Odette || Les Misérables {Marius P.} ✔

♤4 - In My Life♤

1832

"Uncle?" Odette whispered, shaking Valjean awake.

"Yes, Odette?" Valjean groaned.

"Breakfast's ready." Odette smiled, pulling her uncle out of bed.

"Thank you, dear." Valjean thanked, finding his feet.

Odette left the bedroom and started to sweep up in the hallway, allowing her cousin to rest a little longer. When the dust had settled in a pile by the door, ready to be brushed out, Valjean left his room, dressed in his regular combination of a dress shirt and pants. As breakfast was a cold meal that morning, Odette had already served it. Odette knocked on Cosette's door, then allowed herself in to open the curtains, but again leave the silk drapes. Taking up the teacup and saucer that were resting on the bedside table, Odette nudged her cousin awake with her knee.

"Cosette, breakfast is on the table." Odette informed, taking the dishes out of Cosette's room.

"Oui." Cosette groaned, but just rolling over and sleeping again.

Odette smiled to herself and turned around to eat breakfast with her uncle. When Odette found out about her uncle, and when he mentioned it, they did not get along very well, but soon Valjean was treating Odette like his daughter.

-Flashback-
-Odette's POV-

1831

I was trying to distract myself from Cosette's father, who was living in another identity, who was also my uncle. The picture Papa had given me was tucked into my apron pocket, because I was intending on talking to Cosette's father about the whole ordeal, but I kept taking it out and trying to convince myself that the man in the photo wasn't who I was working for.

"Where did you get that image?" Cosette's father asked gravely, looking over my shoulder, suddenly appearing behind me.

Startled, I jumped at the quick presence. Making eye contact with Cosette's father, I swallowed uneasily, the lump in my throat obstructing the journey of my saliva.

"My father gave it to me... Valjean." I explained, whispering Cosette's father's real name under my breath.

"Don't call me that. I forbid it, as your uncle, that name is never to come out of your mouth again." Valjean ordered.

So he knew. He knew he was my uncle.

"You knew? You knew all along? And you didn't tell me?" I snapped.

"It was a secret that I chose to keep." Valjean stated.

"That wasn't your decision to make! You can't have just kept that secret! I thought I was alone! Mama and Papa were dead and there was just me!" I yelled.