Chapter Text
Number Five isn’t a snoop.
They were being too loud. Five wasn’t eavesdropping, he was just listening very closely to the boys behind the door who were talking way too loudly. That’s all.
Five isn’t a snoop.
He isn’t.
But when he hears silent weeping coming from Klaus’ room, he can’t help but to stop and listen. It’s Klaus! That’s his brother. Whom he cares for very dearly.
He’s surprised to hear the sound of Diego’s voice, unusually soft and quiet talk to Klaus, “It’s a-alright, buddy, I’m here.”
He peers through the crack in the door and sees Klaus with his hands around his head, trying to block out every sound. He’s rocking hard and fast, as his body trying to soothe itself. His eyes are closed tightly. The bags under his eyes are deep and dark. He’s pale. He’s too skinny. His hair is greasy. He… only has one sock on?
All these things Five notices in a matter of seconds are the things he worries about Klaus on a pretty regular basis. Klaus fiddles with his hands under the table instead of eating at dinnertime, and when Five asks, he always says he isn’t hungry. Five doubts that. He’s seen Klaus eat an entire whole pizza and drink a two-liter of Mountain Dew all by himself, and still have room for ice cream.
“No, no, no… please go away…” Klaus whimpers. He pushes his face further into Diego’s chest, as Diego pets his hair. Diego keep repeating phrases that are calming, and will hopefully comfort Klaus down this late night. Instead of the fast pace rocking that Klaus reduced himself to, which only seemed to agitate him further, Diego forces them to rock at a smooth, slow pace.
A few minutes pass by, and Klaus is no longer scratching at his ears. Diego’s humming a tune. Klaus’ breathing regulates with Diego’s rocking. Slow and smooth. His eyes are closed peacefully, not painfully. He’s no longer clenching his jaw, nor is he tensed up like he was before.
He’s sleeping , Five pondered.
Number Five chooses that moment to walk in, now that Klaus has finally calmed down into a state of unconsciousness. It’s better to talk to him this way.
Diego pauses from his humming, not even looking up from Klaus’ sleeping figure, to ask, “What?” His humming continues.
Five raises his eyebrow, “What’s wrong with him?” Five isn’t an idiot. He knows what’s wrong with Klaus. But this isn’t the time to be smart. Now is the time to let Diego be Mother Hen to Klaus and worry about him, not spend time being bitchy to Five.
After a moment, Diego finally looks up at him. His eyes are red-rimmed, and he’s pale. “The voices… the d-dead, or whatever he calls them, they’re getting louder,” he explains, “His attacks getting worse. I don’t know w-what to do."
Diego looks to Klaus once more, “I don’t know how I can help him. I-I don’t even know if I can .” Five hears his voice getting choked up, and he know if he looked at his face, Diego would be close to tears.
Five isn’t sure when they decided to become close. They just… were. One day, Five noticed that Diego was fiercely protective over Klaus, and Klaus defended Diego at every turn. They both had each others backs. When Luther decided to be "Number One", Klaus shut him down, reducing him to a few stuttered phrases at a time. Five thought it was awesome. Allison was upset, naturally. When Diego found out about The Mausoleum, he didn't give a shit whether or not Dad punished him. He demanded that those trips would stop. They didn't right away. But soon after, Allison told him off as well. After that, Five. Then Ben, then Vanya, and finally, even Luther, the Daddy's Boy. He stopped after that, but only because the children stopped training all together, forming one huge strike against him. Dad begrudgingly stopped locking him in there for hours at a time. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to work. Klaus was still being bombarded with the spirits of the dead, and Dad wasn't doing anything to stop it. In fact, he welcomed it.
That bastard.
But don't get Number Five wrong, they also did stupid things, like have a secret handshake that they add more moves onto everyday. They sang ridiculous songs together. They snuck out ice cream after bedtime together. They were what 11 year olds were supposed to be together.
They were kids together.
But they were also extremely loyal to one another.
Which, Five put together, is why Diego is broken about this. Everyone knows that Klaus suffers from his powers more than he gains from them, like Ben. The dead don’t care if he’s an eleven-year-old boy, they will do whatever it takes to do what they need to, whether that’s talking to someone for the therapy, or trying to coerce Klaus in an unfriendly way do their unfinished business.
Five understands them. He really does.
But they’re jackasses to do this to an eleven-year old . He won’t apologize for wishing they would just stay dead.
Klaus is knocked-out for the night, Five can plainly see, so he turns around and leaves without another word. He hopes Diego is relieved with his sudden absence.
This interaction gets Five thinking, though. There has to be something to help with Klaus’ sensory attacks. Maybe some expensive earplugs? But what about the voices in his head? What then?
This is bigger than Five. He needs help.
So he calls up two of the smartest people he knows.
Number Six and Number Seven.