A/N: Sorry for the wait but here it is finally!!! *fanfare* ENJOY!!

Chapter Twelve: A Chance

A knock sounded at the door.

Rosto sighed, leaning back in his chair as he took another bite from his apple. He didn't like to be disturbed during his morning meal, late as it was.

Calling for the person to enter, he waited.

The door swung open slowly. Aniki stood in his doorway.

"Well?" he asked somewhat impatiently when she made no effort to speak.

"We do bathe, you know," she replied. Then as an afterthought she added, "Except for Achoo mayhap. She does seem rather fond of rolling around in Kora's herb garden."

The look Rosto gave her told her he knew naught of what she was talking about.

Aniki looked pointedly at the half eaten food sitting in front of him. "You haven't been to breakfast in a week."

"Yes, well, I've had work to do. I eat when I can."

By his tone, Aniki could tell he was not in a mood to talk. Not that it stopped her however.

Closing the door behind her, Aniki strolled into the room. She half expected him to glare at her when she dropped into the chair across from him. Instead he continued to eat as if she wasn't there.

She was not a mot that liked to be ignored. Lifting her feet, she rested them on the tabletop with a thud, crossing one ankle over the other as she leaned back in her chair.

Rosto was finicky about his things. And her boots were muddy.

Unable to ignore her dirty shoes, Rosto straightened with a harsh look of disapproval.

Ignoring the look in turn, Aniki glanced around the room casually. "You know," she said after a moment, "a woman could do wonders in a big room like this."

"Thinking of becoming a seamstress, are you?" Rosto asked sardonically while simultaneously leaning over to push her dirty boots off his table.

Her feet hit the ground with a thump, causing her to sit up straight again. "And give up the life of a rusher? You must think me a cracknob," she said with a good-natured grin, seemingly unperturbed by his actions.

When he returned to his eating, she continued. "No," she said with speculation in her voice. "I was thinking more along the lines of a mot that could put up with your prickly nature- as much as a mot can, of course."

"What would my nature matter to someone that is only refurnishing my quarters?" Rosto asked, indifferent to the conversation.

"Refurnishing? Well, yes, that may be one aspect. But I was thinking more…" she grinned, "living in."

Immediately Rosto's mind flashed to Beka. Beka saying those things about him, accusing him that morning of their fight. Beka not saying a word when he told her he loved her.

Beka walking out of the Dove the previous night as if she couldn't stand to face him.

"I like my room just the way is," he replied decisively. "Alone."

"But I've not seen you with a mot in months," said Aniki. "Surely there must be someone…"

"There isn't," he said with conviction.

If Aniki was any other sane mot she might have stopped asking. But she wasn't, so she kept on. "No one?" she asked with an expression that revealed she knew otherwise.

"No one," he answered firmly, wishing this conversation would come to a quick end.

Without preamble, Aniki asked, "Not even Beka?"

"Aniki." The warning in his voice and the mirrored expression in his eyes stopped her short. She wasn't that foolish not to realize she had hit a nerve.

Aniki sighed, taking the apple from his plate and twirling it in her fingers. A long moment of silence passed between them before Rosto began eating again. But Aniki was far from finished.

"You know," she began, looking at the apple instead of Rosto, "it may very well be that she cares for you too."

Something hit the table. Aniki looked up to see the knife Rosto had been using to slice some cheese now lodged in the wooden tabletop. She briefly wondered if he'd later regret marring his nice table. But by the look she saw on his face, she was certain the fate of his table was the furthest thing from his mind.

"What?" Aniki asked when he didn't say anything but only glared. "Don't tell me you're planning on spending the rest of your days moping around like you have been. I know you love her, Rosto and I think there's a good chance that she-"

She was interrupted by the sound of Rosto's chair scraping the wooden floor as he got to his feet. "Damn it, Aniki," he growled. "I don't want to talk about this with you."

"Fine, you don't have to. It's Beka you should be-"

"I don't want to talk about this. Not with you, not with Beka. No one!" He stomped over to his bed and roughly pulled on his boots as if he intended to leave.

Aniki blocked his way to the door, her feet firmly planted and her arms crossed over her chest. For a moment they glared at each other.

"How are you to know how she feels if you keep on ignoring her?" Aniki asked, her voice hard.

