#acxrned

IT  WAS  THE  FINAL  MOMENT .  the  apocalypse  was  over .  their  lives  had  returned  to  normal , as  normal  as  they  could  be .  they  were  changed  now  of  course ,  irrevocably ,  but  now  they  could  go  on  living  their  lives ,  return  to  their  jobs  and  bills  and  friends ,  live  as  the  adults  they  were .  five  on  the  other  had ,  had  no  where  else  to  go .  he  was  a  boy  out  of  his  time ,  with  the  all  powerful   commission  out  for  his  blood .   it  wasn’t  as  if  he  could  enrol  himself  into  high  school ,  nor  did  he  want  to  live  out  the  rest  of  his  life  within  the  sombre  walls  of  the  academy .  he  had  done  his  job ,  he  had  saved  them  all ,  and  now  it  was  time  to  end ,  to  finish .  he   could  not  run  forever .

           it  worked  out  pretty  well . his  siblings  were  far  too  preoccupied            with  their  lives ,  intoxicated  with  the  relief  of  having  cheated  death             once  more ,  to  wonder  what  their  kid  brother  was  up  to .  they               weren’t  selfish ;  just  human .  memories ,  gratefulness ,  was  always             accompanied  with  an  expiration  date  after  all .

but  of  course  there  was  the  problem  of  vanya .

         he  eyes  her .  the  agents  sent  by   the  commission  will  arrive  any          time ,  and  he’s  got  his  finger  on  the  trigger  of  a  gun  already .          he  was  always  going  to  go  out  with  a  bang  –  send  your  best ,          he’d  warned ,  dropping  the  note  into  a  sealed  canister ,  along with           a  date ,  time  and  place .  he  could  not  let  vanya ,  even  vanya             with  her  newfound  powers ,  to  get  caught  in   the  crossfire .            he  had  to  do  this  alone .                    ❛    –     don’t  you  have  some  music  to  practice  ?   you’ve got  years  of  training  to  catch                                up  on ,  i  wouldn’t  be  so  relaxed  if  i  were  you .  ❜

part of vanya tells her she does not know five anymore.   so much time alone changes a person   ,   surely   —   she knew him well as she knew herself when they were thirteen   ,   but there are sixteen years separating her from then   &   so   ,   so many more separating him.   she’s certainly changed a lot in that time   —   it would be cruel to not allow him the same fluidity   ,   to expect him to be the same brother who had left.   but there’s something all - too - familiar here   :   the way he deflects   ,   something hidden behind his eyes.

the familiarity tells vanya not to leave him alone.   she wasn’t going to   ,   anyways.

‘   it’s fine.   music can wait.   ’     truth be told   ,   the thought of picking up her violin still sends vanya into a panic   ,   the violence that can come with it on the tip of her fingertips.   contrary to his words   ,   she is anything but relaxed.   vanya is healing   ,   but she is afraid   ,   and right now   ,   above all else   ,   she is scared that five will vanish again the moment he thinks he is unneeded.   the apocalypse is averted   ,   his warnings played out   ,   but she needs him safe.   she needs to be able to make peanut butter marshmallow sandwiches for two   ,   to have him in the front row of the audience at the first concert she does after this   ,   to have him helping her in the path to figuring out her powers.

Vanya’s Phone

     ‘ G O D ! can’t you just shut up? ’ harsh words directed not at the figure hovering in the doorway, but the many lingering in the shadows of his room. voices overlap, screams and shouts bringing a throbbing ache behind his eyes only worsened by the sickness of withdrawal coiling within his stomach. klaus presses the palms of his hands tightly ‘gainst closed lids, rubbing until spots appearing behind his eyes and the ache settles only slightly. 

     HE’S  CHUGGING  SODA .  life  without  dad  couldn’t  be  better .  no  rules ,  no  training ,  he’s  almost glad   the  old  man’s  dead .  if  anyone  asks ,   he’s  still  trying  to  wrap  his  mind  around  the  ‘we’re  in  the  future  and  you  have  amnesia’  narrative ,  and  this  is  his  way  of  coping .  he’s  not  sure  mom  has  ever  made  this  many  smiley  pancakes  in  her  life .  and  now  his  siblings  are  all  actual  adults ,  no  one  tries  to  steal  his  raisins ,  or  mess  up  the  face   before  he’s  ready  to  eat .

                          five’s  starting  to  like  the  future  already .

      he  knows  they  keep  him  in  the  dark  though .  something  about  furtive  glances  and  whispered  conversations ,  hushed ,  angry  voices  along  the  corridor .  words  like  danger  and time  travel  and  god  damnit  luther ,  what  do  you  want  us  to  do  ?  he’s  actually  a  kid  again ,  he  doesn’t  even  know  anything  about  you-know-what .

          as  long  as  five  has  his  plethora  of  comic  books  and  sweets ,           he  frankly  couldn’t  be  bothered .

he’s  surprised  when  seven –  no ,  vanya  approaches  him .  now  she’s  sitting  across  the  table ,  watching  him  take  on  that  two  litre  coke  bottle  without  a  single  reproving  word .   he  pauses  now ,  wipes  his  mouth  on  his  sleeve .  

