Message In A Rose

Message in a Rose
By Yen

Rowena's bedroom was large and airy. The walls were cream-colored with blue pilasters breaking its surface evenly and running adjacent to tall ceiling-high windows hung with white curtains. Bronze moldings ran around the ceiling and floor.

"It matches your eyes, Lady Ravenclaw," Helga mimicked Salazar's voice with an irritated expression on her face. She continued muttering, saying unpleasant things about Dark wizards in general (one in particular) under her breath as she combed Rowena's hair.

Seated at her dressing table, Rowena smiled, turning amused eyes towards Helga standing behind her. The blue rose Salazar had given to her was in a vase on the table in front of her.

Working on a tangle, Helga eyed the innocent rose suspiciously and complained loudly, "I cannot believe you haven't thrown that thing away."

Rowena laughed lightly. "Now, Helga," she rebuked gently, "it is a lovely flower." She reached out and fingered its soft blue tinged petals. Somehow, they didn't seem as soft as the look in Salazar's eyes when she accepted his gift.

She didn't see the frown Helga gave her. Obeying an impulse, Rowena took the rose out from the vase, drew it close to her and pressed the blossom against her lips. Her eyes closed, her nostrils flaring slightly as she breathed in the flower's sweet fragrance.

The scent was soft and subtle. It wafted across her senses and invaded her mind. When Rowena opened her eyes, she wasn't in her room. Helga wasn't standing behind her, and she was no longer in Ravenclaw manor.

She was now sitting in a large fur-covered high-backed armchair. It faced a roughly hewn stone fireplace, which was topped with a smooth granite mantlepiece. There were bottles of various sizes and made of different colored glass on it. A blue fire was burning in the hearth.

Her hands now empty, Rowena stood up slowly and looked around the room. The walls were made of the same gray-greenish stone as the fireplace. Torches with small blue fires floated on the walls. There were no windows in the room.

There was a narrow wooden bed against one wall with more furs on it. Across it and alongside the opposite wall was a large oak table. Scrolls, quills, herbs, more bottles and various objects were scattered on its dark polished surface.

"Lady Ravenclaw," someone said behind her. She turned around quickly, but she wasn't surprised to see Salazar. The Dark wizard was standing beside the fireplace. His left hand was resting on the mantel.

Rowena stared at him. He was dressed in dark green robes. He favored the color green, Rowena supposed, and they did match his eyes. Light from the fireplace and from the torches flickered on the silver strands of his hair. They paled in comparison to his brilliant emerald eyes, which were regarding her intently.

Rowena wondered how he brought her here. Was the rose he gave her a timed portkey?

Then he said, "Heaven forbid you are Helga Hufflepuff." Rowena was startled as a faint disgusted expression crossed his expression, and she realized this Salazar was a memory.

Salazar's face composed itself, and Rowena smiled, raising her hand to her mouth to cover it though she knew that even the real Salazar wouldn't mind her bemusement. How sweet of him, she thought, touched. Her cheeks warmed. He sent a memory of himself in a rose to her.

"You have changed much since last I saw you, Lady Ravenclaw," said Salazar dryly. His face turned rueful as he said, "You were only twelve years old then as I remember. Time has passed quickly," he admitted. His eyes softened. "You've grown, little bird."

And then, he vanished. Rowena blinked and found herself back in her room, sitting in her dressing chair with Helga standing behind her and humming softly while she brushed Rowena's hair.

The blue rose Salazar gave her was still against her lips and when she moved it, it trembled, and its petals began to fall away. Rowena froze, and Helga noticed her suddenly rigid bearing. When the other woman saw the disintegrating blossom, she immediately slapped it away from Rowena's hand. It fell to the floor, its petals scattering.

Before Rowena could protest, Helga took out her wand and incinerated the rose and every vestige of it. Helga was furious, convinced that there was harmful magic in the flower. She then fussed over Rowena, checking to make sure she was unharmed. After which, she demanded that Rowena never again accept anything from Salazar.

When Rowena tried to explain to Helga that there was no danger, Helga wouldn't believe her, and she became angrier when Rowena told her about the memory Salazar had placed inside the rose.

"He was trying to brainwash you!"

"No, he wasn't, Helga."

"How do you know, Rowena?! He might have already brainwashed you!"

"Helga, please calm down!"

"I will not calm down! Salazar Slytherin is a Dark wizard, Rowena! He's dangerous and cannot be trusted! He just wants to seduce you!"

Rowena flushed, barely listening as Helga ranted and raved. Helga was right. Salazar was a very dangerous man. Rowena knew he was attracted to her, and he knew he intrigued her. The message in the rose was only the beginning.

Fin.