17 years ago. 

Every little kid dreams of having superpowers when they're little. 

Whether it be invisibility, flight, teleportation, mind reading; every little kid wished they had something that made them special compared to their classmates or siblings. They read about their favorite superheros—Bat-Man, Superman, Spider-Man—and had a dream that one day, they would be able to save the world, too. 

Latavia Hargreeves will tell you being a hero isn't all that.

There aren't any intergalactic monsters you need to battle, or a universe that needs saving. There wasn't even the fun of keeping your identity hidden—the only similarity Latavia Hargreeves shared with Peter Parker was that she wore a mask when crime fighting.

In the Umbrella Academy, being a hero meant routine. Every day she was woken up by her mother, sent to breakfast where she sat straight and ate in silence, was forced into hours worth of training and learning which left her exhausted. She was then spectated by her father—which either ended in tears leaving her eyes or a small hint of pride from Reginald—and then, after a light dinner, was sent right back up to her room to go to sleep so she'd be ready to do it the exact same thing tomorrow.

To Via, there wasn't anything that much fun about having superpowers—at least, not until missions.

Missions were Via's chance to truly show what she had in her. There was no Reginald to criticize on the spot—she could use her powers how she wanted to. Be the hero that she and her siblings were supposed to be under the name 'Umbrella Academy'

So, fists clenched against her sides, Via can't help but smile as she walks into a giant bank.

Today was their first real mission. One where they'd be revealed to the world instead of secretly helping on small things. Today was their day. 

The mission was easy; there were robbers inside of a bank, holding many people hostage. The kids just had to set the men, women, and children who were being held free and fight off the robbers—by whatever means necessary, Reginald had said. 

So, here Latavia was, filing into the bank behind her siblings—well, almost all of them. Vanya was left to watch the mission with Reginald, given she didn't have any powers to benefit the group. Via always felt bad for her sister, but maybe their father was right.....it would be risky if Number Seven joined them without a power to defend herself and the group with. She wouldn't help them. 

"Could you be any slower?" The harsh whisper came from Number Two, who stood down the hallway with an unimpressed expression. Diego always wanted to be on top of it during missions—father wouldn't be happy if he knew Number Eight was taking her time. 

Via grabs her mask from her pocket, rolling her eyes. "Hold your pearls. I'm right here."

Latavia sticks her tongue out at Diego as she passes by him, the boy following after her to meet the rest of their siblings in the next room. Luther was running outside a side door, while Allison glanced back at the incoming teens, ushering them to follow her with a gesture of her hand.

Here went nothing. 

The remaining siblings all split up, hiding around different corners. Via glances around, capturing the clumps of people with tape over their mouths and fear widened eyes—clearly the hostages—and other men with walkie talkies and guns in their clammy hands—the robbers. 

Allison walks forward to a tall man, rocking on her heels. The man has a walkie to his ear, "Now you've put me in a position where I gotta do something I don't wanna do, hm?Shit!"The man double takes the young girl next to him, "Hey! Get back with the others!"

"I heard a rumor..." Number Three begins.

The man—still thinking she was a hostage—furrows his brows. "What? What did you say?"

"I heard a rumor...." Allison leans forward, putting a hand to her mouth as if she was telling a secret. The man cluelessly leans down to listen, missing the Hargreeves' smirk. "....that you shot your friend in the foot."

Latavia smiles at her sister. She always found Allison's power rather cool—she could make anyone do anything with a simple phase. 

Her power takes over the robber's mind, his eyes clouding over. He raises his gun and aims it right at his friend, who barely has time to exclaim before a bullet enters his foot. The other robber collapses to the ground in pain, writhing around.

The sound of breaking glass echoes through the walls of the bank and suddenly, with almost perfect timing, Number One comes falling from above. Shards of glass clink around him as he lands on the ground, barely recovering before punching the robber behind the counter and throwing his body right out the window. 

"Show off!" Via scoffs, strutting out from behind the corner.

