Dance, My Princess, Dance
Chapter I
The moon shone bight over Notre Dame hat night. The silence in the streets made it seem as if every single soul had already fell into a deep slumber. Well, not everyone.
Clopin Trouillefou stood against a wall, waiting for his fellow gypsy companions to return.
"They better hurry up." He muttered o himself under his breath.
Everyone knew it was dangerous for a gypsy to be out at night, but hey, people had to eat, right? Even the Gypsy King couldn't manage to do miracles, much less one big enough to feed his entire people. He sighed. Their lives were difficult all right, but it sure was exciting.
A few moments later, he heard steps approaching him. Even in the dark, he could recognize the colorful patterns of their clothes and the cheerful ringing of the bells and jewelry on them. He was also still wearing his jester outfit, since he had been performing all evening straight, and as if it weren't obvious, Clopin had put on one hell of a show. Now, three figures appeared before him, running at a rapid pace to meet him.
"Monsieur Clopin! We got the goods!" Said a female voice in the distance. She up a bag filled with what appeared to be some fruit and cheese. Two other men appeared beside her, carrying long pieces of bread in their hands.
"Ah, excellent, ma chèrie! We shall have a marvelous feast tonight!" Clopin exclaimed as he instructed the three gypsies to follow him.
"Could you make less noise with the stuff you're carrying, Aldric?" The girl gestured to the big man with the bread. He was tall and muscular, and wore two golden bracelets on hi right wrist.
"Pardon me, mademoiselle Jaelle, but I don't see you carrying much besides those tiny apples." Aldric responded.
"Hah, he got you." The last man said. He was, by far, the shortest of the group, and his face made him look a lot younger too.
"Shut up, Theo." Jaelle snapped at him while he smirked back.
"Why don't you all shut up and focus on getting back home without getting caught, eh?" Clopin said as they all nodded back.
The Court of Miracles wasn't very far, but that didn't make the trip back easier. Soldiers could catch them at any moment. Nevertheless, Clopin didn't worry much. He was, after all, the king of successful getaways. Or at least, that's what he thought.
"You there, gypsies! Halt!" A voice shouted from behind them even before they got trough the cemetery gates. The four gypsies turned around slowly. Now, running would mean a long, persecution. It was too late for that. So maybe they could talk their way out of it.
"Bonsoir, monsieur! How do you do?" Clopin tipped the top of his hat at the soldier with his sword pointed at them.
"Men! We got four of them!" The soldier shouted. From behind, a carriage appeared from darkness of the street. Clopin cursed as five other soldiers began making their way towards them.
"Run." He ordered.
They started to do so, but they didn't have to go far to see they were surrounded, not to mention outnumbered.
"Keep your filthy hands off me!" Jaelle yelled as she struggled to get free of a soldier's grip. Her tone was fierce. She had always been tough, good enough reason for Clopin to let her tag along with him on their trips outside. But tonight, it didn't seem enough.
They had them. They had caught them, and soon they would be cuffed and taken God knew where.
"What do you think? These might be good enough for him." A soldier said as he stroked Jaelle's cheek. She tried to bite the soldiers hand as he backed away disgusted.
"You filthy witch! They never change, eh?"
"What do you have there?" Another one took the fruit bag from Theo's hand. "You little thief!"
"We didn't steal it, we collected." Theo corrected. It was true. They were saving up supplies until they gathered enough money to buy some more. They had simply had gone to bring the food they had already earned.
"Silence! You will all come with us, now!" Each soldier cuffed the gypsies' hands and pulled them around with a chain. They took the first three inside the carriage, while Clopin was left staring. Not everyday he got to get the feeling of watching his own people be treated like animals into their cages. A horrible sight for the eyes of a gypsy; eyes that were never meant to even gaze at the wonders this world had to offer. Or so the high-wealthy pigs up there thought.
"Don't fall behind!"
"You can't do this! Where are you taking us? You have no right." Clopin yelled. This couldn't be happening. They couldn't get caught, not under his watch.
"Orders of his Majesty, the King."
"King?" He asked, as he was finally pushed into the carriage along the others.
"Where are they taking us, monsieur Clopin?" Jaelle whispered.
"I don't know. Those bastards did mention something about a King, though." He responded.
"Oh, mon Dieu! They're going to hang us, won't they?" Theo exclaimed.
"Keep calmed, Theo. We'll be fine." If Clopin had his hands free, he would have slapped him.
The carriage finally came to a stop, and the soldiers pulled the chains that held the four gypsies together. Clopin couldn't believe his eyes. Everything was different. The floors, the lights; hell, even the air smelled different. But the palace… it was enormous.
They entered trough a huge pair of doors and walked trough several fancy corridors.
"You three!" A soldier pointed out Jaelle, Theo and Aldric. "You come with me" He separated the chains and pulled them with him.
"No! Monsieur Clopin! Don't leave us!" Theo tried to hold back, but failed.
"Do not worry, mon ami. You'll be fine." He hated lying, especially to his own friends.
They had Clopin alone in the hallway. He looked down. The black and white squares on the floor made him feel dizzy.
We need to get out of this place…
"The King will now see you." A voice called from behind. "Follow me." What could he do? He was cuffed ad trapped inside somewhere he didn't know, so he just followed. He entered trough gigantic, shiny doors once more. Inside, the first thing he noticed was the large number of soldiers inside. 15, 20 at least, Great. That way he' never get out.
Oh yes… there was also a man sitting in a big throne, who was eyeing him so carefully it almost stung.
"I see you got him." He said.
"Yes, your majesty, as you ordered." Voiced called to respond.
"Where are my friends?" Clopin interrupted.
"Friends? Oh, don't worry, gypsy, I'll have a role assigned for all of them, including you."
"Pardon me, monsieur, but I do have a name."
"Oh. And what would that be?" The king asked.
"My name is Clopin Trouillefou, monsieur, not gypsy."
"Very well, monsieur Trouillefou. Now that you're feeling more comfortable, let's talk about why you're here." He nodded to a soldier as if giving him a signal.
"These gypsies shall obey and work for his majesty, the King, as he pleases them to do so. They shall live in the palace, but they will have to work either way. They shall not – "
"What? Work for you?" Clopin interrupted once more what seemed to be a perfectly rehearsed set of words.
"Is there a problem?"
"Of course there is a problem! You cannot do this. We're free." Clopin said.
"Oh, don't worry. Your job won't be as difficult as the other's. In fact, it is what you do best, if I'm not mistaken."
"What do you mean?"
"You will be a personal buffoon around the castle. As I understand, you're the best jester in town."
And Clopin laughed. He laughed so hard that he had to stop when his insides started to hurt.
"I'm sorry, monsieur, but I am no one's clown. Especially not for people like you."
"Well, we might be able to arrange that." He signaled a soldier once more. This one didn't give another speech tough; this time he swung his arm into Clopin's stomach. He grunted in pain, until he finally surrendered to his knees.
"Please, do not take this as a form of slavery, monsieur. If you and your friends behave, I will consider a fair amount to repay your services." The King said with a wearing a wicked smile on his face.
"Besides, you will not be serving me." The soldiers pulled Clopin up and dragged him by his shoulders and out the doors. "You will be serving the princess, and the princess only. Best of luck!"
The doors closed as the King muttered those last words. Clopin couldn't hold on much longer. His head spun quickly, and the pain on his body didn't help much either.
"What? P-Princess?"