CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
twist of fate
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"OKAY. I'LL TALK to you later."
Nadine Vidal had just closed the door on Vanya and Leonard when a crash sounded from the living room. It was Wednesday, eight-fifteen in the morning, and she was exhausted, her eyelids laden, a headache pulsing at her temples from her late-night bonding session for Klaus.
The sound—a crackle of electricity and a loud thud—sent her heart jackknifing in her chest, her palms immediately beginning to sweat, and she leaped into defense-mode. After she'd regained her bearings, realizing that she wasn't about to be attacked, she figured that there was only one person who could make such a noise unprompted, and that was enough to make her rush back where she came, even though anger at the Hargreeves siblings for abandoning Vanya was still sitting tight in her chest.
Sure enough, when she got back to the entrance, there he was, taking a long sip of coffee, looking worse for wear. There was the slightest limp in his step, his uniform was covered in a layer of debris, and he chugged down his coffee like it was water. But he was there. Five Hargreeves had finally returned.
Klaus, who was still sitting amongst his siblings, looked toward the doorway, where Nadine was hovering, and acknowledged her presence with an "Ah, and the Chosen One returns!" All of the others were too fixated on the shambled Five to notice, and so they consequentially also didn't notice Nadine flip Klaus the middle finger for the new nickname.
Five finished his coffee, letting out a sigh as Nadine tentatively stepped into the room. "So, the apocalypse is in three days," he said. "The only chance we have to save our world is, well, us."
"The Umbrella Academy," said Luther, still looking a little shaken up from what had obviously been an unprompted and impressive entrance. Nadine almost wished she'd seen it, though she supposed if you see someone fall through a blue whirlpool once, you've seen it a thousand times.
"Yeah, but with me, obviously." Five's eyes flitted over to the doorway where Nadine was hovering. "And her," he added, almost as an afterthought. And although Nadine had spent nearly a week with the Umbrella Academy already, that comment made her stomach dip like she'd just gone down a rollercoaster. "So if y'all don't get your sideshow acts together and get over yourselves, we're screwed. Who cares if Dad messed us up? Are we gonna let that define us? No. And to give us a fighting chance to see next week, I've come back with a lead. I know who's responsible for the apocalypse."
He held up a slip of paper, and Nadine felt relief run through her. This was exactly what she'd wanted from Five. She'd felt like giving up, before, when it was her against the Hargreeves (sans Vanya) and there was no Five in sight, but now, with him here, she felt her hope rekindle again. All wasn't lost. Perhaps the world could be saved.
Five handed the paper to Allison, who unfolded it as everyone—including Nadine, who'd inched her way back over to the group—clustered around her. "This is who we have to stop," said Five, who still looked a little manic, a little dishevelled.
Allison read the name on the paper. "Harold Jenkins?"
"Who the hell is Harold Jenkins?" Diego asked. Five finished his coffee and threw the empty cup behind him.
"I don't know... Yet. But I do know that he's responsible for the apocalypse. So we have to find him. And we have to do it now."
"How is he connected to what's gonna happen?" Luther questioned.
"I don't know."
"Wait, so you just know his name?" Diego asked skeptically. "That's it?"
"That's enough."
"There's probably dozens of Harold Jenkinses in the city," Diego pointed out. Nadine had to agree with him (which was a first). Sure, they had a lead, but what good was a mere name? How were they supposed to find out which Harold Jenkins was the one that caused the apocalypse, and which was a mere Red Herring?
"Well, we just better start looking, then," Five snapped. He seemed done with them already, which Nadine thought was a little unfair, given that he believed they were the world's only hope, or whatever.
"I'm sorry. Am I the only one who's skeptical here?" Allison asked. "I mean, how exactly do you know all of this about what's his name?"
"Harold Jenkins," Nadine piped up, firmly inserting herself into the conversation. She may have not been a member of the Umbrella Academy, but this end-of-the-world shit affected her too. Obviously.
"You know those lunatics in masks who attacked the house?" Five questioned.
"Oh, yeah, I think I remember those guys," Klaus drawled sarcastically. Nadine remembered what he'd told her last night, about his captivity and subsequent torture, and clenched her jaw. That information combined with her past with them—at this thought, her hand traced her bullet scar—made her shudder with memory, and she couldn't help but speak up.
"Yeah, the ones that put this bullet hole in my shoulder," she said dryly. Allison shot her a sympathetic look, recalling Nadine's story from yesterday. Nadine clenched her jaw, letting her hand fall back into her lap. Be strong, Nadine.
