Five Hargreeves oneshots

Cats

(Futuristic au)
(Five's pov)

I walk into the kitchen, surprising everyone because I didn't teleport like I always do. "You okay Five? You always teleport into rooms, especially when you know that we're in here." Viktor tells me, I just nod. "Something didn't want to stop following me, so I brought it home." I tell them, I get the cat out of my pocket and place it down. "It's adorable!!!" Allison exclaims, clearly loving the gray and white cat. Everyone else is just staring at the cat, well except for Diego, who's staring at me. "Don't get any ideas," I say, my voice flat. "It's not staying with me."

Diego raises an eyebrow, smoke curling from his nostrils. "Since when does Number Five, resident stoic and master of detachment, bring home strays?"

"It's not a stray," I retort, even though the mangy thing practically screamed "alley cat." "Just...temporarily displaced."

The cat, as if understanding its cue, lets out a pathetic meow and rubs against my leg. I resist the urge to shove it away with my foot.

"Aw, Five," Allison coos, already scooping the creature into her arms. "He likes you! I bet he's just hungry. What are you going to name him?"

"He, huh?" Klaus chimes in, leaning against the counter with a smirk. "Already assigning genders, Allison? What if it identifies as a toaster oven?"

I ignore Klaus's nonsense and fix Allison with a hard stare. "I told you, it's not staying. Someone else can deal with the shedding and the incessant meowing and the-"

"The love and affection?" Ben finishes, his voice gentle. He kneels down and offers the cat a finger to sniff. "He seems friendly enough."

I groan inwardly. Of course Ben would be on board with this. Leave it to my ghost of a brother to be the biggest softie of the bunch.

"Fine," I mutter, already feeling a headache forming. "But I'm not cleaning up any hairballs."

The next few days were...interesting, to say the least. The cat, which Allison, naturally, named Mittens, had somehow wormed its way into the dysfunctional heart of the Umbrella Academy. Even Luther, gentle giant that he was, seemed smitten with the furry little gremlin.

Everyone, that is, except me.

I tried to maintain my distance, reminding myself that cats were walking, purring allergy triggers with a penchant for scratching furniture and vomiting in inconvenient places. But it was hard to ignore the way Mittens would curl up at the end of the table while we ate, green eyes watching me with unnerving intensity.

And then there were the nightmares. Vivid, unsettling dreams filled with swirling vortexes and glowing green eyes. I'd wake up in a cold sweat, the phantom sensation of claws digging into my skin lingering long after the dream had faded.

It was during one such night, the insistent chirping of my phone dragging me from my restless sleep, that I realized something was truly wrong.

I fumbled for the device, my heart pounding in my chest. The screen glowed ominously in the darkness, displaying a message from an unknown number:

*He's watching you.*

I sat up, a shiver running down my spine. My eyes darted around the room, searching for any sign of movement, any indication that I wasn't alone.

"Just a dream," I muttered to myself, trying to calm my racing heart. "Just a stupid dream."

But deep down, a cold knot of dread twisted in my gut. The message, the nightmares, the cat...it all felt connected somehow. And I couldn't shake the feeling that something sinister was lurking just beneath the surface.