Uncover the traces

LOCATION | The serpents headquarter
DATE | 4th of June 2022
TIME | Midday
WEATHER | bright and sunny
ATTIRE | Victoria | A pair of black trousers and a white t-shirt
TOPIC FOR | @Linus x
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Now, she had heard the two birds whisper - or what you said, about something that had seemed to be bothering Francis. Not that she hadn't noticed it before, but this time it seemed like he was way more focused on the actual matter. So, curious as she was she put three glasses of whisky on a tray and walked closer towards the table where they were discussing. Not that there were many others here than the usual serpents. Victoria placed the tray on the table, and placed her hand on the back of the chair Linus was sitting on, leaning a little against his chair with her hip. "You know the walls have ears right," she reminded them, also not really minding that they knew she had listened. She picked up one the crystals before Francis got to get his hand on them, "magical crystals," she mumbled a little bit. Like every thing else that was made from earthen material it was something she knew very well, "yeah, I have some memories in the crystal that I've been spending quite some time figuring out if I want back or not," Francis confessed a bit annoyed, also just slightly hoping she would leave it alone. Because he knew most people would say the same; i know a witch who perhaps can break the spell. "I can crack the stone for you - if you want of course," she placed it back on the table, making Francis thrown a bit, "I manipulate earthen matters remember, it might be magical but its still a stone, a rock, as for your memories - I can help with that t0o," she pulled a little smirk looking from Francis to Linus, raising her brow a little, "not with getting them in, but I can make sure you don't fry your brain trying."
She forced her eyes more or less from Linus looking back at Francis who pulled a little smile on it being possible all of it out of sudden. "And where was it again you've been all my life?" He teased with a little chuckle then picking up his crystal again, gesturing her to sit down.

Linus had hushed Francis for the millionth time already; now, he had been telling his brother for the past couple of months that he should just get it over with and then hopefully be able to figure out what the hell he would do after he had gotten all of his memories back. When it came down to it, Linus didn’t really care if Francis wanted to play dad again or if he wanted to try to get that beautiful brunette back from her fiancé, even though he had a hard time thinking she would be particularly happy with Francis if he ever came back after that stunt he had pulled.
His eyes turned as Victoria walked towards them; a small sigh left him as she started speaking, not that he said anything. Folding his arms, he let his eyes connect with Victoria’s as she told them what she would be able to do. He shrugged and then looked at his brother as he asked where Victoria had been all his life “Oi, fuck off, and get to the matter of hand, do you want the memories back or not?” he asked, licking his lips. “I don’t care if you afterwards want to run around trying to mend the broken bonds with your girls and whatnot, but I’m tired of you moaning around not knowing what to do”, he murmured, getting a little fed up with all of this, the faster they could get it over with, the better.

Francis folded his arms out to the side, almost as if he felt attacked by his brother. Well he knew that Linus was fed up with this, he had been so himself, it had been the main reason he had pushed it down for so long. Francis hushed him a little, "And yet you keep sitting here on your ass waiting for me to make a choice," he pointed out. Then he clicked his tongue and held his hand out, not wanting his brother to say much further. Not yet anyways. "I'm going to do it, at least get some sort of perspective on the matter would be nice," he took a sharper breath in then looking at Victoria, who hadn't taken a seat but kept standing next to Linus. "If you can do it that is," he was skeptic, who wouldn't be if it came down to someone mending with your head. "I'm pretty confident in my abilities, don't underestimate them," Victoria pointed out and took a sharper breath in. "Then lets go out in the back, I don't think I need more show and tell," he sighed a little bit then got up from his chair, handed Victoria the crystal again, then headed outside waiting for her and Linus to follow him. "What are we waiting for then," she mumbled a little and turned her gaze once again towards Linus, letting her eyes back on the crystal in her hands, it would be easy to crush. Perhaps it was the point making them search for a spell to remove the curse that blocked the stone, instead of just searching for none magical means to crack the memories open. "He might need you once the memories kick back in," she moved her eyes back to Linus, knowing by the sound of his voice earlier that he was fed up by the mess the crystal had found or at least how Francis was dealing with it - or not dealing with it.

