Regarding Vanya

One, two, three, four, five, six-

It was almost morning when she woke up. Taking in her surroundings, which felt completely foreign to her, she tried to recall anything from her past. The orange shag carpet and beige walls were barely visible from the cracks of light emerging from the dark brown blinds, yet they held no insights into how she had gotten here, why she was here, or anything else about her. After pacing the floor for a good four minutes, she concluded that she was in a motel, based on the lack of decoration and the no smoking sign nailed to the wall. With that notion aside, she began to focus on slightly more important matters, like her name or the odd outfit she wore.

For some strange reason, she had woken up in an all white penguin tuxedo fit for a formal event. Though the suit appeared expensive, her other features were lacking: her unbrushed dark hair was wild and the rings around her eyes were large (at least she assumed they were large, this was a strange morning). She decided to attempt some normalcy (if she could remember what that was) by brushing her hair and changing into a pair of sweatpants and a gray sweater abandoned by past guests. A growl from her stomach interrupted her concentration and she began to plot her way to breakfast. Did she dare leave the room? She knew that it might be a risk as a amnesiac, but she figured that she couldn't just stay.

Cracking her door open the slightest, she began to peer down the hallway. Checking both sides, they appeared empty, save for the dull lighting and continued orange shag carpet from her room. She proceeded forward, tiptoeing through the hallways as a precaution for her fellow patrons. It was only when she reached the breakfast room (with free continental food!) that she let herself relax.

There were only three other people there: a couple of younger people sat at the corner table, donning shirts protesting a war. The other guest was a strange looking man, who moved rather erratically as he piled bagels onto his plate. Studying him from a distance, she took in the smudged eyeliner and curled frenzied hair before deciding to avoid him. She wasn't in the mood for any trouble and she could feel an aura of chaos emitting from this man. She waited until he sat down before approaching the buffet, grabbing an energy bar and cup of coffee (they seemed familiar to her), and isolating herself at the farthest table from either group.

"Hey sis, how're you feeling?" She jumped about a foot in the air as the man with eyeliner tapped on her shoulder. She turned to him with a look of confusion as he waited for a response. He had called him sister, but from what she could remember from the mirror, they looked nothing alike. His eyes shone grey-green rather than her dark brown and his hair faired much lighter and curled. On closer inspection, he appeared to be covered in tattoos, with two big ones on his hands reading "HELLO" and "GOODBYE". She didn't trust him.

"Earth to Vanyaaa" he sang in an off key soprano, breaking her from her stupor, "why are you ignoring your favorite brother?"

"Vanya?" She questioned quietly. It was an odd name, sure, but it did feel right to her. "I'm Vanya?"

His face fell as he processed her answer. Turning to the side, he began to address a presence not visible to her, "I can see that Ben but what am I supposed to do? I dunno, maybe she hit her head or something?! Fine!" He turned back to face her apologetically, "Stay here, I'll be back with reinforcements." With that, he broke eye contact and dashed away.

Vanya sat quietly, studying the coffee in her cup (she had decided to go by Vanya, it fit). She wasn't sure if she should wait for the "reinforcements" the man had promised. He'd already seemed unstable, based on the fact that he had conversed with thin air, and she already felt vulnerable. On the other hand, however, what else could she gain from waiting? She was no longer waiting on the mystery of her name, and the rest of her past might not be too far behind. Even if he was crazy, learning about her life would be worth it, right? She changed her mind when she saw who he came back with.

The new man was covered in knives. They wrapped around his torso and shook with each of his overbearing, stoic steps. He kept his posture and expression stern, refusing to break contact with Vanya's startled gaze. A darker skin tone than either Vanya or the man beside him, the scar that stitched down the side of his face stood out, a stark white contrast to his other features. As he sat down at Vanya's table, he placed his hands in front of her, fingers fiddling with themselves in his grip.

"How are you?" He asked calmly, ignoring the paler man's frantic pointing and nudging.

"Are you going to kill me?" She backed her chair a bit farther from the table, never taking her gaze off of his many knives, "Who are you people?"

He frowned at that response, carefully lifting his hands in mock surrender, "We're not going to hurt you, do you remember the concert?"

She shook her head adamantly and leaned forward, "I don't remember anything. Can you please help me? I woke up here and I didn't know my name or location or-"

The taller man grabbed her hands and whispered soothingly, "It's okay Vans, you're okay." His eyes seemed a bit more watery than earlier. Turning back to his counterpart, he asked, "What are we going to do Diego?!"

The other man, Diego, had shifted his eyes to the table, "I dunno, you think that this is because of Five?" (He said Five as if it was a name, Vanya found that quite odd). "You stay with her, I guess we'll have to get everyone else down here." He stood up, glancing at her carefully once more, before marching back to the hallway. Vanya sat quietly, occasionally glancing at the other man who remained at her table.

"So," he began nervously, "I'm Klaus." He let out some nervous laughter and sighed, "I'm not sure what happened to you sis, I'm sorry."

"Sis? You're my brother?" She stopped herself, not wanting to upset him, "I mean, we look nothing alike."

He shook his head, "It's a long story, you'll catch on once Diego gets everyone else down for a big family reunion!"

"There's no way that guy was my brother too."

He clapped his hands a few times and glanced at the space next to him, "At least it might be a little funny too, right Ben?"

He didn't seem to appreciate the air's response, "Fine! Be like that then!"

Once again, Vanya was scared.