MY ROSEMARY II THEODORE NOTT

PROLOGUE

May raised her brow and smoothened Rose's hair. "Speak for yourself."

Rose chuckled at her mothers' pickering, she was going to miss this once graduating and heading to Cambridge. Now the matter of Cambridge wasn't completely sealed since she didn't know if she would get in. But she was determined to do anything to make it happen.

She didn't like the thought of leaving her mothers and Fjällbacka but she knew what she wanted from life and that was to study at Cambridge. She also feels that going back to England might do her some good; while both of her mothers were English and most likely Rose was one as well ― they moved to the Swedish shore when Rose was only a baby.

"So, I have to go unless I want to be late and I don't," said Rose when she swallowed the last of her toast and got up. "Now, any last minute prep talks or am I good to go?"

Ellen walked over to Rose and embraced her tightly. "Enjoy the first day of your last year. You're amazing and I love you very much," whispered Ellen and she felt Rose smiling against her shoulder.

"I love you too," said Rose before she was trapped into another hug by May who was nearly in tears.

"You are growing too fast little one," sighed May and tightened her grip around Rose's slender figure. "I love you."

Once Rose and Ellen had managed to calm May, Rose picked up her school bag and headed out. The fall weather was rather gloomy compering to the past years. Normally this wouldn't bother Rose but there was something almost ominous about the day's grey sky.

She left the premises of her home and started to walk down the same path she has for years. Fjällbacka wasn't exactly a big place so once you start school as a child, you'll go to schools in the same area until you hit the age of eighteen and then comes the time to move or stay.

Rose was going to move.

The walk to school wasn't too long and in no time, she reached her school. As mentioned, Fjällbacka wasn't a big place so the school wasn't that big either and the amount of students in front of the school building wasn't astonishing either.

She greeted happily some of her classmates who she's been in the same class for over a decade before she found her best friend sitting on a bench. The bench was located under a big oak tree where Rose and Inez used to climb when they were younger ― they had decided some years ago to stop doing that and now sat on the bench under the tree.

"Hey you!" Smiled Inez and took her bag from the bench and placed it on her lap.

Rose realized this was a signal for her to sit down. She sat, placing her bag on the stone ground and turned to look at her best friend who was trying to contain her excitement.

"Excited, huh?" Smirked Rose and Inez released a breath she's been holding for what seemed like hours. "Clearly."

Inez carefully slapped Rose's arm. "And you aren't?" She arched her right brow. "I mean graduating is all we've been talking about ever since we started school. And why, you might ask. Well I will remind you, after this we get to go to an university and that will be an adventure. A very normal adventure."

Now it's fair to mention that Inez is the only living soul besides Ellen and May who knew about Rose's odd abilities. It wasn't in Rose's agenda to tell her best friend but what could had she say? Inez witnessed one of Rose's outburst that made the pipes of Venice - Hathaway residence burst.

Inez was excited ― she was eleven after all ― when this happened and the fact that her best friend was a witch was just so amazing. It's safe to say that Inez has always been more excited and interested about her friend's abilities than the girl who possesses them.

"I am thrilled," assured Rose although she seemed a bit worried, and Inez picked this up.

"But?"

Rose shrugged. "I don't know. Come on, we have a class to catch," she said, picked up her bag and headed to her first class, Inez's running footsteps following her.

As much as Rose enjoyed learning and studying, she didn't exactly enjoyed physics. There was a time when she did but that was when she still thought that she couldn't levitate things with her mind ― like she learned to do when she was ten. That was a groundbreaking moment for her and that was also the time when she started to hate her 'abnormality' even more. She no longer knew what to believe.

Once Rose had finished all of her classes for the day, she waved her goodbyes to Inez before heading back home.

The sun was still shining at four in the afternoon ― the grey clouds had disappeared and made the day seem much more pleasant. In the light of this, Rose thought it must be a good idea to take the shortcut to her home since her shortcut wasn't going to be gloomy. 

The shortcut was through a small forest. Rose had found it years ago when she was around six years old and has used it occasionally whenever needing to make her trip from the center of Fjällbacka to her home a little bit shorter. 

She never need to look around when walking around the forest; she knew where every tree, every stump and bush. She knew where the family of rabbits lived and where was the foxes hole. She knew where the fallen tree lay and how to pass it but what she didn't know, was how to handle a strange boy standing right in front of her.

He was the polar opposite of Rose; nearly black hair, dark eyes and his features were haunted. He stared at Rose but rather absent-mindedly, his eyes were focused at her but he didn't seem to take Rose's appearance in.

Rose wasn't entirely sure about how to feel but when she saw the ripped clothes the boy ― who was perhaps her age or just a little bit older ― was wearing and how his knees were shaking, she chose to put her prejudices aside and took a step closer to the boy.

"Are you all right?" She asked carefully, keeping her distance from the stranger. 

The boy stared at her until his eyes finally left Rose and his knees gave up. He fell on the ground on his knees and let out a gut wrenching scream. He grasped his dark hair, pulling them so strongly that Rose saw his knuckles turning white. 

"Hey, hey stop that. You're hurting yourself," said Rose and without even thinking, she closed the distance between herself and the boy. 

She kneeled next to him and carefully removed his hands from his hair. His screaming stopped but the tears he shed kept flowing down his cheeks. 

"It's all right," sighed Rose, holding the boy's hands in hers. "Do you need help?"

The boy shook his head and his silent screams turned into sobs. Rose could hear him trying to speak but his sobs stopped him each time he opened his mouth. 

"A-are you hurt?" Asked Rose, trying to figure out what was wrong with the boy.

At first sight, the boy looked dangerous with his dark and gloomy appearance but the second he screamed and started to cry, Rose knew she has been wrong. The boy was in pain but Rose wasn't sure was this physical or emotional pain.

The boy didn't answer but kept crying. 

Rose sighed heavily, thinking how to help this strangers. This was how she was raised; to help people in need.

"W-where am I?" The boy rasped out finally and Rose's eyes flickered at his broken voice that sounded like he hasn't drank in days.

"Umm you're in Fjällbacka," said Rose and the boy hiccuped.

"Is, is it where?" He asked, his words making very little sense but Rose didn't care, she felt sorry for this poor creature. 

"Sweden," she said and next she thought she heard him asking is Fjällbacka far from London. "It isn't any near London," she assured him.

The boy broke into one last loud sob, retrieved his hands from Rose's hold and covered his face with his palms. 

Rose bit her lip by the sound of his painful sob. That boy must had been through something, something awful. Besides his hunted looks, his clothes were ripped apart and Rose could had swore she saw a serpent tattoo covering his left forearm.

"What's your name?" Rose asked after a few minutes.

The boy sniffed, uncovered his face and his eyes met Rose's blue ones. 

"Theodore Nott."