Work Text:
Carmilla peered at the time displayed on her cell phone, narrowing her red eyes with suspicion. Rosie was late. Really late. Yes, the cannibal tended to be a tad scatterbrain, often getting overly excited about multiple things at once to keep track of the time, but that usually meant she was behind ten minutes or less. Not for nearly thirty…and without a single call to offer an explanation. The weapons dealer tried not to worry—as was her nature—and opened up the call app.
Before she could tap the green icon, a flurry of burgundy skirts and plumes of feather came rushing through her office door. Her brows lifted in shock as Rosie leaned heavily against the doorframe, breathing hard as though she had sprinted her way to the weapons dealer. But, judging by the sticky curls plastered to a sweaty forehead, perhaps that’s exactly what she did.
“Rosie?”
A single finger raised to silence her and she blinked. Rosie heaved for a few more seconds before straightening with obvious struggle, a palm pressed to her abdomen as she released a whoosh of air.
“I'm sorry, Milla. I…” She paused to inhale a deep breath. “I lost track of time.”
“I see that…”, Carmilla drawled slowly, unsure of what exactly was happening here. “Is everything um alright?”
Rosie waved a hand, moving to sink heavily into the cushioned chair across the desk. “Oh yeah, everythin’s peachy. So, what’s for lunch?”
Crimson eyes narrowed as she studied the cannibal. There was something underlying her words, but Carmilla couldn’t quite put her finger on it. It was evident in the way Rosie refrained from diving into a lengthy explanation of why she was so late, as well as the immediate change in subject. But, Carmilla mentally shrugged it away and instructed her receptionist to deliver their lunch.
A tight covered thigh jumped with anticipation as Carmilla sat with her arms crossed, an angry frown pulling down the corners of her full lips. Half an hour ago, Clara and Odette came to her office with wide smiles and bright eyes, asking her to meet them in the dance studio. She distinctly recalled giving the twins a resounding no as she was worried, not to mention her mood had been greatly soured for some days now. But, they wouldn’t be her daughters without inheriting that Carmine stubbornness and so they begged and pleaded, tugging on her large hands until she was forced out of chair and led to the polished studio where a single chair was pushed against a wall.
Now, Carmilla waited, quite impatiently too. It wasn’t unusual for her children to bring her here, excited to reveal a routine they had been working on without her supervision, just as they’ve always done since they were little girls balancing on wobbly legs. The memories brought a smile to her face, but it still could not overshadow the unshakable ire that plagued her this week and she thought of her girlfriend, a grumble twisting her features. The cannibal queen had been unmistakably avoiding her. It started with Rosie being consistently very late to their dates and each time Carmilla inquired as to the hold up, the alabaster woman would simply say she lost track of time. Then, Rosie began outright canceling on the weapons dealer, citing some paltry excuse for why she couldn’t see her supposed love. It infuriated Carmilla…and it also hurt her. The feelings of contempt truly stemming from a place of sadness and insecurity as to why her partner was being purposely obtuse and then avoiding her. The cannibal queen claimed she valued communication, but now look at them…not communicating, which absolutely had nothing to do with fact Carmilla had refused to answer any of the woman’s calls for two days now. Oh, how she missed her dear Rosie.
Carmilla huffed and looked at a clock hanging on a wall. If the twins didn’t show in the next five minutes, she resolved herself to return to her work so that she may wallow in pace. What could be taking the girls so long anyway? It wasn’t like them to take so long to prepare for a quick show and tell. Searching for a small distraction, she reached for her pocket to retrieve her phone, only for it to slip through her fingers and clatter loudly to the floor. It slid across the polished floor, out of reach of her long arms. Pinching the bridge of her nose, Carmilla puffed air through her nose with great frustration and begrudgingly pushed herself out of her seat, balancing en-pointe to stomp her way to the other side of the room, putting her back to the studio’s entrance. She bent at the waist for her phone when a voice made her freeze.
“Milla?”
Carmilla shot upright and turned around, phone entirely forgotten and breath catching in her throat. Dark lips parted helpless, mouth agape, as she searched for the words that eluded her. Rosie stood before a closing door, her style of dress forcing ruby orbs to take in every detail. The ensemble thoroughly stupefied the shorter demoness and Carmilla had seen the taller, porcelain woman stark naked. Rosie wore a light pink leotard, the material cinched in the middle of her bosom which only served to further push up full breasts, and its tight material molded to the slender waist and wide hips. A sheer, flowy white skirt was pulled over the leotard and her already pale legs were white with opaque tights. The most curious part of all, was the pink ballet shoes tied to her ankles with pink ribbons wrapped around her calves. The cannibal queen was wonderful in the light ballerina outfit, all shades of creams and pinks contrasting with the black of her nails, lips, and empty sockets. Rosie was a vision.
“H-Hi”, Rosie called with a shy wave.
“Rosie, what are…what are you doing?” Carmilla asked incredulously.
The cannibal queen smiled at her sadly. “I missed ya.”
Carmilla crossed her arms at that. “Really? You’ll have to forgive me, but I find that hard to believe with the many cancellations and tardiness.” she retorted.
“I’m sorry, honey. But if you take a seat, I promise everythin’ will be explained.” When she saw red eyes flit over her with distrust, she added. “Please. For me?”, batting her eyelashes with an adorable tilt to her head.
A cheap trick, but it never failed to work and sure enough, Carmilla quickly snatched up her phone and retreated back to her seat. The weapons dealer expected Rosie to launch into an explanation as she promised, but instead the cannibal snapped her fingers and suddenly the lights dimmed and low melodic notes filtered through the room’s many speakers. Rosie took a single fortifying breath and began to dance, swaying her body to the music with obvious practice. The flowy skirt lifted as she twirled in place before taking light steps across the room.
