𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐃
( chapter seven )

☂︎︎

"𝐈 𝐒𝐔𝐑𝐕𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐃 𝐎𝐍 𝐒𝐂𝐑𝐀𝐏𝐒." Five described his time in the apocalypse. "Canned food, cockroaches."

Alora gagged. She would rather die than eat a cockroach.

"Anything I could find." He chuckled weakly. "You know that rumour that Twinkies have an endless shelf life? Well, it's total bullshit."

"I can't even imagine." Vanya sympathised.

"You do whatever it takes to survive, or you die." Five said, sipping his coffee. "So we adapted. Whatever the world threw at us, we found a way to overcome it."

"We?" Vanya asked, voicing Alora's thought.

"Got anything stronger?" Five held up his cup.

Vanya poured him a glass of bourbon, the boy taking a sip. Vanya stared at him, causing the boy to laugh emotionlessly. "You think I'm crazy."

"No!" Vanya stammered. "It's just... it's a lot to take in."

Exactly what don't you understand?" Five spat.

"Why didn't you just time travel back?"

"Vanya-" Alora started, waving her arm around as she laid on the couch.

Five scoffed, "Gee, wish I thought of that. Time travel is a crapshoot. I went into the ice and never acorn-ed. You think I didn't try everything to get back to my family?"

Vanya nodded wordlessly before speaking, "If you grew old there, you know, in the apocalypse, how come you still look like a kid?"

"I told you already," Five gritted. "I must have got the equations wrong."

"I mean, Dad always used to say that.. time travel could mess up your mind." She said. "Well, maybe that's what's happening?"

Alora inhaled, pulling a face and sitting up.

"This was a mistake." He put the glass down. "You're too young, too naive to understand."

"No, Five- Five, wait."

"Are we leaving?" Alora stood up, grabbing her coat and throwing in on. Five stood at the door, about to open it.

"I haven't seen you in a long time, and I don't want to lose you again. That's all. And you know what- it's getting late and I have lessons early and I need to sleep, and I'm sure you both do, too."

"I don't." Alora put her hands up. "I spent fourteen years asleep, I don't need anymore. I'm like Sleeping Beauty."

Vanya walked to the couch and set up a bed for the boy, Alora sighing and taking off her coat.

"We'll talk in the morning again. Okay? I promise." Vanya reassured. "Night."

"Night." Five nodded.

"Goodnight." Alora sighed, waving as Vanya entered her room, closing the door behind her. Five sat down on the couch and pulled something out of his pocket.

"Ew, is that an eye?" Alora cringed, looking closer. "Five! Did you take someone's eye?"

"What? No!" He squinted. "I found it. In the apocalypse."

"Oh." Alora leaned back, looking out the window. "Is there something on the back?"

"How did you know?" Five asked her, turning the glass eye around and revealing the serial number and manufacturer.

She shrugged and reached for her jacket, yet again. "We leaving?"

"Yeah." He sighed and got up, opening the door. They both slipped through and closed it quietly.

☂︎︎

"What are we doing here?" Alora groaned, rubbing her eyes to adjust to the harsh, white interior of the building.

"I need to find the owner of this eye." He muttered to her and they walked towards the front desk.

A man in a lab coat walked out of a glass office and spotted them, stopping in his tracks, clearly confused by the two 'kids'. "Uh, can I help you?" He asked, looking around.

Five turned to look at the man after Alora tapped his arm, signalling he was talking to them. He brought the glass eye out of his pocket, holding it in the air. "I need to know who this belongs to."

"Where did you get that?" The doctor asked, glancing in between the two of them.

"Why do you care?" Five frowned. Alora elbowed him, silently telling him to be nice. Five fixed his statement, "I.. I found it. At a playground actually." Alora nodded along, glancing at the secretary who was looking curiously at them. "Must have just," he clicked him tongue. "Popped out."

"We wanna return it to its rightful owner." Alora smiled, putting her arm around Five.

"Oh," the secretary awed. "What thoughtful young children."

"Yeah, look up the name for me, will ya?" Five smiled condescendingly at the lady, to which Alora poked him again.

"I'm sorry, but patient records are strictly confidential." The man said, putting his hands in his pockets. "That means I can't tell you-"

"Yeah, I know what it means." Five interrupted, sighing, annoyed at two things; one, the fact that people kept treating him like a child, and two, he couldn't get any information out of these people.

"But, I'll tell you what I can do. I will take the eye off your hands and return it to the owner. I'm sure he or she will be very grateful, so if I can-"

"Yeah you're not touching this eye." Five said, glaring up at the man.

"Now, you listen here, young man-" the man tried but Five grabbed him by the collar and pulled him close to his face. Alora stepped back slightly, looking around to see if anyone was watching them. No one but the secretary and the man being.. well harassed.

