Criminal Behavior

*2

Lessons in lawlessness; otherwise known as growing up with your enemy.

The anguish that crosses his face is heartbreaking.  "Étoile, I can't lose you.  You're my light in the dark."

She nods solemnly.  "Then you know what you need to do, don't you Bassy??"

When Leroy Baptiste Bélanger married Hiram Ezekiel Berry he decided for the sake of their future children to forgo his surname and just become Leroy Baptiste Berry.  But when their precious bundle of joy, Rachel Barbara, came around neither of them let her forget his French roots.

Little Rachel spent many happy summers frolicking around at her grandparents' peaceful French estate. Running joyfully through the fields of lavender with Grand-mère when she was a toddler and into her childhood years.

It was wonderful, a gloriously peaceful escape from the day to day doldrums of life in Ohio.

Things change some during the summer when she turns 10, Mèmè (as she has now taken to calling her grandmother, Granny in French) and Grand-père have friends staying at the guest house. An older couple from just outside of the city, come for a summer in the more remote, calming French countryside.

And since the guesthouse is honestly the size of a large house back in Ohio, the lovely older couple, the Devereux's, have their daughter, son-in-law and grandson with them as well.

Stoic, rich American lawyer.

Beautiful, French dancer of a woman.

And a high spirited boy just Rachel's age.  Tall for his age.  Precocious. With sandy brown hair and vibrant, blazing, mischievous green eyes.

Eyes which instantly intrigue a young Rachel Barbara Berry.

She is trying to make floral headbands with some of the lavender when she hears a male voice murmuring in French.  Thankfully she can understand it fluently by now so she knows they are talking about her in a way.

'Arrête d'être une nuisance, Sebastian. Pourquoi ne vois-tu pas si leur petite fille jouera avec toi?'
('Stop being a nuisance, Sebastian. Why don't you see if their little girl will play with you?')

Her ears perk up at that. The man, she's assuming it is the father, wants the boy to come play with her.

Rachel's eyes raise from the crown in her hands as she hears shuffling through the field. The bored looking boy plops down across from her in the grass. Plucking blades out with his fingers as he offers a stilted greeting in French.

"Je suis Sebastian. Ils voulaient que je joue avec toi. Rien de girly, d'accord?"
("I'm Sebastian. They wanted me to play with you. Nothing girly, okay?")

Rachel smiles shyly at him, close up he is even prettier to look at.  Her French is tinged with a slightly Americanized accent as she responds back to him.

"D'accord. Rien de trop girly. Je m'appelle Rachel."
("Okay. Nothing too girly. My name is Rachel.")

The boy, this Sebastian, he lights up at the sound of her voice. Green eyes glimmering with glee. Giggling he starts to speak again, in flawless English this time.

"Thank goodness! I can speak English again. Rachel, can I call you Rachie? Please?? You can call me Sebby if you'd like. And I'll do anything you want just as long as I don't have to speak French for a while."

Rachel nods eagerly, switching into English as well. "Okay Sebby... I was trying to make flower crowns if you wanted to help. I can't get them to stay together right."

She pouts slightly as she holds out the half constructed floral crown from him to see. Sebastian's eyes narrow as he scoots closer to her, carefully grabbing the crown out of her hands to inspect it. "Sure thing! I think I know how to fix this, they're trying to teach me all sorts of knots and braiding things in Scouts."

And just like that, the two of them lose a few hours perfecting their techniques. Making floral crown after floral crown.

Sometime close to dinner Rachel and Sebastian are laying on their backs, glancing up at the clouds floating overhead. Crowns of lavender atop both of their heads.  Just rambling nonsensically as children do.

"When I get married I think I want to wear a flower crown now.  This thing is really cool.  Sebby, would you marry me if I wore a flower crown??"

Sebastian turns his head to look at her, green eyes staring into brown, before he gives a little shrug.  "Maybe.  Ask me tomorrow.  We can make a deal, if I see you when we're old and you're still pretty then I'll marry you."

Nothing else runs through the mind of a 10 year old Rachel Berry other than Sebastian, a boy her age with 'pretty eyes' saying he thinks she's pretty.  So a blush colors her cheeks as they both hear someone calling for them from the main house.

'Rachel? Sebastian? Dîner, mes chers enfants.'
('Rachel? Sebastian? Dinner, my dear children.')

Leaving them to go their separate ways at least for the rest of the evening.