"Ignoring her? She's the one that can't stand the sight of me!" The look he had seen on her face last night came back unbidden into his mind. That was right before she had fled.

"What are you talking about?" Aniki asked him harshly.

"She despises me, Aniki. She hates me! She compares me to her Ma's men. Rushers that used to beat her Ma and undoubtedly take advantage. She thinks I'm like them. She'll never get passed that!"

"How do you know that?"

He looked away, and in a deadly quite tone said, "I just do."

A wave of silence fell over them. Then Rosto turned and sat down on the edge of his bed, his face set like stone and him quieter than a tomb.

Aniki sat down beside him. It was a while before she spoke. When she did, she said quietly, "You know, Beka is down in the main hall…" Her words fell on deaf ears. Then she added, "I think she may have been coming to talk to you."

Rosto glanced at her briefly before looking away again. "I don't want to talk to someone who's afraid of me."

"What's wrong with that? I talk to people like that all the time," joked Aniki, trying to lighten his harsh mood.

It didn't go over well. Aniki sighed. "Whether you want to or not, I'm thinking you'll be wanting to go down there real soon."

Rosto looked at her like she was mad. "I already told you, I don't want to-"

Aniki raised her hand, stopping him mid-sentence. "I know you don't want to talk to her. But you may be the only one that'll be able to get through to her- or, in the least, get her out of here. Safely."

His eyebrows lowered as he tried to decipher what she said. Why did he need to get her out of here? And what did she mean by safely? He asked her just that.

Hedging a bit, Aniki said, "Well…after breakfast Beka decided to join in a dice game down in the hall. Don't ask me why, I've never seen her gamble here before either. And, well, she thought her money was, uh, wrongly taken, claiming that the man running the game had cheated…"

"Which man?" Rosto asked sharply, already having a bad feeling about where this story was going. If it was the man he thought…

Aniki shifted where she sat. "I came up here to tell you but-"

"Which man?" he asked again, losing his patience.

"Josef."

The words that flowed from Rosto's mouth would have made any other woman gasp. Josef was one of the toughest- and biggest- coves in his Court. And the most unforgiving. Everyone knew not to cross Josef- and he hated being called a cheat most of all. And like any Rat, he hated Dogs.

Rosto cursed again as he grabbed for his daggers. When would she ever learn to keep her nose out of places it wasn't wanted?

Aniki watched as Rosto threw open the door to his room, his daggers now concealed all over his body. He didn't see the black cat race in the direction of the stairs when the door first flew open, but Aniki did.

When the door slammed shut behind him with a force that rattled the wall, Aniki did naught but grin in delight.

The old, hot-tempered Rosto was back.

And the plan was going well.

Down in the main hall of the Dancing Dove Beka stood, looking at the large man in front of her. He was heavily muscled with hands that looked strong enough to squash a melon- or an unfortunate person's head.

"Are you callin' me a liar?" he asked gruffly.

Standing with her feet apart but firmly planted, she met his gaze squarely. "Once a cheatin' Rat, always a cheatin' Rat."

Josef roared.

Rosto, coming down the stairs, cursed.

Beka fell back into a fighting stance, ready to block any blows that came her way. Josef brought his arm back as if to strike her. Beka tensed.

Suddenly she was pulled aside by a strong arm wrapping around her waist. Her hands collided against something solid. Surprised, she looked up to see Rosto looking down at her. It was his arm that had her around the waist- and his chest that her hands were against. He did not look happy.

"What do you think you're doing?" he ground out, his jaw clenched.

"She's accusin' me of cheatin', tha's what she's doin'!" said Josef, recovering from Rosto's interference. He was about as happy as Rosto was.

Rosto glanced up to look at his angry rusher.

"She's tryin' to cheat me outta some coin!"

Rosto looked back down at Beka. His face was as set as stone, his eyes as dark as an on-coming storm. "How much does she owe you?" he asked Josef, his hard gaze still on Beka.

"He's the one that owes me-" Beka started but she was cut off by Rosto.

"How much?" he asked Josef again, ignoring Beka. Removing her hands from his chest, Rosto moved away from Beka and reached for some coin.

As Rosto paid Josef, Beka started to protest. "But, Rosto he chea-" He silenced her with a glare.

Then, after apologizing to a now-satisfied Josef, Rosto grabbed Beka by the arm and pulled her out of the Dove before she could say anymore, his frustration evident.

