CHAPTER TWO
RUN BOY RUN
WARNING: death
◦
2005
The kids hop down the stairs and file into the dining room. A slightly younger looking Ramona jogs to stand behind her chair beside Five and Vanya, who sits at the end of the table. They wait in anticipation for Reginald to arrive.
Finally, he enters the the room. He walks over to his seat at the head of the table and pulls his chair out. "Sit!" He barks and the children obey.
Everyone digs into their food, each child doing their own little thing where Reginald can't see. Luther and Allison share a soft look, Diego carves something into the arm of his chair, Klaus rolls a joint, Ben reads a book, Ramona side-eyes Five and sends little pieces of his food into his lap with just a glance, and Vanya, ever the good girl, eats her meal quietly as ordered.
But Five doesn't eat. He stabs his steak knife into the table, catching the attention of everyone in the room.
"Number Five!" Reginald snaps.
"I have a question." Five states, clearly angry about something. Ramona and Vanya share a look.
"Knowledge is an admirable goal, but you know the rules. No talking during mealtimes. You are interrupting Herr Carlson!"
Five tosses his knife down. "I want to time travel."
"No."
"But I'm ready! I've been practicing my spatial jumps, just like you said." He stands and pushes his chair back, teleporting and appearing beside Reginald at the head of the table. "See?"
"A spatial jump is trivial when compared with the unknowns of time travel. One is like sliding along the ice, the other is akin to descending blindly into the depths of the freezing water and reappearing as an acorn." Reginald explains, surprisingly patiently.
Five pauses and huffs. "I don't get it."
"Hence, the reason you're not ready."
Vanya shakes her head at him but Five continues. "I'm not afraid."
"Fear isn't the issue. The effects it might have on your body, even on your mind, are far too unpredictable." Reginald sets down his silverware and faces Five. "Now, I forbid you to talk about this anymore."
Five stands there for a long moment before turning on his heel and walking away.
"Number Five! You have not been dismissed. Come back here!" Reginald shouts after him, but his heart clearly isn't in it, because the old hag doesn't even stand up. Doesn't chase after the boy.
He just lets him go.
Ramona stares after him blankly, and the weight of the situation wouldn't hit her until much, much later.
✧
2019
Ramona wasn't lying when she said that she had a date. She went to a club not too far from the academy to find a good distraction for the night. It doesn't take much effort.
The others have looked down upon her sexual habits since she decided to stop aging. It's not wrong of her to still have sex with people. Sure, her license is a little hard to renew but she did stop aging at eighteen. She chose that age for its malleable nature. It's old enough to buy cigarettes and it's young enough to reel in the worst of the worst when needed.
First, she danced with a boy. Then she danced with a girl. Now it's a sweaty dancing sandwich, but Ramona can't find it in her to care—as long as she's in the middle. She loves the attention. The music is loud; the bass pounds in her chest. Pink, purple, and blue lights flash around them. It's a surreal experience, especially with her eyes closed. Her powers give her an echolocation of sorts, but instead of seeing with sound, her abilities map out the area around her. She can almost feel every nick and cranny in the room. Moments like these, Ramona never wants to leave them.
But duty calls.
A young man brushes past the trio, his hand barely touching Ramona's elbow, and she recognizes him to be the one she's been waiting for. She slips from between her partners, promising to be right back, and follows him through the crowd of people.
He walks with purpose, clearly searching for a target. But the susceptible people around them are too inebriated to realize how he stalks around them. They're too busy dancing, singing, kissing, and laughing. As they should be. These people want to enjoy life for the beautiful thing it is. Anyone who would rip such a thing away for their own sick desires deserves to be crushed under Ramona's heel.
She trails her fingertips up the young man's shoulder and he turns, looking down upon her small form. She smiles at him, just crooked enough to imply that she isn't sober and wicked enough to draw him in. She stands up on her tip toes to whisper in his ear, past the pumping bass and dancing bodies. "Hi. You're really handsome."
And he is. He has dark brown hair and medium brown skin. He smiles down at her and it's dazzling. Straight, white teeth and dazzling green eyes. A charmer for sure. It seems to take no effort.
"You're not so bad yourself, sweetheart." He murmurs in response, breath rustling the hair at the nape of her neck.
Despite the monster stood before her, Ramona is excited. Her blood is pumping and her cheeks are flushed. "You wanna get out of here?" She asks, brushing her hands up his forearms. He grins and bites his bottom lip, nodding. She takes him by the hand. "Come on."
