Corinne walked inside the coffee shop at noon. She ignored the gasps and annoying little whispers that came from the occupants of the restaurant and kept walking towards the register.
She looked at the cashier with a bored expression and sat down a couple of Euros on the counter. "Get me an espresso, please."
The girl looked at her and cautiously shook her head. "I'm sorry, Madame, but you're going to need a little more." She referenced to Corinne's three Euros that were lying on the counter.
The blonde sighed, reached into her pocket, and sat the extra Euro on her counter. She walked over to a booth and sat down after she was given her espresso. "Four Euros for an espresso?"
Corinne opened her backpack and took out an old, beat up, black laptop. As soon as the thing was powered on, she opened up Google and typed "how far is it to Paris."
Corinne took a sip of her espresso and examined the room while she waited for the annoyingly slow internet to work. She noticed some people stare at her but quickly revert their eyes. It was no surprise to her, though. In fact, it was expected. She was a bit of a recluse, so people acted very strange around the blonde.
She had just finished Term in Lycée and now it was time for what she had been preparing herself for, for the past twelve years. She was going to Paris to convince some of the military leaders to let her join some of the most restricted parts for females.
At this point, the blonde started hitting the laptop in annoyance. "Come on, Google! Boot!" She groaned and put her face in her hands. That's when she heard the bells of the coffee shop jingle in the slightest. She wouldn't have thought anything of it, if it would've been that whoever had just walked didn't scream her name.
"Corinne!"
"Mia?" Corinne looked up and faced the young girl.
Mia is a feisty fourteen year old girl and practically Corinne's best and only friend. She has shoulder length blonde hair with bangs and electric blue eyes.
The young girl sat down at the booth and faced Corinne. "Why are you beating your Acer?"
Corinne just sighed. "Because I have a warranty and the thing refuses to break."
Mia shrugged it off and stared at the blonde with much enthusiasm. "Well, anyway, are you really going to do it?" Her smile grew wider when Corinne nodded. The girl literally tackled her in excitement. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!"
"You are welcome. Now get off me, please." She pried Mia off her neck and smirked.
The girl had been Corinne's shadow since Mia had been in CM2. They both had developed the same dream in that time together.
"So…When are you leaving?"
"Tomorrow," Corinne looked down at her laptop again. "I was trying to map out the way before internet failed me. Again."
Mia smiled and pulled a piece of paper from her pocket. "No worries. Technology is worthless anyway." She gave her the paper, which turned out to be a map.
Corinne laughed as she shoved the map into her backpack, but her happy expression turned sour when the shop door opened again. In walked the two girls' worst enemies: Bailee Allard, Lauren Descoteaux, and the worst one of all, Layla de Chanel.
Those three girls are the snobbiest, most annoying, and just plain meanest girls in all of France. The made the lives of everyone legitimate nightmares, especially Corinne's.
No one really understood Corinne fully. She is very antisocial yet passionate in what she believes in, which causes much confusion to relatively anyone who's been around her. That's okay with Corinne, though, because she'd rather not have many friends to discourage her dreams.
Lauren, the titian-haired gossip machine, whispered something into Bailee and Layla's ears as they walked towards the counter. They all laughed as they ordered who-knows-what.
Corinne tried to cover her face with her laptop, but nothing could stop Layla's menacing, black eyes from marking her next prey. She spotted Corinne and walked over to the blonde and Mia, summoning her minions.
Layla scooted in the booth right next to Corinne as Bailee and Lauren slid in next to Mia, trapping her.
"Collinne, how great to see you!" Layla chirped mockingly, "It's like you never come out of your house."
Corinne rolled her eyes. "It's Corinne. And I don't come out of my house, only to avoid the impulsive, domineering, manipulative girls that hang around in places like…I don't know, coffee shops.
She could see Bailee, the most incoherent of the three, try to milk the insult out of what Corinne had just said. Layla and Lauren obviously got who she was referencing, but just shook it off like they do everything.
Layla draped her arm over Corinne's shoulders. "Oh, well, no need to worry about them. So, Corinne," She took a peek at her laptop which, to Corinne's dismay, had just loaded her search. "What are you doing?"
Corinne quickly shut the Acer and shoved it in her backpack. "Nothing. Now Mia and I are very busy so if you could excuse me." Everyone stood up, but Layla wasn't finished.
"Hey!" She yelled as Corinne walked away. "Don't get your hopes up blondie! No military officials would talk to you, let alone let you do whatever! If I were you, I would just-" Her voice was cut off when Corinne slammed the coffee shop door in the girls face.
Corinne and Mia walked alongside each other as they made their way to Corinne's truck.
