Soulforged

Chapter 13

-/-

Armand's heart was beating wildly in his chest, his breathing rattled in his lungs, but he didn't dare stop, despite the burning in his chest that begged him to stop and breath. They would catch him if he did, and despite being tall for his age, Armand wasn't a match for the three older boys.

A few minutes later ducking into a doorway, Armand glanced around, hoping that he had finally managed to lose his pursuers. God knows he was lost himself right now, with the washing strung up across the narrow streets, and the stench of excrement in the air, this was not a part of Paris that the young du Plessis would normally venture into it.

Biting his lip as he heard familiar voices, Armand cowered as much as he could, shrinking back against the shut door, and preying with all his might that they wouldn't discover him.

Armand had thought school would finally be his chance to make something of himself, yet along with the strict lessons, that for some reason he had excelled at, Armand had attracted the attentions of a bully, who from the first time he had laid eyes on him seemed to detest him.

"Come on Raoul, let's get out of here, we'll get the little swot after vespers."

"I am not leaving, until I teach that little shit a lesson, in deferring to his betters..."

"Claude is right Raoul, we can deal with him later, I don't want to miss supper because..."

"Your stomach is already big enough Pierre, you could do with skipping a meal or two, besides we can't do this back at the school, the little shit's brother will step in, and I want time to teach him a real lesson."

"Well I am not heading down there, it looks like a thieves den...Come on Claude, I am not getting robbed because Raoul's being stubborn."

"Fine run off you little scaredy cats. I'll deal with the little bastard all by myself." Raoul's contempt was clear, and the scurrying off of the other's footsteps had Armand stifling a sigh of relief.

Yet that relief was short lived, as he heard his bully call out.

"I know you're here little swot. You really are making it worse for yourself you know. It was bad enough showing me up in front of Monsieur, but then to run instead of taking your punishment, making me fucking chase you over half of Paris. I might even miss supper because of you. If you come out now, I might only beat you black and blue."

Armand couldn't move. He knew he should, there was only Raoul now to deal with, and he might be able to lose him. Yet even if he escaped now, the older boy would catch him alone at some point, there were far too many little nooks at their school, where a boy could be ambushed, not even the library was the safe haven it should be.

Hands scrabbled around, for anything that he might use to defend himself, and Armand's fingers closed on a lump of stone or brick. He could throw that at Raoul if he discovered him, and then make a break for it. It was heavy, and Armand could just lift it with one hand, he would need two to throw it any distance.

"Ah there you are."

Raoul's sudden appearance startled Armand, and he fumbled with his plan, his throw poorly timed, and falling too short to put his pursuer in any real danger.

Laughing Raoul could only shake his head. "Oh was that supposed to scare me little swot?"

Making a break for it, Armand didn't make it two steps, before a smack to the back of his head had him sprawled on the floor, face first.

"Fucking...little...shit..." Raoul hissed, punctuating each word with a kick to the younger boy. "You take what's coming to you."

Tears blurring his vision, Armand bit down on his bottom lip, drawing blood, but he refused to scream, he refused to give Raoul the satisfaction. He tried his best to crawl away, but a sharp boot to his ribs, had Armand curling up to protect himself.