One Last Kiss by Springie
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Claudia turned her back to Mateo, feeling threatened by the presence of the girl in the photo. Somehow, Claudia knew that Mateo would eventually remember who she was, and that he would leave the village.

"You're going to leave, aren't you?" She asked.
Mateo hesitated for a moment and then replied. His eyes never left the photo. "Claudia, I have to know about my past. You don't understand what it's like to have no memory of where you came from, or what you used to do. It's not fair to keep me in a cage like this. Now that I'm feeling better, I have to find out."

"I know, I know, if you love someone, set them free..." Claudia shrugged, keeping Mateo talking to her back.

Mateo stood up and draped an arm around her shoulder. "Can we just go back to being friends, at least for now?"

Claudia nodded silently and turned around to hug the man she had grown to adore. Even though she knew it might be the last time.

They returned together into the hut, and huddled together, falling asleep in one another's arms.

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Mateo's dreams were becoming filled with images he couldn't explain. The girl from the picture haunted his dreams, calling out a name that seemed familiar to him. "Mark!" She cried. Then she turned into a bird, with white wings. He dreamed he was flying. Not in a plane this time, but actually flying, and the mysterious girl with white wings was next to him, holding his hand.

He woke up the next morning with beads of sweat on his brow. He looked over at Claudia and woke her up.

"It's too early, Mateo. What is it?" She groaned.

"Claudia, please. Take me to the site of the crash. I have to see it." Mateo begged.

"What's there to see? It's just a bunch of twisted metal." She replied. She didn't want to help him retrieve his memories. She desperately wished he would forget about his past and live out his life there, in the village, with her.

"Please, Claudia. If you don't take me, I'll get someone else to." He responded defiantly.

"Alright," She reluctantly agreed. "I'll show you where it is. But don't expect me to be happy about it."

They wove their way through the thick undergrowth to a clearing deep in the forest. Finally, Mateo caught a glimpse of the wreckage.

The red, white and blue plane triggered memories of the crash, and he suddenly remembered his descent and collision into the trees. He recalled crawling on his hands away from the plane, and the great pain he had felt after the accident. He winced and doubled over, causing Claudia to wrap her arms around him in order to comfort him.

"Mateo, are you ok? I told you this wasn't a good idea. Maybe we should go back."

"No!" he barked. "I have to remember. I had a different life before this. There may be people looking for me, people who care about me...people I care for..."

"Mateo, what are you saying?" Claudia's eyes filled with tears. "You're hurting me."

She cleared her throat. "You've made me very happy...please don't ever leave me."

Mateo answered her matter-of-factly. "Claudia, I care for you very much, but I cannot rest until I know everything."

He tried to comfort her, wrapping his arms around her waist and holding her close. But nothing could prepare her for what he was about to find out.

She held onto him tightly and began to speak. There was an urgent tone in her voice. "Mateo, I have something to talk to you about. I know this is a bad time, but I don't know if I'll get another chance."

She was unaware that strangers were approaching from behind them.

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"Found a ...clearing..." Keyop called into his communicator and continued walking forward. The others joined him.

Princess' face glowed when she spied two individuals in the distance. One of them looked very familiar.

"Mark!" she cried, rushing toward the couple.

"I think she's finally lost it..." Tiny quipped, "That can't be Mark. He's with some girl."

Jason bounded after her, hoping to catch her before she made a fool of herself.

Mateo and Claudia separated quickly and Mark stood in front of her, taking on a fighting stance.

Princess stopped suddenly as she got closer, confused by the sight of her fiancé holding up his fist at her.

"Mark? Don't you remember? It's me...Princess." She spoke softly. Jason sidled up to her and gazed at the couple.

"Mark? What's wrong with you? We don't want to fight you. We've come to rescue you." Jason explained as Tiny and Keyop appeared, looking as befuddled as the rest of the team.

Mark's eyes widened. His heart raced. They certainly were familiar, and seeing them in birdstyle made it all clear. White wings. There they were. The girl with the white wings called him "Mark", just like in his dream, and she was wearing that watch...that ..."communicator". The plane, the communicator, the wings, Princess...it all made sense.

"Princess?" Tears filled his eyes as he realized what had happened. He suddenly remembered his love for the Swan, and memories began to flood his mind. He surged forward and held the Swan tightly in his arms, and then hugged the rest of his team.

"I'm so sorry." He cried." My memory was wiped out when I crashed. I would've contacted you sooner."

Princess clung to him once again, weeping happy tears this time.

No one noticed that Claudia had slipped away, devastated at the loss of her "Mateo".

Mark led them to the village to say goodbye to the people who had nursed him back to health.
However, Claudia was nowhere to be found.

Salvador spoke up. "Don't worry, Mateo. I warned her not to get too attached to you, because I knew your memory would return to you someday. Maybe she'll learn to listen to her old father. She's a bit stubborn, that one. A lot like her mother, God rest her soul. I'll tell her you said goodbye."

Once he had bid the villagers farewell, he returned to the Phoenix with his teammates and returned to his old life.

Princess motioned for him to meet her in the sick bay. She yanked off her helmet and tossed it onto one of the cots. Then she proceeded to give Mark a "welcome back" kiss.

"I said I'd welcome you home, didn't I? " She grinned.

Mark nodded and smiled.

She wrapped her arms around his neck once more and tasted his lips once more, trembling with excitement. "Welcome, home, Mark." She purred.

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Months later, things had returned to normal for the team. Wedding plans continued, and Princess spent every spare moment at her fiancés place.

Mark even continued his deliveries once his plane was fixed, coming and going with no unusual circumstances. He did, however, stay in close contact with Princess while he was gone, in an effort to ease her mind.

One evening, while Princess was working at Jill's, Mark lay on his couch reading the newspaper and dozing. He was suddenly jolted awake by a knock at his door. He leapt up, assuming Princess had lost her keys and returned early from the diner, and answered the door.

"That was quick. Diner's slow tonight?" He assumed, as he opened the door. He looked up.
It wasn't Princess.

"Claudia? What are you doing here?" He gasped.

"I had to talk to you, Mateo." She replied. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she picked up a small basket filled with blankets.

"Come in." He stated, dumfounded. He motioned for her to sit on his couch. "You have a baby?"

"Yes. He's sleeping." She picked up the bundle and exposed the baby's small, round face. He had dark hair and olive skin like his mother.

"He's beautiful. So...I'm assuming you and Antonio...?" He responded.

"Yes."

"Are you happy?" Mark sat down next to her on the couch and looked into her deep, brown eyes.

"As happy as I can be..." She paused and looked at him, tears welled in her eyes. "how about you?"

"Happy? Yes, Claudia. I am happy here. But I was also happy with you. I just couldn't stay there when I realized I had duties to fulfill, a family, a job, and a fiancée."

"A fiancée? You're getting married?"

"Yes, Claudia. Her name is Princess, and I love her very much. You are special to me, but we could never be more than friends. My heart belongs to someone else." He replied as tears cascaded down Claudia's face.

She wept bitterly and buried her face in his chest. "Oh, Mateo...I'm so sorry!"

Mark held her while she cried. He was thoroughly confused by her reply. "What do you mean by that?"

"Mateo...I should have told you before now, but I believe this is your child!" She gazed up at him, tears cascading down her face like a waterfall.

At that very moment, the door opened once more.

Princess stopped in her tracks, taking in the scene. Mark sat on the couch, holding another woman in his arms. She had just heard the woman telling her fiancé that she had delivered his child. The Swan's knees buckled.

"What is going on here?" She gasped.

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