𝑊𝑒𝑑𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑑𝑎𝑦. 8:15 𝐴.𝑀. (. . . 𝑎𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛)

𝐋𝐔𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑, 𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐎𝐍, 𝐃𝐈𝐄𝐆𝐎, Klaus, and Valerie were standing around the bar, discussing the apocalypse, which Luther and Valerie had just then informed them on.

Valerie and Luther were speaking earnestly, but it just seemed like the other three either didn't believe them or just straight up didn't care (though, in their defence, what they were saying sounded incredibly made up). Still, Valerie was about three seconds away from slapping the ever-loving shit out of all of them, but she restrained herself.

"Hold on. Hold the phone," Klaus interjected with a wave of the hand as he used another to shove a slice of a baguette into his mouth. "We all died fighting this thing the first time around. Remember?"

Diego, who had begun to play with one of his knives with his good hand, nodded in agreement. "Klaus, shockingly, has a point. What gives us a win this time?"

Before anyone could answer, however, the lights above them began to flicker violently, and the crackle of electricity hummed through the air, causing them to look around in surprise.

Their eyes were soon drawn to the ceiling just above the bar counter as a blue wave appeared, fluctuating in a strange fashion.

Valerie's eyes widened as she backed up until she hit the sink, her fright increasing as the blue wave grew larger. She then squinted her eyes as she realized that it looked similar to the vortex that Five had come out of at first, and she prayed that it was him that would drop out.

Then, to their relief, Five fell onto the bar with a loud thud.

He was clutching onto a thick, black briefcase under him, which was just as dusty as his face and clothes, and Valerie quickly realized that it belonged to the Commission that he talked so often about.

Klaus, who had fallen onto the couch in terror when Five had tumbled out, stared at the boy with shock. "You guys, am I still high, or do you see him, too?"

Five groaned in response, though when he tried to get to his feet, he ended up falling off the briefcase and toppling towards the floor instead.

Valerie quickly sped over to him, catching him before he could hit the ground. She sighed as his body relaxed in her arms. 

She carefully helped him to his feet, and once she was reassured that he was balanced, she asked, "Five, where have you been?"

"Are you all right?" Allison questioned worriedly as she took in his ragged appearance.

"Who did this?" Luther demanded with narrowed eyes, getting up from the stool he had been sitting on.

"Irrelevant." Five grabbed Allison's coffee and began to drink it as he walked away, slightly limping. He swallowed before turning to them, his entire being filthy with grime and dust. "So, the apocalypse is in three days. The only chance we have to save our world is, well, us."

"The Umbrella Academy," Luther stated.

"Yeah, but with me, obviously," Five said impatiently as he glanced at him. "So if y'all don't get your sideshow acts together and get over yourselves, we're screwed. Who cares if Dad messed us up? Are we gonna let that define us? No. And to give us a fighting chance to see next week, I've come back with a lead." He took a crinkled piece of folded paper out of his pocket and lifted it for everyone to see. "I know who's responsible for the apocalypse. This is who we have to stop."

Valerie stepped towards him and took the paper out of his hands. Hearing the footsteps as the others huddled around her, she unfolded the paper. It was addressed to Hazel and Cha-Cha, and it stated one thing:

REASSIGNMENT: PROTECT HAROLD JENKINS.

"Harold Jenkins?" Valerie read out, her eyebrows furrowing. She racked her brain to see if the name rang any bells, but, unsurprisingly, it didn't. "Who the hell is Harold Jenkins?"

"I don't know . . . yet." Five shook his head as his eyes flickered between the paper and her face. "But I do know that he's responsible for the apocalypse. So we have to find him. And we have to do it now."

"How is he connected to what's gonna happen?" Luther asked, his forehead creasing as he stared at the paper in Valerie's hands.

Five shook his head once more. "I don't know."

"Wait, so you just know his name?" Diego questioned incredulously as he stepped to the front of the group. "That's it?"

Five shrugged. "That's enough."

Diego shook his head as he quickly pointed out, "There's probably dozens of Jenkins'."

Five raised his eyebrows. "Well, we just better start looking, then."

"I'm sorry," Allison scoffed, causing everyone to turn toward her, "am I the only one that's skeptical here? I mean, how exactly do you know all of this about . . . what's his name?"

