What's your favorite song right now?
Emery didn't have to know when Five would be back at the Meritech. The moment the sun peaked through the poorly casted blinds, Emery was up and groaning mentally as he shucked on his shoes and headed for the front door and massaging the kink that had formed in his neck on account of sleeping in such an odd position. Halfway through the night, Klaus had all but throttled Emery into bed with him where he proceeded to use him as a makeshift teddy bear. It was safe to say that Emery had only gotten to sleep half of what he hoped he would when Klaus had woken up halfway and started tripping over himself for a fix, claiming the voices were too loud.
Now early morning, Emery paused at the front door, hand on the doorknob, and sighed. He hated to leave one of the Hargreeves siblings for a second time before they woke up but then again, he thought it would be awkward if he were still here when Klaus woke.
Shaking his head, Emery swung the door open and closed it behind him before too much light could get in. He treaded down the steps and rounded the corner. Checking once for anyone that looked like they felt like kidnapping a child, particularly him, Emery started walking not to the prosthetic laboratory, but to the corner bagel shop he remembered passing.
He could only hope Klaus liked chocolate chip bagels and an iced drink. At least, that might take the edge off for the man.
✩
"Where were you?" Five asked when Emery begrudgingly met him at the top of the steps. He shrugged.
"Didn't think you'd care given the way you stormed off last night."
"I don't care." Five said, squaring his shoulders. "Come on." He said, opening the door and waltzing inside.
Emery clenched his fists but forced himself to take a deep breath before following Five, muttering a few choice words underneath his breath as he went.
The establishment was extremely open; wide windows decorated the space and natural light shone in, illuminating the whole place. It looked clean- but so unnaturally so that Emery knew he wanted out as soon as possible.
"Uh, can I help you?" Someone said as the two teens were surveying the area. Five turned around to see who had spoken and started walking towards the man, pulling the eye out of his pocket and holding it up.
"I need to know who this belongs to." He said.
The man donning a white coat looked at both of them, considerate, and asked, "where did you get that?" He said, obviously assuming they were just a bunch of meddling kids.
"What do you care?" Five said.
Emery rubbed a knuckle to his temple to massage away the growing migraine. "We found it, actually." He said. "At a playground, beneath the monkey bars?" He asked as if confirming the man in fact knew exactly where he was talking about. "It must have just... popped out."
"Right." Five said, donning his unfamous fake smile. "I wanna return it to its rightful owner."
"Aw," The lady at the front desk said, looking up from her work. "What a thoughtful young man."
"Yeah. Look up the name for me, will ya?" Five said, eager to get what he came for.
"Uh, I'm sorry, but patient records are strictly confidential." The man in the lab coat said. "That means I can't tell you.-"
"Yeah, I know what that means." Five interjected.
"But, I'll tell you what I can do. I will take the eye off your hands and return it to the owner. I'm sure he or she will be very grateful, so if I can just-"
"You're not touching this eye." Five said.
"Now, you listen here, young man--" The man in the lab coat began but Five wasn't having it. Before he could even finish his sentence, the boy was pulling him in by the lapel of his coat so he was moved to Five's level.
"No, you listen to me, asshole. I've come a long way for this," he laughed. "through some shit your pea brain couldn't even comprehend. So just give me the information I need, and I'll be on my merry way." his fake smile was back but it was anything but kind-looking. Emery raised a brow as he exchanged a look with the lady at the front desk, slowly shaking his head when she reached for the phone. "And if you call me 'young man' once more time, I'm gonna put your head through that damn wall."
"Sir, I'm going to need you to calm down you're friend over here or else we're going to have to call security." The man in the lab coat said, talking to Emery though he never once took his eyes off of Five who released him harshly and glowered as he stepped back.
"Come on." Five said, trying to grab Emery's sleeve to drag him out but Emery sidestepped, letting Five walk out alone.
"Sorry about him," Emery said to the two that were still looking at him with slightly scared expressions. He looked around the room, nothing all the windows, how they latched, the locks on the doors, the vents, and their potential routes. "Nice place you got here."
