A/N: MANY thanx to my three loverly reviewers, MountainDew (you're awesome), Solitary Starlight (who was, sadly, NOT the first reviewer like they thought), and unkachi...bless you all!!! I have finally picked the names what else doya think took me solong) for these characters, and here is the story...it's kinda sad, tho...awww...just read it and find out for yourself! ~Jenny the chica~
One
Many years later, in a nearby village, a young girl named Rosemarie was entranced by fairy tales, as they were called. Of course, all the grown-ups said that they were mere stories, with not even a grain of truth, but Rosemarie was sure that they were real stories, from real places. She loved all kinds of stories, as long as they ended happily ever after, of course. Tales of dragons and knights, handsome princes and beautiful princesses, fairies, both good and bad, witches, magic, and many other things.
But these things were no longer everyday occurrences. In fact, none of them had been sighted for years. Even the beautiful princesses and handsome princes were rare, people said, but Rosemarie could not understand how they would know, since no one ever saw the royals.
Rosemarie occupied her time by reading her fairy tales, either to herself or to her little sister, Colette. Rosemarie had developed a love of fairy tales in Colette that almost equaled the passion of her own...but only almost.
Convinced that one day she would be seen by a handsome prince or knight, and that they would fall instantly in love, and that all would end happily ever after, Rosemarie decided that she must know all that could be known about life with the nobility.
Since she was only a merchant's daughter, Rosemarie had no interactions with nobility. However, her father sometimes did, and she would always ask him, when he returned home, to tell her all about his trip, and he would chuckle, allow her to climb into his lap, then tell her all about it. Always an inquisitive child, Rosemarie would ask many questions, especially about the nobles, until her father was very tired and begged her for rest. Rosemarie would put on her precocious pout, and he would smile and indulge her for a little longer, until she usually fell asleep in his arms.
He then would carry her into her little room, tuck her in, kiss her forehead as goodnight, and then tip-toe out of the room. The next morning, without fail, Rosemarie would wake up and vow to stay awake the next time.
When her father was gone, Rosemarie would spend most of her time in the library. Her father had taught her to read when she was still very small, and she loved it. Whenever she disappeared, her mother knew to find her in the library, curled in the corner chair with a book. Usually it was, as you can easily guess, a fairy tale.
One day, when Rosemarie was seventeen, her love of fairy tales still full of passion, and her dream of her life being a fairy tale still very much alive, her little, and only, sister Colette came into the library to fetch her.
Colette nudged her sister, "It's time to go, Rosemarie!"
Rosemarie looked down at the seven year-old, "Now? Can I just have a few more minutes?"
"No...Papa's s'posed to be back tonight, remember? Momma wanted us to-"
Rosemarie didn't hear the end of that. She frantically scrambled out of the chair after reaching below it for her cloak. Her back and neck were stiff from the twisted position she had eventually eased into in the wooden chair, and she shook her head in an attempt to get the kinks out of her neck.
She had forgotten that Papa was coming home-and he had said that he had a surprise for her. I wonder what it could be?
Rosemarie rushed out of the library door, but then turned back, opened the door, and held it for little Colette. "Hurry up!" Rosemarie whispered teasingly.
Colette grinned, then challenged, "Race ya home?"
"You're on!"
The pair raced through the street down until they reached their home near the port. It had begun to snow, and Rosemarie was glad that they were running.
When they rushed in the doorway, at the same time, both yelled, "Beat you!"
Rosemarie's mother, Estelle, came out of the parlor and sighed at the sight before her. All she saw was two breathless girls, their cheeks and ears red, and their hair wet with snow.
Rosemarie's cloak hood had long since abandoned its job at keeping her long, wavy blond hair dry. Colette's black, curly hair still held little snowflakes.
The girls turned to their mother, and both had such a sheepish grin that Estelle began to laugh, "My, aren't you two a sight! Now go change and wash up for supper! Your father should be home any moment!"
Rosemarie and Colette giggled, then rushed up the stairs. Estelle winced at the loud clumps they made as they continued to race.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Half an hour later, Michel came through the large double doors to his home. His wife and two daughters joyfully hurried out of the entrance parlor, and Rosemarie reached him first and received a warm and vibrant hug from her father.
