L'amour Fou

by A.L.S.O.

Chapter IX – Broken Hearts, Broken Families

"Amour!" Christian cried, and ran out the office, through the shop, and into the backyard. "Amour!"

A police officer was standing in the yard, holding Christopher's hand, who was crying, and trying to grab Amour's hand. She screamed again and Christian ran over, taking her in his arms.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Christian shouted, trying to comfort his shaken daughter.

"Sir, we could do this calmly and reasonably or I could take you to jail," said the officer professionally. "Just hand me the little girl and we'll end it at that."

"Give you Amour? Why the hell would I give you my daughter?"

"You're the child's father?"

"Damn right I am!"

"Listen, we're just trying to bring her back to her mother, a Miss Sarah James."

Christian gasped. So she was behind all this? She was trying to take away his last ounce of happiness in life? His heart began to beat faster and he thought to run, but knew that wouldn't help the matter. He cleared his throat and tried to speak reasonably, though the panic and anger was quickly rising. "Officer, this is one big mistake. This is my daughter. She has been with me since she was a week old, she belongs with me! Please, just bring Miss James's son home and let us be."

"The mother came to us and asked us to retrieve her child and I'm just doing my job. As mother, Miss James is the rightful guardian over the child and belongs in her care in her house."

"No!" Christian yelled. "No! Amour is mine, mine I tell you! Her damn mother didn't even know her daughter was alive until just a few weeks ago!"

"Sir, please just listen to me and give me your daughter. I promise you nothing will happen to her or you if you just give me her." He showed handcuffs when he was saying that Christian wouldn't be harmed, and Christian knew he had no choice. He could hand her over and lose her, and he could fight for her, and still in the end lose her.

"Amour?" Christian asked gently, looking at his daughter's innocent face.

"Yes, Papa?" she sniffed.

"You know how you want to see Mama really bad?" Amour nodded. "Well, this nice man here is going to take you to her, okay? Is it all right if you stay with her for a bit?" Amour hesitated a moment but then nodded again. "I promise I'll come visit—"

"I'm afraid that's impossible," said the officer. "Miss James has requested to disallow you to be within ten yards of your daughter for eight months, and only then will you be allowed to see her every Sunday with a supervisor."

"What?" Christian whispered disbelievingly. Did Satine wish to torture him that much? "Are you crazy? Her mother lives across the damn street and you want me to constantly stay ten yards away?"

"I'm just following orders, you'll have to work that out with Miss James."

Christian opened his mouth to say something but Amour stopped him. "I can't see you for eight months, Papa? But that's forever!" She began to cry and threw her arms around his neck. He pulled her closer to him and rubbed her back.

"I promise everything will be okay, Amour," said Christian, and he began to cry as well. "I'll go to a lawyer, a police station, I'll do anything, but I promise I'll get you back. I promise, you hear? But for now you have to be a big girl for Papa and go with Christopher to his house. Just pretend like it's one big sleepover, okay?"

Amour nodded and rubbed her eyes, sniffing as the tears subsided. She kissed her father one last time before leaving his arms and taking the police officers hand.

"Mr. James, if you could now please go inside and collect your daughter's belongings, we'll wait here for you."

Christian nodded and trudged back inside and upstairs. He gathered everything of Amour's and put it in a suitcase, moving slowly and lazily, not believing any of this was really happening. It had to be a dream, it had to be! Satine was callous but she still had a heart.

When finished, Christian entered the backyard again and handed the officer Amour's suitcase. He looked at his little girl one last time and kissed her softly atop her hair, before dazedly watching them disappear into the alley.

Satine had been gasping and coughing when the police officer knocked on her door. She knew who it was, having visited the police station the day before, and forced her fit to stop. She wanted to give a good impression towards her daughter, since this would be their first meeting actually knowing whom the other was.

She opened the door and the police officer greeted her, explaining that Christian would have fought, but gave in for the sake of his daughter. He then handed both children over and Satine pulled them into a hug.

"Christopher, don't ever leave again without my permission, do you hear me?" she told her son when the officer had left. She then turned to her daughter, and saw her own eyes peer back at her. How could she not have noticed? "Hello, Amour."

"Hi," she said. "Can I call you Mama?"

"Of course!" Satine said with a watery smile as tears formed in her eyes. "I am your Mama, right? Would you like to come sit and talk with me? I'd love to know more about you."

Amour shook her head. "I wanna see Papa. I have to tell him that you said I can call you Mama."

