AN: Hi! So to avoid confusion with my other on-going work, I decided to revise this chapter a little bit.
I do not own RoV. This is a fan fic and has nothing to do with actual historical events/persons.
Chapter 2
First time he opened his eyes he thought he had died and went to heaven, welcomed by a pale-skinned woman with blue eyes and pink lips. The sunlight fell across her blond tresses... the slender body… what a divine beauty.
She seemed to be worried, though. That's strange. He had imagined if he were seeing an angel in his past life, she would great him with delicate smile.
"...Dre? Andre… Andre!"
Andre's eyes snapped open. He blinked a couple of times, as if still trying to comprehend the situation. And then he saw her. Really saw her. "Os—OSCAR? What are you... Why you...?"
He tried to sit up but Oscar's hand held his arm in place. "Easy, Belfort. You have been passed out for almost two days..."
Andre studied her face. Still stunned with the way she looked. "Two days?"
"Yes. The doctor said nothing's damaged, but he assumed someone might have poisoned you in the bar that night." She let out a breath of relieve. Her hands were squeezing his left arm. "We might have some issues, Andre, but you don't have to take it to the extreme."
She smiled and Andre's mind wandered. Issues. He remembered what had happened several nights ago. Now she acted as if his nearly raping her was just like another issue. "It wasn't just another issue..." Andre said under his breath.
Oscar must have heard him because he felt her hands on him tensed. She removed her hands but continued in usual tone. "Colonel de Girodelle came last evening when you're still unconscious. He's investigating this and had the bar owner under arrest. He denied of having poisoned you, though. You recall anyone give you any food or drink?"
Andre shook his head. "But why would anyone would poison me? Much less the bar owner."
Oscar gave him sympathetic look. "I don't know. I personally don't think he did. But one can't be too aware in this time." She stopped and looked at him.
There were questions he wanted to asked her but upon looking at her, he couldn't utter a single word from his mouth. Andre didn't know what possessed Oscar to wear a dress. She had sworn to live as a man and left him and yet there she was, sitting beside his bed wearing a bright blue dress that compliment the color of her eyes. Boldly looking at him. He couldn't remember the last time he did that. Simply looking at him. She had avoided his gaze for too long.
After some time, they suddenly felt awkward. Andre straightened his gaze to the wall and Oscar rose to her feet. "I will bring Rose to you. She's been torturing everyone about you all day."
"Rose?" Andre asked in confusion.
But Oscar didn't seem to notice as she strode along the room to the ante-chamber. "Rest well, Belfort, you will need all energy you can muster when she gets here." She laughed a little and left the room.
Meanwhile Andre was left more lost than ever. Who the hell was Rose? Andre's thought immediately turned to the auburn temptress. Did she brought him here and Oscar knew? And Oscar kept calling him Belfort. Why Florian de Girodelle even bothered to investigate his poison? And again, why was he here? This place was no doubt, a noble chamber. It's not Oscar's chamber, he's even sure there's no such chamber in de Jarjayes' mansion. Then where were they?
Andre's train of thought was diverted when he heard the door cracked. He thought Oscar had come back. But instead a petite blonde came rushing through the open door, running toward him with all her might, and jumping onto his bed. She cupped his shocked face as if she were examining whether he had any wounds. When she seemed satisfied with what she saw, she circled her tiny hands around his neck and shouted happily, "Papa!"
oOo
"Jesus!" Andre exclaimed upon hearing the toddler's high-pitched scream. She still holding onto him tightly and giggling to his shoulder.
Oscar had been watching the scene in amusement with Rose's governess from the door. She let out a laugh and walked toward them. "Okay, Rose. Let Papa breathe," she said and freed Andre from grasp of, apparently, his little child.
A thousand thoughts were running through Andre's mind. Had he accidently fathered a little girl? He certainly didn't stay celibate all of these years, but he thought he was careful. Not to mention, rarely did that. It was back then when he was young and stupid but by God! This little creature was now here, in the arms of Oscar, pouting because she had been separated from him against her will.
"Papa needs some rest, darling," Oscar said in a firm but gentle voice. Over twenty years Andre had known Oscar, he had never heard she used that kind of tone. He melted in instance. And it looked like it had the same effect to Rose as well, for she stop pouting and instead leant into Oscar's hold more.
"Papa gowna be okay?" she asked in whisper.
"Is Papa going to be okay?" Oscar repeated the question to Andre, who nodded dumbfoundly.
"Yes, Rose, Papa is going to be just fine," Oscar said to the toddler. "Now why don't you kiss Papa and let him rest."
Oscar lowered Rose on the bed. He was a little alert because of Rose's previous outburst but the toddler kissed Andre softly on the cheek. "Rest well, Papa," she said quietly and patted Andre's head.
Oscar smiled then took Rose from the bed and signaling the governess to come closer. "Now as Papa takes a rest, why don't Rose change clothes for dinner?"
"Papa comes to dinner to?" Andre knew that Rose was asking him, for she was looking straight at him. But he found himself even too stunned to react.