Colette was next, and Michel picked her up and twirled her around while she giggled gleefully. His wife walked up next, but there was no mistaking the happy grin on her face.
It was not until after their embrace that anyone took notice of the young man behind Michel.
They all turned to look at him, and Rosemarie summed him up in her head. She took in his dark black hair, which was just long enough to show that it was wavy, and beautiful green eyes, and was thankful that he appeared taller than she was. Rosemarie was thin, but she was much taller than most, and she enjoyed when she could look up to someone, since it was a seldom occurrence.
Michel finally spoke up, and said, "This is my surprise. This is Henri. He is going to be my apprentice for awhile. He will live hear when we are home, and he will travel with me when I work.
Each of the women nodded their heads to Henri, and then Michel introduced each of them.
"This is my lovely wife, Estelle, my daughter, Colette, and my eldest daughter, Rosemarie."
Rosemarie curtsied slightly to Henri, and smiled at him when she came back up. They made eye contact, and he smiled back at her.
Michel and Estelle looked knowingly at each other, but did not say anything. The moment seemed to drag on, until Colette exclaimed, "What's going on?"
Everyone smiled, and the moment was broken. However, Rosemarie and Henri glanced back once more at each other and smiled.
The pair had to leave a few weeks later. Rosemarie was surprised by the fact that she would miss Henri. Although they had only known each other for a couple of weeks, they had been able to talk often, and they knew a lot about each other.
Rosemarie grew up a lot in the two months that Henri and her father were gone. She still loved her fairy tales, but she clung to a more real alternative to being carried off by a handsome prince or knight. She realised that she was in love, and she loved the magical and tingly feeling that she felt in her heart every time she admitted that to herself.
~*~*~*~*~*~
When Michel and Henri returned, Rosemarie met them at the wharf. She had received a letter from Henri that told her around when they would return, and she had gone out there every day since a week before the date that he had told her.
When the ship was anchored, Henri jumped off, and Rosemarie ran over to him. Caught up in the moment, they kissed then and there, in front of all sorts of people, on the wharf. Rosemarie ignored the calls that vaguely echoed behind her, until they broke the kiss and he picked her up and spun her around.
All of a sudden, Henri's smile faded, and he put Rosemarie down on the ground. Rosemarie turned to see her father, still smiling, and he slowly walked up. Her smile disappeared, and she felt a bright pink blush spread through her cheeks.
Michel walked up until he was right next to his daughter, put his arm around her, and said, "Well...how soon do you want to marry?"
Rosemarie smiled, hugged her father, and said, "As soon as we can!"
He smiled and nodded his head.
~*~*~*~*~*~
A mere three weeks later, Rosemarie and Henri married. Obviously, there was much gossip about such a quick romance, but the couple didn't care.
After their simple, yet beautiful wedding, Henri made enough money to buy a small house, and they soon moved into a larger one.
Rosemarie's father had promoted Henri to a much higher status than apprentice, since he already knew all that he needed to know. The two men continued to work together until Michel died.
When he died, Rosemarie was heartbroken, and her two children, Marc and Gabrielle, wept along with their mother. Colette and her husband came back into town for a while, to take care of Estelle, and Henri took over the merchant business.
Rosemarie had four more children after Marc and Gabrielle: Jacques, Sylvie, Bernard, and, the youngest, a little girl. When this last child was born, Rosemarie had the hardest labor yet. It was long and hard, and many times she didn't think that she would make it.
But she did, and when the little girl was born, Rosemarie murmured, "Beauty," because the instant she saw the child she knew that her hours of labor had been worth it.
Rosemarie continued to be very weak, and the nurse took care of the infant along with the other children.
In her weakened state, Rosemarie easily caught a fever, and continued to get sicker and sicker. She regretted that she would not be able to develop a love of fairy tales in her newborn daughter, as she had in her other children, and she prayed a lot for her-that she would grow to be beautiful, that she would have a love for fairy tales, and that she would remember the mother that she would never be able to know.
Rosemarie could barely speak, but she whispered to the doctor, asking for her new little girl. The doctor looked uneasy, but nodded his head. The nurse soon brought the child, and Rosemarie propped herself up on the bed with all the energy she could possibly muster. She kissed her child's forehead, then collapsed back on the bed, eyes closed.
