Not half bad… Clopin nearly finished his puppet cart. He'd managed to cover the entire thing with red paint and was now working on the detailing. Occasionally, he'd think wait until Noelle sees this, then he'd have to quickly reprimand himself. It'd been about a week since Noelle's pseudo-engagement and he still wasn't used to the idea. If she was to be a married lady soon, she probably wouldn't be able to visit him alone, not if she wanted to avoid talk of an affair. Sure, such rumors probably wouldn't make it outside of the Circle and maybe hit the gypsy population, but it would be enough to cause trouble, especially if it got back to Leonard's family. Besides, rumors like that tend to find their way around and that would put the Circle at risk. No, she couldn't visit. She'd never risk the inn for a silly puppet cart.

Everything would change now, he imagined. Noelle would have no time for him. She'd have a husband and possibly even kids. They might never see each other except for circle business. It'd be one thing if he knew she wanted this. If he knew she'd be happy, he'd probably be happy too, right? They were friends, weren't they? Friends who kissed occasionally -or maybe more than occasionally- but still just friends. It didn't mean anything. It was just a bit of fun, wasn't it? They both knew nothing real could come out of it. And if he'd ever fantasied about sharing her bed or spending his days with her or having a little baby with his dark hair and her bright blue eyes… Well, that was just a daydream and it meant nothing. But he supposed he should get used to the idea. They weren't children anymore. His own father would probably push for him to get married soon as well.

He dipped the brush into a pot of yellow paint and began carefully paining the trim when someone whispered his name behind him.

"Clopin?"

He turned his head just enough to see Leonard shifting nervously behind him. He rolled his eyes and returned to his painting. "Yes?" he asked curtly. It was strange. He'd never had any problem with Leonard before, but now he couldn't help but feel gnawing abhorrence in the pit of his stomach. Stop being so bitter you fool. It's not his fault.

"You…" Leonard began, fidgeting with the hem of his tunic, "Noelle talks to you, right?"

"Yes, why?" his words remained clipped.

"It's just…" Leonard sighed and dropped his fidgeting hands, "she doesn't talk to me."

"And?"

"Can you tell me, how you do it?"

"Do what?"

"Get Noelle to talk to you."

Clopin exhaled, put the brush back in the pot of paint, and set it down. He could tell this wasn't going to be as brief a conversation as he would have liked. "There's no trick to it," he said, turning to Leonard. "We've been friends for all our lives."

"I know, but, she's my betrothed," he said pleadingly. "I need to talk to her."

"So do it."

"But she won't see me." He sighed and sat down on a nearby barrel. "Every time I've tried, she makes up some excuse. She tells me she has chores or she has a message to deliver..."

"What exactly do you want to talk to her about?"

"Anything," he explained. "Unless I'm delivering a message for my father, I can't talk to her. My mind goes blank. I can't think of anything to say."

"Well…" Clopin began, struggling to dig some advice out of his brain, "what do you talk about with Faye?"

"That's completely different." Leonard's face lit up and he gazed into the sky. "Talking to Faye is easy and comfortable. We understand each other. We can talk about anything." His face fell and he looked back at the ground. "Why couldn't my engagement be with her?"

An idea suddenly sprang to life in Clopin's mind. They might be able to stop this disaster of a marriage after all. He just needed to plant the thought in Leonard. "Of course, being in love with Faye, that would certainly make things easier, no?"

Leonard nodded slowly. "I told her about the marriage the other day. She cried. I've never made her cry before." He hid his face in his hands. "How am I going to go through with this?"

This was perfect. He didn't even need to convince Leonard this was a poor match. He forced down a growing grin. "I believe you and Noelle have finally found some common ground."

"Really?" Leonard looked up.

Clopin nodded, hoping his glee didn't show on his face. "She has her own reservations about the match."

"She does?" He sounded almost hopeful.

"I'm sure she'd like to talk to you about them."

Leonard looked hopeful for a minute, but then let out a disappointed sigh. "She'll bring them up when we meet with our fathers about the match, I'm sure."

"This may be a conversation best had in private." Clopin suggested.

"But our fathers…"

"Made this match without consulting either of you, as I understand," Clopin finished for him. "Is this truly what you want?"

Leonard looked off to the side, seeming to consider this. "She doesn't want to marry me either, does she?"

Clopin bit his lip to keep himself from grinning. All he needed was a little nudge… "If you want to know, you need to talk to her away from your fathers."

"Can you get a message to her?" Leonard asked, hopeful again. "Tell her I want to talk?"

Clopin finally let himself have a satisfied smile. "That, I can do."

"Thank you." Leonard began to walk away and Clopin went back to his painting. "Of course," Leonard continued, turning back to Clopin, "if she doesn't marry me, she'll be able to spend more time with you."

