Mon Étoile

Chapter Three

Darkness surrounded me as I sat in the passageway. Léo had some meeting or something he had to go to and had insisted I hide to make sure I wasn't seen by a servant. I had been here for at least three or four hours. At first I had simply sat in the darkness, but then I began to grow restless and I began pacing around in the dark. An hour later, I crumpled on the ground and curled up in a ball.

My stomach grumbled and my body shook as the cold bit through my skin. The rags in which I was dressed left my arms bare. Carefully, I smoothed out the wrinkles of my dress, feeling the cloth stiffened with dried blood. Tears filled my eyes. If Hercule was here he would hold me and I could cry for as long as I wanted, but I couldn't cry here. Not in the dark all alone when Léo might come back at any moment.

Not a moment after the thought crossed my mind, the door to his room opened. I held my breath, unsure what was on the other side of this wall, but I stayed perfectly still like a hunted animal in their hiding place. The wall was pushed inwards and Léo appeared as well as blinding light. "Apologies," he said, holding a hand out to help me up. "I thought I'd be done far sooner."

I said nothing and stood on my own as I didn't want to know how it would go with my hands still cuffed together. The moment I was out in the light, Léo grabbed my wrists, causing me to flinch. He didn't seem to notice. He carefully slipped a key into the lock of the cuffs and soon the restraining metal fell from my wrists. These he set in the passageway as I carefully rubbed my wrists, trying to ease the flaming burn of the bruises formed and unformed.

It was dark outside and the only light came from several lit candles around the room. In the secondary room with the table, there was a plate with some bread, cheese, and a sliver of meat. Gesturing to the table, Léo said, "Eat." Giving him an uncertain look, I sat and took the bread first. The meat was so foreign to me that I left it for last. I had no need of it as I had felt full after even a few bites of bread, but after thinking a moment, and glancing over at Léo who was currently skimming over a book, I nibbled at the brown meat.

When nothing seemed wrong with it, I ate the rest. When I had finished, I fiddled with my ring. It was a simple one. The gold band was thin and simple, but it had made me smile every time I saw it. But now it saddened me. As I ran my thumb over the metal, Léo asked, "When did he ask?"

"The moment he realized how this would end and that I would never leave him...and that I wasn't afraid," I said. Smiling, I explained, "If you really want to know what happened, I have to start from the beginning."

Seven Years Earlier
I sat crouched in the alley as I waited for the tavern to throw out their food that went bad. I had been here about an hour, hoping to beat the other street rat who attempted to steal my food last time. The door creaked open and I crouched lower, knowing that if they spotted me I'd have the police to deal with. The moment they were gone, I sprinted for the bin, hoping to get there before the other small figure that was streaking towards it.

The moment I reached it, I found two full loaves of bread. They were burned, but I broke opened the bread and it was fresh and warm inside.  A small girl stood behind me, looking at the bread as if it was her lifeline. I sighed and approached her. After a moments hesitation, I handed her the other loaf. Without a word, we parted ways and I began to eat.

As I walked down the street, I passed by a man standing on his own, looking around the square with confusion. He was dressed in a deep blue coat and was very clearly from the upper class. I rolled my eyes as I passed in my rags and started eating small morsels if bread. "Mademoiselle," a voice called. I kept walking, never having been addressed as such and assuming it was someone else. "Mademoiselle!" I kept on until a warm, large hand gripped my forearm.

I flinched, jumping back from him and bracing myself against the wall. His voice was soft as he asked, "Mademoiselle, are you warm enough?" I was so shocked I remained silent, open-mouthed. "Mademoiselle?"

"N-No, Monsieur," I stuttered finally, still keeping my distance from him.

"What's your name, Mademoiselle?" he asked.

"N-Nicolette," I said nervously, trembling from head to toe.

Brows furrowed, he asked, "Why are you afraid of me?"

"A-afraid, Monsieur?" I said, my body shaking so much that I had to catch myself as my knees gave out. He took a step towards me, but I jumped and ran as fast as I could, refusing to look back. I ran and ran as fast as I could until I was at least three or four blocks from where I had met the man. Leaning against a wall, I took deep breaths to try and calm myself down.

Present day
"That's how I met Hercule. I was terrified of him," I admitted, still fiddling with my ring. Glancing up, I saw Léo deep in thought.

"Why?" he asked, brows furrowed.

"He was rich," I said simply. "I was poor. He could have raped me and no one would have cared. That's why I was frightened."

"So if you were scared of him, how did you two even start talking?" Léo asked. I thought back, thinking over the memories, but I had to repress a yawn. Noting this, Léo said, "Never mind, you can tell me tomorrow. You should rest." Standing, he looking around trying to figure out where I would sleep.

Chuckling, I grabbed a few of the blankets and said, "I can sleep in the passageway. Just leave it cracked. That way I'm less likely to be seen." He seemed slightly hesitant, but agreed and soon I was quite comfortable. Not a minute after I had lain down, I was fast asleep.