She never opened her eyes again, for she died that night.
One
Many years later, in a nearby village, a young girl named Rosemarie was entranced by fairy tales, as they were called. Of course, all the grown-ups said that they were mere stories, with not even a grain of truth, but Rosemarie was sure that they were real stories, from real places. She loved all kinds of stories, as long as they ended happily ever after, of course. Tales of dragons and knights, handsome princes and beautiful princesses, fairies, both good and bad, witches, magic, and many other things.
But these things were no longer everyday occurrences. In fact, none of them had been sighted for years. Even the beautiful princesses and handsome princes were rare, people said, but Rosemarie could not understand how they would know, since no one ever saw the royals.
Rosemarie occupied her time by reading her fairy tales, either to herself or to her little sister, Colette. Rosemarie had developed a love of fairy tales in Colette that almost equaled the passion of her own...but only almost.
Convinced that one day she would be seen by a handsome prince or knight, and that they would fall instantly in love, and that all would end happily ever after, Rosemarie decided that she must know all that could be known about life with the nobility.
Since she was only a merchant's daughter, Rosemarie had no interactions with nobility. However, her father sometimes did, and she would always ask him, when he returned home, to tell her all about his trip, and he would chuckle, allow her to climb into his lap, then tell her all about it. Always an inquisitive child, Rosemarie would ask many questions, especially about the nobles, until her father was very tired and begged her for rest. Rosemarie would put on her precocious pout, and he would smile and indulge her for a little longer, until she usually fell asleep in his arms.
He then would carry her into her little room, tuck her in, kiss her forehead as goodnight, and then tip-toe out of the room. The next morning, without fail, Rosemarie would wake up and vow to stay awake the next time.
When her father was gone, Rosemarie would spend most of her time in the library. Her father had taught her to read when she was still very small, and she loved it. Whenever she disappeared, her mother knew to find her in the library, curled in the corner chair with a book. Usually it was, as you can easily guess, a fairy tale.
One day, when Rosemarie was seventeen, her love of fairy tales still full of passion, and her dream of her life being a fairy tale still very much alive, her little, and only, sister Colette came into the library to fetch her.
Colette nudged her sister, "It's time to go, Rosemarie!"
Rosemarie looked down at the seven year-old, "Now? Can I just have a few more minutes?"
"No...Papa's s'posed to be back tonight, remember? Momma wanted us to-"
Rosemarie didn't hear the end of that. She frantically scrambled out of the chair after reaching below it for her cloak. Her back and neck were stiff from the twisted position she had eventually eased into in the wooden chair, and she shook her head in an attempt to get the kinks out of her neck.
She had forgotten that Papa was coming home-and he had said that he had a surprise for her. I wonder what it could be?
Rosemarie rushed out of the library door, but then turned back, opened the door, and held it for little Colette. "Hurry up!" Rosemarie whispered teasingly.
Colette grinned, then challenged, "Race ya home?"
"You're on!"
The pair raced through the street down until they reached their home near the port. It had begun to snow, and Rosemarie was glad that they were running.
When they rushed in the doorway, at the same time, both yelled, "Beat you!"
Rosemarie's mother, Estelle, came out of the parlor and sighed at the sight before her. All she saw was two breathless girls, their cheeks and ears red, and their hair wet with snow.
Rosemarie's cloak hood had long since abandoned its job at keeping her long, wavy blond hair dry. Colette's black, curly hair still held little snowflakes.
The girls turned to their mother, and both had such a sheepish grin that Estelle began to laugh, "My, aren't you two a sight! Now go change and wash up for supper! Your father should be home any moment!"
Rosemarie and Colette giggled, then rushed up the stairs. Estelle winced at the loud clumps they made as they continued to race.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Half an hour later, Michel came through the large double doors to his home. His wife and two daughters joyfully hurried out of the entrance parlor, and Rosemarie reached him first and received a warm and vibrant hug from her father.
Colette was next, and Michel picked her up and twirled her around while she giggled gleefully. His wife walked up next, but there was no mistaking the happy grin on her face.
