The Pink TuTu

Disclaimers: I do now own PLL or the characters. I do own all OCs.
Spoilers: None
Rating: T

Notes: Alternate version of the first one. Much happier ending! Dedicated to: Momma Duck.

Thank you to those that reviewed and favorited my other version. I really appreciate it, even on things like this, which only took me a few hours to make, and was thought of from a Pinterest writing prompt.

For the alternate ending, skip down to where Officer Thomas knocks on the door. It will be marked with ***

Enjoy! :)

Summer 2017

*Montgomery-Hastings Residence*

"Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday, dear Rosie, Happy Birthday to you!" The toddler claps her hands as her family – parents, Aria and Spencer Montgomery-Hastings, and aunts and uncles, Hanna and Caleb Rivers, Toby Cavanaugh, and Emily and Alison Dilaurentis-Fields, – sing to her.

"Alright, Rose, make a wish and blow out the candles!"

They have been practicing for this moment for nearly 4 months, how to blow, not spit on, the candles.

Taking a deep breath, Rosie does a perfect blowing motion, knocking the flame out on the purple #3 candle.

"I did it, Mamma!" She cheers.

"You did!" Setting her camera down, Aria sweeps Rosie into her arms. "You did so well, Ro. Just like we practiced, huh?"

The toddler nods excitedly. "Yep! Just like wif da bubbles!"

Spencer smiles proudly at her daughter, knowing that she really did work hard to blow out the candles, because last year, when she was unable to, she was very upset because one of her aunts had to help her.

"You're right, Rosie," She kisses her forehead. "You blew the candle just like with the bubbles." She then claps her hands together. "Now, who is ready to cut the cake?"

Of course, this gets a loud response from Rosie and her friends from Daycare. The toddlers, well, not really toddlers, as most are 4 years old, but the kids all pile around the table for a piece of the Sesame Street cake, which is decorated with Elmo, Abby Cadabby, and the Cookie Monster.

And of course, after the cake are presents. Plenty of presents, but to be fair, Rosie is the only kid around right now - Hanna is currently pregnant, and Ali and Emily are going to adopt.

"Pwesents!" Rosie practically screams when she sees the big pile of various shapes, sizes, and colored gifts.

"Oh, Mommy!" Her eyes grow wide. "Dere's so many!"

Spencer chuckles as Aria picks up her camera to begin taking photos. "Ok, Rosepetal, you want me or Mamma to help you open, or do you want to do it by yourself?"

"Um…" Being the independent child she is, Spencer and Aria always ask if she wants help, or if she wants to try something by herself for the first time. Surprisingly, though not truly, Rosie has been able to do several things that a child of her age normally would be unable to do, that is, while unassisted.

Therefore, Spencer asks this, knowing that while Rosie is having fun with her friends, she is only three, and may get a little too overwhelmed with how many gifts she has to open.

"I want you to help, Mommy, but only a lil and til I say stop, 'kay?"

Spencer nods her head and sits down on the floor beside her daughter. "That is perfectly ok, Rosepetal. How about you pick the first gift, and we can see if you need help opening it, alright?" And Rosie nods, satisfied with that. The first gift is a long box, wrapped in Sesame themed paper.

Rosie is able to unwrap it herself, and she immediately squeals at what she sees.

"A Bitty Baby!"

It is a Bitty Baby, or a "baby" version of an American Girl Doll. Rosie's smile is so big and Spencer knows she and Aria made the right call on waiting until this year to get her one.

"Hold it up, Rose, so I can get pictures," Aria instructs. Rose holds it up, a little baby with freckles, blueish-green eyes, and dark blonde hair. An identical match to Rosie, who is the perfect mix between Aria and Toby, who was their donor while conceiving Rosie.

"Uncle Caleb! Pease, you open my baby?"

Caleb takes out his pocketknife and opens the package while Rosie waits impatiently. He then hands her the baby.

"What is her name, Rosie?" Hanna asks her while looking for the two presents that she homemade for the little girl.

"Um…I am gonna name hers…" Rosie taps her chin. "Penelope!"

"Penelope…" Alison smiles at her little niece. "That is a beautiful name, Rosie. Is she going to have nickname like you do?"

"Oh, yes!" Rosie has been thinking of this ever since asking for a Bitty Baby months ago. "Hers nickname is Poppy!"

The next present is one from Hanna. She made an outfit for both Rosie and Poppy. Handing her niece the box, she says,

"Now, Rose, this present is for you and Poppy. I think you are going to love it."

Intrigued, Rosie opens the box and gasps.

Matching tutus!

"Dere pink! And sparkly! Mommy, look!" Rosie holds them both up for Aria to photograph while speaking to Spencer. "Mommy, pease, I wear mine, pease, pease."

