Klaus woke up early the next morning. Vanya was curled up on her side, still next to him in her bed, most of the covers pulled over with her. He didn't mind. It was her bed, after all.

The sky was still dark. There was the soft patter of steady rain on the cabin roof. Klaus guessed it was around five in the morning. Even though he had been clean for a long time now (maybe not a long time according to everyone else, but this was the longest he's ever been clean) he still wasn't used to sleeping a lot. The drugs used to keep him awake, along with the homelessness. The only time Klaus ever got a good night's sleep was when he spent the night in the hospital after overdosing or when he blacked out drunk on a park bench somewhere. His body got used to being awake for hours on end, learning to survive and be functional on little sleep. Some things never change.

He slid off the other side of Vanya's bed trying not to stir her, and crept across the creaky floorboards, not wanting to wake Allison either. He tiptoed downstairs to the kitchen to make himself a cup of coffee. If he was going to be awake at this hour, he didn't want to be groggy and sleepy, too. He looked at the clock: 4:56. Klaus forgot Diego was sleeping on the couch downstairs after he had made his coffee. Diego was a very light sleeper, always on high alert. He jumped off the couch, fully awake and ready to fight whoever or whatever the potential threat was. Klaus quickly calmed him down and sent him back to sleep. Klaus pulled open the back door to sit on the porch overlooking the ocean. Luther was already out there.

"What are you doing up so early?" Klaus asked provocatively.

"I could ask you the same question." Luther replied, sounding more defensive than he meant to. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that."

"No, no, no, it's all good." Klaus patted him on the shoulder and plopped down on the outdoor couch next to him. "So, what's up, big guy?" He took a sip of his coffee.

"I like to watch the sunrise every morning. It's nice to look at." Luther didn't say much else. He wasn't the chattiest of the Hargreeves. Klaus noted that that was his job.

"You know, when I was in Vietnam, sometimes Dave and I would stay up talking all night hiding in a Jeep somewhere where no one would see us together. And we'd be up talking so long that we'd eventually see the sunrise, too. Over there, the sky gets so red and orange. The clouds look like cotton candy. And it reflects off the dew on the grass and the trees of the jungle, making everything look like ice or glass." Klaus trailed off at the memory. "But, anyway... do you want some coffee?" He deflected. Klaus didn't like feeling vulnerable in front of anyone, except Dave, of course, but he wasn't here anymore.

"No, thanks. What was Dave like? If you don't mind me asking." Luther bit his lip nervously. He knew Klaus had a bad time toward the ending of his trip, but he didn't know many details, and he didn't want to pry if it was absolutely too painful to talk about. Luther didn't think Klaus would open up to him like he just had. They never were the closest, even when they were little. Luther had been trying to get to know his family, after realizing that he knew far little than he thought.

Klaus sighed. "Dave was the best. He's the only person I ever truly loved." The rain poured harder now. "He was a simple, Midwestern, Jewish boy. He took a lot of pride in his work, both at home and on the field. And he progressed up in the army until he was fighting on the front lines. And somehow, I went with him. I wouldn't do it for just anyone else. But then he got shot... right in the heart. And sometimes I feel like my heart died with his." A single tear rolled down Klaus's face. He wiped at it quickly, taking another sip of his coffee to stifle any more potential tears. He shivered at the cold. Klaus was only wearing a thin tank top and leggings. The cabin had been pretty warm at night, due to the lack of air conditioning, but the rain had significantly cooled it down overnight. The wind was picking up with the rain. Luther took off his overcoat and pulled it around Klaus's shoulders. It was huge on him and swallowed his thin frame. Klaus lay his head on Luther's shoulder for a second as a silent thanks.

They sat quietly together until the sun came up, quickly eclipsed by rain clouds, and long after, making small conversation to pass the time until the others woke up. The rain slowed to a gentle mist. The earth began to warm ever so slightly. Klaus had long finished his coffee. It was around eight o'clock now, when they heard movement coming from inside the house. They went back inside to join the others. "Where have you guys been?" Vanya asked.

"Just sittin' outside, watching the sun and the rain." Klaus shrugged off, standing up. She noticed Klaus wearing Luther's coat. He went upstairs with it, presumably to get dressed. Luther shrugged at her and went upstairs as well.

