DreamStoryVerse Story Arc Book 2

Consequences

"Ludwig...we n-need to talk." 

Ludwig definitely didn't like the sound of that. He stopped bottle feeding Matera Shariee."O-of course, what seems to be troubling you?"

"I...can't do this anymore. I can't live like this." Rosie replied.

Ludwig gently laid Matera Shariee down on the bed. He chuckled nervously. "Pardon me, I don't think I understand…"

"This. All of this. Before we got engaged, having a baby at such a young age was never on my list of priorities. I wanted to go to a university like you did a-and become a historian or an astronomer!" Rosie retorted.

Before enacting her confrontation, Rosie had had an intervention with all her friends to boost her confidence and plan what she was going to say. She was beginning to lose her confidence but she had to keep it up. 

Ludwig scoffed. "That's ridiculous! You don't need a college education! Everything you need is right here, in the Palace with Matera and I!.....Is this about him?" Rosie nodded slowly. 

Ludwig scoffed again. "Rosie, dearest, I already told you countless times that that is not going to happen aga--!" 

"YOU DON'T KNOW THAT LUDWIG!,"Rose yelled, taking a pause to calm down. Fresh tears were beginning to sting her eye. "You don't even know what happened that night…you don't even care that… that I live in constant fear that it will happen again. And what then? What if he hurts Matera? When will it be enough for you….for you to realize you have a serious problem? You and I both need help and I've concluded that my presence is preventing you from acknowledging that you have an issue...so I think it's best...that we divorce…"

"What?! Divorce!?Rosie, darling, don't you think that's a bit extreme?" He exclaimed.

"No, Ludwig, I don't. I think some time apart from each other will do us a lot of good." She replied.

"Well, I, for one, think it's a terrible idea! Rosie please, If you won't stay for my sake, stay for Matera, she needs you!" He pleaded 

"I was going to bring her with me, but she's sick and highly susceptible to future illnesses. Besides, I wouldn't be able to give her enough attention." Rosie responded as she took out the divorce papers and quill for Ludwig to sign them with. 

"Please, Rosie, what do I have to do to make you stay?" Ludwig asked.

She gave him a sad look. "You just don't get it, do you? I'm doing this for us, for our mental health. Do you even care about yourself? Don't you want to get better?" 

"If you're leaving, there's no reason for me to change." He replied simply. 

Rose looked into his eyes. "Ludwig, I'm doing this because I care about you. I want you to be better, to be free of the chains that bind you. In the future, I want to come back to you and love the Ludwig that I used to know, without the extra baggage. So promise me, promise me Ludwig, that you'll try?" 

Ludwig was quiet for a long moment. He sighed and signed the papers. 

Rosie nodded. "Thank you for understanding." She leaned over her baby and kissed her on the forehead. "Be good for Papa, "She whispered, "Give him the strength to go on when he is weak, believe in him when he can't believe in himself, and most importantly love him when he can't find a reason to." 

Without looking back, she walked onto the balcony outside of their bedroom and took flight. Ludwig sniffed as tears ran down his brown cheeks.

Matera Shariee began to scream and cry, something she did a lot these days after she became ill. Ludwig picked her up and patted her on the back, causing her to spit up all over his shoulder. He sighed deeply. "Well, I honestly wasn't going to bed anyway."

Even though he was deeply heartbroken and apprehensive about the future, he'd be okay. He had Matera to keep him company and she needed him more than anything. He had no time in his busy schedule to mourn and feel sorry for himself.

                                                                   ~~~~~~~~~~

When Rosie made it back to the Comet Observatory, her adoptive siblings were all excited to see her. They had many questions, but she was too tired to answer any of them. 

When she got to her old bedroom, she was surprised that it looked exactly the way she'd left all those years ago. She changed out of her peplos into some old pajamas and removed the chignon from her hair. She looked into the mirror quietly as her long, blonde, locks cascaded down about all the way to her hips. She sighed, she hated long hair. Too much work to maintain. She had only grown it out because it was popular in the Meringue Clouds and she wanted to be a good model for the rest of the female citizens.

But she wasn't their Empress anymore. She was going to start doing things for herself from now on. She took some shears and clippers and began to cut away at her hair. She had cut her own hair before so it turned out nicely. She put all the cut hair in a bag and put it on her sink counter. She would donate it to Children with Hair Loss later but tonight, all she wanted to do was get some much needed rest.