It had been three weeks and Vanya was being so careful. She'd cut her medicine down, weaning her young body off it a bit at a time while creating the illusion she was still dutifully following Reginald's instructions. Her powers were reawakening but they were still weakened, making them more manageable for her to experiment with when the house was empty or when she was sure everyone else was asleep.

Her siblings believed, or so it appeared, that Vanya had awoken in the past with no memory of instigating the apocalypse.

The actual, to god, apocalypse – something she still couldn't wrap her head around even as she heard the power crackle in her ears.

She wished she could go to Five or Ben for help in managing it, in learning control, but Vanya knew they'd tell the rest of their siblings and she wasn't ready for that yet. There was still a simmering rage directed at the lower numbers, Luther and Allison in particular. And after the events in the cabin she still wasn't convinced that Allison wouldn't try to use her powers on her once again.

Before she could speak nowadays she had to think hard, ensuring she wouldn't give herself away – by using their names rather than their numbers or mentioning anything that happened in the future. It was exhausting, but she couldn't bring herself to trust them. Trust that they wouldn't lock her up, wipe her memory and drug her into oblivion again.

If they did that a second time she was certain it would break her irrevocably. And if she broke, her flimsy attempts at control would break with her. Which would be bad news for the world.

The guilt was overwhelming at times, but it couldn't quite outweigh the joy she suddenly seemed to be capable of feeling again. It hadn't occurred to her before how numb she was to everything. Feelings registered back then, but they didn't empower, engulf or energise her. Now she seems to find joy in everything – music brings tears to her eyes, Klaus' jokes do too. Seeing Ben makes her feel radiant. Having Five back, hopefully for the rest of her renewed childhood, makes her giddy.

The toss of the coin, she feels all the negatives more powerfully too. When Allison had used her powers on Pogo the other day in training, she'd felt like bringing the room down. Thankfully she wasn't capable of that yet, but she did put a small crack in her bedroom wall when she went upstairs. She cut a photo out of a magazine to cover it with.

There were other days when she looked at Allison and wanted to cry, knowing how devastating losing Clare must be for her.

In the end, it was their Father who posed the biggest risk to her sanity. With every dismissive gesture, every demand made upon her siblings, every callous word cast in their direction. Vanya wanted to kill him most days and when she didn't she wanted to beg for his attention.

At least she could see she wasn't alone in her torn reaction to the now alive Reginald Hargreeves but her siblings were proving amazingly tolerant. She guessed because any challenge to the current system would alert Reginald, Pogo and her that this timeline was different. However, her siblings behaviour towards her was markedly different to the first time around. So much so, she was concerned they would inadvertently tip off the adults that things had changed.

They were being so nice to her and it made her want to cry because she knew there was only one motive behind it.

The original Number Seven was beaming with every invitation and she let that emotion shine in her eyes, watching her sibling's faces light up with the belief that their plan was working – that their new opportunity to rectify the past would absolve them of their original sins.

The White Violin snarled at every attempt and wanted to scorn them; keep them at arm's length as they had always done to her.

Vanya worked so hard to keep her hidden beneath the surface, but she knew suppressing her completely was ineffective and would cause more problems than it would solve. Her control was delicate, never more so then when she picked up her violin. She felt nervous playing it as she knew if she allowed herself to get lost in the music she would risk the delicate grasp over her fledgling powers. Still, abandoning it would be a big warning sign to her siblings.

She only picked it up in moments of happiness, unlike her original childhood when she used it for solace. And even in those moments she didn't allow herself to fully feel. When picking songs she chose the most complex pieces she was studying at the time so her mind would be occupied with scales and scores. Unfortunately in adulthood she had mastered most of them and her increasingly free mind found them easy to translate through her fingers.

Knowing which test her siblings were facing today, she came up with ideas; looking for something else she could use. She needed a challenge, something that would allow her to play and throw off the others from discovering her secret, while still maintaining control over the White Violin.

Last week she had drawn a full set of piano keys on some cardboard Pogo had provided her and started learning; there was no sound of course, but it was an interesting experiment that took up an afternoon while Reginald spent the afternoon torturing her siblings with some new, but not new, training activity.

