Her Hero

Now she knew Mama was not coming back.
    It started with the blackening sky, the thunderstorms, scattered rain then scattered bombs. When chunks of cement and bricks were hurled into the sky she knew her Mama was not coming back.
     When the air raid was over all she was left with was a pile of debris for a house and her mother's favorite white rose. She would press her face against the plush twirl and feel a pleasant warm pit lodge in her chest. She knew the rose was important. Whenever her Mama was sad she would steal away to her room and take the rose. When she came out the happy glow would be restored to her face. She also knew the rose was special. She had passed the flower vendor on the corner. At the beginning of the week the flowers were colorful, happy and upright. At the end of the week they were drab, sad and downturned. This rose lived since Mama was a little girl. This rose had seen corsets to short skirts to shoulder pads. This rose had seen treaties, alliances, assassinations and two wars.
    "Take this rose and don't you ever loose it until the day you don't need it."
    "How'll I know Mama?"
    "You'll know, I promise. D'you promise to keep it until that day?"  She nodded dutifully and held the rose close to her bosom with two small, chubby hands. When her Mama slipped into the taxi cab and drove away she tried running after the checkered vehicle. She thought the rose made her invincible. Now she knew she was everything but.

    It was on his second day wandering about the rubble and ashen remains of London. While his mum was slaving away over textiles and his classmates were slaving away over complicated addition and subtraction problems he was wandering the affected areas of London. He enjoyed climbing and crawling through the chunks of building and scattered beams. He made himself believe he was a fantastic superhero explorer, hot on the trail of some fantastic discovery. He had found an empty tin can, a telephone dial, a door knob and a grainy silver ring. Little did he know he was about to make his biggest discovery yet.

    It was her second day alone when he found her. She was slumped on the stump of a pillar with the rose stuffed in her face. Whenever she got sad, tired or hungry she would just stuff her nose into one of the soft folds of the flower. When she saw him she couldn't help but smile. The first site of him was a bobbing tweed cap surfacing from the pile of ruins. He was scrawny, ungainly with a set of big ears and big teeth. He seemed to be to engrossed in whatever was inside of his bag to notice her. She started to giggle when she heard his commentary. "Captain Almond's on the case,  blimey look at this magical ring! Sure to grant ye any wish you want! Sure to make the headline all around the world!" When he heard her laugh he spun around and glared at her.
    "Don't be daft! This int' laughin' matter lassie! This is the next most impor'ant thing ever! With this very ring I'll save the world! I'll give it t'all the big people in the goferment they favorite wishes!"
    "Really?"
    "Really."
    "Do you think you could ask somfin' of yer ring fer me?"
    "What?"
    "Tell it ta please make me safe."
    "It'll be considered." She squirmed and stared at her feet. They stayed like that a while, he standing uprightly and ambitious in front of her, while she slouched and let her mind wander.
    Then the sirens started to  wail.
    "Quick, com 'ere lassie! The x-terinatons are upon us! No fear I shall protect ye!" He grabbed her hand and she was yanked off the pillar.
    "Wait!" She dragged him back so she could retrieve the fallen rose.
    "No time! They are upon us!" They scrambled through the rubble then galloped through cobblestone streets. The sirens screeched and emitted pulsating lights. Above them airplanes infested the sky, they sounded like a pack of hornets. The buzzing, propellers, the piercing whistles followed by the grand explosion. Not thirty yards away from them a building erupted into a million pieces. They continued running. Her worn shoes rubbed blisters into her feet and she begged him to stop, but he kept running dragging her along.
    "We have arrived to safety milady!" They stopped in front of a subway stop, the sign was turned upside down, rusted and hanging to the post by mere threads.
    "Come on!" They bounded down the steps into the murky mouth of the public transit station.
    It smelled like dirty water, sweat and dirt. She started to cry and felt the small arms of her rescuer clasp around her.
    They stood there not moving. They stood there amongst hundreds of others, the only children, with no parents, hungry, thirsty, hurt, dirty and happy.  She felt safe. She felt the familiar pleasant warm pit lodge in her chest. She felt safe. He had promised himself to her, she was his lass, he would transform into Captain Almond the superhero explorer to rescue her from the face of danger.
    "I promise ya tha whole entire world." He slipped his magical ring onto her finger, kissed her and her collected her back into a hug. In their tight embrace she smiled knowingly and loosened her grip to let the rose escape into the breeze for another person in need.