Warnings: alcohol, mentions of alcohol and death
Word Count: 5119
In mid-September of 1963, Sir Reginald Hargreeves found himself sending his daughter off to her very first outing with one of his colleague's sons. He seemed to be a reasonable match for (Y/N). It was difficult to come by gentlemen her age with an intelligence like hers. Preston Hildebrand was in no way or degree of being smarter than (Y/N), but he would do.
"Reggie, she'll be fine." Grace reassured him from the lounge room. Reginald peeled himself away from the door, where he had been watching the two teens walking off down the street. "Come have a seat. Relax."
Reginald sighed and sat himself in his usual armchair, gently taking his book from Grace that she held out for him. She sat herself down on the sofa and began looking through documents. "You don't have to be afraid, Reggie. You know how your daughter is."
"Yes, I do. Stubborn, relentless, emotional, sarcastic." He turned a page. "She is also diligent... compassionate... sharp."
"An absolute angel." Grace grinned. Reginald hummed thoughtfully.
"May I repeat myself so confidently when I say that I truly believe (Y/N) is my greatest accomplishment?"
Grace chuckled. "You may." Her laugh earned a small smile from him. "It's crazy to think that she wouldn't be in our lives today had I not been walkin' down that sidewalk... She probably wouldn't be breathin' if we hadn't met."
Reginald lifted his head to watch her smile soften with affection.
"Makes ya think about how impressively the world works. How some of the best people show up in our lives when we least expect it... Like they're meant to be here with us."
"Yes," He mused with a smile of his own. "Like they are meant to be here..."
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A dull ache settled into Five's temples as he opened his eyes. The orange light from outside casted into the bedroom, which gave it a soft glow. It was nice, he thought. The Kugelblitz could hardly be seen in a positive light, but it did give off a nice view. With a groan, he sat up in bed, the duvet sliding off his bare chest and landing in his lap. Five massaged his temples in silence, save for (Y/N)'s soft breaths beside him.
"What did I get up to last night?" He whispered, staring around at the empty bottles and mannequin legs littered about the room. Blurry images flashed through his mind. Images of him drunkenly giving some speech at the wedding, chasing (Y/N) through the halls with plastic mannequin parts in his arms, taking many breaks to copulate in nearly every hall of the hotel. But the last thing he very vaguely remembered was what happened in the White Buffalo Suite.
"There is no time."
Reginald was talking to someone the slightly ajar door obscured.
"I can't do this without you."
He made a deal.
Five furrowed his brows, his fuzzy brain trying to recollect any clues as to who the mystery second party was, but all he could remember was (Y/N) pulling him away. He tried not to dwell on it too much, for the frustration was only adding to his throbbing headache. "What was the old man up to?"
Beside him, he heard the sheets rustle and he turned to see (Y/N), creaking her eyes open just the slightest in order to see him. She only needed to glance at their bare bodies to remember exactly what they were up to the night before, the two sharing a smile in recognition. With a tired sigh, she stretched her arms.
"I feel like I wanna take a bath."
In his room, Viktor stirred awake. It had been odd, not seeing Allison in the bed across from his. He figured she had found a new room, any empty ones open to her now that the other guests were no longer in the hotel. Part of him was relieved that the tension didn't have to follow them in the room, but another part of him was hurt that she couldn't stand to share one with him.
He jumped in alarm at the sound of a throat being cleared. He turned his head to see Reginald standing next to Allison's old bed, a tray of food in his hands. "Bad dream?"
Viktor fought off a wince at his headache as he propped himself up on his elbows. "Why are you here?"
"What does it look like? To feed you, child. I'm sure after last night's festivities, a hearty breakfast should bring you a bright start to your day."
"It's all such a blur." He groaned as Reginald set the tray down on the bed and took a seat at the foot.
"Ah."
Viktor gratefully picked up the glass of water on the tray and raised it to his lips. He halted when Reginald continued to stare at him. "Is there anything else?"
"To be honest, I have some concern."
"Since when do you care?"
