Chapter eight! Just one more to go!
This was probably the hardest chapter to write for some reason. I knew how I wanted to incorporate the rose's color, but I didn't know how to get there. Eventually I puzzled out this piece. Not my favorite, but that's for you to judge!
And thanks bunches to my beta, Lioness's Heart! I wouldn't have gotten this far without her.
Oh, and cookies to whoever gets the small reference to the various Circle Series!
Blue: Mysterious; Unattainable; Surrealism; Enchantment
For their first anniversary, Rosto gave Beka a framed painting of the two of them together.
He had been planning it for weeks, hiring one of his pickpockets who was also a gifted artist, and let him study Beka on the sly. It had meant telling him about their relationship, but the lad didn't care- he himself was sweet on a merchant's daughter, and their developing relationship was being kept a secret. He was happy to do the Rogue a favor, especially since he idolized Rosto.
Beka gave him a healer's bill.
It was a romantic scene, and both Rosto and Beka were grateful that Goodwin had granted her a day off to celebrate. The two of them had spent most of the day at the Dove, eating breakfast with their friends, visiting Beka's remaining siblings briefly (Diona was already at the castle), and then strolling around the more upper-class parts of Corus, where only members of the Rogue would recognize them, let alone know who they were. For lunch they ate at a prestigious inn called the Gilded Scepter, ignoring most of the merchants and mages who were also dining there. After more sightseeing and a run-in with a few bored sailors (They were hitting on Beka; Rosto had stopped to converse with a few of his thieves, and they had approached her with the intent of wooing her. She had resisted, and the arrival of Rosto put them in their place. The thieves Rosto had been conversing with moments before were more than happy to relieve them of their purses), they returned to the Dove, to have a rowdy dinner and stare in surprise when a visiting Baron decided to rent a room there. Rosto, as the inn's owner, took him aside and showed him the best rooms- Beka went with him, since her room was close to the ones he was advertising.
"I heard that this was the best place to witness the action in Corus," the baron said. "The man who pointed me the way said that the Lower City was the true heart of the capital, aside from the castle, of course."
Rosto smiled. "Well, sir, the Dove is definitely famous for its…uniqueness. Though I'd advise you to be back in your rooms by nightfall- it may be the most exciting time period, but it's also the most dangerous. But Beka here will protect you- she's a Dog, and one of the best I've ever seen."
"Oh, I don't have to worry about thieves and the like," he replied airily. "I didn't bring anything that I'll miss, and I'm only here to conduct research. You won't even notice I'm here."
Rosto's eyes were sparkling with mischief, and Beka knew that his smile wasn't meant for friendliness. "I'm certain, sir, that there will be very little that I miss in my establishment," he promised.
The Baron, who blinked at Rosto in confusion, finally asked the boarding rate.
As the two haggled over pricing, Beka went back downstairs to finish dinner, taking Kora aside for a moment to talk in hushed whispers. Beka came back worried, Kora excited. She instantly dragged Ersken off to their room, eyes gleaming with suppressed excitement. Aniki, who had watched with raised eyebrows, rose to go interrogate Kora and Ersken- Phelan simply ignored them, talking with another rusher, though he did spare a concerned glance when he noticed Beka was nervous.
Rosto, after leaving a satisfied Baron, came back downstairs to speak with his district chiefs and order them to not touch the Baron. Since he was a guest at the Dove, he was already paying them to be there- no other coin was necessary. He also warned them to be careful about their actions, since he wanted as little trouble as possible. Though disappointed, they understood- the Baron would be left alone, so long as he didn't pry into the Dove's true nature more than he should.
He finally joined Beka and wolfed down his meal, hijacking her as soon as he was done. When he got to their room, he picked her up bridal-style and carried her in, both of them laughing.
Squirming in his grasp, Beka shrieked with merriment, trying to get free. Rosto easily kept his hold on her, depositing her on the bed before rummaging about in the trunk. "It's about time I gave you this," he said, pulling out a wrapped, thin rectangle.
Interested, Beka took it from him, watching as he moved away to light the fire, nudging the door closed as he went. She slowly unwrapped it, staring in open-mouthed awe as the portrait was revealed.
