𝗠𝘆 𝗘𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗽𝗲 ⇉ 𝗝𝗝 𝗠𝗮𝘆𝗯𝗮𝗻𝗸

𝘣 𝘦 𝘩 𝘪 𝘯 𝘥

"COULD'VE BEEN A faulty electrical wire." Pope broke the heavy silence, his voice barely a whisper in the dawn light.

The sun had risen, casting a pale glow over the ruins of the Chateau, but none of them had been able to sleep.

Cora Lynn was the only one who had managed to find some rest, curled up against JJ's chest, her tiny fingers clutching his shirt as if she could sense the safety in his protective warmth.

Ariella sat numbly, her eyes fixed on the charred remains of their home. The Chateau was completely gone, reduced to a smoldering heap of ashes and rubble.

There was nothing left.

Her heart ached with a profound sense of loss, a giant piece of herself seemingly vanished with the flames.

She had so many memories tied to this place, memories she had hoped to share with Cora when she got older.

She had envisioned Cora making her own memories here, running through the small halls, playing in the hammock, laughing with the Pogues.

But now, that future had turned to smoke.

The voices of the Pogues around her were faint, like echoes in a distant cave. She could hear them speaking, but the words were meaningless, drowned out by the deafening roar of her thoughts.

Her focus was solely on the Chateau, and it had been for hours.

Every charred beam, every pile of ash seemed to scream out the loss they all felt.

Her head leaned against John B's shoulder, his arm wrapped around her in a silent gesture of comfort. The two siblings stood together, their shared grief palpable.

Their childhood, their memories, their sanctuary—all of it had vanished in the blink of an eye.

Words couldn't capture the depth of their sorrow, the emptiness that now filled the space where their home once stood.

Ariella's mind replayed the countless moments spent within those walls—the laughter, the tears, the adventures. Now, all she had were those memories, fragile and precious, to pass on to Cora. But the realization that Cora would never get to create her own memories there was a bitter pill to swallow.

As she stared at the ruins of the Chateau, the weight of the loss settled heavily on her shoulders, an unshakable reminder of what they had once had and what was now irretrievably lost.

"I-I can't stay here." Ari finally speaks, her voice trembling as tears flow down her face.

The words make the Pogues' jaws snap shut, the weight of her grief settling over them like a heavy fog. She forces herself up and look away from the smoldering remains of the Chateau and turns to face her friends. "I need to go as far away as I can from here. Please—."

John B jumps up, his arms wrapping around her tightly. "Yeah. Let's go."

The Pogues watch as the two siblings start to walk away, their steps heavy with sorrow, towards the HMS Pogue.

The need for an escape, and the Pogues can only imagine the depth of pain Ari and John B are enduring.

After sharing a look of silent agreement, the Pogues stand and follow after them. They don't know where they're going, but they know they have to get as far away from here as possible.

The air is thick with unspoken words and shared grief, each step carrying them further from the ashes of their past and closer to an uncertain future.

The HMS Pogue becomes their beacon of hope, a vessel for their escape, carrying them away from the ruins of what once was and into the unknown.