Towers and Basements

Chapter Six

Pretty Woman

Author's Note: Sorry about the delay! Obviously this story took a big leap to AU-ville after the finale.

Mary Margaret gaped at the older man, genuinely flummoxed at his request.

"You want me to what?"

Gold had thought he no longer possessed the right amount of shame to achieve a blush, but his cheeks burned hot. "I want you to take my friend, Miss French, and help her purchase a new wardrobe." He looked around the cheerful trappings of Mary Margaret Blanchard's apartment, trying to avoid allowing the young woman to see the awkwardness that was plain on his face. There was many things about Mary Margaret that irked him, her sense of fashion was not one of those things.

"Moe French's daughter?"

Gold sighed impatiently. "Yes. Perhaps you have memory of her before her appearance?"

Mary Margaret shook her head. "I mean, I've heard of her, and the accident, I think. She went to the Catholic school though. We were never acquainted." A look of confusion passed over her features.

"What is it?" Gold inquired.

"It's strange... The accident, I mean. The memory of it is so hazy, but until you mentioned her name, I never gave it a moment's thought."
Gold resisted the urge to roll his eyes. The curse had given him false memories as well, but they had always existed side-by-side with the real ones. He had the same experience with the reappearance of Belle... Rosalie. The memory of a major accident had suddenly appeared to him the morning after he had taken the girl into his home. She and that boy who was once Gaston had been driving recklessly. The funny thing was, he had no idea what had happened to the lad.

Gold waved a dismissive hand. "Never mind that. If you take the girl out on a shopping trip, on my expense of course, I promise I will cut next month's rent by fifty dollars." He flinched, inwardly. Deals that affected him financially were not his favorite. Mary Margaret's eyes lit up at the offer.

"Really?"

"... yes."

The young woman nodded. "Seems fair. I'm just curious, though; why don't you take her?"

Why, indeed.

"Miss French is under my care, that is true; however, I would not like to expose her to impertinent remarks if I were to take her shopping like I was some sort of..."

"Sugar daddy?" Mary Margaret helpfully offered.

"Just so." He cleared his throat. "You may have heard rumors about the girl's mental stability. I would like to put you at ease and assure you that they were most likely exaggerated somewhat by Madam Mayor-"

"Let me interrupt you, Mr. Gold; I would never listen to anything that evil woman has to say. The mere fact that Regina is going out of her way to get people to distrust Miss French makes me think that she and I will get along just fine." Mary Margaret crossed her arms over her chest, and stuck out her chin ever-so-slightly, instantly reminding Gold of the warrior princess that she was. He smiled.

"She is a bit fragile at the moment, just the same."

"Duly noted. Send her to the school tomorrow around four; I'll take her for an iced coffee and we'll try to drag Emma along."

"Something tells me that fawning over pretty clothes is not a favorite hobby of our sheriff."

Mary Margaret grinned and shrugged. "I did say I would be dragging her."

Rosalie stood in the hallway outside of Mary Margaret's classroom, feeling quite wrong-footed, and more than a little shy. She looked to the heavy-set, short man beside her with a helpless expression that said she did not want to be where she was. The man patted her on the shoulder, and handed her a note.
Relax. I will be with you every step of the way. We can do this.

Rosalie nodded, her face still troubled. She managed a tremulous smile. It had been nearly a week since she escaped from the hospital, and none of her other facets had made an appearance. The man, Mr. Gold, had gone out of his way to make sure she was always comfortable, and he never tried to pry any information about her past experiences from her. She enjoyed Dr. Shiloh's company, although it embarrassed her that the doctor was helping her and taking money for that service from a total stranger. She longed to make herself useful, but Mr. Gold would not allow her to do so much as rinse her plate after a meal. It was infuriating, but not stressful. Never stressful.

Now she was being prepared to interact with others. To have coffee... to shop.

If you are not up to the task, I would be happy to take over, dearie. Rosalie shook her head at the sinister inner-voice. This was shopping, not a self-defence maneuver. She could lie dormant for a little while longer.

The sound of the school bell ringing shook Rosalie to the core, causing her to jump. It was cannon-fire to her. Dr. Shiloh laid a calming hand on her arm, and gently guided her to one side as the hallway flooded with children. A young boy of about ten stopped in front of them, scrutinizing Rosalie with a pair of remarkably intelligent eyes.
"You are wearing my mom's clothes," he stated.

