Future Dragon: Rose Long (Season Seven)
Chapter/Episode 4: A Daughter's Goodbye
In Jake's room on the Island of Draco, Rose was lying on her husband's bed, curled up in a fetal position, her eyes closed as she rested her chin on her knees. However, once the door to the room slowly opened and Jake, in his human form, walked inside, Rose slowly opened her eyes.
"Jake?"
"Hey, babe." Jake said as he walked up to the side of the bed, then he crouched down on his knees and reached out, his hand coming down on the side of her head. "Get some rest. Tomorrow's going to be hard on you, I think."
"Why?" Rose asked.
"Because..." Jake said. "...Tomorrow...is the arranged date for your parents' funeral."
LINE BREAK
Outside, Callum stood behind Gilda, while Rin stood behind Lista, and other dragon-formed Agents stood behind Lexy, Maverick and Arkadi. As Callum pulled the shackles away from Gilda's wrists, Gilda quickly brought her hands up to her front and rubbed one of her wrists, Lista following her in the same motion as soon as she was released.
As the other members were released, Holly, still in her dragon form, walked up to them, stopping and crossing her scaly arms, watching as Lista and Gilda both lowered their arms to their sides, while Lexy, Maverick and Arkadi all started to try and get some feeling back into their wrists.
"You five are free to go." Holly said.
"That's it?" Gilda asked as Lexy, Maverick and Arkadi lowered their arms to their sides.
"You're just letting us go?" Lista asked.
"Yes." Holly said. "But be careful. All five of you now have a bad mark on your record."
LINE BREAK
"Funeral?!" Rose exploded, her eyes wide right before she pushed herself up to the side, sitting up.
"Yeah..." Jake said as he stood up. "...They need to be buried, Rose."
"God, Jake!" Rose said as she brought her hands up to each side of her head. "I just got back and now you spring this on me."
"Sorry, Rose..."
Sighing, Rose closed her eyes before she fell to the side, the side of her head hitting the pillow.
"You don't have to go if you don't want to." Jake said.
"No..." Rose said as she opened her eyes. "...I'll go. I should go."
"Okay." Jake smiled. "I'll call Daisy and tell her that you're going to come."
LINE BREAK
Stepping onto the grass later that night, after the sun had set, Jake reached into his robes and pulled out his communication device. Pressing a button on it, a holographic image of Daisy appeared.
"What is it, Jake?" Daisy asked.
"I just told Rose about the funeral." Jake said.
"Yeah? And?"
"She says that she wants to come."
"Really?" Daisy seemed surprised, but then her eyes narrowed. "Because when I tried to discuss the funeral arrangements for them with her after we got back from the morgue, she made it abundantly clear that she didn't care."
"Well..." Jake smiled. "...Maybe she cares now..."
LINE BREAK
Then next morning, Rose was sitting at a table in the cafeteria, still wearing her workout clothes, using her fork to play with a plate of french toast. Jake was sitting on the opposite side of the table, drumming his fingers on the surface of the table.
"What?" Rose asked in an annoyed tone.
"I, uh..." Jake said. "...Was surprised this morning. When I realized that you weren't in bed, I got worried. So, I came out and looked for you."
"I was out running."
"I know." Jake said. "I saw you." Then, he smiled. "Dang, Rose! I'm so happy that you've still got that in ya!"
"I didn't know that I had it in me, either." Rose said as she looked down at her food.
"I bet you found it in you so you could try and escape captivity." Jake smiled. "That's my Rose!"
"Jake, how many times do I have to tell you that I was never in any danger?" Rose shot as she looked up and glared at her husband. "If you must know, it was Savannah and Cherri who got me into doing this."
"Why would they do that?'
"Listen to me, Jake!" Rose shouted as she slammed her fist against the surface of the table. "I don't have Stockholm Syndrome! Savannah and Cherri meant me no harm! They are my friends!"
Jake looked positively taken aback by Rose's outburst. His eyes were wide and his lips were parting. Blinking away the shock as quickly as he could, Jake held both of his hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay." He said before she started to stand up. "I'm sorry, Rose."
"Jake, why don't you believe me?" Rose asked, her eyes wide as she stared up at her husband.
"Rose, do you think it's at all possible that they were just playing you?"
"No."
"Savannah at least?"
"No." Rose repeated, only with a firmer tone this time.
"Rose, if you only understand the motive that Savannah-"
"I understand, alright." Rose narrowed her eyes. "I understand that Savannah can be a little rough around the edges, but she's a good person."