Beka resumed her protesting, but Rosto was so angry he did not seem to notice as he pulled her outside, towing her across the street to Mistress Trout's lodgings. He said nothing, his broad shoulders tense.

As Rosto pulled her toward the staircase inside her lodgings, Beka stopped and pulled her arm free of his grasp. "What are you doing? It was my money that he tried to steal, Rosto. I was doing fine on my own. As a matter of fact I should go back there right now and-"

With a growl of frustration, Rosto bent over and picked her up, throwing her over his shoulder. Surprised, Beka had no opportunity to react as he carried her up the stairs with purposeful strides.

She made little protest as he kicked open the door to her room.

Inside, Achoo bounded over to greet them, jumping at Beka's feet as if it were a game.

Pounce, looking up from licking his paws, hopped off the bed he had been sitting on and sauntered toward the door. "I guess this is my cue to leave," he said in typical Pounce-like fashion. As he passed Achoo, he remarked, "You too. These are human games they play."

Achoo whined for a moment before following Pounce out the still-open door.

Rosto paid the animals no heed. Trudging into the room, Beka still thrown over his shoulder, he unceremoniously dumped her on the bed.

Beka scrambled to sit up, looking up just in time to see Rosto heading toward her open door.

Then, as if changing his mind, Rosto cursed and slammed the door shut. Rounding on her he asked hotly, "What in Mithros' name were you doing? Were you trying to get yourself killed?"

Beka began to speak but Rosto interrupted her as if she had never spoken. "Because if you want, next time I'll just leave you for Josef to kill with his bare hands!"

"I don't need you to protect me," Beka told him calmly.

Rosto's eyes flared with anger. "Oh, so coves like Josef can hurt you over a silly dice game?"

"I can take care of mysel-"

"Have you seen the size of that Rat? He could squash a small mot like you with his own bare hands!"

She had indeed noticed. Just like she was now noticing that there was something attractive about a man that gets so angered over one's safety. She watched the man in front of her with undisguised admiration as he ranted on, wondering how he would react when he told her the whole thing with Josef was put on.

"But it's not your job to protect me, Rosto."

The look he gave her told Beka he thought otherwise. "Not protect- Beka that man could have killed you! Did you just expect me to sit around and watch it happen? I had to protect you! That's what you do for the people you love, Beka!" he shouted without thought.

He stopped and looked away, mentally cursing himself. He had meant to scold her, not declare his love. Again.

Shaking his head, Rosto turned again toward the door. "I guess it's just my curst luck to have fallen in love with such a mot who always tries to do what's right and thinks naught about her own safety. One that'll do what she wants to do no matter how much you try and stop her. I suppose I better leave before I make an even bigger fool of myself."

Beka immediately jumped up as he reached for the door handle. "Rosto-!" she called.

He tried the door. It was locked.

"Kora…locked it," she explained quietly when he turned to look at her. "With her magic. Only I can open it."

"Why would she…?" His question trailed off as Beka stepped closer to him. She was shy all of a sudden. For some silly reason, hope swelled inside of him at the sight of her.

He turned away abruptly, all too aware of her nearness and the emotions it aroused. "Then open the door so I can be of no more bother to you-"

"Rosto."

The way she said his name caused him turn around again. He was surprised to find her standing right in front of him, looking at him. The hope returned within him.

Not wanting his hopes to be crushed, he again tried to dampen the feeling by telling her to open the door. But he was only halfway through what he wanted to say when Beka snaked her arms around his neck and- standing up slightly on her toes- brought her lips up to meet his own.

Rosto barely had time to register what was happening before she pulled away. Torn between asking her how that had all come about and crushing his lips to hers, Rosto stared.

Uncomfortable under his gaze, Beka ducked her head, a hint of red touching her cheeks. Under any other circumstances, Rosto would have smiled upon seeing that, but he was too dumbfounded to notice.

"Kora, Aniki, and I," she said quietly, unable meeting his gaze, "we concocted the whole thing with Josef this morning. Aniki paid him off to simulate the whole fight. Coin-loving coves can always be bought. I figured the only way I could get you to talk to me again would be to do something like that. And when I got you up here, I didn't want you to leave-" She stopped and took a deep breath. "I didn't want you to leave before I had the chance to tell you that I love you."