"Did you hear anything from them this morning?" Vanya asked Diego, who was the closest to hearing Klaus and Luther when they were outside.

"Not much. I heard Klaus tell him about Dave, but they were quiet most of the time." Diego reported. "I keep telling him that he needs to let Dave go." Diego whispered to just her.

"He needs to talk about it. If he keeps bottling it up, he'll just explode, and you know what'll happen if he does. He just needs time to process it. Klaus had never experienced loss like this before. You know how you felt when you lost Patch and Mom. Imagine that, times five. That's what he's been going through." Vanya walked away, leaving Diego standing there, not having anything to say back.

"I think it's supposed to rain all day. So, what do we do?" Five asked Allison, who had been appointed in charge of the vacation long before they even left the mansion.

"We could find something to do around here that's indoors. Mini golf, bowling, something like that, right?"

"No bowling. It didn't go so well last time, and I'd rather not risk it." Five recalled when they were at the bowling alley just before Vanya was supposed to cause the end of the world. Luckily, they found her just in time and Five took them all back in time to a week before it happened, redoing the whole week, sans Leonard. Five told everyone what happened last week--well, his last week--and at first, they didn't believe him. But the longer his story went on, the more they realized that Five couldn't make something like that up. Five told Vanya how Leonard manipulated her, and she cancelled their violin lesson before he even arrived at her apartment for the first time. She began learning how to safely control her powers, and the rest is history. Five was still kind of on the run from the Commission, which is one of the only reasons he agreed to take this vacation, so he could keep moving and throw them off his trail.

"We could all go shopping?" Allison hollowly suggested, not really meaning it, just thinking of another thing they could do inside, but out of the cabin.

Klaus overheard her as he came back down. His ears pricked up at the word "shopping." "I think that's a fabulous idea!" He clapped his hands. "We should give each other makeovers. Diego and Luther first!"

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" Diego asked defensively.

"Diego, brother dear, you know I love you, but you wear the same boring outfit every single day. You could use a new look. You too, Luther. That coat isn't doing much for your figure."

"Yeah, I'd like that back, by the way." Luther raised his eyebrows at Klaus, who had put on the coat over today's outfit. He was wearing his leather pants with a floral-patterned women's blouse, and his black Converse.

"I don't know. It really works with my look today." Luther gave him a look. "Fine, fine." He took the coat off and handed it over. "At least let me pick you out something more fashionable at the mall."

"We'll see. Depends on what you pick out. We have very different tastes, you know."

"I know. Yours is soooo boring." Klaus giggled.

"Is everyone okay with going shopping?" Allison addressed the rest of the group. Vanya and Diego agreed. Five hesitant to be a part of any group, as usual, but he could use a new suit, so why the hell not? He was a growing boy.

They all piled into the van, Ben popping up next to Klaus unexpectedly in the back. "Where've you been all morning?" Klaus asked lowly.

"Nowhere. Just... I can't tell you. It's a secret." Ben whispered back, even though he didn't have to.

"Benny, you know we don't keep secrets in this family." Klaus scolded.

"I hope you're being sarcastic."

Klaus waved his Goodbye hand at Ben and turned away to look out the window. The ride was quiet. The rain made everyone sleepy, save for Klaus who was still wide awake, as usual. Vanya took a little nap on the drive there. Klaus hoped it wasn't because he kept her up all night last night. He asked her about it when they got to the mall and kind of disengaged from the group for a moment to pull her aside. She promised it wasn't that. She said that he was a surprisingly still sleeper, considering. Vanya thought he'd wake her up in the night with nightmares, or screaming, or something of the sort like he used to do when they were kids. He barely shifted all night. This place was doing wonders for his sleeping habits. He never wanted to go home.

"Why do you think that is?" Vanya asked him, both of them still trailing behind their siblings.

"Why's what?"

"Why it's so much quieter out here for you than anywhere else."