Ramona leads him out of the club and into the nearest alleyway. She barely has time to react before he shoves her hips back against the brick wall. She giggles sweetly and brings his face down to kiss her. It's unsurprising that he's a good kisser.
After a long moment, she shoves him away. He looks down at her in confusion. "What?"
Ramona hums, wiping her lips with one finger. "I've got a bone to pick with you." She whispers with a grin, walking to meet him in the middle of the alley.
He cocks a brow. "Do tell." He says suggestively.
Her grin widens. "I heard . . . that you raped five college girls just down the road from here." She says it like it's a dirty secret, and his smile falls.
His jaw ticks. "You don't know what you're talking about."
Her fingers dance up his chest. "Actually, I do. I make a point to do extensive research before I . . ." Ramona trails off with a wicked smile. "Well, you're not gonna like it."
Suddenly, he goes flying backwards and his body slams into the brick wall opposite her. The impact is hard enough that it could be assumed he was hit by a truck. He's dazed, likely has a concussion. Unfortunately for him, she isn't done yet.
Ramona approaches him, walking so lightly that it's almost as if she's floating. She's no longer smiling as she trails a finger down his tear stained cheek. "You ruined the lives of those five girls. Now, I'm gonna ruin you." She tilts her head, looking deep into the eyes that are filled with terror. Under her gaze, he starts to seize. Blood trickles out of his eyes, mouth, and nose. He tries to yell but he can't. Tries to fight but he can't. She's much, much too strong.
She is inevitable.
Ramona smiles and watches the corpse collapse to the ground in a heap. He's not so pretty now.
She twirls on her heel and walks back inside, finding her partners from earlier waiting for her. They're happy and laughing and are all too eager to kiss her. She finds that these two are far better kissers than the man in the alley. Or maybe she's just drawn to good people.
✧
When she wakes, Ramona is in her own bedroom. Pillows and blankets are strewn about. The young man and woman from last night are long gone, the woman having left her phone number on the nightstand. Ramona smirks at the piece of paper.
The spell is broken when her bedroom door opens. None other than Klaus walks in, wearing ridiculous clothes and muttering under his breath about something professional. He stops at the sight of the mess and a grin splits his face. "My, oh, my! What do we have here?"
Ramona sits up with a sigh, uncaring that she is naked. Klaus likely won't remember this in a couple of hours, anyway. "I like to think it's representative of my culture, but to each their own." She mutters and slides out of bed. "What do you want?" She snatches her long, black robe from the vanity stool and slips into it.
Klaus makes a puppy face. "I need something professional, darling. Help a brother out?" Without asking, he walks right over to her closet and starts digging through it.
Ramona groans. "I don't have anything that would be professional for a stereotypical man, Klaus. I know you love skirts but I don't think that's the vibe you're going for right now." She grabs the pack of hemp cigarettes from her vanity and retrieves one. "Check Dad's stuff. He's got suits and shit." She lights the cigarette, breathing deep.
At that moment, Five walks in and sighs in exasperation at the sight before him. "I told you to check Dad's closet, not Ramona's." He snaps at Klaus. His gaze falls upon the messy bed. He then looks down at Ramona, who blows a puff of smoke in his direction. "Classy, as always."
She smirks. "I am nothing if not classy."
Five purses his lips. "I don't wanna know."
She rolls her eyes and grabs some underwear out of the top drawer of the dresser. "It's not filthy, you know." She snaps. "I'm well within my right to have a good time with good people." She wiggles into the underwear under the robe, successfully hiding the process. "Besides, you two idiots barged in on me."
Klaus makes a triumphant noise as he finds a blazer and sparkling v-neck blouse in Ramona's closet. "Perfect!"
"What the hell are you guys even doing?" Ramona asks.
"I'm pretending to be Five's father so we can get information on a glass eyeball." Klaus pipes up as he sheds his shirt and slips into the sparkly one.
Ramona cocks a brow and slowly rests her gaze on Five. She takes a drag. "Do tell."
Five sighs and reaches into his pocket. He pulls out said glass eyeball. "Whoever this belongs to, they're going to cause the end of the world."
Ramona blinks. And blinks again. "I'm sorry, what?"
"The apocalypse." Five grits. "The world ends in seven days."
She stares at him. "Well, I'd better get dressed, then."
✧
Wow, this dude is a piece of work. Ramona stands slightly behind Five, watching the exchange with interest. Five radiates frustration and Klaus is doing his best to appear professional.