“Yes, because you kindly told me it was none of my business, but when you keep fucking around in it, you keep making it my business”, he hissed back and narrowed his eyes to tell his brother that he was done discussing the matter, he wasn’t going to force Francis to get his memories back, he just wanted him to make a decision and then stop thinking about it. Either get the memories back or throw the crystal in the ocean.
He then got up from his chair and followed along with the two others looking over his shoulder to make sure no one else was following, which was odd given that they were in his bar now, after all. But, things took time and even though he and his brother were now the owners, it still didn’t cancel out the fact that there might be people who tried to pull one over them.

As Victoria told him that she might need to be there for him, when the memories started to kick back, he nodded. “I’m here for anything; I just wanted him to make a bloody decision”, he murmured, looking at his brother before letting out a breath. “I’m ready when you are”, he said, taking two chairs over and making Francis sit down so it would be easier to catch him if something unexpected happened.

Francis wasn’t even sure if he had made the right choice. He just knew he did things he didn’t understand, like for one how mad he had gotten by the knowledge of what Anthony had done to one of his daughters. It had pissed him off so badly that he had burned some random bar down in town. Then they had of course killed Anthony or Linus had the pleasure in taking Anthony’s last breath away.

Francis took a deeper breath in and nodded for Victoria to know she could get started, he sat down on the chair Linus found for him, and Victoria moved over behind him. Still with the crystal in her hand she knew even if she did consider it an easier job to crack a stone, she had learned from Cassian a long time ago not to take any type of witchcraft lightly. But she closed her eyes and one could hear how the stone started to crack in her fist, this was the easy part. The crystal mended to dust that sparkled like magic so she blew it towards Francis like dust in the air, it twirled around him. Even in the ears of Victoria it was noisy. It was like ever little drop of dust was a memory that absorbed into his skin.

Francis then screamed up as the memories started to press themselves through his skull to his brain, making Victoria grab onto his skull and slow down the process of how fast the memories forced themselves into Francis head. He stopped screamed but cold sweat started to form on his forehead like drops dripping down his cheek. He painted in exhaustion not able to really form any words, just living with the constant imagines that flashed for his eyes, trying to place themselves in correct order.

Everything from the first time he had been so lost in the land of magic, how hopeless he had felt fearing that he wouldn’t be able to see his brother again. The first time he had met Juniper, then the second time. The first kiss. The first time he had truly known what it felt like to love someone. The time she had told him that they were going to be parents. The second time. The third. Then how his temptation had made him lose everything because of Junipers sister.

Victoria let go once Francis fell out of the chair down on his knees, gasping for air. Victoria moved her hand up towards her nose that had started bleeding a little while ago from the pressure his brain had pushed against her powers.

It wasn’t like Linus could do much other than making sure that his brother didn’t fall out of the chair. He didn’t even dare tell her to stop because he knew that there was no turning back when they had first started; now, it was all or nothing. Unless he, of course, wanted a brother that was a vegetable for the next couple of years, so he just stood there; he hadn’t even noticed that he had gotten up from the chair and supported his brother by having a hand against his shoulder. He wanted to be there, but he had no idea what was going through his mind, whether he was even seeing what everyone thought or if the fairy might have lied. But why would two girls be running around claiming they could remember Francis and Juniper together, and they undoubtedly looked like their mother and, of course, their own mother.

“Are you okay?” he asked, looking up at Victoria as he saw and smelled the blood coming from her nose. Then he turned to look at his brother, waiting for him to sort through all of the new information that he had gotten.

He had a hard time catching his breath, but managed to move his hand up to his brother's hand, grabbing it just to hold it close. Because what ever was being pushed back and fourth in his mind was massive, and it was clear his eyes almost circled around trying to place everything.
Victoria moved her eyes towards Linus as he looked to her and nodded. "Yeah, just a little lightheaded," she replied truthfully, because it wasn't as much the entire process but that had pushed her too. Her eyes moved towards Francis and she took a deeper breath in. "I lowered his brain function, making sure it doesn't go on full speed trying to put everything in boxes, so while he seem like he has lost his mind - its only because his mind is allowing himself to sort everything out," she walked over next to Linus and sat down to look at Francis from this point of view. "I would give him a few minutes, see if his mind can handle it, otherwise I will put him to sleep and take it form when he wakes up, give his mind time to recover," Victoria narrowed her eyes a little bit, then got up standing again, blinking a little bit, well she had said she was feeling lightheaded. And one could get that simply by standing up too quickly.