Clopin nearly dropped his brush. "Oh, I hadn't thought…"

"It's alright," Leonard gave him a knowing smile, "I understand."

[-]

Clopin climbed up the wall to Noelle's window. He knocked once on the shutters and heard her call him in. He climbed in and nearly kneed her in the head. She sat on her bed absentmindedly brushing her hair and scooched over when she realized she was blocking his entrance.

"Oh, sorry. We've got less room now than when we were kids."

His only reply was to plop down on the bed. He sat cross-legged, rested his face in his hand, and stared at her with a mischievous grin.

"What are you smirking at?" she asked, rolling her eyes.

"I just had the most interesting conversation about you."

She paused mid-brush stroke. "With who?"

"Your betrothed."

"Oh…" She relaxed again and continued brushing.

Clopin dropped his grin and put on a more sincere tone. "He's a bit worried you may not like him."

"What gave him that idea?"

"The fact that you haven't spoken a word to him since the engagement might be a clue."

"I just don't want my father to think I'm giving in." She put her brush aside and pulled her hair back to braid it. "It's nothing to do with him."

"Actually, I think it's everything to do with him," Clopin replied, getting a bit defensive. He could see her bullheaded ways clouding her judgement and it was his job to point that out. "Seems to me you're not the only one being forced into this match."

"You mean, he doesn't want to marry me?" she beamed.

He supposed he should have expected this reaction. "Try not to look so happy about it around him but, yes, that's what he implied."

"Hmm…" She continued braiding her hair as she considered this. "It really isn't Leonard's fault our father's made this deal. It's not fair to avoid him. I've been pretty mean."

"So you're going to talk to him?"

"Yes."

"Good," he slid off the bed and headed for the window, "because I'm not interested in being the go-between for your marital problems."

"Actually, can you give Leonard just one more message?"

He stopped and slouched on the window frame. "Ugh, did someone write 'messenger boy' on my back when I wasn't looking?"

"All you need to do is tell him I'll meet him in the alley behind his home tonight after supper. It's the last time, I swear."

"Alright," he conceded. "But only because it's you. I'll be deaf to any message requests after this."

"And Clopin?"

"What?" He groaned, stopping with one foot out the window.

"Merci." She smiled then, soft and genuine. It was a treasure few got to see.

Clopin smiled back as his unreasonable heart fluttered. Stop it, you idiot. This doesn't mean we can marry her now, he scolded himself. His heart, in fact, did not stop as he watched her gracefully tie off her braid with a little black ribbon. Still, she does look pretty like that. "Mon Plaisir."

[-]

Noelle waited in the alley, the hood of her cloak pulled over her hair. Around the corner, Clopin waited and listened. He said he wanted to be there, that if he was going to be their go-between he at least wanted to see how things went. After a moment of waiting, Leonard slipped out the back door of his home and went up to Noelle.

"We'll have to be quiet," he said nervously. "My father won't be happy if he finds out we're meeting in secret like this."

"Let's make this quick then. This marriage won't work. You know it and I know it."

"Uh, right."

"Nothing against you," she went on. "I like you Leonard. You're a good man. But we're just not right for each other and in any case, Faye is in love with you. It would break her heart if we got married and I know you don't want that."

"Uh…I agree."

"So it's decided then? The engagement is off?"

He gaped at her, completely flabbergasted. His mouth opened and closed a few times as he searched for how to respond. "Um…I suppose…" he finally answered

"Good, glad we agree on that."

Leonard didn't have a response. He was still busy trying to figure out what had just happened.

"Well, that's settled. We'll tell our fathers together when we meet. Is there anything else you'd like to discuss?"

"I, um, I suppose not."

"Alright, have a good night Leonard."

Uh… goodnight."

She spun on her heals to leave while Leonard went back into his home still looking shell-shocked. Noelle marched back to Clopin. She did not miss the mix of reproach and alarm on his face.

"That had all of the tact and grace of an angry goat," he scolded.

"What?"

"You could have let him down a little easier."

"He didn't want to marry me, I didn't want to marry him," she answered matter-of-fact as she began walking. "I didn't see much point in dragging it out if we both wanted the same thing."

"Or rather, didn't want the same thing." He gave her a cheeky smirk.

"In any case, it's over with. We'll just have to deal with our fathers when we tell them, but they'll just have to accept that all their arranging was wasted. They can't force us to marry now, not if we both refuse."

[-]

A large, burly man stormed into the inn and marched up to the desk where Rousse sat going over his logs. The man slammed his hands on the desk to get the innkeeper's attention. "Orson?" Rousse asked, looking up from his books.

