CHAPTER SEVEN: SIT IN

Lotus peeled her eyes open, glancing around the room. She was on the couch, where the hell did Diego go?

A loud ringing echoed, red lights flashed from the other room. She swung her legs over the side and pushed up, rushing towards the commotion. Elliott was leaning over a desk, tapping away at button until the lights and noise cut out.

"What's that?"

Elliott turned and gave her a nod, "A disturbance in the field. Your friend's gone to check it out."

Lotus sighed, walking up to him and peaking at the machine he studied. "When did he leave?"

"You just missed him."

"Oh."

Lotus looked around, tapping her foot impatiently on the ground. Elliott crossed his arms, forehead crinkled in an intense stare.

"How'd you two meet?" He questioned, "Was it in space or—"

Lotus snorted, "It was on this planet, don't get excited."

He frowned, "I was expecting something more. Oh, don't be offended! I didn't mean it like that, but, he's so... intense and you're, well, you're a lot nicer."

"We met while I tried robbing a diner back home, in 2019. He was being attacked by a group of men, he tried to kill me."

Elliott pursed his lips, "Oh."

"It's no biggy." She shrugged, "I can take him."

"What exactly is your power?"

Lotus shook her head, "It's a secret."

"How come?"

If Elliott thought his many questions would get her to spill something, he was wrong. To be fair, Lotus actually liked Elliott. He seemed nice, and let them crash at his place while they went off and did their own crazy things. Even if he was only letting them stay because he thought they were aliens, the thought was still there.

"Because Five said not to spoil it."

Elliott pursed his lips, "And you trust him?"

"With my life." She nodded, surprised with the absence of hesitation. "I mean, he's a trickster by heart and a prick by choice, but he means well."

"Why is he named Five?"

Lotus shrugged, "Sometimes I call him Maximus."

Five was a tricky person to figure out, and she wasn't even sure she had him figured out yet. Lotus kinda knew she hadn't, he was always hiding something. Yet, within these few days she noticed moments where his walls came down and he showed what he was really thinking. Granted, the few times he did this something went wrong, the latest being swiped by a baby Pogo. Lotus turned and started towards the kitchen, "Mind if I have some cereal?"

Elliott trailed behind her, "Yeah, go ahead."

She spotted a few boxes on top of the fridge, frowning as she tried to grab one.

"Here." Elliott said, taking down a box. "These just came out this year, you know that? Best cereal I've had in my whole life."

Lotus grabbed the box, staring down at the familiar name. "Froot Loops?"

He nodded eagerly, picking up a clean bowl from the sink and handing it to her, along with a spoon. She opened the fridge and took out a cartoon of milk, pouring it in after the cereal was there. Elliott put everything back as she sat at the table and took a mouthful, the box said Froot Loops, but tasted nothing like what she was used to back in the future.

"Are you the most dangerous?" Elliott questioned, "Is that why you have to keep it a secret?"

She snorted, "Not even close."

"Are you their sister?"

"No, thank god." She took another spoonful, munching contently. "That would be weird."

Elliott nodded slowly, as if he understood. "I mean, you did just explain how you and the boy met. That was a stupid question."

"I ask stupid questions all the time." She shrugged, "You're fine."

Static filled the air and Five appeared in the doorway, the same place he paused the night before. Lotus sent a glare his way, he only smirked. "I found Vanya."

Lotus jumped up, her bowl shaking as she nudged the table. "Really?"

"Come on." He walked over and slung an arm around her, "She's at a diner in town."

Lotus snickered, jabbing an elbow into his side. He flinched, the hand around her finding a place on his stomach. "Cocky asshole." She gave him a nod, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Let's go."

Elliott had a small amused smile on his face as they blinked out, reappearing in a bathroom stall.

"Smooth." She told him, kicking open the door and marching out.

"What?" He laughed, following her out. A few customers who sat by the door gave him odd looks as they charged towards the bar stools, where Vanya sat alone.

Lotus sat next to Five, who was next to Vanya. A waitress wandered over with a mug and a half filled pot of coffee, they all watched as the woman poured some into the mug in front of Five.

"Leave the pot, dear." Five quipped as she went to leave, the woman glared as she set it down. Muttering as she walked away, causing Lotus to snicker.