Watching them trudge back into the house had brought the White Violin a vindictive joy but Vanya pitied them, knowing the only reason they were going through this again was for her.

No, not for her. For the world, the White Violin corrected.

During her siblings training sessions she had taken to experimenting with her powers, understanding now that she needs to release the energy within her sometimes otherwise she could never perfect mastery. In the future she'll need bigger spaces, somewhere more open with fewer people nearby, but she knows for now her siblings are observing her. So she stays within the house, careful to keep her back to where she can feel the cameras watching and to keep her experiments small.

Allison wasn't training today. Mom said she'd sprained her ankle during their last training session and needed to keep it elevated. She'd been surprised Reginald hadn't pushed Allison to attend anyway, given all he required was her voice, but he followed Grace's advice and allowed her to remain inside.

After receiving word from Pogo that her Father had summoned her to the roof, she allowed the day to progress as it originally had – albeit with some minor changes.

She didn't scream when Luther jumped off the roof with her in his arms, although she had to work hard to keep a grimace from crossing her face when he picked her up and held her to his chest. It brought back some memories she hadn't yet learned how to forgive.

Diego didn't drag her down the stairs this time. When he emerged on the roof he held the door open for her and politely led her down. At one point he even tried to make small talk. It was stinted and they quickly relapsed into silence, but Vanya was surprised by how much effort he seemed to be putting into improving their relationship.

Three wasn't there to force her down the stairs so they immediately moved on to Four who was still his usual self as he led her downstairs, although this time he started skipping straight away.

"I don't know why anyone walks – skipping is so much more fun."

Vanya smiled, walking beside him instead of skipping too. She wasn't much in a skipping mood, it felt like she had too much to focus on today. That there were too many potential pitfalls to trip her up. Today was the first day she was taxing herself physically and she could feel the White Violin rebel at being rescued – after all, a few weeks ago it had been them who needed rescuing from her. Her only concession to her power was her refusal to scream or cry. There would be none of that today.

Klaus was holding her hand while they slowly made their way back through the house. She wasn't exhausted like last time, as Allison hadn't made her run, but she was still thankful that he was content to maintain a sedate pace.

"I think he's getting ready to send us out into the field now." Four said as they reached the second floor.

She knew as much. "Already?"

"Do you think Dad will let you tag along? Watch us beat up all those bad guys." Four joked.

"Doubtful." She sighed, knowing full well he wouldn't.

"Well at least you get to see us in action at home. You'll be the envy of all the girls – getting to live with the four devastatingly handsome boys who saved the world."

"Four?" Vanya laughed, remembering she had laughed.

"Oh yeah – One doesn't count. He frowns too much for anyone to find him attractive."

She grinned again. "I'll remember that."

When she returned to the roof again, she knew what was coming and barely blinked at Reginald's command.

"There you are, Number Seven." Reginald said, in a gentle tone. He was playing her. "Proceed to the ledge please."

Obeying, she walked until she was visible to her siblings and waited for further instructions.

"Good. Now jump please."

Turning around with her feet still on the edge she looked back at him.

"Number Seven." He said warningly when she made no movement. "Number One is ready to catch you should Number Five not be up to the task. He will jump up to catch you, you shouldn't be harmed."

"I shouldn't be harmed." Vanya repeated hollowly.

"You will not get hurt, someone will catch you."

"I want a piano."

"A..."

She savoured the second of pure bewilderment that crossed Reginald's face.

"A piano?"

"Yes. If you want me to jump, I want a piano."

"Number Seven, I gave you an order."

"An order that will put me in danger." Vanya said, allowing her voice to morph into a whine. She was supposed to be a child. "I'm getting too good at the violin, I need a new challenge. You're using me to challenge their powers – I want a challenge too."

"Number Seven, I will not be blackmailed."

She folded her arms. "Then I'm not jumping. You can make Pogo do it. Or Mom."

He arched a brow at her. "You're being unreasonable."

"I'm being unreasonable? You're asking me to jump off a roof."

