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Allison’s invitation to talk had come out of the blue. The last anybody had seen of her was during their final stand in Oblivion. Since then, it had been radio silence. When the rest of the family met a few weeks after their escape, they had discussed Allison’s absence and questioned whether she would even want to be found, but, to Five’s knowledge, no one had reached out.
So, a few months later, when Five came home to find a letter on his bed, simply including an address, a date, a time and his sister’s signature, he had been relieved to see that she had made the first move.
On the assigned date and a few minutes early, Five stood before an ordinary little house out in the suburbs. It hadn’t been difficult to find, with a bus route that dropped him off a few streets away, but he had noted that the address was on the other side of town to the Academy and, as a result, very out of the way.
In the days before and even on the bus journey over, Five had contemplated whether accepting the invitation was a wise move. There was a lot of water under the bridge which nobody had dared to cross. A lot had happened at the Hotel Obsidian that had changed them as a family. He knew that they had never been the closest of siblings, even before his jump to the future and Ben’s death. Nevertheless, the brief time spent with them after he broke his contract with the Commission had only reaffirmed his belief in the importance of his family. For better or for worse, they were connected and today would show how strong that connection remained after being pushed to its breaking point.
With a deep breath, Five stepped forward and knocked on the front door. He grimaced as the sound rang out, louder than expected, but thankfully it didn’t seem to disturb the tranquillity ushered in as day transitioned to night. After about a minute, Five heard rushed footsteps approaching from the other side of the door. He turned back to the house, ready to face the sister that he hadn’t seen in months.
‘I’m coming.’ Allison called from behind the door. ‘With you in a minute.’ Five smirked as he recognised an apologetic tone to her voice. He heard the keys jangle in the lock and the door swung open to reveal his sister. When she laid her eyes on her oldest brother, her face did betray an element of surprise but, ultimately, showed her joy at his arrival.
‘Allison. Long time no see.’ Five raised his eyebrows as he said her name and gave her his warmest smile, hoping to disarm any worries that this meeting could descend into something more serious so early in the evening.
‘Five! It’s…It’s so good to see you. Please. Come in.’ Allison stepped aside and let her brother cross the threshold before she closed the door behind him. He removed his shoes and left them by the front door before placing his jacket on the coat rack. There was a single corridor before him, with the stairs on the left leading up to the first floor. A door at the end of the hallway led to the main living area and a small kitchen sat to his right. There was something fresh and spicy cooking that made Five’s stomach grumble. Hopefully the invitation extended to dinner.
‘You’ve got a lovely place here.’ Five said, admiring the simple décor. This was clearly a new home for Allison. He could see a few taped and unopened cardboard boxes piled up in the living room and picture frames leant against the wall ready to be hung in place.
‘Thanks. Y’know, it’s getting there. Just trying to make it more homely for…’
‘Who’s at the door, mommy?’ Five’s eyes snapped to the top of the stairs. A little girl, no older than five years old, was sat on the top step, clinging to the banister with one hand and rubbing her tired eyes with the other. She was wearing a pyjama onesie covered in little blue stars and her hair was big and curly, clearly having just been washed. Allison smiled at her daughter and climbed the stairs to join her. As the child noticed the visitor in her house, she tilted her head inquisitively before her tiredness seemed to vanish and recognition set in. Her large round eyes became impossibly big, and a smile broke across her face.
‘Uncle Five! Uncle Five!’ Claire shouted in excitement as she started to make her way down the steps one by one. Five couldn’t help but smile as he watched his sister take his niece’s hand to try to slow her hasty progress down the stairs. Claire’s face constantly flicked between him and the steps that were in her way, clearly trying to reach him as quickly as her little legs would carry her.
Five got down onto his knees as she neared the bottom step. As she got closer, he tried to think of what he could say to her. What could he say to convey everything he’d wanted to tell her since that day in the apocalypse where he had learnt of her existence? He wanted to tell her that she was loved and that she would never be alone. He wanted to tell her that she was one of the reasons he had kept fighting to get home. The rest of his family had never truly understood their place in Five’s life and what they meant to him. How could he even begin to explain that to a five-year-old?
These thoughts soon disappeared as Claire knocked him backwards with the force of the hug she planted around his waist. It took a moment for Five to pull himself back to a kneeling position and find his balance. He stifled a laugh as he felt his niece clamber up to sit on his lap, still squeezing her arms around him and giggling with giddy excitement.