Diego comes dashing past her, knives in his clenched hand. "Guns are for sissies! Real men throw knives!" He whips the weapons forward, the knives piercing the air before turning at the last moment, striking another robber against the wall with acute accuracy. 

"My turn," Number Eight smiles, skipping past her siblings—who were all busy punching and fighting the remaining robbers—to a single one standing in the corner. He had a gun in his grasp, but his hands were rather shaky and he seemed more anxious than any of his partners.

It sucked that she was going to have to kill him. 

"Hi," Via greeted, voice soft as she sent the man a light wave. The robber turns around, shakily holding his gun up to her. 

He looked scared as he held her at gunpoint, "I-I don't want to shoot a kid." 

Latavia looked at the fear imminent in his eyes, and almost hesitated on using her powers. After all, this guy didn't deserve to die, did he? He was going to jail sure, but he had to have a family. Someone who wanted him alive?

"Compassion is a weakness, Number Eight." Her father's voice rings through her mind. He spoke those words every time she was against killing something with her powers—she'd much rather try and heal. "You are not here to save them. You are here to eliminate threats." 

Via didn't hesitate before locking her eyes on the man. She puts all her concentration on the sound of his heart and quickly tilting her head to the side, the drumming rhythm in her ears suddenly halting.

The man barely has time to process what's happened to him before he limply collapses onto the linoleum floor.

Latavia doesn't spare his body another glance before skipping towards the rest of her siblings, who started to crowd around the final robber—the leader, whom Allison had rumored earlier. He stands atop the counter, gun darting between each sibling with fear.

Who the fuck were these kids? 

"And then there was one," Via murmured, staring up at him.

He points it at Number Eight, "Get back you freaks!"

Diego smiles, "Hey, be careful up there, buddy."

"Get back now!" 

"Yeah," Allison hums in response to Number Two's teasing, "Wouldn't want you to get hurt."

Latavia crosses her arms over her chest with an innocent expression, "We're just having some fun." 

"Get back or—"

There's a blurb beside the robber and suddenly, Number Five appears sitting cross legged next to him with a smile. "Or what?" 

The robber immediately starts shooting his gun where the boy was, but before the bullets could even leave the weapon, Five spacial jumped away. Shots echo through the bank, but hurt no one as the man shoots at nothing.  

Five reappears at the man's other side, and the man quickly whips around and brings his gun to the boy's chest. Except....his weapon wasn't much of a gun anymore—instead, in his hand, there was a stapler.

"Ooh! That's one badass stapler!" Five exclaims with amusement as the robber stares down at his stapler with confusion. Number Five takes this as his chance and grabs ahold of the man's arm, knocking the stapler against his forehead.

Blood trailing down his forehead, the robber falls backwards off the counter.

Via smiles at her brother. This mission was going perfect.  

There are more sounds heard from behind the counter, and the siblings all maneuver to stand in front of the door leading to the vault. Luther looks to one of his shorter brothers, nodding towards the door with a firm expression.

Ben slowly steps forward, his hesitance clear in his voice. "Do I really have to do this?"

"Come on, Ben." Number One instructs. Reginald had assigned him as the leader, which meant he made sure everyone did their jobs. "There's more guys in the vault."

Number Six sighs and puts his hand on the door handle. "I didn't sign up for this." 

Ben opens the door and enters the room, Latavia coming forward and shutting the door, knowing it would get gruesome. She then glances at the hostages huddled in the corner, duck tape covering their quivering lips and tying their hands together.

They had witnessed everything—the chaos, the violence, the cold efficiency with which she had dealt with the robber, the way Five had jumped in and out of places, Luther falling from the sky, Diego killing one robber with his knives.

"It's okay," Via said gently, her voice calm and steady. "You're safe now. Let's get you out of here."

Latavia starts walking towards the entrance doors, the hostages all following her with caution. She makes quick work of leading them past the unconscious, groaning, and dead robbers her siblings had taken care of. She could feel their eyes on her, a mix of gratitude and apprehension. They didn't know what she was, or what her siblings were—yet, at least. 

If today went well, the Umbrella Academy would be known worldwide in no time.