Reginald stared at her for a moment before slowly replying. "I will consider it – if as you say your playing has gotten 'too good' and you demonstrate exemplary behaviour."

"I will. I do." Vanya said. She turned and looked down at her waiting siblings. A part of her wondered if they would let her fall and die – rid the world of the threat once and for all. Another part wondered if that had been Reginald's motive all along.

Nodding at Luther she stepped off the roof, not pausing like before.

Diego stayed firmly back this time, as did Ben. Luther was prepared to jump, but they all knew he didn't need to. Five would catch her, and he did.

The noise of air whistling too fast past her ears barely registered before he was holding her and dragging her up into the bedroom. She helped push herself in and found herself in a hug so bone crushingly tight her ribs protested.

"Five! You're hugging me too tight." She complained.

"Why," he ground out through a clenched jaw, "did you do that?"

"Dad told me to."

"You shouldn't listen to him, Vanya. About anything."

"V-Vanya?" She asked, injected confusing into her words.

He pulled back but kept his arms around her. "And you can stop that too."

Fear built up within her and she had to take a second to breathe to ensure it didn't explode out of her and hurt Five in the process.

"Stop what?"

"I know you remember."

She pushed his arms off her and looked deeply into his eyes, scanning them for confirmation.

"How?" She asked cautiously.

"I know you better than you think I do – even after all this time." Five replied. He sighed when he saw that wasn't enough for her. "You're not playing the violin like you used to. You're...more guarded. And better."

She took another deep breath.

"You can't tell them."

"Vanya..."

"Five, please. It'll be a disaster." Vanya pleaded. "Look, the first time Dad gave up on me when I was four and drugged me into oblivion. I lost control because Leonard manipulated me. The second time around I was lied to and locked up. Maybe this time around things might go better if someone asks me how I want things to happen."

She took his silence as a sign to continue.

"I don't want to be drugged again, I don't enjoy feeling that way. And I don't want my mind altered and I don't want Luther throwing me into a cage. I want to learn and I want to get better. You of all people should understand that, you wouldn't have got stuck in the future if you didn't. And I know I made mistakes that got people killed, but unfortunately my power isn't making people forget or going back in time to fix them. I just have to deal with them and I plan to."

"We can make this work – we're already working to change things."

"Yeah, I've noticed." Vanya said, unimpressed.

"We will stop it this time."

She snorted derisively. "By leading the Vanya-is-great parade?"

"Things were bad the first time around. We didn't treat you fairly. This time..."

"You're just being nice because you're scared of me." She snapped over him.

His silence felt like a slap to the face.

The White Violin sneered at her as tears welled up in her eyes.

"Hey, hey." Five said, sounding alarmed. "Don't do that."

"What, feel!" Vanya yelled through her tears. "I think I'm allowed. Oh wait, no I'm not. I forgot, that's what the pills are for!"

"Vanya, you know that I love you right? That we all do." Five said, pointing out the window.

Her increasingly red eyes showed that she didn't know that.

"You were going to kill me." She accused.

His eyes pleaded with her. "No."

"Yes." She argued. "When I saw all of you out there at the concert hall I thought you had come to support me, but I should have known better."

"Vanya," he grabbed her arms, "I swear I will never lock you up. I will not make you take those pills and I will never kill you. And if you want me to help you train, I will – but we have to tell the others. If things are going to be different this time we all need to be on the same page. We need to work as a team."

"No."

"Vanya..."

"Stop calling me that." She pleaded. "I'm not Vanya, I'm Number Seven. And unless you want Dad to figure out what's going on we need to get outside, we've been taking too long. He's going to get suspicious."

"Vanya..."

"Trust takes time, Five. We're not ready for the group hug, okay." She said adamantly. "Now let's go."

She opened the door when a hand on her wrist stopped her and then it felt like her world was collapsing and expanding all at once, with her lungs failing to draw oxygen while her head felt light. Then they were beside the still closed front door.

Vanya looked at Five accusingly.

"I wouldn't have done it if I thought you would get hurt, sis."

He pulled out a handkerchief, because of course Five carries a handkerchief now the old lunatic, and passed her it to dab away her remaining tears.