"I guess I can't reason with you, Rose." Jake said in a disappointed tone. "Look..." He added as Rose looked down at her untouched breakfast. "...Please just finish your food as soon as you can. We need to get going."
"Time for the funeral already?" Rose asked bitterly as she looked up from her food.
"No." Jake told her. "We're going to your parents' old house. Daisy's waiting for us there."
"What are we going to do?"
"Find you something suitable to wear." Jake said, giving his wife a small smile. "You can't go to your parents' funeral looking like you just came from a high school gym class."
LINE BREAK
A short time later, Jake, in his dragon form, landed right in front of the stairs that led to the porch of the house that had once belonged to Rose's parents.
Still wearing her work out clothes, Rose slid off of Jake's back while Jake straightened up and reverted to his human form.
Not even bothering to wait for her husband, Rose made her way up the stairs and stopped on the porch. Taking a deep breath, Rose reached up and knocked twice on the door. As she waited for the door to open, she lowered her hand away from the door and put both of her hands on her hips while Jake walked up the stairs and stopped behind her.
Finally, the door opened and Rose could see that her twin sister, who was wearing a black dress, was sitting in a wheelchair, both legs in casts. Seeing this, Rose's eyes widened and she gasped.
BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL
BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW
"What?" Daisy asked as Rose brought her hands up to her mouth. "What's wrong, Rose?" Daisy asked.
"Oh my God, Daisy..." Rose could only say as she lowered her hands from her mouth. "...What happened to you?"
"I-" Daisy began, but before she could finish, Rose cut her off.
"Did you get hurt because of those hobgoblins that captured you?"
"How did you know about that?" Daisy asked. "Did Jake tell you?"
"Actually..." Jake smiled sheepishly as he stepped up to Rose's side. "...That was her who came to our rescue."
LINE BREAK
"Alright, Rose..." Daisy said as she rolled herself into Rose's old bedroom, followed closely by Rose. "...I picked out some potential outfits for you." She pointed at the bed, where Rose could see five different sets of clothes. "Choose whatever you want." Daisy said.
"Okay." Rose said before she started to walk towards the bed. As Rose made her way to the bed, Daisy watched her sister's movements.
"Well..." Daisy noted. "...You certainly are acting like your normal self again."
"Yeah..." Rose agreed as she reached the bed.
Looking down, Rose could see a black dress, just like the one that Daisy wore, a black women's suit with a skirt, a black women's suit with a pair of slacks, and a red dress.
LINE BREAK
A few minutes later, Daisy turned around the corner and wheeled herself into the family room, seeing Jake sitting on the couch. "Is Rose coming?" Jake asked as he turned his head to the side.
"She's changing." Daisy said, just as the sound of feet coming down the stairs could be heard.
Standing up from the couch, Jake turned to the side, seeing Rose enter the room, wearing the black women's suit with the slacks, her hair toed back in a pony-tail. Without a word, Rose walked up to her sister's side.
"We all ready?" Daisy asked as she turned her head to the side.
"Yeah." Rose answered.
"Alright." Daisy said as she turned her head back to normal. "Let's go."
LINE BREAK
A short time later, Rose, Jake and Daisy arrived at the church, Jake pushing Daisy's wheelchair as Rose walked at her sister's side. Turning, Rose started to walk up the steps while Jake arched Daisy's wheelchair up on its back wheels.
"This is gonna be bumpy..." Jake said before he started to walk up the stairs, pushing Daisy up them.
Meanwhile, Rose reached the top of the stairs, just as the doors to the church opened, Haley and Carter both stepped out. Haley had her hair tied in a pony-tail and wore a pink button-up dress shirt with a purple skirt, while Carter wore a black suit with a white tie.
"Rose!" Haley said, smiling as she saw Rose.
"Hey, Haley." Rose said, just as Daisy's wheelchair reached the top of the stairs, Jake right behind her.
"Jake." Haley said. "Daisy."
"You're here too, Hales?" Jake smiled at his sister.
"Yeah." Haley said, her smile fading. "Mom and Dad are here, as well."
"Well, why don't we go inside?" Rose said as she crossed her arms.
LINE BREAK
"Today..." A short time later, a balding man wearing a white priest's robe stood in front of everyone inside the church, the caskets of Rose's parents behind him. "...We are not here to mourn the loss of two lives, but to celebrate what these two have accomplished in their time on this Earth..."
