Painted Roses

Pretty Lies

Complete and utter silence followed Beldon's words. Rosalia stared at her younger brother for a long time, not believing him for a second.

"What are you talking about?" she eventually asked, frowning then looked at her father, "I can't marry Luka, what is he talking about?"

"Of course you can marry Luka; I've already discussed the issue with him," he said.

"Spoke to him, you never even look at him, when could you have-" Rosalia's words cut off. No, her father had spoken to Luka, no more than a few days ago. "When he brought me home?" she muttered.

"We discussed the matter, he understood."

"Understood?" Rosalia cried, almost dropping The Frog, "Understood?! Did you not see him when he left your office? He was furious!"

"Furious, but he understood."

"What is the matter with you, Father?" Rosalia shouted, "Why are you doing this?"

"For their sakes - and for yours."

"You don't have to do anything for them! They're doing perfectly well alone! And I can marry anyone else! Anyone!"

"It's not a case of you being able to marry anyone. The fact is, Rosalia, you won't marry anyone," her father said, slowly sitting down, "Tell me, how many men have proposed to you since you debuted at eighteen?"

Rosalia's jaw locked.

"I'm waiting, Rosalia."

Rosalia looked away.

"Not kept count? Well I have. Ten, Rosalia, ten proposals in four years. Most women are lucky if they should get one. Let us be honest with ourselves at this moment, you lack any sense of responsibly and duty to your position and family. You place too much value on your face but it won't last. You are getting old, Rosalia, one day no one will want to marry you and I refuse to have a spinster for a daughter. You would break your mother's heart."

Rosalia looked away. Gentle fingers around hers made her look down as Beldon took her hand and she gripped it for support, not looking at her father.

"So, since you refuse to behave in a respectable manner, I'm not letting you choose anymore. I am deciding this. Really, I am simply putting you in your rightful place."

Beldon's head snapped up and Rosalia looked back at their father, confused.

"What do you mean?"

Their father raised an eyebrow at her, then looked at Beldon. "You didn't tell her?"

"It didn't matter! I told you that in confidence!" Beldon snarled, surging forwards until Rosalia caught his waistcoat and dragged him back.

"What?" she snapped.

"You were the original Beauty to Luka - not Beldon. If you had left for Luka's castle when Beldon returned, you would have fallen in love with Luka and be married to him by now and Beldon would be marrying a nice young woman and everything would be as it should be. Instead, Beldon put himself first."

"That's not what happened and you know that!" Beldon cried, catching Rosalia's hands to try and force them off, "That was a misunderstanding on both mine and Luka's part! Luka's curse was broken by love! The gender was irrelevant."

"So you say, yet I know that cannot be so."

"How? How can you know?!"

"Why would Luka choose you, a man, over Rosalia?!" his father shouted and Beldon froze, staring at his father. "You know he will choose Rosalia over you and that is why you kept that knowledge from her! Because you cannot compete! And for good reason! What is unnatural cannot compete with those who are normal!"