Gone [Elayne]

[Jay]

[atrb=style,height:168;width:494;border:0 black none;][atrb=style,border:5 #EBA947 groove,bTable][atrb=background,http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc64/Heart-of-Thorns/VC/jacktable2.png,bTable][cs=3]
[atrb=width,20][atrb=style,border:0 black none;]	[atrb=style,BORDER:0 BLACK NONE;height:202!important;width:320!important;color:5f3f5f;][scrolly:h(202),w(320),sy]The impact with the shark creature pushed Victoria back, but as she latched on to it, it flailed from side to side trying to free itself from her grip never once using its teeth against her. But I wasn't strong enough... I couldn't do anything... why couldn't I do anything... Suddenly the shark seemed to degrade into the water right in Victoria's arms before reforming itself as a tiny white sphere of light. A memory would flash then after, and the image of the child Jack holding tight around Cassi rushed up into Victoria's mind. In another flash, a series of chronological memories flashed after. Various scenes of Jack talking with his twin, laughing, and the like flashed before an image calmed into a scene of a teenaged version of Jack standing at the base of some sort of steps. "Who is Tom?!" was astounded voice that escaped from the Jack of that time before the memory stopped and became dormant once more. Third felt his entire body go placid for a moment as the tension from the situation cooled. Damn it BJ making this all so damn difficult for us... Third swore before shaking his head and shaking a bit in the water to get his 'joints' to come back to him. "We need to keep going" he stated after a moment before doing his best to keep going onwards. [/scrolly]	[atrb=style,width:154;border:0 black none;]
[atrb=style,border:0 black none;][atrb=height,27][cs=3]

[Maid Melody]

[atrb=style,background-image:url(http://i1049.photobucket.com/albums/s395/malicewright/victoriaslade.png);][atrb=width, 507][atrb=height, 327][atrb=style,border:0 black none,b,Table][scrolly:h(257),w(215),sy,as(padding:4px 0px 5px;margin-top:53px;margin-left:276px;color:#1c3a24;)]As the shark began to thrash in her grip, it was all Vicki could do to keep ahold of it. The flailing hurt as it tried to get free, no doubt bruising her but that didn't matter...as long as she could at least get the shark to calm down that would work...right... Thankfully this didn't last long however as the shark changed into a white sphere right before Victoria's eyes much to her surprise. Before she could do anything else however the memories the sphere contained flashed before her. The memories continued for a short time before finally coming to an image of teenaged Jack asking a singular question about someone named Tom. Before the memory could continue however it was cut off as the sphere became dormant in her arms. Sighing, Vicki released the sphere and watched it float back to the surface, relieved that they had found another part of Jack. Still...Jack's memory brought to mind a different memory entirely, hadn't he mentioned something about someone hurting his sister... Was that who this 'Tom' was...perhaps, but Vicki couldn't say for certain. Before Vicki could think any more about what the memory she had seen, Third spoke up again. That's right...it was hard for Third to be in here, they needed to keep going lest he disappear like Ripper...or something like that. Nodding, Vicki began to swim once again, wondering what other challenges they would have to face to piece Jack back together again.[/scrolly]

[Jay]

[atrb=style,height:168;width:494;border:0 black none;][atrb=style,border:5 #EBA947 groove,bTable][atrb=background,http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc64/Heart-of-Thorns/VC/jacktable2.png,bTable][cs=3]
[atrb=width,20][atrb=style,border:0 black none;]	[atrb=style,BORDER:0 BLACK NONE;height:202!important;width:320!important;color:5f3f5f;][scrolly:h(202),w(320),sy]The deeper they swam, the more pressure Third could feel around himself, and though he wouldn't admit it, the panic from before was starting to jump up inside him again. What if he died down here? What if he was unable to complete this damn project that BJ had started? Would he be reduced to nothingness? Would he... die? No, that was preposterous. He couldn't die, could he? He didn't want to go away... Pushing the thoughts away for now, Third just kept swimming. I hate him. I hate him. I hate him! Jack's voice pressed out into the sea again causing Third to flinch back. Here was another one or so he thought. Looking around for some sort of figure in the sea, Third caught sight of another shark this one with teeth bared outwards coming straight for them. I HATE THAT DAMN MAN! Jack's voice screeched. Before Third realized it, he felt his arm being yanked back as the shark had latched on and was now carting him through the water. I HATE HIM! the voice continued to shout. "God damn it BJ! Third roared feeling his 'arm' being shredded by the creature's teeth even as he was dragged away. [/scrolly]	[atrb=style,width:154;border:0 black none;]
[atrb=style,border:0 black none;][atrb=height,27][cs=3]

