•Lambent• {Five Hargreeves} The Umbrella Academy

Chapter 23- Early Morning

Five wasn't sure if it was the dull pain in his side or his head that woke him up. The pain medication had faded away long ago but having Dolores by his side made up for it.

He wanted to get up but she was sleeping so soundly that he didn't want to wake her. He pressed a kiss on the top of her head making her stir. She rolled over, removing her head from his chest.

He rolled his eyes with a soft smile. Keeping a hand to his side, he sat up making Dolores groan.

"I have to take my medication." Dolores sat up letting the blanket fall off of her as she did. 

"Like pills?" Five took a sip of water and then grabbed the small cup of pills.

"Yeah," he took them all, downing the rest of the water. He rested his gaze on his wife. One braid had fallen out completely while the other had hair sticking out of it. One tug and it would unravel. Five plucked the missing hair tie from the blankets and brought it to his wrist.

Dolores stood and stretched her arms with a yawn, unintentionally letting out a small squeak. She took the black band out of her hair and handed it to Five so he could rebraid her hair.

"Who braided your hair?" Five asked as he ran his fingers through her long locks.

"Klaus." Five raised his brows with a nod.
Just as he was getting ready to tie off the second braid when the door was pushed open. Klaus stood there with a pot and a spoon, ready to bang it against one another.

"Oh!" He exclaimed, "you're already awake. Good morning dear sister in law!" He called and then he left, not bothering to shut the door behind him.

•••••

Dolores and Five walked down hand and hand. It was more like Dolores helping Five walk but she still swung their hands back and forth.

Dolores stopped at the doorway of the kitchen making Five nearly run into her. She turned to leave at the sight of Luther hunched over at the table. Five pulled her back.

"It's okay baby. If he does anything, I'll send his sorry ass back to the moon." Dolores didn't say anything as Five guided her into the kitchen.

He dropped her hand to pull out her chair. She sat down and scooted further away from Luther, pulled the vacant chair along with her.

Five stole a cup from Luther before he sat down, ignoring Klaus pouring a glass for an empty seat. It took one sip before he nearly spat it out.

"Jesus. Who do I gotta kill to get a decent cup of coffee?" He grimaced and set the cup back down on the table. Dolores took the mug and looked at the contents inside. She squinted at it and swirled the dark liquid around.

"Can we get started please?" Klaus set the pitcher down on the table before looking around the kitchen.

"Anyone seen any of the others? Diego? Allison?" Klaus placed a cup of water in front of Dolores who took it gratefully.

"No...? Alright, then, this is the closest thing to a quorum..." Klaus bangs on the table for effect with a spatula, making Luther groan and place a hand to his head. Dolores looked over to Five. 'Quorum?' She mouthed. Five shook his head.

"That we're gonna get," Klaus continued, ignoring his brother's discomfort, "no listen up. There's no easy way to say this, so I'm just gonna spit it out." Klaus paused as his brother spoke, though no one else could hear him.

"Yeah," he muttered. Luther and Five looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to say something else. Dolores took a drink, playing with Five's hand that rested on the table.

"Klaus."

"I conjured Dad last night." There was a beat of silence before Luther broke it.

"I thought you haven't been able to conjure anyone in years?" Conjure, Dolores repeated. She hadn't heard that word before.

"Ah, yes, I know, but I'm sober. Ta-da! I got clean, yesterday, to talk to someone special, and then ended up having this conversation with dear old Daddy himself."

"Anyone got some Aspirin?"

"Top shelf, next to the crackers," Five shifted his hand on the table to lace it with his wife's.

"Hey, hey, hey. This is serious, guys, all right? This really happened, I swear."

"Okay, fine. I'll play. What did the old man have to say?" Five faked a smile and took another sip of the coffee, it was as horrible as the first sip. Dolores gave him a look. He just said it was awful, why is he still drinking it?

"Well, he gave me the usual lecture about my appearance and my failures in life. Yadda, yadda, yadda. No surprise there. Even the afterlife couldn't soften a hardass like Dad, right? But he did mention something about his murder, or lack thereof, because... he killed himself." Klaus looked at the ground and then back to his siblings and Dolores, right as Luther stood.

"I don't have time for your games, Klaus."

"I'm telling you the truth, Luther." Five watched his brothers argue with a bored expression. He looked back to Dolores who seemed much more interested in the interior of the kitchen.

"Why'd he do it then?" He finally spoke up, in hopes to get an answer and to stop their arguing.

"He said it was the only way to get us all home again."

"No," Luther shot back, "Dad wouldn't just kill himself."

"Well, you said it yourself. He was depressed. Holed up in his office and room all day and night." Dolores looked to Five as he spoke, admiring his features. She had no interest in the conversation.

"No. There weren't any signs. Suicidal people exhibit certain tendencies, strange behaviors," Luther defended.

"What? Like sending someone to the moon for no reason?" Klaus shot back.

"I swear to God, Klaus, if you're lying."

"I'm not. I'm not."

"Master Klaus is correct." The group looked behind them. It was Pogo, but then again, who else would it have been.

"Regretfully... I helped Master Hargreeves enact his plan."

"What?" Luther breathed out.

"So did Grace. It was a difficult choice for the both of us. More difficult than you could ever know. Prior to your father's death, Grace's programming was adjusted so that she was incapable of administering first aid on that fateful night."

"Sick bastard," Five scoffed out. Dolores wiggles her hand out of his grip to smack him in the arm for the curse.

"So the security tape we saw?"

"It was meant to further the murder mystery. Your father hoped that being back here, solving it together... would reignite your desire to be a team again." Pogo did care for the children deeply, but his loyalty laid with Sir. Reginald.

"And to what end?" Five asked.

"To save the world, of course." Klaus let out a sarcastic laugh. Luther began to talk but Five ultimately ignored him. How did he know? Five thought through the possible ways their father could have known about the impending apocalypse but came up with nothing. It wasn't until Luther left that Five spoke up again, with a sigh.

"I gotta think." He grabbed Dolores's hand and spatial jumped away. But not before making sure Dolores had grabbed her cup of water.