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It wasn’t every day that you found a secret elevator in your childhood home, but Klaus Hargreeves was incredibly glad he had.
“Do you think it leads to something dangerous?” Ben wondered aloud.
“Knowing dad, maybe.” Klaus paused. A disgusted yet amazed expression covered his face as he yelled, “What if dad had a secret sex dungeon?!”
“Don’t give me that mental image! I’m already dead, isn’t that enough?”
Klaus was about to step in without another word (though a million questions were running through his mind) when Diego caught him. “What the hell is that?”
“The elevator to dad’s secret sex dungeon.” Klaus replied matter-a-factly.
Diego chose not to respond to that. “If you’re getting in there I’m coming with you, it’ll be just our luck that it breaks and you’re stuck there when we need you during the apocalypse.”
The further they went down in the elevator, the more unsure they became about whether or not it had been a good idea. They were drenched in darkness except for the flashes of dim light that went by periodically, and illuminated by that very same dim light when they reached the bottom and stepped into the long hallway. Both men stared down at the end of the hallway, looking at what appeared to be a vault, and something, or someone, was inside of it.
Klaus and Diego slowly crept over to it, on guard and ready to either fight or run in case whatever was in the vault could get out on its own. However, halfway to it they could easily recognize it, or rather, her.
“Vanya?!” Klaus gasped.
The two men ran the rest of the way, watching their sister see them and start pounding on the door of the vault. Diego immediately turned the hatch and pulled it open and Vanya practically leapt out and into the comfort of Klaus’ waiting arms, uncontrollably sobbing and choking out a thousand ‘I’m sorry’’s as best she could.
Diego held her hand and Klaus saw Ben put a hand on her shoulder.
“I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry!” Vanya sobbed. “I swear I didn’t mean to!”
Klaus held her tighter. “We know, and Allison knows too.” The mention of Allison sent a fresh wave of tears down her face.
“Vanya,” Diego started. “What happened? Why were you locked down here?”
Vanya took a shaky breath. “I-It was Luther. I came by a-and he knocked me out and he must have th-thrown me i-in here. I-I just woke up a-and I-I was panicking a-and-” She continued to cry into Klaus’ shirt.
Diego and Klaus shared a look. Of course it was the high and mighty Number One. He was always their father’s golden boy, and even after finding out that his whole ‘important moon mission’ was a sham, Luther would apparently still follow their father’s lead whether he knew it or not.
“Let’s get you upstairs with a blanket and some coffee, huh?” Klaus suggested, pulling away from the hug and starting to lead Vanya down the hallway.
She resisted. “But what if Luther-”
“He’s not here,” Diego reassured, “He just left to go buy more medical supplies for mom, he’ll be gone for a while.”
Vanya visibly calmed down and let her brothers take her down the hallway and to the elevator, the whole time clinging to them.
They had passed by Grace on their way to the kitchen after the elevator ride and, upon seeing just how upset Vanya looked, she had wasted no time in enveloping her in a hug only a mother could give. Grace then took over leading Vanya to the kitchen, holding her around the shoulders and reassuring her that everything would be okay. Klaus meanwhile grabbed the closest blanket he could find in the living room and rushed after them.
A few minutes later, Vanya was wrapped up in the blanket and sipping at the hot coffee that Grace had just made. She sat in silence for a while, guiltily enjoying the comfort she was feeling. Diego had left a few minutes prior but stated he’d be right back. Klaus stayed with her and held her hand while he sipped his own coffee and Grace was humming while preparing lunch.
Five suddenly walked into the kitchen and poured himself a cup of coffee, thanking all that was good under his breath that it was actually decent, and sat down next to Vanya. Before she could speak he said, “I like what you did to Harold Jenkins. I only wished I had seen it.”
Tears started to well in her eyes. “Five-”
“I’ve killed countless people, Vanya, so that doesn’t bother me. What bothers me is that dear old dad was shittier than I realized.” He took a sip of his coffee and placed a hand on her shoulder, “You’re my sister and I care about you, and I’m sorry for not being here for you, even when I was still here.”