Francis pressed his brows together, because he did hear what they were saying, but every single time he wanted to speak, there was a new memory that moved in front of his eyes making him get distracted by it instead of actually speaking. But he found comfort in the fact that he could smell the presence of his brother even with his eyes opened, he didn't manage to actually see the things in front of him yet, making him blink every single time there was a new memory - which was often.

Linus nodded, looking down at his brother. When he took his hand, he moved the other to place on his shoulder and turned his gaze to Francis instead of Victoria “maybe you should sit down”, even though he wasn’t looking at her, it was clear that it was her that he was talking about, “and sounds good, let’s see how he takes it, even the most stubborn person might have trouble sorting through all of this, it was, after all, many years that he lost” he mumbled, knowing that Hope had been in her teens when they had stepped through the portal, even though it had taken some time after Francis had done so himself, but twelve years give and take, it was a lot to take in. So, he just sat there, waiting for his brother to either get through it without being put to sleep or to the point where he knew that he wouldn’t be able to do this without getting the help that Victoria was offering.

"Yeah," she mumbled a little bit then decided to sit back down on the ground. Sometimes more feeling to just be connecting with the earth beneath her, she kept her eyes on Francis. Mostly because Victoria felt responsible for how Francis took it further on, and she had promised to see it through and till she had done that - then she would stay and make sure that his brain didn't suddenly speed up on its own. After all Francis mind did work on a whole other scale than most people worked in. Perhaps it was the main reason why Francis was to good at the things he did. Why both brothers were. "His brain is already used to processing information fast, if my theory is correct he should be able to decode it himself without much more assistance - but just in case," she ran a hand through her hair. "He will be just fine," she whispered a little not knowing if it was Linus she wanted to comfort with those words or herself.

Francis after a few more minutes gasped a little bit and blinked moving his hands towards his head. Looking down at Linus then at Victoria, then at Linus and got up from his chair. A bit rocky in his movements, which had Victoria stand up rather fast. But she at least let Francis wander a little bit around as he shook his head. "I remember everything, bloody hell -" his eyes flickered from one side to the other, his heart slightly heavy from what he had done to Faith - even though he still found it had been needed - but how he had spoken to Hope - how he had taken the crystal from Juniper. Not his proudest moment. "Fucking hell," he mumbled to himself and shook his head a little bit. Even though memories so heart felt, it still didn't change the outcome of who he was, or what they were building here. Even though a huge part of him wanted to get to know his daughters and Juniper again - did he perhaps just have to accept that he couldn't? Or should he give it a go?

Linus nodded when Victoria explained what was going on; it gave him a sense of comfort at least knowing that his abilities were working with him instead of against him while processing twelve or so years of memories with a person he had loved and lost, the daughters he had gotten but couldn’t remember, or at least not until now.
Then Francis came back, or at least in a sense where he could communicate with words. Linus narrowed his eyes and watched how his brother walked around, clearly not knowing what to do now. If he was being honest, the brothers had always shown a specific type of jealousy about the other finding a person to spend their lives with. Because they had been so dependent on each other and still were, but something about it, seeing Francis walking around like this, there was something that stirred in Linus, and he suddenly understood that he wouldn’t lose his brother just because he had a family with someone else; no matter what, it would always be the two of them. So he got up, grabbed his brother’s shoulder, and looked him in the eyes. “What the hell are you waiting for?” he asked, raising his brow. “Go get her, you idiot” he then nodded towards the door and gave him the other crystal.