As soon as they got there, Mia asked, "How's he holding up?" She climbed up into her truck
Corinne knew she was referencing to the old, beat up (Aren't all of her items?) pick-up truck parked at the curb. She took the keys out of her pocket and tried to power up the ignition. "Probably the same as when my dad drove him to Paris some forty years ago." She turned the key again and it just sputtered. "Someday, Mia. I swear, someday this truck is going to give up and finally die. It should've been forty years ago!" Corinne sighed and dropped her head onto the steering wheel, causing the horn to honk.
Mia laughed at Corinne's bewildered expression. The blonde just ignored her and turned the key again. This time it actually started up. "Is it really that hard?" She asked.
Corinne groaned and switched gears. "I'm telling you, Mia, this thing only wants to do what it wants, when it wants to!" She pulled out and drove down the main street to her private dirt road.
Mia mocked a gasp and rubbed the dashboard as if the thing were hurt. "Don't be mean, Corinne! You might hurt Alex's feelings and then he won't take you to Paris!"
Corinne smiled and shook her head. Her house was in view now. Well, it's not much of a house. More like a shack made out of concrete, but it was her home.
As she parked her truck, Corinne saw her mother through a window. Marie was no doubt worried sick about her daughter's insane ambitions, but an irrational part of her couldn't keep Corinne from the dream she had dreamed about since childhood.
Corinne sat down her keys on the counter when she walked into the small house. It had a sofa, an old television, a stove, refrigerator, a table and chairs, and nothing else. It may seem impossible for some people to live in the shack. It's impossible for Corinne sometimes, but that never mattered because Corinne practically lived outdoors.
"Hi, mom." She mumbled.
"Hi, Mrs. D!" Mia chirped out happily. Mia has always been the optimist of the bunch.
Marie smiled. "Hi, girls. Corinne, are you ready for your big trip tomorrow?"
Corinne sat down in a chair and smiled. "Mom, I've always been ready for this trip."
Marie chuckled and started unloading some grocery bags she had gotten from the supermarket. "I know, sweetie, but you've been too young. I highly doubted that Edmond Treville would listen to an eight year old girl." Corinne laughed but didn't say anything further.
The three sat down at the television to watch an interview that was supposed to be airing that night. It was the future president's first live interview on CNN.
As the program started, Mia squealed. "Oh, Louis Leferre is so cute!"
Marie laughed, but Corinne groaned from where she was sitting at the edge of the sofa. "If you say so."
Mia rolled her eyes. "Come on, Corinne! Louis will be the youngest president in France's history! And just look at him!"
It was true. Louis Leferre was the youngest president at eighteen and, even Corinne had to admit, he was quite the looker. She briefly wondered if he was single. Corinne immediately shook that thought away. She did not care for boys at this point in her life, although, Louis gets commended for catching the eye of the great Corinne D'Artagnan.
The television shows Gerard Facilier, the host, Louis, and vice president Philippe Beaumont, who is sitting causally in the chair. Louis tries to look relaxed but anyone could easily tell how nervous he is.
"Hello, France!" Gerard greeted. "Today I am here with the first live interview of our future president, Louis Leferre!" He turned toward Louis and smiled, showing off his pearly white teeth "Monsieur Leferre, how are you tonight?"
Louis smiled. "Please, call me Louis. And very nervous."
The host laughed and the audience followed. "We'll take it easy on you, won't we, vice president Beaumont?"
Philippe laughed and nodded. "Oh, yes, Gerard. Louis has a lot of expectations to live up to, you know, being the youngest president and the son of one of the greatest presidents in France's history."
"That's right." He turned towards Louis again. "You are the son of President Louis Leferre the first. You'll be the first successor who was related to a previous president in French history! Another record. And, Monsieur Beaumont, you have a son, don't you?"
"Yes, Brutus is my son."
Mia sighed in delight. "Oh, Brutus Beaumont is so cute!" Corinne just rolled her eyes and kept watching.
"Do you think he'll be running for president any time soon?" Gerard asked.
Philippe laughed. "Brutus is only fifteen. He's got a long ways to go before he could be ready for that kind of thing."
Gerard nodded understandingly. "Not everyone can be a prodigy like Louis here. Did you know he was doing professional level pyrotechnics by the time he was eight?" Louis put his head down in his hands as if embarrassed.
Philippe nodded in respect. "Very interesting, Monsieur Leferre. How did that interest a boy of such a young age?"
"Oh, um, it was mostly the fire part."
The two men laughed. When the laughter subsided, Gerard stared at him in the eye. "Okay, Louis. Now for a more serious question. Are there any 'romantic relationships' in the works right now?" He waggled his eyebrows.