"Like I said to your son earlier, any information about the prosthetics we build is strictly confidential. Without the client's consent, I simply can't help you." The man, Lance, says.
"We can't get consent if you don't give us a name." Five sneers and leans on the man's desk.
"Well, that's not my problem, sorry. Now, there's really nothing more I can do, so—"
"And what about my consent?" Klaus interjects.
Lance frowns. "Excuse me?"
Klaus leans forward. "Who gave you permission to lay your hands on my son?"
Five, Ramona, and the man all respond at once. "What?"
"You heard me."
"I didn't touch your son." He stresses.
"Oh really? Well how did he get that swollen lip then?" Klaus stands.
Ramona watches as Klaus rears back and slaps the shit out of Five. Ramona gasps and covers her mouth, out of shock and also to keep the laughter in.
"I want it. Name, please, now." Klaus says sternly and places his hands on the desk.
Five curses under his breath and touches a finger to his split lip. Ramona snorts and he shoots her a glare.
The man stands. "You're crazy. I need you to get out—" He starts towards Five but Ramona intercepts him.
"Wanna see a magic trick?" Ramona asks sweetly. Lance's entire body freezes in place. "I'm quite good at them. Now," she leans forward, placing her hands on the edge of the desk, "you will answer our questions, or I will turn your skull inside out." She waves her hand and he slams back down into his chair, eyes red with tears and terror. She just smiles. "I promise I can do it, Lance."
Klaus and Five share a cautious look.
He stares at her, terrified. "You're a monster."
"So I've been told." Ramona smirks. "Hop to it."
Lance stays far away from Ramona as he leads them to his archives. He pulls out a file, shooting Ramona a wary look where she stands by Five.
He looks down at the file. "Oh, that's strange."
"What?" Five asks impatiently.
"Uh, the eye. It hasn't been purchased by a client yet."
"What? What do you mean?" Klaus asks with faux interest and struts around the doctor.
"Well, uh, our logs say that the eye with that serial number . . . This can't be right. It hasn't even been manufactured yet." Lance looks back up at Five. "Where did you get that eye?"
They leave in haste, to say the least.
"Well, this is not good." Five grits as they walk outside.
"I was pretty good though, right? 'Yeah, what about my consent, bitch?'" Klaus giggles.
"Klaus, it doesn't matter." Five snaps.
"What? What's the big deal with this eye anyway?" Klaus asks, exasperated.
"There is someone out there who is going to lose an eye in the next seven days. They're gonna bring about the end of life on this Earth as we know it." Five replies sternly and turns away.
Klaus brushes it off. "Yeah, can I get that twenty bucks like now, or what?"
Five turns back and glowers at Klaus. "Your twenty bucks?"
"Yeah, my twenty bucks."
"The apocalypse is coming and all you can think about is getting high?"
"Well, I'm also quite hungry. Tummy's a rumbling." Klaus says and imitates the rumbles.
Five stands there, mouth agape. "You're useless! You're all useless!" He stomps around Klaus and Ramona and goes to sit on the steps.
"Oh, come on. You need to lighten up, old man." Klaus pauses and sits down beside Five. "Hey, you know, I've just realized why you're so uptight! You must be horny as hell! All those years by yourself, it's gotta screw with your head, being alone."
Five's jaw tightens and there's a far away look in his eyes. "Well, I wasn't alone."
Ramona's head whips around as she stares wide eyed at him.
"Oh? Pray tell." Klaus invites.
"Her name was Dolores." Five says softly. "We were together for over thirty years."
At his words, Ramona's stomach churns and she quickly looks away from the exchange.
"Thirty years? Oh, wow! God, the longest I've been with someone was . . . I don't know, three weeks?" Klaus' eyes close as he's absorbed into his memories. "And that's only because I was so tired of looking for a place to sleep." Ramona watches as Five huffs and disappears through a portal. Klaus doesn't notice. "He did make the most fantastic osso buco, though. It was . . ." Klaus leans over and realizes that Five is gone. "Five?"
Ramona jumps to her feet as she sees Five waves from the window of a taxi going by.
"What the fuck?" Ramona shouts.
"Hey, hey, hey! What about my money?!" Klaus shouts, except much louder. "Come on!" He groans.
Ramona curses under her breath and whips a hand out, yanking the taxi to an abrupt stop. She stomps over to it and gets in the back beside Five, who stares at her with irritation.