Once she looked like her normal repressed self, he opened the back door and ushered her back into the courtyard.

"Five – nine minutes." Reginald called down from the roof.

"Teleporting took it out of us." He excused, rolling his eyes as his Father practically lit up.

"You teleported together – successfully?" Reginald asked, casting a critical eye over Number Seven as if he expected her to be missing a limb or to have her head on backwards. His notebook was open again.

"Evidentially. Though you will tell me Number Seven, won't you," Five said loudly, "if anything falls off later."

She didn't smile back even as she wanted to.

"Seven?" Ben said, opening his arms in offering.

Vanya stepped into them hesitantly and Ben hugged her gratefully, even as her arms remained passively at her sides.

"You scared the hell out of me." He grumbled again even though he knew this time around she would be fine.

"Ven, are you okay?" Diego asked, Allison joining him in running over to their sister.

"She's fine." Five said. "I, on the other hand, am feeling a little insulted that this family has such little faith in me."

"Welcome to my world." Klaus said, elbowing past Diego and Allison to pounce on Ben and Vanya's hug. He hadn't bothered with the pretence of falling down the stairs; this time he cared even less about appearances. Though interestingly he seemed to be training harder than before. Something which caused the White Violin to speculate and worry, while making Vanya cautiously optimistic that things could turn out differently for Klaus this time around.

Luther hovered behind the siblings where they had crowded around Number Seven. His behaviour wasn't much different yet from their original childhood, though this time his distance was out of caution rather than disinterest. He was trying to be more considerate, which Vanya couldn't fault even as her darker side wanted to rip off one of his appendages.

Once Reginald had finished scrawling down his latest observations of Five's power, which from his perspective had unexpectedly improved in precision and speed seemingly overnight, he was calling for Number Seven to come upstairs again.

Ben and Klaus released her, Ben again asking her to wait by the door.

It was nearly over, she thought to herself with no shortage of relief as she walked up the stairs. Sighing as she started up the stairs again, she internally cursed herself as she saw with her exhalation some frames on the wall seemed to tremble. It had been two days since her last half a pill. Maybe it was time to take another, Vanya reasoned.

"Number Seven?" Father called, once she stepped through the door.

"Yes, Father."

"Have you remembered to take your medicine today?"

"Of course, Father." Vanya replied.

"Are you sure?"

Vanya hoped her gulp wasn't noticeable. "Yes, I took it with lunch. Like I always do."

She'd been hiding it under her tongue.

He looked at her a beat longer before walking back to the ledge and starting the clock for Ben.

Vanya paced a little this time while she waited. It was annoying Reginald, she could tell. But he was more interested in his notebook and didn't take the time to scold her.

Ben opened the door and a tentacle waved in front of her in greeting, which Vanya reached out to grab. For some reason, since Ben's reappearance, she had found the thought of coming into contact with the creature easier than Ben himself.

"Good, Number Six." Reginald commented, observing the interaction. "How is your control?"

"They won't hurt her." Ben said confidently.

"Excellent. Time is ticking though, Number Six." Reginald reminded them.

Opening the door, Ben led Vanya downstairs to the next floor. He didn't offer to release her and more tentacles joined the first in quick succession.

"Do they scare you?" He asked as they walked along.

"Do you want me to be scared of them?" She asked in her best shy Number Seven voice.

One tickled her stomach and she laughed, hoping Ben didn't notice the resulting tinkling of the chandelier above them.

"You're my sister – of course I don't want you to be scared." Ben said, watching over her as she squirmed. "I want you to trust me and know that I would never hurt you."

She laughed louder as another tentacle got her, finally pulling out of reach to snatch a breath. "I know. Now stop it, we're meant to be getting downstairs."

"Stop? But it sounds to me like you're having fun." Ben said, his tentacles raising to fan out behind him menacingly.

"You wouldn't dare." Vanya screeched as she ran ahead with Ben in chase.

The remaining five were amazed as Vanya burst out the doors with Ben, Ben who usually never let his powers see the light of day, stalking her. One arm latched out and wrapped itself around Vanya's waist, lifting her up above his head.