[Maid Melody]

[atrb=style,background-image:url(http://i1049.photobucket.com/albums/s395/malicewright/victoriaslade.png);][atrb=width, 507][atrb=height, 327][atrb=style,border:0 black none,b,Table][scrolly:h(257),w(215),sy,as(padding:4px 0px 5px;margin-top:53px;margin-left:276px;color:#1c3a24;)]Victoria was beginning to wonder how far they would have to swim before finding another memory fragment. Whatever it was she certainly hoped it would be easier to handle than the last two had. That was doubtful at best considering the challenges of sorts had only gotten progressively harder to overcome the deeper they had swam. Perhaps this next task would prove more difficult than the last but Vicki wasn't going to let that worry her for the time being. She could only hope that they could get this done before the two psychic Pokemon got too weak to keep the link up...besides that, Vicki wasn't entirely sure what would happen to her if she was still in the 'ocean' when the connection failed. As they continued swimming, Vicki was beginning to wonder just how much further they would have to go when Jack's voice reached her ears once again. Stopping briefly, Vicki looked around for the source of the voice...whatever it was, this wasn't going to be easy... Vicki had never heard Jack so angry before...well, there was the one time he had gotten angry at her but even that was nothing compared to this. The shouting had gotten progressively louder and Vicki found herself looking for whatever it was coming from yet again until she caught sight of yet another shark barreling towards them. Fighting the urge to swim away from the sight of an enraged shark racing towards them, Vicki instead started to swim towards it. Foolish as it might have seemed at the time (and indeed ever fiber in her being was screaming at her to run), it was this action alone that allowed Vicki reach the shark moments before its jaws clamped down on Third. How Vicki had managed to grab ahold of its dorsal fin even she didn't know herself but she had managed it and that was all that mattered. After that, Vicki was aware of little else as she fought to keep her grip on the shark mostly because of the speed it was going combined with the fact that her hands were now getting shredded (due to the coarsness of the shark's skin) on top of the burns from before. Thus it was utterly painful for Vicki to even attempt to keep ahold of the shark for any length of time. Third's voice combined with Jack's constant shouting made Vicki flinch as she let go with one hand, only just barely managing to grap onto the shark's right pectoral fin. The action did no favors for her hands which were practically a bloody mess right now and probably not helping matters where the shark was concerned. "JACK STOP!"Vicki yelled as loud as she could as she made to more or less hug the shark. She didn't know if her voice would do anything but she had to try...besides that, she couldn't let Third die like this. Third was the only reason Vicki was able to find out what was going on with Jack and he was trying to help her...she couldn't let him down now...[/scrolly]

[Jay]

[atrb=style,height:168;width:494;border:0 black none;][atrb=style,border:5 #EBA947 groove,bTable][atrb=background,http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc64/Heart-of-Thorns/VC/jacktable2.png,bTable][cs=3]
[atrb=width,20][atrb=style,border:0 black none;]	[atrb=style,BORDER:0 BLACK NONE;height:202!important;width:320!important;color:5f3f5f;][scrolly:h(202),w(320),sy]The shark thrashed about here and there, and Third was aware of his entire essence splintering from the shark's sharp teeth. There was no logic to be had for such anger. I'LL KILL HIM! I'LL KILL THAT DAMN BASTARD! RIPPER! RIPPER HELP ME! the voice shouted out, and Third flinched hard his entire body twisting about trying to get away from the shark but to no avail. I'LL KILL THE DAMN MAN THAT HURT MY SISTER! the voice shouted out, and Third groaned feeling more of himself threatening to break yet again. If the pressure in the water wasn't enough already, this was certainly enough. "BJ STOP IT! he shouted out hoarsely. Suddenly Third was aware of the fact that the shark was swimming deeper. Damn it all where was this thing going? Deeper and deeper they went, and Third could feel the pressure crushing him that much more. Suddenly the shark leveled off as if it could go no deeper. RIPPER?! RIPPER WHERE ARE YOU? I NEED YOU TO KILL HIM! the shark screeched out. It was in another moment that Third felt another presence there. N-no. No. NO! [/scrolly]	[atrb=style,width:154;border:0 black none;]
[atrb=style,border:0 black none;][atrb=height,27][cs=3]