It was not until after their embrace that anyone took notice of the young man behind Michel.
They all turned to look at him, and Rosemarie summed him up in her head. She took in his dark black hair, which was just long enough to show that it was wavy, and beautiful green eyes, and was thankful that he appeared taller than she was. Rosemarie was thin, but she was much taller than most, and she enjoyed when she could look up to someone, since it was a seldom occurrence.
Michel finally spoke up, and said, "This is my surprise. This is Henri. He is going to be my apprentice for awhile. He will live hear when we are home, and he will travel with me when I work.
Each of the women nodded their heads to Henri, and then Michel introduced each of them.
"This is my lovely wife, Estelle, my daughter, Colette, and my eldest daughter, Rosemarie."
Rosemarie curtsied slightly to Henri, and smiled at him when she came back up. They made eye contact, and he smiled back at her.
Michel and Estelle looked knowingly at each other, but did not say anything. The moment seemed to drag on, until Colette exclaimed, "What's going on?"
Everyone smiled, and the moment was broken. However, Rosemarie and Henri glanced back once more at each other and smiled.
The pair had to leave a few weeks later. Rosemarie was surprised by the fact that she would miss Henri. Although they had only known each other for a couple of weeks, they had been able to talk often, and they knew a lot about each other.
Rosemarie grew up a lot in the two months that Henri and her father were gone. She still loved her fairy tales, but she clung to a more real alternative to being carried off by a handsome prince or knight. She realised that she was in love, and she loved the magical and tingly feeling that she felt in her heart every time she admitted that to herself.
~*~*~*~*~*~
When Michel and Henri returned, Rosemarie met them at the wharf. She had received a letter from Henri that told her around when they would return, and she had gone out there every day since a week before the date that he had told her.
When the ship was anchored, Henri jumped off, and Rosemarie ran over to him. Caught up in the moment, they kissed then and there, in front of all sorts of people, on the wharf. Rosemarie ignored the calls that vaguely echoed behind her, until they broke the kiss and he picked her up and spun her around.
All of a sudden, Henri's smile faded, and he put Rosemarie down on the ground. Rosemarie turned to see her father, still smiling, and he slowly walked up. Her smile disappeared, and she felt a bright pink blush spread through her cheeks.
Michel walked up until he was right next to his daughter, put his arm around her, and said, "Well...how soon do you want to marry?"
Rosemarie smiled, hugged her father, and said, "As soon as we can!"
He smiled and nodded his head.
~*~*~*~*~*~
A mere three weeks later, Rosemarie and Henri married. Obviously, there was much gossip about such a quick romance, but the couple didn't care.
After their simple, yet beautiful wedding, Henri made enough money to buy a small house, and they soon moved into a larger one.
Rosemarie's father had promoted Henri to a much higher status than apprentice, since he already knew all that he needed to know. The two men continued to work together until Michel died.
When he died, Rosemarie was heartbroken, and her two children, Marc and Gabrielle, wept along with their mother. Colette and her husband came back into town for a while, to take care of Estelle, and Henri took over the merchant business.
Rosemarie had four more children after Marc and Gabrielle: Jacques, Sylvie, Bernard, and, the youngest, a little girl. When this last child was born, Rosemarie had the hardest labor yet. It was long and hard, and many times she didn't think that she would make it.
But she did, and when the little girl was born, Rosemarie murmured, "Beauty," because the instant she saw the child she knew that her hours of labor had been worth it.
Rosemarie continued to be very weak, and the nurse took care of the infant along with the other children.
In her weakened state, Rosemarie easily caught a fever, and continued to get sicker and sicker. She regretted that she would not be able to develop a love of fairy tales in her newborn daughter, as she had in her other children, and she prayed a lot for her-that she would grow to be beautiful, that she would have a love for fairy tales, and that she would remember the mother that she would never be able to know.
Rosemarie could barely speak, but she whispered to the doctor, asking for her new little girl. The doctor looked uneasy, but nodded his head. The nurse soon brought the child, and Rosemarie propped herself up on the bed with all the energy she could possibly muster. She kissed her child's forehead, then collapsed back on the bed, eyes closed.
She never opened her eyes again, for she died that night.