"Ok, ok." Spencer helps her daughter put on the pink, sparkly tutu. It fits perfectly.

"Auntie Hanna, I love it!" Rosie gushes. She quickly puts Poppy's tutu on her as well. "And Poppy says fank you, too!"

Hanna chuckles as she sends her welcome to her niece.

Little does she know, the pink tutu will become the most beloved piece of clothing Rosie owns.

*Two years later*

Nearly two years later, and Rosie is almost 5 years old. And it is true that the pink tutu her Auntie Hanna gave her to match Poppy was, and is, the most beloved thing she wears.

Each morning, she puts it on and wears it to school. She wears it with her rain boots in the spring, with her jacket in the fall, and with her sweatshirts and jeans in the winter.

Today, it is a bright and sunny day. School is out for the summer and later, Spencer and Aria are going to host a BBQ with their family.

4-year-old Rosie squeals as she runs across the yard. She is being chased by her Uncle Toby, who is dressed as a "monster" while Rosie is wearing a white tank top with, you guessed it, the pink, frilly, glittery tutu that her Auntie Hanna made for her third birthday.

"I'm gonna getcha!" Toby playfully growls.

"Uncle Toby, no!" Rosie also has a wand and she stops, waving it towards Toby. "I banish you from this land!"

"Oh, no! Please, Princess Rosie, give me another chance," He begs. "I promise I will do no harm."

As Rosie thinks it over, Aria watches from her place on their back deck, where she is entertaining just-turned 1-year-old Aaron Scott. The little boy grins at his mother.

"Sissy and Uncle Toby are so silly, Scottie," Aria tells him.

"Unnel! Sis!" Surprisingly, Scottie began speaking at 10 months, and now at 1-year-old, he has about 4 to 5 words that he can say.

"Yes! Uncle Toby and Sis."

"Mamma!" He points to Aria, and then holds out a block. "Mamma, mamamamamama!" He lets out a string of babbling, giggling and trying to fit the block into his mouth.

"Can you say, Mommy?" Spencer has been trying to get Scottie to say mommy but so far, he says mama, sis, unnel, for Caleb and Toby, and kee-kee, which is what he calls Hanna and Caleb's new kitten, Phoenix.

"Mamma!" He grins, because despite being one, he knows.

"No, Scottie," Trying to keep the laughter out of her voice, Aria says, "Say mommy. Mom-meee. You will make Mommy so happy if you say it."

"Mamma!" Rosie comes over with Toby now. "The Monster is in jail! You have to watch him til his time is up, ok, Mamma?"

"Oh," Aria tries so hard not to laugh at her friend, who despite wearing jeans and t-shirt, also has her old makeup, which she gave to Rosie to play with, on his face. She must have done this without Aria knowing because Toby wasn't wearing the last time she saw him, earlier today.

"Ok, Princess Rosie, I will watch the Monster." Aria turns as she hears Spencer calling her. "Rosie, I think Mommy's calling, why don't you go see what she needs. You may be able to help her."

"Okay, Mamma!" As Rosie runs inside, she finds Spencer in the kitchen.

The older woman smiles at the sight of her daughter still in her tutu. She remembers just last week when Hanna mentioned it, and asked if Spencer and Aria wanted her to make a new one, since this one is getting close to being two years old, and Rosie has grown several inches in that time.

Spencer had laughed at the question, because if Rosie had heard it, then the answer would be a firm no! Spencer warned that the new tutu would need to be an exact replica, otherwise the nearly kindergartener would not been so open to receiving a new one.

"Mommy, you called?" Rosie says while grinning.

"Why yes I did, Princess Rosepetal. I needed help with carrying things out to the picnic table. Your aunties and Uncle Caleb will be here soon for the BBQ, and we need to start setting things out."

"I can help, Mommy! But, first, please, will you hold my wand? I don't want it to fall into the wrong hands."

Once the wand is in a "safe" place, Rosie helps Spencer with the plates, cups, and other necessities. Toby begins cleaning the grill and Aria goes inside to call Hanna, Caleb, Alison, and Emily.

As Aria watches the videos of her little girl, she feels a tear run down her cheek.

The video is paused, Rosie's 4-year-old face frozen in time. The little girl is smiling, her freckles showing perfectly, the blue extra bright in her eyes. She stands beside her cousins, Mason Rivers, aged 18 months, and Natalie and Taylor Dilaurentis-Fields, ages 9 and 12 years old.

She wishes Rosie was here, in real life. She wishes she could hold her little girl just one more time. Run her fingers through her curls, kiss her cheek, hear that sweet little voice calling out for her, "Mama!"

It has been 3 years since that time. 3 years since the day she watched her best friend, Toby Cavanaugh, chase her 4-year-old daughter around the backyard.

3 years since Spencer tried, and failed, to get Scottie to say mommy.