Valerie's eyebrows furrowed as she watched Five give a grimace of pain and glance down to his lower stomach, and she quickly rolled her eyes as realization dawned on her.

The son of a bitch probably hurt himself. She'd have to question him after.

He straightened up as the others looked back towards him, clearly not wanting to cause attention to his injury, and rolled his eyes.

"Harold Jenkins," Five reminded with a sigh. "You know those lunatics in masks who attacked the house?"

"Oh, yeah, I think I remember those guys," Klaus said breathily as he squinted his eyes and rubbed the back of his head.

Diego turned to him with a scowl as he scoffed, "Yeah, the ones that attacked us while you were getting drunk."

"Yeah. Them." Five nodded, shoving his hands into his uniform pants pockets. "They were sent by the Temps Commission to stop me from coming back and preventing the end of life on Earth."

"The Temps what?" Allison asked as she crinkled her nose.

"My former employer. They monitor all of time and space to make sure that whatever is supposed to happen . . . happens," Five explained as Klaus flopped down onto the couch. He continued, "They believe the apocalypse is coming in three days. So I went to Commission headquarters and intercepted a message that was meant for said lunatics. 'Protect Harold Jenkins.' So he must be responsible for the apocalypse."

Everyone was silent for a moment before all but Valerie scrunched their faces in disbelief as they all walked in different directions.

"What do you mean, protect time and space?"

"Where is this Hazel, Five?"

"My skin is on fire."

"Do you have any idea how insane this sounds?" Allison questioned as she folded her arms.

Five, who had been tentatively touching the area of pain from before, looked up, his eyebrows raised, "You know what else is insane? Valerie and I look like seventeen-year-olds, Klaus talks to the dead, and Luther thinks he's fooling everybody with that overcoat. Everything about us is insane. It always has been."

Klaus leaned over the edge of the couch, giving a small shrug as he agreed, "He's got a point there."

"We didn't choose this life, we're just living it," Five continued, the gaze of his eyes changing from person to person. "For the next three days, anyway."

"But the last time we tried to stop it, we all died," Allison rebutted, her tone just as hopeless as the expression on her face. "Why is this time any different? Why shouldn't I go home to my daughter?"

"Because this time, I'm here. We have the name of the man responsible. Guys, we actually have the chance of saving the lives of billions of people." Five paused for a moment, staring straight at Allison. "Including Claire."

Allison furrowed her eyebrows, seeming taken aback as she asked, "You know her name?"

"I do" —Five gave a small nod— "and I'd like to live long enough to meet her."

Allison considered for a moment, sliding her hands into the pocket of her pants as she pursed her lips. Once she had come to her decision, she gave a nod as she agreed, "All right. Let's get this bastard."

"You had me at Gerald Jenkins," Diego said firmly, his hand gripped tightly on the knife he had taken out of his pocket.

"Harold Jenkins," Valerie corrected him with an amused smile.

He rolled his eyes as he muttered, "Whatever. I've already lost two people this week, I'm not losing anyone else."

"Yeah, count me in." Valerie nodded with a small grin as she turned to Five. "I've been helping your ass this entire week, I'm not stopping now."

Five smiled before looking toward Luther and raising his eyebrows. "And Luther?"

"Yeah, you go," Luther sighed, making a flicking motion with his hand. "I'm gonna stay and go through Dad's files. I still think this has something to do with why he sent me to the Moon."

"Seriously?" Diego scoffed as he turned to the large man, his eyebrows raising. "Now you wanna make the end of the world about you and Dad?"

"No. 'Watch for threats.' That's what he told me," Luther pointed out with a shake of the head. "You think that's a coincidence? This all has to be connected somehow."

Valerie folded her arms as she looked over to the broad man and insisted, "No, we should all stick together."

"We don't have time for this," Five muttered, shaking his head.

"Let's roll. I know where we can find this asshole." Diego looked over at the motionless figure on the couch and nodded towards him as he ordered, "Klaus, you're with me."

"Yeah. I . . . I'm good." Klaus lazily waved a hand in the air as he clambered to his feet and went towards the exit. "I think I'll, uh . . . I think I'll pass, I'm . . . feeling a little under the weather, so, uh . . ."

