Closed Every Rose Has It's Thorns

[Lillian Lockwood]

Lily had been thrilled when Elliot had agreed to go to Brightstone with her. She was eager to go but nervous to do it alone. She had found that she really enjoyed Elliot's company. The week seemed to drag on forever. Classes lasted longer, sleep seemed to last years. It was odd for Lily to be so excited for something. Finally, however, the weekend came. She hummed happily as she got dressed that morning, throwing on a nice sweater and running a brush through her hair.

She hurried down the stairs, greeting Elliot with a bright smile before they left the castle. They spent most of the walk talking. Lily's face hurt from smiling so much. She really liked Elliot. She was glad he was her friend. She decided to get him something while they were in Brightstone. "El," She began after a moment of silence, "Which shop do you want to go to first?" She wanted to surprise him, and she thought the best way to do that would to be to watch and wait and see if there was anything that really caught his attention.

 

[Elliot Briar]

Elliot was definitely ready for Brightstone weekend. As expansive and mysterious the castle was to be in, he was ready for a break and get to see something a little less quiet. Waiting downstairs, he was glad Lily had offered to go with him. He was making some friends alright, but Lily was definitely his closest so far. Sure, she was a little shy and nervous, but he appreciated her sincerity and she was easy to talk to, even if she’d only really talk when it was just them. Plus, he couldn’t help but feel a bit more confident around her, he liked feeling like he could help her and not focus on how nervous he could feel sometimes.

He smiled at Lily as she came down the stairs, she seemed in good spirits today, which levied his own. It was a nice day, just the hint of a lingering chill from the night before, and he enjoyed the walk across the grounds. They traded book recommendations as they walked, definitely one of Lily’s favourite topics he’d guess, and Elliot found he had a lot more time to read these days at the castle.
Brightstone was a quaint little village, very much what Elliot had imagined a small town might look like. He hadn’t had much of a chance to explore before school had started, and took a moment to scan the main street curiously. Maybe he should try to get some Christmas shopping while they were here. There was a store nearby that looked like it might be promising for some kind of gift shopping, but Elliot was stopped when he smelt something delicious. “That smells amazing,” he mumbled, walking a little closer. “Honeydukes,” he read off the sign, “Well, it certainly smells promising,” he turned to Lily raising an eyebrow.

 

[Rosalind Lockwood]

Rose hated being apart from her sister. Anything could happen with Lily. She was so soft and precious. Rose had broken away from her mother as soon as they reached Brightstone village. Lily had written she'd be here today and mum had wanted to surprise her. While Ren may be content to stay home and let Lily be, Rose would have none of that nonsense. Her sister needed her.

Rose grimaced and she ducked and weaved through the crowd. She was already as tall as Lily, and the heels she wore would make her taller. She liked that most of the time- it was easier to keep an eye on Lily if people thought she was the eldest. For some reason, it was more intimidating trying to challenge an older sister than a younger one.

Just as her patient was reaching its end, Rose spotted Lily by Hondeydukes. She broke out into a run. She was smiling widely, but that smiled died as a boy turned and spoke to her sister. How dare he? Rose slid between the two in a heartbeat, tall and glowering. She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes at the boy. "Back off, pretty boy," She threatened low.

 

[Lillian Lockwood]

Lily enjoyed talking with Elliot. It was easy to be herself around him. She kept careful note of what books he liked. Maybe she could get him that. She let out a small gasp as they caught sight of the village. "Wow," She murmured, "It's beautiful." She hurried after Elliot, taking in all the shops. Was it possible they could go everywhere? She turned to Elliot as he began to talk. Before she could reply, though, a tall, familiar blond had placed herself between them.

"Rosie!" Lily squealed in excitement, throwing her arms around her sister and hugging her from behind. "What are you doing here? Where's mama? Is Papa here?" Lily chattered a moment before stopping as it hit her that her sister was standing in an all-too-familiar way. "No Rose!" Lily released her and hurried to stand next to Elliot. "It's okay." She smiled shyly. "This is Elliot. He's... well, I don't know what I am, but he's my best friend." She told her sister, rubbing her arm and blushing.

