Growing up, Melissa had frequently watched her father and mother exchange gifts on Valentine's Day - although modest, they had always symbolized their devotion for one another, and Edgar carried on the tradition of placing roses over Eleanor's grave well after her passing. Years later, the second queen of Rosas was now very engrossed with the last touches of her own gift to her husband.
Now, Magnifico had everything he could literally wish for - so his wife had been working quietly but in secret, hoping that her time in the garden would not be considered as something strange to warrant suspicions. While it was true that Melissa enjoyed gardening and beekeeping and preserved bits of her old life, she had also been laboring on her Valentine's Day gift, months in advance.
Through a series of experiments and trial and error, the queen was able to eventually breed the perfect blue rose. They were not naturally available in the wild - it took Melissa a lot of time and the nudge of the soft magic she had received from the king to make it happen, and then grow enough for a bouquet, peppered with some smaller, white blooms that were evidently added to recreate his favorite colors and to match his intricate robes.
Once the gift was ready, the brunette went indoors to clean herself - dirty under her nails was never attractive, or dragging soil around their home. Once Melissa was properly changed into one of her indoors gowns, the queen picked up the bouquet and went to Magnifico's studio, knocking before entering and finding her husband perched over something that looked dense and terribly complicated.
"I hope whatever you are reading now can be finished later. I have something special for you," the woman said with the sweetest voice possible, keen on stealing his focus - and the idea of a special gift seemed to have worked, enough for the king to raise his head and watch his wife approaching with the bouquet, giving it to him after a kiss (not as intense as one would have liked, but just to avoid crushing her creations).
"I wanted to give you the perfect roses today, my love. It took me some time, but I finally have them. These blue roses - they are all yours," Melissa's eyes moved from the gift to his face next, "This is how my parents always celebrated this day and I wished to do the same with you."
Magnifico was staring intently at a page in his book when Melissa entered. At first, the wizard didn't know she was there. It wasn't until the Queen spoke that he abruptly raised his head and turned toward her. His hand, hovering over the page, closed. With it went the misty blue light that had been absorbing the information for him.
The King fixed his hair, swept his fingers down the front of his robes, and smiled for her. His heavy cape was draped over a nearby chair. Magnifico watched her approach with a raised brow, clearly curious.
"A gift ??" he questioned before his lips were stolen away from him.
After a moment, they parted, and the Queen presented the bouquet. Magnifico took it gently, cradling it in the crook of his elbow like a babe. He stroked one of the petals on the closest blue bloom. The texture and fragrance of the unique roses confirmed what his wife said : these were real. Magnifico's smile deepened at the hum of magic he could feel in them. She may have done quite a bit to plant and nurture them, but there was no doubt in his mind that these flowers had spawned from her own gifts. They carried a part of her with them.
"Exquisite," Magnifico breathed, leaning into to press a quick kiss to the corner of Melissa's mouth. The beautiful cobalt hue of the roses matched the vibrant color of his eyes perfectly.
" — but I can not take them all to myself, mi vida." Magnifico pinched a petal between his fingers and pulled it from a rose. He murmured under his breath, closed his fist around the fragile piece, and blew on his hand. When he opened it, there was a silver bag in place of the petal. Inside of it were small seeds, all of which were as blue as the roses in his arms.
"There, Melissa." The King tucked the gift into her fingers and then pulled her against his side. His expression was unusually tender. "For you, so that you may grow beds of them. Let a blue rose be the new symbol for our home — I really was never sure of the red."
Magnifico chuckled. He smoothed circles idly into her back as he admired how her cheeks had been kissed by the sun in her gardens. That she was without her crown or any significant jewelry only made him admire her further. Melissa was a gifted Queen, but she was an even better beekeeper.
That was who he had fallen in love with.
"My studies can wait," Magnifico said, tilting his head. "Are you hungry, my love ?? I asked the cooks to prepare us something special for tonight. We can go see if they are ready for us."