Victoria understood she was silent in this, she didn't have much to say on the matter - also because well, she had very little idea on what was going on other than some memories having been tugged away. But she watched as Linus walked over to Francis and grabbed his shoulder, asking him what he was waiting for, and then to go get the girl. Francis looked at his brother and took a deeper breath in, and took the crystal that was now handed to him. He looked into his brother's eyes and nodded a little. Then heading one step towards the door, and stopped for a second. "Sometimes you should listen to yourself, it's not always bad stuff that leaves your mouth," Francis chuckled  then looking to Victoria, "thank you for your help." He said before heading through the door. "Now we will just have to wait and see again," because well it could go either way once Francis actually made it there.

Francis had taken one of the cars. And drove. He kept driving, knowing very well he could fly there, but he also didn't want to burn anything down on the way there. He could feel his heart speeding up, because he didn't know the outcome of the situation. Francis reached one of the portals and took it so he got there a bit quicker, he knew the way from how he had left. Parking the car and then walked closer and closer, moving his arms up to let her know and the entire are know he wasn't here on a mission to harm anyone. "Inform Juniper I wish to talk to her please," he looked around at this point knowing more what Juniper was capable of doing, knowing she could communicate with the nature around her, so he knew they could tell her if they wanted to. "I have the crystal."

Linus rolled his eyes as his brother told him that he should listen to his own words, then watched how he walked out the door. He wasn’t sure how it would go down, but at least Francis wouldn’t always think the, what if, now he had the memories and had decided to act on it. The question was just if the girl wanted to get her memories back or have anything to do with Francis after the stunt that he pulled.
He turned to Victoria as she mentioned that they just had to wait and see. Nodding, he let out a soft breath. “A drink?” he asked, walking over and giving her a hand to take so he could pull her out of the chair and step back into the bar; besides, they had a business to run.

It hadn’t taken Juniper more than a few minutes to realise that he had tricked her, giving her fake crystals that had just been part of a very powerful illusion. After that, she hadn’t tried to seek him out nor try to find the crystals, she had a feeling that if he decided to get his memories back, he would seek her out or stay away, and either way, she had to wait for him.
Now, she hadn’t thought it would take this long; she was at home given that most work could be done from home now that the children were either on holiday or had exams at the school; she wasn’t really needed physical at least.
She had known the moment he had parked the car, the garden had whispered of his arrival, and as he came closer, she got up and brushed the dirt off her skirt and walked around the house and saw him coming toward her. A brow lifted as she waited for an explanation. “I’m guessing you got your memories back?” she asked before putting her gardening tools on a small bench and walking to him.

Victoria looked up when he spoke again, "with you?" Then she took his hand and let him pull her up, "anytime," Victoria replied then heading back inside to the bar with him. Things were running rather smoothly, if you looked past the events that had happened over at River's casino with her two siren friends. Then again it had nothing to do with Southside.

It took his breath away when he saw her, he hadn't expected that. Maybe it was all these fresh memories that pressed throughout his mind. So seeing her here, it was like seeing her the last time his mind reached. To the last joyful memory. Oh he remembered that one clear, Juniper sitting by the lake with little Faith in her arms, while Hope and Ayah played in the water. All their laughs mixing into the deep core of his mind. "I did, and they are beautiful," he sad almost tearing up by looking into her eyes, which wasn't really like him. But on top of the memories was also the heartache of having been torn from them all. having forgotten all of it. He held the crystal towards her, and held his breath, "you should too." Not because he wanted to pressure her to do so, but because there was so many amazing memories she didn't have.

He winked and gave her a big smile as he turned and walked into the bar area once again; it wasn’t like there was much to look at, so he quickly grabbed a bottle and two glasses. “Clint, you are taking over for Victoria; we are going to the roof”, he called, and then he nodded toward the stairs; it had to be weird for her, being in the space where she had been the second in command next to Jack, and now everything was oddly different from back then, and still it looked like it had always done, only things that had been falling apart had been replaced.
“After you”, he motioned her to go up the stairs so he could follow. Which, in hindsight, hadn’t been a way for him to see her backside, but well, it was an added bonus.

