Humming to herself as she dusted, Rose looked around Zandrianna's study. It was filled with book, large and small, many of them old and battered. They don't belong to me, Zandrianna had told her one day, but to my husband, who's away right now.
Rose picked up one of the books as she tidied and opened it to read what was inside. However, the language was foreign to her and she shook her head as she set it back down on the desk. As she reached for another book, a knock echoed through the room and she looked over at the door. "Landsake and who could that be?" she muttered as she went to answer the summons.
"I'm lookin' fer Miss. Zanni Anna?" said the young boy on the other side, his cheeky grin displaying a large gap in the front of his teeth. "Is she 'ere?"
"No, she's not here young man, she's away. Is there something I can help you with?" Rose replied, watching the lad bounce up and down on his feet.
The boy shook his head, looking inside as though he expected a different response. "I got a letter t' deliver t' 'er. But I'm only s'pposed t' deliver it t' her," he replied.
Rose watched as he pulled out a letter from a shabby bag, holding it up for her to see. "Well, she's going to be away for a few days longer," Rose said, as she reached out to try and grasp the boy's hand to see the writing on the letter.
"But I 'ere s'pposed t' deliver it to 'er, an' I was promised ... 5 coppers fer it!"
Rose, unable to keep the boy's hand still long enough to read the envelope, looked down at the young urchin and lifted her eyebrow. "5 coppers?" she asked. "How about 3 coppers and a biscuit to take with you?"
The boy looks up, torn between the coppers and the promised treat. Without waiting for a reply, Rose plucks the letter from his hand and looks down at it. The handwriting, distinctively masculine, simply read Zandrianna Zetsu and the house's address. Shaking her head, she headed to the hearth, the boy quick on her heels as he gawked at all the books.
"Gaw' the'es more books 'ere than I've seen e'er!" he said, reaching over to pick one out of the middle of a pile.
Moving faster than she had in some time, Rose managed to keep the pile of books from toppling over, pulling the volume from the boy's grasp as she set it aside. "Yes, there are a lot of books here," she replied and hurridly gathered the biscuit and coins, placing each in one of the boy's hands to keep him occupied as she guided him to the door. "I'll make sure she gets the letter as soon as she returns."
"Thanks lady," the boy said through a mouthful of food, before he turned and raced down the path.
Rose shook her head, watching the child run off, before pulling the letter back from her apron to look at it. With no identifying marks, she debated briefly opening the letter. "No, best to leave it for Zandrianna when she returns," Rose said and set it on the mantle so the lady could see it when she came home.
((OOCly - for those that remember him, I heard from Komatsu today. He's doing well and sends his appreciation to everyone that sent him notes.))
