VIVE LA FRANCE {a les miserables love story}

Chapter One

Being a Woman isn't easy. Being a Woman in the 1830s on the streets of Paris, that's nearly impossible. I was nineteen. I was nearly an adult, but still in the awkward stage of a woman's life, and said "life" was not treating me as it should a girl my age. I was living on the streets with my little sister, Cecily, my older brother Amos, and a cat the we had lovingly named Frufrac.

My name is Rayne Duéfráe and my life was about to drastically change.

Amos had been gone for two days, and he was the only one who knew where our supply of food was kept.

Cecily groaned from beside me as Fru jumped off of her lap to run after a rat. Her small arms reached out in an attempt to grab him before he scurried too far away, but Fru was too quick for her. Cecily let out a small whine, her eight year old body weak from not eating for three days, and I felt my body reach out without command, as though it was just instinct.

" come back, Fru, you cannot leave your lady in distress."

I pulled the ugly little cat by his back leg back to Cec, who held him tight and scratched his ears. Fru wiggled for a moment, but relaxed once Cec began to pet him.

I felt a smile break across my face as the little cat started to purr, the rumbling so loud you could have heard it from the street that led out of the Alleyway, although, I really shouldn't call it that. It's more of an enclave in from the street. I brushed a stray lock of brown hair out of my eyes as I observed the place we had started to call home.

It was dirty, and smelly, and the bricks holding up the walls of the buildings were molding. but we had managed to build a small structure out of wooden crates and stray bits of cloth I had sown together using threads I had found in bird nests. Amos would venture far into the fields and had collected us wood to make small fires whenever the nights became too brutal for us to handle, and when we managed to steal food from the Venders around the market area, we would almost get caught every time.

Our uncle had been put in prison for stealing a loaf of bread for our mother and oldest brother, Ramon, who at the time was our mothers only son. I had once had two older sisters, who had been twins, but they had died after a bout with Influenza.

My mind wondered to my family's past as Cecily leaned on me.

Our uncle Jean had been released after nineteen long years, but had run away from the law, and was supposedly still on the loose.

Amos had once been a twin to another sister, but our sweet Suzanne had drowned not six months ago. It had struck a blow to Amos, and he had become quiet and angry. Cecily, Amos, and I were the last of the Duéfráe children, and were quite possibly the last of a line of esteemed lawyers and doctors. But I was different from the rest of my siblings; I was born out of Wedlock.

Our mother, Jeanne, had had an affair with an English nobleman, and had not told our father until Cecily was three. He had been enraged and blamed me for our mothers adulterous nature, and he had beat me until he had broken my leg. Since we were poor, we could not pay for a doctor, and my leg had never properly healed. I walked with a limp, and if I exerted myself too much, my leg would become too sore for me to walk for many days. I sighed as my mind came back into reality, and as I heart footsteps approaching from the street. Amos walked over to our little hut and placed a small stack of wood next to a charred pile of ash. I gently placed Cecily on the ground and stood to confront my brother.

" Amos! Where in heavens name have you been? Bon Dieu, Amos!"

Amos turned to me an exasperated look.

" I was collecting wood."

" you know very well that doesn't take two days! Where did you go?"

Amos turned to me with an annoyed look.

" it took longer then usual, alright?"

I felt my temper start to rise. He started coughing, and worry began to prick my stomach, but I shoved it down. If he wasn't going to come out and tell me the truth, then he should go right on coughing.

" Amos, I know when you're lying, and I want to know what your lying about!"

He rolled his eyes and set to making a fire. I squinted at him suspiciously and my mind began to puzzle what he could have been doing. Then I hit me. Eponine!

" were you with Eponine?"

He stiffened and rose slowly to hit feet without looking at me.

" that isn't any of your business, is it, Rayne?"

" it is my business if my brother is stealing nights with my best friend!"

He turned to me with a glare, and I knew I had gone too far.

" you think 'Ponine and I are in love?! What in heaven's name possessed you to think that? We were just traveling the same path and happened to walk together for awhile, that's all!"

His face became blushed. Ah ha!

" so you don't deny being with her?"

His glare seemed to soften, as though in a memory, then snapped out of it and his face became hard once more,

" I won't deny anything. But I can promise you, nothing happened between us while I was away. We just talked and protected each other, that's all."

The anger in my stomach seems to loosen as he said this. He might have been bending the truth, but Amos never lied, not to me. I walked over to him and placed my hand gently on his shoulder.

" I'm sorry I yelled. But I do believe you."

He looked up at me with a smile.

" I forgive you, Rayne. And thanks."

I smiled and helped him to build a fire.

Kinda short, but I figured I'd better post it before I write more.

Good readings, my friends!

TheBoredWriter