Juniper felt how her teeth grinded toward one another, tightening her jaw for a moment before she let out a small breath. Taking a step closer to him, she looked into his eyes. “So what, now things changed? Because you suddenly know who I am?” she said in a low whisper, not knowing if she wanted to take the crystal or not because she could see it in his eyes; she knew that he had changed, and it scared her. Before he could take it back, she grabbed the crystal and threw her gloves on the bench beside the tools she had placed there. “Fine. Come in”, she whispered and walked into the small door to a seemingly small house, but when inside, it was much bigger than first believed. Plants growing very where, creating a feeling that you had just stepped into a forest, books, flowers and the smell of freshly baked cookies hanging in the air. “My study is this way”, she whispered, feeling like she was walking further away from Reginald as she stepped inside and closed the door as he entered. “Sit” she pointed towards a chair and then placed herself in another opposite the one she had pointed at. “How did you do it?” she asked, studying the crystal between her slender fingers.

Victoria gave Clint a small shrug, then looking towards the stairs, before not really thinking more about it other than, going to the roof. Because if she had to be honest, she would rather spent some time with Linus alone, than just standing in the bar chatting with Clint who clearly liked to talk all the time. Victoria went first up the stairs, getting up to the roof and felt the fresh air form around her once again.  It was indeed something else to be back here, everything and nothing had changed at the same time. She hadn't said it directly to Jack yet, but she preferred him the way he was now. The former leader of Southside, back in Aston taking care of life however he had wanted. It suited him much better. Whereas Victoria, she could let her mask drop here and just be herself, this was her home. She kept her eyes on the view for a moment, before moving her gaze towards Linus. "And here I thought you were all business before pleasure," she teased with a delight chuckle, looking shortly towards the flask and the glasses, before redirecting her eyes towards his again.

Francis felt like he could breath as she took the crystal, he didn't know why. Maybe it was also just odd being the only one who remembered everything. He followed her inside, never actually have thought he would get as far as an invite. Then again he also knew a side of Juniper that she didn't even remember herself. Or may have forgotten about that was more correctly said. Francis stepped into the study and heard the sound of the door closing behind them, then turning around, watching her point to a chair then without saying anything - he walked over and sat down. "I got help from my brother's... what ever they are, she has the ability to control earthen matter and cracked the crystal, pulverized it - and then lower the speed of my brain just enough for my mind not to fry while everything got back to the right places," he explained and took a deeper breath in before his eyes once wondered around, scanning the area, but not in the way he usually scanned a room. He looked at it because it was her persona who had set up the entire space, and every little detail was just a twist of her soul put on display."But you are an earth fairy, I don't bet you need her powers to crack the crystal."

He had to close his eyes as the sun and air hit his face; here out in the open, that was where he found his home. Free as the bird inside of his chest, then he turned as she mentioned she had thought he was all business before pleasure. "What, me? dóste mou kápoia pístosi” (give me some credit). He laughed and shook his head a little “I know how to have fun as well"; he poured her a glass and handed it to her before he poured himself one and then sat down on the concrete roof. Now, this, this was life. No amount of riches could buy you freedom like this, or it could, but even if you were poor, you had to learn how to tackle and enjoy the small stuff.

She nodded when he told her that she would be able to crack it. Her fingers started moving, and before long, the crystal was suspended in the air between her moving fingers. A green light formed around it as her eyes narrowed. Then she let out a small sigh and closed her eyes, a blank book was pulled from a shelve using her magic, and with a small breath, the crystal cracked, and the memories started to form in the room; she could hear the laughter of her children, her own laughter and tears began developing in the corners of her eyes as she saw them, without remembering them. Now she couldn’t take all of the memories in one go, but she had a solution; she let all of the memories form words in the book floating in front of them. Pictures of her and Francis kissing in a garden were flowers sprouting around them, her promise that she would help him home. But one year had taken another, and suddenly they had created a family together. Her screams when her sister had told her that Francis had left her behind, at first she had believed her, trusted her sister that it was the truth, that Francis had left her and the girls back, only later to find out what plans she had for them.
The last memories were written down, and with that, the crystal exploded into dust taken with the wind. It wasn’t like she remembered all of it, but she remembered enough as she took the book and pressed it toward her chest; she looked up, staring at the first man she had ever loved, the man that had given her three beautiful children. What on earth was she supposed to do now? “What now?” she whispered, hoping he would have the answers.  

