Prophet - Five Hargreeves X oc UMBRELLA ACADEMY

3

After a much needed shower, Anneli towel dried her jaw length hair and changed into some more comfortable clothes; a pair of tights, her usual boots, a black knee length skirt and an orange jumper tucked in. She just managed to lace up her boots and grab her bag before Klaus practically dragged her out of the flat and onto the nearest bus.

The cool air outside left the longer strands of her hair at the front curling slightly where they were still damp.

When they arrived outside the academy, Anneli's stomach churned at the thought of seeing all of her old acquaintances at once again after so long. The main thing she knew would shock them was the fact her physical body hadn't really aged since the last time they had seen eachother; she couldnt place it accurately, but she looked like a sixteen year old.

(She knew they'd ask questions, but she'd have to withhold the answers she knew they wouldn't be able to handle.)

Klaus got to his feet and pulled her along by the elbow despite her glaring at the back of his head all the way up to the wrought iron gates out front.

She swallowed thickly, the symbol of the umbrella emblazoned giving her a sense of deja vu. Klaus went to the front door and opened it slowly, frowning at the feeling of being anywhere near the house.

At the last minute, her eyes were drawn to the black door to the left of the academy. The old cracks in the frame, and the unkempt foliage out the front that had once been her job to tend to. The looming door stood in the corner of her vision like a shadow, lurking and making her hesitate.

A sudden terrifying thought hit her that the woman she hadn't seen in decades might open the door to see her then and there.

She snapped out of it when he called her name and followed Klaus into the foyer, sticking behind him and poking her head out over his shoulder to gaze at the high ceiling. The crystal chandelier above them, the grand winding staircases, it had all dazzled her when she was little.

It all brought a strange sense of comfort now despite the chill in the air the home always sustained.

"Make yourself at home." Klaus turned to her with his hands splayed at his sides.

She couldn't tear her eyes away from the gloomy decor and creepy paintings and statuets dotted around. As a child, being quite small, they had once intimidated her. Now they just looked like a dull design choice.

It was a lot to take in after so many years, she had almost forgotten what it looked like. There came a strange sense of foreboding that made Anneli's stomach turn, that she chalked up to being in such a grand, looming house.

It wasn't until her gaze fell past the fireplace in the room to their right did she pause. Her eyes fixed on the portrait above it, depicting a very, very familiar face that she had forgotten about until that very moment.

Her eyes became transfixed, eyeing the hair, the eyes, the uniform and serious expression she had recounted only a handful of times in her life.

"Oh, yeah, dear old Five," Klaus commented wistfully, watching her closely, feeling a sense of loss for his brother and frowning slightly. "Shame you never got to meet the asshole."

"I have a feeling we'd only try to kill eachother."

Anneli was staring directly into emerald painted eyes and it was as though he was staring coldly back at her. Seeing her. Watching her.