Vanya looked the same, of course, it seemed they all did. It was nice not seeing her locked away, but being treated like a normal human being.

"Are you my sister?"

Lotus blinked, "No." Both her and Five said at the same time, sharing a look.

"Oh." She looked to Five, "You gonna tell me what the hell's going on?"

Five shifted in his seat, "When you were a baby, you were bought by an eccentric billionaire. He raised you in an elite academy with six other siblings with extraordinary powers, but in the year 2019, in order to avoid the apocalypse, we jumped into a vortex and ended up being scattered throughout the timeline in Dallas, Texas."

"Any questions?" Lotus asked sarcastically.

Vanya pursed her lips, taking in all this sudden information. "What do you mean, 'the apocalypse?'"

"I mean the end of the world as we know it."

"Yeah, but how?"

Lotus' brows furrowed, "You don't remember?"

"No." Vanya shook her head, "Nothing before a month ago. I landed in like, a back alley and got hit by a car. My head was ringing like crazy and I had no idea how I got there, or where I came from. What causes the apocalypse?"

Five paused, taking a look around the room. "An asteroid impact. A big kaboom ends everything. Just like the one that got the dinosaurs, expect way worse. Bad news is that it followed us here."

"What do you mean?"

Lotus raised a brow, "That's a good question."

"Eight days from now, the world ends in a nuclear doomsday."

Eight days. They only had eight days now. Lotus frowned, why was time going by so fast now?

"A different disease, but same outcome." Five grabbed his mug and wrapped his hands around it, staring.

"That can't be right."

Lotus pursed her lips, "We saw it. You were there. With the rest of your family."

Vanya took a deep breath, shaking her head before dashing from the counter and towards the landline on the wall behind them. "Shit, I need to make a call."

Lotus watched as the woman shoved a quarter into the box and dialled a number, she quickly turned and leaned her elbow on the counter. Five took a sip of his coffee, "When can we find everyone else?"

Five glanced at her, "Soon."

"Eight days isn't enough, Five." She whispered, staring at him with worried eyes. "It's not—"

"It has to be." He cut her off, sliding off his stool. He left his mug on the table as he walked over to Vanya and ended her call.

She could tell Vanya was angry with him by the look on her face, but Five grabbed ahold of her and seemed to convince her otherwise. Soon they were walking towards the exit and Lotus jumped off her stool and raced after them. Vanya lead them to her car and they all got in, Lotus was left alone in the backseat.

"What are we gonna do now?"

"Find the others."

Lotus pursed her lips, "We should go find Luther first, he might know where Allison or Klaus is now."

"He's to busy with his job." He huffed.

Lotus reached over and grabbed ahold of his shoulder, the change came quickly this time.

"What are you doing?"

Vanya looked in the mirror and jumped, "What the hell—"

"I'll be back soon." She said closing her eyes, concentrating on the Burlesque Club they had last seen Luther at. Lotus had no idea how Five did this so easily, but to her relief, when she opened her eyes she was standing in the deserted doorway of the club. She felt the gimmick slip away, but checked her reflection in the glass of the door just in case. She was herself again.

Lotus stepped outside, looking around at groups of people who all rushed by. A big figure caught her attention, one who trudged towards a sketchy building.

"Luther!" Lotus yelled, rushing across the street at him. He froze, squinting as she approached him. He held a box of chocolates in his hands, a small smear of one at the corner of his mouth. "Are you okay?"

"How'd you find me?"

"Luck." She shrugged, "Have you run into any of the others yet?"

He frowned, "I just came from Allison's house."

Her eyes lit up, Allison's house! She lived here, in the city, and none of them had managed to find her any earlier. "That's great! Was she there— did you talk to her about the apocalypse—"

"No." Luther huffed, "She wasn't home. But, her husband was."

Lotus couldn't help the smile that formed on her face, "Husband! That's amazing, good for her!" The look on his face told her otherwise, and she quickly remembered their little spark. "Oh, not for you. Sorry about that."

He sighed, "75 Ellis Street. She's been this close this whole time and I never found her."

"I'm sorry about that, but we have bigger problems. I'm sure you guys can rekindle when we're back home in present time and when she's not married."