Victoria shook her head a little bit, then took the glass he poured for her, and then a small sip, before she mirrored his movement and sat down next to him. "Saluti," (cheers), she let her glass gently touch his, before she took another sip, then just looked over at how the sun was lighting up everything. You could even see parts of the hidden oasis if you knew where to look. Of course her and Eric had discovered that place when they were younger, trading the dangerous parts of Southside's wildlife with little or no care. Victoria took a deeper breath in, just appreciating the sensation of the sun stretching its legs towards them, warming them, while the small breeze lightly twirled her hair a bit. She took another mouthful from her glass.

Franics looked, and quickly knew she had made the choice to break the crystal. Let her memories back. He wondered if their love would be rewound back to the start or if they would start where they had ended last time, with that slight anger - no he could never hate her, he really couldn't. Even if it perhaps had been easier to just let her keep on hating him than facing what came next. His eyes looked around as her memories started to float around the room, making him take a deeper breath in. Watching as some of the memories turned into pictures in the book, his eyes kept steady on her and the book. But he didn't say a thing, just letting everything happen. Watching her take the book and curl it towards her chest, keeping it close. "I don't know," he exhaled, sad that he didn't have the answers he wanted to give her. "I'm so sorry," he apologized for everything that had ended up with Acacia tricking him, having left, having forgotten - even if it really when it came down to it wasn't his fault.

He raised his glass to her when she saluted him, letting them touch before turning it toward his lips and taking a sip. For a moment, he just sat there taking in the moment. Then he let his eyes follow the skies that floated around in the slightly dark sky, it wouldn’t be long before the day would end and a new would start.
“Would you get the memories back?” he asked, not looking at her but keeping his eyes on the skies above them. “I mean, if you were already with someone that you were happy with, or if you knew that it might end up changing who you were now, would you take in the memories you had forgotten for such a long time?” he asked and finally turned his attention to her instead of what was above them.

She stood up, walked toward the desk and placed down the book with her memories. It wasn’t the first book that she had poured her memories into. Living for as long as she had, there were too many, good and bad, that you didn’t need to know to exist, so she put it into books so she could pull it out if she ever needed to remember or recall a specific memory.
“I –“ she whispered, letting her hands find the desk and bent slightly forward. “I’m with Reginald; I’m engaged to be married”, she whispered; someone had once told her that it wasn’t possible to love two persons at once; one would always outweigh the other. But, how could she choose? And did Francis even want to do that? Why was he even here? He knew that she was engaged to be married. “What do you want?” she then turned it around. Instead of asking what now, she wanted to know what he wanted from this.

Victoria took a sharper breath in and licked her lips a bit slowly, narrowing her eyes as she took the question he asked in, then turning her eyes towards him and crossed her legs to sit more comfortable, resting the glass on her thigh. "It's a tough one, I'm selfishly happy I'm not the one who had to make that call," she confessed and shook her head a little. "I guess it depends - if you forced yourself trying not to love someone, you knew you did love - just to project the matter into a situation of understanding," she took a slightly deeper breath in ", if you push that feeling away enough, you can make your mind do wonders. Even fool yourself into believing the person you think then makes you happy actually just was the distraction." Perhaps sometimes she wondered if  that was why she had went for Rafael, because she hadn't dared to believe that the person she actually wanted would even pay interest to her, and yet - here they were sitting. "I don't - or maybe I do know, because I reflected a lot over a similar question before the two of us met, not because I lost my memories - I just lost the sense of who I was, became a version of myself I truly believed was happy you know - if you asked most people around, I had it all - I should be happy but I wasn't - not like I am right now - so you never really know, and I'm still happy I don't have to make the real call," she exhaled a little still keeping her eyes on Linus. "Now you, what would you do?"

Francis knew she was in a relationship with that hunter dude Reginald, and yet he hadn't cared in the setting of getting here. He got up from his chair and walked closer to her, slowly. What do you want? To be fair he wanted a lot of things. Francis wanted to know if the taste of her lips still would feel the same if he was to kiss her right now. He wanted to know if the skin of her cheek was still as soft as he recalled it to be. "You," he whispered almost soundless looking at her. "By now you should know that I don't really give up on anything without a fight to it," he added with a hint of a smile, because it was true. Once Francis loved someone it was hard to shake it off, and he was fiercely loyal towards them. But it was still very rare.

