- "Yeah, you're right. You're right. I'm-I'm. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."
- —. Ben and Klaus discussing Klaus' sobriety.
This is the relationship between the two adopted brothers Ben and Klaus Hargreeves.
Ben had the closest relationship with his brother Klaus, as he was the only one able to see his brother after his death when they were younger. Ben tries numerous times to help Klaus get sober and to stop abusing drugs, but this fails on numeorus occasions. Ben has always been mothering Klaus, advising him not to do certain things. When Klaus gives up on being sober, ben continues to lecture him on how he was doing so well. When Klaus was kidnapped, Ben was trying to help him. He encouraged him to use his powers since he was no longer intoxicated. After a while, Klaus is able to use his abilities to physically manifest Ben, enabling him to use his Eldritch Creature summoned attacks on the Commission. This is also demonstrated when Ben is shown to punch Klaus, as well as saving both Klaus and Diego from falling rubble. Ben later takes this further when he is able to possess Klaus with his permission to talk with Jill. Ben, possessing Klaus' body, tries his best to get his brother to the ally. When Ben goes into the light, he asks Vanya to tell Klaus that he has been dead for seventeen years and all of the years he had with Klaus was extra. He asks Vanya to reassure Klaus that he shouldn't feel guilty for keeping Ben with him, as he was always afraid to go into the light.
Throughout The Umbrella Academy series[]
In We Only See Each Other at Weddings and Funerals, Diego is revealed to have taken Sir Reginald's monocle and lets it drop into the river. In the car, Klaus talks with his deceased brother, Ben, asking him if he wants waffles. Ben nods but does not communicate back. Klaus replies with, "everyone likes waffles." When Diego gets in the drivers seat, he looks back to see Klaus talking to nobody and is confused. But he assumes Klaus is just drunk and moves on.
In Run Boy Run, at the Academy, Klaus begins to sober up and converses with the spirit of Ben Hargreeves. Pogo arrives and asks Klaus if he knows where several items taken from Sir Reginald's study are, explaining that if they're returned there will be no blame or consequences.
Klaus and Ben at the academy
In Extra Ordinary, five years ago, Vanya buys a typewriter from a pawn shop and begins writing a tell-all autobiography about her life as Number Seven in the Umbrella Academy. The book is a moderate success, with Vanya engaging in a press tour. The members of the Academy all react differently to the book: Klaus reads it in group therapy with Ben's spirit looking over his shoulder. Back in the present, Klaus searches through a dumpster outside the Academy, trying to find the stuff he stole from Sir Reginald's office to appease Pogo. Ben watches. As he searches, Five comes down the fire escape, hoping to leave the Academy undetected. Klaus offers to go with him but he declines the help, and leaves in a van. Luther, Allison, Diego, Klaus, and Vanya gather at the Academy to discuss Grace. Luther shows the others the video recording and they realize it shows Grace taking Sir Reginald's monocle. Luther wonders where it is now, since he searched everywhere, including Grace's possessions. Diego admits to taking it from Grace after the funeral because he knew Luther would act this way if he found it on her. The discussion turns to the possibility of shutting Grace down. Her programming was meant to kick in to save someone's life if it was in jeopardy, and Luther thinks her hardware must be breaking down if she failed to save Sir Reginald and allowed him to die. They take a vote; Luther and Allison want to shut Grace down. Diego, Vanya, and Klaus vote against, with Klaus telling them that Ben would agree with him if he was here. Ben's spirit disagrees. Luther insists the vote isn't final, since Five isn't there, and they postpone the decision.
