𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝘀𝗵𝗲𝘀 ~ 𝗞𝗹𝗮𝘂𝘀 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗲𝘃𝗲𝘀

~ Chapter Sixty Three ~

After a long while of swerving and arguing about their next destination, Klaus reluctantly agreed to let Five see the big ball of twine in exchange for the birth mother and son visit. They pulled to the side of the empty road, and the retired time traveler excitedly got out and rushed to the mounted brown ball while the junkie briefly stared into nothingness. "I don't know why, but I thought it'd be bigger," Number Four finally spoke, turning and walking towards his brother.

"Seems pretty big to me," Five responded as he slightly adjusted his hat. "Hey Klaus, I got a question. How do you know your birth mother is in Pennsylvania?" Klaus took off his sunglasses, wiping the dark lenses before tucking them into his V-neck black shirt. "Well, I was on the ass end of a two-week bender, and I can't tell you the exact date because we were boofing Xanax and the whole business. But Amy Winehouse was at the top of the charts. So, that puts us somewhere in the mid to late aughts?" he rambled as Five waited for him to get to the point.

"A few years ago, I was looking for the key to Dad's safe in his office since he had Pogo lock up all the stealables. And instead of finding it, I found something else... an entire treasure trove worth of family secrets. It was all told in expired check stubs," Klaus watched the events replay in his mind like a movie he couldn't stop watching over and over. He recalled his fingers trembling as he flipped through the tiny pages, reading all the info he could find not only about himself but also his siblings.

"All of our birth mother's info were there, names, addresses. I was scared to look mine up. But in the back of my mind, I wondered why my mom sold me off for three grand. She could've held out for five or six." Five glanced down at the gravel, slowly nodding. Just like his brother, he had wondered about the identity of his birth mother. If he hadn't been adopted by Reginald, what life could he have lived?

"You said you read all our info? What did some of it say?" he inquired. "Mmm... Luther was born in Sweden. Diego's from... Mexico? Allison's from Africa, obviously I'm from Pennsylvania, Viktor's from Russia, and you and Dusky were born in New York!" At first, Five nodded. But as Klaus's last words echoed in his head, his eyes widened. 

"W-wait, what did you say?" He questioned. Klaus exhaled a sigh, hating the idea of having to repeat himself after the lengthy explanation. Just as he started repeating their sibling's original birthplace, Five interrupted. "No no, you said me and Dusk are from New York. What do you mean?" "What I mean is... that night I read through your check stub, I saw another baby's info under yours. Labeled Number 8," the junkie clarified. Five scoffed and tried to deny it, thinking it was some sick joke. He thought there was no way Dusk could be his twin. And even if he did have a blood-related sibling, how was he supposed to believe it when he never felt a connection? "That's not even funny, Klaus," He spoke lowly.

"I know what I saw, Five!" Klaus insisted, a hint of whining at the end of his sentence. "Alright, explain to me this. Twins are supposed to have a bond. If Dusk is even in the slightest chance my twin, how come I never felt it?!" Through all those years keeping this a secret, Klaus never thought he'd have to convince Five or Dusk to believe this discovery. He had never been good at it, but surprisingly the explanation came out smoother than butter.

"One, Dad always kept us separated when he conducted his... experiments. And two, you jumped into the future and got stuck, so that bond never connected you both." Klaus stared at his brother, watching the look on his face change. It seemed like Five was starting to believe it. He tried searching through his memories, hoping to remember the day he was born, perhaps even uncover the mystery.