[✓] 𝑃𝑅𝐸𝐿𝑈𝐷𝐸 | 𝐅𝐈𝐕𝐄 𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐆𝐑𝐄𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐒

𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧. 𝑑𝑜-𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟. 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐈𝐈𝐈: 𝐫𝐮𝐛𝐚𝐭𝐨

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: