Facing Reality

Hi, Lamia here! I've had this in my folders for months now and forgot about it so I thought it was about time I posted it somewhere. Enjoy and do tell me what you think!
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"I don't know who you are anymore."

Cruella turned sharply towards Jasper, eyebrows slightly raised. "I'm whom I've always been, darling. Nothing's changed."

"Nothing, you say?" He chuckled humourlessly. "Well, you see, that's where you're wrong. And I know such a notion is foreign to you, but as hard as it is to believe it doesn't change the fact that it's true. Everything. Has. Changed." Jasper raised his tone a notch, emphasising every word like it would help her understand. Her bored, if somewhat exasperated expression only served to annoy him more.

"We're spending our days organising fashion shows now, helping you one up the Baroness. There's no more petty thievery, no more walks around Regent's Park looking for some easy pickings. And don't get me wrong, stealing or shows, it doesn't matter what we do as long as we do it together. The three of us. For the three of us. But the only person benefiting from this is you." Cruella opened her mouth to protest but got swiftly interrupted.

"Did you notice we were running out of money or that me and Horace have been using our personal savings to fund these-" Jasper waved his hand vaguely around the place they've been calling home for a little more than a decade. "-projects of yours? You talk to us just enough to tell us what you need, order us to get it and what? You thought they came for free? You think that with the sheer amount of supplies you require we could just steal it all? If we get lucky then maybe a fifth of you're lists we do, yeah; but everything else comes from our pockets."

He was getting angrier and angrier by the second. Getting up, Jasper started to pace back and front.

"We do everything for you! Anything you ask. And for what? You cannot be bothered to say 'please' and God forbid you ever say 'thank you'. You treat the fucking dogs better than you treat us! 'Do this Jasper!', 'Do that Horace!', 'Cancel your plans, dears. You're doing this tonight.', 'As touching as watching you waste the air that you're breathing by doing absolutely nothing is, how about you do something useful for once!?'.

Jasper chuckled, a twisted sort of sound. He shook his head in disbelief.

'And us? Poor. Idiotic. Imbeciles. That we are, we tell ourselves it's your pain talking. We say 'That's not our best friend, that's just her anger. One more day. One more task. One more... and she'll be back again. Everything is going to be fine. Ha! What a fucking cruel lie that is." Because that is exactly what he's been doing. Lying to himself.

"It's not my fault your pathetic enough to cling to the past, Jasper darling. What use does looking back have when there is a present to live and an oh-so-fabulous future awaiting?" Getting real close to his face and wearing that condescending smile of hers, she patted his cheek twice. "Mine. My future." Cruella backed away and Jasper could swear he could suddenly breathe easier.

"If you hate working for me so much then why don't you leave, hmm? There's no one stopping you."

"Working f-" He couldn't believe it. "Working for you?! We are helping you, our friend, out of the goodness of our hearts. We are not your employees; youryouryour... subordinates! We are doing this because it's what friends do."

He looked at her then, hoping for some kind of reaction, a glimpse of the girl that used to call them family. He found none, just her already looking down to her designs, not even pretending to listen to him.

"But I suppose you wouldn't know anything about that."

"I've managed just fine with you and Horace." She said dismissively. "Now go! You've kept me from my work for long enough and unless you've been hiding your talent as a designer until now so you can do the work for me, then I suggest you leave me to it." When Jasper remained unmoving, looking at her like she's grown another head, Cruella snapped at him. "Chop chop!!"

"Estella did just fine with us. Not you." That seemed to push Cruella's buttons. She slammed her hand on her working table, eyes blazing with anger and... hurt?

"Estella! Estella! Bloody Estella!" She hissed. "Always trailing after that weakling, aren't you? It's me that's here now, not her. When are you going to accept that she left, hmm? When are you going to accept that she's not coming back?" And then a whisper so, so quiet. "When are you going to accept me?"

Perhaps things would have gone differently if he'd heard her. Maybe some other things would have been said. Some other actions taken. Alas, he did not hear anything but the roaring blood in his ears.

"Estella is not weak! For all you claim to be the same I know she wouldn't agree with your ways; with how you treat others. Us. Me. She might need you right now to fight the past for her, but you're just a means to an end. I know she will be fighting tooth and nail to come back to us after all of this is done."

Cruella stood still then, face twitching ever so slightly, eyes wide and unseeing. It lasted for only a moment before her features went back to the stony mask she seems so fond of as of lately.

"Well, I'm sorry to have to burst that bubble of foolish hope, but that's just never going to happen. I can promise you that." She left then, not waiting for a reply.

Jasper felt Estella's absence even more. She would take a look at his face and sneak into the local bakery to get him some of his favourite biscuits. Biscuits, warm tea, a hug, a quiet 'We can't let a face like yours go without a smile.' and then everything would be fine.

Jasper didn't know if things would ever be fine again.