rosaliewhitefoot-blog

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

“We lost her twin on the twenty sixth.”

roaliewhitefoot | "Look after him this week, yeah? He's good at acting tough, but this week's shitty every year."

“I will, I promise, but…any idea why?”

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

"So Mom," Marie said, grinning widely at her, "who's the pretty guy that keeps checking you out?"

Rosalie’s not at all focused on the man who’s supposedly checking her out, so when Marie questions her she’s a little bit confused.

“What’s that, baby girl?”

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

napoleonicxpowerxmonger:

“So I am.” Janet never met her mother - she ran off when Janet was a toddler and never deigned to grace her daughter with her presence - but if the memories of the other Janet of this reality are anything to go by, she wasn’t missing much. It takes a great deal of control to keep from telling this woman what a piece of work she is and it’s only the fact that Rosalie helped her father after his daughter died that keeps Janet from walking away. 

“Well then, Rosalie, how can I help you?“

“You don’t need to help me with anythin��” She selfishly wishes Debra and Ronnie were there - she’d feel a lot more at ease than she does now and much more able to form the right words.  “if anythin’, I’d rather you say what I can see you wanna say. You’re angry - don’t say you’re not, you’ve the same frown as your dad - and you’ve every right t’be as such.” 

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

“Rosalie.” She doesn’t expect ‘mom’, not after what she’d done “Not ma’am. As for why I’m here? I guess I wanted to see that you were here and--” And a lot of other things. To talk, perhaps. To make things right.

“-and you are.”

“Almost six months now, actually. Look, I’m not sure why you’re here but since you are - is there something I can do for you, ma’am?”

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

“Your dad said you’d come back, I didn’t think....God, how long have you been here?”

“Well I was last time I checked.”

“Can I help you?”

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

   “You’re alive. You’re actually alive--”

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

debracarter:

 “Fair enough! So long as you don’t mind…y’know…the lack of pants. Have I ever mentioned you’re amazing?”

“S’fine by me. go get comfy and have a look through the pictures - I’ll pour us some wine.”

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

   “I have wine, chocolate and embarrasin’ photos of Ron. What other reason do I need?”

@rosaliewhitefoot

“Okay. Not that I mind, but what exactly was so urgent I didn’t have time to put clothes on?”

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

debracarter:

Debra squeezes her hand lightly. “It’s not fair.” Her voice is quiet. She doesn’t want to push too hard, but she wants to physically let Rosalie know she’s there for her.

“It’s not fair at all.”

“My husband, George. He died back in.... back in ‘79. My girls were six. I looked after him and then---” Stopping herself, Rosalie shakes her head. It’s not right, her talking to people who cared for the daughter she’d hurt time and again (or anyone, her mind unhelpfully adds.) She shudders, fighting to rein in her emotions. She wants to let go -- to really let everything out but she doesn’t think she has the right to do so here. 

“I--Debra, I’m sorry. I need to--” she takes a deep breath, willing herself to stand but not being able to do so “--I should go.”

rosaliewhitefoot | She's finally found a few minutes where she's alone and the first thing she's done? Slid down so she's sat on the porch floor, hugging her knees to her chest. She's letting herself cry for all three of her daughters but she's keeping quiet because she doesn't want them knowing.

Debra stops short when she spots Rosalie. She knows that when she does this, the last thing she wants is to be caught. At least, it’s the last thing she wants consciously. She wonders if somewhere deep down she wants someone to find her so she doesn’t feel so alone, so that’s what she does. She doesn’t talk, doesn’t force the issue, she just slides down next to her and takes Rosalie’s hand in hers.

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

Rosalie’s not noticed Debra sitting beside her. Her head’s ducked into her knees and she’s shaking, actually shaking with the silent sobs that rack her body. She looks as small as he feels in that moment, all curled up and broken with nothing to hold onto. Debra’s hand is only a temporary anchor -- she can’t rely on her every time she wants comfort.

“Three daughters dead in as many years. Three.”

rosaliewhitefoot | She's finally found a few minutes where she's alone and the first thing she's done? Slid down so she's sat on the porch floor, hugging her knees to her chest. She's letting herself cry for all three of her daughters but she's keeping quiet because she doesn't want them knowing.

Debra stops short when she spots Rosalie. She knows that when she does this, the last thing she wants is to be caught. At least, it’s the last thing she wants consciously. She wonders if somewhere deep down she wants someone to find her so she doesn’t feel so alone, so that’s what she does. She doesn’t talk, doesn’t force the issue, she just slides down next to her and takes Rosalie’s hand in hers.

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

Debra's flipping through family photo albums when Rosalie walks in. She manages a small smile and scoots over a bit on the couch. "Hey you. Don't mind me. I'm just.. wondering how my kids got so big."

Rosalie smiles. Her kids had grown too fast and she wishes, oh, how she wishes she could go back to when they were small....and by god, her girls had been small. The thought of it’s enough to make her eyes well up -- but she pushes the emotion back down and sits beside Debra.