She and Rosto were dressed in formal attire, standing in the walkway of a beautiful garden. An arch of different colored roses stood above them, each one a memory of the past- lavender, green, yellow, pink, red, and white. They were holding hands, smiling at something in front of them- she gently traced the scars on his picture-self's face, noticing that the artist had captured his mischievous eyes and mouth perfectly. The details were astounding. She almost felt as if it was real, and she was staring at the actual real-life scene.
"Do you like it?" Rosto asked, and she noticed he had sat down by her. The fire was roaring merrily in the hearth, and he had lit a few candles about the room. She nodded. "It's beautiful, Rosto," she said. "How did you manage it?"
"One of my pickpockets has a knack for artwork. His Gift is attuned to painting. I can't really explain it, but I'm glad he was willing to paint this for us." His hands began to play with her hair.
"I…I have something, too." she whispered, stammering. Her face flushed. "Let me get it." She went over to her desk, opening a drawer with trembling fingers. Pulling out a scrap of paper, she handed it to him with downcast eyes.
"Why so shy?" he asked, amused. Then he glanced at the paper, and the traces of a frown appeared. "Why did you go to a healer?" he asked, looking up at her again.
"Just…just read it." Mortified, she stared at her feet, refusing to meet Rosto's eyes. Worried, he turned back to the scrap of paper.
"It says that you have nothing wrong, only…" he paused, eyebrows knitting together. "Morning sickness and occasional nausea? Beka, what does it mean?"
"I…" she swallowed, wiping her sweaty palms on her skirt. "I went to the healer a week ago, because I've been throwing up. She… she said I was…" her voice grew quieter. "She said I was pregnant."
Rosto didn't respond, but his hand tightened around the paper. Even more terrified, Beka stammered, "I…I know it's a bit of a shock, but I thought now would be a good time to tell you."
"How long?" He asked, his voice low. Her eyes squeezed shut. "Ten weeks," she replied, trembling.
She didn't see the wonder spreading across his face. "Beka, this…" he stood, noticing her tensed muscles and shaking hands. Gently, he raised her face. "Beka, look at me."
Opening her eyes, she stared up at him, fearful. He kissed her softly. "You shouldn't be scared," he soothed. "You don't have any idea of how happy I am. A baby…Beka, this is wonderful!"
He felt her relax, but only minimally. "Rosto, what are we going to do? I can't do Evening Watch with a child to care for, and you can't look after it because of your duties as Rogue… I don't even know if I'm going to be a good mother! I chase Rats for a living, Rosto. I have to be hard, and firm, and strict, and that's not something a child should deal with. I'm scared… what if it doesn't love me?"
She was shaking again, and he pulled her down to sit next to him on the bed. Taking her face between his hands, he said, "Parenting is never easy, but your reaction already proves that you care. You may not be the best mother, and you may do things that it doesn't like, but you will still love it, and you will become the role model I cannot be. Beka, when we bonded I promised myself that no child of mine would ever follow in my footsteps. Being a rusher is more pain than profit, and that is no life for our child. You will be an excellent mother, Beka. Don't doubt it."
She buried her head in his chest. "You will be a good father, Rosto," she whispered. "I never doubted it, even for a second."
He held her close, eyes bright with wonder and love. "Of all the things I thought it was, this wasn't it, but I wouldn't change it for the world." he looked down at her. "Beka, come with me for a moment. I want to show you something."
She allowed him to lead her to the attic, where Rosto stored all of his collections, papers, and Rogue-related work. It was a fairly large room, with a bed in the closer left corner, an open trunk with clothes at the end of the bed, a desk underneath a window at the far side, and a hearth along the right wall. Furs and rugs were scattered across the floor, but it was otherwise bare of extra furnishings. The only proof that Beka had been there was in the form of a spare set of her clothes, hidden under his own in the trunk.
He went to his desk, reaching up to tug on a piece of wood where the ceiling slanted. It opened to reveal the waning sunlight, and he pulled down a ladder. "Come on up," he said. "We need to hurry if we're going to make it in time."