"Rousse," Orson growled back, "I need to talk to you now."

Rousse sighed and lead the seething man into his office. "Alright, alright what is this about?" he asked, once the door was closed.

"It's about your child's utter disregard for common decency."

"Oh no, was Pascal caught with a girl again?" Rousse groaned. "Whose daughter was it this time and what were they caught doing?"

"This isn't about your son sowing his wild oats," Orson snarled, "This is about your daughter."

"Okay," Rousse sighed, rubbing his eyes. "So who did she insult and what did she say?"

"My family, and she didn't need to say anything, not with her shameful behavior."

"Oh, I see," Rousse said, sitting down at his desk. "I've talked to her about her attitude, but she's a stubborn girl. I told you from the start it would take her some time to come around to the match."

"Stop playing dumb!" Orson snapped, slamming his hands on the desk. "This isn't about a sulking teenager! This is about your daughter and Adrien's son. My oldest saw them together."

"We raised them to be close friends. It's hardly surprising."

"Would you be surprised to learn what they did? Marius saw them come out of a gypsy cart together, just the two of them. He said that Noelle's hair was mussed and Clopin was adjusting his clothes."

Rousse's eyes narrowed. "What are you trying to say?

"That your daughter is a fornicator and an adulterer."

Rousse jumped up, his face contorted in anger. "How dare you! How dare you accuse my daughter!"

"My son saw it with his own eyes."

"Your son saw nothing! You have no proof of what actually happened."

"What else could they be doing?"

"Any number of things. For all you know, I told her to deliver a message for me."

"And how do you explain the hair and the clothes?"

Rousse scowled and crossed his arms. "I don't know, maybe they got wrinkled or there was a strong wind. Any number of things could have happened."

"Then why don't we find out for sure?" Orson challenged. "Get her down here. I want to hear it from her."

"If that's the way you want it, then fine, but I won't have you putting her on trial." He strode over to the door and put his hand on the pull. "Bring your sons here. I want to find out exactly what he thought he saw and what Leonard thinks of all of this."

Orson scowled and marched up to Rousse, getting close to his face. "Very well, we'll see what is to be done about the two of them. If she is guilty, I don't want a fornicator for a daughter in law."

Rousse said nothing in response. He only opened the door and glared as Orson stormed out. Once gone, Rousse slammed the door behind him.

[-]

"You're a liar!" Noelle shouted in Marius's face.

"I saw you with my own eyes," he retorted with a smug scowl.

"You saw the walls of a cart with your own eyes."

Pascal sat in the corner of his father's office, leaning his head in one hand and rubbing his temple. This was giving him a headache. They'd been going back and forth for a half hour and it was going nowhere. Their fathers would butt in occasionally, but it changed nothing. Neither side was willing to accept the other's version of events. And so, they argued about the same things over and over.

"You meet in secret and expect everyone to think it was perfectly innocent?" Marius snapped.

Noelle scowled and crossed her arms. "Everyone in the Circle meets in secret."

"There's a difference between relaying messages and sneaking into carts with men who aren't your betrothed." Orson cut in.

"We weren't even betrothed when that happened," Noelle retorted.

Marius jumped up and pointed an accusing finger at her. "So you admit it!"

"Admit what? That I talked with a friend?"

"What did you talk about?" Rousse asked her in a softer tone.

"He wanted to show me his puppet cart," Noelle explained, turning toward her father. "He's proud of it."

Marius let out a tsk and rolled his eyes. "I'm sure that's all he wanted to show you."

"Where is your son, Adrien?" Orson asked, turning his attention to the Gypsy King. "He should be here. This involves him as well."

"This is between your family and Rousse's," Adrien explained as calmly as he could. Though, by his expression, Pascal could tell that this argument was grating on him as well. "I'm only here because it concerns the future of the Circle. We don't need him here."

"That's horseshit," Orson spat. "Your son is the one who defiled my son's bride."

"Watch it," Adrien warned through gritted teeth.

Orson heeded no such warning. "You only want to protect him. That's how it's always been. No matter what mischief the two of them get up to, you shield them from their consequences."

"You mean my only son?" Arien growled, getting up from his chair. "The one who will lead my people when I'm gone? The one my wife almost died bringing into the world? You're damn right I'm going to protect him. If you think I'm going to let Frollo have my future, you know nothing about what it takes to keep the Circle going."

"Fine, you protect your family, while I will try to protect mine. Our reputation is in jeopardy thanks to those two."

"What jeopardy?" Rousse cut in. "Your own son is the one threatening to tarnish your name. It's only your pride you're trying to protect."