As the priest spoke, Rose sat at the end of the pew, Jake sitting next to her, followed by Carter, then Haley, then Susan, and then Jonathan Long, Daisy sitting next to Rose in the middle of the aisle.
"...In their time here, this couple has accomplished much." The priest continued. "They maintained a healthy and loving marriage for over thirty years. They had two beautiful daughters." He then pointed at Rose and Daisy.
"And they lived their lives to the fullest." The priest continued. "Even though there were times when life was hard, they continued on and made it through those tough times. But now, these two souls have left us. And they have gone to meet their creator. Come. Let us pray."
Then, the priest clasped his hands together and lowered his head in silence, everyone in the church, Daisy, Rose, Jake, Carter, Haley, Jonathan and Susan, doing the same, or a variation of the same.
LINE BREAK
A short time later, the doors to the church were opened, and about four pallbearers walked out with the casket of Rose's father, followed by four pallbearers carrying the casket the contained the body of Rose's mother. The pallbearers then started to descend down the steps of the church, down to the old fashioned black hearse from the early 2000s.
Following the pallbearers, Rose exited the church with Haley and Carter by her side, and as they started to walk down the stairs, Jake followed them out the door, wheeling out Daisy.
LINE BREAK
Inside the limousine, Rose and Jake sat across from Haley and Carter. "The...The service was nice..." Carter said.
"I guess so." Rose said as she crossed her arms.
"What's the matter, Rose?" Haley asked. "You seem to be very bitter today? Does it have to do with the funeral?"
"It was just dumped on me last night." Rose said. "I had no idea that it was going to be today."
"But you were being held hostage." Carter said. "I seriously doubt that-"
"No, Carter." Rose coldly cut Haley pupil off. "I wasn't being held hostage."
"Weren't you abducted?" Carter asked.
"I guess you could say that." Rose said. "But I wasn't their hostage."
"I don't know what else you would be." Carter said.
"Look." Rose said as she held up her hand with her birthmark, stopping Carter from speaking again. "I've tried to get this through the thick heads of each of the Dragon Council members, my husband included."
"Ouch." Jake said.
"They were my friends." Rose finished as she lowered her hand.
"They were your friends?" Carter asked.
"Yes." Rose said, crossing her arms again.
"Well, I would think that if they were your friends..." Carter said. "...You would be with them when I went down to Mermaid City. You weren't."
"What are you saying?" Rose asked, her eyes slowly widening.
"Savannah was acting suspiciously, so I told the Council." Carter said. "Then they sent me to Mermaid City to see what she was up to."
"So..." Rose said. "...Let me get this straight: You're the reason why they're all locked up in the prison on the Island of Draco?"
"Actually, Rose..." Jake said as he turned his head to the side to look at his wife. "...Only Cherri and Savannah are still imprisoned. Gilda, Lexy, Maverick, Linda and Arkadi have all been released."
"Did I do something wrong?" Carter asked.
"No." Rose said in a tone that made it obvious that she was lying as she leaned back in her seat. "No, you didn't Carter."
BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL
BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW
Later, everyone was standing at two dug graves, the flower draped caskets about to be lowered into them.
"In the name of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit." The priest recited as he sprinkled water on the casket that contained the body of Rose's father. Then, the priest walked over to the casket that held the body of Rose's mother.
"In the name of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit." The priest repeated as he splashed water on the casket.
Then, the priest turned to everyone who was at the funeral, Rose, Daisy and Jake in the front. "Everyone..." The priest said. "...Please join me...in one last prayer for the departed." Then, he lowered his head, everyone except for Rose doing the same.
Instead, Rose just stared at the caskets that held her parents' bodies.
A short time later, Rose, Haley, Carter and Jake were walking away from the gravesite, Jake pushing Daisy's wheelchair.
"So..." Daisy said. "...In case any of you are interested, I...uh...sort of arranged for a party at the house.
"Why?" Rose asked as she narrowed her eyes.
"Because, I really don't think Mom and Dad would have minded." Daisy shrugged. "Besides, that's what happened when both Grandma and Grandpa died. Don't you remember, Rose?"
"Oh, yeah." Rose said. "Yeah, I do."
"We're not going to do anything super fun." Daisy said. "Just have a few drinks, cheer each other up after the mass and burial. Is that such a bad thing?"
"No." Rose answered.
"So, anyone want to come?" Daisy asked, looking in all directions.
