Chapter Text
It was lunchtime in Fontaine, and Arlecchino sat at the head of the Hearth’s dining room table, Lyney on her right, and Lynette in the seat next to him. The seat on Alrechinnos left, which is usually occupied by Freminet, was empty, but everyone could hear the commotion upstairs.
It sounded like Freminet was distressed, but Arlecchino decided that it wasn’t yet time to step in.
His footsteps were heavy, coming down the stairs. He practically ran up behind Lyney and dragged him to the floor by the back of his collar. “Where the fuck is it, Lyney?” he said as he punched him in the face
Lyney screamed; he didn’t have any time to react. "AH- where is what? What are you talking about!?!” He tried to wiggle free or put his hands in front of his face to dodge Freminet’s swinging, but it was no use.
“Don’t play dumb with me, Lyney!” Freminet shouted as he continued to hit his brother.
Arlecchino stood up, quickly contemplating how to handle the situation. She grabbed Freminet by the waist and pulled him off of Lyney. But not before he could get one last swing in, almost hitting his father in the process. “I told you not to go through my shit!”
"WOAH, Woah, woah, woah” Arlecchino held Freminet back, and he struggled to get away from her grasp. “What happened Freminet, talk to me.”
Arlecchino could hear the frustration in his voice “M-My necklace, my mother’s, is missing. And he’s the only other person with a key to our room!” He accusingly pointed at Lyney while Lynette helped him to his feet. What he said about the key wasn’t true; there was one more copy of the key, kept safely tucked away in Arlecchino's room. But the children didn’t know that. “He went through my stuff, and now her necklace is missing!” he yelled. Arlechinno knew what that necklace meant to him and briefly remembered the day she had retrieved it for him.
Lyney held his nose; it was bleeding. “I didn't take your stupid necklace, Frem! Why are you being suck a dick? Are you trying to hide something?"
Arlecchino struggled to hold her son back as he tried to pounce at his brother once again. He was a small boy, but he was strong. Everyone had seen how he whips around a claymore half his size like it’s nothing.
“Frem, don’t worry about the necklace; I'll help you find it.” She reassured him. “Now, Lyney, don’t lie to me. Did you go through your brother’s things?”
Lyney squirmed a bit, like a criminal who’s been caught. “I didn’t take the fucking necklace!”
The two brothers shouted incoherent curses at each other as Arlecchino dragged Freminet up the stairs and back to him and Lyney’s shared room. She put Freminet to sit on his bed while she looked through the destruction for the necklace. The room was split in half, with a window on the back wall. The boys were usually very good about keeping the room tidy, but Freminet’s belongings were thrown all over. Even his trusty companion, Pers, was in the corner on his side.
She found the necklace underneath a pile of Fremient’s own clothes. Presumably, he had thrown them on top of the necklace in his search for it. She picked it up and placed it in the boy's hand. “See, it’s right here. Nothing to worry about.”
Freminet sighed in relief at being reunited with his mother’s necklace. All the panic of never seeing it again washed away like the sea. “Thank you, Father.” He traced the carving on the pendant. the familiar indents bringing him comfort. “You know how I get. You know how much this means to me. It’s really all I have from her.”
“Oh, Manchot,” she said, wrapping her arms around the boy. It wasn’t often that she showed physical affection, but she would do anything to comfort him in this moment. “Your mother was a very brave woman. You have that from her. She was strong and smart and did anything she could to protect her family.” She rubbed his back, and he looked to the floor. “I know you have that from her.”
"I'm... sorry, Father."
“I’m not the one you should be apologizing to. I know he went through your things, but that’s no reason to flip out and hit him like that.” Freminet continued to look down as she spoke. He remembered the look on Lyney's face as he hit him, and, although funny, he felt pretty bad. “Now, you stay up here and calm yourself down. I'll bring you some lunch in a bit. you should eat.” She stood up and left the room.
Arlecchino went outside and lit a cigarette. She closed her eyes as she took a drab. “mon Dieu, que diable…” she sighed “what am i to do with that boy?”