Via opened one set of entrance doors and stood flat against it as all the hostages started to run around her, screaming. 

Watching them all, one of the hostages catches Via's eyes—well more so the cut on her arm. Without thinking, Number Eight grabbed hold of the woman's arm, placing a hand over the wound. The hostage tried to get out of the hold, but Latavia manages to concentrate on the fibers and tissue within the skin and muscle below faster.

  A warm glow spread from her fingertips, and the cut sealed itself within seconds. 

The woman gasped, her eyes wide with shock and awe. Via gave a small smile and turned around, running right back to her siblings before the hostage could try and thank her. 

Father wouldn't be too happy that she used her 'weakest' power on a hostage, but it made Latavia feel good.

When she got back to her siblings, Number Eight watched as a shadow of tentacles danced behind the cloudy windows of the wall. Screams echo and blood splatters against the glass, the tentacles flying.

But, just as soon as it started, the tentacles suddenly disappeared and the door opened. Ben steps through, blood covering his entire body and staining his uniform. He looks between his siblings, humbly asking, "Can we go home now?"

"After Dad's speech." Via rolls her eyes, knowing the old man would most certainly have some kind of speech to make to the crowd, who was no doubt filming and watching then scene.

Luther nods at Number Eight. "We should start heading out. He's probably waiting."

The seven children start heading to the front doors, stepping over the bodies of those they harmed. Press waits for them outside, the sound of cameras clicking and a flood of voices filling her ears. Different forms of law enforcement have their brows furrowed as seven kids in school uniforms come out of the building, untouched.

The kids all get into a line for photos, Latavia moving beside Ben to take the place of Vanya.

"Lower your weapons!"

"Who are you?!"

 Camera's click and different reporters and people scream for answers. 

Luther waves with a charming smile. Diego and Allison smile and turn to the side for a photo. Klaus leans his arm on Five's shoulder, who gives smile amusedly. Ben looks down at his shoes, and Via gives her most innocent smile, bumping her shoulder against Number Six to try and lighten his mood.

Out of the entire group, Ben was the one who liked missions the least. He always hid away when the alarm rang, and the group wasted time trying to find him—to which he was always found in the library with a book, or trying to convince Vanya to take his place instead.

"Can you tell us what happened inside?" 

The group stayed silent, not answering the crowds questions. Latavia stayed smiling until her father ultimately made his appearance, monocle sitting atop his eye which made him look more authoritative than anyone else here. 

"Our world is changing. Has changed." Reginald smiles at the cameras, pacing back and forth in front of his team. The crowd snaps images and listens in intensively. "There are some among us gifted with abilities far beyond the ordinary." The children all smile brightly. "I have adopted seven such children." 

Via kept her smile up, despite knowing he adopted eight. But, Reginald didn't want anyone to know about Number Seven—she was powerless, not special. Not like her siblings. 

"I give you the inaugural class of the Umbrella Academy." 

Reginald steps back to show off the children. Via smiles as the cameras continue to click.

Latavia doesn't care about the people her and her siblings harm on these missions.....not when they get attention like this. It made all the training and tears and yelling worth it to see people's awe-struck and amazed expressions. To hear the click of the cameras that were capturing their faces, putting their story in the next edition of the papers. 

"Mr. Hargreeves! Mr. Hargreeves!" A reporter calls out, holding her microphone out to the elder man, "Channel Nine news. What happen to their parents?"

Reginald simply answers, "They were suitably compensated." 

"Are you concerned about the welfare of the children?"

"Of course." The billionaire huffs, "As I am for the fate of the world."

At the time, Via believed him. 

mara's misc!

early update because i start school today!!

anywho, this is more of like a prologue than a chapter. a little introduction to her powers and who she is. 

season one is a little slow to write, BUT since this book is a re-write, i do have some stuff to base off of for the first like 4ish episodes. as of now, i have like 2 1/2 chapter pre-written and i'm not sure when i'll start updating, but hopefully soon!

hope you enjoyed <3 see you back with chapter one!!