CLOUD TO GROUND ☂︎ FIVE HARGREEVES

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ANAGNORISIS
modularity

☂︎ ☂︎ ☂︎

Following Diego's lead, they made their way over to the location given in the invitation, a tall, expensive looking building, with large glass windows that stared down at the new arrivals. Filing into the building, Hypatia brought up the middle, taking in the rich white tiling of the floor and the detailed mural twisting it's way up the wall, splashes of color drawing the eye.

From the other end of the building two familiar figures were making their way inside. Klaus waved at them and Allison just smiled as they continued forward towards the elevator between them, it's doors already open but swiftly closing.

Diego darted forward, sticking his hand in the threshold, the metal doors sliding back open. Inside was a surprised Five, quickly joined by Diego.

Hypatia stepped in next, sliding next to Five and leaving room for the others. The each squeezed their ways inside, Klaus and Allison, Luther and Vanya, until the elevator was full, packed so close they were standing near shoulder to shoulder.

"Good, we're all here." Five commented.

The doors closed, and up they went, standing in awkward silence as the soft tunes of elevator music echoed through the metal box. In the silence, a hand found Hypatia's, familiar fingers intertwining.

It sent her heart racing, but it wasn't in the lovestruck school kid sort of way she would expect. Instead she felt suddenly claustrophobic, like there wasn't enough air in that elevator to fill her lungs.

She snatched her hand back, bringing her other hand up to cover it in front of her protectively. What was wrong with her?

Luckily, her thoughts (and Five's eyes boring into the side of her head) were interrupted by a sharply pungent smell hitting their nostrils, sending a chorus of groans through the elevator.

"Luther!" Klaus complained, several of them, Hypatia included, covering their noses in an attempt at blocking out the violent smell.

"Sorry. I'm nervous."

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As the elevator doors reopened on the higher floor, they scrambled out of the elevator, escaping the biohazard unleaded within, though not without a chorus of complaints.

The floor they emerged to was a tiki lounge style, topical plants spotted the room, and soft island music played through speakers. The warm lighting cast orangish hues over the room's circular dining tables, the largest of which sat in the center of the room. A full bar lined one end of the room, though it appeared there was no one there to man it, the rest of the room similar shades of empty.

"All right," Five began, leading the group towards the large table. "when Dad gets here, I'll do the talking, okay?"

"I've got a few questions for him myself." Diego argued.

"Hey, we don't wanna scare him off, alright. He might be able to help us stop doomsday, get us home."

"No Five, we need to figure out why he's planning to kill the president." As the two began bickering, Hypatia pulled out a chair from one of the other tables, not wanting to sit with the siblings when their father arrived.