Ramona gives him a mocking look. "Oh sorry, were you going somewhere?
✧
Ramona follows Five into Gimble Brothers, a department store. It's dark outside by now. "Why are we here, again?"
He grabs a flashlight from a nearby display and clicks it on, shining it over shelves and clothing racks. "I'm looking for someone."
Ramona watches him wander for a moment before his flashlight stops on a cluster of mannequins. Her eyebrows furrow as a small smile spreads on his face and he walks towards the mannequins.
"Dolores," he breathes, talking to the mannequin in the middle. Ramona's jaw drops. "I've missed you." He chuckles. "Obviously. Well . . . it's been a rough couple of days."
"You've gotta be kidding me." Ramona growls under her breath before nearby clicks catches her attention. Her gaze falls upon two people walking towards them—with huge guns. Who the fuck are these people?
Five's eyes widen. "No!" He grabs Ramona and dives behind a nearby rack as they fire at the mannequins.
"Who the fuck is that?!" She shrieks at Five, crouching and following him through the racks of clothing.
"They're assassins." Five grits. Ramona expects him to continue but he seems to be done.
Ramona pauses. "I'm gonna distract them, you get out of here." She tells Five, who glares.
"Absolutely not."
"I can heal. You can't. Go." She seethes and shoves him away. He caves, and darts in the opposite direction.
"Who the hell is the girl?" She hears the woman mutter to the man.
"No idea. Must be working with him."
She pops up a good ways away from them, eyes already turning white. "Over here!" They whip around and start shooting. Their masks are illuminated now and they are hideous.
Ramona raises her left hand and the bullets freeze mid-air, two feet from her face. They stop firing at the sight.
"What the fuck?" The woman exclaims, then shrieking as Five appears and slashes her arm with a knife before disappearing as fast as he came.
Ramona smirks. With a whip of her arm, she sends the bullets flying back at them with as much strength as she can muster—which isn't as much as a regular firing of a bullet. Nonetheless, the shooters curse as the bullets go bouncing off of their chests and hands. With a burst of energy, the two go flying backwards, crashing into the mannequins.
She quickly ducks behind the racks again, taking a second to recharge before she runs back towards the front of the store, narrowly avoid bullets firing at her. Ramona jumps behind the counter, panting like crazy.
She can hear the fight getting closer and Five jumps over the counter with his mannequin under his arm, preparing to run, when the light from a gun shines on his face.
"I've got him." The woman says, but before she can shoot, police sirens start wailing and blue and red lights flash in the windows. This catches their attention and Five ducks under the counter next to her.
"The bastard jumped again." The man sighs.
"Come on, let's go." The woman says, just as frustrated.
Ramona and Five wait with bated breaths until they hear them leave. "Why the hell are assassins after you?" She whispers.
Five huffs. "Long story. We need to go." They stand and Five pulls her through a portal.
It's been so long since that happened that she finds herself nauseous as they arrive in the academy entryway. They tiredly trudge up the stairs. Unfortunately, they run into Allison and Luther at the top.
Allison's eyes widen. "Five? Ramona? What the hell happened to you?" She exclaims.
Luther frowns in concern. "Are you okay? Can we help?" He reaches towards Five but the boy is quick to snatch his big wrist out of the air.
Five hesitates. "There's nothing you can do. There's nothing any of you can do."
There's such finality to the statement that Ramona can almost feel his dread. Without another word, Five turns on his heel and continues upstairs.
Ramona watches him go for a second before following him. Allison and Luther watch them go, confused and worried. But they know not to overstep.
She follows Five to his room, where he shrugs out of his academy blazer and sweater to tend to the wound on his upper right arm.
Ramona snatches the supplies from his hands, much to his annoyance. She glares at him and he's forced to sit down on the bed. "Who are they? Why are they trying to kill you?"
"They work for my former employer. They're here to keep me from changing the timeline."
"They don't want you to stop the apocalypse." Ramona realizes as she sits beside him. She tosses her coat to the side and examines the bullet graze. It's not too bad.
"Yes."
"But why? You'd be saving billions of people." Ramona reasons, cleaning the wound.
"They don't see it that way."
"Too bad." Ramona snaps. "We're gonna save everyone. They can't stop us." She starts to sew it up, noting that he hardly moves or cringes as she does.
Five cracks a smile. "They can."
"They won't." Ramona then furrows her brows. "Did you, like, fuck a mannequin?"
Five sighs in exasperation. "Please don't."