BEHIND THE SCENE: ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴇᴄʀᴇᴛ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ᴜᴍʙʀᴇʟʟᴀ ᴀᴄᴀᴅᴇᴍʏ || 𝗧𝗨𝗔

Chapter 26

She knew it was time to share her secret – a secret that had remained hidden for far too long.

"Guys," Katherine began, her voice steady but tinged with a hint of nervousness, "there's something I need to tell you. It's about my ability."

"Five made it back here through the portal. I made it back here by waking up," Katherine explained to Luther, leaving him puzzled.

"Waking up... What—"

Katherine began, her voice steady but tinged with emotion. "I have a unique ability. I can dream walk."

Diego raised an eyebrow, exchanging puzzled glances with Luther and Five. "Dream walk? What's that?"

Katherine leaned forward, her eyes locking onto Five's with a mix of intensity and tenderness. "It means that I can enter someone's dreams and interact with them as if I'm physically there. For a long time, it was just a way for me to escape reality, to be with the people I cared about when I couldn't be with them in the waking world."

Five's gaze softened, a spark of recognition flickering in his eyes. "You... you were there with me, in the apocalypse."

Luther leaned forward, his curiosity piqued. "So, you're saying that you were there with Five all along? Even when we didn't know about you?"

Katherine nodded, her eyes locking onto Five's once again. "Yes. It wasn't easy, and it came with a cost. Reginald... he found out about my ability and conducted cruel experiments on me to try and harness it. I endured unimaginable pain, wishing it would all just end. The day Dad called, telling me to go home and get Five, is the last time I used this body. I have a power called dream walking. I can appear in anyone's mind as if I'm with them physically. They can touch and see me. But the thing is, each day I use it, I become weaker. So Dad came up with the idea to freeze me below the Umbrella Academy, but some things happened," Katherine clarified, her tone casual as if discussing an ordinary topic.

Diego's expression hardened, his fists clenching involuntarily. "That monster. He never ceased to amaze me with his cruelty."

Five's eyes widened in realization. "That's how you were able to touch me and help me!"

Katherine nodded and took a deep breath, her voice wavering slightly. "But through it all, I held onto the connection with Five. I used my ability to try and find a way to help him escape the apocalypse. And then, when I was shot by the assassin, something changed. I lost some of my abilities—the self-healing and immortality that I had as a dream walker."

"So, you're saying..."

Five leaned forward, concern etched across his features. "Wait, you're not immortal anymore? Is that why you were hurt when you saved me from that explosion?"

Katherine nodded, a hint of sadness in her eyes. "Yes, the bullet caused a disruption in my abilities. I can still dream walk, manifest, and interact, but I'm not as invulnerable as I used to be."

Five reached out, his hand finding hers and giving it a reassuring squeeze. "You're not alone in this anymore, Katherine. We're a team, and we'll figure out how to deal with whatever comes our way."

Diego and Luther nodded in agreement, a renewed sense of unity settling among the four of them. Katherine smiled through a mix of emotions, feeling the weight of her secret lifted as she found herself embraced by the support and understanding of her newfound family.