THE THING WITH SORROW - The Umbrella Academy

Food and Fears

Elliot had finally been let free, and was more than happy to meet Zero.

The first thing she had told him was a thank you for looking after her dog while she couldn't, earnestly so.

He had shrugged, sheepish, saying it was nothing. Then he'd stuttered saying the only reason he didn't let him inside was because he was allergic, to which she'd then apologised for letting him on his couch with her. He had shrugged it off.

(Secretly Elliot was enjoying the dogs company, and could ignore his allergies for the sake of the well behaved fluffball.)

The second thing Zero had said was, more importantly,  "do you have any food?"

Because Zero was absolutely starving.

Given her fast metabolism, she needed more than the usual person to get by. Elliot was astonished at the amount of eggs and bacon she had eaten despite Diego claiming she most definitely could and would empty his fridge in one day.

He hadn't believed it then, but seeing was believing, and Zero finally had some decent energy after what felt like weeks.

"Are you even chewing?" Ben had asked, slightly disturbed.

She muttered under her breath, "you're just jealous you can't enjoy this food."

"I wouldn't want to," he had shot back. "You're practically slobbering all over it."

She had rolled her eyes, keeping an eye on the kitchen door just in case anyone walked in and found her talking to herself. She didn't fancy explaining that Klauses newly sober powers were reaching halfway across the city so she could hear her deceased friend talk.

"You know Bolt eats better than you."

"Fuck off."

Five had walked in with an empty coffee mug in hand then, shooting her a strange look.

"Sorry, not you."

"Don't tell me you've got imaginary friends now." He muttered, turning his back to her as he poured himself a fresh black coffee. "Or I'll have to drop you off where I found Diego."

"You can't even keep real friends, let alone imaginary."

Zero wished she could see where Ben was standing so she could throw a stick of bacon at him.

Instead, she narrowed her eyes at Five as he leant back against the counter and sipped his drink.

"Do I need to bring up Delores?"

"Low blow."

"The circumstances were a little different," he defended before he gave her an amused once over. "You're just crazy, Ze."

"It's in our DNA, brother. Don't think you can escape it."

He just shook his head and left the room, a tiny smirk on his face.

After eating properly for the first time in ages, she found herself exploring the apartment above the store, scanning the newspapers taped to the walls and cork boards with writing and strings attached. It looked concerningly like a serial killers basement, but Elliot seemed nice enough. Just a bit of a stalker. So she supposed it was fine.

She had certainly met worse in the last few months.

As she eyed the flyer with Klauses face plastered on it in a sketchy drawing, his hands up by his head revealing his palms and tattoos to the sky, she grew sad. Her fingers plucked it off the wall, scanning it - he was a cult leader and called himself the Prophet, which was the exact type of crazy shit she would expect from him. But still, she saw newspaper clippings referring to this prophet from well over a year ago - meaning he had been in Dallas the entire time that she was and hadn't once looked for her.