"I have a fight to prepare for." Luther said, "In a few hours. I'm not going back there."

Lotus nodded, "Fine. But we're staying at a place called Morty's Television's, if you want to find us or need a place to stay. Ok?"

Luther looked around, "I'm sorry, for everything I did and said to you."

She blinked, she did not expect this, of all things for him to say to her.

"It's okay." Lotus said quickly, not wanting to delve into that hole. "I've got to go find Allison."

She dashed around him and up the street, having no clue to where she was going. Lotus had no idea where Ellis street was, but continued on anyways.

After ten minutes of aimlessly walking, she finally recognized herself to be downtown. Up the street, a few police cars were parked with their lights still flashing. For a moment she remembered those three men, all hunting them down like it was a game. At least Hazel and Cha-Cha seemed to have emotions, these new guys were like robots.

When Lotus reached the parked cars, her attention flickered to a small diner, chaos rolling out inside. She could see a large group of people standing around the bar seating, all chanting 'get out' and 'you don't belong here.'

She shouldered open the door and squeezed around people, brows furrowing at the scene. A giant sign that read White's Only was hung from the ceiling, but the people at the bar were not. Realization set in, this was a sit in. Because this wasn't 2019, this was 1963 and racism was a way to live to this people. Not like the present time was much better, but it was better than this.

Lotus looked around, frowning at the things people shouted. She was nudged and shoved towards the front of the crowd, eyes widening as they landed on a woman sat at the end of the table.

"Allison?"

It seemed she heard, glancing behind her. "Lotus!"

Lotus threw herself at the woman, hugging her so tight she thought she'd slip away. When they parted there were more boos, and a few employees snickered at her.

"I can't believe I found you!"

Allison nodded, "I wish it was at a better place."

A woman a seat down from Allison leaned forward, "And who might you be?"

Lotus hopped onto the counter, crossing her legs as she inched towards the centre. "I'm a friend of Allison's. And here to support you."

"Lotus, you shouldn't."

She shrugged, "I should. And I will. These people are all brain dead anyways, treating and talking to you like this."

"Your name's Lotus?" The woman in yellow questioned, a small smile on her face. "Welcome to the party."

Lotus' lips formed a line, "I'm sorry. I didn't even think of this, I didn't think—"

"I didn't either." Allison said over the chaos, "Until I walked into a place like this and saw the White's Only sign."

"How many white friends and family do you got?" A man mumbled from next to her. Allison frowned, eyes trained in front of her.

"Is that—"

"Her husband. Yes."

Lotus nodded, "It's nice to meet you."

A hand nudged her and she looked to see a waiter place a cup of hot coffee on the counter, he slid it over towards Allison and tipped it off the surface. It splashed onto her skirt, she jumped up in a panic at the heat of it.

An officer came up behind her and grabbed her hands, throwing her to a table. Her husband jumped up after her, trying to get the man off of her but was grabbed by a few others and tossed into a table as well. Lotus' eyes widened as one grabbed his baton and starting beating him.

"Oh my god." She mumbled, turning to the waiter who split the coffee. "You're going to hell." She spat, and without hesitation brought her fist up and connected it with his face.

Lotus spun off the table and landed in front of Allison, she grabbed ahold of the cop and tried prying him off. "Get off of her!" She screamed, "Get off!"

Allison was panting, screaming for her husband. "Ray!"

"I don't know how to help." Lotus huffed, "I want to help, tell me what to do."

"Get them off of him." Allison whispered, eyes watering.

Lotus nodded, turning to see the officer's still pounding on Raymond. When they saw her approach, they grabbed ahold of him and dragged him outside. She scrambled after them, eyes burning at the smoke that clouded the air. In the amount of time she'd been inside, the sun had set. It was dark outside, but the chants of the unheard rang into the sky like an anthem. Lotus ran down the small path of room between groups, gasping as a random civilian held Ray back while another cop pounded him.

"Stop!" She yelled, dodging a few people. She managed to shove the cop aside as Allison came tumbling towards them. One of the people she managed to avoid grabbed ahold her, still screaming and trying to wiggle free. Lotus extended her arms at her sides, trying to shield him from the blows. "Stop hurting him!"

