*The Ruby Circle SPOILERS*

Drabble:169

Olena was used to waking up at the crack of dawn every morning and tidying her room, before beginning her daily chores. She'd first set a kettle to boil water, before taking out the last day's garbage (if Sonya, as usual, forgot to do it again), after which she'd dust the porch, then come in and have a cup of tea before starting to prepare breakfast.

What Olena wasn't used to was having company during her morning rituals. But this morning, half-an-hour after she'd begun to stew a pot of vegetables, Olena heard footsteps creaking down the staircase. Light footfalls, cautious steps-as if the person who was coming down wasn't used to being in the house, which meant…

Roza.

Dimka and Roza had flown in from Court yesterday, for a two-week visit, and given how sleep-deprived and jetlagged they'd seemed, Olena hadn't expected to see either one down before midday.

"You're up early", Olena commented, when Roza's approaching footsteps stopped near the threshold of the kitchen.

"Couldn't sleep", Rose shrugged, shuffling in. "I hope I'm not disturbing"

"Don't be so formal, Roza", Olena chided, sparing a glance to the girl wearing Vika's borrowed pink robe and fluffy sandals, before concentrating on the dough she was kneading. "Do you want me to make you a cup of tea?"

"Who's being formal now?", Rose shot back cheekily, opening the second shelf beside the sink to retrieve her designated coffee cup. "I actually wanted to talk to you"

"Oh?", Olena said noncommittally, glancing at Rose again, but her back was turned, as she was busy rummaging through another shelf.

"Yeah", Rose replied, finally getting her hands on two packets of hot chocolate. She fixed the drink and sat at the table before speaking again. "So, Dimitri and I were…on a mission, and we bumped into his…father", she completed carefully, trying to leave out details of their 'mission'.

"You did?", Olena turned around and raised one eyebrow at Rose. "Dimka didn't say anything"

"Yeah, well he had some other things on his mind", she shrugged, before confessing in a whisper. "I think he's gonna propose during our stay here"

"Really?", Olena replied happily, clapping her hands.
"Don't tell him, but I found the ringbox in his duster while he was showering last night"

"Oh, that's wonderful", Olena exclaimed, already planning to send Vika to pick up some groceries and champagne for a celebratory dinner soon. "I'm so happy"

"Even though I can't give you grandkids?", Rose asked in a small voice, not meeting her eyes.

Olena sighed, taking a moment to wipe her hands on her apron before circling the table to place a kiss against Roza's hair. "Sweetheart, you make my Dimka happy. After everything he'd been through, I never thought I'd see that smile of his again, but you brought it back. What more could a mother want? So, put these thoughts out of your head, there's no use fretting over things you can't control."

"What if I could?", Rose whispered back.
"What do you mean?"

"We also very recently found out that we could. Have a baby, that is."
"I don't…understand", Olena frowned.
"Neither do we, very well, but because of the spirit used during his Change, it turns out that we can"
"And how do you feel about that?", Olena asked nonchalantly.

"I don't know. I mean, Dimitri would love to be a father, and he would be a good father, but I'm not totally sure I'd be a good mother. I mean, my mom basically abandoned me to St Vlad's when I was 4, and I kinda understand why she did that. While duty's really important, but I don't want my kid to grow up resenting me, you know?"

"Roza, sweetheart", Olena patted her shoulder comfortingly. "I can't tell you what to do, but you saying 'my kid' is telling enough. Also, I don't see why you can't raise your child while being a guardian. My mother did it."

"Yeva? Really?", Rose asked incredulously, leaning back from Olena's hug.

"Graduated top of my class, I did", Yeva's raspy voice came from the doorway. "Guarded Salazar Badica till that geezer passed away. He left me a little fortune, good enough to retire and build this home"

"Wow", Rose exclaimed.

"Now if you can manage it, I'd like a cup of tea before pushing-daisies myself. Also Rose, I still have more molnijas than you". With that, Yeva cackled away, and Rose spluttered indignantly before fixing her some tea.
Olena smiled indulgently, making a mental-note to ask Dimka about Rand soon.

(Poor Dimitri couldn't figure out for the life of him why no one seemed surprised when he proposed to Roza ten days later.)

Thanks for reading! Reviews appreciated, as always!
Have a good day! Cheers!