He returned the hug gently as he felt her nuzzle into his chest and lean her head on his shoulder. Five looked up to see Allison, now standing at the bottom of the stairs, her face beaming with pride. He nodded to his sister, hoping it would convey the gratitude that he had for her and being given this moment. Allison acknowledged the gesture and smiled as Five rested his cheek on the top of Claire’s head, trying not to let his tears show.
‘Hey Claire...’ He gulped, sounding quieter than he’d intended as his voice broke saying her name. ‘I’m so glad to finally meet you.’ He lifted his head and watched as she squirmed to get into a better position so that she could look right into his face. Her eyes were just like her mothers and her smile broke his heart.
‘And what was it you wanted to say, sweetheart?’ Her mom prompted.
‘Thank you, Uncle Five.’ Claire replied, sounding like she’d rehearsed what she was going to say. ‘I’m…I’m really happy you're here.’ Her excitement was palpable as Five watched his niece take in every little detail of this new person in her life. He knew that they were family, but to all intents and purposes, he was a stranger to her. He had been so grateful when he learnt that Allison had included him when speaking to Claire about her family. Especially when they didn’t know whether he would ever come back. And now, she was giving him the opportunity to be a part of their life, just like he had often dreamed on cold nights in a future that would never come.
‘M…Mommy said you went really far away and…and that’s why you couldn’t come and see us before.’ Claire recalled. ‘Where did you go?’ The question caught Five off guard. He knew that Allison told her daughter stories about the adventures of the Umbrella Academy, but he had never known how she addressed his disappearance or even Ben’s death, for that matter. Five looked to Allison for an answer. He didn’t want to break whatever illusion his sister had built for her daughter. A moment of uncertain silence passed between the three of them as Five hesitated. Allison left her place by the stairs, sat next to her brother on the floor and took her daughter’s hand in her own.
‘Well, when your mommy and your uncles were little, your Uncle Five had to go on a super special, top-secret mission. He was gone for a very, very long time and we missed him very much.’ Five kept a tight hold of his niece who didn’t seem to want to leave him alone. As she got comfy again, he turned to see that this tale wasn’t just for Claire. Allison’s eyes met his and he could see tears in her eyes even as she smiled through the story. ‘But he was very clever and very brave, and when he finished his mission, he came home. Hooray!’ Allison whooped, lifting her hands in celebration, while Claire copied her mom and clapped as the triumphant hero returned home. ‘You see, his mission was so important that when he came back, he helped to reunite the Umbrella Academy and together we saved the world.’ Five clutched Claire closer, if that was even possible, as Allison finished telling her story. His eyes welling up as he heard his sister recount his endeavours to her daughter. It was like something out of a dream.
‘You saved the world?’ Claire turned her head back towards Five, her eyes filled with complete awe and admiration as she awaited his reply.
‘Um...Yes, Claire. I suppose...I suppose we did. The Umbrella Academy saved the world.’ Five managed to choke out. Despite the tears still threatening his sight, he smiled at her and watched her face light up as her favourite superheroes succeeded yet again. Before he could say anything else, a timer rang out from the kitchen. Allison looked at her watch before pushing herself up from the floor.
‘Now Claire, I think that’s quite enough excitement for one night and look at the time. Do you have anything you’d like to ask your Uncle Five?’ She said as she stepped into the kitchen to check on dinner. At her question, Claire started to clamber off Five’s lap, her eyes filled with a hopeful excitement.
‘Please, will you read me a bedtime story, Uncle Five?’ How could he possibly say no to that smile?
‘Claire, I would love to read you a bedtime story.’ He confirmed to his niece's delight. She reached out her little hand for him to grab and before he knew it, she was leading him up the stairs to her room. She was reeling off names that he presumed were titles of her favourite books, but they could have been anything. He was just happy that she was excited. As they reached the top of the stairs, Five glanced back down to see Allison smiling. ‘Thank you, Allison. Truly.’
‘You won’t be saying that when you've read through her entire library.' She joked. Five didn’t care. He’d read to Claire all night if he had to. ‘Oh, when you’re done, make sure you put her night light on and just leave her door open a little. I’ll call up when the food’s ready. You hungry?’ Five nodded and rubbed his hands in anticipation of a delicious home cooked meal, before he felt Claire pulling on his arm. As he was led to her room, ready to read her bedtime stories, Five thought back to the day he’d returned from the Commission and laughed.
Lived long enough.