As Pascal listened, movement at the window caught his eye. Through the shutters, he could see a body lurking just outside. Someone was there, listening in on the argument, and no one else seemed to notice. Pascal silently thanked God that he was sitting next to the door, then got up to slip out.

He hurried through the common room, into the kitchen, and out the back door. Around the side of the building, he found Clopin leaning next to the window. His heart temporarily slowed down, but sped up once again when he saw Clopin's hand reach for the shutters.

"You don't want to go in there," Pascal whispered, running up to him.

"What is going on? Why's everyone yelling? I hear my name. My father's in there…"

"They're yelling about you and Noelle," Pascal explained in a hushed tone as he pulled Clopin away from the window. There was enough chaos going on tonight. If Clopin put in an appearance, he was worried there just might be a murder. Although, he wasn't sure who would be killing who.

"Why? We haven't done anything… lately…"

Pascal sighed. He wasn't quite sure himself what to make of the situation. He supposed he should muster up some protective anger toward Clopin who may or may not have deflowered his sister. But he simply couldn't. For one thing, he'd be the world's biggest hypocrite if he did. For another thing, he knew Clopin and Noelle well enough to know that if they did do something, it was a mutual decision. Clopin would never force himself on her and even if he did, he wouldn't be standing here with full possession of all his extremities right now. Since she could crawl, Noelle made her own decisions with little input from others, least of all from her older brother. "My sister says you did nothing and I believe her," he finally decided. "But when she broke off the engagement…"

"Damn it, I told her to be more graceful," Clopin said, snapping his fingers.

"It's not about that, or at least not completely, but never mind. The point is, this is a very bad time for you to show up around here. They think you're part of the reason she broke it off."

"What? I must go in. I need to tell them." Clopin tried to go to the window again, but Pascal blocked him.

"No. If you go in there, three angry fathers will tear you apart."

Clopin's eyes slid pensively to the side. "I need to at least talk to Noelle."

"Do it next time you see her," Pascal said, trying to usher Clopin away from the building, "but stay away from here."

Pascal watched Clopin walk off down the alley and around the building. He had an idea where Clopin might be going, but he didn't want to deal with that now. He had to get back before anyone noticed he was gone. Once he was back inside, not much had changed. Noelle and Marius were still in each other's faces while their fathers stood behind them glaring at each other and Leonard sat off the side nervously biting a nail. Pascal sighed and retook his seat in the corner as the others continued arguing.

"I was going to keep this quiet for my brother's sake," Marius rambled on, "but since you alone broke off the engagement…"

"You broke off the engagement?" Rousse asked, turning an eye on his daughter.

"You told him?" Noelle gasped, whirling around to Leonard who practically jumped.

"Not intentionally," he pleaded. "He pressed and he got it out of me."

Rousse took hold of Noelle's shoulder and turned her back to face him "You went behind our backs after we spent all that time planning."

"Planning what to do with our lives," Noelle argued, breaking away from her father's grasp. "You didn't even care what we wanted."

"You think the Circle would have survived if it depended on the whims of an unruly daughter?" Orson sneared.

"Leonard didn't want to marry me either." She turned to Leonard and pulled him out of his chair. "Leonard, tell them."

Leonard fidgeted with his hands and looked back and forth between his father and his brother. Finally, he sighed and dropped his head. "It's true father…"

"What?"

He slowly lifted his head. "I-I'm in love with Faye. I want to marry her."

"You coerced him," Marius snapped, rounding on Noelle.

"I did not!"

"It's the truth," Leonard insisted, stepping between them "I love Faye. I only agreed to the match because I thought I had no choice, but Noelle showed me I did."

"You incited rebellion in my son," Orson growled, stepping up to Noelle.

"Father, I was relieved when she came to me," Leonard explained again. "I'd been looking for her, wanting to talk to her about how to convince you that this was a poor match. I wanted to please you but I knew this marriage would be nothing but a sham. When Noelle broke it off completely, it felt like a weight had been lifted."

Marius shoved past his brother to get back in Noelle's face. "What have you been poisoning his mind with?"

"Are you insane?"

Leonard took his brother's shoulder. "Marius, I know I'm not the most outspoken in our family but is it really so hard to believe that I have opinions of my own?"

"Maybe it is true you never wanted her," he said, turning to Leonard. "I can see why. Who would want a shrew like her for a wife?"

"Turn around and say that to my face you coward," Noelle growled.

Marius smirked and turned back to her. "You're a shrew and a whore."

Noelle's glare darkened. "You really want to get slapped, don't you?"

"And a temper. Maybe I should tell the whole city. A few days in the stocks would-"

She slapped him so hard across the face that he stumbled back into the desk. Pascal had to bite his own tongue to keep from laughing.

"Rousse, your daughter is way out of line," Orson shouted.

