Cyrus knew that as much as he wanted to know where Liv was, he had to respect her wishes and told Charlie to stand down. Cyrus could tell by Fitz's demeanor that he too had realised that Liv had fled DC. He knew that as much as guilt plagued him it had the potential to cripple Fitz. Though Liv had never disclosed what happened at Ella's Christening the look on her face had began to haunt him the moment he realised she had gone. He had wondered just how far Fitz had pushed her. Obviously enough to have her disappear without a trace. If he didn't know the calibre of people she worked with he would be worried that something had happened to her. Cyrus had been avoiding being alone with Fitz not wanting to have to answer any questions regarding Olivia. He was available to him in every capacity aside from being an informat for all things Olivia Pope as he had been for years.

"It's just for a couple of weeks Huck. I promise to be careful. I just need some time to myself." Huck looked at her suspiciously.

"I'm not going to flee." She promised. There wouldn't be any point, he would always find her.

"Okay. Remember if you're going to make a call you have to keep it short if you don't want to be found."

"Thank you Huck. For everything." She said meaningfully giving his arm a brief squeeze. She would have hugged him if she didn't know how opposed he was to touch.

Olivia threw her bag into the back seat of the car. She and the girls had spent the afternoon before in and out of the stores shopping for clothes. All had left much of their wardrobe behind and took great pleasure in creating new looks, not only with their wardrobe but with their hair too. The boys were surprised to see the girls come back with different hairstyles. Liv's being the most drastic. She had chopped off her locks and opted for a pixie cut that suited her to perfection. It somehow made her look younger and more mature at the same time without looking so serious and put together as the Olivia Pope she had always been. Abby's hair had also taken the minimalist approach while Quinn opted for a lighter shade of her hair and significant layering. As Olivia ran her hand through her hair she smiled. She felt free. Once she got out of London she wound her window down and began to breathe in the fresh air. She pushed the button that folded the roof giving her full access to the sunlight. She felt peace. For the first time in what felt like a lifetime she wasn't bound by anything or anyone or evem herself. It was over. It was finally done.

As good as she felt Olivia wasn't naive enough to think that she wouldn't revert back to thinking of him of pining for him but right then and there, it was a good day. For the first time in four years she wasn't the campaign fixer, the mistress or more recently the President's whore. She shivered as her mind drifted back to their last exchange. As much as she wanted to she couldn't get angry at him. She never could. Because as out of line as he was, she still understood him. That how he felt was a result of their betrayal, hers most of all.

Fitz knew that Cyrus had called off his person and stopped looking for Olivia. He guessed at her request, which told him that she would more than likely feel more comfortable touching base with him knowing she was no longer being tracked. Fitz checked in daily with Jake and Tom who were working closely with the Secret Service in trying to locate her.

Olivia's disappearance was enough to sober Fitz up. Her disappearance was enough for him to stop and take a look at it from a different stand point.

All she wanted was a quiet existence and he came into her life and insisted to be a part of it even though he had little to nothing to offer. He made it impossible for her to put distance between them and do the right thing. He wanted her and he made sure he got her. She fell in love with a man who seemingly was never going to be hers. He wanted all of her when he could barely give her a part of himself. He had been selfish, he'd always known that.

Defiance had changed him, broken him in a way where he couldn't bring himself out of it. He couldn't and refused to see reason. Though she was not solely to blame he focused all his anger on her knowing he could hurt her as much if not more than she hurt him. He succeeded.

Cyrus had been summoned into the Oval. As he wandered down the halls he couldn't help but steal a glance at the office that was once Olivia's many years ago back when they were all friends and life hadn't been so complicated.

"Good afternoon Mr President. You asked for me." He said as he entered. Being in the Oval was so foreign to him after almost a year of being shut out. Of Fitz openly disregarding him. Though he understood he wasn't Liv who had an endless pool of forgiveness. Fitz watched as he stood by the door waiting for a command before slipping out of the office as he had come to know as a norm in the months post Defiance.

"Cyrus, please sit down." Cyrus wordlessly sat down and looked at Fitz waiting for him to go on. When he didn't say anything Cyrus bit the bullet.

"There's something you need to know about Defiance. Something that personally you should have always known and never doubted." The tone of his voice was almost reprimanding. Fitz made no move to stop him so he continued.

"Olivia wanted nothing to do with Defiance. Hollis, Mellie, Verna and I practically bullied her into it. She trusted me and she trusted Verna. That was her biggest mistake. We knew how much she cared about you and losing so close after Gerry's death would only allow his words to resonate and the last thing she wanted was to break your spirit. So we told her that the only way to avoid that was if she agreed to Defiance and she still refused. She said that you could do it. That if anyone could it would be you. Then we were still down with only a day to go. I pushed and I pushed and at the last possible minute she said yes. Hear me when I tell you that watching her utter the words 'Yes, I'm in' was like watching her light dim instantly. I take full responsibility for that. You need to take responsibility for your behaviour. You chose to drink yourself into oblivion. You chose not to address this. You chose to take counsel in Mellie who above all else wanted nothing but the presidency. Not you, your presidency for her own political gain. You've always known that. The reason you fell in love with Olivia was because for the first time someone loved you for you. Who did everything with only the best for you in mind even if it meant walking away from the love of her life. She has always been the only one who never had anything to gain everything to lose and she always risked it all, for you. And if you're too dumb and stubborn and obstinate to realise that then maybe you're not the man I thought you were. The man I thought was worth treason for. The man I thought deserved the love of Olivia Pope, because the man that stands before me right now, the man you've been these last ten months certainly doesn't and I'm glad she fled. Even if it means I never see the one true friend I ever had and was too stupid to cherish. At least then I know she may just be giving herself a chance to be happy if not live in peace without your presence taunting her. I apologise for Defiance. I do. I apologise for what it's done to you, but you need to take some responsibility too." Cyrus sighed,