"May I remind you, I am not the Hargreeves you grew up with. Yes, we share the same DNA, impeccable style, and mannerisms, but I can assure you our life circumstances are very different." He opened the tray cover to reveal two berry scones and two boiled eggs. "And being the only sober person at the wedding, I had the unique opportunity to witness your argument with Allison. Such a shame to see a family struggle so."
Viktor scoffed as Reginald popped the food into his mouth. "Family... What does that even mean?"
"Family are the only people who know us whilst we endure our most epic trials. I think that should count for something."
"Why don't you tell Allison that?" He removed the blanket from his body and stood from the bed. Just outside his window, the Kugelblitz seemed to have moved even closer overnight, its orange clouds consuming what was once a bright blue sky. "Jesus..."
"He's due any minute now."
Viktor's head snapped to Reginald, eyes wide.
"That was a joke."
He chuckled with a raised brow, earning a smile from his father. "You do jokes now."
"Actually, what I'm here to discuss... is deadly serious."
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The drip of the water from the faucet into the tub every few seconds was the only sound within the spa. Five sat in the hot water that rose to his chest, absently staring at his wife, who sat across from him in the tub, eyes shut and brows raised. She seemed to still be waking up since they had gotten out of bed. She hadn't made a single sound since they sat down.
"Feeling better?" He whispered, receiving a quiet hum.
"I needed last night."
"See? Told you so."
She didn't open her eyes, but she still frowned at him playfully. Moving her brows so suddenly slightly worsened her headache, so she released the expression to continue riding out her pain. "It was the first time in awhile where I celebrated something... and then something horrible didn't happen right afterwards." She gently opened her eyes and smiled sadly. "I don't think I'll get another night like that..."
Five reached out and caressed her scarred cheek in his palm with a soft look. "I'll try my best to keep you happy, Starlight."
"You already do... I love you."
"I love you, too." He whispered, leaning forward to sweetly kiss her lips.
Within Luther and Sloane's room, the couple looked up from where they were sitting on their floor, in hardly any clothing, to see Allison standing in their open doorway. "Sorry." She rapped her knuckles against the wood. "Door was open."
"No, don't worry. Come in." Sloane scrambled to stand, Luther doing the same. "Sorry for the mess."
"Oh, don't be." She smiled and stepped into the room. Sloane grabbed a cup of yogurt and sat in a chair on the side, Luther straightening to look at his sister. "Uh, look, I just wanted to come by and say I'm sorry. Okay, I've... I've been a really shitty sister lately."
Luther widened his eyes at the unexpected apology, assuming Allison would never come to her senses. "You know, if you're handing out apologies, Viktor should be top of the list."
"No, I know. I'm..." She nervously stuffed her hands into her pockets. "I'm gonna get to him. I just, um... Working my way up." She chuckled.
"Okay." He whispered. "Well, I forgive you."
Her smile widened, a gentle look in her eye. "'Kay." She smiled at Sloane, who smiled back, before heading towards the door. She stopped abruptly as if she remembered something and turned back around. "Oh, uh, Dad called a meeting at noon today. Are you both gonna come?"
His look of confusion melted into a sarcastic smile. "Oh, I see." He pointed at his sister with narrowed eyes. "I see what this is."
"Luther, he has a plan."
"Mmhm?"
"No, a plan he thinks can save the universe."
"Really?"
She sighed at his feigned interest in what she had to say. "So, please, come. Both of you."
"No."
"We'll be there." Sloane stood.
Allison grinned at her, then at Luther. "Great! Okay." She nodded before leaving, Luther sighing as she shut the door behind her.
Back in Five and (Y/N)'s room, the former had just gotten dressed, the latter looking through the drawers for an outfit. He adjusted his tie and walked up to her, snaking an arm around her waist from behind. "I'm gonna have a drink outside. Feel free to join me when you're ready."
"You just got over a hangover, baby." She looked over her shoulder to press the side of her forehead to his. Five smiled and kissed her cheek.
"Can't let all those bottles go to waste."
"No, I guess you can't." She chuckled. "Alright, go ahead. Love you."
"Love you." He pecked her lips and walked out of the room. Within time, (Y/N) shed her robe and put on her undergarments along with a pair of black slacks before a knock could be heard at the door. Thinking it was Five, she called for the person to come in.