He hadn’t thought that she would bring this much to the table. But as she kept talking, it was like he had punctured a long waited speech or stream of consciousness that she had been thinking throughout her short but still very eventful life. He wouldn’t think most people had even tried half of what she had gone through, nor dared to consider how they would end up on the other side if they were put in the same position and asked to make a choice.
He took a sip of the glass and let his tongue glide over his lips as she talked about; she had lost a part of herself, the one she indeed was in pursuit of happiness. Forgetting herself along the way. Now that was something he had learned at a very young age. He had to fend for himself, and it was either surviving or taking everyone else into account; now, he just lived how he wanted, and then the rest could go fuck themselves.
“Hm”, he hummed when she turned it around and asked what he would do. “I would want back my memories”, he simply answered, not knowing what else to say. Because at the end of the day, the memories he lost were still his, and even though he might be afraid that he would turn into someone else, he still deserved to figure that person out; it didn’t mean he would lose himself in the process.

She turned as he whispered that it was her he wanted; she hadn’t noticed that he had stepped this close to her, and it was like her stomach dropped as her eyes connected with his. She did know; that was the beauty and curse of it all; she knew that he wouldn’t go without fighting for her. She knew that unless he had enough proof that she wouldn’t be his again, then he would keep showing up, one way or another.
“I know”, she chuckled, even though it sounded more sad than joyful. Blinking away a couple of tears, she looked down at their feet and was completely overwhelmed that she had no idea what to do or say. She hated this feeling, being so conflicted, not knowing what to say or do. Or that wasn’t true, she knew what she had to do, she had to tell Francis she was with Reginald now, and this wouldn’t change anything. But as she looked up, the words on the tip of her tongue were swallowed, and she couldn’t do it. Why? Because she loved Francis.

Victoria nodded a little, "but I would be so pissed - if someone took my memories. I don't doubt neither Francis or Juniper will take it lightly once things settle," it also could mean a war was on the rise. Victoria learned a lot by simply just listening. It was why she liked her job, working behind the bar you got a hold on so many things that happened all around, like Kailani said, it was like having access to your own news platform, and people were often willing to tell you just about anything when they got a shoulder to drop their thoughts on. So, of course she had heard whispers, even here. Victoria took a mouthful more of her glass. Then she got up on her legs again and walked further towards the edge of the roof, looking down shortly before more so just looking further ahead. Now, compared to a phoenix, her golden eagle shape was nothing really, didn't mean she wouldn't mind stretching her wings a little, so she turned around with enough speed for her hair to be forced to follow the movement. "When was the last time you spread your wings a little?" She wondered and raised a brow.

As she looked down, his index finger found itself underneath her chin, lifting it up so his eyes could try seek hers out again. It twirled in him to see her upset, knowing it was because of all of this, yet they had deserved to get their memories back. Francis had been living alongside with his brother for most of his life, and when he couldn't, when he had felt most alone and scared, Juniper had been the light that had made him find hope, miracles and faith in the new world he had ended up in. "The thing is we are all here in this new world, not because its new. These lands are as old as any. Its only new because there is hope. And hope is at the very heart of love," he spoke, just as the same day Hope had been born and he had given her, her name. His hand allowed itself to find her cheek while his eyes didn't leave hers, the power of eye-contact so intense, and yet he didn't cave into his impulses - he resisted himself, for now at least.

He lifted a brow as she got up and walked toward the edge of the roof; now, he was close to telling her that he wouldn’t scrape her off the pavement if she decided to jump but decided it might be a little too morbid, so he restrained himself.
He drowned the rest of the whiskey when she asked when the last time had been since he had spread his wings. He couldn’t remember. Mainly because of everything that had happened over the previous few months, he had been much more focused on that than actually letting his inner animal out. He got up and tilted his head; now, a side of him knew it wasn’t a good idea to fly around in his Phoenix form, but since then, had that stopped him from doing anything. He took off his jacket. “I like this jacket”, he mentioned and then, with no warning, he sprinted toward the edge and jumped. Not that he changed; no, he let himself fall almost to the last minute before his form finally broke free, and the giant bird flew up before turning its course to the woods.