"I won!" Ben cried, punching his fist to the sky.

"Number Six, put Number Seven down now." Reginald shouted from the roof.

"I'm fine, Father. Really." Vanya called back up, enjoying being hoisted into the air. "They're not hurting me."

"Number Six." Reginald repeated in a tone which made all seven of the children flinch. Even today, when they all knew how capable they were of breaking him, that voice was capable of making them feel like helpless children.

Vanya landed softly on the ground and then watched with interest as Ben lifted his jumper so the tentacles could curl themselves back into his chest, flattening against his ribs and abdomen, growing smaller as they sunk partially into his flesh.

Seven was excused quickly after that, Father calling the rest inside to review their progress while she was told to continue with her independent studies.

She waited for that inevitable knock at her door after dinner as her siblings came to confront her about everything that had transpired last month – eighteen years in the future – but it never came.

Just as it had never come that first day they had arrived.

They'd awoken in their beds, taking the places of their past selves, each of them dealing with the horror (or re-horror in Five's case) of finding themselves back in their young bodies alone.

Back in the day they had all adhered to a strict schedule, which started with a seven am alarm followed by breakfast. The siblings had filed down to the table and found Vanya already there, being fussed by Grace who was complaining the girl was too pale.

"Are you sure you're all right, Seven dear? You look a little peaky."

"Yes, Mom. I just have a headache this morning." Vanya had said, taking one of the pills that Grace automatically offered her. She swallowed it with a sip of water.

The six paused as they took their seats, looking at each other to try and communicate their confusion and disbelief with nothing more than eyebrow raising and eye contact.

The arrival of Reginald Hargreeves, which caused a universal flinch amongst the others, destroyed any chance for conversation until they returned upstairs to prepare for training. For the Umbrella Academy that meant putting on those horrible tracksuits; for Seven it meant grabbing her violin and starting yet another day of near isolation.

Vanya had known the second she saw them they remembered as clearly as she did, yet their perception of her fragility had made them unsure of her. Was it Vanya or was it Number Seven – she could see the question written plainly across their faces as they watched her every movement out the corners of their eyes.

She couldn't bear it. She couldn't bear them and she'd known then that if this was an opportunity they were giving her she was taking it.

There would be no apocalypse talk and she easily took the pill from Grace's hand, swallowing it down. That decision could be made later once their focus died down a little. If it ever would again.

Reginald excused them from the table and, as was often her routine back in the day, Vanya lingered to help Grace clear the table. She had felt it was her duty back then – she had no powers to contribute, she provided no worth to her purchaser. The least she could do was to help clean the house.

Now she did it to delay being alone with them.

When she got upstairs her siblings were moving in and out of each other's rooms having been trying to piece together a plan. Vanya knew Seven would have thought they were just enjoying not having her around and she played it that way, ducking her head as she made her way to the bathroom.

"Hi Three." Vanya shyly greeted, as she saw the bathroom was already occupied. Allison had just finished brushing her teeth and was now staring into the mirror with thinly veiled horror.

Seven always spoke to her siblings with that tone. One of timid disbelief that she was stood in their presence and they were acknowledging her.

Three quickly moved towards her before coming to a complete stop in the doorway. "Seven." She said warmly, looking ready to cry as she set sights on her only sister. Her arms twitched up as if ready to wrap her in an embrace, but Vanya spoke before she could.

"Erm, can I get past?" Vanya asked, pointing behind her. "Or are you still using it?"

"Oh – erm. No, go right ahead." Allison said, her brow furrowing in confusion. She moved out of the way, not taking her eyes off Seven until the door shut gently in her face.

Once Vanya had closed the door, she turned on the shower then hurried back to eavesdrop on her siblings' conversation.

"I don't know, we can't exactly go up to her and ask – hey do you remember being thirty and starting the apocalypse? I mean if she doesn't she'll think we're all insane." Klaus was saying.

"What do you think, Five?" Luther asked.

"You saw her when she was on that stage, she might not even have been fully aware. And then with the time travel – I don't know. I didn't do the calculations for this jump." Five muttered. "And she wasn't conscious when we jumped – I don't know."