[Maid Melody]

[atrb=style,background-image:url(http://i1049.photobucket.com/albums/s395/malicewright/victoriaslade.png);][atrb=width, 507][atrb=height, 327][atrb=style,border:0 black none,b,Table][scrolly:h(257),w(215),sy,as(padding:4px 0px 5px;margin-top:53px;margin-left:276px;color:#1c3a24;)]Even as the shark thrashed about and continued to swim deeper, Vicki wasn't about to give up so easily. She had to stop this somehow but...it was clear that neither her nor Third's voices were going to reach it. The next shouted words that reached Vicki's ears caused her to freeze and for a moment she almost lost her grip on the shark. Ripper the shark was calling for Ripper...and they were swimming deeper... This realization made Vicki paused briefly before she tightened her grip on the shark with one hand, wincing at how much the action caused her hand to hurt and twisted around to try and grab the knife from her boot. Considering this was Jack's mind, Vicki wasn't entirely sure it would be there to begin with but she was running out of options...and fast... If they were going to where Ripper was...things wouldn't turn out well...and the last thing Vicki wanted was for Ripper to take over Jack like he had the other time. As they swam deeper into the water, Vicki just barely managed to grab the knife before extending her arm forward and stabbing the shark in its side. It wouldn't be enough to kill it per say but hopefully the action would slow it down...that and it gave her something else besides shark skin to hold on to. This still didn't seem to faze the shark however much to Vicki's dismay as it continued to swim deeper until it finally leveled out. The slight pause was enough to allow Vicki to pull the knife back out and stab the shark again, if nothing else she could at least try to make it let Third go...she had to try... After that, then both of them needed to get out of the sea...at least for a short time...[/scrolly]

[Jay]

[atrb=style,height:168;width:494;border:0 black none;][atrb=style,border:5 #EBA947 groove,bTable][atrb=background,http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc64/Heart-of-Thorns/VC/jacktable2.png,bTable][cs=3]
[atrb=width,20][atrb=style,border:0 black none;]	[atrb=style,BORDER:0 BLACK NONE;height:202!important;width:320!important;color:5f3f5f;][scrolly:h(202),w(320),sy]The shark continued to swim almost numb to the damage the woman was inflicting upon its skin. However, it had stopped shouting after a moment, and as Third looked around, he caught sight of what had sent chills down his essence. A large sea monster resembling that of a savage dragon pokemon not completely unlike Gyarados was swimming fast towards them. "Ri-Ripper?" was the confused question that escaped from Third's mouth, yet even as he said this, he was aware that it was not the case. This felt the same as the shark did... not as Ripper did... It was a weaker presence akin to the memory fragments that had been collected...It was... a memory of Ripper? One of Ripper's memories? Third wasn't sure.. However, just as the shark seemed to notice it, it went barreling straight at the dragon creature. However, the dragon itself only opened its maw and made to crunch down hard on the shark's face. A scream escaped into the pressured water, and it was all Third could do not to throw up. Suddenly lights flashed, and the shark and dragon disappeared into two spheres that quickly came together projecting a thought then to Victoria. It was another memory of BJ walking down the hallway a machete at his side. He turned sharply and knocked on the door. There was no answer, so he kicked it in the door. There sitting in the room, a man was sitting. The two fought, said harsh wars, and began to fight. Blood was spilled and more screaming still. Then Jack cut... and cut... and cut... a body's blood splashed the walls, and in the end, Jack stood there staring at what he had done... who he had killed. "I killed him, Ripper... just like you said I could..." was the quiet exasperated sigh that escaped from BJ. "I did it... that...this... damn man..." he mumbled before the machete dropped from bloodied fingers and hit the floor. A terrible blood retching laugh escaped into the air. [/scrolly]	[atrb=style,width:154;border:0 black none;]
[atrb=style,border:0 black none;][atrb=height,27][cs=3]