Mystified, Beka climbed the stairs, finding herself on the roof of the Dove. It was a cleverly hidden area, surrounded by the slanted ceilings and tall walls. Unless one had a view from the sky or managed to scale the impossibly slick and steep angles, no one would ever find it.
"I have a feeling that thieves like rooftops in more than one way," she commented as she gazed upon the garden Rosto had placed in the area in front of her. "Is this where you go when you're stressed?"
He climbed up to stand beside her, pulling up the ladder and closing the trapdoor. "Sometimes. Usually I visit you." He went to the flowers, his hands running lightly over the blooms. "It's mostly for Kora's benefit. She insisted upon having a garden, and since there wasn't enough room in the courtyard, I placed it up here." He looked back at her, amused. "Though I'm the one who takes care of them, of course. She doesn't want to climb up here every day."
Beka joined him, marveling at the flowers that he had. "This was the garden in the picture, wasn't it?" she asked. "I recognize the scenery." Bending down to inhale the scent of a few tiger lilies, she felt Rosto's hand fall onto her shoulder. "That's not everything," he said. "Come here."
She watched as he went to a bush of small white flowers, gently brushing past it and its twin to stand in a small patch cleared of plants. "This is really what I wanted to show you."
Beka curiously slid between the bushes, hoping the thorny branches wouldn't tear her dress- it was one of Rosto's favorites, and both of them would have been disappointed if it was ruined. Inching out of the danger zone, she turned and beheld the sight before her in amazement.
"Rosto…is that…?"
He laughed. "That's the same reaction Kora had when I showed her."
Eyes wide, Beka could only stare at the bush of blue roses in wonder.
They were a perfect sapphire, their delicate petals curled gracefully out to catch the last of the sun's dying rays. Each bloom was an object of beauty- never before had she seen anything like it. "They're beautiful," she breathed. "How did you do it?"
"I didn't," Rosto shrugged. "There's a mage who's been cross-breeding for years to get this color, and he befriended me a while back. Don't ask me how- I'm not entirely sure myself. We sort of stumbled across each other in the marketplace one day. I was buying you the lavender rose for your birthday. Well, he thought it was sweet, and we struck up a conversation. Before he died last year, I dropped by once a week to see how this little project was going. After that, he left all his notes and research to me. I took up where he left off, and last week I produced this." He handled the flowers with a loving hand. "Ever since I began to give you roses, I've had a soft spot for them. With a little help from a few mage-friends, I managed to finish what the old mage started. It was the least I could do."
She hugged him. "I'm sure he would have been proud of you," Beka said. "You know what this means, right? By selling blue roses, you can make a fortune."
He shook his head. "No, I can't. Beka, these roses aren't able to produce seeds. Because of all the cross-breeding and magic, they only bloom once. When they die, the secret of their color dies with them."
Saddened, she looked back at the flowers. "It's a lot like us, when you think about it," she said softly. "We are one-of-a-kind, and have to be kept secret because of what we are. When we are gone… only a few will remember, and all too soon we will be forgotten. Like these roses, we are only a passing fancy, a miracle that will never again bloom to become a wonder."
His chin rested on the top of her head. "But until we are gone, we will continue to share our miracle," he murmured. "We may be only a short miracle, but it is a miracle nonetheless."
Nodding, Beka reached up to cup his cheek. "You will never cease to amaze me, Rosto the Piper," she told him, a small smile on her face. "Sometimes, I think this is all a dream, and when I wake up you will be as unattainable as before."
"That's what people think about blue roses," He replied. "And look how that turned out."
They kissed as the flowers slowly closed to sleep for the night. All fears and doubts about bringing a child into a secret relationship and a hard life vanished. If someone like Rosto could create something of such beauty, raising a child didn't seem like such an unattainable dream. It would only take some patience and love for it to turn out all right.
Awwww, and I still find a way to get fluff in there!
But Rosto's gonna be a dad... with a father like that, I shudder to think of what the child will be like!
Well, you'll find out next time at any rate ;)
Review please! It only takes a moment, and I get warm fuzzies when I hear from you!