"And the ones that attacked us while you were getting drunk," added Diego, levelling an accusatory glare at Five.
"Yeah. Them," said Five, unmoved. "They were sent by the Temps Commission to stop me from coming back and preventing the end of life on Earth."
"The Temps what?" Allison asked, her arms crossed, her eyebrows raised in confusion.
"My former employer," elaborated Five. "They monitor all of time and space to make sure that whatever is supposed to happen... happens."
"By killing people who step out of line," Nadine continued, falsely cheerful. "Like me. Except they obviously didn't succeed on that front." Her fingers twitched, but she managed to resist the impulsion to touch her scar again.
Five rolled his eyes at the interruption and resumed, "The Commission believes that the apocalypse is coming in three days. So I went to Commission headquarters and intercepted a message that was meant for said lunatics. 'Protect Harold Jenkins.' So he must be responsible for the apocalypse."
Everyone went silent for a moment, attempting to process this new information, and then, all at once, burst out with questions, their words lapsing over each other in a way that made it difficult to pick any of them out individually.
"What do you mean, protect time and space?"
"Where is this Hazel now, Five?"
"My skin is on fire."
"How would a guy with a name like Harold Jenkins start the apocalypse? That's a stupid name if I've ever heard one."
"Do you have any idea how insane this sounds?"
"You know what else is insane?" Five questioned, stowing the slip of paper with Hazel and Cha-Cha's unreceived mission back in his pocket. "I look like a thirteen-year-old boy. Klaus talks to the dead, and Luther thinks he's fooling everybody with that overcoat." Nadine frowned at that last comment, and everyone else faced an uncomfortable-looking Number One. Before they could say anything, though, Five continued, "Everything about us is insane. It always has been."
"He's got a point there," said Klaus, who was leaned over the arm of an ornate couch, looking pale. Nadine wondered if it was the exhaustion, or something else. Her own eyes were still drooping.
"We didn't choose this life, we're just living it," said Five, looking around at his siblings (and Nadine). "For the next three days, anyway."
"But the last time we tried to stop it, we all died," Allison pointed out. "Why is this time any different? Why shouldn't I go home to my daughter?"
"Because this time, I'm here, and so is the Chosen One," said Five. Nadine shot him a middle finger too, as he continued, "We have the name of the man responsible. Guys, we actually have the chance of saving the lives of billions of people." He looked to Allison. "Including Claire."
Allison looked up at that, surprised. "You know her name?"
"I do," Five said quietly, "and I'd like to live long enough to meet her."
Allison swallowed, quiet for a few seconds as she mulled Five's proposal over. "All right," she said eventually. "Let's get this bastard."
"You had me at Gerald Jenkins," said Diego.
"Harold Jenkins," corrected Five irritably.
"Whatever. I've already lost two people this week, I'm not losing anyone else."
"What about you?" Five asked, and it took a moment for Nadine to realize he was talking to her. "Are you coming with? You know, you may be a pretty vital part of this operation."
Suddenly, all eyes were on Nadine, who found herself tensing a touch at the sudden attention, a leftover gut reaction from the shooting. Once she'd regained her bearings, she spoke. "Don't get me wrong, I'm still pissed at you guys. But if there's a chance that I can live to see my thirtieth birthday, I'm going to take it."
"Well then," said Five, flashing her a smirk, "welcome to the Umbrella Academy. Sorry there's no initiation ceremony, but we're kind of pressed for time here." He turned to the brawny man still hovering at the counter. "Luther?"
"Yeah, you guys go," said Luther, causing the departing Allison and Diego to halt in their tracks. "I'm gonna stay behind and go through Dad's files. I still think this has something to do with why he sent me to the Moon."
"Seriously?" Diego scoffed. "Now you wanna make the end of the world about you and Dad?"
"No. 'Watch for threats.' That's what he told me. You think that's a coincidence? This all has to be connected somehow."
"He told you to watch for threats on the Moon?" Nadine asked, a laugh escaping her. "What kind of threats were you looking for, Martians?"
Luther shot Nadine a glare (she seemed to be receiving a lot of those lately), and Allison spoke up. "No, we should all stick together, Luther," she tried, but Five cut her off before she could finish.
"No, we don't have time for this," he snapped.
"Let's roll," said Diego. "I know where we can find this asshole. Klaus, you're with me."