[Maid Melody]

[atrb=style,background-image:url(http://i1049.photobucket.com/albums/s395/malicewright/victoriaslade.png);][atrb=width, 507][atrb=height, 327][atrb=style,border:0 black none,b,Table][scrolly:h(257),w(215),sy,as(padding:4px 0px 5px;margin-top:53px;margin-left:276px;color:#1c3a24;)]Shit...it wasn't working, no matter what Vicki did the shark didn't seem fazed by the wound she was inflicting. Perhaps it couldn't feel pain at all but then again Vicki didn't claim to know anything about the memories here or how they worked. For all she knew they simply couldn't feel pain and thus her attempts to stop the shark were indeed useless but there was no way she was going to allow herself to be dragged to Ripper like this. Vicki didn't know what would happen if they did come across Ripper but it certainly couldn't be good. The last time she'd 'met' him he had tried to kill her and now...now she was in Jack's mind, who knew what would happen to her if Ripper killed her while she was here; whatever the case...it certainly couldn't be good no matter what the outcome would be. As if matters couldn't get any worse, a giant 'sea' dragon appeared in the water at about the same time the shark once again decided to swim towards the monster. Vicki didn't even have time to scream when she realized what was about to happen. She was going to die...and then Jack would never wake up... Closing her eyes, Vicki waited, expecting to feel some pain from the impact. That didn't happen however as suddenly both shark and dragon changed into dormant lights before melding together and thrusting Vicki into yet another memory. Like the one before it, this one was hardly a happy memory...in fact, if Vicki had had a choice in the matter she would have preferred not to witness such a thing. It reminded her all too much of her own past and what she saw when she had come back to herself so to speak. This...was this what she had been like when she'd seen her sister so badly injured...? The memory faded as quickly as it had come, leaving Vicki staring at the orb that had frightened her so much until it floated upward, harmless now that it had shown her another part of Jack. She knew that she should check on Third but at that moment Vicki was trying to calm herself down and keep her own haunting memories from surfacing once again. A few moments would pass before Vicki was able to regain some resemblance of calm and remembered that Third had been injured by the shark. Sighing, Vicki looked over at Third, "...are you all right..."came the quiet question before Vicki eyes surveyed the water around them, searching for any other sign of danger or possible memories down in the depths of the sea.[/scrolly]

[Jay]

[atrb=style,height:168;width:494;border:0 black none;][atrb=style,border:5 #EBA947 groove,bTable][atrb=background,http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc64/Heart-of-Thorns/VC/jacktable2.png,bTable][cs=3]
[atrb=width,20][atrb=style,border:0 black none;]	[atrb=style,BORDER:0 BLACK NONE;height:202!important;width:320!important;color:5f3f5f;][scrolly:h(202),w(320),sy]Third's lip form dangled in the water. His eyes were shut, and his muscles looked placid simply floating there deep in the water. With every rolling motion of the water, he looked as though he were becoming younger his face taking on a more and more childish appearance as he did so. He had been effectively silenced by the confrontation wherein Victoria had come out unscratched more or less. [/scrolly]	[atrb=style,width:154;border:0 black none;]
[atrb=style,border:0 black none;][atrb=height,27][cs=3]

[Maid Melody]

[atrb=style,background-image:url(http://i1049.photobucket.com/albums/s395/malicewright/victoriaslade.png);][atrb=width, 507][atrb=height, 327][atrb=style,border:0 black none,b,Table][scrolly:h(257),w(215),sy,as(padding:4px 0px 5px;margin-top:53px;margin-left:276px;color:#1c3a24;)]Upon not receiving an answer, Vicki's eyes fell upon Third's limp form. This wasn't good...if Third died here then it would be her fault wouldn't it. She had wanted to come in the sea after all and Third had come with her despite knowing the dangers. Without a second thought, Vicki swam towards Third and picked him up before swimming towards the surface as fast as she could. She couldn't simply let him die down here...besides that Vicki had no way of knowing if there were any more memories down here. Not only that but if they were as volatile as the last one...would they even stand a chance...? No, she would go back to the surface and see what memories they had gathered would do. Perhaps the few remnants would be enough...Vicki could only hope that was the case.[/scrolly]

[Jay]