Rosto stiffened. She said it quickly but there was no mistaking what she had said. Beka loved him. Beka loved him.

Misinterpreting his silence, she rattled on. "And I can understand if you're angry now about the whole Josef thing and the way I've treated you in the past. You're right. You aren't like my Ma's rushers, it's just taken me a long to time to acknowledge that, and I'm sorry. If you never forgive me, that's fine. You're a fine man, Rosto the Piper. A finer man than most any I've met, and I just wanted you to know that."

Again, she was met with silence.

After a moment, she stepped around him, not daring to meet his gaze. "Let me get the door for you," she said quietly.

Hearing the dejected tone in her voice that she tried so well to hide, Rosto quickly snapped out of his shock, and as she placed her hand on the door handle, his hand quickly shot out to cover hers. Beka felt the warmth of his body behind her, inches away from her own, as his thumb gently stroked the back of her hand. When he spoke, she felt his breath on her cheek.

"Beka," he breathed.

Unsure of what to do, she just stood there until he commanded her softly, "Look at me, Beka."

She turned and Rosto gently raised her chin with his knuckle.

"You silly gixie," he told her with a shake of his head. "Most mots try to get a man's attention through flirting and soft touches. Instead, you throw yourself into the path of one of the deadliest coves in the city. You're cracked, do you know that?" He took her hand and raised it to his lips. "And I love you all the more for it," he said in a low voice as he brushed his lips across the back of her hand.

It was Beka's turn to stare.

Rosto lifted his hand and slowly ran his fingers across her cheek, his eyes never leaving hers. "I felt like a looby when it seemed like you didn't return my feelings. Did you not wonder why I wasn't showing up to breakfast?"

"I did wonder," she said, distracted by his warm touch. "I assumed you hated me after I said all those things about you."

Tilting her chin up, Rosto looked down at her. "I thought you couldn't stand the sight of me. After that fight we had, and last night when you left the Dove, and then this morning with Josef- I thought the gods were punishing me, having the woman I love not being able to stand me."

"I was scared," she said, looking down again. "Scared to love you."

He tugged the hand he held, gently wrapping an arm around her as he brought his face close to hers. "You're scared to love me, yet you voluntarily put your life in danger every night for the safety of the city. You are cracked." He chuckled. "And loving me will be the easiest thing you do. I'm very easy to please. And if anyone tries to hurt my Beka, they can expect a quick visit to the Black God himself."

She looked up into his humor-filled eyes. "I've told you afore, I belong to no one, you big white-haired looby. Especially to such an older man as yourself." The laughter in her eyes belied her serious tone.

Rosto chuckled deeply. "Yes, but you have yet to experience the advantages of having an older man, love," he said in a rough voice. "You'll soon be thanking the difference in our ages."

The wicked gleam in his eyes set her heart pounding.

"Well then," she said softly. "Mayhap it's time you demonstrated some of these advantages."

The smile on his face reflected how he felt. He had never felt so happy. "I thought you'd never ask."

Then, placing a hand behind her head, he brought their lips together. Beka clung to him, matching his kisses with her own, breathing in the scent that was Rosto. When his lips moved to her neck and then up toward her ear, she gasped his name as he whispered in her ear.

Rosto chuckled roughly.

Outside, on the other side of the door, Pounce got to his feet. "Come, Achoo," he beckoned to the hound still sitting outside the door. "I have a feeling we'll be on our own for the midday meal."

Realizing he was not being followed as he reached the top of the stairs, Pounce looked back. Seeing Achoo still at the door, Pounce baited, "I think Kora's out in her herb garden…"

Immediately, Achoo hopped up and bounded for the stairs. Pounce followed at a more leisurely pace, shaking his head. "Silly pup."

Meanwhile, the door to Beka's quarters went unguarded- and unopened- for many hours…

A/N: To be continued in a third fic…. :P

Thanks everyone for reading!!! I'll try to get the first chapter to the next fic up as soon as I can (probably won't be till after the first of the year though seeing as how the holidays and the end-of-semester crunch are coming up)! Also I may write a short something in between. I haven't decided yet.

Message me if you have any questions or want to talk. I'm also an active moderator on three forum boards (All About DOM, The Men of Tortall, and Beka and the Rogue) so feel free to drop in and say something! New voices are always welcome :) (The links to each forum are on my profile page if you're interested!)

Thanks!!