Chapter Text
Gaston let out a dramatic cry, falling to the ground. “You have betrayed me!”
Tom laughed. “That’s what you get for killing my sister!”
Gaston stifled laughter and twisted around, letting out exaggerated groans.
“Just die already!,” Stanley said, poking him with his “sword”, a blunt stick Gaston had given him.
Gaston stuck his tongue out at him before dying with a grunted “Avenge me, Richard!”.
“Get off the floor, Gaston!,” a woman called from the fountain.
Gaston grumbled and did as told, brushing the dirt off his shirt. “Yes, maman.”
Dick gasped dramatically. “He lives!”
Tom frowned before realizing what he meant. “What are you?! Some kind of monster?!”
“I’m a vampire!” he said before flashing his canines in a sharp grin.
Stanley hummed and put his arms around Dick’s and Tom's necks. “I say we need something else other than these swords to kill this beast.”
Dick ran to Gaston and held him back as he tried to reach for his friends. “You'll regret killing me, you fools!”
Stanley bent down to pick up a smaller, thicker stick than the one he was holding. A child around their age carrying some dirty laundry tripped over him and fell on the floor. “Oh, shit. I'm sorry.”
The boy lied down whimpering, holding his arm. Tom let Gaston go. He went to pick the relatively shorter boy up. “It's alright,” Gaston told him when he instinctively withdrew. “I'm not going to hurt you. I'm not like Stanley over there.”
“Ha, ha,” Stanley said dryly.
Gaston got him to his feet, holding his hurt arm with care. “Did you get hurt here?”
The boy nodded, staring at him with unfallen tears in his eyes. “Yes.”
“Oh, he speaks,” said Tom.
The boy opened his mouth but immediately shut it after Tom’s comment.
“It's alright, you can talk,” Gaston assured him with a small laugh. He rolled his shirt off to inspect the injury. “Oh, you just scraped your elbow, it's nothing. You just need to clean it up.”
The boy nodded and picked up the laundry with the four boys’ help. “Thank you,” he mumbled.
Gaston watched as he walked to the fountain.
“Gaston,” Dick called in a sing-song voice.
“Yeah?”
“Let's go back to playing, come on.”
Gaston frowned and bit his lip. “Wait a second.” He walked to the boy and sat next to him. “I'm Gaston.”
He jumped and looked at Gaston with wide eyes. “Hi.”
“What's your name?”
“...LeFou,” he murmured.
“That's cute.”
“...Thank you,” he said with a small smile, blushing.
“Do you want to play with us?”
“What?”
“I asked if you wanted to play with us,” Gaston repeated with a smile. “You're a kid, you should be playing not doing laundry.”
“But I don't have anyone else who will.”
Gaston hummed, frowning. He gasped. “I know! Maman!”
His mother stopped gossiping with the lady beside her and turned to him. “What is it?”
“Can you do my new friend's dirty laundry so he can come play? Please?!”
She sighed. “Sure.”
Gaston grinned at LeFou. “All done!”
“Oh, no. It's okay, really. I can—”
“Nonsense! Come now.” He lead him to his friend group. Stanley, Dick and Tom all stared at him confused. “Okay, so you already know Stanley and Tom,” he said, holding LeFou's wrist. “That's Dick.”
“Hey, huh…”
“His name's LeFou,” Gaston said.
“LeFou?” Dick asked.
“I don't think you're in any place to comment, Dick.”
Dick stared at Stanley. “And what is that supposed to mean?”
Tom laughed. “Hi, LeFou.”
“Oh, huh, hey.”
“Guys, break it off!” Gaston yelled at Dick and Stanley. Once Dick stopped nearly strangling Stanley, Gaston continued. “Alright, so! In this game, Tom, Dick and me were a group that fought evil people like Stanley but then I killed Tom's sister. So, he killed me but turns out I'm a vampire!”
“Because his mother wouldn't let him die,” Stanley said, mocking.
“Shut up! Being a vampire is better than being dead, anyway… What do you want to be, LeFou?”
