Just a note- this was not what I expected it to end up as. I honestly had no idea where I was going with this when I started- all I knew what the pairing, the location, and that there were letters. Weel, anyways, I hope you like it! Please let me know what you think!

I let out a breath as I reached a small pocket of space before plowing on through the crowds. I was heading for the Palais Royal. That's right- I'm back in France. I haven't been here for several years, and things have definitely changed what with the Revolution and all. Even though J-F had mentioned it in our letters, it couldn't compare to being here.

I just turned in the smaller street that led to my destination. The road was crammed with houses and smelled of gutter- basically exactly the same as the last I'd been here. But instead of feeling at home like I was expecting, I felt a chill run down my spine. Something didn't feel right. I paused for a moment, when something… one touched my shoulder. I couldn't help it- I jumped. Whirling around, I saw a tall, scrawny girl with pale blue eyes and tangled white- blond hair.

"Cat?" I froze. How did she know my name? There was something vaguely familiar about her, too, but I knew no one that looked like that. I was sure of it. I hadn't left any enemies when I left- well, none that would be still looking for me now.

"Who are y- Annette?" It just struck who she might be. I was, after all, back in France.

"So it is you?" she asked cautiously, but her eyes darted around, and before I could answer, she pulled me back the way I'd come. "We'd better go."

"Wait! Where are we going? What about J-"

"Shhh!" Her grip tightened.

We quickly got back on the main street, went through a standard lose- all maneuver (for trackers, I mean), before entering another alleyway. Apparently, the maze of backways hadn't changed. Annette pulled me through a couple fast turns before pulling me into what seemed to be a regular house on the street. She shut door quickly but silently behind us, and then relaxed.

"It's good to see you Cat. I don't think we got a proper good- bye." When she smiled, she almost seemed like the old Annette.

"And now I'm back so we can say hello again. But what's happened? What's going on?"

She sagged a bit. "I better show you," she sighed, and began leading me through the maze of the house. It was dirty and there were holes everywhere, but at least it was neat. We suddenly turned left and stopped at a door. She knocked four times, paused, and then rapped two more times. A voice called out, but it didn't sound like it was actually saying something. Annette knocked three times, each rap in a different place on the door before bring a key from under her dress I hadn't noticed. She unlocked the door and let me in before following me through the door.

Inside, the room was a mess. There were papers everywhere, centered around a desk covered in dust and cracks. In the corner was a small bed with a rumpled lump, and in blankets on the floor laid a girl who I assumed was Marie. The lump moved and a head popped out. It tooke me a moment to recognize the face, and when I did, my jaw dropped. All of this seemed surreal. This was how the so- called Thief Lord had been living?

The body in the bed had frozen too. His eyes flashed in recognition, but his reaction was different than what I expected. J- F covered his eyes, and fell on to the bed with a small moan. I made a step forward, but Annette stopped me from going further. J- F opened his eyes, and rose from the mattress. It squeaked at the change of weight. He looked at me, and said coldly, "Why are you here?"

I frowned a little. He didn't have to be so mean about it. "I thought I'd visit for a bit. I wanted to see you again. And the rest of the gang too, I mean."

J- F sighed, but he smiled slightly. "Firecracker, you shouldn't have come."

I stepped forward until I was in front of him. I knelt down, adjusting my skirts. I stared at him, "What happened?"

He averted his eyes, but caught himself. He glanced back at me before looking down at his hands. "My father came back," he said in disgust.

I was surprised and confused, "I thought he couldn't. I mean-"

He cut me off. "Not him exactly- his new son."

I couldn't say anything, and after a pause J- F continued.

"This new 'prince' turned some of my court. Only Marie, Annette, a couple of my boys, and Grandfather stuck with me. And he died a couple months after I was thrown out. What men I had left, took off or were killed somehow. We never found them. So it's just us three now."

I was in shock. Renard dead? All of it was just so huge. None of this had made it to J-F's letters. We had been corresponding for three years- since I left France, actually. How long had they been living like this? It had been long enough for me to sort out all my feelings. Yes, I liked- loved J-F. I thought I was going through torture with all my confusion- but the old gang here in France had it far worse.

I sat there for- I don't know how long. When I resurfaced, J- F was watching me with his head resting on his hands. Looking around, I realized that Marie and Annette had disappeared. I got up and sat back down next to J- F, and leaned lightly against him and laid my head on his hunched shoulders. An arm wound around my back.

We sat there for several hours like that before we started slowly talking.