☂︎︎ HOUSE OF SHADOWS ☂︎︎ - five hargreeves

* 𝙳𝚘𝚗𝚞𝚝𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙿𝚘𝚕𝚊𝚛𝚘𝚒𝚍𝚜 *

                                     [010]
                                 - ☾ '☂︎︎' ☽ -
          
           "Cass, what is this?"

     "I don — is that a cauliflower?"

           The Umbrella Academy children were congregated in Number Eight's bedroom, not bothering to keep their voices down even though it was twelve o'clock at night and everyone else in the mansion was asleep. They were clever enough to uncover Reginald's sleep medication schedule, and on Friday nights was when he took his largest dosage. Vanya was not amongst them because she was not deemed "cool enough" and couldn't do a backflip, which was the group of eleven-year-olds' only requirement.

           Cassidy had run to get some clothes from Diego's room but had come back to see Number Five holding a wrinkled and pale vegetable in front of Klaus' face. She blinked quizzically as Five turned to his brother.

           "Now tell them what you think this is," Five said.

           "Ghost broccoli," answered Klaus in complete sincerity.

           The room exploded as the children roared with laughter at their brother's answer, Allison tumbled off the bed because she was wheezing so hard.

           "You didn't get that from Mom's garden did you? You know how much she loves her plants," asked Diego, raising an eyebrow.

           "It's my weekly quota," Five grinned.

           "Incorrect use of 'quota'!" called Ben from the depths of a pillow fort he and Luther were building. Luther caught the flying cauliflower before it hit the broom supporting their fort.

           "Weekly ration, how's that?" said Five sarcastically before grabbing a bundle of clothes on the bed that Allison had been previously sorting. She'd organised everyone's outfits by number. Luther was already wearing his clothes: a tight white tee with faded jeans

           "Ok, everyone I'm done — Five that's not yours, those are Klaus' — Ben, here you go, catch — Cass, lock the door. Diego, you got the stuff?" said Allison handing out the piles of clothes and pulling on a fluffy purple sweater over her shirt. Diego held up rope attached to a carabiner in response. Cassidy locked her door and went to the bathroom with her clothes then emerged a few minutes later wearing a baggy Johnny Cash shirt, shorts, and knee high grey and yellow striped socks.

           After everyone had changed into the outfits Allison arranged, they turned off the lights, grabbed a flashlight each from the nightstand and made for the open window. Securing the carabiner to a hidden hook underneath the sill, Luther nodded towards his siblings as he held the rope steady.

           The children exited out of the window and climbed from the second story to the ground. Then they began their trek across the mansion grounds, finally scrambling over the wrought iron gate at the front of the property and continuing along the sidewalk into town.

           "Did you really have to pick that for Klaus? He's so shiny Pogo could probably see him from his bedroom," said Luther glancing at the shimmering t-shirt his brother wore. It reflected the light of passing cars so that he most likely blinded their drivers.