[atrb=style,height:168;width:494;border:0 black none;][atrb=style,border:5 #EBA947 groove,bTable][atrb=background,http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc64/Heart-of-Thorns/VC/jacktable2.png,bTable][cs=3]
[atrb=width,20][atrb=style,border:0 black none;]	[atrb=style,BORDER:0 BLACK NONE;height:202!important;width:320!important;color:5f3f5f;][scrolly:h(202),w(320),sy]As they moved up in the water, Third remained as he was a limp form not doing anything to help or hurt the situation but simply remaining there weakly. However, he seemed to continue to shrink smaller and smaller even as the moved upwards through the water. It seemed it was not just the pressure of the water itself that was now harming him. When they finally came to the air again, Third was nothing but a soft purple sphere as many of the voices Victoria had seen earlier were lodged under her arm. No sound escaped from him, and what light he did show simply continued to shrink As the surface, what could be seen as a large amount of light spheres could be seen floating in the air above the water now. Spinning about indifferent to each other and each muttering their own weak upset words here and there, they were still not together but were at least above the water. Third, meanwhile, had managed to grasp a little bit of self-awareness in those few seconds above. "I'm dying..." he reasoned out weakly. "Oh well.." Third sighed softly to himself. "At least... I did something mildly useful..." was the dry chuckle after that. Suddenly the light white spheres seemed to stop floating about and turned to 'face' Third and Victoria. Floating forwards both with a surprising speed, they circled all but violently around the two before shifting forwards and suddenly fazing into the sphere that Third had become. Glowing white hot, Third could feel each memory seeping into him and found himself understanding. He was the reason that was binding them together now wasn't it? How ironic that in death he could do that and be a part of that. Feeling what consciousness he had fading away as the memories continued to come together, he sighed softly. Up from the depths attracted by the movements of the other fragments of memory, still more light spheres seemed to break lose and come to the surface configuring themselves consistently around and then within this new reasoning core. The light shifted about in various ways producing large spikes and swirls before the familiar older form of BJ took form right there in the water. Purple eyes flickering open, he blinked briefly before looking forwards startled at what he was seeing. "Venny? What are you doing here?" he asked tilting his head to one side a familiar smirk coming to his features. "This is my head..." [/scrolly]	[atrb=style,width:154;border:0 black none;]
[atrb=style,border:0 black none;][atrb=height,27][cs=3]

[Maid Melody]

[atrb=style,background-image:url(http://i1049.photobucket.com/albums/s395/malicewright/victoriaslade.png);][atrb=width, 507][atrb=height, 327][atrb=style,border:0 black none,b,Table][scrolly:h(257),w(215),sy,as(padding:4px 0px 5px;margin-top:53px;margin-left:276px;color:#1c3a24;)]Vicki was only vaguely aware of Third's shrinking form as she continued to swim as fast as she could through the water. It wasn't until they finally broke the surface and climbed back onto the 'shore' that Vicki realized just how bad off that Third was. Looking at the small purple orb in her hands, Vicki watched as the light inside the orb only continued to dim. This was it then...had they really come this far only to fail... There were quite a few more white orbs on the surface now but Vicki wasn't entirely sure she'd be able to piece each and every one of them together again... As Third's consciousness spoke up, Vicki shook her head,"No...don't say that...you'll be fine..."she replied quietly, hoping that the words would indeed prove to be true. Suddenly the white spheres came floating around them, spinning faster and faster until they started to phase into Third. All Vicki could do was stare in awe as the memories continued to go into Third's sphere, not quite sure what this meant. It wasn't until her hands started to burn again that she let go of the sphere and watched as more memories entered the dying Third. Even more memories came up from from the depths of the sea until the light shifted and formed the familiar form of Jack. For a moment Vicki could hardly believe what she was seeing...was this really happening wasn't it... Even with this thought, she wasn't going to believe such a thing had really come to pass...that was until he spoke and that all too familiar smirk came to his features. Tears filled her eyes as she realized that they had done it...with Third's help they'd pieced Jack back together again. "Jack..."Vicki began quietly before all but glomping him,"Thankgodyou'reallright," she continued, not caring that her hands were beginning to hurt after all she'd had to endure in the depths of the 'sea'.[/scrolly]

[Jay]