"Move aside."

"Yeah!" Another person joined in, "America's a free country, doll. We can do what we want."

"No! Are you crazy! They are people!" She screamed in anger, this was unacceptable. "They are the same as you and me! You all preach that America is free but that's the biggest fucking lie I've ever heard! Freedom means having the power or right to speak, act or think as one wants without restraint— that we are all equal and can walk down the street without fearing for our lives! Who gave you the right to decide that these people are not on the same level as you!"

"Move." The officer glared, patience gone.

"You will not touch him."

He made a gesture, and someone came out of nowhere and tossed her aside. She yelped as she landed on the cement, meeting the gaze of an evil looking old man. "You're just as bad as them if you stand by their side."

Lotus' breaths came in heaves. Is this what they experienced everyday? This was living hell, and this was all because of the colour of their skin.

She glared, spitting in his face. "Go to hell."

He raised a hand and clipped her in the eye, she gasped as he punched her again. Lotus struggled under his grip but managed to kick him off, she scrambled up to see Raymond half unconscious on the ground.

"Oh my god." She whispered, staring around them. A canister of tear gas was kicked towards the greater crowd and screams erupted, everyone running their separate ways. Her eyes landed on the one who still gripped Allison, she ran forward and tackled him to the ground. By the time she got up and glanced back, Allison gripped the baton in the hands of the officer who had been attacking Ray. The cop had a distant look in his eyes as he dropped the weapon and simply walked away.

Allison rushed to her husbands side, Lotus couldn't hear what they were saying but just as quickly as she had been to his side he was pulling himself up and backing away in the opposite direction. Allison yelled his name, but he disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"Allison!" Lotus coughed grabbing her hand, "Are you okay—"

"Allison!" A new voice shouted, and Lotus couldn't believe it when she saw Klaus. "Lotus, is that you?" He shook his head, "We need to go. Now!"

Lotus dragged Allison away, despite her pleads. By the time they turned a corner, the chaos vanishing, did the woman sob. Klaus said nothing, in fact, nobody did until Allison led them to 75 Ellis Street and let them into her house. It was a beautiful home, it felt cozy and warm and very much lived in. They all trudged into the living room, Lotus was at a loss for words.

"I'm going to bed." Allison whispered, leaving them and walking up the stairs. Her footsteps echoed throughout the house, an eerie feeling settling around them.

Klaus stepped towards Lotus, "I can't believe you're here."

Lotus looked up to him, a frown on her face as she threw herself at him. She clung against, sighing a breath of release. "I missed you so much."

"I missed you too."

Lotus sobbed, "I've been so worried."

"Where's Five?"

"With Vanya. They're safe."

She peeled away from him, "Will Allison be okay?"

Klaus frowned, "Probably not."

She felt so clueless, how could she not have realized? Everywhere they went it seemed there was a lack of colour, and no matter what they overheard, a lot of people also seemed to be very homophobic as well as racist.

"That's not right what went on back there—"

"We can't do anything about it, Lotus." Klaus told her, "We already know what happens."

She nodded, "MLK's march isn't until 1965."

"But it still happens."

"But—"

Allison reappeared, now in her pyjamas. "Thank you."

Lotus' brows furrowed, "What?"

Instead of saying anything else, the woman wandered towards what she assumed was the kitchen.

Lotus glanced back at Klaus, pulling him into another hug. "I need to get back to Five. I told him I'd come back."

"It was good to see you."

She nodded, stepping away. "Mind calling a cab? I don't wanna walk in the dark."

He snorted, but nodded and disappeared elsewhere. Lotus sighed, walking towards a wall, examining the pictures hung up there. A few were of Allison and Ray at what she assumed was their wedding, both beaming at each other with a happiness she couldn't describe. Other's seemed to be of friends and family, Lotus reached out and tapped one of the frames.

"Is everyone okay?"

Lotus blinked, turning and looking around the room. It was empty and she frowned.

"Klaus?"

No response.

"You can hear me?"

She spun in a circle, "Who's there?"

"Ben."

"What?"

Footsteps sounded and Klaus gave her a weird look, "A cab's on its way."

"Okay."

He fell back on a couch, laying down along it. "You're eye is already turning purple."