Vanya’s response was a tearful smile, but it vanished the second Diego entered the room with Allison by his side. Vanya rose from her seat and walked around the table, hesitantly pausing as she got closer to her sister. A new waterfall of tears ran down her cheeks as she stared at the bandage across Allison’s neck, remembering the horror that had occurred between them.
“A-Allison…” She sobbed, barely getting it out.
Allison handed her a notepad, and on it it read: “I’m sorry for what happened and I’m sorry for every horrible thing I did to you. I promise to be better if you’ll allow me. I love you.”
Vanya sobbed again, dropping the notepad and rushing into her sister’s arms. The two of them held each other for a few minutes, saying all of the ‘I’m sorry’’s and ‘I forgive you’’s and ‘I promise’’s in the embrace alone. Their brothers watched them and while Klaus would later not deny tearing up over the moment, Diego and Five would (and Klaus would give them away behind their backs).
Luther eventually came home. And he wasn’t happy when he learned what had gone on.
After a frustrating screaming match Luther left again, leaving Vanya, who had listened to the whole thing from upstairs in Grace’s seating area, crying into her mother’s arms. Klaus’ heart broke at the sound of it.
He took off to the front entrance, announcing to the room, “I’ll be back soon. Maybe later.”
“Klaus, where are you going?” Ben asked him.
“You’ll see.” He smiled.
After Klaus had returned he hid away in the living room for an hour and finally, using his trusty bell, called his siblings down from wherever they were. The rest of the Hargreeves children, sans Luther, all entered the living room together and saw just exactly what Klaus had planned.
“Ta-da!” Klaus sang, waving his arm to present it.
The living room was decorated like a janky pinterest photo in a heart warming kind of way. Mis-matched blankets and pillows were made up on the floor that Klaus described as a ‘pillow fort gone wrong’ with extra blankets and pillows for ‘super comfy-ness’ and fairy lights draped over the couch. An old yet functional projector was set up behind the seating and a screen was in front of it.
“I’ve also got ice cream in the freezer and popcorn waiting to be popped, any questions?”
Diego raised his hand. “Did you get any actual good movies?”
“I got the only good ones one can find on a Friday night at the nearest rental store, ‘Legally Blonde’, the first live action ‘Scooby Doo’ movie, and ‘Barbie in The Princess and The Pauper’.” Klaus replied. He turned to look at Vanya, who was still examining the room, and addressed her, “I know you haven’t had the greatest of days, so I wanted to at least end it right for you.”
Vanya started to cry for the last time that day and with a big smile on her face she hugged her brother and whispered: “Thanks.”
The rest of the day was spent cuddled up on the floor with bowls of popcorn and ice cream and more cups of coffee as they laughed together and at the movies. There wasn’t much joking around during ‘Legally Blonde’, however Klaus did throw popcorn at the heroine’s ex-boyfriend and Five was surprisingly impressed by the climax of the film.
They laughed at some of the lame parts of the Scooby Doo movie, but the biggest laugh was when Scrappy Doo became a hulking monster and Diego quietly gasped and said, “Oh my god, it’s Luther.”
The siblings were laughing so hard at that that they had to pause the movie and clam down before continuing.
The only thing said about ‘Barbie in The Princess and The Pauper’ was Klaus stating that the next time he watched it he was gonna get high just to see how crazy it got, and Diego and Five agreeing to kill Klaus if they got any of the songs stuck in their heads.
(The next day they did and Klaus hid from them under Vanya’s bed)
When the last movie finished they were all too tired and too comfy to go to their own bedrooms and unanimously voted to crash where they were. They snuggled in a bit more and once again promised Vanya that from now on they would be better siblings for her, and help her understand and control her powers.
It was going to take time, not just the training, but with the promise. And with Vanya feeling loved. She could hear that her family loved her a million times, but it would still take time for her to truly believe it. And she eventually would one day, when Five would pour her a cup of coffee in the morning, when Diego would give her a bear hug when she came home from violin practice, when Allison would leave her notes of encouragement in her violin case before every performance, and when Klaus would comfort her after a rough day.
And Luther would come around. Little by little, one day enough for Vanya to know that he’s growing and another day knowing that he does care for her.
And another day in the future, she’ll tell Klaus that she’s glad he found the secret elevator too.