Act Fifteen: Masque

Brief Preview: Roger Smith has undergone much since meeting R. Dorothy Waynewright, but it seems, at last, that the two of them are coming to terms with the obtuse relationship they share. A relationship that may or may not be a chance meeting, according to the painter who seems to double as a thought reader, Hope Dorland. Angel has betrayed Alex Rosewater, at the cost of possible peril to her own well being, and with the help of Schwarzwald, hopes to have stopped a trap laid for the Negotiator set at the Saint’s Day Ball by Rosewater. Roger, still having nightmares at a constant, though not steady, basis, nevertheless is overcoming them and returning to business almost as usual. A few noticeable exceptions are his treatment of Dorothy and a lack of prior habits that gave him the nickname of ‘ladykiller’ as far back as his days in the Military Police.

AN: I originally intended not to write the Saint’s Day Ball at all, since the idea has been done so often in other stories of Roger and Dorothy getting dressed up for some party or other and him seeing gasp how feminine and pretty Dorothy can look. But the storyline seemed, as I was finishing up fourteen, to call for the confrontation of forces at the Ball, and so our hero and his mechanical heroine will indeed be examined as they glide through the evening of revelry gone wrong. I’m not sure at all how long this Act will be, I don’t see it being as long as fourteen by any stretch of the imagination. But then this is from someone who said 6-10 parts for Act 14 and ended up with…twenty-five. Hope you enjoy this Act as much as the last one.

    ‘I am not entirely sure what is between Roger and I, so I decided to read up on the subject, but, as Norman warned me, books are not very helpful when it comes to this subject.’

    In two days I will become Cinderella.

    I believe the terminology is appropriate, considering my position in Roger’s household, and that I will be dressed up in fancy attire and going to a Ball on the arm of a tall, dark… well I would never call the Negotiator a prince, but he does have the cut of one according to all the books that I have scanned over. I think it will be a nice change to be out of the house and in Roger’s company when we are not working or doing chores to maintain the house.

    I only wish I could understand more of what I have read. The whole concept of love, as I have been studying books on the subject since the last time Beck was out of jail, lead me to believe that it is about marriage, and yet, anytime I broach the subject with Roger, he mentions nothing of the sort.

    Or perhaps I need to admit to myself that people do not marry androids, no matter what.

    But if people do not marry androids, can they care about them… as more than just convenient appliances?

***