Satine frowned and said, "Didn't the man who brought you here tell you that you can't see Papa for a while?"

"Uh huh," she nodded. "For eight months, but I thought he was just saying that. I knew you would make things better when I got here and take me to Papa. Right?"

Satine looked down guiltily but otherwise stayed silent. It was quiet for a moment until Christopher interrupted and said, "Mama, where will Amour sleep?"

Satine looked up, relieved she didn't have to answer Amour's question. "Well, for now she can sleep with you in your bed, and tomorrow we'll go into town and get her a new one."

"But why can't I sleep in my own bed at home?" said Amour, still not fully grasping the concept.

"This is your home," Satine insisted. "Don't you want to be with Mama?"

"Yeah, but I want Papa, too," she said. "Why can't we all live in one big house?"

"Well, Mama and Papa are grownups, and we have different lives that just don't go together."

"Then can Papa sleepover tonight, too? And then I can go home with him in the morning."

Satine sighed and muttered, "We'll see, okay? Christopher, why don't you go show Amour her new room?"

When they entered the bedroom and the door closed behind them, Satine cursed Christian loudly for everything. He had convinced her to love him twice now, and as she had told him before, both relationships ended horribly and with emotions running high. She sat on the sofa and looked out the window, and found Christian sitting on a swing beside the shop. She reached forward and touched the glass as if trying to soothe him for what she did, but no small gesture could ever stop his tears. Besides, she thought in her defense, Amour is my daughter and belongs with me; I had all the right to go and do what I did!

"But you didn't," she told herself, standing up and walking to the other side of the room. She looked out of the glass door leading to her balcony and slid it open slowly to be welcomed by the cool summer wind. "Amour is his daughter, too, and belongs to you both."

She walked outside, looking over the side of the balcony, and saw the beginning of town down below. She wished she lived in a nice home with a backyard where Christopher could play with Amour, but there would definitely be no such luck now that she had no job, because she certainly couldn't go back to the shop. Marie had left her some money, but it was only enough to live off of for a few weeks, maybe have a casualty or two, and soon that would run out and she would be left with nothing again.

"Mama!" Her son's call brought her back inside and she saw him and Amour looking out the window to where Christian was still seated.

"Christopher, get away from the window," she snapped.

"Mama, we were just looking at Papa," said Christopher.

"He is not your father, Christopher Toulouse James, and he never will be! Don't ever let me hear you say that again!" Satine shouted.

"But, Mama, if Amour is my sister and we have the same mother, doesn't that mean we—"

"Don't say it, Chris, don't say it!" she warned, and the little boy shut his mouth.

At that moment Amour began to cry uncontrollably and Satine ran to her, pulling her into a hug. "Amour, what's wrong?" she asked worriedly.

"Papa," she sobbed. "Why are you talking about him like that? He didn't do anything wrong!"

"You know that grownups fight sometimes, Amour, that's just the way things are. Now I want you two to go get ready for your bath. I'll be in to wash you."

Amour rubbed her eyes and ran off after Christopher towards the bathroom. Satine sighed and looked out the window where Christian's face was in his hands. She shook her head sadly but turned away.

Christian was crying freely. Sitting on the swing made all the happy memories of his daughter come back to him and he realized his worst nightmare had come true—his daughter was gone, taken away, and he wasn't aloud to see her for eight months. He had promised her that he would get her back, but that would be near impossible without the cooperation of Satine, and he was certainly even less willing than she probably was. He could get a lawyer but that would cause a commotion, and that was the last thing he wanted to do.

What choices were left? None. He had no options. He was deprived of his Amour, his jem, his very sole purpose for living.

A/N: Wow, I feel like something really drastic is gonna happen soon but I don't know what. Lol, whatever. I'm starting to experience writer's block, and that's probably because I've written and posted seven chapters just this weekend, so I don't know when the next chapter's coming out, not to mention what's going to happen. I have an idea, but...I don't really like it, and I haven't decided whether Satine or Christian is going to do it. Anyways, that's all for now. Bye!!

Special Thanks: I LOVE YOU GUYS! You're the very reason I post all of these. Without your reviews, I probably would have shut this story down by now. I think this is the longest I've had a story up since I came to ff.n almost two years ago. Keep those reviews comin'!

Translations:

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Disclaimer: I sadly don't own Moulin Rouge or any of its affiliates. If I did I certainly wouldn't be here whining about it.

I don't own the songs either:

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