Disclaimer: I changed Five's age from 13 to 17, as well as the amount of time he spent in the future in order to make the mental age difference and his physical age less weird for the relationship

𝐀𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐀𝐆𝐄 of seventeen, Valerie wished she could say that she was a normal teenager. But, she couldn't.

She had grown up in a rather secluded environment for most of her life; her parents wanted no one—not even her extended family—to know of her existence. For the first eleven years of her life, Valerie was alone.

Day and night, she'd sit in her room, quietly keeping to herself. She'd pass the time by reading, playing her beloved piano, or putting her jittery feet to work around the hardwood floor.

She knew why she wasn't allowed to be seen by others; she was different from the others; she was unusual. That was what her parents had told her when she had first asked at the age of four, and every time after that. It didn't take long for her to realize what exactly was weird about her.

Valerie was a speedster.

Running was an experience like no other for her. The limited time she was allowed out in the backyard was all spent on running, one foot in front of the other as she circled the lawn and blew past the garden.

Eventually, her parents became fed up with her. The amount of pestering and nagging they received along with the volume of rebelliousness in her increased by the day, and they were completely done with it. So what did they do?

They sent her away. Forever. To the Umbrella Academy.

The once Valerie Jung then became Valerie Hargreeves. With that family, she wasn't different, nor unusual. There, she could finally be free.

Well, as free as their father had let her be, at least.

She trained hard to get control over her speed and soon discovered, with the help of her new father, what other capabilities she possessed.

Not only what other capabilities she possessed, but the additional things that came with it. Due to the fact that her mind raced faster beyond what was humanly possible, she was able to process things a lot faster, therefore making her attention span the size of a peanut.

And, sure, the ADHD sucked, but she could think at superhuman speed; heal at an accelerated rate; and had an accelerated body, so that she gained muscle quicker and had better agility, reflexes, stamina, and endurance than any other normal child.

Although, the children of the Umbrella Academy weren't normal ones.

Now, the other six children who bore extraordinary abilities didn't share their gifts with one another, each power unique and special in its own way.

First, there was Number One. Luther was a blond boy with charming looks, whose skinny body would astound you if you were to see the strength he possessed. That boy could lift whatever he wanted, no matter how heavy.

Number Two was Diego, whose tough appearance matched his personality quite fittingly. He had perfect aim; no matter what he threw, whether it be knives, pencils, or pillows, he could hit whatever he wanted, no matter how far away. Valerie's fallen victim to many crumpled pieces of paper to the back of the head.

Allison was Number Three. She was the only other girl who was gifted with powers, so she and Valerie were quite close. She could manipulate anyone as long as she simply started her command with the phrase 'I heard a rumour . . .' and with that, had complete ownership of anyone's further actions.

Number Four was Klaus. Though his goofy character and constant giggling would make one think otherwise, his power was the gloomiest of all—the power to commune with the dead. Although, this didn't make to be so useful when fighting on missions, where he had to rely on his physical strength and reflexes.

Number Five was . . . simply named Five. He had the ability to spatial jump, which had become quite annoying very quickly. He was the one Valerie was closest to, and it was pretty rare to see one without the other.

Six was Ben. He was Korean, just like Valerie, and they always had that to bond over, although he never really knew his culture since he, unlike her, had been adopted just after birth. With his shy and quiet nature, you'd have to do a triple-take in order to process the fact that he was the one who had tentacles coming out of an interdimensional portal in his stomach—after doing a double-take to process the tentacles in the first place, of course.

Number Seven was Vanya, though she had hardly any reason to be a part of this list. The odd one of the group—funnily enough—Vanya seemed to be nothing but normal, with the fact that she showcased no sign of supernatural ability or power. 

And then Number Eight. Herself. Valerie loved having super-speed. She always felt so free whenever she ran, with wind flying through her hair and adrenaline coursing through her body . . . . It was a feeling she longed for whenever she stood still.

Now, the numbers they had been assigned all represented their rank based on their usefulness, being the reason why Luther was first, and Vanya was last. Valerie had come to the Academy later on, which is why she was given the number eight, and everyone was already accompanied to their numbers, which were also their names (to Reginald at least).

