Beatrice Rye was going to rule the world, metaphorically of course. Her mother had always told her she was destined for great things, she excelled in school and was on track to get into an excellent college — that was until her seventeenth birthday.
She was on her way home after picking up some groceries and had decided to take a different way home. Bea had seen the Hargreeves children on television and read about them in many newspaper articles, although years had passed since the city had heard of them she wanted to see the academy where the magic happened. She'd grown up idolising them and despite living not too far from the academy she'd never seen it in real life, nor the Hargreeves siblings.
Turning right heading towards the academy, she wondered what had happened to the children. Her eyes were constantly looking up at the beautiful buildings around her, until she spotted the one she'd seen on the television and in newspapers.
She stared at it in awe, at the umbrella on the front door, it was beautiful. Though some may find it a little sad that Bea was overjoyed by this experience, she'd always loved architecture, and especially this building.
Suddenly feeling the weight of the grocery bag in her arms, she turned to go home. In her daze, she didn't think to look at the oncoming speeding car coming straight towards her, and when she did it was too late.
In that split second all of her hopes, dreams and her future was gone. When her family found out they were distraught, and not being able to cope with the death of their daughter her parents would eventually leave the city and move to Canada, far away from the memories but keeping their daughter in their hearts.
Beatrice woke up in a dark room with faded wallpaper, she couldn't feel her body at all, everything felt surreal.
Looking down, she was still wearing her favourite faded yellow t-shirt and blue jeans, her eyes bulged as she looked at her skin. It was close to translucent, not entirely see-through, but it didn't look human.
Suddenly she was aware she was laying on someone's bed, she stood up gingerly and stared at herself in a full-length mirror on the wall.
She was staring back at herself, but it wasn't her. Memories flashed through her mind and the realisation sank in that she was dead. She was staring at the ghost version of herself.
With too much to process she sunk to her knees and sobbed, she wondered how her parents were handling it. She wanted nothing more right now than to hug her mother and father. Millions of thoughts ran through her head, how long has it been since I died? am I stuck like this forever? what happens next?
Terrified and feeling alone, she looked around the room and found the door, she went to open it with her hand before pulling back. Would she be able to touch or feel anything? She hesitated a moment before putting her hand over the handle, she couldn't feel it but she pulled the handle towards her and opened the door.
Relief flooded through her but it still didn't remove the feeling of dread. Where was she? Heaven? Hell? Still on Earth?
Stepping outside of the room she glanced around, she was standing on a balcony looking down at a chandelier hanging over a lobby. Something about it seemed familiar, she headed towards the stairs and walked downstairs, suddenly spotting the doors ahead of her with an umbrella symbol on the glass. She was inside the academy.
She thought all of this must be a nightmare, that she'd wake up in her bed and be at home with her parents. There was no way this was real. Walking into the living room she spotted a large painting of Five, and little reminders that the Hargreeves had grown up there.
Voices came from the stairwell and she ducked behind one of the couches, she didn't know if others could see her yet and she didn't want to chance it.
"Sir, I think you should contact the children more, especially Luther... all alone up there on the moon." Pogo said.
"It isn't the right time yet... not yet." Reginald Hargreeves groaned, picking up a glass from the bar at the other end of the room and pouring himself a glass of whiskey.
Pogo knew better than to argue with Reginald, he nodded and hobbled out of the room.
Beatrice gawped at the man... chimpanzee that she'd just seen. She'd popped her head over the couch to see who was in the room, and didn't realise Reginald was looking around the room. If he'd seen her he didn't say anything, for a moment she was relieved but then the dread crept in again that no one would ever see her and she'd have to live like this forever.
She stood up from behind the couch, staring directly at the elderly mad in front of her, he couldn't see her, that much was clear. As she walked out of the living area and through the hallways of the academy, she saw Pogo again, and a woman with her blonde hair in a ponytail, from what she'd read about the children she assumed this was Grace, their mother.
None of them noticed her existence, which saddened her. She headed to the front door to leave the academy to try and find someone, anyone who could see her. Opening the door with the umbrella symbol on the glass, she tried to step outside but was stopped short by an invisible force. Trying again, and again, she couldn't get past the door.
She started to panic now, wondering if she was trapped here. Running upstairs she tried every window and balcony, all of them were the same. She couldn't leave, she was stuck here forever, living a life of loneliness.
And thus began Beatrice's life as a ghost, doomed to walk, not float prior to her belief, around the academy. A part of her was happy that out of all of the places she was trapped in it was this building, but the other part was miserable. She thrived most when talking to people, exploring the world, living the life of a normal teenager getting ready to go to college. Yet now she wouldn't get to experience any of that, instead she had to adapt to this new life.
Months passed and she'd now explored every room in the house, learning new things about the children she'd admired growing up. She often sat and listened to Reginald murmur about how great they could've been as he wrote in his journals that Bea would read every night when he'd finally leave his study to sleep.
