They got up early to get to La Havre on time. Azelma slept in the carriage, since she didn't have a good sleep that night. Thénardier was on the edge of his seat, waiting to get to La Havre. These are my last moments as Azelma, she thought. Once I'm aboard the ship, I'm Gulnare. I don't want to be Gulnare. I want to keep being Azelma. Éponine would never allow herself to be called Gulnare. Azelma got off the carriage and followed her father to the officials. She wished she was as strong as Éponine, who would disobey their father with no fear in her eyes. Azelma handed her papers over to the official, and waited patiently for them to finish.
Thénardier and Azelma managed to successfully get on the ship with no major conflicts. They went over to one side and stayed there as the ship became more and more crowded. Finally, the ship took off, sailing the short path through the channel to England. Once at England, more people boarded. The ship took some more people as well as people from Wales and Scotland. After a short stop at Ireland, the trek across the Atlantic began.
A man carrying a bunch of bags tripped while getting on board, and the bags went rolling. Azelma hesitantly picked one up and gave it back to him. The man smiled and stuck out his hand for a shake. Thénardier grinned and shook it.
"Bonjour, nous sommes des immigrés...vous ne parlez pas le français (Hello, we are French immigrants from...you don't speak French)," he said, when the man looked confused. Thénardier cleared his throat. His English was a bit rusty, "I am Guerrette. This is my daughter, Gulnare."
"Pleasure to meet you, I'm Hugh," he grinned. "So, first time to America?"
"Yes," Thénardier nodded, "we will live there."
Hugh laughed, "Does your daughter know English?"
"No," Thénardier shook his head.
"She should probably learn," Hugh said, "it'll be easier for her. A tutor won't be too expensive."
Thénardier nodded and glanced at Azelma. She was staring into the water, having lost interest in the conversation she couldn't understand.
Hugh cleared his throat and Azelma turned back around. Hugh smiled, "Hi Gulnare."
Azelma tried not to flinch at the sound of that name. She had to become accustomed to being called Gulnare. She reciprocated the smile, "Bonjour Monsieur."
Thénardier turned to Hugh, "Do you know a tutor?"
"No, sorry," Hugh shook his head.
Thénardier kept talking with Hugh about America, trying to get as much information as possible. Azelma stared down into the water. "Dauphin! Dauphin!" Azelma pointed into the water. A sliver of blue-ish gray was shown in the water. Azelma grinned and watched the dolphins race alongside the ship.