"Sure." Haley smiled.
"Yeah, count me in." Carter said.
"Daisy, there weren't any decorations or anything like that." Jake pointed out as they reached the gates to the cemetery.
"Yeah." Daisy said as they all walked into the parking lot.
"Well, so much for trying to cheer each other up." Jake said.
"Oh, please, Jake." Daisy rolled her eyes. "The only thing I need to make you all feel happy is lots and lots of booze. We've got it."
By this time, they had reached the limo, but they were all surprised to see that a rather young man was standing at the side of the limo, who had short black hair and who wore a black tuxedo.
"Rose Long?" The man asked.
"Yes?" Rose spoke up.
"My name is Apep Kerberos." The man said as he walked forward, finally stopping in front of you. "I doubt you noticed me..." The man, Apep, smiled kindly. "...But I was at the service."
"Okay..." Rose said.
"I just wanted to tell you just how sorry I am about the passing of both your parents." Apep said, still smiling warmly.
"Thanks." Rose said.
"Are you dealing okay?" Apep asked.
"Fine, thanks." Rose said, narrowing her eyes. "I'm just fine."
"I'm glad to hear that." Apep kept his smile plastered on his face as he took a step back.
"Look, what do you want?" Daisy asked.
"Why, I just wanted to express my condolences." Apep put his hands on his hips. "I take it you're Rose's twin sister."
"Gee, I wonder what gave you that idea..." Daisy rolled her eyes.
"You two look so similar." Apep finally let his smile depart his facial muscles right after he said this. "Well." He then clapped his hands together. "That is all I wanted from you all. I just wanted to express just how sorry I am about your loss."
"Thanks..." Rose said. "...I guess..."
Nodding, Apep turned to the side and walked off.
"Well, that was nice of him." Haley said. "I mean, considering the fact that you've never met him."
"Whatever." Rose said.
Then, the five of them started to make the final stretch toward the limo.
LINE BREAK
Back at the house that used to be owned by Rose's parents, Carter and Haley were both sitting at the kitchen table. Carter opened a can of soda while the wheelchair bound Daisy poured Haley some booze, Haley having to keep her glass lower than the table so Daisy could pour it.
While the happened in the kitchen, in the family room, Jake and Rose cuddled on the couch, Jake holding his wife closely as he kissed her on the cheek.
"Jake?" Rose asked in a small voice as Jake pulled his lips away from her forehead.
"Yeah?" Jake smiled at her.
"I'm tired of being separated from you." Rose said. "I want to come back to the Island of Draco and live there with you."
"Rose, I don't know-"
"Jake, it's what I want." Rose said firmly. "Please?"
Sighing, Jake closed his eyes before he opened them again. "Okay." He said, giving her a smile. "I'll see what I can do."
"Thanks." Rose smiled gratefully at him.
"Just let me go and tell Daisy." Jake said. "Then we can go."
"Good." Rose said, turning to the side on the couch and setting her feet on the floor as Jake stood up and started to walk towards the kitchen. "I can't wait to get out of here."
As Jake entered the kitchen, he could see that Daisy was wheeling herself towards the exit, but she stopped once she saw Jake, her eyes widening. "Does Rose want a drink?" She asked.
"No." Jake said.
"What about you?"
"Nah, I'm flying." Jake smiled. "I have to be a responsible flyer for my Rose."
"What do you mean?" Daisy asked. "She's not staying here?"
"She wants to move back to the Island of Draco." Jake said. "I was going to tell you and then we were going to get a move on."
LINE BREAK
A short time later, Daisy wheeled herself out onto the front porch, seeing Jake, in his dragon form, on all fours as Rose, now wearing her work out clothes again, climbed onto his back.
"Hey!" Daisy called with a smile on her face. "She can fly herself, you know!"
This call got Rose to turn her head to the side. "Aw, but the men are supposed to do all the work!" Rose smiled.
"Then I should get myself one!" Daisy's smile widened.
"Yeah, and quickly!" Rose returned. "That way, you can take advantage of him with your broken legs!"
"Aw, too bad, then!" Daisy returned. "The casts are coming off in a few days."
"Bummer!" Rose finished as she turned her head back to normal, Jake starting to flap his wings. Then, Jake took off into the air, leaving Daisy alone on the porch.
Now alone, Daisy's smile faded.
BLACKOUT; END EPISODE
A/N: Please review! In the next episode, you'll finally learn what the deal with Savannah is.