They intrigued her, the children, their powers, their relationships with each other. She longed to see them in real life, Reginald, Grace and Pogo weren't the most interesting people to follow around all day. She'd learned by now that Reginald rarely left his study, he was always writing in those journals of his. Grace continued to clean the house top to bottom, she'd cook meals for Reginald and Pogo and she kept the same routine every day.
Pogo had the same routine too, check on Reginald and Grace and stare hopelessly at the portrait of Five. From the journals she'd read she found out that he'd disappeared after time travelling despite going against Reginald's wishes. Pogo kept to himself mostly, Beatrice had followed him one day to see him shut himself into a small room filled with small television screens, she didn't want to invade his privacy but she could hear voices inside.
He must've been watching videos of the children, it was clear he missed them. Even Beatrice, despite not knowing them, knew that their presence was missed every day.
So far, Beatrice had read about each of the members of the umbrella academy apart from number four, Klaus Hargreeves. She'd left him for last, she'd always been fascinated by him.
She read every single book and journal that Reginald kept with notes on Klaus and his powers. She felt drawn to him, and also a small inch of hope began to spring inside of her. Klaus could communicate with the dead, and Reginald believed he was capable of so much more according to the scribbled notes in the journals.
Beatrice hoped that one day Klaus would visit the academy and save her, she didn't know how, but he was her best hope. The more she read about him she wondered if he would willingly help her, in the last journal Reginald wrote about him he'd written that Klaus was his greatest disappointment. Her heart broke for him and the other children, who would now be adults, to have a father like Reginald.
Years had passed, and every day was the same. Reginald in his study, Grace cleaning and Pogo doing whatever Pogo did.
Beatrice was laying on her back on a couch in the living area when she heard a scream. She jumped up and followed the sound, she'd learned by now that she could walk through walls which, she had to admit, was a perk of the afterlife.
She found Grace on her knees besides Reginald's bed, at first Bea had thought he'd died in his sleep— that was until the Hargreeves siblings came home and began to delve deeper into his death.
Seeing them for the first time was exhilarating, despite the tragic circumstances that they were coming home, she still couldn't believe she was seeing them in the flesh.
Luther was nothing like she'd imagined, he was extremely tall and built like a body-builder. Vanya was tiny and seemed quiet around her siblings, Bea had read that they had rarely included her when they were younger in the book she'd written about the siblings, of course she had to read it when a copy was delivered.
Diego was tanned with a serious expression, none of them seemed particularly thrilled to be back in the academy.
When Alison arrived Bea could sense the tension between everyone grow as she watched them stand around the living room, none of them saying a word.
As she stood in the corner of the room observing them, the final sibling flaunted in, Klaus.
Beatrice stared at him, she'd waited for this moment for so long.
"Are you drunk?" Were the first words to be spoken by Diego.
"Of course not, Diego..." Klaus smirked, "I'm high on life! Father is dead!"
Allison winced as the others groaned.
"You're definitely high on something." Luther muttered under his breath.
Bea watched as they all gathered around, none of them really sure what to say to each other.
The tensions in the house grew as they spent more time together, they scattered their fathers ashes in the back yard and dealt with the repercussions of Five suddenly appearing as his younger self and trying to stop the apocalypse.
Meanwhile, Beatrice had to bide her time, watching them and hoping someone would notice her.
It became apparent that Klaus hadn't seen her, she stood directly in front of him once and he didn't bat an eyelid. He wasn't sober enough to focus on the dead, that much was clear.
She spent her days waiting mostly, waiting for Klaus to get sober. There were moments she thought about writing a message for him or one of the siblings to let her know she was there, but she knew them enough from the journals to know they'd think one of the others was playing a trick on them.
Diego, she'd noticed, was trying his best to help Klaus stay sober. He really was trying too, Bea could see the toll on him as he'd relied on drugs for so long and the withdrawal symptoms were starting to show.
Finally, when she was starting to give up hope as she sat on top of the table in the kitchen at the very bottom of the academy, head in her hands, Klaus Hargreeves walked in to grab a slice of cold pizza.
She observed him carefully as he sat down, oblivious to the world. If there were ever a chance to see if he could hear her now was the chance.
"I would never have thought superheroes ate day old pizza, don't you guys eat salad or something?"
"Will you ever leave me alone?" Klaus groaned before he looked over at her, "Oh, maybe not you."
Bea smiled, "it's taken you long enough."
She was no longer alone in the world.
☽
this is honestly one of the longest chapters i've ever written??? hope you all enjoyed this glimpse into bea's background— next chapter will pick up where we left off in chapter four :)
& i'm also super sorry for the wait, i haven't had inspiration for so long but hopefully i'll be updating more now! xo xo