"Your son is out of line," Adrien shot back, stepping between Rousse and Orson. "Threatening to tell the whole city... He'd put the Circle in danger."

Rousse grabbed Noelle's arm and pulled her aside. "Go up to your room," he ordered.

Noelle's mouth fell open. "Me? What about him? You heard what he said."

"Marius is not my child. You are. You will do as I say."

"I'm not a child," Noelle argued back. "According to you, I'm old enough to marry."

"Go now or I will drag you up there myself."

Noelle stood solidly still, glaring into her father's eyes. Her pride wouldn't allow her to jump when she was told, but she also knew being dragged away would be more humiliating. And so, after a minute-long stare down, she left, but not before casting a deathly glare at Marius.

[-]

Noelle swung her bedroom door open and found Clopin sitting on her window sill. She shouldn't have been surprised. With all that was going on, he must have heard somehow. She'd have called him crazy if he willingly joined the fray downstairs. It was a smart move waiting up here. At least she'd have someone to vent to. "I've been sent to my room like a child," she declared, slamming the door behind her. "Can you believe this?"

"What happened?" he asked as he slid off the window sill.

"Marius saw us together," she grumbled. "He thinks we're…" She trailed off. Oh God, this is humiliating.

"What?"

"You know..."

"I don't..."

"Fucking, Clopin," she finally snapped. "They think we're fucking."

The color drained out of Clopin's face. "No, no, no…" He ran his hands though his hair and sat down on her bed. "How? Why?"

"Leonard told Marius about breaking off the engagement. Apparently, Marius decided that if I didn't want to marry Leonard, you must be the reason."

"Didn't you tell them the other reasons? About Faye or your inability to hold a conversation with each other?"

"Of course I did." She sat down next to him. "I even got Leonard to admit that he never wanted to marry me and really wanted to marry Faye. It didn't matter. They decided I was out of line, so they sent me up here."

"What made them think that?"

Noelle looked down and started nervously fidgeting with her fingers. "I may have… slapped Marius across the face, but he was asking for it. He was the one who called me a whore and threatened to tell the whole city."

"Tell…everyone…" Clopin groaned and flopped back on her bed.

"He won't. Your father put an end to that."

"Does my father think we…"

"No, he defended us. Although, who knows what's going on now? Perhaps they've decided to ship me off to convent…" She waited for Clopin to comment on that, but he said nothing, only glanced at her with sad eyes. "What, no jokes about my ineptitude as a nun?"

"I don't want you to be sent away," he whispered.

"I don't either," she said, leaning back on her pillow. "I don't believe father would really do it."

"Is the marriage back on?"

Noelle shook her head. "I don't think so. I think Leonard's family is too angry at my family to consider it."

"So what happens now?"

"I don't know. Hopefully not being branded as the town whore."

"Why you when there are real whores in the Beaubourg Quartier?" Clopin asked with a smirk. "You don't have nearly as much experience as those ladies."

Noelle raised an eyebrow. "Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

Clopin yawned and tucked his hands behind his head. "Just stating facts."

"Facts, huh? No one down there is interested in hearing facts," Noelle spat, bitterly. "Marius is ready to hang a red lantern on my door any minute."

"If he does, I'll tear it down," Clopin declared with a cheeky grin.

Noelle felt her face flush. That stupid grin… "He'd just hang another."

"I'll tear that one down as well."

"And if he has a third?"

"I'll stand guard outside your door every day of my life to protect you from Marius and his apparently endless supply of lanterns." His eyes flashed in that mischievous way that made her heart jump.

"How heroic," she replied, not entirely sarcastic. It really was sweet, the ridiculous lengths he claimed to go for her, even if such a situation would never happen.

"Anything for the virgin whore of Paris."

"There it is, my gimmick," she said, turning on her side. "I'm somehow a whore despite only ever kissing one man."

"Two," Clopin added, yawning.

"Huh?"

"Are you forgetting poor Ansel?"

"Oh, right," she answered, remembering the baker's son she kissed out of sheer competitiveness. "I only did it because you kissed Estella."

"Not true," he said lazily as he too rested his head at the foot of her bed. "Estella kissed me. It's my allure. I can't help it."

"Whatever you say." Noelle settled her face against her pillow. They day's events began to weigh on her and her eyelids grew unbearably heavy. Maybe she could close them, just for a minute. Just one minute, then she'd ask Clopin to leave so she could get some sleep. Just one minute…

[-]

Noelle awoke to see a pair of purple-clad ankles lying next to her and her heart jumped into her throat. "Oh no," she muttered. She sat up to see Clopin's full body spread across her bed as he slept on.

