Vanya stared forlornly at the framed portrait painted above the fireplace depicting what had once been her old friend, and a brother. Dark, neat hair that was combed back from his forehead, stoically set eyebrows and icy, electric blue eyes that pinned any onlooker to the spot. He looked so young for someone so serious, and often times she had thought the painting wasn't right in terms of representing him.
None of the siblings particularly liked the portrait. It made them uncomfortable to look it.
Perhaps it was the feelings of resentment they held for the boy, or the sadness, or the loss.
Or maybe it was the fact it was a slap in the face looking at it. A jolt of reality that they had lost not one, but two brothers during their childhood.
And while one was gone for good, staring at the painting that watched you the moment you entered the room brought upon the drowning effect of the unknown.
The unknown of why, where and what ifs.
Still, Vanya couldnt pull her eyes away from the face of Five Hargreeves.
"How long has it been since Five disappeared?" Vanya asked Pogo as he approached carefully, hands clasped together in front of him.
"Seventeen years, four months and sixteen days. Your father insisted I keep count."
She managed to tear her eyes away and look at Pogo. "You want to know something stupid? Zero would always wait on the stairs for him, and I thought that if the lights were on he'd know how to get back and that someone was there waiting. I'd sneak downstairs and make those marshmallow and peanut butter sandwiches - one for him and one for her."
"Yes, I believe I stepped in many of those. And I knew, of course, because your sister never ate them and would leave them on the stairs."
"She never ate it?" Vanya fiddled with her hands, a solemn look crossing her features. Somehow her voice got even quieter. "I didn't know that."
"I wouldn't take offence to it, my dear. You remember all those times your father argued with her about how little she ate."
"She shouldn't have been yelled at for it," Vanya whispered, looking down in thought of the past. "She practically grieved for Five."
"Your father always had faith that he would return."
"Do you think he will?"
Pogo hesitated, thinking deeply about his response. "I believe young Five was always unpredictable - and I think, that if he has anything to do with it, the outcome of his future will be just as unpredictable. So who knows?"
Vanya nodded. His words brought comfort, strangely, and all she could think was she wished Zero was here to hear it.
But she knew she wouldn't be. Which was disheartening, of course, because she missed her sister almost as much as she missed Five.
YOU ARE READING
THE THING WITH SORROW - The Umbrella Academy
Fanfiction"She was a genius of sadness, immersing herself in it, separating its numerous strands, appreciating its subtle nuances. She was a prism through which sadness could be divided into its infinite spectrum." - Everything is Illuminated Zero Hargreeves;...