"Van, I've lived my whole life in the city, where tons of people die every day. If you really knew how bad it was, you'd want to move out here, too. It's just-oh, look!" Klaus ran off to window shop, dropping their conversation. Vanya thought about what he said. Maybe it would be a good idea for Klaus to move out of the mansion and leave the city if it was so bad for him. It could do all of them some good. Klaus had a very different perspective on life, one that Vanya wasn't sure she'd want to have. The way Klaus said that so nonchalant, like it was nothing, concerned her. Sure, he had been desensitized by the dead, what with having that power and also being in a war zone for ten months. She wished she could take it all away. If anything, Klaus deserved it the least of all of them, she thought. He was the sweetest, most loving person she knew. He didn't deserve to have to resort to drugs to make himself feel normal, or not feel at all, whichever reason he chose.

At the mall, Luther bought a new coat, with the help of personal stylist, Klaus. It was still big enough to fit his body and cover anything he was insecure about but looked nice on him. And it was different. Change is good, Klaus kept reassuring him. Diego got some new knives, of course. Klaus also made him get a new outfit too. Something with color, because he wore too much black, Klaus said. Diego tried to argue that Klaus used to wear a lot of black as well, but that was before he came back from the war. Klaus told Diego that Dave brought color to his life. Diego inwardly cringed at the sweet comment, not being one for romance. Allison got Claire some cute new outfits to bring back when she went home for her visit. Allison was allowed weekends now, agreeing to go to therapy and work on her relationship with Patrick, whether he still considered it a real relationship after learning of how he got into it. Klaus went ham with Allison's credit card, buying, basically, a whole new wardrobe. He was carrying bags from about six different stores. Allison couldn't say no; Klaus deserved a little bit of joy in his life, and if clothes are what brought that joy, then so be it. What's a little retail therapy? Five bought a new suit, like he set out to. This one was a charcoal grey, different than the light grey one he brought with him. Big difference, right? Ben tagged along, giving Klaus his input on what outfits he liked and didn't. Klaus bought the ones Ben didn't like anyway. Vanya went to the music store and bought a new bow for her violin. This one had stronger hairs. She wasn't a very strong person, but she put a lot of passion into her playing, which caused her a lot of bow hairs to fall out by the end of concerts.

They drove back to the cabin, each happy with their purchases. Allison was about to stop at the grocery store to pick up something to cook for dinner later that night, when Vanya gave her an idea. "Can we get pizza tonight? We haven't had real pizza in a long time."

"Vanya, I knew there was a reason you're my favorite sister." Klaus shouted from the back row. Allison glared jokingly at him from the rear-view mirror.

"That sounds like a good idea." She pulled out her phone, giving it to Vanya for her to place an order on the local pizza place app. "What does everyone want?"

Everyone shouted out different toppings they all wanted. Luther liked plain because of course he did. Diego's favorite was meat lover's, which was a problem because Allison like the vegetarian pizza. Klaus, being the ever-so-controversial person he was, called for Hawaiian: ham and pineapple. Five liked just pepperoni, and so did Vanya. Allison told Vanya to get one pepperoni and one plain pie.

"Can we get mozzarella sticks too? For your favorite brother?" Klaus begged.

"Why do you think you'd be my favorite brother if I'm not your favorite sister?" Allison challenged him.

"Diego's obviously not your favorite, Five doesn't want to be a part of this family anyway, and I momentarily forgot about Luther." Klaus counted his brothers off on his fingers.

"Hey!" Luther turned around in his seat. "I can be an option for favorite brother."

"Luther, dear, we all know you're Allison's favorite." Klaus winked. Luther turned back to face the front, cheeks turning red.

"What about me?" Ben piped up for the first time since their mall excursion.

"You can be my favorite brother." Klaus smiled.

"What was that, Klaus?" Allison asked from the front seat, not fully hearing what Klaus said all the way in the back.

"Oh, I forgot to include Ben, so I told him he can be my favorite brother."

"Gee, thanks." Ben said sarcastically.

"If you promise to behave, we can get mozzarella sticks." Vanya added it to their order. "Any other requests?"

"Garlic knots?" Five included.

"Sure, why not?" Allison didn't mind this inclusion. Five never really asked for much.

