Story [War and Peace] Her Brother's Sister (Helene, Anatole, Dolokhov. Family!fic, angst, fluff)

Title: Her Brother?s Sister
Author: Alley_Skywalker
Fandom: War and Peace
Characters: Helene Kuragin, Anatole Kuragin, Theodore Dolokhov
Summary: Since she was a child, Helene knew one thing very clearly: she was Anatole?s older sister.
Author's Notes: This was written for the femgenficathon on livejournal. It?s not exactly the Helene story I wanted to write it?s what came out and overall, I?m not unhappy with it.





The letter lies on her lap, the paper creased and crinkled in several places. It seems abnormally white and bright against the dark folds of her dress. She?s re-read it several times over the past month. It?s been that long since he?s written and she doesn?t know when a new letter would come, though they might expect one soon. She closes her eyes and folds up the letter, putting it back away into her secretaire.

She paces to the window and grips the windowsill with both hands, looking out at the street below and not seeing a thing other than his face. Somewhere far away the canons are booming and the troops are spilling blood. Somewhere out there her baby brother fights for their country, pretending he is a hero when all he really is is a child. The afternoon light catches on the vase stood on the windowsill and spreads over the walls and ceiling of the room. One of the sun bunnies alights on the flowers in the vase. They?re bright, like most summer flowers ? radiant. She fingers one of them, feeling its velvety softness run over her skin. They smell amply of sweetness and that smell fills her nostrils until she can almost taste it. That smell makes her think of the countryside and the countryside of her childhood, before she was out in society.

She closes her eyes and breathes in, trying to recapture how those days had felt. The memories are clear, if sometimes allusive. But they?re all she has while she waits for a letter.

*~*

Since she was a child, Helene knew one thing very clearly: she was Anatole?s older sister. There were so many other labels she could put on herself: her parent?s daughter, Hippolyte?s younger sister, a young Princess, and so on in order of importance. But the one that stood out most was that she was Anatole?s older sister. Perhaps this had something to do with Hippolyte?s regular absence from her life. She was closer to him in age than to Anatole, but they barely had a friendship beyond the natural one of siblings.

Perhaps it was her lack of friends but Helene always found herself spending time with her younger brother. They caused mischief together, rode horseback around the estate, talked in the middle of the night about dreams for the future. She stood on the porch and watched Anatole on his first riding and fencing lessons. They shared tutors and competed against one another in who was the better dancer or whose French was best. Her childhood had been spent in a sunny blur at the estate, with a break for winters, which were bright white. Then they would sled together or make snow angels to their governess? distress. Anatole was always a scardy-cat as a child and he would run into Helene?s room during storms and hide under her blankets. She would pretend to be angry with him for not letting her sleep but she never was.

When Theodore Dolokhov threatened to take Anatole?s attention away from her, posing as an older friend ? in the eyes of a ten-year-old Helene he was nothing but a brother stealer ? she threatened him, promising to have her way with him. In the end, he ended up having his way with her, but that?s irrelevant.

?Why do you like him so much?? Helene asked one night when Anatole had sneaked into her room and crawled under the blankets.

He chewed on his lip and looked over at her in the darkness. ?Because he?s fun.?

That was such seven-year-old explanation, but she pressed on. ?I?m fun.?

Anatole rolled his eyes. ?Teddy?s a boy. He?s more fun.?

That hurt, and she turned away from him. ?Well, if he?s so much more fun, maybe you should go back to your own room.?

Anatole turned over on his side a

 

Thanks for the PM, Alley! I liked the sibling relationship in this story very much - its innocence is a refreshing breather from the frequently intense atmosphere in War and Peace. I can see why you say it's not exactly the Helene story you wanted to write, but this Helene is convincing enough and does tend to tug at one's heartstrings.

Also, this seems to be the first time I've had so much fun reading about Helene and Theodore together; I suspect it's very much due to the tone in the lines "In the end, he ended up having his way with her, but that?s irrelevant" and "With Theodore, of all people. That brother-stealing, self-confident ass."

 

Valiowk
I?m glad you liked it! (And I hope you liked the other fic I sent you, even though it?s different in tone.) I think Helene can and does have a soft side. She and Anatole came off just a bit too fluffy perhaps here but that?s more due to the format and the limited space (and time that I was writing in). I do think these two were close and Helene doesn?t seem to be quite as close to anyone in canon as she is to Anatole (aside from her father, perhaps).
As for Theodore and Helene well?. I also enjoy their banter, weather it is as strictly friends or more. I think these two could totally duke it out and parry each other

 

Really love this book and was surprised to see this fan fiction. I liked this lovely Helene turned out! I've always liked this character, despite the fact that it appears in the book is not at its best. And you do it different, and I like it. Thank you.

Bel

 

DarthBellumSolo
Thank you! I really like this book too and I find Helene to be an interesting character.