[atrb=style,height:168;width:494;border:0 black none;][atrb=style,border:5 #EBA947 groove,bTable][atrb=background,http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc64/Heart-of-Thorns/VC/jacktable2.png,bTable][cs=3]
[atrb=width,20][atrb=style,border:0 black none;]	[atrb=style,BORDER:0 BLACK NONE;height:202!important;width:320!important;color:5f3f5f;][scrolly:h(202),w(320),sy]Suddenly finding himself tackled and drawn into a hug, Jack blinked startled before smirking a little and just hugging her back. "Vicki..." he mumbled after a moment as he himself could feel the familiar tension in his own mind. The voices apart from the big three were whispering about and doing their best to give space where it was deemed necessary. "Sorry I... went away for a bit.." he mumbled after a moment becoming then aware of all that had happened. The scant pieces of Third had forged the memory in him and was now allowing him to access it. "But it's time for you to head out of here... I'll be up in a bit.." he started after a moment releasing her. "And... then we can talk... ok? he asked looking at her unsure of what she would say. [/scrolly]	[atrb=style,width:154;border:0 black none;]
[atrb=style,border:0 black none;][atrb=height,27][cs=3]

[Maid Melody]

[atrb=style,background-image:url(http://i1049.photobucket.com/albums/s395/malicewright/victoriaslade.png);][atrb=width, 507][atrb=height, 327][atrb=style,border:0 black none,b,Table][scrolly:h(257),w(215),sy,as(padding:4px 0px 5px;margin-top:53px;margin-left:276px;color:#1c3a24;)]As Jack's arms wrapped around her, Vicki tightened her grip on him slightly before he spoke up again. "It's all right...I'm just glad you're back..."Vicki replied quietly before she suddenly became aware that Jack's voice sounded further away. By the time Jack released her and said something about leaving and talking later, Vicki's form was almost ghost like. The link that synced both their minds together was quickly vanishing and taking Vicki with it. All Vicki was able to do was nod and smile reassuringly before the link broke completely. Once again Vicki was dragged through a tunnel as her consciousness returned to her own mind once again. A few more moments passed before she opened her eyes, not quite sure if she was in fact back or not. The only thing she was aware of immediately was the fact that her hands hurt...apparently whatever had happened in Jack's mind transferred to reality upon returning to her own mind. Looking about the room briefly, Vicki's eyes went to Jack almost immediately, hoping that he would in fact wake up now. There was no reason not to...right...[/scrolly]

[Jay]

Unbeknownst to Victoria, Nathan and Amina had been doing more than just facilitating a mental connection. Call it spying if one would, but Nathan himself often referred to it as gathering intelligence. He had actually been aware of all that had gone on via Amina, but he had not been able to actually do anything while there. He was nothing but an invisible spectator to the entire scene. However, when the events had finished, he had been able to order Amina to pull both out, and she had let the other psychic know that it was time. As Victoria came back to herself Nathan himself found his full consciousness full restored, and he straightened a little from the wall he had been standing against. Without a word, he mentally ordered Amina to teleport them both away, and with that, both were gone probably leaving the other psychic confused as to what exactly had happened.

Jack Spade, meanwhile, was slowly coming to consciousness as well, his face flinching just a little before his eyes opening and a groan escaping from him. "Oi that was a doosey..." he mumbled looking sideways at Victoria. "Feels like I drank too much," he half smirked weakly.

[Maid Melody]