It was an accident. They weren't even sleeping with their heads at the same end. It was all perfectly innocent. Alright, maybe not perfectly, but nothing happened. Not that anyone would believe that.

The gray light of the early dawn filled her room. She looked out the half-open window and saw the sun peak over the skyline. Hurriedly, she reached out and shook his ankle. He twitched lazily in his sleep, but didn't wake. "Clopin," she growled in a whisper, giving him a harder shake. Finally he sat up groggily and gave her a blank stare, not yet awake enough to comprehend the situation. "You've got to get out of here," she hissed, pointing sharply at the window.

"Merde!" He immediately snapped out of his daze and jumped off the bed. "Noelle, I'm…"

"Don't bother. It was an accident." She jumped up as well and began shoving him toward the window. "Just get out of here."

"But your father… the marriage..."

"Nothing we can do about it now." She practically pushed him out the window. "Go, before someone sees."

Clopin kept a good grip on the wall and climbed down as quickly as he could. When he was low enough, he jumped to the ground. However, after he landed, he looked up to see his father standing motionless and scowling. Clopin stood below his father's glare for what felt like ages. His father didn't move or speak, only shook slightly with barely-contained fury. Maybe he's petrified. He's so angry, he's lost the ability to move. Maybe he'll never move again and if he doesn't… I'm not in any trouble.

"Father, I-"

Adrian put up a hand, silencing him. "Come." They walked silently back to Court. The whole way, Clopin rehearsed his explanation in his mind. He wondered if he should lie. The truth, after all, already sounded like a lie and a flimsy one at that. But, he decided it was best to stick to the truth this time. His father was already angry enough as it was.

Clopin waited until they made it back to court before he even tried to talk to his father. As he closed up the entrance behind him, he finally spoke up. "Father? Are you going to say anything? Father, I need to explain."

"Explain what?" Adrien growled without turning back. "I don't need you to explain. I have eyes."

"It wasn't what it looked like," Clopin insisted, frantically following his father.

"Of course…"

"It's true."

"True? It's-" Adrian halted and glanced around at the shadows. "All of you get out!" He shouted at the walls.

One of the look-out tentatively peaked out from his hiding place. "But-"

"I said out!"

The look-outs all jumped out of their hiding places and rushed back to the Court. They all knew better than to get in the way of their leader's wrath, especially if it was directed at his son. Clopin stared at the ground and felt them brush past. His stomach started tying itself in knots. His father never had any problem disciplining him in front of the Court before. He's actually going to kill me this time.

"I don't think I've ever been angrier with you," Adrien said, finally turning to look his son in the eye. "Of all the nights, of all the girls-"

Clopin kept his head low. "It was an accident."

"I thought I taught you better than this," Adrien went on. "I thought I taught you to think! If that girl gets pregnant…"

"She can't get pregnant. We didn't do anything!" Clopin snapped. He could take his father's wrath but he wasn't about the let his father insinuate that he was stupid. "She's my friend. I went up there to talk. We fell asleep. That's all."

"You expect me to believe that?"

"It's the truth."

"Do you know what I was doing last night?" Adriien snapped. "Keeping our safe houses from crumbling. Orson was accusing you two of fornication and I spent the whole night telling him that he was crazy. I said you were good kids and you were too smart to do that. I didn't believe you could be so stupid. Seems I was wrong."

"Father, I-"

Adrien ignored the interruption and kept ranting. "I should have seen it coming. I knew you were spending too much time together. I should have put an end to it."

Clopin let out a humorless laugh as his own peril. "What would you have done? Forbade us from seeing each other? As if that would have stopped us."

Adrien cast a glare in his direction. "It is long past time you stopped socializing outside the inn. When you were children, it could be overlooked, but now it casts suspicion on us."

"We are not stupid enough to go gallivanting around the streets together. We're always careful to meet in secret."

"Yes, it is such a secret that Marius was able to find you by chance," Adreien scoffed. "You're lucky it was him and not a guard who saw the two of you together. You must stay away from that girl, do you understand me?"

"I will not!" Clopin protested. This was insane. They made a mistake, sure, but that was no reason to cut them off entirely.

"Rousse and I have already agreed on this," Adrien answered with chilling calm. "You will only meet when necessary. You two have grown too close. You need time apart."

"Was that not the plan?" Clopin argued. "Aren't we supposed to be friends like you and Rousse?"

"This is different. You've taken it too far."

"How far? Is there a limit? If so, I surpassed it long ago." Clopin's fists shook. Adrien's friendship with Rousse began the same way as Clopin's and Noelle's. They were raised to be close on purpose. How could they, after all those years, decide it was wrong? "You can't control how much of my heart I give to her. We've been through much already. We're strongest together and no one, not you, or Frollo, or anyone else, can tear us apart."