Valerie always considered herself to be the nicest of the kids, despite how mean that statement sounded in itself. While most of the kids could be kind (Diego and Five were debatable), Valerie always went the extra measure (except whenever she had to yell at Five, Diego, or Klaus about studying, she definitely was not kind then). Reginald repeatedly told her that she needed to be tougher, more demanding, more mean, but she often found it difficult.

From the moment she had joined them, she trained to control her powers, followed the stringent and limited rules of her new father, fought criminals during missions, and befriended those who she was told to call her siblings.

Sir Reginald Hargreeves was their father, yes, but was a lousy one. He was there to discipline them, train them to master their powers, and yell at them when they did the slightest thing wrong.

To actually take care of them, was their mother, Grace (a robot who had been built and programmed by Reginald), whose blonde curls, warm smile, and reassuring voice could soothe anyone.

Along with her was Reginald's assistant, Pogo. And just as Grace wasn't human, neither was he; instead a rather articulate chimpanzee with the ability to do just about anything a normal person could.

But when the kids weren't doing their schooling or training, they were probably on a mission. Together, the seven super-teens formed the Umbrella Academy, with their goal being to save the world from any evil that came in its way. And, damn, were they good at it.

The whole world knew who they were by now. How could they not? They were seven extraordinary, incredible, never-before-seen kids with superpowers, who were on the front cover of teen magazines and had their own action figures made after them. Seven special, amazing teens who had posters of themselves in their fans' rooms and comic books based on their lives and adventures. Seven breath-taking, skillful youths who did TV interviews and had adoring supporters that squealed and anticipated their every move. Seven super-teens who had it all.

And then one.

Poor, lonely Vanya usually spent her days playing her violin or quietly reading in her room whenever she wasn't busied by school. Valerie always tried to talk to Vanya whenever she could. The two of them would often play music together, with Vanya on the violin and Valerie on the piano. It was little moments from that that Valerie always treasured with her.

Over the years, Valerie had begun to find herself developing more and more feelings for Five. She always found his dark hair and green eyes rather . . . cute, and his mannerisms, while sometimes (a lot of the times) rude, quite charming. 

She wasn't sure what it was, whether it was the cute grin he'd always give her whenever he knew he was being annoying or the slightly flirty comments that he'd whisper to her before punching her in the arm or kicking her from under the table . . .

She never really considered him to be a brother; they weren't even related by blood after all. Besides, Valerie had been brought into the family later than the others. She never grew to feel that the others were truly her 'family', having already lived so many years without even having the slightest clue of their existence.

Still, she didn't say anything. For one, she knew Reginald didn't allow relationships. Second, she wasn't sure if Five felt the same, and definitely did not want to ruin the bond they had.

Although, there were a couple of signs that indicated that he could feel the same (which Allison and Klaus constantly liked to point out): despite growing harsher and harsher (mostly in a provoking sense) towards the others, he had always remained quite soft with Valerie; he'd pay her small but meaningful compliments when she least expected it; and he had once gotten her a silver necklace with a small piano pendant since he was more than aware of her love for piano, which Valerie never took off (although, she was more than sure that he had stolen it, and she regularly scolded him about that).

But still, she appreciated the gift. It gave her a sense of home when she was away from home, and the piano was something she loved. Although, Five always seemed to question that love. 

"How do you even have the energy to play before breakfast?"

Valerie stopped playing Sonatina in G major, Op. 36 No. 5 and rested her hands against the keys of her piano. She turned around to see Five leaning against the doorframe, his hands shoved into the pockets of his uniform shorts.

Her eyebrows furrowed as she questioned, "How long have you been standing there?"

"Like five minutes," he answered with a small shrug as he walked over to her. "I was going to wait for you to finish the song, but it was taking too long."

"It's a nine and a half minute long song," she chuckled lightly. "You could've just interrupted me in the first couple of minutes."

"Nah, I like watching you play." Five shrugged mindlessly as he waved a dismissive hand. He then crinkled his nose and shook his head as he told her, "I still don't know why you love playing so much though, all it does is remind me of our music studies."

Valerie gazed lovingly at the keyboard in front of her. She had begun playing piano from a young age, and, with her accelerated mind, it didn't take long for her to master the instrument. Quite quickly, she fell in love with the soft notes and classic tunes, and the love only grew exponentially from there.

