Painted Rose Briar

Russo looked at home here, and at the very least was impressed by the kitchen itself; the equipment was all in great condition, and there was certainly a lot of it. He moved to slide off his coat to hang it up on a nearby chair before he rolled up his sleeves– his arms were very well muscled.

He took the herbs in question, then the cutting board and the knife, after a quick wash of his hands. 

“…I used to be a cook, you know.” He probably shouldn’t have divulged that much personal information, but honestly Russo was… excited. 

Alice was in a full-on bustle, turning the oven on before grabbing him a cutting board and knife, and then hurrying over to the massive refrigerator to start digging through it. She emerged victorious a few minutes later.

His proclamation made her blink. “Really? That’s incredible! Did you own a restaurant, or help in a friends’ or something?”

It wasn’t like he needed the money -- obviously -- so he must have taken the job because he enjoyed it. She was shocked his family had let him.

Weiss knew who had cast the spell.  He could see Nightshade’s face, hear his voice.  For a moment he was back in that terrible moment when he had lost the last vestiges of what he had been.  His people were gone, his kingdom wrecked.  All he had left was knowledge that Alice had been promised to him. 

But he could say nothing of that.  The curse that bound him into this shape kept him from uttering a word of the one that had punished him. 

“Do your worst then, Alice.” His cover opened again, the pages falling to either side and revealing the arcane knowledge written on their surface.  “Unless you’re too weary then we can wait.  I guess.” 

He’d prefer not to but he wasn’t going to deliberately force her to work herself into exhaustion.  Not only was it discourteous to force someone to continue when they were tired, it was stupid as well.  A tired mage made mistakes. 

“My worst is going to have to wait for tonight,” Alice replied, carefully closing him back again. Based on what he’d told her, staying open like that was uncomfortable at best. “It needs to be done at midnight, during a full moon. I’m going to need to find more candles. It requires quite a few of them.”

Candles lining the edge of a circle, which she was going to have to prepare, too. But it was hardly safe to leave a spell sigil just sitting around in her study for anyone to walk in on. She’d draw it tonight.

“Admit it you were always more fond of books than people.” He shot back. 

They were both at the end of their tempers.  Weiss hadn’t meant to throw her aid back in her face.  It wasn’t an intentional slight on his part, but as usual he had spoken before he considered every consequence. 

Perhaps that was an indication of how comfortable he was with Alice.  Or maybe what little tact he had learned was slipping as surely as his memories of being human.   He couldn’t even remember what it was like to enjoy the simpler pleasures in life.

He finally sighed, seeming to relax although it was impossible to see how he managed it.  He didn’t have muscles to pull it off the same way a human might.  “I’m sorry.  You’re doing what you can.”  He grudgingly admitted, not out of a derision of Alice’s skill but more out of the hopelessness of the situation. 

“You’re doing a hell of a lot more than I could do on my own.” 

“That’s only because I’m not cursed like you are,” Alice murmured, her expression falling. “You...you lost everything, and it’s probably all due to my family. I want to help you, but nothing is working. You don’t know who cast the spell, even, or if you do, it won’t let you say.”

Alice gathered him into her arms, resting him half on her lap and half in her hands.

“There’s one more I want to try. It seems like it’s one of the most powerful. If it doesn’t work, then...”

Her voice faded out. What, then? Did they even know?

“He’s going to declare me a fake regardless.” Weiss’s pages fluttered in anger.  He was losing more and more of himself each day and staying here was doing nothing.  Alice was trying to help him, he recognized that but there wasn’t any progress. 

“All he cares about is taking what is mine and he doesn’t have to do a thing except wait until I lose all sense of who I was…am…something.”  He turned to look up at the young woman. 

“I came here for you alone, no one else.  How long will trying out each spell take?  A month?  A year? How much time do I have left before I’m just another collectible in your library?” 

Alice’s gut twisted, but the question also made her curl her hands into fists. “You know I’m trying to help you, surely, yet it seems that you still find it amusing to throw it back in my face. Fine then. I’m just a cackling villain waiting for you to lose yourself, so I can slide you into a bookshelf. Would that make you happy, Caerwyn?”

She gave him a glare, one that slowly and steadily drained from her face. She exhaled, raising a hand to the bridge of her nose, closing her eyes.

Meeting her father was useless.  He would just put more stumbling blocks in front of him, eager to absorb the Expanse into his own kingdom.  Weiss couldn’t help but feel a towering resentment towards the man. 