[atrb=style,background-image:url(http://i1049.photobucket.com/albums/s395/malicewright/victoriaslade.png);][atrb=width, 507][atrb=height, 327][atrb=style,border:0 black none,b,Table][scrolly:h(257),w(215),sy,as(padding:4px 0px 5px;margin-top:53px;margin-left:276px;color:#1c3a24;)]When Amina told her to release the connection the Gothitelle was only too glad to oblige. Truth be told she had been starting to get tired and wasn't entirely sure how much longer she could keep this up. No sooner had Adiva done so when Nathan and Amina suddenly vanished, leaving her rather confused as to what just happened. Well...at least now she could rest... Looking over at Vicki, Adiva waited to be returned now that her job was done but her trainer's attention was once again drawn to Jack. It seemed that she wasn't going to be returned for a while yet...sighing, the Gothitelle walked over to Vicki and pressed the button on the pokeball before disappearing inside. Vicki was only slightly aware of the Gothitell's return. She was more concerned about Jack and if he was going to wake up after all... He had said he would but after all that had happened, Vicki wasn't entirely sure it would be that easy. Not only that but she couldn't stop the doubts that kept coming...the ones that said Jack would never wake up, that Third had died for nothing. That couldn't be true though...she had been in Jack's arms then and...it had been him... Not some imposter that had taken up his body like Third had...granted it was to try and get Jack to wake up but... Pushing these thoughts aside, Vicki slipped her hand into Jack's as she waited for some kind of change. Thankfully she didn't have that much longer to wait before Jack's eyes slowly opened as a soft groan escaped him. The quiet words that came next elicited a small smile from Vicki even as tears filled her eyes. There was no doubt about it, Jack had finally returned...heh, as if he'd ever been gone but...still. "Welcome back..."Vicki replied quietly before falling silent once again. No words could express how relieved and...happy she felt right then. It was as if a heavy weight had been lifted off her shoulders...Jack was here...he would be alright...everything was going to be fine...[/scrolly]

[Jay]

[atrb=style,height:168;width:494;border:0 black none;][atrb=style,border:5 #EBA947 groove,bTable][atrb=background,http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc64/Heart-of-Thorns/VC/jacktable2.png,bTable][cs=3]
[atrb=width,20][atrb=style,border:0 black none;]	[atrb=style,BORDER:0 BLACK NONE;height:202!important;width:320!important;color:5f3f5f;][scrolly:h(202),w(320),sy]A soft smile came to Jack's features, and despite the pain that was still coursing through his body, he felt decently at peace with everything. A soft sigh escaped from him before he shifted a little to view Victoria a bit easier. "Good to be back," hr murmured looking at her and smiling a little. As a thought came to him, the purple haired young man's face fell a little, and his eyes slid to one side. "I...sorry about... all of that..." he murmured sighing deeply to himself. He couldn't say that it had been completely unintentional that he had slipped into the back of his own mind. He had wanted to escape when it came down to it, and the best way to do that had been to break everything apart or so he had thought. It had worked a few times before though his will had always drawn him back again especially in the fight against Ripper. He hadn't expected that he would never come back, but he had still managed to shove himself deep down into nothingness and threatened his own existence in the process. "I ....was afraid..." he sighed softly his face falling a little. It was true when it came down to it. Fear drove him away, and he was weak enough to fall apart in the process or so he thought. It was all his fault, all his fault... [/scrolly]	[atrb=style,width:154;border:0 black none;]
[atrb=style,border:0 black none;][atrb=height,27][cs=3]

[Maid Melody]

[atrb=style,background-image:url(http://i1049.photobucket.com/albums/s395/malicewright/victoriaslade.png);][atrb=width, 507][atrb=height, 327][atrb=style,border:0 black none,b,Table][scrolly:h(257),w(215),sy,as(padding:4px 0px 5px;margin-top:53px;margin-left:276px;color:#1c3a24;)]Vicki smiled slightly in return at Jack's reply and squeezed his hand a little before realizing that hadn't been such a good idea. She hadn't looked to see how much she had hurt her hands but judging by the way they hurt now... No matter, she could always deal with it later...her comfort wasn't all that important right now and besides that Vicki didn't want to leave Jack so soon after he had finally returned so to speak. As Jack continued on, Vicki listened quietly until she was certain that he had finished speaking before leaning over and kissing him on the forehead. "It's all right Jack..."Vicki began quietly,"I love you...so much... You know that right..."she continued before breathing out quietly as she tried to put her thoughts in order. "I was afraid too...afraid that I would lose you... Jack...I told you I wouldn't leave...I haven't...I won't..."Vicki said quietly, squeezing Jack's hand a little more despite how much it hurt to do so,"It's all right to be scared Jack...but...whatever comes, we can get through it...together," she continued before falling silent and waiting to see what Jack had to say.[/scrolly]

[Jay]