Not only that, but with the ADHD that accompanied her powers, she needed something to keep her grounded. The focus on the keys she played and the notes she heard was all she needed to distract herself from the millions (literally) of thoughts that ran through her mind.

Although it took a little bit of convincing, she had managed to persuade Reginald into letting her get a piano in her room by the time they were fourteen. From then on, whenever she had any free time, she could be found playing the instrument in her room.

Valerie looked back at Five, who had been watching her with squinted eyes. "Because it's beautiful," she responded simply, touching the keys gently with the tips of her fingers.

It truly was. The light, smooth notes that the keys released upon gentle touch; the feeling of her fingers gliding across the glossy keys; the escape of reality as she closed her eyes and listened to the melody; the overwhelming satisfaction of completing a song with perfection . . . It was pure bliss.

"I can think of about a million things that are more beautiful," Five replied, his eyebrows raised.

"I have a hard time believing you," she remarked before she got up from the piano bench and crossed her arms over her chest. "Anyway, what's up? Why are you here?"

"Wow, do you not want me to be here?" Five feigned offence, an over-dramatic expression of surprise settling on his face as he placed a hand over his heart. "I thought . . . I thought that we were friends."

"Shut up," she giggled as she shoved him playfully. "What do you want?"

"Breakfast is going to be ready any second." He shrugged, nodding towards the door before beckoning her to follow him. "Come on."

A Swedish Field Army Mandal to Mountaineering began to echo through the Academy while they left her room. The all-too-familiar deep voice of Herr Carlson filled their ears, beginning to recite what a climber must do under extreme weather conditions. 

She usually tuned out whenever the audio came on, so if she were to ever find herself climbing a mountain under extreme weather conditions, she supposed she would have no idea of what to do.

The two of them joined the other students at the top of the staircase but didn't bother to join in on their whispered conversation. Instead, they started their own.

"Five, promise me you won't do all that again," Valerie sighed as she leaned against the staircase, shoving one hand in the pocket of her blue blazer.

"What do you mean?" he asked innocently, his eyebrows furrowing as he looked towards her.

"The staring, and the glaring, and all that stuff," she replied as she rolled her eyes. "Dad said you shouldn't time-travel, and—"

"He's wrong."

"Five," she exhaled, shaking her head. "Please. You aren't—"

She was interrupted by the high-pitched ring of a bell that immediately caused everyone's ears to perk up. It was time for breakfast.

"Don't you dare," Valerie warned before the two of them followed the others in heading down towards the dining room.

They all stood dutifully in front of their chairs, Valerie's chair being between Five and Diego's. She looked around at each family member's face as they waited for their father to arrive, inspecting them carefully as they all waited.

After a minute, Sir Reginald Hargreeves finally joined them at the head of the table, dressed in a spiffy suit as always. The gold monocle they never saw him without was glimmering in the light as it sat in front of his left eye, reminding everyone of its presence.

He pulled his chair out and stepped in front of it. He looked around at them for a moment before giving a small nod and commanding, "Sit!"

Everyone immediately sat down, their pre-made plates of breakfast waiting in front of them. 

Valerie's plate had about triple the amount of the others since her accelerated metabolism burned through calories much quicker than the others. Besides, she needed the energy to be able to run, or else she would end up passing out (which had happened a couple of times before).

Everyone began to eat, doing their own thing while they passed the time. Ben pulled out a book and resumed eating, Luther and Allison exchanged flirty looks, Diego scraped the end of his butterknife against the arm of his chair, and everyone else kept to themself. Reginald had forbidden them from talking during meals, so the silence was more than normal for them.

Valerie glanced over at Five, who had an untrusting smile on his face as he stared coldly at their father. She groaned silently, shaking her head as she looked back towards her plate.

Oh boy.

Five picked up the knife that sat on the napkin next to his plate, admiring it for a moment before stabbing it into the wooden table.

Everyone turned to stare at him with confusion, exchanging furrowed eyebrows with each other as they waited to hear what was irking him.

"Jesus, Five," Valerie muttered, closing her eyes in exasperation.