She was taken aback when Allison opened the door and walked in. A long silence passed through as they stared at each other. Averting her gaze, (Y/N) went back to looking for a shirt. With her inebriation slept away, she no longer had much patience for Allison's recent behavior. If she came in to argue once again, then (Y/N) was prepared to tell her off.
"Um... so..." Allison sat down on a small sofa near the bed. "I wanted to talk about... everything that's happened between us. I'm... I'm not proud of it. I just wanted you to know why it went down the way it did."
"I know why it did." (Y/N) pulled on a light grey long-sleeve that stopped just above her navel. "You lost your daughter and your husband in our last jump and no one seemed to care. Barely even mentioned it, which just made it look like it didn't matter. You were told to just accept it and move on. You were angry... angry that I appeared to be doing exactly what you weren't. I get it. But I wasn't."
Allison stared as (Y/N) buckled harness straps to her waist and her shoulders. Her sister's new style wasn't one she particularly understood, but it did look very flattering on her. "You just... You looked so happy and I... didn't know what to do with that."
(Y/N) sighed and leaned against the wall behind her. "I'm sorry about Claire. Really, I am. I miss her, too, you know. She was my favorite niece."
The two chuckled, Allison wiping away a tear. "She was your only niece, (Y/N)."
"That's why it hurts so much more," She pushed off the wall and strode up to Allison, sitting beside her on the sofa. She shook her head as her throat became restricted with unreleased sobs. "I lost my babies, too, Allison. I feel like... like I'm dying every second I'm not with them."
Allison sniffled and pushed her sister's hair back. "I know... I know. I'm sorry."
(Y/N) sniffled and deeply inhaled, tears falling as she gently gripped her sister's hands. "This family is all I have... And I'm holding on tight with everything I have. I need you to hold on, too, Allison. Because if you let go... you're gonna slip, and you're gonna fall." She let out a choked sob. "And I don't want you to fall, Allison. I wanna be in your corner, and I want you in mine."
Sniffling, Allison pulled (Y/N) into a tight hug, letting out her own cries. "I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry, (Y/N). No matter what, all I've wanted for you was for you to be happy. But I couldn't understand how you managed to do that when I couldn't. Then I realized that... you weren't telling anyone how you felt. You were just keeping it all bottled up. And I hated that."
She pulled away to hold (Y/N)'s face in her hands. "Just... no matter what happens... I want you to remember that. No matter what I've done or said, or what I haven't done or said yet, I just want you to be happy. Okay?"
"Okay."
Allison nodded and hugged her sister again before they released each other and sat back. "Also... I'm sorry about the Sparrow (Y/N). You guys seemed close."
(Y/N) sniffled and nodded, twisting the white bracelet on her wrist. "She deserved happiness, too... But it's very clear that the children of Sir Reginald Hargreeves will always live in misery..."
"You're still pissed at him?"
"Pissed? I-I'm fucking infuriated with him. A-And then he calls everything he's done a fucking 'rough patch on a verdant lawn'? What the fuck?"
"(Y/N), you have every right to feel that way. You do. But Dad has a plan that can fix all of this. And he called a meeting-"
"No-"
"-at noon. It's at noon, and I really think you should come to at least hear him out."
"I'm not hearing shit out, Allison. You expect me, after I nearly killed him with a promise in my actions, to sit there and listen to anything that man has to say? No. Hell fucking no."
Allison sighed and stood. "Do what you want. And I know I'm not anyone to ask you to listen to me, either, but you said it before. We can't think about ourselves when it comes to the end of the world. So, maybe, you can put aside some of that hatred to hear what he has to say."
(Y/N) looked away with a clenched jaw.
"Okay... If you don't, me or Five can just relay it to you. Think about it, though."
Allison sighed and left the room, closing the door behind her.
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At the edge of the world sat Five, tipping back a bottle and gulping down its contents. Behind him, on the other edge of the world, was the Kugelblitz. Everything on the other side was being sucked into the radiated black hole and he wasn't trying to stop it. It was a jarring thing to think about.