Corinne couldn't help but show interest. Mia noticed. "Ooh! Corinne and President Leferre, sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-" Mia was cut off when Corinne shoved popcorn in the little girl's mouth.
"Shut up, Mia." Corinne groaned while she chewed up the popcorn.
Louis laughed. "Well, no. I've never really been into dating because of my schooling and the many classes I took when I was in my early teens, but I'm hoping to find the right girl someday."
"Aw, isn't that sweet. You never know, ladies. This president could be yours one day!" Gerard said. "Well, that's about all the time we have! Louis, Monsieur Beaumont, very nice to see you. Have a nice night!"
And at that, the programming went off leaving three people, sitting on the couch, watching NCIS.
"Well, that happened," Mia said. "Corinne, why don't you get ready for our trip tomorrow?!"
Corinne furrowed her eyebrows. "'Our' trip? Mia, you know you're not coming, right?"
"What?" she asked. "But why?"
"You're fourteen, Mia."
"Yes, and you're seventeen. Corinne, please let me go! I want this so badly!" Mia's whining was beyond irritating. She was fourteen and acting like a four year old.
Corinne sighed "No, now I need to rest, Mia. I have a big day tomorrow, you know." Mia's bottom lip quivered. "Oh, don't give me that!" The younger blonde's shoulders slumped as she walked out the door, leaving Corinne and Marie alone.
The woman laughed as she started on the dishes. "Oh, Corinne," she chuckled, "what am I going to do with you?"
Corinne whipped her head around and glared at her mother. "What's that supposed to mean? I think I handled that quite well." Marie just shook her head and laughed. "Mom, I'm going to bed. It's going to be a long day tomorrow." And at that, Corinne opened her bedroom door and collapsed on the mattress occupying the room.
The night was filled with dreams of bravery and sacrifice. Corinne would do anything to become a military leader because that was her one and only passion, though, she couldn't help the dreams about a certain brown-haired, politician intrude. Corinne didn't brush them away. It was only a dream after all.
"Corinne," a voice whispered. "Corinne, are you awake?"
It was six in the morning, but Corinne was already awake. She had been for hours. The blonde was never one for sleep which was another quality that could help her throughout the course of her career. Corinne sighed as she opened her already alert eyes.
Her mother opened the bedroom door and leaned against the frame. "It's a big day, Honey. You should get up." Marie smiled and closed the door.
Corinne sat up immediately and removed the black shirt she had worn the previous day and walked over to the small dresser filled with clothing. "I wonder what would say 'I want to join restricted parts of the military and I'm not giving up until I do, but I shall stay respectful as possible because you are a military official?'"
Corinne grabbed a white camisole that blended in with her white bra and slipped it on over her head, as a burgundy dress shirt. The blonde's jeans were replaced black slacks and black combat boots. She put her hair up in a bun and walked out with a bag towards the kitchen to greet her mother.
Marie sucked in a breath at the sight of her daughter. "Oh, my baby, I'm going to miss you." Although she didn't cry, the cracking in her voice told Corinne all she needed.
Corinne enveloped her mother in a hug. "Don't worry, mom. I'll be alright."
"I know you will," she said lovingly. Marie pulled back and smiled. "Go. Don't waste any more time." Corinne nodded and grabbed the bags with her belongings and threw them into the back of her truck. "Don't cause any trouble, Corinne!" Marie called after her daughter as Corinne got in her truck.
The blonde stuck her head out the window. "I make no promises!" she was about to leave, but then she added, "I'll make you proud, mom!" And at that, Corinne drove Alex away.
"You always do."
Mia laughed from the cramped space that of which she was hiding. The girl had been in the truck for the last hour without Corinne's knowledge and although she was getting severe cramps, the young girl did not mind at all. "Corinne won't mind too much, will she?" Mia laughed a little before dozing off to sleep.
A/N: I'm baaaack! Did you miss me? Time for more torture! I'm just kidding (Maybe not, but we'll see). How are you guys doing? Okay, enough with the small talk; let's get down to business! First, I need a new name. Any ideas? Second, you may see a LOT of OC and general character references in here. Third, this will not be exactly like the movie because it's AU and I wanted to change some things, like if you haven't caught on yet Mia is actually Miette, the cat, and Brutus, Philippe's dog, is actually Philippe's son in this. I am REALLY excited for this story and thank you for reading! Review!
Sincerely,
Weatherbug02
P.S: If you didn't read my last A/N, it would mean a lot to me and the author if you would read "The Wicked Witch Wears Pink" by an amazing author on here. Please, she won't update unless she gets more reviews! I need to read more!