In Man on the Moon, Klaus is held captive by Hazel and Cha Cha, with Ben watching. As Hazel and Cha Cha talk about their interrogation techniques, Klaus begins to sober up. Ben guesses his sobriety is the reason that an old Russian woman's spirit has appeared to Klaus. Hazel and Cha Cha go back to basics, check Klaus' clothing, and find his drugs. Playing on his addiction, they begin destroying his drugs in front of him. In an effort to stop them destroying his stash, Klaus immediately gives up that Number Five was staking out Meritech Prosthetics. At the motel, Klaus is hidden in the closet and begins to have flashbacks to the time Sir Reginald locked him in a mausoleum in an attempt to hone his abilities to contact the dead. Klaus tries to get the attention of the maid cleaning the room, but she's wearing headphones and doesn't hear him. Ben comforts Klaus through the withdrawal but tells him that the worst part of being dead is watching someone have what he doesn't throwing their life away.
Ben watches as Klaus struggles with his power
In The Day That Was, Klaus, accompanied by Ben's spirit, go looking for Luther. Klaus believes that Luther needs something to take the edge off and experience life, but Ben argues that he's not ready for it. He points out that if the situation was reversed, Klaus knows that Luther would stop at nothing to save him. Klaus continues to search for Luther, finally finding him at a rave, drunk and taking drugs. He tries to get Luther to stop, even throwing away a tablet, but the location threatens to overwhelm him. Ben tries to get him to stay strong but the temptation overwhelms him and he begins to crawl along the floor towards the tablet. As he does, he has flashbacks to his time in Vietnam and when he reaches the tablet, he sees Dave instead and once more cradles his dying body in his arms.
In I Heard a Rumor, Luther wakes up in the Academy with one of the women from the rave in his bed. Klaus, still sober, calls a family meeting consisting of him, Luther, Five, and Ben's spirit (although the others are not aware of his presence).
Ben annoyed at Klaus' absurdness
In Changes, With this new blow, Klaus begins looking for drugs since he wants to be numb. No one is taking him seriously despite being sober and he still can't talk to the person he loves. Ben tries to talk him out of it but when Klaus puts the pills in his mouth, Ben goes to punch him. To both of their surprise, Ben's fist connects with Klaus and makes him spit the drugs out. They are both shocked; Klaus thinks Ben did it on his own, but Ben is sure that Klaus made the connection real.
In The White Violin, Vanyas power awaken in her and the Academy begins to fall apart. As Diego and Klaus search for Grace, they fall. Klaus tries to rouse Diego as the ceiling threatens to collapse on them, and they are pulled to safety by Ben. Klaus cannot believe it. At the Super Star Bowling Alley, the Hargreeves discuss their next move. They need to go after Vanya and Klaus finds an advertisement for her concert in the paper. Because of being saved by Klaus earlier, Diego is willing to listen to his plan. Klaus tries to convince them that Ben is around and saved Diego, but his attempt to get him to catch a bowling ball fails and the others doubt his seriousness once more. Five is contacted by the Handler to meet her at the motel, and he teleports away. At Icarus Theater, Klaus guards outside accompanied by Ben.
Ben and Klaus take on Temps Commission
In Right Back Where We Started, heading back to Dallas, Klaus and Ben get into an argument as Ben pleads with Klaus to return to San Francisco so that he may finish his unfinished business. Klaus, however, remarks that they cannot go back as he feels he is suffocating, and the two get into a fight on the highway in which Klaus exclaims that he doesn’t need Ben. Heading into a nearby Tavern, Klaus questions when the next bus to Dallas is, and the bartender remarks that it is the following day at 3. Meanwhile, Klaus is invited to play poker. Believing Ben to be telling the truth when he tells him that the man is bluffing, Klaus bargains his necklace for the man’s keys, but is surprised to find that Ben was lying. This ends in a fight between Klaus and the man when Klaus tries to take the man’s keys anyway. Klaus manages to get away with the man’s truck nevertheless.
In The Swedish Job, It’s 1960, Dallas, Klaus is thrown from a restaurant for not being able to pay his bill. On the sidewalk, he lands at the feet of a wealthy, older woman who promises to take him in. From here, Klaus finds his life changed for good as he amasses a following. Meanwhile, Ben finds himself fascinated by one of Klaus’ followers.