"Yeah, I—I'm good," croaked Klaus, who was still looking queasy, his face pale and sweat beading on his forehead. "I think I'll, uh..." he got to his feet, "I think I'll pass, I'm... feeling a little under the weather, so, uh..." he stumbled out of the room, one hand clutching his stomach, and Nadine followed him, her brow wrinkled in confusion. This definitely wasn't just exhaustion he was dealing with.
She turned to Diego, who was usually her last choice of a person to engage in conversation with, but Five was looking murderous, and Allison was still in the living room, hopefully talking some sense into Luther. "Do you know what's wrong with him?"
Diego shrugged. "Nope."
Nadine let out a sigh at the one-word answer. "You don't care much for him, do you?"
The knife-toting man narrowed his eyes at that comment. "What makes you say that? Of course I care about him. He's my brother."
"Oh, I don't know, just the fact that he was held hostage for over a day and you didn't even bother looking for him," said Nadine flippantly, ignoring the fact that she hadn't looked for him, either. Of course, she had more lenience in the matter, given that she'd only known him for a couple of days, while Diego had lived with Klaus for seventeen years.
Anger flared in Diego's eyes, and he was seizing her by the collar with his good arm, pulling her close, spittle practically flying out of his mouth. Before he could do anything more, however, Nadine shoved her fist into Diego's gut. Immediately, the man let her go, staggering back and wheezing for air. She couldn't help but smile a little. She'd wanted to do that since the day she'd met him.
"Here's some advice," she said, watching Diego futilely attempt to take a solid breath. "Keep your hands off of me. Or next time it'll be your nuts you're clutching."
Once Diego drew in a full breath, he didn't attack, like Nadine thought he might, even with her threat to him. He just snarled at her and said, "I know you're supposed to be the world's saviour or something, but if you keep making assumptions about my family, I'll kill you anyway. You had some nerve storming in here before my father's funeral, and you have some nerve now. Just because you're a part of the team doesn't mean you get to tell me how I feel." He drew out one of his throwing knives as a warning, and Nadine clenched her fists back, staring down the man with as much threat as she could muster. But before this argument could escalate, Five's voice drawled out from behind them.
"Can you two save your battle to the death until after we stop the apocalypse?"
Nadine turned to find him watching them with disdain, as if he'd stumbled in on a pair of toddlers instead of two adults. She crossed her arms, stepping away from Diego. "I suppose so," she intoned. Diego did the same, stepping away, but she could've sworn he was still scowling.
"Finally," Five muttered, as Allison finally exited the living room and joined them. "I swear, dealing with this family is like herding cats."
Diego flipped his knife in his hand before stowing it back in the death contraption strapped to his body. "All right, let's get moving."
"Yes, Boss," said Nadine, rolling her eyes. She knew his status as Number Two meant that he was always vying for the position of leader, and now with Luther gone, he was the sole contender for the position. Though, personally, Nadine thought that Five might've been best to lead their impromptu team. He may have been a manic, arrogant, little shit of an old man stuck in the body of a teenager who probably had a crush on a mannequin, but he was definitely the smartest, not to mention the most knowledgeable about the apocalypse. Before she could get that opinion out, though, the others were already making their way out the door.
She sighed, having no choice but to follow the other members of their makeshift world-saving group. This was definitely going to be a disaster.
Seriously. With a vigilante with anger issues and a fondness for leather, a divorcee with mind control powers, an old man in a kid's body dealing with a major superiority complex, and a supposed chosen one (though Nadine still thought that was bullshit) who was quick to throw a punch, Nadine thought the team sounded more like the setup to a joke than the people who were supposed to save the world. Oh, well. She supposed it was more interesting than just sitting inside.
Plus, Five had welcomed her into the Umbrella Academy. Nadine hadn't shown it, but her thirteen-year-old self had flipped out when he'd said those words. She recalled the makeshift masks, the posters, the comics lining her walls, and inadvertently felt a grin spread to her face. She'd always thought she'd be Number Seven, but Number Eight was fine, too.
It seemed the Magician had finally gotten what she'd always dreamed of.
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HAVEN: nadine vidal becoming an honorary member of the umbrella academy supremacy!! after literally the shittiest week ever, it's what she deserves 😌😌
i hope you enjoyed this chapter!! i promise, i'm going to try and update more frequently, i've just been really busy with school lately, and writer's block has been killing me. hopefully i'll get out of this pit soon, and have more motivation to update :))
thanks for reading <333