right idea about drinks."

"Yes!"

"In fact, I need several."

Allison tried to protest as she wanted to find her daughter but was eventually persuaded to join them. Together, the Hargreeves walked into the familiar living space. Five paused as he felt the arm holding Alexa's hand suddenly tug as the girl's footsteps stilled. He turned and the look on her face made his blood freeze. Instantly, he tensed.

"Lexa?"

The blonde was staring somewhere above his head, blue eyes very, very wide and her mouth was parted. Her face had drained of the happiness from earlier and the hand holding his had tightened considerably. There were only two words to describe her expression: abject terror.

He tried again. "Lexa, what is it?"

Her eyes never moved from where they were glued to. "The-the painting." Her voice was a tremulous whisper.

His brows furrowed. "Painting? What painting?"

The girl raised a slightly-shaking finger to point towards where she was looking and he turned. On the fireplace mantle where his picture should be, the portrait in the exact same style was Ben.

"Maybe Dad decided to have a different portrait?" he offered. Even that sounded like a weak explanation.

Finally, her eyes lowered to meet his and the fear flickering in them made his stomach turn. He took a step towards her as she shook her head. "I know every painting in this house," she insisted quietly, "because I made them all. I have never—" Here, her voice shook again. "—painted. . ."

Their interaction had caught the attention of their siblings who were looking at the blonde-haired girl with concern.

"Al's right," Diego said as he studied the portrait. "Why is there a painting of Ben over the mantle piece?"

Suddenly, a voice spoke that made all of the Hargreeves tense: "I knew you'd show up eventually," Reginald observed as he stood from his chair.

"Dad?"

"You're alive," Luther whispered.

Five's grip on Alexa's hand tightened to equal pressure.

"Why shouldn't I be?"

The blonde stepped closer to the boy until she was practically pressed against his back, her short, frightened breaths hitting staccato against his face.

"Yeah. Y-yeah, you're right. I'm just happy that we're home and together again."

"'Home?' This isn't your home."

"What are you talking about?" Allison demanded. "This is The Umbrella Academy."

Alexa's other hand came up and wrapped around the boy's arm, needing the reassurance that this wasn't some strange, terrible nightmare.

"Wrong again," Reginald corrected her easily. "This is The Sparrow Academy."

At the sound of footsteps, the original Hargreeves turned. Alexa had never been more terrified in her life.

Six shadowy figures stood outlined against the glass window. Diego slowly pulled out one of his knives.

Then, a voice she thought she'd never hear in living memory again spoke: "Dad, who the hell are these assholes?"

Ben— but not Ben— stared at them with as much hostility as she'd imagined her Ben looking at her for being the cause of his death.

Collectively, the Hargreeves let out one word: "Shit." 

A/n: and that's a wrap! This is the fastest I've ever completed a series which just goes to show how much I love TUA :) 

Thank you to everyone who has (or will) read, comment(ed) and/or vote(d) on this story! I really appreciate all of your support and I hope I lived up to your expectations!