Il Commiato, la Mia Principessa
Chapt. 6
Note: I know this is kind of late , but: Congrats to "Phantom ," who had its 6000th performance on June 13 ! Wahoo! Apparently, the cast had a party on the stage after the show . Dang, would I have liked to attend .... :) Oh well....
The alleyway was dark and cold. As the sun sank below the horizon the temperature began to plummet as well, creating a vast, frigid night of probable horrors Bianca found she was all too acustomed to. Quietly sliding behind a rotting rain barrel, her green eyes glowed with fear as she warily searched the twilight around her for anything that might serve as a potential danger. A cat screamed in the distance, and the angry shouts of a heated argument from a room above her echoed off the walls and danced into the streets. Letting out a small sigh of uncertain relief , she slowly removed the stolen, half baguette; taken from the basket of a hot -tempered peasant woman who, undoubtably , could ill-afford the crafty hands of a well-trained pickpocket, desperate for a scrap of bread and a friendly face. Bianca had decided the bread was better than nothing at all. Long ago had she abandonded any feelings of guilt or remorse , and yet, as she pitifully gnawed at the stolen provisions, hot tears of self-hatred welled up and burned her green eyes . The poor woman had been simply one more example of suffering in human society; another dead star in the infinite galaxy of eternally brighter suns. Her hunger instantly subsided, as the fresh memories flooded her darkened mind.
"Erik ..." His name escaped her lips in a hushed gasp of supressed tears; the first time in a week since she allowed his image to completely penetrate her heart . The expression of such pain which had reflected her own in his yellow eyes was shocking and yet, deeply intruiging . For one small moment, Bianca had felt a strange connection with someone who understood .
"Beautiful evening , wouldn't you say, Little Cat ?" Acting on reflex , her head snapped up towards the dangerously soft voice; her flashing eyes scanning the unpredictable blackness. A rough, masculine hand reached out and snatched the half-eaten baguette from her own thin fingers, brushing her pale cheek as it passed.
"I didn't think my friends and I would be getting our nightly meal, and then I just happened to see you , sulking in some dark corner, and wasting this perfectly fine bread. I guess it's just our good fortune , then, isn't it?" Recognizing the voice and its owner's sly smile, Bianca leaped to her feet, narrowing her green eyes in an attempt to hide her fear .
"Be careful, Etienne ! She's got her Cat's gaze fixed on you! You don't want her to claw your eyes out!" The laughter which followed reverberated throughout the alley , intensifying her uneasy mood.
"I would take care to watch what I say, Jean-Claude . That goes for all of you as well. I could easily break each one of your necks in half!" Her threat sounded so daring and confident , Bianca almost believed the brash words which flew to her lips. She knew , however, that they were much bigger than herself , and that they bore knives, whereas she had only the cat fighting skills from her late childhood ; hardly an equal match. Suddenly, without warning , Etienne 's muscular hand flew out at her again , this time grabbing her mass of dark hair and dragging her to her feet. He forced her head backwards, making struggling or resitence of any kind unbearably painful; exposing her white throat to the moonlight and stifling her screams.
"I could easily break your neck in half right now , couldn't I, Little Cat ? It isn't as appealing when the tables have turned , is it?" Her breathing came in short, labored gasps as she struggled to stand in the unusual position in which he had placed her . The color drained from her already pale face as icy fear crept its way through her veins, seizing her spine and paralyzing her thoughts. They could kill her , it wasn't impossible, and all because of her foolish temper and quick tongue. Etienne's rough hands slithered their way around her throat, as a powerful snake does to its unfortunate prey. Tightening his grasp, he pulled her closer to his dirty face.
"Pretty street rats like you exist only for a man's amusement," he hissed softly in her ear. The danger in his hoarse voice was increasing to a frightening level Bianca had seldom heard before , and she shuddered in the cold, damp night at the thought of what he could do to her. Releasing her head from its coarse prison at last , he flung her to the filthy ground; towering over her as a person towers over an unsightly spider before crushing it.