"Look, I don't know what you're doing but you can't be here." The man in the lab coat said. But then he sighed. "If you're that desperate, come back with a parent and we'll see what we can do within the company's parameters."
Emery rolled his eyes. "What is it with parents and guardians?" He asked. "Believe it or not, the smartest people in the world with the highest IQs? They're children and are probably more competent than any adult brought here." He paused, looking at the two, and clutched a hand to his heart. "Sorry, if that hurt your ego. I'll be going now. Thank you for your time!" He waved over his shoulder and followed after Five.
"Did you get anything?" The boy was on him the second Emery closed the door behind him.
"No." He said simply.
Five scoffed. "Useless."
"Well, it's kind of hard to make any progress when you completely ruined a reputation I didn't even know I had. How was I supposed to be viewed as civil when you walked in by my side and threatened that man!"
"Loopholes dearest Emery. Loopholes, variables, opportunity, creativity, logicality. Did you have none of that?"
"If logicality is getting pissed the moment something doesn't go you're way, sure." Emery started walking back towards the Academy. "He said we should come back with a parent." He said. "Either that or I was thinking we sneak in and log into their database." He paused. "You think one of your siblings would be up for the task?"
There was a pause in which Emery found Five to be looking at him with an emotion or a thought in his eyes that Emery couldn't place before the boy was in motion, speedwalking towards him and then past, guiding them both to the Academy. Then, as if deciding walking was a peasants task, Five grabbed Emery's hand and teleported them both to what looked like the late Hargreeves' study.
Making a clear effort to show Emery how much he disliked touching hands, Five aggressively wiped his hand on his shorts in an effort to wipe off whatever it was he was worried about. Emery simply ignored the boy's childish antics.
"Emerino! Brother dearest! What a pleasant surprise!" Klaus exclaimed from behind them from where he was rooting around one of the old man's drawers. Emery raised a brow and hastily, Klaus shut the drawer and smiled, the barest streak of chocolate littering the corner of the man's lips. "To what do I owe this delightful pleasure?"
"You know Emery?" Five asked, looking between the two.
"Of course!" Klaus threw his hands wide and embraced him in a side hug. Emery grunted as he shoved the man off. "We're besties!" Klaus said.
Five looked incredulously back and forth between the two before he shrugged. "You want twenty bucks?" Five asked. "No questions asked though." He said.
"I'm sold." Klaus needed no further incentive.
"Put on the nicest thing you own and meet me in my room." Five said before teleporting out of the room, leaving Emery behind once more.
The two remaining looked at each other in which Klaus shot Emery some finger guns before realizing how weird it must look and awkwardly lowered them. "Thanks for the food." Klaus said.
Emery nodded curtly, pursing his lips.
"You uhh, you left before I had a chance to talk to you, sober at least." Klaus scratched the back of his head.
"Mhmm."
"So, about the light thing. If that's what you do. Light bending? Shadow bending? It's pretty cool."
"Light manipulation." Emery corrected. "And thanks."
"Why didn't you mention it sooner? I've never seen someone else like us."
"There's more than just me," Emery said.
"I know," Klaus said. "But we grew up so isolated and never heard any word on anyone else like us."
"That must have sucked." Emery nodded along, recalling Vanya's book. He clapped his hands together and rubbed them, suddenly unsure of what to do with his hands.
"Care for a demonstration?" Klaus said.
"Not now," Emery said, heading towards the door. "After." He promised before heading out, Klaus hot on his heels as he raced to his room to change.
Rubbing a hand over his face, Emery navigated the maze-like hallway until he found Five's room at the end of the hall. He was standing, staring out at the window ominously when Emery walked in.
"Do you own any other clothes?" He asked.
"Nope." Five replied simply without looking away from the room.
Emery grumbled an 'of course you don't' before sitting down on the corner of the boy's bed and waiting for Klaus to hurry the hell up.
"Look," Five said after a minute of silence passed over them. "I'm sorry I left you last night."
