Bound by Duty | Five Hargreeves

1. The big mission

Walking down these empty halls has always been something I'd hated. They were long, and cold, and empty. Very few people walked through here, and the walls were a simple, pasty white.

Every few meters was a large, brown, wooden door with the names of whoever's office it is; Herb, James, Rayla, Dot, The Handler. I stop in front of the door for a moment in silence, tapping my black flat shoes on the floor a few times, chewing my lower lip.

With a deep breath, I smooth down my black skirt, ensuring my blazer was neat, before knocking on the door. "Mom?" I call, "It's Philippa."

It's silent for a moment, before the door swings open, my mother stood with a wide grin on her face. "Philippa! Darling!" She gasps, cupping my face rather roughly and squeezing my cheeks. "Come! Come!"

She ushers me inside, closing the door behind her. My gaze flickers around the room I've seen so many times before, before it settles on my sister sat on one of the sofa chairs. I smile shortly at her, walking over and sitting down on the other chair beside her.

Our mother walks towards her desk, her hips swaying in a sultry manner as she does so, moving around the desk, before leaning on it with a wide smile. She pops her cigar into her mouth, before sitting down on her chair, leaning back and crossing one leg over the other.

"So," The woman grins, leaning forwards and resting her chin on her hands. "Do either of you know why you're here?"

Me and Lila glance at each other, silently giving each other a confused expression, before turning back to our mother, shaking our heads slowly.

She lets out a small hum, tilting her head as she looks at us with her usual motionless gaze. "You both look scared. Don't be, you're not in trouble— actually, it's quite the opposite. Have either of you heard the word, 'sophrosyne'?"

Again, me and Lila shake our heads. I love my mother, she's done a lot for me, but her unusual choice of wording sentences and complicating them makes understanding her all the more difficult.

"It means 'a healthy state of mind, characterised by self-control, moderation, and a deep awareness of one's true self, resulting in true happiness'." She explains, licking her red glossed lips. "You two are my best agents, you know this very well. Do you know why that is?"

Lila leans back in her chair, tucking some of her brown hair behind her ear and crossing her arms. "We have a healthy state of mind?" She asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Exactly!" Our mother clicks her fingers, pointing to Lila with a wide grin. "You're both strong-minded and have an infinite amount of self control. Much more than I, and many other agents. You take your time during missions, you pick the most efficient way, you pick and choose what you should and shouldn't do. You have a deep awareness of your strengths and weaknesses, you have self control when things go wrong, and in result, never have either of you failed a mission. Never."

I glance over at Lila, the girl winking at me as we share proud smirks. It was true, neither of us had ever failed a mission. Not once. Every mission handed to us, we completed. No matter how difficult, no matter how many problems we encounter. We always come back with good news.

"And that is exactly why I've chosen the two of you for this mission." She says, leaning back, biting her lower lip as she looks from one of us to another. "You both remember the famous name of Five Hargreeves, do you not?"

My blood immediately goes cold, my eyes shooting over to Lila, watching her sit up, her body rigid. Of course we knew of Five Hargreeves, he was the best assassin the Commission had ever seen. We'd been told all the stories of how he was once the most menacing man, his best missions, his most successful kills.

Until he double-crossed the Commission, stealing a briefcase to go back in time to save his family from the apocalypse. Which, of course, the Commission couldn't have as this meant the space-time continuum would go off route. So The Handler sent Hazel and Cha-Cha to kill him, both of which failed. Thankfully, the apocalypse didn't stop. But Five and his family disappeared.

"Well," Our mother exhales, closing her eyes. "He's back, in Dallas, 1963." My heart rate speeds up, my eyes narrowing as I watch our mother with a careful gaze. "And he's brought another apocalyptic problem with him."

I bite my lower lip, my leg jiggling up and down as my anxiety slips up. "What's our role in this?" I ask, furrowing my eyebrows. "What does this have to do with us?"

"Fantastic questions, my dear dea!" She grins, sitting up and clapping her hands. "Your roles will be the mission I have for you both." Her gaze fixates on me, "Philippa, my love. I know that mentally, Five is fifty-eight, but his body is that of a sixteen year old, like yours— and I therefore know, despite his mental age, he is more likely to be attracted to... well, your physical age range."

I raise an eyebrow, my lips lifting as I begin to understand her plan. "You want me to find Five and seduce him?" The woman's grin widens as she clasps her hands together.

"Mm, not exactly." She tilts her head, "But in long term, yes. I want you to become his 'friend', or more if needed. I want you to make him think you're on his side, get him to tell you his plans, his thoughts. Everything."

"That sounds like fun." I grin, leaning back and crossing my arms. "I'm in. When do I go?" The Handler smiles widely, clearly happy with my answer.

"A week, dear one. Patience." She turns to Lila, "Now, you on the other hand. I need you to go in from a different angle, I want you to find his brother, Diego Hargreeves. He's currently admitted into a mental hospital in the 1960s, that is where you will go, get him to like you, use him, just as Philippa will Five. Then, together, you can get deep enough in to where we can take them down, hurting them in the process."

Lila smirks, biting her lower lip and leaning back, nodding. "Finally getting rid of Five and his pathetic family?" She nods, "I'm in."

The Handler grins, clapping her hands and standing up. "Oh! You two girls make me so proud! Once this has been completed! The problem of them being in the way of the space-time continuum will be permanently resolved!"