Three years since they were planning Rosie's fifth birthday party – a trip to the zoo with her parents, brother, aunties and uncles, cousins, and a couple of close friends.

And it was three years ago today – June 27 – which is Rosie's eighth birthday, that Spencer and Aria were woken up, the last time, by Rose. She was excitedly jumping on their bed, declaring, "wake up! It's my birthday; I am one whole hand old!"

3 years since the last time they made her a birthday breakfast, – colored pancakes with whip cream and candles, – and 3 years since they last called out, "Rosie, come get your shoes on so we can leave!"

3 years ago Spencer and Aria walked out of the house with their newly-turned 5-year-old daughter, and their one-year-old son, Scottie, loaded them up in the car, sang songs on the way to the zoo, and then walked through the entrance of the zoo with what would later be, leaving with only one child.

Because on this day 3 years ago, Spencer took her eyes off Rosie for a split second, as Aria was attending to Scottie, giving the toddler a baggie of cheerios to eat.

3 years ago today, Rosie disappeared at the Rosewood Zoo without a trace….

…and has not been seen since.

A door slams somewhere close by, and footsteps, stomping footsteps are heard.

"Aaron Scott Montgomery-Hastings!" Aria hears her wife, Spencer, yell out to their 4-year-old son. "Come back here and pick up your bag, please!"

Sighing, Aria stands from the couch, because she knows, she just knows, what is coming next.

"No! I don't want to!" Aria exits the living room and comes to the hallway that leads from the front door to the kitchen and further down, to the stairs that go up to the second floor.

"Aaron, it's not nice to speak to Mommy that way," Aria scolds, knowing that even though today is going to be hard on her, on Spencer, on the girls and the guys, on Taylor and Natalie, she knows Scottie won't remember why today is a big day.

He does not remember his big sister whose whole world he was. He does not remember the time Rosie read a storybook to him for the very first time. He does not remember how she loved to hold him, speak to him, sing to him, feed him, help dress him.

Because he was just a mere 13 months old when Rosie disappeared.

Scottie does know who she is, through the videos and stories, but it isn't the same.

Aria knows this. Knows that today is just another day for the 4-year-old little boy.

"I don't care!" Scottie is yelling again. "I hate you!" He is then stomping away, up the stairs and to his room. God how they'd hoped they had at least one more year before their son uttered those words.

Aria glances over at her wife and can see the pain written all over her face.

Her bottom lip trembles, Spencer walks over and pulls her into a hug.

"Shhh, baby…" She tries to soothe. "I've got you."

"I miss her so much!" Aria sobs. And Spencer can do nothing but whisper, what she hopes is, soothing words in her ear.

Her heart longs to hold her little girl in her arms again. She prays every night and every morning for the safe return of Rosalie Faye Montgomery-Hastings, but she knows, god how she wished she didn't, that by now, Rosie is probably dead.

After a few minutes, Aria's cries subside, and she pulls back, sniffling.

"I um…" She glances down, wondering if she should suggest this or not. "I thought, in honor of-of Ro-Rosie," Her voice breaks, she sucks in a breath, "to celebrate her birthday, we could show Scottie some more videos?"

*** alternate ending begins here

A knock on the front door stops Spencer from speaking.

They both head over to it, thinking it is one of the girls, or maybe Caleb or Toby stopping by.

Aria pulls it open, and her heart stops.

It is a police officer.

Could it be? Could this be the moment?

"Mrs. and Mrs. Montgomery-Hastings," He begins. "My name is Officer Thomas, I have been assigned your daughter's case." He pauses, waits for a response, and when he does not get one, he smiles and says,

"I have good news. We've found your daughter. She is safe and being checked out at the hospital."

Those words bring such great relief to Spencer and Aria that, at first, they are stunned, unsure if they are dreaming and are about to wake up to their harsh reality.

"Mrs. Montgomery-Hastings?" Officer Thomas says gently. "Did you hear me? We've found your daughter; if you two will follow me, I can take you to her."

He can tell the two women are in complete shock. He would be too, if his daughter went missing three years ago and at this point, finding her was something he could only dream about.

"Mommy? Mamma?" Spencer hears her son's voice and snaps out of it. Looking to Aria, she sees her wife in tears, but this time, they are happy ones, relieved because they finally get their happy ending.

"Hey, Bud!" Spencer turns to Scottie, bending down in front of him. "Guess what this nice officer just said."

"What?" Scottie looks wearily at the Officer, wondering what on earth he could be here for.

Hearing her wife and son, Aria shakes her, clearing it, turning and smiling at Scottie.

"The police have found Sissy, Bud! Would you like to go and see her?"

"Sissy?" This only confuses the preschooler even more since he's been told that a bad person took his sister away from her family, years ago, when he was just a baby.

"But you said the bad person took her, Mamma…?"

