I Am Not Number Seven (TUA/MHA Crossover)

6. Numbers: Divided

Five and Vanya thrashed their grappled hands together in an impressively violent game of thumb war for the duration of the drive to the airport, occasionally chatting with the rest of their siblings and challenging them to the nearly finger-breaking game.

It was a quiet ride, emotions were subdued enough after the emotional moments of the siblings' goodbyes to their room, their mother figure, and their lives at the academy yet the looming cloud of their upcoming final goodbye still lingered over their heads.

That background anxiety was drawn to the foreground as they entered the city and signs of the airport began to appear more and more frequently. Conversations tapered off as the siblings noticed the traffic getting heavier, a sign that they were close. Five and Vanya, who had been playing nearly every silly car game you could think of as a distraction, began looking out the window as they did not feel in the mood to play anymore. Vanya noticed the sign for the airport on the side of the highway they were on, 'John F. Kennedy International Airport: Next Exit'.

Her stomach clenched as Pogo began to merge to take the exit. The girl heard six other heartbeats in the car speed up as her siblings noticed as well. The quiet inside the van was suffocating, the only sounds coming from anyone were the small noises that only the girl with the sound manipulation quirk could hear.

Pogo began maneuvering through the difficult streets that lead to the airport, either unaware or uncaring of the stifling silence of the teenagers. From the seat nearest to the front, Vanya heard Klaus mumbling, most likely to himself but also quite possibly to a ghost, in a quick, hurried manner. The girl chose not to focus on his words, whatever was being said was clearly none of her business. A small, clicking sound emerged from the middle seat as the airport came closer and closer into view, Diego must have been biting his nails again. The girl knew her brother did that in times of stress but she was surprised he still had anything considering what a rough week it had been for him. She ignored her brother as Pogo pulled alongside a curb, just below a sign that side 'JFK Drop Off- No Parking or Extended Stops'.

The butler put the van into park and turned in his seat with a smile, "Well," he said pleasantly, "This is where I leave you, children. Take care to hurry, some of your flights leave soon. Goodbye."

Vanya blinked at the sudden goodbye from Pogo and glanced at the clock. It was almost 7 at night, the drive to the airport had taken nearly two hours from the Academy's rural location. A bit disheartened by the lack of emotion in Pogo's goodbye but equally glad that he would not cause her to feel sad, Vanya was the first to shuffle towards the van door, gripping the handle and sliding it open for everyone. At their sister's movement, the rest of the siblings grabbed their carry-on bags off their laps and followed the dark-haired girl out.

A few people had stopped to watch as the siblings tumbled out of the van and waved awkwardly to Pogo as he pulled away from the curb, driving away without another word. Vanya was glad that they were dropped off in a nondescript van. Had it been one with the signature Academy logo, paparazzi would have flooded the airport and the siblings' faces would have been pasted all over the news, their identity would have been known before the day was over and that small bit of anonymity they would have enjoyed would have been ripped from them.

Personally, Vanya planned to keep the fact that she was a Hargreeves a secret from the public but since the staff in her new school would know she was an Umbrella Academy graduate, it was likely that her classmates would know as well. Which she had no problem with, but the girl hoped that they would not treat her as an outsider because of it.