Once the plan had been settled, Diego, Five, Allison and Valerie took the car towards the police station. The idea was for them to find the file on Harold Jenkins, though, of course, that would rely on Harold Jenkins even being worthy of a file (though Diego had insisted he would have one).

Diego, who had driven them there, turned the ignition off after he had parked on the side of the road.

"I know this Jenkins dude has to have a record," he said as he leaned back in his seat. "We gotta get our hands on this file."

"And your plan is to what?" Allison questioned incredulously from the back seat, next to Valerie. "Waltz in there and just ask for it?"

Diego was looking at the police officers on the sidewalk through the side view mirror as he answered, "I know the station like the back of my hand, sis. I've spent a lot of time inside."

"Handcuffed," Allison pointed out with a small scoff.

"Whatever." Diego rolled his eyes as he turned to face the rest of them, a determined look set on his face. "Okay, here's the plan—"

"Plan?" Valerie echoed as she furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "I'm just gonna run in and get the file."

"No, that's not—you don't know the ins and outs of this place, okay?" Diego refused as he shook his head.

"I don't need to know the 'ins and outs.'" Valerie air-quoted as she rolled her eyes. "It'll take me ten seconds to search the entire place. Why don't I just go?"

"Listen to me. You are not going in there," Diego said with a tone of finality, his eyes stern as they stared into hers. "You're just a kid."

"Wha—Diego, we are the same age." Valerie rolled her eyes, leaning forward and shoving his arm. She was growing more and more tired of this goddamn seventeen-year-old body with every passing day.

"Still a kid to me." Diego shook his head before giving her another severe glare. "I made a call. That's what a leader does. He leads."

Valerie sighed as he got out of the car, peering through the window to watch as he headed down the alley next to the police station.

She, Five, and Allison then got out of the car, waiting in front of the building for him to do whatever his plan was.

Allison noticed the payphone that sat next to the traffic light, and immediately fished some coins out of her pockets as she murmured, "I'm going to call Vanya really quick."

As she walked over to the payphone, Valerie leaned against the stone wall and turned to face the boy.

Her eyes flickered over his face, examining his furrowed eyebrows and set jaw. After a few moments, she called, "Five."

His gaze shifted from Allison to Valerie as his eyebrows raised. "What?"

She inspected his face once more for a moment before questioning, "Are you hurt?"

Five looked alarmed for a moment as if he were taken aback by the sudden question, though his expression quickly recovered. He shook his head in denial as he answered, "No. Why would you think that?"

"Dude," Valerie scoffed as she narrowed her eyes, taking a few steps closer to him. "I can see that you're hurt. You're not good at playing things off."

He raised his hands in defence with a sigh. "I just got . . . punched. Once. And it's a bit sore, that's all."

She wasn't too convinced but didn't press further, knowing that he wouldn't tell her no matter how much she pried. Instead, she just sighed and played along. "Why—why did you get punched?"

"Don't worry about it." He waved a dismissive hand, giving her a reassuring smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "It was just . . . stuff."

Valerie gave a stiff nod, folding her arms as she adjusted herself.

Silence quickly settled between the two of them, and it was happily accompanied by the awkward tension that was impossible to not feel; they had almost kissed the day before, after all.

Valerie shifted in her spot, her eyes constantly moving between Five's face and the pale sky just beyond him. Should she say something? Do something? Or should she just pretend that none of that happened?

Before she could make a decision, however, it seemed as though Five had made his own.

"Valerie," Five spoke suddenly, his green eyes flicking over to her and causing her eyebrows to raise. "Listen, I want to tell you something."

"What is it?" she asked nervously, feeling her heart rate begin to quicken as his eyes wandered over her face.

"Val, I-"

He was cut off as Diego arrived, a blue folder in his hand, which he quickly brandished towards Valerie. "See, Road Runner? Told you I could get it. You're welcome."

Valerie silently cursed at him. What was up with everyone interrupting her and Five? Just ten more seconds and she would've known what he was going to say!

Allison snatched the folder from him and opened it, her eyes widening as soon as she saw what was written inside.

"Holy shit," she breathed out.

"What?" Diego questioned worriedly, glancing towards Valerie as his eyebrows knit together tightly.

Allison turned the folder for them to see the mugshot of Harold that was paperclipped to the top of the file. "Harold Jenkins is Leonard Peabody."