Prologue

I stood behind my farther in desperate fear as six men on horses surrounded us, the only weapon he had to protect us was a small knife. We were not a violent family. My mother held my sister tightly in one arm and in the other she pulled me close to her. I could see the fear in her eyes but all I could see in my farther was rage. Something I had never seen in him before and it scared me. It scared me more than the looming horses above us or the snapping dogs at our feet.

Everything happened quickly that night but I remember my mother dragging me under a horse and fleeing from the men, but my farther did not run with us. He stayed and excepted his fate. I remember screaming from him to run but he didn't. He just slumped to the floor with sword in side and died, giving us time to escape.

My mother continued to drag me away from the open field and into a deep forest, thorns and sharp twigs tore at the skin of my legs and feet and cut my skin to ribbons but i kept running, the sound of dogs barking and angry shouts drove us on but we were getting tired and slower. My mother passed a bundle of blankets, called my sister over to me and told me to run. I was fast but even with the distance i had put between us I knew she had met the same fate as my farther...but they didn't kill her instantly. My mother was very pretty. I could hear her screaming, but I blocked it out and continued running, my little sister crying in my arms.

We ran for many years, though my sister hated moving from one place to enough. Eventually we settled in Paris but again we had to move on when we were accused of stealing. Now a few years later we are back again.

Today is my sisters sixteenth birthday and all that happened sixteen years ago, but she doesn't remember, of course she doesn't. She thinks our parents abandoned us and I have looked after her for her whole life. I haven't told her otherwise. How nice it must be to not know. I wish I did not know but I do. I wont tell her what happened, she wouldn't understand.

"Serena wake up! Look!" Rosella shouted in her older sisters ear. "Notre Dame!"

Serena sat bolt up right in the boat and looked up at the cathedral, in her teens she would go there alone and pray, she would ask for courage and strength to take care of her sister and herself and she would ask to be invisible. The threat of the six men still loomed over her greatly, but she hadn't seen them for years. It was the village people and soldiers came her main threat they wanted her dead. She had never committed a crime in her life and barely spoke to anyone to make enemies but killing a gypsy didn't need a valid reason, only a feeble excuse.

Serena paid the man that ferried the boat and guided her younger sister into the streets. "Stay close Rose, don't buy anything off of anyone and whatever you do, don't talk to musketeers." She knew her younger sister had a fascination with uniforms and the musketeers were very close with the cardinal and that was someone she never wished to meet. She had heard his opinions of gypsies and knew she would be wearing a noose if he ever see her.

"Serena you worry too much." Rosella said sweetly. "Can I go now?"

Serena looked at her younger sister, her blue eyes, tanned skin and light hair made her almost doll like, she was very pretty and very easily persuaded. Serena was often the one dragging her out of trouble. "Wait just a minute." Serena reached into her bag and pulled out a gold bangle, she passed it over to her sister. When Serena was a child, her mother gave her one of her gold bangles with her name engraved on it, as a gift. Rosella had one too but it was too small and neither of them had the money to get it made bigger. "I had been saving for a long time to get it bigger so you could wear it, i know you missed wearing it." Serena smiled.

Rosella grinned, ear to ear and threw her arms around her sister and hugged her tightly. "Thank you Serena, I love it, but it must have cost a fortune!"

Serena waved her hand to dismiss her words. "It doesn't matter what it cost, i wanted to you have it again."

"You shouldn't have spent the money on me but im glad to have my bangle back." She gave her sister a bright smile and waved strode off into the crowds of people.

"Please be careful." Serena whispered as she watched her go.

Please review and thanks for reading! Musketeers will make their appearance soon!