"Papa will have dinner in bed, darling. But you can see Papa again tomorrow morning," Oscar said and handed her to the governess. "Be a nice girl and don't cause Madame Cargill to much trouble, will you?"
Once Rose and her governess left the room Oscar turned to face Andre again. "Your condition seems to be worse than I thought, Andre," she said and sat beside his bed again. She seemed really worried now. "Would you like me to call Doctor Lassone?"
Andre shook his head. "No, I'm just…" Andre couldn't believe Oscar. How could she be so freaking calm? Was she pulling a goddamned prank like when they were children? But she's bringing a kid into this for crying out loud!
Oscar wasn't convinced. "You look even paler, Andre. Let me get doctor."
"No. Oscar..." He pulled her hand to stop her. And suddenly a memory of that cursed night surfacing and he let go immediately.
Oscar looked confused. "What's wrong?" she asked.
Andre bit his lips. What's wrong? Everything's wrong! He closed his eyes for a few second before asking her, "Where are we?"
Oscar seemed to be taken aback. "Well, we're home, in Passy."
Passy certainly wasn't home. He didn't even know de Jarjayes have such a place in here. But he set it aside for once. "Why am I here?"
"What?" Oscar looked really confused now. "Well, this is your home—"
"No, I mean… why am I here, in this room?"
"Well, probably because this is your room. Have you by accident, hurt your head too, Andre? Why you're asking me that?"
"And Rose…"
Oscar waited. Andre didn't even have the heart to ask. "What about her?" she asked finally.
"Is she… my daughter?"
"Good God! Andre!"
"Really. Oscar. I don't know what happened to me. I don't know why we're even in Passy. Last time I knew we're still in Jarjayes mansion. Last time I checked I didn't have a daughter. And last time I saw you, you…"
Oscar looked at him in horror but she didn't say a word.
Andre continued in soft voice. "Last time I saw you, you're definitely not wearing a dress."
Oscar gasped. "You mean, last time you saw me I never wore a dress…?"
Andre could only nod and Oscar seemed to lose her balance a little.
"Oscar!" Andre shouted worriedly.
"I'm okay…" she said, stilling Andre in his place. "I'm okay. But you, I'm afraid, will need a doctor. I'll ask Lucinda to call doctor Lassone. I'll be right back."
Andre didn't even have chance to stop her as she rushed out of the bed chamber. He sighed as he leant back onto the pillow. He knew going to the bar that night was a mistake.
oOo
Oscar took a deep breath as he sat on the couch, face to face to Andre, who refused to stay in bed any longer and sat on the couch in front of her instead.
The doctor had confirmed her suspicion since she saw him looking at Rose as if he was seeing a ghost instead of his most treasured daughter. Something was indeed wrong with his brain cell.
Doctor Lassone didn't want to speculate since there's no proof Andre had any trauma on his head. But seeing his state, his diagnose was the poison probably had caused certain damage on his nerve system and caused selective amnesia.
He had told her to break the news gradually and not to stress him out. In most cases, amnesia could be cured. But it took patience.
"Well…" she began, unsure where to begin with.
"Well…?" Andre replied, restless look on his face. Oscar cursed herself mentally, so much for not putting any stress on him.
"The doctor said you might suffer a selective amnesia. You probably miss a few chunk of memories but it can be cured," she finished hurriedly upon seeing terrified look in his face. "I will try to fill what is lost from your memories. Well, after all I'm the one who knows most of your, umm, activities."
She squeezed his hand. She felt him tensed under her palm. "We're going to be alright, Belfort. We'll restore your memories bit by bit."
"Why you're calling me that?" he asked softly, almost like afraid of her answer.
"What?"
"Belfort."
"But that was your name, Andre," Oscar said rather astounded but shortly regain her composure upon seeing him flinched. She cleared her throat. "You were once called that way. It's your courtesy title before you possess your title now."
"Tittle?"
"Yes. You were still Viscomte de Belfort when we first met. So I've kind of gotten used to it. Besides, you don't like me calling you Comte de Bourgogne because it remains you of your father."
Andre gulped. "My father… And this place is…?"
"Chateau de Passy. We moved here… after your father's deceased," she added with delicacy. His father's death had been terrible for Andre, who had lost his mother when she gave birth to him. Oscar was afraid he didn't remember and had to deal with this unfortunate all over again.
But he seemed strangely calm. "I see. And Rose…?"
Oscar bit her lower lips. She could take that Andre had lost plenty of her memories, that he seemed be unaware of his own nobility, that he forgot his own home, but forgetting his own daughter. Oscar shook her head. It wasn't his fault. He too, certainly didn't want this to happen.
"Rosemary Jeanne Francoise de Bourgogne… is your daughter."
Andre swallowed visibly. His entire body seemed to be shaking. Oscar saw him gripping arms of the couch until his knuckles became white. She was going to order him to go back sleeping when he asked suddenly, "And you…?"
Oscar blushed. She lifted her chin and looked at him straight in the eyes. "I, Monseigneur le Comte de Bourgogne, am Oscar Francois de Jarjayes. I am your wife."
