Carrying the Legacy: The Revolution Continues

Laurens, Jefferson, Hankins, Lemmings

Hey guys. Before we begin this chapter I want to let you all know that there's gonna be a minor change in the story.

Todd and Mary mention Sally Hemings and it was supposed to be a minor arc that would lead to something else and so Sally wouldn't be actually included in the story. But along the way, I had a bigger plot idea to this arc that made it much more interesting and so I must change Sally's character because her importance will increase and I cannot work around and twist the background of a person that suffered so much in life just for the sake of entertainment.

That being said, anything that was previously mentioned about Sally Hemings is now related to Nora Hankins, a fictional character that I created.

TRIGGER WARNINGS: ANXIETY ATTACK, MENTIONS OF MURDER

Chapter's song: Overwhelmed - Royal & the Serpent, Chri$tian Gate$ Remix
                                 Quiet - Matilda the Musical

Frances read the newest letter Alfred sent to her lighted by candlelight, her legs covered by the warm blanket in bed while her back rested against a pillow, placed vertically at the headboard. A silly smile played on her face as she took another bite from the chocolate cookie she just pulled from the jar beside her. She silently giggled at something Alfred wrote whenever she heard a thud coming from the room right against her wall and lifted her gaze from the paper.

She turned to the wall behind her and attentively tried to hear anything else by placing her ear against it, then hearing a soft knock that almost passed by unnoticed, and after a brief pause, there were two other knocks followed by a last one. She stood up from her bed, shoving the remains of the cookie into her mouth, and picked her robe, lazily tying it around her waist as she chewed.

Two untouched cookies were pulled out of the jar and she placed them inside her pocket before opening the glass window to her tiny balcony, with just enough space for two people to stand side by side. Placing her hands at the parapet, she swiftly pushed her body up and balanced herself while looking down at the ground further below before eyeing her destination and taking a bold jump towards the other balcony. The balconies weren't that far away from each other, she could reach if she just stretched her legs carefully enough, but Frances enjoyed the adrenaline of jumping.

Stephan had the awful habit of locking his front door when a crisis happened, but when Frances realized that, she quickly had the idea to reach him through the balcony. Later on, they created that system of knocking on the wall when he couldn't handle the situation on his own.

With a sigh, she opened her brother's glass door while trying to find where he was in the dark room, her eyes quickly finding him as she closed the door behind her and entered the room. Stephan was sitting on the floor against the wall with his knees against his chest. His hands held his head as he took loud, uneven, and shaken breathes. His eyes were closed tight and Frances noticed his mouth quivered as he tried to hold in the tears.

Mack, Stephan's black cat, tried to catch his attention by pawing his arm and meowing, but neither seemed to work. The cat ran to run to hide under the bed when saw Frances crunching down beside his owner and hugging him, a movement that made him want to hug her back right away, but his body still felt numb. He didn't have enough strength to move his arms. He felt that if he let go of the grip on his hair, he would pass out. It was already good enough that he managed to knock at the wall before being stuck in that position.