Larxene here, with a new story! This one's completed, so the wait will be no longer than a week between each chapter :)

Pairing: Rosto/Beka

Summary: It started with Gillyflowers, and ended with Roses. Each moment they shared was accompanied by silken petals, a subtle declaration of their commitment. Though the years carried hard moments, all they needed was the memory of those flowers to remember what truly mattered.

Special thanks to my beta, Lioness's Heart! She deserves all the thanks in the world for putting up with me :)

Lavender: enchantment; love at first sight

Beka hadn't known what to think when Rosto first came into her life. He was a rogue she had happened to meet while collecting the Happy Bag; he had bribed her, and offended, she had declined. She took the law seriously; he did everything he could to dance around it. He frustrated her, sometimes; one moment she would think that he was a good friend, a neighbor, and then he'd do something that reminded her just what he did for a job.

She wanted to slug him as much as she wanted to laugh with him. She felt as though she was dancing on a knife edge whenever she was with him, precariously close to falling one way or the other- lover, or friend. She was scared to find out which it would be. No matter how she fell, she would lose something, something she wasn't sure she wanted to give up.

It was a week after Rosto had moved into the same inn as she, and though she was secretly glad that he was closer to her – only so she could keep an eye on him, or so she told herself- passing by his door every day on her way to Evening Watch reminded her of their paths. He was a rogue and she was a Dog. One day, they would be put in a position where she would be forced to hobble him. And she didn't like it one bit.

As she was sitting at her desk updating her journal, she heard the familiar knock at her door. "Come in," She called, hastily closing the journal. Turning, she noticed Rosto grinning in the doorframe. She groaned inwardly; didn't he know how late it was? "What do you want?" She asked, but she lacked the venom. She was too tired for that. Watch had been busy and the reminder that somewhere, people had been killed weighed heavily on her mind.

"A little birdie told me it was your birthday. Seeing as it is past midnight, I wanted to be the first to tell you." He produced a square package, then crossed the room to hand it to her. "Go on, open it. And before you ask, I didn't steal it."

She rolled her eyes, but did as he asked. Inside, she found something that made her eyes widen- a beautifully bound dark leather notebook, with her name printed in gold across the cover, was nestled alongside a new quill. Patterns of flowers and vines were stamped into its cover, and a black satin ribbon held it together. A silk bookmark also drew her attention, and she stared wonderingly at it for a few moments before looking up at him again. "How did you know?" she asked.

"You're always scribbling in that notebook of yours, so I figured I should get you a new one before you ran out of pages," he said. "Do you like it?"

"Like it? Rosto, I love it!" She exclaimed, jumping up to give him fierce hug. He laughed, tucking something behind her ear. "I'm glad, love. Happy birthday."

After he had gone, Beka noticed a small lavender rose tucked behind her ear.

She took the day off, spending the time with her friends to celebrate. Rosto took up most of her attention, constantly nagging on her to spend some time with him touring the city until she finally gave in to stop her friend's teasing. "I haven't been here that long to learn my way around!" he lied.

"Bring me to lunch, and I'll agree," She grumbled, ignoring the snide remark Pounce sent her way.

"Aw, it's so romantic, Beka," Verene teased. "Have fun!"

She balked, offended by her friend's words. "Romantic? I don't have time for romance."

This instantly caused a collective gasp to rise around the room. Not that it was a surprising declaration, mind. Everyone knew Beka's stand on duty and personal life. But this was her birthday, and she was supposed to relax a little. "Lighten up, Beka," Ersken said. "Rosto won't go that far… I think."

Verene and Kora were more insistent on the topic at hand. "Don't tell me you don't want to fall in love one day, Beka," Kora said. Verene nodded adamantly. "You're far too young to not get in a relationship," She added.

"You're the same age as me," Beka replied, trying to escape their attention. Verene giggled.

"And I have Phelan to prove it." She told Beka.

"Don't you at least believe in love?" Kora asked, and after a glance at the rose still behind her ear, "Or what about love at first sight?"

"I do, so long as it doesn't happen to me," She said, shoving past them. "Are we going to leave or not?"

"After you," he grinned, and then with a subtle wink at the others, followed Beka outside.

To her surprise and pleasure, she had fun during that outing. Rosto did everything within his power to make her forget he was a rusher and she a dog. They even avoided the areas that were inhabited by people she knew, allowing them to be free in their words, actions, and expressions. Laughing as they strolled through temple district, Beka once more reached up to see if the rose was still in place. It was silken-soft against her fingers, and she smiled, glad that she had made a friend in Rosto.

"Ready to head back?" he asked. They had spent the entire day together; it was time they returned for dinner. She nodded. Casually, he asked, "Did you really mean what you said this morning? About not believing in love?"

"Not you, too!" She groaned. He smirked.

"It's an honest question. Answer up." He said. She muttered under her breath for a moment, cursing the fact that Pounce had run off so he couldn't distract the man. Finally, she replied, "I'm too busy to be distracted by it. If I wanted to be swooning over some air-brained cove, I'd be a maid in my lady's household."

Rosto chuckled. "I'm glad you aren't." Teasingly, he tugged the rose tucked behind her ear. "But you shouldn't give up on it just yet. As Verene said, you're too young." He kissed her cheek, then darted away laughing. Furious, she raced after him, pounding up the stairs to the inn and into the room where her friends had put together a surprise party. She forgot about the kiss after that.

The next morning, another violet rose was waiting for her when she opened her door. With it was a note-

You may not feel like love is ready for you, but it is for me. Until you're ready, I'll be waiting.

Looking around, she saw nobody was there to witness her slow smile. Turning back inside, she placed the rose on her windowsill, took one last look at her new journal, and then went downstairs.

The note she tucked under her pillow.

First chapter done! I know it's short, but trust me, there's a method to my madness. Expect the next chapter to be longer :)

Review, please! I'd like to know how I did :D