"You were stressed. It's fine." Emery found himself saying though it was so easy to hate the boy and lash out, he remembered there was the weight of the world ending on this boy's shoulders. "Just, next time, try taking a deep breath. You can't stop the world from ending alone. Just remember that." He said.
Five turned to look at Emery then, eyes more open than he had ever seen before, and opened his mouth to say something but then Vanya was there, walking into the room with a worried expression.
"There you are. I was worried sick about you." She said.
Five looked once more to Emery and then to Vanya. "Sorry I left without saying goodbye." He said, voice genuine.
"No, look, I'm the one that should be sorry. yeah, I was dismissive, and... I-- I guess I didn't know how to process what you were saying. And I still can't, to be honest." Vanya said as Five turned to her and approached.
"Maybe you were right to be dismissive." Said Five.
In the background, Emery caught Klaus walking toward the room dressed in the most ridiculous shirt Emery had ever seen. Quickly, he waved his hands around to tell Klaus to be silent and then pointed towards the closet door. The man replied with a double thumbs up and silently climbed in, shutting himself in and disappearing.
Five scoffed. "Maybe it wasn't real after all," he said. Emery gave the boy a concerned look when he started pacing. After all this? Really? "It felt real." Five said. "Well, like you said, the old man did say time travel could contaminate the mind." Five smiled as he circled back to Vanya.
"Then maybe I'm not the right person for you to be talking to." Vanya said. "Look, I used to see someone. A therapist. I could give you her information."
Five shook his head. "Thanks, but... I think I'm just going to get some rest. It's been a long time since I've had a good sleep."
"Okay." Vanya nodded and then caught sight of Emery who gave a small wave. He didn't know if he should have left. He felt like he should have because he felt he was imposing on a conversation he had no part in listening to.
Vanya left with a final small smile to Five and then Klaus was stumbling out of the closet. "Wooh!" He said, surprising Five. "Touching, all that stuff about family and Dad and time. Wow!"
"Would you shut up? She'll hear you."
"I'm moist."
"I thought I told you to put on something professional." Five said.
Klaus gasped and looked at Emery and Five with a hurt face. "What? This is my nicest outfit."
Five scoffed after seeing the man was serious. "Whatever. We'll raid the old man's closet."
"As long as I get paid." Klaus shrugged as he followed Five who was already out the door.
"When the job is done."
"Okay, but just so we're clear on the finer details, I just gotta go into this place and pretend to be your guys' dear old dad, correct?"
"Yeah, something like that."
"What's our cover story?"
"What?" Emery asked. "What are you talking about."
"I mean, was I really young when I had you? Like, 16? Like young and... terribly misguided."
"Sure." Five said, unamused.
"But you don't look related." Klaus waggled his finger at Emery and Five. "Best friends maybe?" He smiled a cheeky smile. "Boyfriends?" He raised his eyebrows.
Five scoffed. "Sure, whatever. Just get on with it, will you?"
Klaus smirked and got back to his act, winking at Emery as he did so. "Your mother, that slut." Klaus clutched his chest. "Whoever she was. We met at... the disco. Okay? Remember that." He laughed and snapped his fingers. "Oh, my God, the sex was amazinggg."
"What a disturbing glimpse into that thing you call a brain." Five said, starting to walk away again. Emery followed behind.
"Don't make me put you in a time-out." Klaus pouted as he too followed them out of the Academy.
"That's bad parenting." Emery pointed out."
Klaus gasped. "Are you saying I'm a bad father? Emerino, I'm wounded."
"It's Emery. And no- bad parenting is dunking your child's head in a wash basin for misbehaving."
"Is that what they do to children in France?" Klaus asked. "I thought they were nicer than that."
"The French are nice to their children. I didn't grow up there." He left part of the question unanswered but a simple human would be able to detect the underlying truth behind his words. "Let's go." He said when he noticed the gazes laid upon him. "Unless you want to host a tea party and share our sob stories, I suggest we get a move on." He said when nobody snapped into action immediately.
"Right." Five said, resuming his journey with a set face. "Let's go."