"Number Five?" Reginald called as he looked up at him with raised eyebrows, waiting expectantly.

Five clasped his hands together in front of him, keeping the miffed smile prominent on his face as he firmly stated, "I have a question."

"Knowledge is an admirable goal, but you know the rules," Reginald reminded stringently as he continued to eat his breakfast. "No talking during mealtimes. You are interrupting Herr Carlson."

Five didn't give up, however, as he insisted, "I want to time travel."

"No."

"But I'm ready," Five told him. "I've been practicing my spatial jumps, just like you said." He pushed his chair out and slightly scrunched his face as he teleported from his spot to the spot next to Reginald's chair. "See?"

"A spatial jump is trivial when compared with the unknowns of time travel." Reginald picked up his glass that was filled with rich wine and tilted it as he continued, "One is like sliding along the ice, the other is akin to descending blindly into the depths of the freezing water and reappearing as an acorn."

Five shoved his hands into the uniform's pockets as Reginald sipped his drink, his annoyed smile returning. "Well, I don't get it."

Reginald put his glass down with a small nod. "Hence the reason you're not ready."

Valerie shook her head at Five, mouthing for him to stop and to sit back down. He glanced over to her, though he didn't heed her instruction as he turned back to Reginald.

"I'm not afraid," he insisted.

"Fear isn't the issue. The effects it might have on your body, even on your mind, are far too unpredictable." Reginald set his fork and knife on the table, turning to Five with a hard stare as he sternly said, "Now, I forbid you to talk about this anymore."

Five was silent for a moment before shaking his head and bolting towards the door.

"Number Five!" Reginald called after him angrily, leaning forward to watch him disappear from their sight. "You haven't been excused! Come back here!"

Valerie stood up. There was no way she was going to let Five do what she thought he was going to do—what she knew he was going to do.

Reginald's head turned towards her from the sudden movement, and his eyes widened slightly before he warned, "Number Eight, do not—"

"I have to get him before he does something stupid."

She sped off, too fast for anyone to stop her, and stopped right in front of the iron gates of the Academy. She leaned one hand against the cold metal of the gate, peering forward and allowing her head to swivel around in search of the boy.

"Goddammit, Five," Valerie groaned quietly, running a hand through her dark hair.

Despite having a sinking feeling in her stomach of knowing where he had gone, she ran around the city, holding onto a small hope that he was still there. 

She passed by hundreds of people, all of whose faces were unfamiliar to her. She checked every store, library, sidewalk, school, restaurant, any place he could've somehow hidden in, yet he was in none of them.

After looping around every street three times more in under ten minutes, she came to a stop in front of the Academy once more, running her fingers through her hair in an attempt to detangle it.

Valerie leaned back on the stone wall that connected to the gate, sighing. She knew what she had to do.

Time-travel.

She knew that, in theory, she would be able to do it if she ran fast enough. She had once offered the idea to Reginald in the past, just as Five had done, but unlike him, she let the topic drop once the man had said no.

It would be difficult since she had no clue where in time he had gone. Oh, whatever, she thought. What else could she do?

Valerie took a deep breath and closed her eyes, feeling the wind blow against her face as she began to run. She tried to focus on her running, the air filling her lungs, her feet against the pavement, the feeling of movement.

She ran faster than ever before, her arms pumping back and forth as she huffed. A weird sensation suddenly came over her body, tingling through her spine—something she had never felt before. A sense of hope sparked in her; she was sure, she had done it.

She had travelled through time.

Valerie opened her eyes but took a step back once she saw what was around her.

Or more like, what wasn't around her.

She seemed to be surrounded by just . . . black. An empty abyss of nothing, where no ground met no sky. She couldn't feel anything, hear anything, sense anything . . . Whatever it was, it was not good.

"No, no, no," Valerie breathed out, feeling tears beginning to brim in her eyes as she spun around in the spot. "Shit. Oh, God, this is not good news."

She ran around the void, trying to figure out a way to get out, but the room was never-ending. She tried to go through time as she had just done but to no avail. She fell to the ground—if you could even call it that—completely out of ideas.

Tears were pouring down her cheeks at this point, the top of her uniform now completely soaked.

She was trapped.