Carmilla recognized the concerto, its notes meant to convey deep yearning and adoration for a person’s one true love. And she knew each particular step the beautiful ballerina was making as Carmilla had created this dance herself and later taught it to her daughters. Her heart warmed then sank with guilt. That’s where Rosie had been sneaking off two these past few weeks. And the weapon dealer persecuted her for it, unfairly demanded answers and criminalized her love due to her misplaced distrust, despite the kind-hearted cannibal never giving her a reason to do so. Tears pricked the corner of her eyes. How unkind Carmilla treated Rosie while the woman was eliciting the aid of her daughters and working hard to surprise.
The snowy haired overlord sat mesmerized as Rosie performed every step perfectly. Of course, a novice her form lacked the same discipline as the Carmine woman, but every move was perfectly on beat. The song was nearly halfway over and she watched with bated breath. The next move would be difficult for any dancer. As shrill flutes whistled their highest note, Rosie raised herself on the tip of her ballet flats, using tiny steps to balance herself as she pirouetted. Carmilla gasped, clapping her hands to her mouth, so proud of her beloved. Based on when the unusual behavior started, the twins would have only been providing Rosie with lessons for around a fortnight, not enough time for a dancer to master en-pointe. Yet, the cannibal was raised on her toes, arms gracefully raised to the ceiling as danced. But, as she finished the twirl, her form was suddenly broken as one ankle wobbled, threatening to buckle with the unusual position it was. Rosie teetered on toes, flailing her arms and crying out as she fought to regain balance. Carmilla shot out of her chair, long legs striding towards the shaking cannibal and before Rosie could fall, she caught her with sturdy white hands splayed across Rosie’s lower back.
“I’ve got you”, assured Carmilla.
Rosie furrowed her brows. “Oh gosh, I’ve gone and fucked it up”, she whined, hiding her a pale face in slender hands, utterly humiliated.
“No need for that, amor.” And Carmilla pried the hands away from that gorgeous face she so loved so dearly. “Follow me lead…one and two and…”
The experienced ballerina easily guided them around, using the intimate knowledge of her own creation to remedy Rosie’s fumble. Confident in her stand, Carmilla acted the other woman’s pillar, a small hand clasped in hers, while Rosie dipped and pranced across the studio. Soon, the orchestra tapered off and was replaced with ringing silence.
Hesitantly reaching up to tuck a curl behind a pointed ear, Carmilla spoke softly. “You were magnificent, hermosa .”
“I messed up.” Rosie clipped with a huff.
“And yet you accomplished the impossible and I am so incredibly proud of you, Rosie. Did you did this for me?”
Rosie bit her lip, shyly. “Y-yeah. I just wanted to be a part of your world, lovely. Ya dance so beautifully and I…well, I wanted to be able to share that with you. So I asked your girls for their help. But, it backfired a bit, huh?” She said sadly.
Ruby eyes averted their gaze, lowered in shame. “And that was no fault of yours. I am sorry. I should have trusted you,”
Ivory curls shook. “No, I’m sorry, Milla. I shouldn't have fibbed to ya for as long as I did. I was so focused on surprising ya, that I didn’t think about how ya might take me actin’ all weird.”
Carmilla cupped pale cheeks. “No, I should have more faith in you.”, she countered vehemently. “You did nothing to deserve my petty bitterness and…” Her voice fell to a defeated mumble. “...and if you were to cast me aside this instant for my unkind behavior…I could hardly blame you.”
“Milla, don't say such a thing!”, Rosie gasped, appalled. “I love you and the big man himself couldn't tear ya away from me so, I'm afraid you're stuck with me”, she finished with a firm nod.
With a grateful smile, Carmilla asked, “What did I ever do to deserve you?”
“See, that's the beautiful part of us, Milla.” Rosie began, gazing deep into watery, red eyes framed by a dark mask. “Ya haven't done anything to deserve me and ya never have to. We'll always have our bad days with our little spats here and there but as long as we still care for each other, that's all that matters. My love for ya will always be unconditional. Just like yours is for me, yeah?”
Carmilla laughed with a happy sob, a single tear rolling down her cheek. “Yes, of course it is. I love you too, mi rosa. Thank you for being so patient with me.”
The overlords met in the middle for a loving embrace, dark lips pressing together in a gentle kiss, eyes closed in bliss as they cherished each other’s warmth. Carmilla tilted her head, hands traveling down a slender back just shy of cupping a round cheek, but before she could deepen the kiss, a voice interrupted the lovebirds.
“Have you two finally made up, yet?” Clara called from a small crack in the door.
The weapons dealer groaned and dropped her head onto Rosie's shoulder, who merely giggled at the intrusion.
“Yes, honey. Your mama and I are going to be just fine”, the cannibal queen answered.
The twins entered the studio with pleased looks. “Good because if mom messed this up, Odette and I were going to be like so pissed. Ouch!”
The older girl rubbed her ribs where Odette jabbed her with an elbow before turning her attention to the older woman. “What Clara means to say is, would you like to watch a movie with us? We uh…” A deep blush rose to her white cheeks and she adjusted her glasses. “...we’ve missed Auntie Rosie as well.”
Carmilla’s gaze softened. The cannibal had not only wormed her way into the weapons dealer heart but her darling children as well. She pointed a question to Rosie. “Would you…?”
“I’d love nothing more.” She smiled, interlacing her fingers with Carmilla.
And the little family left the studio, talking and laughing as the twins argued over which move they would watch. As they walked, a large thumb stroked her thumb along Rosie’s knuckle, sharing amused looks at the young girl's antics and Carmilla silently forbade her fears from getting in the way of the greatest happiness she’s ever known.