Siberia | S. Rogers

twenty-six

.26 | Answers

{I'm convinced Francesca's face claim is Angelina Jolie...because I can totally see her as the Seer/Oracle badass momma energy at the circus.

Also: Trigger Warning brief mention of suicide in this chapter}

The moment Merida entered the rec room she almost lost her balance.

The sight of Francesca was almost too much.

Francesca was wearing a pair of dark black leather pants that resembled something she'd have found in Natasha's wardrobe. She wore a crisp white t-shirt tucked in and she paired it with a black leather jacket. Her hair was in long dark curls, framing her face in a perfect way, her mouth already curving up in a knowing smile as Merida stepped off the elevator.

Their gaze met and she stopped short for a brief moment. Francesca's aura was billowing and the colors were light in hue, ranging from purple to pink and even green. She watched as the Seer exhaled out silently, her whole body sagging with relief as if seeing Merida, up and walking around, was something she had been anxiously hoping for.

Fran tilted her head to the side, an endearing quality dripping from her energy as she looked at Merida like a mother would her child. She supposed it was only natural for Francesca to take on this role, as her real mother was no longer around.

Merida beamed brightly at her and then looked around the rec room, her eyes searching the area for Ansem. She released a breathy sigh as the large golden-haired lion padded from around the corner of the piano mid-yawn. His ears twitched in their direction, recognition filling his features.

Merida let out a small muffled cry of relief and gratitude, and somewhere in between, she found a small hiccup of laughter at the sight of Ansem in the Avenger's town. He wasn't as big as she was in her full form, but seeing an actual lion padding out from behind Tony's piano made her giggle.

She knew they had been alive and safe after Killian's rampage, but seeing them here and now in the flesh spurned a fresh wave of emotions within her. She felt her lips curving into a tearful smile as her eyes, already filled to the brim, were streaming with tears of joy.

Merida kneeled down on the tile floor and stretched out her arms wide, an invitation for Ansem to come and greet her. The moment she knelt on the floor Ansem was already padding rather briskly in her direction.

He threw his entire body into her and she grabbed onto him, bracing for the impact of his paw as he threw it around her shoulder and bumped his head into hers; it was frightening to most how she was able to get so close to Ansem, though his movements were much like a house cat...he was also ten times the size of a domestic house cat.

But Merida was never afraid of Ansem.

She chuckled softly as he rubbed against her face, leaning his body into her as the gravity of his emotions swept over her like a ton of bricks. He was full of relief, but there was also a scent of anxiety in his energy. He hadn't known if he'd actually see her again and it showed as he rubbed his face all on her, nipping playfully at her brown hair and slobbering on her with a few licks of his sandpaper-like tongue.