Rosalie looked down at her ill-fitting attire, and then back to the dark-haired boy. "Your mother is the sheriff?"

The boy nodded. "My name is Henry, what's yours?" He stuck out his hand, and Rosalie reluctantly took it in her own for a weak handshake.

"Rosalie."

Henry narrowed his eyes. "I can't figure you out just yet. I will let you know when I do." With that, the boy disappeared in the crush of his classmates, leaving Rosalie to exchange confused glances with an equally astonished Dr. Shiloh.

Shortly thereafter, Rosalie laid eyes on the most beautiful woman she had ever seen. Mary Margaret walked up to her gracefully, smelling of lilacs, and dressed in a high-waisted skirt of soft yellow wool, matching cardigan, and white button-up blouse with a peter pan collar. She reminded Rosalie of springtime, a season she had not been witness to in a very, very long time. She felt inadequate, but not in the soul-crushing way that the mayor had constantly made her feel.

"My name is Mary Margaret Blanchard; you must be Rosalie French!" Mary Margaret smiled, and Rosalie instantly felt the demon in her mind quell. She nodded shyly. Dr. Shiloh waved at the woman.

"Dr. Shiloh, it's been far too long," she greeted warmly.

"You know him?" Rosalie inquired in a timid voice.

"We had a book club together a while back." Mary Margaret shrugged. "It sort of died out due to lack of interest."

"I love books! I've never been in a book club though." Rosalie explained with a small bit of enthusiasm.

Perhaps a resurrection is in order, Dr. Shiloh wrote down on his notepad. Mary Margaret nodded in agreement.

"That is, if you plan on staying in Storybrooke."

Rosalie's eyes widened. "I don't think I have any place else to go," she admitted gravely.

Mary Margaret seemed to sense Rosalie's sadness, and patted her arm. "Well, no matter; let's go to Granny's and get you some coffee and pie." She grinned at Dr. Shiloh. "Are you sure you are up for a ladies' night, Dr. Shiloh?" She teased. The doctor smiled and nodded. Rosalie saw him write on his notepad and hand a note to Mary Margaret, but did not manage to read it. Whatever it was caused a flicker of sad sympathy cross the woman's beautiful features. It irked Rosalie.

At Granny's, Rosalie was introduced to a scantily clad girl with raven hair whose length rivalled Rosalie's untamed chestnut tresses. Ruby was her name. The amount of bare leg the waitress flaunted around the diner made Rosalie's face burn with an almost prudish sense of shock. That was ridiculous, of course, she thought. It was not that long ago that she had worn similar clothing while joyriding about town with Garret... right?

"Where do you plan on shopping?" Ruby asked, setting down a slice of strawberry rhubarb with a scoop of french vanilla ice cream in front of Rosalie.

"I thought the Sugar Plum Closet would be a nice start," Mary Margaret spoke.

Ruby rolled her eyes. "I suppose if you want to look like someone's grandma - no offence, Mary Margaret- but, I think you should totally take Rosie here to Mallory's Atomic Shop."

Mary Margaret sighed. "That lady is so snobbish and her clothes are so..." Mary Margaret searched for the right words, but the exaggerated hand motions in front of her bosom hinted heavily at what she wanted to say. Dr. Shiloh looked away, blushing and smirking.

"I shop there." Ruby explained in a warning tone.

"Risque."

Ruby grinned at Rosalie, who had been busy digging into her dessert and coffee with rapturous enthusiasm and not listening to the two women debate which style she should settle on. "What do you like to wear, other then Emma's hand-me-downs?"

"Ruby!" An elderly lady from behind the counter scolded harshly, although her features were kind. Rosalie deduced that she must be the Granny of Granny's.

"It's alright, ma'am," said Rosalie, once she had swallowed her latest bite. She turned to Ruby. "I don't rightly remember, to tell you the truth. I suppose whatever I liked to wear has been out of fashion for ages."

Ruby shrugged. "We'll help you find your style. I think you'd look killer in hot pink."

"I was thinking a nice blue to match her eyes," Mary Margaret countered, receiving another eye roll from Ruby.

"If you say so."

The bell in front of the door jingled, announcing another customer. Rosalie's face brightened at the sight of her savior... Emma of the getaway car.