“Vampire?” he said tentatively.
Gaston grinned. “Nice! We can be a duo of vampires that kills humans!”
“And you're working for me!” Stanley said.
“With you,” Gaston corrected, finally letting LeFou's wrist go. “Gaston works for no one.”
LeFou laughed.
“Oh, you think that's funny, do you?!”
“No, sir!” LeFou said, shaking his head.
Gaston smiled at him and pushed him lightly. “I'm teasing.”
“Alright, where were we?” Dick said.
“Tom was holding me back before I could tear your neck apart.”
“Oh, right.”
Tom moved to restrain Gaston as he went back to his vampire persona.
“Come on, Dick, kill him!”
“I don't have any weapons,” Dick complained.
Gaston growled. “You'll see! My friend is going to come save me!”
LeFou let out a small “oh” and jumped into action, pushing Tom off Gaston gently. “Get off my friend!”
Gaston smiled at him. “You're doing great,” he whispered. “We need to turn them now, LeFou!”
“Turn them…?”
“You know, into vampires.”
“Oh! We bite them, yes?”
Gaston nodded. “Less talking more fighting,” Stanley called from the floor.
“We don’t take orders from you! ...And why are you on the floor?”
“Oh, Tom cut my leg off.”
“He what?!" LeFou said, alarmed.
“No, no! Just as a game,” Gaston calmed him down.
“Oh! Oh.”
Gaston laughed. “It’s okay. No one actually gets hurt here.”
“Except when Dick chipped his teeth,” Tom said. “Show ‘im.”
Dick grimaced and pointed at his front teeth. Between them an arch was formed. “Gaston kicked me in the face.”
“I did not. We were wrestling and I accidentally knocked him over and he hit his teeth on a rock.”
“...I’m never wrestling with you,” LeFou said.
“He bites a lot,” Stanley told him. He pulled his sleeve off and showed off a small bite mark on his forearm to LeFou. “Those fangs are little beasts.”
“Just like Gaston himself,” Tom said with a snort.
“I am not a beast,” Gaston protested. “I’m pretty!”
LeFou put his hands to his mouth to stifle laughter.
“See? LeFou agrees.”
“Only because he fancies you,” Stanley said.
Gaston scoffed and pushed his friend. “LeFou doesn't fancy me. He's barely known me!”
“Well, I've seen him stare at us playing before,” he argued. “Especially at you, monsieur.”
“Pfft. It's not like that can happen. LeFou's a boy.”
Said boy stammered by Gaston’s side, cheeks flaring. “Hum, Gaston.”
“You agree with me, don't you?”
LeFou didn't say anything.
“Boys can fancy boys!” Stanley replied.
“Oh, what? You fancy me too, is that it?” Gaston joked.
“No! But LeFou does.”
“It's not possible!”
“Gaston!” his mother called.
“What?!”
“Don't yell at me, young man! Come here!”
“Thanks a lot, Stanley,” Gaston murmured before turning back. He walked away and sat by his mother. “Sorry.”
“I want you to be quieter, alright?”
“Okay,” he sighed. “May I go now?”
She looked at him and Gaston looked down. He didn't exactly like looking his mother in the eye. They were big and very dark, almost black, and looked like they could penetrate his soul. “I love you.”
“I know. I love you too.”
She nodded and kissed his head. “You can go now.”
Once he got back to his friends, and before he could open his mouth and talk, Stanley apologized for whatever potential trouble he got him on.
“It's alright. And I'm sorry I yelled.”
“Also, LeFou,” Stanley said, “sorry for telling everyone you like Gaston.”
“Well, I… I don't, so…”
Gaston blinked at him in shock. “You don't like me?”
“Wh— as a friend! I like you as a friend.”
“Oh!” Gaston grinned. “You too!”
Dick stepped in. “So, do we welcome Monsieur LeFou to the group?”
“I say we do,” Tom answered with a firm nod. “Stanley?”
“Oh, definitely.”
“And we know Gaston wants it so… let us begin.”