It was rare for Five to make such an admission. Even rarer to make it twice in one statement.

Vanya pulled back and got in the shower. They only had the two bathrooms in their wing of the house and her siblings always got priority. It had been annoying as a child, having to get dressed for breakfast only to then get a shower after, but now it provided a blissful moment of peace.

The day alone had been heavenly, for the first time in her life. Picking up the violin had scared her immensely, but she knew her young body has well medicated.

As she played she planned. There was no way she was carrying out yet another childhood in hopeless nothingness. Yet she also had to keep her powers and feelings under control. It would be difficult, that much she knew from reading Reginald's notes on her. And keeping it a secret from her now ever vigilant siblings would be even harder.

But she knew immediately that it was the way it had to be. When she saw Luther and Pogo that morning she had wanted to scream. Father she wanted to skin. Even Grace, designed as her watcher more than her Mother, angered her that morning. Her powers had to be under her command before she could talk to the others about everything that happened in the future.

And so that was how things had progressed. Her siblings were never fully convinced of her memory loss, mostly believing that it was temporary and that the wrong phrase would remind her of everything.

Now she knew that Five was onto her and perhaps had been this whole time. Why hadn't he told them of his suspicions?

With the passing of another uninterrupted night she slowly allowed herself to believe that he might keep her secret. With the passing of three nights she was glowing, especially when he invited her into the training room one afternoon to teach her how to fight.

He pointed to the punching bag. "I know we already did this but if we're really keeping this up, we have to repeat it."

Vanya smiled timidly. "To be honest, I don't really remember the first time very well. Just that I was worried Reginald would find out and you'd get into trouble."

"You don't remember?" Five asked, insulted. "How can you not remember? I'm the best teacher ever."

Vanya held up her hands. "Sorry."

"Hmm, well I'll try to make this time around more memorable." Five said, offering her a smile which still seemed too sarcastic. He didn't smile like her Five used to – not yet anyway, he'd been alone too long.

"Now let's start by working on your stance."

Five smiled as things progressed pretty much the same way they did the first time around. Until the ground thumped when she finally hit the bag correctly.

"Vanya?" He asked alarmed.

"It's okay, it's okay." She quickly said, putting her hands back in the air. "That wasn't me."

Klaus and Diego ran past then, Klaus obviously having stolen something of his brother's if his delighted laugh and Diego's angry shout was anything to go by.

"Sorry." Five quickly apologised.

Vanya looked at him sadly. "It's okay. You're right, maybe this wasn't the best idea."

"No..."

"I have to get to the study anyway," she said, cutting across him, "I'm playing the violin for him this afternoon. He wants to see how I'm getting on."

Five's eyebrows shot up. "He never did that before."

Vanya scuffed her shoe against the ground a little guiltily before confessing, "I may have told him I'd mastered it. Small slip. Now he wants to hear me play."

"It's okay. I nearly called Four Klaus yesterday in front of the old man – it's hard for all of us not to slip up."

It was hard. It was something none of them should have to do again.

As always everything that had gone wrong was all her fault.

"I am," Vanya cleared her throat as her words got stuck. "I am grateful to you all, you know. For going through this again. I know you're doing it for the world, not me but..."

"We're doing it for the world and you, Seven." Five corrected.

Nodding, Vanya desperately wanted to believe him. She also wanted to hug him again, but she figured making him relive his childhood was probably enough suffering for him.

"I'll see you at dinner."

"Okay." Five agreed. "And, hey. We were all thinking about sneaking out for donuts this weekend when the old man goes away. You're coming along."

"I am, am I?" She asked.

"If I have to zap you there to do it."

Vanya's nose wrinkled. "I don't know how you do it, it felt awful."

"Well now you know why I spent so much time after training in the bathroom. I nearly puked up a lung one day." Five admitted with a reminiscent grimace. "It was worth it in the end though. And I know it's difficult for you now, but once you master this you'll be glad. We all have a love-hate relationship with our powers but none of us can deny they're a huge part of who we are. You deserve to get to know that part of you."

