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The moment Lupin had laid his eyes on her, the first thing that came to his mind was that she was beautiful. Too beautiful to be kept hidden in a creepy old mansion. Too beautiful for not the world to see. But the first impression he got from her was quite different: she looked fragile, as weak as a child, similar to a doll. She didn’t have any emotions at the time. Not even the slightest sign of anger or sadness. She was like her father told her to be: an empty shell. That’s the more reason he needed to take her away. She had to live a normal life, despite the poison remaining in her body. She had to see the world for herself. And more than anything: she had the right to live.
It’s true, he had already fallen in love in the past. The Gentleman Thief had met many, many extraordinary women over the years. But none of them was Cardia. Never had he thought he would wait for a woman to turn her back so he could look at her and never stop being amazed by how gorgeous she was. Or that he’d laugh just because she cried of joy for doing chores or cooking. For the first time in his life, he listened to his heart pounding in his chest, paid attention to the blushing of his cheeks and he accepted that. He enjoyed that. For the first time in his life, he felt that what he was doing was right.
She was standing by the Thames, her arms folded around her legs, watching Sisi playing with a ball a few meters away. Three weeks have passed since Isaac’s passing and the Nautilus incident. Three weeks that Cardia was a normal woman, able to touch and love like any other human being. Sure, Lupin was more than happy to finally touch her skin, put his fingers on her face, on her arms, hold her hands but first of, he was happy for her. She got the freedom she was looking for and even though she thanked him the whole time for rescuing her on the ship – or even back to their meeting, when he snatched her away at the mansion from her lonely life – Lupin still thought she was the one to make it happen. He only helped her along the way. He still feels guilty about not arriving in time when the military had to take a break from the war. He couldn’t even imagine – nor wanted to – how much pain Finis and Isaac brought upon her. But she said it was alright so maybe with time, he’ll forgive himself.
“Come on now, Sisi !”, he heard her laugh.
The dog threw the ball at her to play with her. He barked and licked her cheeks. It truly was a lovely sight. Impey would be so jealous ! Finally, Lupin decided it was time to come out of his hiding spot. Well, “hiding spot”… Not really. They’ve been outside to go shopping and because of the heat outside, they needed drinks. He only went to buy something to drink and by the time he was back, he caught this magnificent sight. And he just… stood there, watching her every move, smiling to himself. Cardia jumped when she felt the cold can on her cheek. Lupin wanted to surprise her, and he did. She thanked him for the drink by nodding her head and grabbed the can to open it. Her boyfriend sat beside her, his legs sprawled on the grass. Before taking a sip of the water Lupin brought her, she threw the ball to let Sisi catch it. She laughed. When she thought that she was too scared to hurt the dog when Saint-Germain allowed her to stay in his mansion… It feels like a thousand years ago. But no, it only has been a few months.
“It’s strange how time goes by so quickly”, she asserted.
Not even looking at her, Lupin nodded.
“I was nothing but a child when I met you and… I’m sure I still am. I got so many things left to see and I can’t wait to discover all of them.”
“That’s the spirit”, he cheered her.
She hold the can in her hands, gazing at the horizon in front of her. People walked on the bridge ahead, children played tags, elders sold their items… London has become joyful, full of life, like the way it used to be… or that's what she imagined anyway. She fought for herself, for her own life, to obtain answers and most of all her humanity. Lupin and the others fought for London. They fought to bring happiness to others, not only hers. It’s not perfect right now, but the shadow of war will progressively disappear. Her lips curled into a smile when a little girl ran after Sisi. And again, without her noticing, Lupin watched her. All over. Every time. When she acted innocently, like a curious child, or when she did typical things. When she had her eyes focused on something other than him, he would look her way. He truly wondered when and – or ? – how he fell in love with her ? Maybe it was the day they met ? Or maybe he gradually fell in love ? Anyway, the thing was that he loved her like he never imagined he would. He’s always been the selfless kind of guy but when it involved Cardia, he’d willingly sacrifice himself.
“Hey Lupin ?”, she began.
“Hmm ?”
She left her head and looked up at the sky. The sun was shining bright.
“Do you remember our training together ? When we played hide and seek ?”
“How could I forget ? I was impressed by your abilities.”
