Night butterfly. Travel in time and space 3

FRANCE
Battlefield
Battlefield. Evening. The girl coughs from the thick, bitter smoke that surrounds her from all sides. Something heavy slams next to Lucienne, throwing her up. But the girl is still half-conscious and does not want to take any action. Finally, someone grabs her by the legs, several more hands grab her arms and carry her. Breathing becomes a little easier. Wet fabric crawls over Lucienne's face, and the girl understands that, willy-nilly, she will have to come out of oblivion. She opens her eyes. A girl of grenadier height and build, dressed in a uniform, was leaning over her.
This is Jeannette, slapping Lucien on the cheeks for great effect.
- Nu that, woke up girlfriend? Wow, right into the thick of the battle climbed! And how did you get there? What did you need there?
- Where I am? Lucienne moans.

- Here. And your sacks with grub are here! I know you, if you don’t find a sack next to you, you will strangle your enemies with your bare hands. And no muskets needed!
- Who are you?
- Your friend! Jeannette! Canteen girl. You got shell-shocked! Listen, what are you up to? The bags are heavy! You clung to them so much that your fingers turned white! Two soldiers carried you, the third supported the bags! Unclench your fingers and could not!
- I do not know you! And I don't remember this place!
“Well, do you remember anything?” What's your name, remember?
— I remember. Lucy… ena.
- Now fine! That's right, your name is Lucy! You are a Breton. But you don’t remember this place, because our convoy only arrived here yesterday. It was night and you didn't remember anything. And early in the morning you disappeared. I woke up and you were gone. And then you appeared with these bags and right where ours grappled with the enemy! Can you tell me at least now where you got the products? Around, for many leagues, there are no farms. Everything is broken and looted. My inventory is almost at zero. Sophie and Christina still have something left, but Adele ...
"Excuse me, could you speak a little more quietly?" My head is breaking!
- I always say that! Try talking normally when the guns are rattling around! And so day after day! But if you ask ... Why are you asking me for you? You and I have been dragging along behind the convoy for three years, and you never ... Ah, well, I’m completely stupid ... You have a shell shock!
— Excuse me... Excuse me, Jeannette, but where are we?

“I told you already, on the battlefield!”
— No, I want to ask what country are we in?
“Wow, how you got cut off!” Maybe call the doctor again?
- No need. I feel good. But you never answered me.
  - Whom to tell... Well, I won't torture you. We are in France. This is our homeland, and we are helping to protect it.
— France! Wow jumping! Ah... Listen, how do we defend our homeland? Are we at war? With guns?
- Yes. But sometimes it happens ... - listens,
- Who's there? Ah, Sophie! Come in!
- Greetings, citizens!
- Well hello! Hello! What's new to tell?
What strange stories are being told all over the camp?
- You, what is it about? Jeannette asked.
- About what, about what! About her, of course! Oh Lucy!
- What about Lucy? You see, he lies, barely breathing!
“Yes, at least she stopped breathing altogether,” Sophie throws in her hearts, “the girl has lost all conscience!” Yesterday they saw her with my Henri, tomorrow they will find her with your Jean!
Why are you slandering her? Are you jealous that she is our heroine today?
- Heroine! - Sophie laughs, - I saw her heroic deeds in a haystack with her husband Annette!

