Francis was at a loss for words, but not what Shion might think.

Hearing the name Rio Corona brought Francis back to when he was younger. It brought him to a time when his father, Lionel von Sicarius — a famed scientist who oversaw many of the military projects that the then-Emperor, Hamut Darcone, ordered. These projects were what ended up paving way for such innovations like the MTB, or otherwise known as the Magicite Transportation Beam. A prime example of it could be seen used in the Ifrit. Indeed the name of that famed general of Archadia’s history, back when it was at its darkest time, had struck a chord with Francis. 

When she ended up telling him how she and Rio were lovers, at first, Francis thought he might’ve heard her wrong, but he knew her well enough to know that she never said anything unless she was telling the absolute truth. In that, his mind went to something he had thought about once when they first met in the Golmore Jungle, just after they fought. It was that she was an ancient being whose strength outclassed his in almost every single way that mattered. Her swordsmanship was perfect. Her fighting stance was unmatched. The way she could effortlessly switch from physical to magickal attacks was if there was no transition. Her ability to go from one to the other appeared to be organic. Francis had thought that maybe she was something more than hume. Maybe she was a Scion herself, but of course, after the events of that day and when they went on their series of dates, it had retired those thoughts for something more logical: she was a spectacular woman around his age that taught him how to love again since his wife’s passing a few years back.

And now? Well, those thoughts not only came back but now they were proven. Francis, of course, took it as only someone like him could: step by step.

He took a few minutes for himself. The silence was a killer, this was true, but the wolf always had to prepare for the worse in any given situation, so time was essential for the thought process of how to attack any situation. Of course, Francis wasn’t just an ordinary wolf. Francis von Sicarius, son of Lionel and father to Michelangelo, was also the man that Shion had chosen to confide in. This made him a particularly exceptional man. A lucky man, if you will. 

[color=goldenrod]“We may have walked different journeys in our lives, but the sands of time have guided us to the same destination. We have felt pain and loss, but we’ve also felt love and comfort.”[/color] Francis recited a few lines from a symbolic text he had memorized from his youth. [color=goldenrod]“That was a small snippet from ‘The Trial of Time’, written by one of Archadia’s first emperors, Larsa Solidor.”[/color] Francis said, giving Shion a smile. [color=goldenrod]“I am well-aware of what this means. Truth be told, I’ve always had a feeling you had kept some secrets. Understandably so, but I also know that you’ll tell me them whenever you’re ready.”[/color] He took her hand, looking at her with the same steely blue that she had seen every night they lay in their bed with their hands locked after a few, long moments of passion. [color=goldenrod]“I’ve never thought I would love again after Mirabella. She was the one who I chose to bear my one and only child. And when she passed due to an incurable illness, I truly thought I was lost, so I buried myself in my responsibilities. I rose the ranks and became Second Judge Magister. I had sworn my oath to the Imperial Court that I’d fully commit myself to that role, but then I met you. Of course, I didn’t know at the time, but I swear it was Mira’s ghost guiding me towards you. As her final act, she shifted my views on love and by her graceful hands, I found my second chance in you.”[/color] Francis, while keeping a loving gaze on Shion, got down on his knee. [color=goldenrod]“I know not what awaits us in the next rising of the sun nor do I know if we all will get out of this alive, but a wise man once told me that we shouldn’t waste our breath on the trivial or be wondering ‘what if’. The only thing that should matter is focusing on what you want most out of life.”[/color] 

He reached into his pocket, pulling out a single necklace. Its chain was crafted from silver and reforged in quicksilver. Along the chain, little stones of blue and white magicite were placed along it, spaced equally from each other. And in the center, framed perfectly in gold and silver magicite was a rare magicite-conductor stone known as Sapphirite. It was carved and forged in magical fires into the shape of a rose. Along the frame were pearls — six of them, in fact.

[color=goldenrod]“I’ve kept [url=https://i.imgur.com/xjMYvRc.jpg][u]this[/u][/url] since Mira’s passing. I thought of selling it, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. There were too many emotions and I couldn’t bring myself to, so I decided to keep it. I thought about giving it to Michel and letting him give it to Meli, but I don’t think this would be her style. She seems like a diamond kind of woman,”[/color] Francis let out a low chuckle, [color=goldenrod]“but then, just last night, I was looking at it as I was watering your rose bush out in the garden. And then it hit me. All this time I spent here, I’ve had it with me, never knowing what I was going to do with it. Until now.”[/color] Francis smiled,  letting out three, individual laughs to himself. [color=goldenrod]“I feel as though the signs are all there and it’s time I admit it to myself. Shion, your petals shine brighter than Ultima’s holy light. And they flourish with more life than a Rozarrian festival. I may not be the most graceful of men, but I am a man who knows when he is in love.”[/color] He held the necklace above her head, letting it fall gently onto her neck. [color=goldenrod]“I won’t pretend to know what it was like between you and Rio, but what I don’t have to fake is my love for you. That is the one thing I know is absolute. And that is why, with this necklace, I promise I will always be there when you need me. Whether it is my sword, my council, or my heart — not only as an honorable Judge but as your wolf, I will protect you. You are mine and I am yours.”[/color] 

He took her hand once more, the same steely, loving gaze surrendering itself to her. A vulnerable Francis had all walls down and was now completely exposed to her. And as he waited for her to reciprocate that same regard he had given her, there were only three words he said to her.

[color=goldenrod]“Marry me, Shion.”[/color]