Shi no seppun.

...

[May 11th, 1999]

"No. Absolutely not" Rose stood before her Father, her eyes cold and her lips set in a straight line. She attempted to look the very picture of defiance, but she feared she was failing miserably and instead ended up resembling a small child sulking. It had been two weeks since the merger celebration and Master Greenwood had been urging her to choose a suitor. The notion wasn't the problem, however, it was the notion that Master Greenwood endeavoured to betroth his only daughter to Lord Delamore, an idea which infuriated Rose.

"Rosalie, I am your Father, and I am growing old. You really must start working with me on this matter, already the family and friends' tongues are waggling regarding your status as a single woman, poised to inherit the estate" Master Greenwood sighed and took his seat at his desk and poured himself a glass of wine "Just what is so wrong with Damon Delamore?"

"Well, Father, where do I begin?" Rose tried to organise her thoughts so that she could argue coherently, but her mouth had other ideas, "He's roguish, loud, he dabbles more in alcoholism and fornication than in matters of importance..." she felt her Father's eyes boring into her and attempted to appeal to his business mind "...he's the third brother in the family?"

"Yet he is also courteous, attentive, and extremely fond of you. At the merger he was at my side continuously, asking for your whereabouts...but of course, I had no idea of where you disappeared to. You've always been frighteningly independent, Rosalie, but that doesn't change the fact that you need to at least announce a suitable companion, the sooner the better."

"Father, with all due respect, Damon Delamore is most certainly NOT a suitable companion" Rose grimaced. Master Greenwood took a large sip of his wine, and sighed audibly.

"All right, Rosalie, I will concede for now. You are getting hot under the collar and it's unbecoming. However, this discussion is not over. I urge you, to silence the tongues of our family and friends. You need to choose a suitor, preferably before your 21st birthday in December."

"Fine." Rose huffed, betraying her innermost feelings, "I shall try. But Father, no man you have personally selected for their stature or wealth has been the man for me. The first man you chose for me to court revealed himself a hound-dog and made my handmaiden uncomfortable. I do not care to have the experience repeated."

"Then choose a man yourself." Master Greenwood turned to his paperwork, losing interest in the conversation he hadn't a chance of winning. Rose was no fool, she wouldn't be guilted or tricked into an engagement that wasn't love, not that she had a modicum of idea what love felt like...but one thing was absolutely certain, she did not love Damon Delamore.

Rose retired to her room, calling her handmaiden with her.

"Olive, I would like your honest answer on Damon Delamore as my suitor?" Rose questioned, pulling a hand to her temple as though she had a headache.

"My lady, such a womanizing man is no man for you", Olivia delivered directly, and to the point, which was what Rose liked about her.

"And Joshua McDonnell?" Rose questioned, inebriated but curious.

"Why, my lady, he's a lout who seems out for your father's fortune." Olivia covered her own mouth "but Sam- I mean, Master Samuel, does speak of him in the highest honour"

"I'm not interested in Samuel's opinion, Olivia, I'm interested in your opinion. I am reticent to admit I have noticed Master Joshua, however, it seems when he is near, I am looking for him, I am anticipating speaking to him, and I am at a loss as to what to do in this manner. It's not that I wish to make him my suitor, more that I wish to know him. I am conflicted."

"Shall I bring you our Merlot?" Olivia offered

"Please" Rose offered no more than those few words, she was worried more so for herself than her father's estate. She worried she'd fall for Joshua and be brutally rebuffed or worse, she'd fall in love with him and have her heart smashed to smithereens. It happened to her mother, and she'd be damned if she let herself get hurt too.

****

[May 13th, 1999]

"Well, that was certainly something, wasn't it, my blue-balls'ed friend?" Samuel wandered into the gallery, wherein Josh was trying to recollect his thoughts.

"What do you mean?" Josh was staring at the Mona Lisa, a copy he'd had brought over for a pricey sum of money, but didn't quite capture the beauty of the painting.

"Well, Lady Rose, who'd have thought little Olivia was her handmaiden?" Samuel continued, oblivious to Josh's inner turmoil. Josh meanwhile, was already deep in thought over the complications between his merger with Master Greenwood and his affection for Rosalie.

"If you say so" Josh replied, giving away neither side of his turmoil. "Perhaps, Samuel, you would like to take on responsibility of my estate?" Josh looked up with a quizzical look in his eyes, met by Samuel's confusion.

"B-But, what about handling not only the merger, but the relationships around it?" Samuel stammered, unsure of how to react to such an opportunity.

"That's no problem" Josh continued "but you would not only be my head of personnel, but you'd be my trusted partner, the one I turn to for big decisions, and the one who'd deal with Master Greenwood face to face"

Samuel stammered for a moment, weighing the pros and cons of such a deal.

"But what about Lady Rosalie?" Samuel asked.

"Forget about her. She has already offered me too much stress." Josh's words were harsh and dismissive.

"Stress?" Samuel inquired

"Yes. Stress."

"But you're not even together" Samuel contested

"Exactly. What if we were? Am I to expect the woman I am inquisitive about to be this elusive and cold towards me? Sure, I could have her every which way until Sunday, but it would end in heartbreak. And I've had enough of heartbreak" Josh summarised

"With all due respect, hasn't she had enough heartb-"

Josh cut him off with a stern look, and Samuel kept all thoughts of the secrets Olivia had told him to himself. Thoughts of Rose's beloved pets, Mudskup and Draig having heart attacks, her Grandfather in the hospital, and other such hardships she's had to deal with. Olivia had told Samuel Rose is alright, she will survive, as she always had, so he should stay quiet about it. However, he still felt guilty.

"Alright. If you want me to run your estate, I will."

Sam signed on the dotted line, and Josh disappeared.