He turned his head slightly when he heard footsteps approach him. For a second, he was about to call out to (Y/N), but those weren't her footsteps. He'd recognize hers anywhere. Trailing his eyes up, he was met with-
"Reginald." He greeted with a disregard to the man who stood beside him.
"I take it you know why I'm here."
"How 'bout I save you some time? Give you the 'no' upfront. I'm not the least bit interested in this bullshit plan you've been cooking."
"It's not, as you so colorfully called it, bullshit."
Five only took another drink.
"Mind if I join you?"
"Actually, appreciate some..." His nerves were irked when Reginald sat down beside him. "...solitude."
"Mmhm."
"It seems I won't get any."
He handed the bottle over to his father. Reginald took a drink of it and winced. "Dear god!"
"Mmhm. Louis XIII, it ain't."
"I've had worse." He set the bottle down and looked up at the new sky. "It is impressive, isn't it?"
Five followed his gaze. "All the ways we could have screwed the pooch, this way is the most complete. I'm relieved, actually. This time, everything goes. There's no Commission, no leaping away. No life spent going mad... with the desperation to see a familiar face."
Reginald took another swig. "I've seen worlds end in ways that would knock your socks off, old man."
"Wow! Reginald Hargreeves, you never cease to surprise me."
"That is some comfort." He smiled a bit. "You know, they all run together after awhile. But you never forget your first. Your home. Your original sin. You never stop wondering, 'Did I do enough to save the people I loved?'."
"Did you?"
"No... but I was hoping you children could help me out with that."
Five raised his brows. "There it is." He tossed back some more alcohol. "You can go ahead and scratch (Y/N) off your list of recruits. I think you're the first person to ever land on her blacklist."
With a genuine sigh of disappointment, Reginald glanced down at the nothingness below them. "One of my deepest regrets was hurting her so." He looked up to meet Five's curious gaze. "It seems I have underestimated the relationship you have with her. I see much of your influence in her, and I can't say it is necessarily unhealthy."
"What, is this your blessing or something?"
"You wouldn't have accepted a blessing of mine." He chuckled. "(Y/N) would have none of that. She has gained more nerve than she had when I last saw her. Though, it was only days for her. It was a change she needed, and perhaps a change that would not have occurred had you not been with her. That is the difference between her and my second-selected version of her."
Five shook his head at that. "There were many differences between the two of them." He gulped down another swig. "Sorry, Reg, but you can cross me off, as well. I got a message from the future."
"What future?"
"My future self told me very explicitly not to save this world."
Reginald quietly laughed in disbelief. "You are an arrogant son of a bitch, aren't you? 'Future you'. 'Present you'. The past is as much a mystery as the future." When Five only continued to drink, his amusement washed away. "You ruined your life once before by not listening to me. Are you prepared to do that again?"
Five stared him down with a clenched jaw, his teeth grit behind his closed lips. With a sigh, he relented. "Fine, I'll attend your stupid meeting."
"Excellent!" He smiled, standing to his feet.
"If..." Five gained his attention. "...you tell me what happened with you in the Buffalo Suite last night. Who were you talking to? Was it Klaus? Was it Ben?"
"No one. I was alone." He shook his head. "Though, I doubt you were in any condition to remember. We should go. Don't want to be late for the meeting."
Five remained seated.
"I would move if I were you."
He furrowed his brows. "What, are you threatening me?"
A sudden rumbling shook him, prompting him to hurriedly get to his feet and step back, the part of the ground he was just sitting on breaking apart and falling into the endless pit below.
"Shall we?" Reginald smiled and walked back to the hotel. With a scoff, Five set the bottle down and followed him.
Upon entering, an outburst of claps and cheers for the boy sounded from where the family sat. Five sighed and approached them as they all applauded for his drunken speech at the wedding, where, apparently, he had said some very heart-warming words. To the side, though, Reginald caught sight of (Y/N) walking to the lobby from the elevator she had just exited. With a deep breath, he approached her.