“The answers aren’t here.” He growled.  “We’ve already determined that and your father is useless.”  Perhaps he might have been more diplomatic if he wasn’t so irritated but the time for politeness was long past for him. 

“I have to leave.” 

Alice sucked in a breath, exhaling. “We haven’t gotten through all of them yet. You can’t say for sure. Magic is unpredictable.”

Though she had to privately admit she couldn’t guarantee they’d work, either. Obviously.

Russo could easily think of a scenario where he would’ve used the moment to his advantage; or at least another man might have. As much as he’d been weak for women and intent with charms, Armand Russo had never been that sort of man. 

Instead he gave a soft smile and a little laugh in the dark, then plucked a little leaf of his to press into her palm. “Here you are. Try it– if it’s spicy, it’s likely coriander.”

He took the mint and lifted it under his nose– it was all he needed. “This is good, yes.” 

Alice took the leaf offered, slipping it into her mouth and concentrating. She nodded. “It must be parsley. I think we have everything we need, now, so shall we head back? If I can manage to locate the door again.”

The last part was said in dry humor, and it wasn’t until Alice had, indeed, found the door again that she realized she was now trying to make him laugh the way he’d made her.

Balancing the handful of medium-sized tomatoes against her, herbs in one hand, she looked over at him with a smile.

@paintedrosebriar

“It’s idiotic to keep going this way.”  Yes, he was grumbling but it was rather frustrating.  He was still a book and he was losing his memories faster than ever. 

“It’s time to think of something else instead of trying useless curse breaking nonsense.” 

They’d spent a week just going through the curse-breaking techniques listed in his pages, or, rather, three of them. They were tedious at best, and frustratingly complex at worst. So far, there hadn’t been a wink of improvement.

Russo couldn’t help a little laugh at the absurdity of all of it, if even to himself. He had a handful of leaves and was roaming around in the dark– some of his kind had the ability to see well in it, but not quite him. “I think I did. It’s either parsley or coriander, I’m having a hard time figuring it out– can you take a taste and tell me if–”

His hand reached out for another plant but found her hand instead. He’d nearly bumped into her in the dark, but caught the shining of her eyes and the pale flash of her dress. 

He had a nice laugh, she decided. He seemed the sort to not laugh much, too, which made it all the nicer. Alice caught her lips wanting to smile at the sound of it.

What a truly bizarre way she was spending the night -- sneaking into a greenhouse with a man she’d known an hour at most, to prepare an Italian dish with marigolds.

Alice could barely bumble her way around in the dark. Quite suddenly, she found her hand on his, and realized they were extremely close. Looking up, she caught the soft gleam of his eyes in the dim light. An awkward giggle escaped her lips. She quickly pulled back.

“Good, good.” He made a mental list, a finger absently wagging to tick each off before Russo was already sneaking inside. 

He was quick, and he was thorough, but his voice was soft over the night air, carried over the spaces between them. “Mint– I’m having a hard time finding the mint. Is there anything by you?”

Alice went in after him, feeling her way along the wall and squinting down. The tomato plants were easy to find, at least, and she was unable to help a rather triumphant whisper of ‘Marigolds!’ when she saw Russo had located them.

But trying to discern different herbs in the dark proved quite the feat. Alice was left reaching out towards each, trying to feel the shape of the leaves, and, when that proved not to be helpful, picking a small leaf to smell.

“I’m sorry,” Russo offered after a moment of contemplation. He lifted a hand to rest atop hers in his arm. “I…”

But they were there at the greenhouse then, already smelling richly of fertilizer and herbs. “Marigolds, yes? Shall we take a look?” 

Alice noted the touch to her arm, and the way he was going to say something, but they’d reached the greenhouse. Alice nodded, releasing his arm to look more easily, and realizing a moment later she’d held his arm the entire walk -- which was. Rather embarrassing.

Russo’s expression was deeply wistful, speaking for a deep fondness and what was likely homesickness– it was, but it went deeper than most could imagine. Russo was at least thankful he didn’t wear everything on his sleeve.

“The gardens, as we’ve said. The private rose garden was certainly a sight to behold, with terraces and some lovely bird ponds…” he sighed. “Then? The kitchens. They were tremendous. And the dance hall. I’m not normally weak for architecture, but the ballroom was a sight to behold.”

“…Why haven’t you gone, if you want to so badly?” 

His family must really be something, if they were given a tour of the kitchens and dance hall. As far as Alice knew, only the gardens had been opened to the public to tour.

Her smile withered quickly at the question. Alice looked back ahead of them.