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The mansion was silent as Diego stomped down the halls, his face twisted into a scowl.
They’d had a huge blow up earlier, all the siblings. Well, not Vanya, who’d just stood in the corner and watched like always, something which always seemed to infuriate Diego that little bit more.
It had started as it usually did, with Luther saying something stupid, trying to boss them all around. Then Diego had muttered a crude retort, Allison had started to defend Luther, and Klaus had unhelpfully added his thoughts. It became clear then that Klaus was beyond drunk, high, and everything in between and that had brought Ben into the fold with his disapproving tone and annoyed face.
Diego’s not quite sure what happened then, because these arguments usually ended with him and Luther tussling around on the floor, but they’d all turned on Klaus and the whole thing ended up being an intervention of sorts.
Well, a failed intervention.
Instead of even trying to look guilty or remorseful, Klaus had just cackled with laughter as they turned more serious and tried to get him to engage.
Klaus had staggered around them with a dopey grin on his face as they each berated him for his drug habits and then enraged them all further when he reached into his pocket to produce two mismatched pills and happily threw them into his mouth.
“No, Klaus!” Ben had yelled, beyond exasperation as he lunged for his brother, but Klaus managed to dance out of the way just in time.
Luther started forward then, as if to corner Klaus, and they could all hear the trademark Reginald Hargreeves tone to his voice, “Klaus, I swear if you take those—Klaus!”
“Jesus Christ,” Diego finished, as his brother loudly crunched down on the pills, and then dutifully stuck out his tongue to prove that he’d swallowed them, “You can’t keep putting that shit in your body, Klaus, you’re going to kill yourself one day.”
They’d all had their share of guiding, or dragging in Diego’s case, a drunk Klaus back into his bedroom numerous times or covering for him in training sessions and dinnertime conversation when Klaus had blurted out something, high as a kite. They’ve all had the heart-stopping moment of finding Klaus passed out in the tub or in the hallway, and they all knew about that one time that he’d genuinely overdosed and ended up in the infirmary for days.
This had to stop, they all knew it.
Allison’s lips were pressed together tightly as she and Klaus stared each other down then, “I heard a rumour—”
“Don’t.” Suddenly the tone shifted, and there was no light note of humour in Klaus’ voice as he spoke, and his wide grin disappeared instantly as the words came out of Allison’s mouth, “You said you wouldn’t do it again. Not after last time.”
And clearly that was enough to halt their sister, even if no one else knew what was going on between them.
Then Ben said something along the lines of what he seemed to always be saying to Klaus those days, and that flicked Klaus’ switch back to his usual irritable self. Diego turned away from the commotion then, seething with frustration, and clenched his jaw with a sigh.
“You are so lucky Dad isn’t here,” and of course that was Luther. Diego rolled his eyes from his position facing the fireplace, and turned around just in time to see Klaus stick out his tongue at him, which only spurred Luther on to grab Klaus by the shoulders and shake him gently, trying to get a reaction. They could all see that Luther was being gentle, having had too much experience of not knowing his own strength with his siblings, but Klaus still looked too thin and delicate beside him.
Klaus simply slipped out of Luther’s grip though and skipped over to the threshold where Vanya was watching with wide eyes.
He heard Luther bark out another admonishment, his voice joining Ben’s in the rising noise, and Diego found himself shouting again with the frustration of it all.
The most infuriating thing was that Klaus didn’t even seem to be hearing them, his pupils dilated to the point where his iris colour wasn’t even visible anymore, and his face pale as could be. He looked sickly and his hands were shaking out of time to the tapping of his foot on the polished wooden floor.
But Klaus looked happy, overjoyed even, despite the clatter of voices yelling at him.
And that made Diego feel sick, that Klaus looked the happiest and most relaxed he’d seen him in months when he was literally poisoning himself.
Klaus stuck one hand into his jacket pocket and gasped comically as he pulled out a few pieces of lint, “Well looks like I’m out again!” He sang in that horribly off tune and squeaky voice, the one that he knew annoyed them all the most, “Thanks for the intervention, better luck next time!”
“Come on,” Diego yelled, because it always ended like this, and something had to change, “Klaus, pull yourself together, Jesus.”
Klaus hopped from one foot the other, his head tilted to one side as he met Diego’s furious gaze, “You kids don’t understand,” he laughed breathlessly, “You don’t know what this…” his thin pale hand gestured wildly to the room around them, “this hell is like for me. So if its cool, nah.”
He then stilled completely as if hearing something that none of them could hear, and for a split second Diego thought he was going to stop all the nonsense and listen to them, but instead he went into a deep curtsey.
Then, giving them the peace sign which turned into a rude gesture as he spun around, Klaus skipped out of the room, even jumping to click his heels together.
The front door slammed behind him then, and Diego flung a knife blindly into the wall where it embedded hilt deep just to try get the rage out of his system.
Allison stamped her foot with the frustration of it all, and Luther went as far to kick one of the couches, while Ben just focused on breathing deeply with his eyes closed and one hand over his heaving chest.
“Nice input,” Diego sneered at Vanya as he stormed out of the room, even though deep down he knew it wasn’t her fault. The fault was with those damn drugs and whatever else Klaus was putting into his body. He was annoyed though, that his sister hadn’t said anything, hadn’t seemed to pick a side in the situation.
He could hear Ben pulling on his coat and leaving the house after Klaus, and Diego just felt worn out. He didn’t know how Ben had the energy, every time, to keep trying with Klaus.
It was exhausting, watching someone self-destruct.