The Rose and the Candle

Chapter 2: Proposition

Roman Torchwick had been a thief for a couple of years now, always being unusually careful with his robberies for someone his age. Of course, he always enjoyed showing off a bit if he was caught in the act, adding what he considered his distinct brand of flair, even risking his own life, to get away. Given all that he'd managed to pull off, Roman thought of himself as a rather successful thief at his age. And then the Huntress showed up.

At first, everything was going to plan, like all the times before. Yes, the shop keep noticed him before he managed to step out the door, but he knew the old man couldn't keep up with the much younger Torchwick. He knew someone had followed him, though, but he didn't expect a freaking Huntress of all people to be around when he pulled off this job. At first, when he stared back to look for any potential pursuers, the Huntress seemed irritated at having to respond to Roman's robbery of a store full of sweets (especially those cookies he had become addicted to). But once he faced off against her on the roof, with Roman planning to risk his life to get away once again, her demeanor seemed to have changed. Where once was an irritated woman, he saw someone who looked like she almost regretted having to catch him. Was it because Roman was still a boy? Was it because all he was trying to steal was a bunch of cookies?

These questions had been plaguing Roman's mind since he was placed in this interrogation room after last night's failed robbery. His first failed robbery. But Roman couldn't let any of that worry him. He was more worried about the police trying to dig up anything on him. Roman knew they wouldn't find anything, told them so when they informed him of their search. He didn't have any family to speak of, no one to go home to. He was a street rat, plain and simple. The same street rat that had been stealing for about two years after getting left in the middle of downtown Vale with no memory of who his parents were. And as far as Roman was concerned, whoever his parents were could rot in whatever hellish afterlife you believed in. Extreme thoughts for a child? Maybe, but Roman had already reached that point.

Roman's thoughts were interrupted when the door to the room opened. Out from the other side of the doorway came a young woman, different than the one Roman faced last night. Her hair was blonde and tied back into a bun; her complexion a pale white; thin ovular glasses were placed in front of her green eyes, very similar to Roman's; teal earrings hung from her ears, with a matching pendant attached to the collar of her long-sleeved, pleated top; a black pencil skirt and black-brown stockings covered the lower half of her body, with black boots covering her feet; she also wore a cape that was purple on the inside. She must be another Huntress. Perfect. Why am I starting to constantly run into them? Roman thought.

"So. You must be the young thief Ms. Rose caught last night. One Roman Torchwick, according to the police were able to find."

"Yeah," Roman responded, "but you won't find anything else on me. Trust me."

The Huntress stared at Roman with a neutral expression. "Right. Well, since you don't seem to have anyone who can take care of you-"

"Just call me a street rat, if you'd like. You seem to be that kind of person," Roman interrupted. He thought he saw her eye twitch at the interruption. Oh, I'm going to have fun with you.

"As I was saying," the Huntress began, with noticeable irritation, "because you don't seem to have anyone to act as your guardian, you are in a very delicate situation. Normally, the police would just turn you back over to whomever your appointed guardian would be. Seeing as how you don't have anyone in that capacity, the only other option would be to appoint you one ourselves. Though, I'm sure they could just leave you in one of the station's cells for awhile to work on that attitude of yours." Roman simply offered her a smirk as she continued, "Fortunately for you, there's someone here who has already taken an interest."

As the Huntress stepped aside, another figure came walking into the room. Roman's eyes went wide upon seeing who it was. None other than white-cloaked, black-and-red-haired Huntress that nabbed him the night before. She made eye contact with Roman as she entered, her eyes seeming to emote some kind of empathy. Or wait, was that compassion? No, pity? When it came to negative emotions, Roman could figure those out easily. He didn't have such an easy time with positive emotions, though.

The Huntress with the cape gently grabbed her counterpart's arm before whispering, "Are you sure you want to do this? Given your report, I don't know if you could handle this." The white-cloaked woman looked her friend in the eyes and replied, "Glynda, I have a little girl that just discovered her Semblance, which is bursting into flames if angered enough. What makes you think I couldn't handle this?" Glynda simply sighed in response. "Very well. It's your choice."

