Final chapter: stars.

Jean Valjean was back in prison, only four days later Javert had captured him. This had got Javert a place in Paris. In just a month everything was done. After finding the convict, Javert was again called to testify in court. On the same day, the prefect of the time offered him a promotion. Javert accepted, Paris was the centre, the fiery heart of France. Paris was where he needed to be. Paris was also the bowels of crime, the matrix, the nest of all the ugliest things on this earth. Javert was supposed to be there.

Back when they first arrived in Paris, Javert had rented a room. And while the inspector boldly did his work outside, Cosette wisely remained in that room. The days were long for the little girl, but the window was large and she could see the street. During the day she spent her time at the window, and after several days she got used to the rhythm of the passers-by. Their routine had become hers. She had the choice between that of the baker who at six o'clock was using his candle to prepare the bread, and she saw him arranging the pastries nicely behind the glass. And there was also the florist who, under the astonished and curious look of Cosette, composed bouquets of all shapes and colours. But her favorite routine was that of that doll from the store right in front of her window. She was exposed in the morning and all day. She never changed and sat faithfully on her pedestal like a queen in the midst of all her subjects whom she observed and protected with a just and benevolent eye. She called the doll Queen Catherine.

The room they had was not large enough for two, and eventually he had to find something else for him and Cosette. He rented a house and brought in Paris the few pieces of furniture that belonged to him and all his belongings from Montreuil. Cosette had a room for her and Javert had his. There was a small and neglected garden in the back of the house that Cosette immediately liked.

A month had passed since they had moved into that house, a month since Cosette had not seen Catherine again. One evening, Javert had just returned from work, and the house was strangely calm, except that the flame of a candle made shadows flicker on the walls. Otherwise, there was no noise or movement in that house. None apart from the sound of the wind which was the troublemaker in this tranquility and which caused so much torment to the candle. And if the wind was blowing, it was because a window had not been closed. Javert sighed. Cosette had certainly forgotten, especially since he had forbidden her to go out to play in the garden when he was not there. But a hint of anxiety was enough to disturb the inspector. Why did she forget? Where was she? Cosette? Javert did not take the time to take off his hat, he dropped it on the ground with his stick and crossed the hallway.

"Cosette?" He scanned the room, the fire in the fireplace had extinguished and there was a blanket dragged on the floor in front of the chimney. Cosette was not there, a gust of wind swept through the room and reminded Javert of the window still open. And as he bent over to close the shutters, he discerned in the darkness of the garden a small black shape.

"Cosette!" shouted the inspector as he rushed to join her. "What are you doing out there?"

The poor girl was startled, and before she could even explain herself, the inspector had taken her inside. "So? You disobeyed me!" The inspector had never been so furious. She was hunched, trying to make herself as small as possible, but the inspector had leaned over her and waited with a firm foot for an answer.

"There are stars in the sky," she whispered and Javert had to stoop even more to hear her.

"Louder, child.»

"The stars... »

"What? The stars? Javert frowned.

"The sky, outside.. Come and see, Papa."

"Papa'' had the same effect of the creaking of a door. To understand the effect that Cosette had on that wretched inspector's heart, we would have needed a microscope and a scalpel, we would have had to probe the soul, to separate the marrow from the bones, and yet, this mystery might remain a mystery.

The inspector's face had softened, and Cosette, feeling that the pressure had vanished, took his hand and led him to the window.

"Why do they shine so bright?" asked Cosette.

The backyard was located at the back of the main street. There were no streetlights, so it was perfectly dark after nightfall. The advantage of this compact blackness was that there was no discomfort to admire the sky. The moon and the stars had no other rivals than themselves. And indeed, a superb vault sprinkled with stars was over them. No man can resist the beauty of the sky. And Javert knelt down, contemplating that canvas as well.

Then he lowered his eyes to contemplate another richness. In this contrast, Cosette's face stood out perfectly from the clear sky. She stood religiously, her hands clinging to the wooden window frame.

Javert had not answered her question, she turned her face, "why?".

"That's how it is, Cosette. If they weren't so bright, it'd be dark and we wouldn't see anything, wouldn't we? »

"And how many are there in the sky?"

"Billions, I guess. I've never counted them, and I don't know exactly how many there are".

"But where do they go when it's day?"

"I've heard that the stars are still there. Besides, sometimes you can see them when it's daylight, when some of them shine brighter than others."

"Why?" Asked Cosette.

Javert sighed deeply. "There's no point in lighting a candle in daylight, you know? That would be useless and a waste. Plus, you would hardly notice them. But, when it's dark, you see how that little candle lit right there on the table can light up the whole room?" Cosette nodded. "If there was no candle, we could fall, hurt ourselves very badly against a wall or a piece of furniture."

Cosette was still perplexed, but she nodded and turned her gaze to the sky again. They remained silent for a moment. As she was watching the sky, Cosette leaned softly, like a feather, against Javert chest, looking for warmth where no one else would have. And Javert knew neither how to answer nor how to react to the tenderness she threw in abundance in his face. So, he stood still, not knowing himself if he wanted her to go away or if, on the contrary, he wanted to hold her tighter.

"They watch over us, you know that?" He said.

"Really?"

"Yes, of course. Even when they're hidden by daylight, or behind clouds, even when you can't see them. They're here, watching over us. They never fail, you see, night after night, as sure as the sun rises and sets, the stars are always there. They are faithful to their post, always, Cosette. And their light is pure; they are not stained by the darkness of the night."

"Are they always watching us?"

"Yes, they see if you're not behaving, for example. They know when you disobey direct orders I gave you."

"I've always been nice!" Cosette answered at once, as if to defend herself from false accusations. "Well, maybe I didn't always obey the Thenardiers, but I tried. When she asked me to fetch water, I would go, when she told me to do the dishes, I would do it. When only a few times I wasn't nice, it was because I had to go outside to get water in the forest. But it's because I was afraid, because it's so dark and cold outside and in the forest, in winter when there are clouds, there are no stars and no light and you fall and you get hurt." Javert did not expect this answer and he regretted using sarcasm with an eight years old girl.

Did the little girl have to feel guilty for not being docile enough to obey her abusive guardians? Javert stared at her for a long time. Two oceans met, collided and eventually mixed together. He plunged, head first without fear, because after all, they were alone, no one could see them, no one could know that under his black raincoat, a heart was beating. All the sweetness of her eyes enveloped him warmly. At what point, exactly, had the inspector let down his guard and at what point had she pierced the solid walls he had built around his heart? A tear ran down the inspector's cheek and, like a dove, Cosette put her hand on his cheek and dried it with her thumb. And that was the end. All fortresses, all walls had collapsed.

"You didn't do anything wrong, I'm here now, I will watch after you, I promise."

The end.

Notes:

Thank you for reading this little story. It is my first completed fanfiction. If you guys are interested, I might publish another piece of my imagination where Fantine and Javert do have an affair. I will probably post it, and I hope you will enjoy it.

Please let me know your opinion about this story, leave a comment, it would be a pleasure for me to read them.

Thank you also for bearing my grammatical mistakes, I am French, English is more like a second language for me so forgive me.

See you soon!