"El?" She glanced at him. "This is Rose. She's my little sister."

 

[Elliot Briar]

Elliot balked when another face appeared between him and Lily, taking a step back. Pretty boy? The new girl looked like she might be their age, and her entire demeanor seemed to imply Elliot needed to tread carefully. He mentally backtracked for a bit, trying to figure out if he’d done something to upset anyone recently.The mystery was solved pretty quickly however when Lily suddenly squealed and hugged the girl, her whole face brightening as she chatted excitedly about her family. A relative of Lily’s then?

Elliot couldn’t help but be a little relieved with Lily stepped over to stand next to him, the new girl might be less likely to have a go at him if she was on his side. He felt his whole body go a little warm when Lily called him as her best friend, oddly pleased at how fond she seemed to be of him. He gave her an encouraging smile, hoping to convey he returned the sentiment before looking back to Rose. “Wait, this is your little sister?” She certainly didn’t look like the younger sister. “I mean, sorry, hi, Rose, I’m Elliot,” Elliot would be the first to admit their introduction had him a little off balance, but he could salvage that. He offered Rose a friendly, if sheepish smile, and offered his hand to shake. "Are you here to meet Lily?"

 

[Rosalind Lockwood]

OOC: I asked Daph and she said the bullying bit should be fine.

Rose visibly softened as her sister's arms wove around her ribs. "Hey Lil," She greeted with a warm smile over her shoulder. She ignored the question about their parents, turning to glare at the boy again. She was almost taller than him, too. Good. She offered a tight-lipped smirk. She thought the boy would back away, he didn't seem the type for a fight.

Buuuut then Lily stepped over next to him. So this was Elliot? Lil had written about him. Rose looked him over, crossing her arms across her chest. She narrowed her eyes as Lily declared him her best friend. His smile seemed nice, and he had good manners. But they'd thought that before. She ignored his hand, instead stepping forward and grabbing Lily's arm. She pulled her sister away from the boy a bit.

"Lily," Rose scorned her sister, not caring if that Elliot boy heard her. "Best friend? What about Amber? You remember that? You said the same thing then, too. And what happened? She got you behind the school and that group of girls doused you in water. Remember? You were crying, they were so mean to you. We agreed you would keep to yourself till I got here." She lowered herself a touch so she could look in Lily's eyes.

 

[Lillian Lockwood]

Lily blushed as Elliot smiled at her. She got caught up thinking on why he would smile like that and didn't notice much until Rose was pulling her away. She blinked, startled. She felt her blush get worse when Rose brought up Amber. She looked down, brushing her hair behind her ear. Lily shook her head. "I didn't agree, I just said no one would want to talk to me. I was wrong," She corrected Rose gently before stepping away.

Lily went back over to Elliot, concerned with how Rose would react but determined none-the-less. She took El's hand in hers, offering him a shy smile before looking back to her sister. "Thank you for worrying about me, Rosie, but this is different. He's different. I... I trust El. You can, too." She smiled more confidently at her sister. This wasn't how she had imagined the day going when she got out of bed. But she knew as she faced her sister that she was right.

She looked back at El, taking her hand from his and letting it fall to her side. "I'm sorry El, Rose is very protective. She means well." She gave him a shy smile, hoping he would understand.

 

[Elliot Briar]

Elliot couldn't help but overhear their conversation as Rose pulled Lily aside and felt his blood boil a bit. He couldn't believe someone had done that to Lily, or that Rose would think he would do something like that either. He opened his mouth to say as such when Lily stepped back to him, taking his hand. He felt his ears burning again, but gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. He hoped she knew that people should be happy to have the chance to talk to her.

He was touched Lily was defending him, and that she trusted him. He'd have to make sure he didn't do anything to betray that trust. He could feel his face burning a bit the more she spoke though, and hoped Rose didn't notice.
When she dropped his hand, Elliot opened and closed it a few times, suddenly unsure what to do with his arms. He cleared his throat before speaking "It's, uh, it's alright I get it. I'm glad you've got more people looking out for you," He cast a slightly wary look at Rose before steeling his nerves a bit. "You might not believe me, Rose, but I won't hurt your sister. I probably don't need to tell you how cool she is, and I just want to be her friend," He offered his hand to Rose one more time. "Truce?"

