"I will," he said reassuringly, before disappearing in the crowd, jumping around people and vanishing in the mass.
Poppy stood there for a moment, her brow drawn in concern. Finally, with a deep breath, she turned and walked in the opposite direction, her thoughts whirling.
Francis searched the faces of the people he passed, until he realized he had found his way to stand he left earlier. He scanned the area, before stopping, finding what he was looking for. That familiar face. He approached, not yet drawing any attention. - She sat on a wooden box, carefully rearranging her items so none of them would be crushed by another. A low voice took her by surprise. She knew this voice. "Vivienne Verbank. What a surprise to see you here." She looked up, her eyebrows raised as she saw someone she had once feigned love with. Brushing back a strand of blonde hair, she smiled kindly and stood up. "Ah, Francis. It's been awhile, hasn't it?" she paused, stepping closer to him. "Two years?" He nodded, noticing her closeness. "Indeed. How is life treating you?" "Hm. Average. I guess you could say I'm recently single." "Is that so? That's nice. What are you doing here?" (She's here to screw everything up.)
(Damn it.) Poppy climbed the stairs of the clocktower two at a time, determined to get to the top. The bells chimed once and Poppy frowned. Only two hours left.
Francis turned to the clock, faintly hearing it over all the chatter before Vivienne spoke up. "I'm leaving in two hours. Apparently they needed a linguist, such as myself, for some trip for helping the nations. I didn't get much detail." Francis was quiet, tilting his head. "The mission? You're going too? Since when?" "Well, I only learned not that long ago. It's nice to see someone I'm close to is tagging along." "Close to?" he asked quizzically, placing his hands behind his back. She took another step towards, nearly touching. "Yeah. Close to." (This is gonna be bad because he probably still loves her despite how she hurt him so I'm excited to see how this plays out.)
(I'm really interested too! I have no idea how it's going to play out. Also, already hate her.) The top of the clocktower was encased in giant stained glass murals. Poppy walked through the hall, her steps echoing in the loud chamber. She still worried, and she bit her lip in thought. She leaned against the wall and gazed at the room around her, her head cocked slightly as she considered the situation.
(Oh, good. Her point in creation was to be hated!) He grinned slightly, almost as if he forgot everything about the past. "That's good, Viv. Er, I mean Vivienne. Do you want to maybe, I don't know, walk around a bit?" She laughed, a slick and silvery laugh. "Viv is fine, and sure, I'd love to." Francis stopped for a moment, looking at his watch. "One moment. I have something I need to do." He turned away, pressing a few buttons to call Poppy. (Also, made a quick sketch thing.) Spoiler
(Agghhhh. SO good. But I still hate her.) Poppy's watch beeped, and she looked down at it. She tapped it lightly with her finger. "Hello?"
He spoke into it, his voice calm and clear. "Hey. There's nothing to worry about. Everything is under control, and I'm fine. I'll see you back at the ship in two hours." (Good. I hate her too.)
He hung up, turning back to Vivienne, who had a curious look on her face. "Who was that?" she asked, tilting her head. "Ah, just a friend. Nothing to worry about." He offered his hand. "Shall we?" She chuckled and took it. "We shall."
(OOOOH. Hate her. Do you want to do a time skip?) Poppy clicked her watch off and took a deep breath. She stared off into space for a moment before standing up straight and continuing to explore the clocktower.
(Alright!) Poppy entered the ship at 2:51. She walked up the ramp, balancing a tray of herb plants on her hip. She had a small smudge of dirt on her forehead, but she was excited; her cheeks were rosy and her eyes were clear.
Francis and Vivienne entered not long after, laughing with each other about whatever their conversation was about. She held his arm, almost like he was escorting her.
Poppy was leaning against the wall, taking a picture of the plants to get them analyzed. She glanced up and cocked her head in interest when she saw Francis with Vivienne. She hesitated to go up to them, and returned her gaze to her plants, pulling off a couple of dead leaves, her thoughts whirling in her head.
Francis hadn't noticed Poppy, as Vivienne had been keeping his attention. She leaned against him, but he was too caught up to notice.
Poppy took a deep breath, and walked up to them, smiling slightly. "Hey," she said brightly, shifting her weight to prop the tray in a more comfortable position.
Francis looked up, a slight smile on his face. "Oh! Hey, Poppy." Vivienne did not have a similar reaction. She frowned and looked annoyed. "Hello."
She noticed Vivienne's reaction but didn't let it faze her. She smiled, tucking a loose curl behind her ear. "Who's this?" she asked, not unkindly.
