Wonder • Five Hargreeves

39

The Day that Was

Winnie had peeled off up the staircase and around the corner at record speeds while Five debriefed their siblings and made a game plan.

She'd had a lot of practice running through the house at dead sprints- and not for any good reason either, like "Umbrella Academy missions".

No, her practice came from running away from one of her siblings after making a dirty joke or during a game, keeping out of her Dads war-path when she broke a rule, and her favorite; just plain rushing to Fives workroom after training.

All in all, Winnie was a pro at skidding around bannisters, jumping over sitting stools, and full on galavanting through the halls to get to her room. She knew the layout well, and she considered herself a grade-A parkour artist. (Really, just because it had artist in the name, so she thought that gave her an advantage).

This was why she hadn't expected to be smacked into the ground after running straight into a wall.

No- not a wall. A person wall, Winnie thought as her head spun. Getting knocked down at great speeds twice in 5 minutes was not good for her mental development. She was a growing girl! Kinda. She might technically be older, but who knows if her time-line entanglement problem (as the Handler described it) meant her brain wasn't also stuck in teenage years like her body was.

Not a person wall, just a person, Winnie corrected finally and pulled herself to a sitting position; her pin straight hair a wild mane about her.

Across the way and also on the floor was her wall person. Person wall. No- just a person, that she ran into. He was groaning in pain.

He was lanky, with normal brown hair and average brown eyes. He had scruff on his chin and a little mouth that could look kind in some lights. Cruel in others.

"Theres a stranger in my house." Winnie stated, still in vaguely concussed confusion. "Who are you stranger? And why... do you have my father's action figure in your hand?"

Harold Jenkins, or as he was known to the rest of the world after being released from prison, Leonard Peabody, had a wide eye look of someone caught red handed. He stuttered and clutched the little figurine he had stolen in his hand.

Winnie looked at him and looked at the display case he had stolen from with distrust. She slowly inched her way back from him and took a deep breath to shout for Five.

"Im- Im with Vanya!" Leonard, Harold, told her quickly and his hands shot up to try and coax her from shouting and causing a panic. And to his surprise, Winnie did just that.

"Oh, Vanyas here?" The blonde asked brightly. "Where is my babygirl? Ive missed her."

"No- no shes outside, right now-" Leonard-Harold stuttered, but Winnie had already shot up and ran for the window.

Winnie pulled open the glass and stuck her head out. "Vanya!"

Vanya, who felt so small and angry after talking with her family earlier that morning, looked up from her spot on the curb. She blinked in surprise to see Winnie sticking her head out and waving wildly. Winnie was so happy to see her.

"Winnie? When did you," Vanya blinked and shook her head. "When did you get here?"

The blonde paused and chose her words carefully. "I just dropped in...I ran into a dude up here- he says he's with you?"

"Yeah- he's my boyfriend, kinda." Vanya smiled lightly, excited to actually tell someone else that part.

"He's with you with you?" Winnie shouted  with a giant smile. "I didnt know you liked men!"

Vanya's jaw dropped, but Winnie had already pulled her head back into the building to look at Leonard-Harold. She smiled at him.