"What if I can't do it?" Vanya asked, barely able to think it let alone say it. "What if I wreak everything again?"

"Well luckily for you, you have a time traveller for a brother who is very much motivated to keep you alive. Even if it means going through puberty again." He said, adding a dramatic shudder for effect.

"Thank you, Five."

"You're welcome, Seven."

She darted off with a nervous wave when she heard Mom calling her name, saying her Father was waiting.

Her knees almost started knocking together as she walked into the study but, as she had taken half a pill yesterday and as she was playing a complicated piece (Bach's Partita No.2, Chaconne – she'd always loved Bach), Vanya was confident she could play without literally bringing the house down.

Picking up her bow, she took a moment to ensure her instrument was placed correctly and comfortably under her chin, before she pressed her fingertips into the strings and played. In an extra act of showing off, and in ensuring the White Violin was thoroughly distracted, she'd left her sheet music upstairs and played from memory.

Closing her eyes to the distraction of her adopted Father's evaluative gaze, Vanya allowed herself to feel the piece of music for the first time since she'd nearly killed everyone and destroyed everything on the planet. She was vaguely aware her powers were amplifying the sound however it wasn't destructive, rather it felt like a pleasant release similar to the day she auditioned for first chair.

The sweet sound wafted around her, dancing up and down her finger tips, along and around her spine, out the ends of her hair, radiating around her like a soft aura which could only keep her safe even in a house so associated with unhappiness.

The tempo grew softly, never harsh to the ears even as the pitch rose and she allowed a little narrow vibrato. The backs of her eyes showed her the notes until she barely needed to remember, her mind only concentrated on the music and its perfection.

In no memory before her audition had she played so wonderfully, beautifully and wholly. It felt like her spirit sung through the notes and she wanted the moment to last for the rest of her life. However, no matter the brilliance of Bach, it was impossible to pen a score which had no end and she sorrowfully brought it to a close.

When her eyes opened she was surprised to find them damp.

Proud clapping started to her left and she turned to see her Mother and the Umbrella Academy stood closely beside her, all looking so small yet projecting an undeniable age. Her Mother's applause was joined slowly by her siblings, first uproariously by Five and Klaus, followed by a proud Allison and Ben, with an appreciative response from Luther and Diego (the two who had always most disliked classical music).

Reginald dismissed them all with a sharp word, which Grace hastened to enforce, leaving only Vanya in the room beside him.

"This way Number Seven." He ordered, directing her out the room.

For one chilling moment she thought she had given herself away and he was taking her back to the cage below the house. Instead they turned for the staircase and went up to the second floor. They passed to the opposite wing of the children's quarters, filled with unused guest bedrooms.

Reginald opened the door to the first room along the hallway where the bed frame had been turned onto its side and the furniture pushed to the walls to clear space for a baby grand.

"I expect you to still play the violin, it won't do to master one skill then abandon it in favour of a new whim."

She paused for a moment, in disbelief that she had actually succeeded in getting her way, before quickly agreeing to the terms.

"Yes, Father." Vanya said happily, moving forward to lift the lid and run her fingers over the cool keys. "I'll practice them both every day."

"See to it that you do." Reginald chided. "I won't see waste in this house and if I come to this room and find it sitting under dust, I will remove it."

"I understand, Father."

Vanya beamed at him until he left before swirling to examine her new challenge.

Everything seemed so simple without her medication, instructions easily translating from her brain to her body. Especially things involving sound. She was confident she could master the instrument in no time and hopefully with the challenge she could find more positive outlets for the White Violin. Her power had come out this afternoon to no negative effect; perhaps there was a way to overcome her power's more destructive side.

And maybe one day she could even show Reginald her powers. She wondered if he would be proud or if he would still fear her.

The next day her siblings found, or more accurately overheard, her new hobby and hastened to join her.

Diego quickly groaned: "God, it's even louder than the violin. I can hear it from the other side of the house!"

"Shut up." Allison scolded, elbowing him in the ribs. "It's beautiful, Seven."