 

[Rosalind Lockwood]

Rose was surprised by what happened next. Lily usually always trusted Rose's judgment. Not that her sister was always thrilled by it. She wanted to lunge forward and knock Elliot into next week when Lily took his hand. She held herself back, though her eyes did narrow. She noticed how Elliot seemed to be blushing over it. She almost snorted. He certainly didn't seem like he was very threatening. She considered his outstretched hand for a moment before taking it cautiously. "For now." She conceded, eyeing her sister. This was new behavior for Lily.

As she opened her mouth to ask about it, however, she was interrupted. "Girls!" Rose looked up, eyes wide. "Mama!" She smiled as the woman approached. "Rosalyn, what have I told you about running off?" The woman scolded gently as she approached. "Sorry, Mama. I found Lily," She smiled, relaxing as her mother leaned down and caught Lily up in a hug.

 

[Lillian Lockwood]

Lily could feel her face burning at Elliot's words, and she couldn't help but watch with bated breath as Rose shook his hand. She couldn't help but smile. Before she could react to anything, however, a familiar voice called out to them. Lily's head snapped up. She smiled so hard she thought her face might crack. "Mama!" She called in unison with her sister. Mama scolded Rose, but Lily hardly heard it. She had darted forward. She felt herself melt into her mother's arms. The familiar scent of her mother's floral perfume washed over Lily, making her feel at home.

Sooner than she would have liked, her mother released her and set her down. "Well, who's this?" Lily smiled at her Mama before turning back to Elliot. "This is Elliot, Mama. He's my best friend." Lily watched as her mother walked forward before crouching down so she was face to face with him. "It's quite a pleasure to meet you, Elliot. My name is Evelyn, but you can call me Evie."

 

[Elliot Briar]

Elliot didn't miss Rose's narrowed eyes, but was relieved when she took his hand anyway, her ominous "For now" still hanging over his head. The tense moment was interrupted by the arrival of yet another of Lily's family, though he didn't have any doubts who this time, watching Lily launch herself into the woman's arms.

He felt his face flush again when Lily introduced him as her best friend for a second time, sure that he must be a ridiculous shade of red by now. He hoped he could get used to that soon. Evelyn- no, Evie, seemed nice. She had the same kind face Lily (and maybe Rose if she wasn't glaring at him) had and Elliot smiled politely at her when she introduced herself. "It's nice to meet you, Ms Evie," Watching Lily and her mother interact had filled Elliot with a sudden bout of homesickness himself. He missed his mom and he wouldn't get to see her till June at least. Still, he shook it off, happy that Lily seemed to have her family so close.

 

[Rosalind Lockwood]

Rose scrunched her nose as Lily introduced Elliot as her best friend again. She really hoped this kid was everything his sister thought he was. Once all the introductions were done, she stepped over to her sister, reaching into her bag. "Lil, I know we won't be here for your birthday," She started, "So we thought we could pop in during Brightstone and bring you your gift early." She gave the older girl a lopsided grin, looking up at her Mama. Evie smiled and nodded to Rose, who produced the present from her bag. It had a big blue bow and a light wrapping paper covered in hearts. Evie spoke as Rose handed it to her sister. "You were so nervous when you were packing darling, you forgot a few things."

 

[Lillian Lockwood]

Lily had been happily watching her mother meet Elliot- a much nicer introduction than her sister gave, to be sure, when Rose stepped over to her. Lily cocked her head a bit to the side. Her eyes widened when the younger girl started talking about Lily's birthday. Is that why they had come? She took the package from her sister with a blush on her cheeks. She glanced up as her mama spoke. Forget? What could she have...? She opened the gift, confusion clear on her face. Her eyes lit up as she saw the new sketchbook and pencils. "Oh!" She breathed. She looked up quickly. "I had completely forgotten. Thank you both," She beamed brightly. She giggled as she hugged her sister then her mama. "Of course, darling." Her mother cooed. "I'm just glad to see you're settling in all right."