[atrb=style,height:168;width:494;border:0 black none;][atrb=style,border:5 #EBA947 groove,bTable][atrb=background,http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc64/Heart-of-Thorns/VC/jacktable2.png,bTable][cs=3]
[atrb=width,20][atrb=style,border:0 black none;]	[atrb=style,BORDER:0 BLACK NONE;height:202!important;width:320!important;color:5f3f5f;][scrolly:h(202),w(320),sy]As Victoria spoke, Jack melted a little. He had no idea what to say back to that. He had nearly destroyed himself, and she had fished him back out. She was by his side and was saying that they would get through everything together. He had no words, no words to defend himself with or otherwise. For a short time all he could do was sit there and stare at her. However, after a few seconds, he shifted sideways a little, brought his free hand up, and set it to the side of her face. "Then never leave my side..." he whispered more begging than anything. "Even... if I say I'll go alone.. or something.. never leave me alone..." the purple haired man continued on. "I....love you so much....you... pieced me back together... always piece me back together...." his voice shook, and tears were quickly coming to BJ's eyes though why he had no idea. Some extreme courage suddenly jumped into BJ's bones, and a will that he hadn't had before was ruling now. "I... know I don't have a ring yet but.......Victoria...w-will you marry me?" he whispered. [/scrolly]	[atrb=style,width:154;border:0 black none;]
[atrb=style,border:0 black none;][atrb=height,27][cs=3]

[Maid Melody]

[atrb=style,background-image:url(http://i1049.photobucket.com/albums/s395/malicewright/victoriaslade.png);][atrb=width, 507][atrb=height, 327][atrb=style,border:0 black none,b,Table][scrolly:h(257),w(215),sy,as(padding:4px 0px 5px;margin-top:53px;margin-left:276px;color:#1c3a24;)] Vicki waited a few moments for Jack to say something...anything at all really. For the moment however she didn't mind, it was enough to simply have him back... She had been so scared that he would never come back...that she would fail... He was back though and everything was going to be fine. When Jack reached out and touched the side of her face, Vicki smiled and reached up to place her own hand over his. It felt nice...really it was surprising just how much she had missed his touch... As he began to speak, Vicki pushed away the thought for the time being and did her best to concentrate on what he was saying. At first she wondered why he was asking her to do something she had already promised to do but decided to wait until he had finished speaking to question him about it. As he continued about how she had pieced him together Vicki was about to say something when Jack continued on asking her-.... Had she really just heard that...? That-...was he really...jade eyes grew as Vicki slowly came to the realization that this was really happening... Jack had really asked her to marry him.... For a few moments all Vicki could do was stare at him as it seemed her voice had chosen that moment to refuse to work. Tears filled her eyes as that all too familiar doubt came back...had he really meant it... That was a foolish question...why would he have asked if he hadn't meant what he had said. "Jack...I-..."Vicki finally managed, her voice little more than a whisper,"You...really mean that...? "she continued, mind reeling from the question that had been posed. It seemed to good to be true...and usually if something seemed that way...that was because it was. Even after all that they'd been through, everything that they'd done...it was still difficult for Vicki to accept that someone actually wanted her around. Perhaps she was thinking too much about this...looking at Jack's face it certainly didn't seem like he was joking...no...he was serious...he really meant it... So why was it so difficult to say one simple word...? Of course she wanted to stay by Jack's side just as he had asked her to so why couldn't she just say so... Jack's hand on the side of her face was warm...a stark difference from the coldness that Vicki had felt when she had found him... The memory still played in her mind over and over again like a bad rerun but that was ok... Jack's touch was a reminder of just how close she had come to losing him and Vicki knew for certain that she never wanted that to happen again. Now though...Jack was asking her to stay by his side always...not only that but he wanted her as his wife... It was too perfect and even though Vicki desperately wanted to say yes, she was terrified to wake up and find that this was all a dream.... But...wasn't that what love was...taking risks... That's what she had done when she'd gone into Jack's mind after all... Closing her eyes, Vicki tightened her grip on Jack's hand slightly, ignoring the pain that resulted by the small action. A few tears drifted down her cheeks before she opened them again and looked at Jack, a small smile gracing her features,"...yes..."

[/size]Vicki breathed out before giving a half laugh of sorts,"...yes Jack...I will... I will...she continued, before hugging him as gently as she possibly could so as not to hurt him. She didn't know why Jack had chosen now of all times to ask but...that wasn't all that important...not now...[/scrolly][/td][/tr][/table][/center]