Vanya placed their order. It would be ready for pickup by the time they drove over there. The rain was pouring cats and dogs at this point. Allison had to slow down drastically so she didn't slide off the side of the road. They passed two or three cars that had pulled over to wait for the rain to stifle, but Allison really wanted that pizza. They got to the pizza place just in time for their order. Now someone had to run inside to go get it. Allison looked between the others. She put the tip of her finger on her nose to indicate that she was "not it". Everyone did the same and looked around to see who was left. Diego was the only one who didn't catch on, making him the one who had to go run out in the rain. He wore leather all the time, today included, so he was least likely to get wet through his clothes. He ran out in the rain, Allison not being courteous enough to drop him off at the door. Klaus was right, he wasn't her favorite brother. Diego paid for their order and brought it back out, dripping wet as he sat back down next to Vanya and Five in the back. He placed the pizza boxes on his lap to warm himself up.

When the Hargreeves got back to the cabin, they all got their slices of pizza and soda from the fridge. Klaus stole all the mozzarella sticks for himself. He knew it'd make him sick later, but they tasted so good right now. Five ate quite a few of the garlic knots, only really sharing them with Vanya, the one sibling he disliked the least.

They settled down in the living room after dinner, playing games to pass the time before going to bed. They played some board games, but they were getting boring after a while. Five was too good at the strategic games and made it less fun for everyone else. Klaus always cheated at Monopoly, hiding secret money under his leg. Klaus suggested they then play Twister, which no one was up for. So, now they were playing I Spy.

"I spy with my little eye... something big." Five started.

"The house." Vanya guessed. No.

"A tree." Allison guessed. No.

"Your ego." Klaus guessed. No.

"Luther." Diego guessed. Bingo.

"Really? Still with the big jokes?" Luther complained.

"I call 'em like I see 'em."

"Okay, my turn!" Klaus cheered. "I spy with my little eye..." Just then the power went out, plunging the whole cabin into total darkness.

"I spy with my little eye, absolutely fuck all."

"Well, I guess that game's over. Goodnight, everyone." Five said, trying to escape to his room.

"Hold on, I'll go find some candles." Five sunk back down in his place on the floor. Allison used her phone like a flashlight to find her way through the house. She came back with an arm full of candles and a lighter from one of the kitchen drawers. She lit them around the room. The flickering fire cast the living room with a faint orange glow.

"Ooh, we should have a seance!" Klaus exclaimed.

"We have one, and I'm looking at him." Diego joked. Klaus stuck his tongue out at him. When Allison sat back down, Klaus made everyone, Five included, join hands in a circle.

"Oh, spirits, we ask of you: where's Ben?" Klaus asked in his best dramatic seance leader voice.

"Okay, if you're gonna ask stupid questions like that, I'm out." Diego protested.

"No, no, no. It'll work. I've been practicing. Just gotta focus." Klaus closed his eyes and focused hard. He was gonna make Ben corporeal in front of the others. He had been secretly practicing in his room at night with Ben for weeks, and he thought he could do it this time, if only for a little while. Klaus's hands started glowing blue in his siblings' hands. In the middle of the circle, Ben's body, also glowing blue, appeared.

"Hey, guys." He said causally. Everyone stared at him in disbelief. He flickered in and out until he was completely out.

"Dammit!" Klaus yelled. "I thought I could make it last longer this time." He let go of Diego's and Vanya's hands, and the others followed suit.

"So, he's actually here." Luther whispered.

"What do you mean? Of course, he's here. Did you think I was lying about being able to talk to Ben?" Klaus interrogated Luther.

"Honestly, for a long time, yeah. I just... didn't know if you were doing it as a coping mechanism, or for attention, or something. But now I know you weren't lying, and I'm sorry."

"Wow, an apology from Luther. Those are rare." Diego teased.

"Alright, I think it's time for bed, everyone." Allison announced. Five ran up the stairs back to his room, desperate for some alone time after spending the whole day with other people. Diego made up his couch bed and fell asleep almost instantly. He had a weird talent at that. Luther went to his room, still thinking about Ben. Allison and Vanya went to their room, Klaus joining them just for a little bit. He wanted some time alone too and slept in his own bed that night. He dreamt of him and Dave sitting together in that Jeep, just like he told Luther earlier this morning. If he practiced more, maybe he could make it a reality.