𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐦𝐲 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝 | 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐎𝐧𝐞 | 𝐅𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐱 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚃𝚠𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚢 𝙾𝚗𝚎 | 𝙸 𝚕𝚎𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚍𝚘𝚠𝚗

17 years ago...

"During extreme weather conditions, a climber must possess a wisdom to determine when evacuation is inevitable..."

The bell rang. Five Hargreeves glanced at the unconscious Eight one last time. He laid her down in her own bed, carefully covering her with a blanket and placing her arms in a believable position. She was supposed to look like she was sleeping. The boy looked at his work with concentration.

The girl didn't look the slightest bit suspicious. Of course, he knew that when she woke up, she'd get a good punishment from their father for being insubordinate and not showing up to dinner, but Five had to do it. He didn't want her to see it.

'She won't remember anything when she wakes up,' he thought, clutching the small bottle in his hand. 'It will be as if she fell asleep from exhaustion after the mission. Everything's going to be fine.'

The boy threw the bottle out the window, straight into the green garbage container standing right in front of the building.

'It's supposed to last 12 hours, or at least that's what that piece of shit said. She won't wake up until tomorrow morning, but I'll be back by then. Everything goes according to plan.'

Behind the closed door he heard the bell ring again. He took one last look at (Y/N).

"I'll be back before you know it," he whispered. "Well, before you wake up, to be precise."

He ran out of the room, after making sure that there was no one in the corridor. He caught up with his siblings, who had already managed to reach the stairs leading to the lower floor. No one suspected anything, but he noticed Diego looking around for Eight. Five clenched his fists.

This idiot could ruin the whole plan.

Together with the other six, he entered the living room, which at lunchtime turned into a huge dining room for the whole family. As soon as he entered, he smelled the aromatic smell of roasted beef and grilled vegetables. Mom stood between the columns, with a bell in her hand, giving everyone a warm smile.

"A controlled alpine descent begins with the girding of one's loins and the anchoring of the climbing rope to one's enemy, the mountain."

'Old fool, he's playing these nonsense podcasts again.'

Five walked around the table, clasped his hands behind his back, and stood next to his chair. When the footsteps stopped, the boy noticed that the chair across from him was empty and no one was standing next to it. He congratulated himself on the success of the first part of the plan.

"The rappel is the preferred method for descent, when rope is the only available tool..."

After a few seconds, Five heard his Father's firm and loud footsteps. Sir Reginald Hargreeves walked wordlessly past Mom, who gave him a tender smile, and then took his place at the end of the table, where he had a perfect view of everyone. Both Five and the rest of the siblings stared at the table, waiting for him to say that desired word.

"Where's Number Eight?" His loud voice rang out.

Five sighed softly. He heard a rustle, as if everyone turned at once.

"I couldn't wake her up, Dad," Five finally said, the lie burning his throat. "Apparently she fell asleep after the mission. She must be worn out."

"Excuses, excuses," Father said dismissively. "That's all I ever hear from her."

The boy clenched his fists, at the last moment refraining from making some malicious remark.

"Number Three, you are responsible for providing Number Eight with the details of her punishment. Report to my office 10 minutes after lunch. Do we understand one another?"