Adrien rolled his eyes and began to walk away. "Next you'll tell me you love her."

"What's wrong with that?" Clopin grumbled.

Adrien stopped in his tracks and whirled around. "What?"

Clopin looked up, his voice gaining confidence. "I said, what's wrong with that."

"You're barely more than a child," Adrien scoffed as he turned to walk away again. "What do you know of love?"

Clopin marched up to his father and caught him by the shoulder. "You disapprove. Why? Because she's not a gypsy?"

"Exactly," Adrien said, smacking his hand away, "she's not a gypsy. She's a Frenchwoman who was born into the Circle. Her safety, her family's safety, and our people's safety depend on that fact remaining a secret."

"It can remain a secret."

"No it can't. These things have a way of getting out, as you've already seen."

"But that isn't the truth."

"Oh really?" Adrien sneered. "What is the truth? You don't seem to know yourself. One minute you swear you're nothing more than friends. The next you proclaim your undying love for her."

"What do you want me to say, father?" Clopin shouted. "That I fucked Noelle? That I had her every way a man can have a woman. That-"

His father slapped him solidly across the face. "You…" he took ahold of Clopin's tunic. "I know your mother and I taught you better. Have you ever heard me speak of your mother that way?" Clopin weakly shook his head. "Would you tolerate anyone else speaking of Noelle that way?"

"No…"

"So why do you?" Adrien dropped his tunic. "If you love her as you so claim, you would never even think to say it. If you learn nothing else from last night, learn this. There is no love without respect. I never want to hear such filth come out of your mouth again."

Clopin looked down, ashamed of his words. He let his mouth get away from him for the sole purpose of scandalizing his father. "I am sorry father," he answered, setting his pride aside for the moment. "But Marius is still wrong about what he thought happened in my cart."

"What did happen, then?"

Clopin let out a ragged breath. "We kissed, alright? She kissed me and I kissed her."

"The first time?"

"No."

"When was the first time?"

"I was fourteen…"

Adrien tsked bitterly and shook his head. "Three years, three years you've been going behind my back."

"It was just some fun, at first."

"And what is it now?"

"A lot of fun…" The hint of a smile crept its way onto the corner of his lips, but he forced it back down. "We still never did anything more than kiss, I swear."

"Mmmhmm…" Adrien mumbled as he crossed his arms and furrowed his brows. He thought it was a lie. Clopin could see that.

Goddamn it! What will it take? "You still don't believe me," Clopin huffed. "How can I convince you?"

Adrien went still and his eyes drifted to the left as he thought. He got a look on his face, a look Clopin was very familiar with. The look like he was about to win. "Tell me something true," Adrien said.

"I have."

"Not about this. Tell me the truth of something else you've lied about."

"Like what?" Clopin asked. His father was fishing for something specific, but they'd be here for years before he guessed what.

Adrien looked him dead in the eye and asked, "How did Noelle really get that cut on her hand?"

Clopin felt his breath leave him. That cut, that damn cut. He tried so hard to forget that day, but he never could. He hated that day and everything to do with it. He hated the witch who lured them into her trap. He hated the man who spoke so calmly about their disgusting plans. He hated the monster who put his filthy hands on Noelle, and he hated that he now knew exactly why that man looked at her that way. And that cut. He hated that cut and the fact that he had to give it to her. It was necessary. He knew it then and he knows it now. But would his father believe that?

Finally, Clopin looked down and said, "I put it there."

"Why?"

"I was trying to protect her," Clopin answered, eyes still on the ground.

"From what?" Adrien studied his son's face as Clopin remained silent. "You won't tell me?"

"I can't."

Adrien kept his gaze fixed on Clopin. "Still protecting her…" He reached out and laid a firm hand on his son's shoulder. "Come, your mother will be worried." With that, he turned and began back down the corridor, leaving Clopin confused behind him.

"Do you believe me now, father?" He asked. He wasn't sure what his father made of that story. Did he approve? Disapprove? Disapprove but understand?

His father gave no answer. "This discussion is over, Clopin," he said, turning around. "Regardless of what happened in your cart, you still spent the night in a young woman's bedroom. If anyone else saw you climbing out of that window, you could have put the whole Circle in jeopardy. Fortunately, it was only me. However, my agreement with Rousse still stands. You and Noelle will spend some time apart. Not forever, but you can't go on as you have. Is that clear? I said is that clear."

"….yes…"

Adrian gave a curt nod and turned. Clopin watched him walk down the corridor. Maybe they'll spend some time apart. Maybe a week or two to appease their fathers. But it most certainly would not be forever. He'd make sure of that. The whole world it seemed told them they couldn't be together, but the whole world just happened to be wrong.