They all sat down in a circle, Gaston pulling LeFou down with him. “You sit in the middle,” he told him. LeFou nodded and did so, facing Gaston. “Close your eyes.” The four of them except for LeFou held hands. “We,” began Gaston, “Gaston…”
“Tom.”
“Dick.”
“Stanley.”
“Welcome you…” He whispered, “say your name.”
“Oh! LeFou.”
“To our group!”
They all clapped and LeFou opened his eyes with a smile.
“Now, we get a knife and cut our hands,” Gaston told him, “to make sure you'll always be with us.”
Tom laughed. “Don't scare him! He's just joking,” he reassured LeFou.
He nodded and smiled. “I mean, I wouldn't mind.”
“That's brave,” Dick said. He let out a groan when his mother called him. “I have to go home, see you.”
“I'm goin’ with him,” Tom said. “See you tomorrow, boys.”
“Bye.” Gaston turned to Stanley and LeFou and sighed. “What do you wanna do?”
LeFou shrugged. Stanley simply got up after a glance at the fountain.
“Oh, come on, are you leaving too?”
“Yep,” he said, eyes still on the fountain. “My sister needs help with all the clothes,” he explained giving Gaston an apologetic smile. “See you tomorrow.”
“Yeah, bye.”
LeFou waved goodbye and moved closer to Gaston, who smiled at him.
“Do you want to play sword fights?” Gaston asked.
LeFou nodded. “Yeah! I… don't know how to play, though.”
Gaston smiled again and got up, helping LeFou doing the same after. “It’s easy. Just grab your sword!” he said, waving his hand to some sticks on the ground.
LeFou hummed thoughtfully and picked a medium size one. Gaston picked up his usual sword and assumed the position of combat. LeFou imitated him.
“Now, we have to defend ourselves and all that.”
“Alright, okay.”
Gaston attacked first and LeFou defended himself quickly. “Very good!”
They played for quite some time — Gaston said he was winning 10 to 4 and LeFou was too sweet to correct him. Eventually LeFou fell on the ground with a huff. “You've defeated me!” he called in an exaggerated groan.
Gaston laughed and pulled LeFou up. He eyed the sky; the sun began to set. “I guess it's time you go home,” he said.
LeFou pouted slightly. “Can we play tomorrow again?”
“Of course!” Gaston replied with a grin. They both let their swords fall to the ground, and LeFou followed Gaston to his mother.
“Here you are. Hum…”
“LeFou,” he said, realizing she didn't yet know his name.
“Well, LeFou, I'm done with your laundry.” She handed him the basket with his now neatly folded, clean laundry.
LeFou smiled. “I can't thank you enough, mademoiselle.”
She blinked at him and laughed softly. “Madame.”
“Oh! Right, right.” He turned on his heels and walked away, shouting a “It was nice to meet you, Gaston!” over his shoulder.
Gaston grinned. “You too! See you tomorrow!”
“Sure!”
Gaston's mother smiled and got up. “You have to help me with the clothes.”
Gaston nodded and did so.
Home was empty and a bit dim. Gaston's mother set down her laundry basket on the table and started walking around to light some candles. Gaston put his on the ground and lied down on the sofa.
“Your father's coming back from a hunting trip.”
Gaston hummed, closing his eyes. He knew what it meant. Either he'd arrive a happy man, glad with the hunting, or an angry one, upset he only managed to catch a few rabbits. And he'd get angrier then, of course, once his wife reminded him that they couldn't eat rabbit.
He must have fallen asleep because when he opened his eyes there were knocks at the door.
“Gaston, mind getting that?” his mother called from the kitchen.
Gaston did just that, praying that his father had returned in a good mood.
His prayers were not answered.
Gaston’s father nearly threw him against the wall when he made his way in.
“Good evening, Pierre,” his mother greeted.
“Don't talk to me, Sophie!” he replied angrily, walking down to the cellar. Gaston shrunk instinctively, although he wasn't even close to his father.
He was in for a good night.