"My child." He greeted, the girl flinching with a glare. "Before I commence the meeting, I wanted to deeply apologize for (Y/N)'s death. I can see that it has wounded you, and I regret my actions in the entire ordeal."
(Y/N) sighed and crossed her arms, looking anywhere but at him. "You know, out of anyone, you should be apologizing to her. But she isn't here for you to do that... Not even her clone."
He sighed, scrambling to find the right words to say. Reginald Hargreeves wasn't usually someone to be caught speechless, but (Y/N) never failed to bring out the unexpected. At his silence, she shook her head. "Why did you even do it? What was the point of it all?"
"My child... the day you and your mother left in 1963, it formed an unforeseeable hole in my life. Even your mutt left."
"Mr Pennycrumb...?"
"Taken by Grace. All I ever wanted was a family like ours once again. So, in order to have even a bit of the past, I adopted you again in 1989. However, I never took into account that a different environment would cause such a drastic change in her character. She was nothing like you, (Y/N). In hopes of repairing what I had already damaged, I coddled her. I made sure to be more attentive with her than my other children. In my attempts, it only resulted in her nature to become cocky and entitled."
(Y/N) frowned in confusion, but let him continue.
"My Sparrow (Y/N) suffered from underlying issues. She was a very disturbed and... sadistic individual. I first realized it when she was only thirteen, in a time when she was my Number One. She could not lead a unit to success, for her wickedness held her back. It held her siblings back. I was afraid... I was afraid that if she continued the way she did, she would shape the Sparrows into a team of endangerment.
"I demoted her and isolated her from the rest. She was unreasonable, ridiculously headstrong. There was no need for the Sparrows to know the truth, as it would only cause fear and rebellion. With a clone, it was a means to start once again. A blank slate. I instilled an entirely different personality within her clone. One where she was subservient and constantly seeking validation from me. From everyone.
"You have to believe me, it wasn't what I wanted for her. It was a finer alternative than the person she truly was. I was keeping the children safe... I believed I was keeping her safe. I see now that my intentions blinded me from what I was truly doing to her. I would have ceased my wrongdoings if I had known I was corrupting her mind."
(Y/N) stayed silent for a second, taking in everything told to her. The entire situation seemed so superfluous. All he had to do was talk to her. Her whole life, it seemed Sparrow (Y/N) just needed someone to talk to her, not isolate her. It didn't make sense. "You were such a good father in '63..." She shook her head. "I wonder what happened in between."
Reginald gave a small smile. "You were not there."
"Don't put this on me. If I had such an impact on your life, then how did I not teach you to be a good father to any other child of yours?"
"In every timeline, (Y/N), you are my daughter. I suppose you are the only one I planned to truly raise, for there is no other child to raise like you." His smile widened a bit. "I love you very much, my child."
She scoffed and walked past him, walking in the seating area. All irritation she had just felt washed away when she came face-to-face with her family, who greeted her warmly.
"Hey, there, Miss Maid of Honor."
"Quite the entertainer last night."
"Oh, yeah, the life of the party."
"We need to book you more for events."
(Y/N) chuckled and jokingly curtsied before walking over to the armchair Five sat in, sitting herself on one of the arms. Reginald returned to the room to stand before everyone. Without any context, he began to explain.
"The Norse had seven sleepers. The Blackfoot, seven stars. As a boy, I heard the legend of the seven bells. All these stories are the same. The village is under threat by flood, by fire, by a night that never ends. A shaman brings his disciples to a sacred cave. He tells them if they can ring the seven magic bells, the village will be saved, and all will be restored just as it was."
Lila raised her hand. "Reggie? Can we get a little less Brothers Grimm and a little more 'What the hell does this have to do with us'?"
"There is a truth to these myths. None of you can deny what's going on around us. All of existence will be gone by the end of the day, but whoever or whatever wove together space and time, they left a way to put things back together if the universe ever faced total annihilation. There is a portal in the universe. I built this hotel around it... and on the other side... is the answer."
Luther shrugged. "And... we're supposed to, what? Just stroll in there, ring some bells, and fix this shit?"
"Sarcasm aside, you are mostly right. Except for the guardian."
"What kind of guardian?" Viktor asked.