"I am not finding you very amusing at all, however." His lips parted into a poisonous grin. "At least, not yet ." Bianca gasped as he took another step towards her ; the Devil's own smile plastered across his face. No longer pinned down with trembling fear, she leaped up onto a large crate with all the agility and poise her feline alias reserved , challenging them with her flashing eyes. Thinking quickly , she lunged at Etienne with all her strength; attempting to deal him a weakening blow sufficient enough to allow her a narrow window of opportunity . Unfortunately , the dark , moonless night impared her judgement , causing her sharp, jagged fingernails to swipe irrationally at his callous face. A small cry of shocked pain escaped her lips, blending with that of her victim ,as her body hit the dank ground. Crawling through the dirt , Bianca's trembling hands searched the air blindly for something to grab onto. Before she could lift her head in assitence, however, something attatched itself to her thin wrist with such force, it sent a wave of sharp pain up through her arm, causing her weakened knees to buckle under the weight of her body.
"What's this?" Lifting her eyes to investigate the soft voice, Bianca saw in the pallid starlight the bleeding face of Etienne ; still smiling, despite his unexpected injury. Following his steely expression , her gaze at last came to rest on the desirable treasure which had taken him by surprise. Erik's dainty, golden ring still rested softly on her thin finger; its lustrous surface catching the pale lamplight and delicately reflecting bright sparks of illumination. The rough hands gently examined the piece of jewelery with an almost civilized curiosity .
"Well, well. Bianca the Cat has found herself yet another fine prize to mock us with." His crude grasp moved slowly back up to her pale throat, where he fingered Mama's ruby with the same dangerous care . Too afraid and unsure of Etienne's intentions , Bianca held her tongue and struggled to surpress her growing rage. She shuddered as his cold hands brushed the base of her collarbone, causing him to laugh eerily at her obvious discomfort.
"Where do you get such fine things? If I didn't know any better, I'd have almost mistaken you for a countess." His voice dripped with bitter sarcasm, as his smile faded slightly into a mysterious, almost frightening smirk. "I don't believe it would be fair for you to keep accquiring such desirable items, while we lie in the gutter and starve. And then to parade them around in front of those less fortunate than yourself!" He tsked his tongue lightly at her and laughed a loud, disturbing laugh. His compatriots soon joined in , creating a harrowing cacaphony of shrieking demons whose devilish noise echoed off the inky night sky. Composing himself once more , Etienne pulled her white hand up to admire the pleasing glint of the ring with a lusty fascination .
"You're not a real countess." His voice was softer and more dangerous now . "You're nothing but a pathetic little street mouse , who doesn't deserve treasures that won't do her any good . I, on the other hand, could make great use of your newfound gem. It's worth a franc or two, I'd say." Licking his lips, as though attempting to taste the large sum of money the ring would bestow upon him, Etienne tightened his grip on her thin wrist with such strength, Bianca thought he might try to sever her hand in order to obtain what he wanted . Instantly, like a powerful bolt of lightening, she lost all connection with reality . Her brain flooded with haunting images of Erik , the pain he had endured, memories of her own cold grief, and the maddening thought that none of it mattered to them. They laughed, the ignorant fools, without knowing how deeply and horribly she and Erik had been wounded, and would continue to enjoy the petty earnings they would receive, without a moment's thought as to how significant their precious pawn might have been to someone else. Rational thought was no longer accessable , and the moonless sky seemed to cloud over as her intolerence peaked .
"Never," she hissed into the still blackness . "I would rather die a thousand deaths than to see you and your disgusting gang of horrible urchins steal and collect a profit off of this ring." In her blind fury, Bianca felt an unbearable desire to hurt, torment or kill. Bringing her flashing gaze to meet with his own, she thrust her face up and spat into his eyes; causing him to emit a shocked cry of revulsion and horror, while releasing her trembling hands from his iron grasp. As he wiped her attack away with a swift, rough gesture, Bianca could see a look of pure hate pass over his face. Moving with quick agility, she attempted to escape, but stumbled over the rough, uneven ground. Towering over her once more , the devlish grin returning , Etienne reached into his coat for something invisable in the darkness .
"A thousand deaths?" he repeated , as the others moved in towards her , trapping her like a doomed, unwanted rat. Their smiles gleamed in unison with the flash of their silvery knives.