With that, the white-cloaked Huntress took a seat across from Roman, placing her clasped hands in the middle of the table. "Hello, again little one. Roman, correct?" No response. "My name is Summer Rose. And I have a proposition for you." Again, silence. "Tell me something, Roman. Is it true that you don't have any family?"

Finally, Roman responded. "If I did they wouldn't have left me in middle of downtown Vale for no reason. Doesn't sound like a family I would want to return to."

"Well, what if you had the chance to find a new family? One that wouldn't leave alone to fend for yourself?"

"Why? I've been doing just fine on my own!" Roman was starting to get annoyed with this conversation. He didn't need any family, he could get by on his own.

"Roman, you've been stealing for what appears to be a couple of years now. I'd hardly call that 'doing fine'. To be brutally honest with you here, if you don't take this offer up, then I can't guarantee what the police will do with you. They've never really had a case like this, and there's no protocol that they've received from the Council about what to do in these types of situations. If I were you I'd take the safe bet rather than risk yourself in police custody."

"In case you've forgotten about the rooftop already, I'm perfectly fine with risking myself."

Summer fixed him with a hard stare. Roman started to shrink a little from that stare. He may not have been impressed by the looks he had received from the caped Huntress, but the fierce stare coming from this previously young, almost naïve-looking woman was a bit unsettling. If he had to guess, Roman would say she had a lot of practice perfecting that stare.

"Listen to me, Roman. This is the best opportunity you're going to get right now. If we left it up to the authorities, they would, at the very least, place you in a cell for an indeterminate amount of time. They may end up keeping you there indefinitely. Once you reach the appropriate age, they might throw you to the courts to decide what next to do with you. You may end up in a cell in a prison, which I can assure you is nothing like the cells in this station. If you are thinking it's better to risk yourself by choosing that option, then you have no idea what you are trying to get yourself into. This is your best chance to drag yourself out of this destructive and ruinous hole and forge something worthwhile. I am giving you the opportunity to become part of a family that will look after you and ensure you never have to hungry again. One that can give you a roof over your head and plenty of amenities that you wouldn't have otherwise. If you were as smart as you think you are, then you wouldn't try to put this up for debate."

The cold tone was even throughout her whole speech, but Roman could notice the hints of sadness in her voice here and there. Well, two things are clear: 1) She's not leaving here without me in tow. 2) Yes, she has had practice to perfect that stare and that stern tone.

Roman took a few seconds to really think about the situation. It was pretty obvious she was the one who wanted to take him into whatever family she had, and she seemed pretty confident about her abilities as a guardian (parental figure in this context, not Huntress, guardian of humanity). As much as Roman wanted to say no, there was something in him that was telling him to accept her offer.

I don't want to go. I've been doing fine on my own.

But what if she's right? What if the alternative is much worse than you're taking into account, than you're even considering?

I overheard what she told that other Huntress. It sounds like she's got her hands full already. A girl that can burst into flames if she gets angry enough? That doesn't sound like a very loving environment.

Do you want to be living in the filth and garbage of Vale's alleyways for the rest of your life? Always looking for that magic meal that can fill your stomach more than simply scrounging or stealing ever could? Always searching for shelter from the elements?

But what if they decide they don't want me anymore? I'd be right back where'd I started, so it wouldn't matter.

Remember what happened back at the rooftop. This woman showed concern for your wellbeing when you tried jumping off that roof and now she's offering you the chance to see just how caring she can be. How a proper family can be.

"Well?" Summer snapped Roman out of his thoughts. As much as Roman didn't want to do it, he caved.

"Fine. I'll go with you. Not that I'm going to be expecting much of a difference."

Summer's eyes glinted with humor at that response. "Oh, I think you'd be surprised," she said with a small smile on her face.

The caped Huntress from earlier exited the room as Summer got up from her seat. She mentioned for Roman to follow. This is going to be fun…