[-]

As Adrien walked down the street a few days later, he felt someone following him. He tried to use his peripheral vision to look for anyone suspicious, but couldn't find anything out of the ordinary. He stepped into an alley and led the presence through a maze of backstreets. Once he led it to a secluded area, he put his hand on the hilt of his dagger and turned sharply around to find his stalker was merely a red-headed teenage girl.

"Noelle," he said, sliding his dagger back into its scabbard, "don't sneak up on me like that. I might have killed you."

"I needed to talk to you," she said, seemingly unfazed.

"Is it a message from your father?"

"No from me," she answered, stepping closer to him. "I know you saw Clopin climbing out my window that morning. I need to tell you that nothing happened. We accidently fell asleep. That's all."

Oh, this. He should have known. "That's what he claimed."

"It's the truth," she insisted.

"He claimed that as well."

"Did you believe him?"

Adrein let his eyes slide off to the side. Did he believe? He was still mulling that over himself. He remembered being a young man very well. He knew what went on in teenagers' heads. He recognized the little glances and smiles those two gave each other over the last few years and was always worried something might spark between them if it hadn't already. Clopin himself admitted to them meeting up in secret. He claimed nothing more than kissing, but Adrien didn't quite believe that.

"You didn't tell my father," Noelle said, having grown impatient with his silence. "You tell him everything."

"I don't tell him everything."

"You've told him everything you caught us doing in the past," she argued.

"This goes beyond childhood mischief. Rousse is a good friend of mine. I'd like him to remain my friend. I don't think that could happen if he killed my son."

Noelle nodded and glanced off to the side. "My father forbade me from seeing him. He said you told Clopin the same."

"I did."

"It won't work. I told my father that as well."

Adrien let out a humorless chuckle and shook his head. "You are playing with fire. There is no one who plays with fire who doesn't get burned. You and Clopin need to learn restraint."

"We're not going to do anything stupid."

"Ha," he scoffed. "What do you call the other night?"

"It was a mistake."

"Mistakes like that can't happen, especially when all you can come up with is a flimsy excuse."

"I told you it's the truth."

"The truth?" he began, then paused as he spotted the scar on her palm. This may be his chance to get the full story on what happened with the kidnappers in the woods. He bit back his reprimand and switched to a cooler tone. "Alright, want to convince me of the truth? Tell me about the scar on your hand. I don't believe that the blood you had on your dress was from a simple cut."

"Everything we told you about the kidnappers is true," she said, her voice growing soft and grim. "They really did chase us through the woods and we really did try to hide in a bush. The woman pulled me out and Clopin tried to keep ahold on my hand. She had her arm around my neck and was choking me." Her hand went to her throat, as if she felt the phantom arm still around it. "Clopin had a knife but she had me as a shield. He couldn't get to her, so he put the knife in my hand. I twisted around and stabbed her in the gut. She let me go. After that, we really did climb a tree and watch one of the men cut her throat. We tried to wash off in the river, but her blood had already stained my dress. The cut was to make an excuse for the blood."

Adrien responded with a curt nod. He wasn't surprised. In fact, it was what he suspected. "So you cut yourself?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

She cast her eyes to the floor and stayed silent just as Clopin did. Protecting him now, he thought. "Won't tell me?" he pressed. She stayed silent. "Clopin already told me he cut you, but he refused to say why, just as you refused to name him."

"I want to protect him. He wants to protect me."

Adrien scoffed at that. "In this world? You can try." Noelle's face hardened into a stony expression. Damn youths, think they're invincible.

Noelle glared at him, indignant. "I've said all I wanted to say. Believe us or don't, but we're friends and you won't stop up from seeing each other."

"Friends? Is that all you are?"

Noelle's face faltered. She bit her bottom lip and looked off to the side. He didn't need an answer. Her silence told him everything.

''You can't marry him. You know this," he said matter-of-fact.

Noelle nodded, eyes still cast downward "We know, but while we still can…"

"This could ruin you, the both of you."

The girl let out a breath and looked him in the eyes. "We both know we'll have to stop someday. We'll be ready when the time comes."

It's almost sad, really. She looks so sure of herself. "No, you will never be ready," he answered, staring her back in the face. He turned and walked away without waiting for a response.

He could imagine everything she might try to say. She'd argue that they knew what they were doing, that they could stop whenever they needed to, that it wouldn't get in the way of their duties. She'd be wrong, of course. That was youth talking; youth and inexperience. The two of them were tampering with forces much stronger than they realized. He feared they'd have to learn the hard way. They really do love each other, or at least they think they do. The poor fools. They have no idea what they're getting into.