A shaky breath left her as he felt his hand find her cheek, even though she knew she should pull away, push his hand back and tell him that he needed to go. That her heart belonged to someone else, she knew very well why she couldn’t do that, not when she stood here and looked into the eyes of the man that was the father to her three children, her three beautiful girls. A slight sniffle left her, and her eyes closed as she leaned her head against the warm palm pressed against her cheek.

Her eyes widened a bit when he suddenly sprinted towards the edge and jumped, letting himself just fall towards the ground, "show off," she called after him with a light laugh, watching him as he just let himself fall to the ground. Victoria caught herself holding her breath till the moment his form broke free and the giant bird flew up, making a smile curl up in her lips in pure awe. It was a rare and beautiful sight indeed, and she almost for a second forgot that she was supposed to follow him. The eagle in her complaining not to have been set free was what made her take her eyes off Linus flying towards the woods. Letting her arms out and just fall down, the eagle took over and before she knew it - she was flying in the same direction as Linus.

Francis just stood there feeling both powerful and weak at the same time, not knowing how to comfort her or if he should. But she didn't push his hand away, or scream at him to go away, no she just leaned her cheek further again his hand, making his heart skip a beat. Francis slowly let go of it to pull her into his embrace, and just gently rested his head on top of her head, holding her close. By that also resisting the impulse to kiss her, but oddly enough he found the same satisfaction of just holding her close.

Of course, people looked. Who wouldn’t feel the presence of something so rare when it flew over your head? Many would start with not believing their own eyes as the long tail of the phoenix flew over their head, then they would just stare and forget to even take a picture of what they just saw, leaving no evidence, and it would only be a tale that would be told, and no one would really believe it.
As he flew over the forest, he had to hold himself back from igniting everything, knowing it would spread and only end in chaos; luckily, he didn’t have the same urge as his brother, that had a far bigger longing to see the chaos unfold after he used his powers. So, for now, he kept himself in check as he flew over the treetops, letting himself be free for a moment, no strings, only the air pressing against his feathers.

Their body shifted around, she let herself sink into his embrace, and before long, she had to close her eyes and lean into it. Her arms found their way around his waist and just hugged him closer, a shaky breath leaving her in the process of doing so. “I thought that you had left me”, she whispered, “that you would never come back; I think a part of me always knew, but not knowing anything made it easier”, she whispered, pressing her eyes a little closer together. How she wished this to be an easy decision, which, funnily enough, it was. But taken the first step to the direction that she knew her heart was pulling her, that was hard.

She flew just behind him, most of the reason he did have a bigger windbreak than her - but also because both her and the eagle had so much respect and admiration for the glorious figure she was so lucky to be so close to. Once he flew lower, so did she, but her being smaller she didn't mind flying between the trees on the lower ground, watching the shadow from above as he flew just above the tree tops. Victoria could hear the sound of the water from the waterfall as they came closer to the oasis.  The most beautiful and tall waterfall caved through the set of large stones that formed the hidden treasure. Victoria dived directly towards the rocks, then transforming into the snow-leopard who balanced so gracefully down the rock setting and jumped down till it reached one of the lower rocks, first then she transformed back to her human shape and jumped from there, with the water falling down, then diving under the water, feeling it consume her for a moment. Then swimming up towards the surface yet again, swimming closer to the edge looking up.

His heart started to beat a bit heavier, which surprised him, but also didn't - not now at least. But he liked the way it felt with her arms around his waist, hugging him closer. It wasn't normal for a guy like Francis to experience that sort of comfort, not like this, I thought that you had left me. Those words hurt. Odd, before he had gotten his memories back he had thought the same - that he had left her, mostly he theorized he had discovered that he never would be good enough for her. He could now conclude that he knew that he wasn't good enough for her, and what ever she had seen in him was to be questioned - at least seen from his point of view. "I would never just leave," he whispered very low - many things could describe Francis, disloyal wasn't one of them. At least not to his family and closest friends. "I'm not going to leave," he added with the same low and comforted voice.