Chapt. 6
Note: I know this is kind of late , but: Congrats to "Phantom ," who had its 6000th performance on June 13 ! Wahoo! Apparently, the cast had a party on the stage after the show . Dang, would I have liked to attend .... :) Oh well....
The alleyway was dark and cold. As the sun sank below the horizon the temperature began to plummet as well, creating a vast, frigid night of probable horrors Bianca found she was all too acustomed to. Quietly sliding behind a rotting rain barrel, her green eyes glowed with fear as she warily searched the twilight around her for anything that might serve as a potential danger. A cat screamed in the distance, and the angry shouts of a heated argument from a room above her echoed off the walls and danced into the streets. Letting out a small sigh of uncertain relief , she slowly removed the stolen, half baguette; taken from the basket of a hot -tempered peasant woman who, undoubtably , could ill-afford the crafty hands of a well-trained pickpocket, desperate for a scrap of bread and a friendly face. Bianca had decided the bread was better than nothing at all. Long ago had she abandonded any feelings of guilt or remorse , and yet, as she pitifully gnawed at the stolen provisions, hot tears of self-hatred welled up and burned her green eyes . The poor woman had been simply one more example of suffering in human society; another dead star in the infinite galaxy of eternally brighter suns. Her hunger instantly subsided, as the fresh memories flooded her darkened mind.
"Erik ..." His name escaped her lips in a hushed gasp of supressed tears; the first time in a week since she allowed his image to completely penetrate her heart . The expression of such pain which had reflected her own in his yellow eyes was shocking and yet, deeply intruiging . For one small moment, Bianca had felt a strange connection with someone who understood .
"Beautiful evening , wouldn't you say, Little Cat ?" Acting on reflex , her head snapped up towards the dangerously soft voice; her flashing eyes scanning the unpredictable blackness. A rough, masculine hand reached out and snatched the half-eaten baguette from her own thin fingers, brushing her pale cheek as it passed.
"I didn't think my friends and I would be getting our nightly meal, and then I just happened to see you , sulking in some dark corner, and wasting this perfectly fine bread. I guess it's just our good fortune , then, isn't it?" Recognizing the voice and its owner's sly smile, Bianca leaped to her feet, narrowing her green eyes in an attempt to hide her fear .
"Be careful, Etienne ! She's got her Cat's gaze fixed on you! You don't want her to claw your eyes out!" The laughter which followed reverberated throughout the alley , intensifying her uneasy mood.
"I would take care to watch what I say, Jean-Claude . That goes for all of you as well. I could easily break each one of your necks in half!" Her threat sounded so daring and confident , Bianca almost believed the brash words which flew to her lips. She knew , however, that they were much bigger than herself , and that they bore knives, whereas she had only the cat fighting skills from her late childhood ; hardly an equal match. Suddenly, without warning , Etienne 's muscular hand flew out at her again , this time grabbing her mass of dark hair and dragging her to her feet. He forced her head backwards, making struggling or resitence of any kind unbearably painful; exposing her white throat to the moonlight and stifling her screams.
"I could easily break your neck in half right now , couldn't I, Little Cat ? It isn't as appealing when the tables have turned , is it?" Her breathing came in short, labored gasps as she struggled to stand in the unusual position in which he had placed her . The color drained from her already pale face as icy fear crept its way through her veins, seizing her spine and paralyzing her thoughts. They could kill her , it wasn't impossible, and all because of her foolish temper and quick tongue. Etienne's rough hands slithered their way around her throat, as a powerful snake does to its unfortunate prey. Tightening his grasp, he pulled her closer to his dirty face.
"Pretty street rats like you exist only for a man's amusement," he hissed softly in her ear. The danger in his hoarse voice was increasing to a frightening level Bianca had seldom heard before , and she shuddered in the cold, damp night at the thought of what he could do to her. Releasing her head from its coarse prison at last , he flung her to the filthy ground; towering over her as a person towers over an unsightly spider before crushing it.