Sniffling, Aria quickly puts on some shoes and then grabs a jacket and Rosie's stuffed bunny from by the front, where she'd left it three years ago.

"We did say that, Bud," Spencer tells him. "But the police have been searching and looking for her, and they finally found her!"

"They did?" At this, Scottie perks up. The moments his mommies and all his aunts, uncles, and cousins have been waiting for has finally happened. "They founded sissy?"

"Yes, they did. Would you like to come with us, and go see her?" Spencer asks, wondering if it would be too overwhelming to Rosie for her parents and brother to come to the hospital. But her mind is made up as Scottie eagerly nods his head and runs off to get his special light-up shoes.

They go to the car and follow behind Officer Thomas all the way to the hospital. Once there, he shows the doctor his badge, and explains who the two women and little boy are.

*At the hospital – Children's Ward*

Doctor Howard leads them over to a curtained area. He pulls it back, and says,

"Rosie, your mommies and little brother are here to see you."

Stepping aside, Aria and Spencer get a glance at their little girl, whom they never thought they'd see alive ever again.

She is so tiny, just as small as she was three years ago, at age 5. Her hair is wet, having been washed and combed. Rosie's arms, legs, and face is littered with bruises and cuts, and her cheekbones look sunken in, as if she is malnourished.

Her eyes light up the moment she sees Spencer, Aria, and Scottie.

She is beautiful, so, so beautiful, and they may never stop looking at her. It feels surreal, like a dream, oh, how many times have they dreamt of being here, hearing,

"Mommy! Mama!" …only to wake up to their harsh reality?

Scottie is the one that breaks them free of their stunnedness. He runs over to the bed, climbing up and throwing his hands around his big sister.

Rosie gasps in surprise. "Scottie! You've gotten so big!" She wraps her arms around the little boy who was just 13 months the last time she saw him.

"I love you, Sissy," He whispers. Rosie feels her eyes fill with tears. Oh how she has dreamt of this moment, every single day for the last three years.

"I love you, too, Scottie."

Hearing this, Aria lets out a sob, and hurries over, gathering both of her children in her arms.

"Oh, Rosie, I am so happy you are safe. Happy Birthday, babygirl."

Rosie looks confused for moment before saying, with tears streaming down her face, "Is it really my birthday, Mama? Oh, I tried so hard to remember the days, but the bad woman locked me in the dark room, and I couldn't see how many times the sun went away."

Hearing this, Spencer also snaps out of her reverie. She walks over to her family.

"Oh, baby, we are so sorry for what you must have went through," Aria whispers to her, knowing that, while Rosie is home, safe and sound, where she will be loved, she will still have a long road of recovery ahead of her. They have no idea what the 8-year-old has survived going through in the last three years.

Kissing her daughter on the forehead, Spencer stays quiet, wondering if this is all a horrible dream she is about to wake up from. Sensing, this, Aria gently touches her wife's cheek, whispering,

"She's home, baby, we got her back. It isn't a dream. Open your eyes, Spence. Our baby girl is safe now."

And Spencer does open her eyes. She sees the hospital walls and beds. She sees her wife, her son, her daughter. Not her bedroom, not her nightstand with an alarm clock with the time 4:43 a.m.

She sees her daughter, safe and sound. She sees the moment she has prayed for finally coming true.

"I love you so much, Rosepetal," Spencer murmurs to her daughter.

"I love you, too, Mommy, and guess what. You were wrong. Hope doesn't breed eternal misery. I hoped every day that I would get to come back, and it worked! So you were wrong, Mommy, you don't have to think that anymore. You can have hope now, 'cause it does work!"

And Spencer lets out a wet chuckle, because, yes, she did hope for this moment. And yes, it did come true. She tightens her grip on Rosie, relishing in the feeling of having her in her arms.

Her family is finally a whole again.

After a few silent moments, where the four just sit, hugging each other, Rosie speaks up again.

"But, Mama, I have something to say," Aria nods for Rosie to go on, thinking she is going to ask about her aunts and uncles, or her cousins, or something else.

But Rosie just begins saying, " I-I…I don't wanna wear that…th-that pi–" Although she seems unable to actually articulate the words, and Aria is confused until she sees where Rosie is pointing.

Across the room, in an evidence bag, is that goshdang, pink, sparkly tutu. Aria doesn't think they will have any trouble parting with it.

And here it is again, but with a different, and much happier, ending! With this new ending, I added over 1,000 words.

This was for Momma Duck, because I destroyed her emotions with the other one. (I hope this made up for it!)

Btw, I had to through in the "hope breeds eternal misery" thing. I figured this would be the one moment where Spencer is proven wrong about that belief! Also, that freaking pink tutu! I don't think Rosie is going to love it so much now, huh?

Please review and let me know what you thought! :)