“May I see?"

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

She shakes her head and then throws her arms around Rosalie again.

“Sono solo … tanta paura. Egli non agisce come lui.”

With Debra holding onto her like she is, Rosalie hums for a minute. She isn’t sure what she can do other than just be there.

“None of us are, Debra. We’ll pull through, though.”

rosaliewhitefoot | She'd managed to get Ronnie to spill something and well, since she'd told Debra, the other woman's been awfully quiet. Once she's managed to coax Ronnie out of his shed and got him to go take a shower, Rosalie's focus is on Debra. She moves over, and fully expecting to be hit or shoved away, she hugs the elder tightly.

Debra’s surprised by the hug, but if she’s honest with herself, she’s desperately needed it. She wraps her arms around the other woman just as tightly and lets out a shaky breath into Rosalie’s shoulder. “Thank you,” she breathes, “thank you for talking to him.”

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

Debra lets out a teary laugh and shakes her head. She’s not sure when she grew comfortable baring her soul to Rosalie, but she has all the same.

“It feels like I already have.”

“You haven’t.” She’s a little bit firmer this time and she gives her a squeeze before pulling back a little. She’s staying close though, just in case Debra still wants to be held.

“Egli vi ama, Debra. Non c'è modo in cui sta andando ti lasciano.”

rosaliewhitefoot | She'd managed to get Ronnie to spill something and well, since she'd told Debra, the other woman's been awfully quiet. Once she's managed to coax Ronnie out of his shed and got him to go take a shower, Rosalie's focus is on Debra. She moves over, and fully expecting to be hit or shoved away, she hugs the elder tightly.

Debra’s surprised by the hug, but if she’s honest with herself, she’s desperately needed it. She wraps her arms around the other woman just as tightly and lets out a shaky breath into Rosalie’s shoulder. “Thank you,” she breathes, “thank you for talking to him.”

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

“Well I couldn’t get him to do it so…thank you all the same. I know that…I know that your relationship with him is complicated, and that can’t have been easy for you to do, so thank you.”

“I’m just…really happy to see him outside that shed again.”

“That shed’s as much a curse as it is a blessin’. He uses it to hide and to distract himself. When Al died, I thought he’d never come out, but he did -- and he eventually came back to himself.”

“You ain’t gonna lose him, Debra.”

rosaliewhitefoot | She'd managed to get Ronnie to spill something and well, since she'd told Debra, the other woman's been awfully quiet. Once she's managed to coax Ronnie out of his shed and got him to go take a shower, Rosalie's focus is on Debra. She moves over, and fully expecting to be hit or shoved away, she hugs the elder tightly.

Debra’s surprised by the hug, but if she’s honest with herself, she’s desperately needed it. She wraps her arms around the other woman just as tightly and lets out a shaky breath into Rosalie’s shoulder. “Thank you,” she breathes, “thank you for talking to him.”

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

Rosalie heaves a sigh of relief herself when she’s being hugged in return. She’d not expected it and oh god, she’s needed it. She settles into the hug for a minute and shuts her eyes. When they finally part, she shakes her head.

“I ain’t done anythin’, Debra. Just yelled at him and gave him the kick up the ass he needed to come back to the woman he loves.”

rosaliewhitefoot | She'd managed to get Ronnie to spill something and well, since she'd told Debra, the other woman's been awfully quiet. Once she's managed to coax Ronnie out of his shed and got him to go take a shower, Rosalie's focus is on Debra. She moves over, and fully expecting to be hit or shoved away, she hugs the elder tightly.

Debra’s surprised by the hug, but if she’s honest with herself, she’s desperately needed it. She wraps her arms around the other woman just as tightly and lets out a shaky breath into Rosalie’s shoulder. “Thank you,” she breathes, “thank you for talking to him.”

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

debracarter:

Debra nods and places what she hopes is a somewhat comforting hand on Rosalie’s shoulder.

“Thank you. I…really appreciate this. I know it can’t be easy.”

Rosalie jumps, actually jumps when Debra touches her. She’s grown too used to being alone and being comforted feels so foreign to her.

He reaches a bony hand up, resting it over Debra’s on her shoulder before she moves to grab her belongings.

“Has he shut himself in that shed?”

"Rosalie, we need to talk."

                       “Yeah?”

[rosaliewhitefoot-blog]

debracarter:

“Lo non so proprio, ma è bene anche questo. I don’t expect you to take his pain away. No one can do that. I just…I think if he gets to talk to you…if you can say goodbye together…I think it might help bring him back to reality. You don’t have to be amazing. Just be with him.”

She’s shocked into silence for a few minutes when Debra speaks Italian. Nobody’s supposed to understand when she does that --- only her twin daughters and siblings, most all of which were dead or wanted nothing to do with her. 

“I....you...” She swallows again, exhaling. She moves over to Debra then, much frailer than what she used to be “--take me to him.”

"Rosalie, we need to talk."

                       “Yeah?”