"Kinda guardian that does this." Diego lifted his hand, where two makeshift prosthetics took the place of where his fingers used to be. "He had a sword."
"It is a force to be reckoned with."
Luther shook his head. "See? Yeah. This is where you lose me."
"This is where he loses you?" Lila raised her brows. "I checked out at the sacred cave."
"Why would the builders of this 'back door' need to have a guardian?" Viktor asked.
"Ah!" Sloane pointed. "To protect it from people who want to use it for nefarious means."
Reginald nodded. "That is correct, Sloane."
"So, I guess it's gonna take all of us to defeat the thing protecting the bells."
Five glanced over at Allison from where she sat in an empty luggage cart. "You're actually buying his crap?"
"How is a guardian and bells any crazier than time-traveling briefcases and assassins with cartoon masks?"
"Actually, she's got you there." Luther agreed.
When no one else spoke, Ben stood and walked up to his father's side. "I'm in."
Five thought back to last night.
"I can't do this without you."
Could it be Ben?
"Me, too." Diego stood, causing Lila to gently fall back on the couch. Five looked over at him.
"Do we have a deal?"
Diego? Did Diego make the deal?
"But I think some of us should stay back. Like Lila."
Five immediately scrapped the idea. Diego only wanted to protect his girlfriend. It was the kind of person he was. He wouldn't team with Reginald. Lila raised her brows at Diego and stood.
"Uh... or you can stay, and I can go."
"No." Allison spoke. "This is much bigger than all of us. Nobody can stay back."
"You, my children, are all that stands between us and oblivion." Reginald tried to convince them further. "Are we ready to go?"
Viktor looked around. "Well, I say we vote."
"This isn't a democracy." Ben hissed. "Dad's calling the shots."
(Y/N) scoffed. "No the hell he isn't. If there's a chance we can avoid ending up like Diego or worse, I'd like to know it was because we actually thought on it first."
"I agree." Five grabbed her hand. "We vote."
Reginald frowned at them. "The world is ending, and you want to count hands?"
"You're asking us to risk our lives," Luther reasoned. "I think it's only fair you give us time to discuss it. Privately."
With a disappointed scoff, Reginald left the lobby with a pat to Ben's shoulder. Luther looked around and nodded. "Why don't we meet back here in an hour?"
"Agreed."
"Yeah, sure."
"Whatever."
"Sounds good."
Allison tried to hold back her anxiety as she clenched her hand into a fist. After the family dispersed, she quickly went after Viktor, who had known she was following him the whole time. When she called out for him to wait, he sighed and turned to her.
"For what? So you can hand me my ass again?"
"Look, I was really drunk last night-"
"Okay, you don't have to make excuses. I get it. I am your least favorite sibling. I ruined your life-"
"Okay, no, that's not-" She sighed. "Will you just stop and listen, please?"
Viktor motioned for her to speak.
"Last night, you were right. Claire and Ray are gone. But... hating you won't bring them back. And my pain... doesn't give me permission to hurt you." She turned to lean against the railing, her next words choked on her welling tears. "But it's real. And it's something that I have to carry. Which is why if I don't... If I don't do something, if I don't- if I don't act now... it's just another thing that slips into nothingness.
"If we stay here, we die. But if we go through the portal, we could... we could save the universe. We could save... everybody. So, can we just put our past behind us and move forward together? Can you give me that?"
At a loss for words, Viktor nodded, which caused Allison to smile.
"I love you."
The words he had wanted to hear from her, the ones that he thought he lost, were finally spoken once again, pulling him into the routine to immediately repeat them back. "I love you, too."
Allison moved forward and pulled her brother into a hug, Viktor reciprocating it. This was everything he wanted. All he wanted was for he and Allison to apologize to each other and make amends. To hug and become siblings again. However, something didn't feel right. He tried to push the feeling down as deep as he could, but he couldn't dismiss the suspicion he felt. He just hoped her intentions were pure from here on out.
On the other end of the hug, Allison blankly stared forward, all her sadness and guilt wiped away. Her mask had fallen. She was an actress, after all. She had to improvise.