"No! You listen to me, asshole. I've come a long way for this, through some shit your pea brain couldn't even comprehend." Five hissed angrily. "So just give me the information I need, and I'll be in my merry way. And if you call me 'young man' one more time, I'm gonna put your head through that damn wall!"

Alora blinked, wide eyed. Wow, Five.

"Oh, dear." The lady at the desk dragged out, slowly reaching for the phone.

"Five." Alora whispered.

"Call security." The doctor choked out, afraid of the 'young man'.

The secretary picked up the phone and started dialling. "This is where we leave." Alora grabbed Five's arm once he let the man go, shoving him back.

☂︎︎

Her and Five were back at home, in his room. Alora was sitting on the floor, infront of the bed, legs crossed watching as Klaus and Five bickered back and forth. Suddenly, she heard Vanya calling out their names. She waved her hands wildly and pointed to the doorway. They stopped talking and listened intently before Five shoved Klaus in his closet, Klaus whisper-screaming that he didn't want to go back there.

Vanya walked in the door, sighing. "Oh, thank god."

"Miss us?" Alora joked.

"I was worried sick about you two."

"Sorry we left without saying goodbye." Five apologised.

"No, look, I'm the one who should be saying sorry." Vanya took a few more steps into the room. "Yeah, I was dismissive, and... I- I guess I didn't know how to process what you were saying. And I still can't, to be honest."

"Maybe you were right to be dismissive." Five said, hands in the pockets of his shorts. Alora gave him a weird look. "Maybe it wasn't real after all." Alora gave him an even weirder look, not that he noticed, and if he did, he didn't show it. "It felt real. Well... like you said, the old man did say time travel could contaminate the mind." He smiled before it dropped.

"Then maybe I'm not the right person for you to be talking to." Vanya thought for a moment. "I used to see someone." Alora didn't think Five wanted a relationship where he had to talk about his time in the apocalypse. "A therapist." Oh. "I could give you her information."

"Thanks, but..." Five stopped her. "I think I'm just gonna get some rest. It's been a long time since I've had a good sleep." He held out his hand to Alora and the girl grasped it, getting pulled up from the ground.

"Okay." Vanya sighed, walking away.

Five made sure she was really gone, her footsteps fading away before Klaus came out of the closet, things clattering to the floor around him. "That's so..." he stepped out from his uncomfortable position and put a hand to his chest. "touching, all that stuff about family and Dad and time. Wow!"

"Would you shut up? She'll hear you!" Five hissed, gesturing to the doorway.

"I'm moist!" Klaus sighed.

Five glanced at his outfit, which was a floral and ugly button down shirt with a weird collar. Not his veto choice of clothing, in Alora's eyes. "I told you to put on something professional."

"What? This is my nicest outfit."

Five sighed, always regretting asking Klaus to help him. "We'll raid the old man's closet. Alora, go help him."

"Whatever as long as I get paid." Klaus waved his hand.

"When the job is done." Five reassured.

"Am I getting paid?" Alora asked, looking around. Five stared at her blankly. Alora sighed and grabbed Klaus' hand pulling him out of Five's room. "I think Dad only owns- owned one suit."

"No, remember that time he wore a dark green tie?" Klaus recalled. "That change was so- oh wait, you weren't there." He laughed, humorously. "Ha."

"Very funny." Alora rolled her eyes, but had a smile on her face. She was glad to be back with Klaus.

After getting him in the suit, they met up with Five in front of his bedroom. "Just so we're clear on the finer details, I just gotta go into this place and pretend to be your guys' dear old dad, correct? Wow, that sounds weird, considering you're my baby sister." Klaus chuckled, looking at Alora.

"We're twins!" She groaned, shaking her head.

"I'm twelve minutes older than you!"

"Hello?" Five waved, his hands slapping against his legs.

"Right- so what's our cover story?" Klaus asked, back on topic.

"What? What're you talking about?"

"I mean, was I really young when I had you? Like, 16? Like, young and..." he thought for a moment, looking into the distance. "terribly misguided?"

"Sure." Five drawled, rolling his eyes and looking at Alora, who by no surprise, looked amused.

"Your mother, that slut!" Klaus growled, really playing the part. "Whoever she was. We met at..."

"The disco?" Alora suggested, rocking back and forth on her feet.

"What disco?" Klaus asked, clicking his fingers.

"The disco."

"The disco!" Klaus chucked, slotting his arm through Alora's. "Okay, remember that." Five raised his eyebrows at the girl who grinned at him. "Oh my god, the sex was amazing." He drew out.

"What a disturbing glimpse into that thing you call a brain." Five spoke, sighing and walking down the steps.

"Don't make me put you in time out!" Klaus said, pulling Alora with him. "Alora was always my favourite child!"

☂︎︎