"No man has ever deserved to win a presidency like you. You had ambition but more than that you had a heart for the people and the drive to bring change. Your achievements should tell you that much. So it's up to you. If you want to wallow in how you were so wronged for the remainder of your term instead of fighting on and proving to yourself that you have earned every day you've had in these white walls, then thats your choice. You don't trust me and I understand that. So I am going to do what you should have done ten months ago when you found out. I am taking myself out of the equation because let's be honest I haven't been functioning as your chief of staff since then. Let's not drag this on for each other any longer. Let's not waste tax payer's dollars. Let's not make this any more painful than what it is. Appoint Mellie as your Chief of Staff. Let her run the country. I'm done. Consider this my two weeks notice or if you would prefer I'm happy to clean out my office now." Cyrus stood to his feet feeling incredibly exhilarated.

"Should you find that idealistic passionate man from all those years ago and he wants to give second term a go and wants a friend by his side, call me. Because that man was worthy of the Presidency. That man was my friend and I would slay dragons for him." Unable to say anything Fitz watched as Cyrus walked out of the Oval with his shoulders back and his head held high.

Liv was enjoying her little rented cottage by the water when she received a message from Harrison telling her of the rumors flying around that Cyrus had handed in his resignation. Though she understood, she was stunned. She never thought the day would come that Cyrus would willingly leave Fitz's side. But she also knew that the last ten months had taken a toll on him. Even at Ella's Christening she had noticed how tired and run down he looked.

Cyrus had walked into his office to find David Rosen sitting there with a package for him.

"This came for you to my office." They both knew who it would be from and despite the bridges burned he could never betray Olivia after everything.

"Thank you."David nodded and headed out to leave Cyrus to open his package. When he did he found a burner phone that he knows had been tampered with specifically to ensure that incoming calls cannot be traced. He notices that it had been locked and without even thinking about it he typed the name of his first love. A name that he knew only Liv would know. He smiled when it unlocked the phone. There were no numbers so he assumed that she would be doing the calling. Not wanting to be in the White House walls to receive her call he left his office and headed towards the park where they used to meet. When the phone rang minutes after he sat down he chuckled.

"Cyrus Rutherford Beene."

"Well hello to you too Olivia Carolyn Pope."

"So it's true?"

"That I resigned? Yes. I haven't functioned as his Chief of Staff in almost a year. He won't let me in. What's the point? Mellie's his guy now and to be frank if he's dumb enough to go for that then he isn't the man I thought he was."

"Cyrus we broke him." She reasoned softly.

"We can't fix what he won't admit is broken. Trust me I've been trying. You tried. He won't listen to anyone but Mellie. Really? Of all people Mellie?" He said in disbelief.

"She's his wife, the mother of his children..." Cyrus scoffed,

"That's a convenient truth he has chosen to ignore the moment you walked into his life. He's a coward."

"CYRUS!" Liv explained reprimandingly.

"He chose Mellie Liv. He could have confronted us, hashed it out. Instead he throws his dummy out of the cot, drink himself to oblivion acting like a spoilt child. That's not the man I voted for."

"We broke him Cy..." she repeated tiredly.

"That excuse only flies for so long Liv. I know you love him and so do I but he needs to want this for himself. Maybe he never wanted it? Maybe I pushed him too far into going for it even when he didn't want it. I'm done pushing him. If he's willing to let Mellie run him. That's his choice."

"Cyrus if you go..." the worry laced in her voice. He understood what she was trying to say.

"Liv, if I thought there was even a tiny part of him that I could still reach and fight for I would stand my ground, but I have to admit I've grown old and tired. If I want to see my daughter grow up there are some things that have to give. Hopeless, heartwrenching and heartbreaking situations such as this have taken their toll on an old man kid. It's time to pack it in. I can't believe in him for him. He has to learn to believe in himself. He has to take responsibility that he doesn't have to turn out like Gerry or be plagued by Gerry." Olivia knew his words to be true but it still felt as though they were abandoning him.

"Enough about me. How are you doing Kiddo?"

"Great actually. I took off for a bit for some Me time and I've been doing a lot of nothing which is so not me but I am learning to enjoy it. I think I have another day or two of doing nothing in me before I get bored and head back to the others." Cyrus laughed,

"I'm impressed you lasted this long. Liv,"

"Yeah Cy?"

"He's looking for you."

"Old habits die hard Cy. He doesn't miss me. He just likes to know where i am at all time so he can summon me whenever he needs to. He made himself clear at Ella's Christening. He doesn't love me. I'm just some girl who happened to give him an erection. He may have loved me once upon a time but I killed that the moment he found out about Defiance. I'm now just another Amanda Tanner under his belt."

"Olivia Carolyn Pope..." he admonished.

"You weren't there Cy." She replied quietly.

"I'm so sorry Liv." His apology was multi faceted and she got it. He was taking the blame that they rightfully shared.

"I know Cy. I do. Listen I better go. I'll drop you a text from my phone. Call or message me if you need me. Cy..."

"I know Liv. I promise I won't compromise your location."

"Thank you Cyrus..."