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Since you were a child, you always had been fascinated by the people around you. To you, everyone shined brightly like a star. They were just so talented and wonderful—they stood out in stark contrast to you. You didn’t have much going for you. You were clumsy and gloomy. You had no talents to speak of. You were many things, but the last thing was a star.
Upon entering the House, you couldn’t help but feel Freminet was the same. He never thought much of himself. It was a fact you knew well. It always showed in the way he spoke, constantly acting as if he had to ask permission solely for existing. With his voice quiet and shoulders drawn in, he didn’t prefer to stand out within a crowd. “Mother,” the director, loved that about him. How she enjoyed bullying him to make him sink even more into himself.
But after “Mother” was dethroned and Father began to take charge, Freminet began to change. It became especially clear when the twins entered as well. Slowly but surely, he began reaching outside of himself. He started interacting with vendors interested in his clockwork creations. He participated in the twins’ magic shows. He even argued with Lyney, something you never thought he was capable of.
Like others, he began to shine. Not only was he smart, but he was gentle and kind. And as timid as he was, he always stood up for what he believed to be right. He was worth something, irreplaceable to the House.
But what of you?
Though you tried your best to become a soldier Father could be proud of, you still failed many times. As much as you tried to be a positive influence on the other orphans, they still saw your mistakes. As strong of a person you aimed to become, there were still times you found yourself caught in the throes of depression. Unlike Freminet, you were not worth much.
“Freminet,” you began one day as you laid beside him underneath the night sky. “They say that the luckiest stars are found in the zenith, meaning the ones directly above you. To me, that’s where I feel you are, and Lyney and Lynette. Father and the rest of the House. If you all were stars, you’d be in the zenith.”
It was a random thing to talk about, you knew, but you really couldn’t help yourself after seeing how down he looked today. Perhaps he got into another disagreement with Lyney or maybe there was a mission failed, who knew. Regardless, knowing how insecure Freminet was, you wanted to cheer him up, if not just a little bit.
“Really? You think that of me?” He asked slowly, as if questioning the validity of your words. “But I… I’m not really anything special.” But you shook your head.
“That’s not true. You’re kind. You’re good at making clockwork creations. You stand up to Lyney when he’s overworking himself. You fix everything Lynette breaks. You’re really amazing, you know that? I really look up to you. So cheer up. I don’t know what happened today, but don’t let it get you too down, okay?”
He took a few moments to respond, as if taking the time to soak in your words.
“Sorr– Um… Thank you,” he finally managed to get out, prompting a laugh from you. How long had you been trying to break his habit of apologizing?
Seeing as though curfew was approaching, you sat up and did your best to brush the spare blades of grass from your back. After standing up, you reached a hand out to him.
“Shall we head in?”
After nodding, he took your hand and stood. But after you began forward a few steps, you stopped upon realizing you weren’t being followed. Turning back, there Freminet stood, his eyes upon the stars above him.
“Freminet?” You asked curiously, before finally, he turned to you.
“Um, sorry,” he mumbled quietly. “I was just thinking that… just like you, if everyone were stars, they’d be in my zenith too. They’re lucky to me too. But… out of everyone, I think you’d be the highest.”
That gave you pause.
“The highest?”
He nodded.
“At least, that’s just what I think. Sorry if that sounds weird.”
You shook your head, ignoring the way your heart filled with a hesitant warmth.
“No, I… Thank you, Freminet.”