For otps-are-my-jam and everyone else who's a mess because of this show. Hope this makes up for it. And who knows? Let's hope something like what I wrote will happen. It'd just feel really random to put Crane and Betsy together. Odd. He's a different person now. It'd be like what he had with Katrina. Out of place. Even when Crane and Betsy knew each other in the past, their relationship just didn't seem as close. He wasn't even interested in her like that, it seemed. Plus, their relationship just isn't as deep as Ichabbie's. Period. I have a feeling Crane and Betsy won't be together. We'll see though. Anyway, enjoy. :)
"How are you feeling?" Abbie said.
She and Crane stood on the opposite side of the circular room. It was as much privacy as Abbie could find for them in the room with Betsy. She knew this was difficult for him.
He sighed. "My words are getting farther and farther away. It's unfathomable that she's even here, Leftenant. I'm amazed and relieved. So many questions swim in my mind. I don't know where to start. It's overwhelming to say the least."
She put her hand on his chest, nodded. "This is a lot to take in. Someone you thought you'd never see again is standing right before you. That's unnerving for anyone."
"Indeed." He grabbed her hand. "However, your presence is most comforting and soothing in this moment. It's the only solace that's keeping me grounded."
She nods again. "Yeah, yours, too. One step at a time, Crane, as you remind me."
"One step at a time, Leftenant."
Her hand rested on his cheek. He closed his eyes and covered it with his. When he opened them, she smiled at him. He returned it.
"Thank you, Abbie."
"Anytime, Crane."
The turn back to Betsy, who stared at them with a tilted head and eyes that seemed to daydream.
She watched them when they thought she wasn't. She pretended to busy herself with finding a way out. Of course, she listened and observed them. She wasn't expecting for them to catch her though. She was off her game, but they interested her. There was something about them together when she saw them find a private area. When Abbie spoke to Ichabod, and he spoke to her, she knew their relationship was intimate. Abbie seemed to be the logical one while Crane seemed to be all over the place at the moment. Their roles must switch often when something traumatic happened and when one needed the other.
She remembered telling Crane that someday a woman would make him lose all his manners. That woman was right in front of her. Abbie. She was the one. It saddened Betsy and made her a little jealous that she didn't have that with him and won't, but those two together felt right. She loved Ichabod, would never deny his happiness, even if it wasn't with her. Silly man was in love. Abbie and Ichabod were in love with each other. Neither of them saw it though. What a shame. How could they not see what she saw?
"Betsy, are you well?" Crane said.
"Yeah, you look a little gone," Abbie said.
Betsy shook her head. "You'll have to excuse me. It's been a while since I've seen people. I'm just trying to readjust."
Abbie nods. "I can understand. Been there myself. In here actually. Well, not here, but another part of the Catacombs."
Her and Crane shared a glance.
"Do tell."
"It's a long story, but I sacrificed myself for my sister and ended up here for about a year. Time moves differently here, so it wasn't technically a year. Anyway, lost my mind for a bit until Crane helped me find a way out. Your cutlass proved useful. Thanks."
She was brave with a mission. Betsy liked her already.
"What did you do in the meantime?"
"I created a way to keep time and explored the area. I charted everything on a cave wall."
She was resourceful, too. It was hard to ignore the fact that she was also quite lovely. Her curly hair, her light brown eyes, her lips. She was indeed ever beautiful.
"What's your occupation, Miss Mills?"
"A Federal Bureau of Investigations agent—the FBI. I catch bad guys and put them in jail."
Betsy liked that she even saved people outside of her duty as a Witness. She had a true calling. Abbie was small, but Betsy knew she challenged Crane in the best ways. She's probably made him re-evaluate himself in a way he hadn't before. She figured Abbie stepped on his ego a few times, too, which Ichabod needed. He was cocky when he wanted to be. She wondered about their relationship.
"Has Crane ever told you the story of the bird and the flower? General Washington told it to us once or twice. Remember, Ichabod?"
She saw his cheeks turn red; he blushed at the floor. She chuckled.
"It must have slipped my mind, Betsy." He cleared his throat.
Abbie's eyebrows rose as she stared at Crane. "Mr. Eidetic Memory talks my head off with ever other tale and person from his time period, yet he doesn't tell me this." She shook her head. "I thought I heard it all. I'm disappointed. What's the story, Captain?"
"Perhaps, Ms. Ross can explain. Betsy?"
Abbie looked at her, waited.
"There was once a bird and a flower, two different creatures, two different lifestyles and ways of living, yet in sync. One couldn't be without the other. The flower provided for the bird just as the bird provided for the flower. They gave each other what they needed to survive. When they first met, the bird was distant, kept her space. The flower remained there, always open, and waited for the bird to come. He was patient with her. The flower sometimes gave too much though and thought of others before himself. The bird could be quite stubborn.
"They taught each other. The bird learned that it was okay to open up and love; the flower learned it was okay to keep something for himself. The flower wanted the bird; the bird wanted the flower. They saw the other's weakness and strength. They journeyed through the harsh storms and the wonderment of blooming flowers and trees in spring, the chill and the beauty of the changing leaves of fall, the utter cold and glistening snow in winter, and the unbearable heat and everlasting sunshine of summer. They stuck together through it all. During the seasons, they saw each other broken and spirited. They loved each other dearly. When they mated in the spring, it was a moment they always wanted a taste of. So, Abbie, are you Ichabod's bird?"
Abbie blushed as well, glanced away. "I enjoyed your story, but it isn't like that with me and Crane."
"She speaks the truth, Betsy. The Leftenant and I are dear friends. Nothing more."
"That may be so, Abbie, but eventually, the flower and the bird fell for each other's charm. They became inseparable and wildly in love." She turned her back on them to find a way out.