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"I don't see why we couldn't make you a stick fort. Doesn't that sound like fun?"
Rosalie grinned while the two of them bantered and planned their stick fort. She'd hardly seen Jay so energetic and childlike in many years; she had the sense that Jay had matured quickly from an early age out of necessity, but here he was, finally presented with the opportunity to be a child again. And now, with the father, he'd long since needed in his life.
It was the most splendid gift that Dominick could have given her, and she hadn't even expected it to be this thrilling. Once they found a small clearing suitable for their fort, Dominick and Jay got to work with finding fallen sticks big enough to create the supports. While they both had far better night vision than Rosalie did, she prepared the blanket and food ready for once they were ready to relax. Then, since it was still quite chilly, I decided to take the sticks from the discard pile and start building a fire to sit around not too far from the building site.
She sat cozy and warm there, watching the two of them set up their impromptu fort of branches and leaves. She sipped on some hot chocolate that she'd warmed by the fire, and she couldn't help but be mesmerized by the two as they worked together flawlessly, almost as if they'd known each other for years, not merely weeks.
It was like, somewhere in their DNA, they knew they were father and son, which came out in every action they took together. It was so hard for Rosalie to watch them and not feel warmer toward Dominick, the man who'd somehow, against all odds, come through to be there for Jay. It was no small miracle, and Rosalie could only be grateful.
But she also wondered what this could mean for her and Dominick. Being with him made her realize just how natural a pair they were, and if Jay could forgive Dominick, why shouldn't she?
After all, she'd seen how deeply he cared for her and Jay. She'd felt it.
She'd felt just how much she'd come to care for him again. Could she keep denying the blossoming affections deep in her heart? She’d kept them locked away for so long, afraid that if she let them loose, she'd only get burned again. But watching Dominick and Jay together like this ... it made her want to give him a second chance, for real, just for the opportunity to make moments like these even more permanent.
Eventually, when darkness had fallen completely, and their only source of light was the fire, the fort was complete. It was a small structure just big enough to fit Jay while he was either lying down or sitting, and the entire thing was made up of branches and twigs with a conical roof covered in leaves to keep out the wind. Inside, Rosalie helped lay down more blankets to make it cozy and comfortable, and then Jay crawled inside, grinning from ear to ear.
It looked like something out of a dream.
"Excellent job!" Dominick was equally proud, giving Jay a clap on the back.
Rosalie watched from afar and realized that this moment—watching her son safe in his father's arms as they enjoyed their makeshift abode—was just one of many moments to come together in their future. She gave a quiet sigh of relief as she curled up closer to the fire.
"Come on, you two, let's eat before we all want to go to bed," Rosalie called out.
"Coming!" Jay cried as he scampered out from under the fort and plopped down beside her.
Dominick followed, the two of them gathering around the fire with their dinner plates balanced precariously on their laps. They all shared a picnic dinner of sandwiches and freshly baked chips as they watched the flames dance in the night.
After eating and cleaning up, they listened to the crackles and pops of burning logs as they told each other stories and laughed until their sides hurt. Jay was particularly delighted with all of the tales his dad could tell, which he embellished with exaggerated hand gestures and a wide array of voices that would have made any actor proud.
Rosalie was amazed at how great a storyteller Dominick was, especially when talking about his travels around Elysium. He had such an ease about him that made it easy for Rosalie to forget why she'd been so hesitant about him in the first place. She just wanted to enjoy this moment; enjoy this newfound family she'd created after years of being alone. It was all so surreal; here they were together, having fun like one big happy family—something that Rosalie hadn't thought possible.
Finally, Jay couldn't keep his eyes open anymore, so Dominick tucked him in under the blankets in his little fort. Dominick read a brief tale from Jay's blue book, and then once the boy was snoring, he tucked the book under the blanket with him and then came back to join Rosalie around the fire again.
They both stared at Jay from where they were sitting, quiet smiles lingering on their faces.
"He's such a great kid," Dominick said quietly. "You did an amazing job raising him. I'm surprised every day by how incredibly smart and kind he is."
"I can't take all the credit," Rosalie admitted, nursing a glass of wine. "He's incredible all on his own."
"Just like his mother."
A contented silence grew between them, and for once, it didn't feel awkward or unfulfilling. They let it sit for a while, but it was inevitable that one of them would break it again.
"I've been thinking a lot, Rosalie, about the proposal you initially brought to me regarding the changes to the slave trade in Daihalsa," Dominick said after a while. "I turned you down initially because I thought you were crazy for wanting to change everything when you were right about how much profits were to be made now that there are so many restrictions in other kingdoms. But I also admit that I didn't give it a lot of thought because I was mad at you for leaving me and wanted to make things difficult for you."
Rosalie's brow wrinkled. "What's bringing this on now?"
"Jay. I realized he was the reason you asked. He's brought up the slaves a few times, you know. He noticed that we didn’t have many around the palace ... mostly paid servants. He wanted to know why we didn't keep slaves, but I still wanted to maintain the slave trade."
"Bet they weren't questions you expected from a ten-year-old."
"Not at all." Dominick laughed. "His heart is too good to be part vampire. He made me realize that you have a lot to lose by ending the trade, effectively killing your business in its tracks, but there's far more for us to lose if we keep it. And what kind of monsters will we be if we know it's wrong and we keep it in place just so we can keep making money? We'll lose Jay when he's old enough to realize just how selfish that is if we don't do something now."
"I'm glad you can see that. And I'm surprised, honestly. So, what do you want to do?"
"We'll follow your proposal to the letter," Dominick suggested. "Within ten years, Daihalsa will be completely free of slaves because of you. First, we will give them protections matching the other kingdoms, and then we'll mandate paid labor, eventually transitioning away from slavery altogether."
