Rosetta

1

Walking towards the motel, Rosetta listened carefully to the whispers of the street. She had heard it. She knew she had heard it. She listened again. " ...lunar gift.... loses ten whole years....lunar gift evolving..."

There! She knew she had heard it. She reached for her portscreen and looked at the time. 6.46 am. Her shift would not start for another 14 minutes. She hastily turned left, to where she thought she had heard the rumour. She went over to the newsagent and said , "I'm sorry,"not meaning it. "But I think I heard you say something about the Lunar gift. The manipulation. Did you say it was-"

"SHUSH! Silence yourself, child! They hear. The gift is becoming cleverer, child. Yes, child. The Lunars," Hugo spat the word as if it left a horrid taste in his mouth. "They can change the future. They lose ten years of their life to change it, but they do. There have been cases." He took in a deep breath.

"Cases? Of Lunars changing the future? Hugo! Why do you spread such lies in your news? You trick the children into fear!"

"Roz, it's true! Crazed thaumaturges that use their gift constantly noticed changes in themselves! Roz, you've got to believe me!"

She looked at her portscreen again. 6.57.
"Hugo I've got to go! And stop sending the children rumours, you know they love their portscreens!"

Hugo chuckled. "Hey, at least you admitted it as a rumour!"

Walking away, under her breath she muttered, "Crazy old man."

It obviously wasn't quiet enough, because Hugo shouted, "Are you sure I'm the crazy one, Gun Girl?"

She snapped her head back round. "I put down my gun 4 years ago. Unless Luna attacks, I don't want to pick it back up."
                                      *
"You're late, Roz," said Papa, crossing his arms.

"Sorry, Papa, Hugo started talking nonsense and-"

"I don't want any excuses. Get your name tag on and get to counter 3. A couple is waiting for you."

"Fine Papa!"

"And Roz- Please try to look presentable. You're representing the Lucianas! Remember that okay?"

"Yes Papa," she deadpanned. Rosetta yanked at her hair tie and quickly re-did her  ponytail, leaving a few wisps of black hair falling in front of her face. She swiped her name tag off the desk and rushed out of the staff room.
At counter 3, a couple was waiting for her patiently. They looked familiar, but she couldn't place it. Had they come here before, or had she seen them on a newsfeed? Shaking her head, she jumped behind the counter and turned to her guests.
"Hola! Cómo estás?" She asked, quickly logging in. She looked up at her customers. A man with clean blonde hair and possibly the deepest blue eyes Rosetta had ever seen. He was wearing a USA military uniform with his hand wrapped around what she assumed was his wife's shoulders. His wife also had blonde hair, which was up to her shoulders and looked as if it was cut with blunt scissors. She had sky-blue eyes and wore a pale red dress that dropped down to her ankles. Neither of them answered.

"Tourists?" She asked.

The man looked relieved. "Phew! I thought I was gonna need to get a translater out!"
She stifled a laugh.
"Well, we'd like to stay the week," he said. He looked at his wife an asked,"Is that ok?" She nodded shyly in reply. "Yes, the week please."

"Your name?" She asked, trying finding a room with vacancy.
"Carswell Thorne," he replied.
Rosetta's jaw fell.
So that's why he had looked familiar. But he couldn't remember his wife's name...
"Carswell Thorne? You're Carswell Thorne? The fugitive that escaped with Selene? And your in my family motel!"
He began to blush. So did his wife. Rosetta was giddy with excitement.
"And is this," she said, pointing to the woman, " Is Mrs Thorne, I assume?"
The woman's blush deepened and Carswell started playing with his collar.
"Ahh, well, a man can hope. Someday, maybe...But for now, she's just my girl" replied Carswell. The woman turned towards him and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.
"Sorry guys. Well, what is your name, lucky?" She asked, breaking the awkward silence.
"Crescent... Darnel," she replied, her voice falling on the last word, as if it pained her to say it. Carswell tightened his grip on her shoulders for a brief second, before releasing them.
"Right. Well, I've booked you for room 6. For a week, that'll be 100 univs."
She gestured to the ID-chip scanner on her right. Carswell lifted his hand and hovered it over the scanner. Her screen chimed with the words 'PAYMENT RECEIVED' and the room 6 key card popped out of the dispenser. She handed it to Crescent.
"Have a nice stay!" She called, as they walked up the stairs. She collapsed into the chair behind her, and let out a relieved sigh.
Carlos came out of the staff room and stared at her.
"You've only had 1 customer. How are you tired?"

"Oh Carlos! We might finally be famous! Carswell Thorne and Crescent Darnel are staying here! They helped stopped the war between Luna and Earth about, oh what was it, 4 years ago?"

He didn't share her joy though. Instead, he said, "Roz, I thought you just met another guy who swept you off your feet."

"Another? Who's the first one?" She asked, smiling from ear to ear.
He took her hand, spun her 3 times before setting her back down in her chair.
"Me, of course!"