Cardia laughed. Again, this laugh. Each time he heard it, he fell even more in love with the woman next to him. How could she do that ? How could she touch his heart that way ? That easily ?
“Haha, no way. I was beaten so easily. You outmatched me when I thought I was doing great.”
“Hey, I’m no normal person after all”, he said, taking his gentleman stance.
She pouted. Of course he wasn’t.
“Would you like to try again ?”, she suddenly ask.
“Huh ?”
“It’s been a while, with all that fighting lately I think I got better at this ! And I won’t know until I try.”
The way she looked at him, with her eyes full of determination and curiosity… Yes, maybe that was why… Why he loved her that much. He finished his drink then got on his feet.
“I’m not against it but… What about Sisi ?”
“Oh, he’ll be fine. That little girl over there is playing with him for the moment.”
“Okay, fine, have it your way. I guess I’m the one who has to chase you ?”
She nods. He walked towards a tree and closed his eyes. Meanwhile, Cardia ran as fast as she could, sneaking between bushes, but then she had an idea. She looked up at a branch. Maybe she could climb ? Okay, it was dangerous, but Lupin won’t find her right ? She climbed on the nearest bench, not paying attention to the surprised looks around her. Then she jumped. She reached the branch on her fourth try. I don’t have much time left ! Then she jumped from branch to branch until she was completely hidden by the leaves. Okay, he won’t see me. She just had to take care not to lose her balance otherwise she would be hurt. Seconds passed, maybe even minutes, whatever that was it was long. Her feet started to hurt from standing on her toes and so are her knees. One of her legs started to shake but she couldn’t let go now, she had to hold on, no matter what. She wanted to prove that she could win this time. Not to prove to Lupin but to herself. She wanted to believe in herself for once. Then, she heard footsteps. He’s here ! He walked towards the tree. She stopped breathing, like it could hide her presence somehow even if she knew it was useless but she did so anyway. But ultimately Lupin walked away.
“Pfewww…”, she murmured.
But then suddenly he showed up and looked up at the tree. He bore his usual mischievous smile and that’s when she understood she had to run. She let go of the branches, almost fell because of the numbness of her limbs but she started running like her life depended on it. Obviously, the thief pursued her and they ran like that, like childhood friends for quite some time. Eventually, he decided to stop playing around by speeding things up: he disappeared to reappear right in front of her. He grabbed her waist and pulled her to the ground. The sudden contact knocked her off a little.
“Oh, did I hurt you ?”, Lupin asked, on top of her.
She didn’t answer. She just laughed. Again. His heart beat faster. Again. I just… can’t stop. Without further ado, he put his lips on her, and suddenly they were no longer the heartless monster and the Gentleman Thief, just two people deep in love. First, Cardia didn’t know what to do but then she let her arms encircling his torso, and she let herself entering a world she began to be familiarized with. A world of sweetness mixed up with vanilla perfume. A world she had plenty of time to discover but something tells her she won’t have to wait very long until she explored all of it. He broke the kiss and stood on his two forearms, his nose brushing Cardia’s. She could feel her cheeks redden. And the more he looked at her with those gorgeous golden eyes of his, the more she blushed. For some time, they stood in this position, not giving a damn about the world, living in their own little private heaven. Lupin would give her light kisses sometimes too. But then…
“Oh my God !”, Cardia exclaimed, getting up. “Ow!”
She hit her head with Lupin.
“Oh no, I-I’m so sorry I didn’t mean to-”
“Wow, that hurts.” She jumped on him to see if he was alright. Obviously, Cardia was too pure and innocent to understand that he was faking it. He was perfectly fine and took the occasion to lift her on his torso this time, his back on the grass. He took her face and put it on his so their foreheads touched.
“Now I’m okay”, he said, closing his eyes. Cardia had little chance to see his face so closely. With everyone in the mansion, they couldn’t spend much time together. She looked at his perfectly shaped face, his bangs covering his right eye. Then she rested one of her fingers on his cheek. She wanted to stroke his cheek all over. To feel him. Then she gazed at his lips. His wet and sweet lips she had just kissed a few minutes ago. She wanted to taste it again. So she did. And again. And again. And all over again. I love you. I hope I can convey to you my feelings this way. I’ve read in a book one day that actions speak louder than words. Maybe they’re right.