𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐄𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐏𝐀𝐍 𝐄𝐅𝐅𝐄𝐂𝐓 ━ five hargreeves³

21│WHERE'S MY EPIC BACKGROUND MUSIC?

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❛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘ. ᴘᴀɴ ᴇғғᴇᴄᴛ​​​​​​​​​​. ❜ ° . ༄
- ͙۪۪˚   ▎❛ 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐘-𝐎𝐍𝐄 ❜   ▎˚ ͙۪۪̥◌
»»————- ꒰ᴡʜᴇʀᴇ's ᴍʏ
ᴇᴘɪᴄ ʙᴀᴄᴋɢʀᴏᴜɴᴅ ᴍᴜsɪᴄ?꒱


❝ THE NUMBER EIGHT IS
A KARMIC EQUALIZER ❞

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The passage glittered with reflective mirrors that seemed to distort the time and space around them. Alexa was too distraught to notice the kaleidoscopic surroundings but Deianira took them in warily. She walked cautiously in front of Sloane, behind the British woman and her boyfriend. Lila was the first to shove open the door as the rest of the Hargreeves followed her. When they exited into the room, she turned around in several circles to process the differences— but also similarities— that they were seeing.

"Let's never do that again," Viktor panted as he stepped out of the portal.

"What, narrowly escape an apocalypse?" Five asked.

Diego had immediately taken to looking suspiciously around the room but he chimed in: "well, it's kind of our thing, isn't it?"

Allison stared at the buffalo's ass that stuck out of the wall. Ben seemed curious about it too as he reached a hand up to touch its tail. "There's something very wrong about that."

"Same suite, just ass-backwards," Lila explained.

"No hyperbole there."

"This is some hardcore Alice in Wonderland shit," the Asian man commented.

"Yeah, and it only gets weirder."

Reginald came last through the portal and closed the portrait behind them. "At last, the other side."

"Wait— where's Klaus?" Viktor wondered.

Reginald was breathless as he spoke but that was more from their narrow escape than any emotion tied to his explanation: "children, I'm sorry, but your brother. . . I did all I could, but he didn't make it through in time. The Kugelblitz has claimed its last victim."

"No," Five countered him coldly. "He was right behind me when I entered the tunnel."

"We need to go back," Alexa protested shakily.

"There's nothing to go back to. Children, there will be time for tears later. Right now, we have to keep moving." The older man stalked past them without another word.

☂︎ ☂︎ ☂︎

As expected, they weren't given much time to grieve over the loss of their second brother; soon enough they were exiting the elevator to spill out into the lobby.

"It's magnificent," Reginald breathed.

"You guys should have stayed here. This place is way nicer," Ben commented dryly.

Diego's voice was borderline unfriendly as he spoke up from his place at the front of the group: "Lila and I barely got out of here alive, remember?"

Deianira smirked confidently. "That sounds like a you problem."

"Yeah," the Asian man greed. "I'm here this time and the numbers are in our favor."

"I think you mean we," the brunette corrected him evenly. She crossed her arms against her chest and raised a challenging eyebrow at him. Her brother only rolled his eyes in response.

"Well, whatever it was, it was strong, fast and super pissed," Lila told them.

"Alright, so whatever you do, do not ring this bell," the dark-haired man instructed them sternly. "Unless you wanna lose a finger or a tentacle."