"I am not finding you very amusing at all, however." His lips parted into a poisonous grin. "At least, not yet ." Bianca gasped as he took another step towards her ; the Devil's own smile plastered across his face. No longer pinned down with trembling fear, she leaped up onto a large crate with all the agility and poise her feline alias reserved , challenging them with her flashing eyes. Thinking quickly , she lunged at Etienne with all her strength; attempting to deal him a weakening blow sufficient enough to allow her a narrow window of opportunity . Unfortunately , the dark , moonless night impared her judgement , causing her sharp, jagged fingernails to swipe irrationally at his callous face. A small cry of shocked pain escaped her lips, blending with that of her victim ,as her body hit the dank ground. Crawling through the dirt , Bianca's trembling hands searched the air blindly for something to grab onto. Before she could lift her head in assitence, however, something attatched itself to her thin wrist with such force, it sent a wave of sharp pain up through her arm, causing her weakened knees to buckle under the weight of her body.
"What's this?" Lifting her eyes to investigate the soft voice, Bianca saw in the pallid starlight the bleeding face of Etienne ; still smiling, despite his unexpected injury. Following his steely expression , her gaze at last came to rest on the desirable treasure which had taken him by surprise. Erik's dainty, golden ring still rested softly on her thin finger; its lustrous surface catching the pale lamplight and delicately reflecting bright sparks of illumination. The rough hands gently examined the piece of jewelery with an almost civilized curiosity .
"Well, well. Bianca the Cat has found herself yet another fine prize to mock us with." His crude grasp moved slowly back up to her pale throat, where he fingered Mama's ruby with the same dangerous care . Too afraid and unsure of Etienne's intentions , Bianca held her tongue and struggled to surpress her growing rage. She shuddered as his cold hands brushed the base of her collarbone, causing him to laugh eerily at her obvious discomfort.
"Where do you get such fine things? If I didn't know any better, I'd have almost mistaken you for a countess." His voice dripped with bitter sarcasm, as his smile faded slightly into a mysterious, almost frightening smirk. "I don't believe it would be fair for you to keep accquiring such desirable items, while we lie in the gutter and starve. And then to parade them around in front of those less fortunate than yourself!" He tsked his tongue lightly at her and laughed a loud, disturbing laugh. His compatriots soon joined in , creating a harrowing cacaphony of shrieking demons whose devilish noise echoed off the inky night sky. Composing himself once more , Etienne pulled her white hand up to admire the pleasing glint of the ring with a lusty fascination .
"You're not a real countess." His voice was softer and more dangerous now . "You're nothing but a pathetic little street mouse , who doesn't deserve treasures that won't do her any good . I, on the other hand, could make great use of your newfound gem. It's worth a franc or two, I'd say." Licking his lips, as though attempting to taste the large sum of money the ring would bestow upon him, Etienne tightened his grip on her thin wrist with such strength, Bianca thought he might try to sever her hand in order to obtain what he wanted . Instantly, like a powerful bolt of lightening, she lost all connection with reality . Her brain flooded with haunting images of Erik , the pain he had endured, memories of her own cold grief, and the maddening thought that none of it mattered to them. They laughed, the ignorant fools, without knowing how deeply and horribly she and Erik had been wounded, and would continue to enjoy the petty earnings they would receive, without a moment's thought as to how significant their precious pawn might have been to someone else. Rational thought was no longer accessable , and the moonless sky seemed to cloud over as her intolerence peaked .
"Never," she hissed into the still blackness . "I would rather die a thousand deaths than to see you and your disgusting gang of horrible urchins steal and collect a profit off of this ring." In her blind fury, Bianca felt an unbearable desire to hurt, torment or kill. Bringing her flashing gaze to meet with his own, she thrust her face up and spat into his eyes; causing him to emit a shocked cry of revulsion and horror, while releasing her trembling hands from his iron grasp. As he wiped her attack away with a swift, rough gesture, Bianca could see a look of pure hate pass over his face. Moving with quick agility, she attempted to escape, but stumbled over the rough, uneven ground. Towering over her once more , the devlish grin returning , Etienne reached into his coat for something invisable in the darkness .
"A thousand deaths?" he repeated , as the others moved in towards her , trapping her like a doomed, unwanted rat. Their smiles gleamed in unison with the flash of their silvery knives.