                               ❛     nothing’s   going  to  happen  to  me .  ❜        

VANYA FEELS WHOLLY UNQUALIFIED TO HAVE THIS CONVERSATION.   behind closed doors,   her siblings had agreed not to tell five of his own apocalyptic omens  ;   vanya’s unsure if that’s the wisest decision,   but her opinion doesn’t count for much in these discussions.   (  after all,   she can’t exactly do much to help them prevent the oncoming apocalypse either.  )

in an instant,   five has returned to the very same version of him that had disappeared all those years ago,   the weight of the world lifted from his small shoulders   &   now shared among the remaining hargreeves siblings in his stead.   what to do with that burden,   none of them know     –––     without the knowledge five had possessed,   they have no way of preparing for whatever’s coming.   the rest of them have gone to try and figure that out.

vanya,   deemed essentially useless in their planning,   has been put on babysitting duty.

it isn’t that she minds watching over five     –––     the relief of having him back remains fresh,   even if the circumstances of his return grow stranger by the day.   she doesn’t know what to say,   what to do.   she watches him down a bottle of soda big as his head in silence,   eventually settles on a promise.   she’s going to protect him.   vanya doesn’t think she could bear to lose her brother again,   and while she may not know how she’ll make sure nothing happens to him,   she knows she will.

send ☎ for your muses info in my muses phone @acxrned

NAME: pint sized satanRINGTONE: africa by totoPICTURE:

vanya is going to be   in so much trouble for this.   in the moment   ,   it had made sense   :   reginald had left her alone in the house during a mission with only mom   &   pogo watching after her   ,   &   it had been simple enough to slip away.   (   innocent ordinary child   —   who would suspect her of any wrongdoing?   they had barely been watching.   she doubts they’ve noticed   ,   even now.   )   and oh   ,   she had meant well   :   vanya had only wanted to prove her worth to her father   ,   &   she has been sneaking down to the gymnasium room to punch at luther’s punching bags while everyone is asleep   ,   &   she wants to help.   that is all   :   she wants to be worth more than sitting alone in her prison cell of a bedroom.   

she makes it to the mission.   she’d heard father briefing them as her siblings had gathered their domino masks   &   scampered through the halls   ;   it’s a bank robbery   ,   with hostages and the whole nine yards.   her heart races   —   with fear or excitement   ,   she isn’t quite sure   ,   but it amounts to the same thing   ,   doesn’t it?   she runs into the bank.   she’d fit into the scene her siblings have created   ,   with her plaid dress   &   red - and - navy blazer   ,   if not for her lack of mask   —   as it stands   ,   she looks as she is   :   a powerless child trying to act a hero.

her plan had only gone so far.   run after them.   charge into the mission.   help stop it.   she’d imagined   ,   when she allowed herself to imagine   ,   that perhaps some brand - new power would spring out of her when put into danger   ;   maybe she was a late bloomer   ,   and was like her siblings after all.   maybe father just hadn’t given her a chance yet!   (   foolish   ,   foolish   ,   foolish.   as if the world would bend to her wishes so easily.   )   

she has achieved steps one   &   two of her plan   ,   but freezes in the entryway of the bank   ,   stock - still between two pillars as she watches her siblings.   father has not let her come to watch missions through binoculars with him in a long while   ,   ever since she’d started to cry when ben was shot at by a very large man with a very large gun a few months ago.   (   he was alright.   she’d cried just as much when his horrors had torn the large man apart   ,   and had given father back his binoculars   ,   feeling sick to her stomach.   )   it all comes rushing back   :   the tears at seeing her siblings charge into battle against people much bigger and stronger than them   ,   the fear at what she has decided to do.   she can’t do it.   she can’t help.   (   useless   ,    useless   ,   useless.   she hears the word in her father’s voice.   )   

five is the first   (   only   )   to notice her there.   oh   ,   how glad she is for that   —   if one or two or three had noticed her   ,   she thinks they would have been angry with her   ,   but five’s face is all concern.   (   why   ,   she wonders for a moment   —   she’s gotten herself into this mess.   father would say she deserves to deal with the consequences for endangering herself.   perhaps one of the robbers will shoot her.   )   he blinks over to her   ,   tugs her off to the side   ,   &   she remains frozen and speechless.

keep your eyes closed   ,   he says   ,   &   she nods.   she’s all too aware of the danger her siblings get into when they go on missions   ,   but she has only seen it from a distance   ,   never so close   —   it frightens her.   she doesn’t have the words to say how scared she is   ,   any sound she wants to make is trapped in her throat   ,   but he seems to understand.      ‘   okay   ,   ’      she whispers   ,   &   in doing so feels like she has failed so very much.

anyways   :   the boy seems about her age   ,   a bit taller   ,   and she may not know his name but she knows that yesterday she peeked out from the room she shares with the other girl here   &   saw him vanish   &   reappear further down the hall.   vanya couldn’t see his face by the time he blipped back into being   ,   but he did not seem surprised by it happening   ,   by the limited inferences she   (   entirely unskilled at reading body language   )   could gather.

(   her mind is a minefield on the best of days   ,   repeated abandonment   &   experiencing death at far too young an age   &   power - induced ostracization brewing into an ever - present sadness and rebelliousness.   it’s often mistaken for simple pre - teenage angst   ,   the madness of any twelve - year - old girl.   today   ,   there is a rare sparkle in vanya’s eye   :   it has been so long since she has felt any hope that she could speak to one of the other children without them judging her based upon the whispers of ‘witch girl’ and ‘devil child’ that followed in her wake around the orphans   ,   but if what she’d seen yesterday was fact and not simply her mind playing tricks   —   maybe she can find understanding here.   at the very least   ,   she is curious in a way she has not been in a long while.   )

‘   i saw.   ‘      she cuts to the point as she approaches him.   vanya is no spectacular conversationalist   ;   she is quiet most of the time   ,   and when she speaks her words come out blunt.   it’s the verbosity of a girl who has not had real reason to speak to many people since she was small   ,   the awkwardness of someone who is well aware her words will not change her situation   &   has stopped trying.      ‘   like out of a science fiction book.   teleportation   ,   is that what it’s called?   ‘   she sits down beside him   ,   looking at him with ever - wide eyes.      ‘   don’t worry   ,   i won’t tell.   i can do things   ,   too.   y’know.   magic things.   ‘