"Isn't it?" Vanya said proudly, looking up from the keys where she was trying to press out To a Wild Rose. The song wasn't that difficult, but she still hadn't figured out how to use the pedals effectively and having the separate actions of each hand and each foot was delightfully testing.

"How come you got that?" Luther asked curiously.

It wasn't unheard of for the siblings to get items characterised as non-essential from Reginald. However their requests were usually only considered if they did something he considered worthy of reward. Which wasn't much, especially for Number Seven.

Luther had received his record player, records and model planes. His music tastes didn't often align with Vanya's however, since their arrival, he had requested a compilation of Vivaldi solely for her use, which she'd awkwardly accepted under Allison's watchful gaze (it had been no mystery to her who had prompted this uncharacteristic warmth from the usually distant Number One).

Diego had got a dartboard once, for more recreational target practice, which was followed by the siblings' first bike. This time around Diego had offered to let them all use it instead of guarding it solely for himself, although they were still only allowed to cycle in the courtyard.

Allison received a pet rabbit, ostensibly to practice using her powers on (which hadn't worked and who had unfortunately died a few months later after Klaus fed it a chocolate bar – apparently it looked hungry and he thought it would like it better then 'dumb carrots'). She also had the best furnished room out of all the children, who often used it as their collective meeting place.

Klaus had managed to infuriate them all (but mostly Allison) by being the first to successfully request clothes other than the standard Academy uniforms. The clothes were almost painful to look at, coming nowhere near Klaus' typically eclectic style, but there was no umbrella detailed anywhere upon them and Klaus took to wearing them whenever they were out of Reginald's sight (although he refused to touch the sweater vests).

Five constantly received stacks of notebooks for his equations – he wasn't interested in much else although he had occasionally been given some toys when he was younger that were still dotted around the room, untouched.

Six was constantly getting new books after Pogo pointed out to Reginald that the library didn't hold many books suitable for anyone not holding an undergraduate degree. Like the first time, he often loaned them to Vanya once he was finished with them; offering them up as a distraction while the six were away from the house or as a pleasant escape into another world when things got too much.

Vanya was never given much, even her beloved violin was a hand-me-down not bought with her in mind. That the piano was purchased especially for her made her feel positively aglow.

"Father said I could try a new instrument if my violin was good enough." She told them, looking back down at the keys.

"You got that for playing the violin?" Klaus whinged. "I finally managed to climb up that damn rope yesterday and I didn't get a piano. Not that I'd really want a piano, but still."

"Perhaps, Number Four," Reginald said from the doorway, startling them all, "if you applied yourself to your training as well as Number Seven has to hers you would also be rewarded."

Vanya shot Klaus a sympathetic glance as Reginald walked away but inside the White Violin crowed. Perhaps her more vindictive tendencies still needed a little work, she considered wryly. But, she thought as Five winked at her before zapping out the room, at least she would not be alone during that uphill battle anymore.

For anyone wondering about the chapter titles the 5 means the test Reginald Hargreeves runs in this story is mainly for Number 5 (as he wants him to teleport with someone and uses Vanya to try to accomplish this), it is the 68th test and this one is 03 because this is the third timeline (5.068.03) - obviously the second timeline would've been the same as the first so I'm not writing an 02. I've seen a few stories where Vanya arrives in the past with no memory and I wanted to turn it on its a head a bit. Also in case you think Reginald is being too nice with the piano, after seeing the start of the last episode I started to think that maybe he does have an appreciation for music as it reminds him of his lost love (I'm really hoping they stick to the alien backstory from the comic here). And as the children have objects that must have been gifts, as I can't picture them getting pocket money, (like Luther's record collection) he must give them things on occasion but I picture that as some sort of weird social conditioning on his part were he only rewards good behaviour. Like Vanya following his instructions about jumping and then achieving successes in her independent studies. Anyway I'll stop rambling now - I hope you enjoyed the chapter and the story as a whole, please let me know if you did. I have made a series in case I make more one-shots. I had planned for this to be an occasional occurrence as I am meant to be focusing on editing my book but since I keep adding to a list of story ideas you may not have to wait all that long!