"Hey, Emma! Are you up for a little bit of retail therapy?" Mary Margaret cheerfully inquired. Emma pulled a chair up to the already crowded table, settling next to Rosalie.

"Wild horses couldn't drag me away from this quest," Emma replied sarcastically, before turning her attention to Rosalie. "How have you been, Rosalie? Is Gold being decent?"

Rosalie nodded. "Oh yes. I've got my own bedroom, which he insisted on letting me choose the colors for. It seems like..." she trailed off with a thoughtful expression.

"Yes?" Emma prodded.

"I think he wants me to stay there. I don't understand; I don't recall ever seeing him in my life before the institution. Is he normally this generous with people?"

Granny and Ruby shared a collective snort, Mary Margaret choked on her iced coffee, Dr. Shiloh continued to pretend to be part of the furniture, and Emma smirked.

"Not exactly."

Rosalie was uncomfortable with the coterie she had accumulated for her first post-institution shopping spree. Mary Margaret and Dr. Shiloh flanked her on both sides, while Emma trailed behind. Ruby, who had begged to be let off her shift early lead the way, albeit begrudgingly in the direction of Mary Margaret's choice of boutique.

The plump unnaturally red-haired lady behind the counter at Sugar Plum Closet fairly fainted when she was told whose account the shopping trip was going under. She ushered Rosalie almost reverently to a bright pink chaise lounge that was draped in off-white lace and smelled heavily of gardenias. Ruby and Emma sat down beside her, while Dr. Shiloh picked up a copy of the newspaper and hovered near the front door. Mary Margaret took charge with discussing wardrobe options with the shop lady, whose name was Miss Lacey, of all things.

Rosalie was introduced to the world of flats of all colors and designs, soft leather ankle boots that laced, oxfords, sensible pumps. She did not want to even fathom how much of Mr. Gold's money she was wasting when Mary Margaret ordered a pair in each style. After the shoes came pencil skirts, a-line skirts, short skirts, high-waisted shorts, breezy summer blouses, cardigans, wool winter coats, hats for all seasons, nightgowns and a vast, vast array of sundresses. Rosalie was beginning to feel dizzy from all of it.

Lastly, Miss Lacey pulled a hesitant Rosalie into a private fitting room where she was measured for underwear. Rosalie blushingly explained that she had purchased several bras from the local pharmacy when she had first gotten into town. Miss Lacey seemed to struggle between looking outraged and amused, and instead shook her head and pretended Rosalie had said nothing at all.

"This is too much," Rosalie moaned to Mary Margaret, who shook her head with an amused expression. The group was all gathered at the cash register as Mary Margaret proudly slapped down Mr. Gold's credit card on the counter.

"Gold told me the sky was the limit with this trip... I look at it as payback for all the rent extensions he never gave."

"Oooh, she sooo needs to get a dress from Mallory's!" Ruby cried.

"Okay, one dress from Mallory's, but I'm giving the card to you Ruby; I hate going in there, it smells like an ashtray."

Rosalie shook her head, knowing that if she said anything in protest, it would most likely fall on deaf ears. Her new group of friends were having way too much fun sticking it to Mr. Gold's bank account at her expense.

The group, sans Mary Margaret and Dr. Shiloh, who stood outside, spent about ten minutes in Mallory's before Ruby found the "perfect" dress for Rosalie. It was fire hydrant red, with a halter top that tied. The hem fell below Rosalie's knees from behind, but the front was cut high to mid-thigh. The neckline plunged like a stock market disaster.

The Mallory of Mallory's Atomic Shop dead-panned her enthusiasm for the dress. Rosalie's face felt as red as the dress, but did not want to be rude to Ruby or Mallory, and agreed that it was a good purchase. She planned on stuffing it in the back of her closet as soon as she got home.

The parade of new friends walked down the sidewalk, heading towards Gold's pawnshop. Rosalie found herself laughing and trading jokes with the group,and finally feeling normal. One person ended it all abruptly.

A young man whose handsome, sculpted face was obscured by a heavy black beard and scraggly hair came into view. He was in a wheelchair being pushed by a tired, middle-aged woman. The two of them stopped in their tracks when they saw Belle, as did she. All the oxygen fled from her body, and her ears began to buzz loudly.

It was Garret, missing both legs below the knee.