Yes, heroine! - Jeannette repeats sternly, ignoring the words of the evil Sophie, - She climbed under the enemy guns to save the regimental banner!
- You might think! Sophie doesn't let up. - No, I accidentally took it! She is our master to take everything that lies badly! What is it?
- What? Jeannette asks in surprise.
- Yes, those two bags that are in the corner! Heavy bags, probably, Let me see what's there!
- Do not dare! - the huge Jeannette obscures the bags with her body. - This is the property of citizen Lucy, and you have no right to approach it! And in general, get out of the tent, no one invited you!
- Well, well, - Sophie is seriously angry, - I will leave, but I will return with the regimental commander! I suspect that you are planning something evil against our regiment! You will show the commander what is in these bags!
"Go away, Citizen Sophie, and don't come in again without an invitation!"
Listening to all this rubbish, I lay and thought, are they really talking about me? Well, let's say, the story that I'm twisting with other people's men is clear to me. It’s even clear that I like to steal what lies badly, but so that I would crawl under the bullets in order to save the regimental banner ... Brr-r, well, no, this heroism is not for me at all! But on the other hand, I heard with my own ears the words of "Little Jeannette" about my today's feat, and this wicked Sophie ... Stop! If I'm here, where is the real Lucy? Is it at my house? Exhausted by all these thoughts, I automatically turned on my side, as my body was tired from the monotonous lying on my back, and immediately screamed from the unbearable pain in my spine. Little Jeannette jumped up to me and tried to ease my pain, but the pain had already passed. Soon I realized that the body hurts only,when you move. And if you lie still, then there will be no pain. Soon the regimental doctor came. After a rather superficial examination, by the way, he said that I had nothing to worry about. Other than the bumps, the bruises, the spinal bruise and a slight sprain, everything is normal. I got off easy! In a week I will be as healthy as before, although he, Dr. Pierre, would prefer that I lie in bed longer, then he, that is, the doctor, would have less work to do! This point, I asked to explain in more detail, to which the doctor said
“Madame, that is, citizen Lucy, it is inconvenient for me to talk about such things with you, but if you insist ...
When I confirmed that I insisted, the brave doctor, embarrassed and blushing, stammered;
- Many fractures, a broken nose, a knife wound, a gouged eye - all this madam because of you!
From the doctor’s further story, I realized that I tried to twist love almost simultaneously with all the soldiers of the regiment, because of which fights and showdowns very often occurred, which ended with all those wounds that the gallant doctor listed. Imagining myself as a femme fatale, I laughed, but this laughter turned into a moan as soon as I felt its effects on my ribs. Little Jeannette, who was on the alert and thought that I was suffering from unbearable pangs of conscience, quickly pushed the citizen doctor out and sat down next to me.
"Lucy, don't beat yourself up like that!" It's not your fault that you are so loving and that you have such a temperament! I see how you suffer!
Laughter choked me, but for the sake of the touching citizen Jeannette, I tried to restrain myself, but could not. I burrowed into my pillow and started laughing. From the outside it must have looked like sobs that were hard to contain, because Jeannette sat down next to me and began to soothe me, stroking my head in a motherly way. There, in the 21st century, in my everyday life, I never had a temperament. What kind of temperament is there when love is an everyday job. And most of the time, not at all pleasant. But of course, I didn’t say all this to Jeannette. A simple-hearted giantess would simply not understand me. Instead I asked
Jeannette, tell me what are we doing here?
- Where? Jeannette asks in surprise.
“Here, among the soldiers and cannons!”
- Poor girl! How much you were concussed! Well, okay, I'll remind you, and then you'll probably remember everything yourself!
- What do I remember?
- Remember that you and I are sutlers! We, that is, me, you and Annette-vivandier, and Sophie-catine! That's why she is!
- Which?
- Greedy and distrustful!
“It seemed to me that she really hated me for something!”
- Well ... - Jeannette bleats - the fact is that ...
“Listen,” Lucienne interrupts her, “you better tell me how skating differs from vivandier!”
- We are vivandiers or vivandiers, in addition to providing food for the soldiers, we always go with the regiment to the battle itself, and cantiniers or cantiniers usually sell goods and products from their own shop.
- It's clear, - sums up Lucien, - we are fighting friends, and they are hucksters!
“No, you can’t say that,” Jeannette says sternly, “and vivandi;res and cantiniers are all fighting girlfriends. There were cases when brave women, our sisters, took weapons that fell from the hands of the dead or wounded and fought in his place. Every soldier considers it his duty to protect the girls from all kinds of dangers and insults. In response, they try to help the soldiers in all cases. In the royal army, where a chaplain usually follows in the wagon train, marriages between soldiers and candiennes are consecrated by the church. In times of the republic, an exchange of oaths and a civil ceremony are sufficient. The main difference between a cantinier and a vivandier is that there can only be one cantinier in a regiment. She works out of her own tent, offering a cheap bar and breakfast as a result. Vivandiers, that is, we, do not have our own tent, we sell our goods to those soldiers who need this product at the moment. However, both vivandi;res and cantinieres must buy a license from the police in order to be able to sell their goods to their regiment.
“Everything, everything, everything,” Lucien stops her friend, “stop talking! My head is buzzing!
“Sorry,” Jeannette grumbles, “I’m a bad friend!” You are so sick and I...
“Enough for you,” Lucienne cries, “end this comedy!” How much did Mishka pay you so that I would agree to star in that commercial naked? A? How many?!!!
Lucy, my friend! No need to worry so much! You see, you've started to have a fever again! You are crazy! The only Michel in the regiment is our chaplain, and I highly doubt he would pester you with obscene suggestions! Plus, he's old!
- And this jacket? This is exactly what Mishka had in his hands when he offered me to make faces in front of the camera! Jacket on the naked body! Shine! Class! Style!
— Lucy! If you don't stop the tantrum, I'll call the doctor right away! I do not understand what you're saying! I don't understand your words!
- What does this jacket mean?
- This is my jacket. There is nothing left of your clothes. The explosion destroyed everything that was on you, there were only clochki! I'm sorry I only put my jacket on you! I did not have the opportunity and time to dress you completely! Now I will call Pierre, let him get a uniform for you from the castellan of the regiment. Pierre, Pierre!
Without shouting to the mysterious Pierre, Jeannette leaves the tent. Lucienne once again carefully looks around the room in which she lies. Thoughts are confused. It is absolutely impossible to understand whether what the giantess said is true or false. The jacket, worn directly on the naked body, is clearly too big for Lucienne. In it she feels like in a coat! The sleeves are rolled up five times, and the bottom of the jacket goes down well below the knees. Without coming to any conclusion, Lucienne simply leans back on the makeshift bed that Jeannette hastily built for her and closes her eyes.
Ten minutes passed before Jeannette returned with a pile of clothes.
- Phew, I found the castellan with difficulty! Well, how are you?
- Don't know. I feel very strange, like I am not me.
- These are the consequences of a concussion! It will pass! Castellan said you were lucky! All your clothes are in tatters, and you don't have a single wound or injury on you! Can you raise yourself a little so that I can dress you?
- I'll try! By the way, about clothes, I see you brought me clothes of the same color and style as you are wearing! Is that how it's accepted?

- This uniform corresponds to the uniform of the soldiers of our regiment! Here is a hat, a dress with an apron, a jacket like mine, a raincoat and boots. Don't worry, I chose the best, strongest ones. After all, you and I go for the convoy and go.
Jeannette, thank you! Then I'll try to dress myself.
- As you want! Oh, in my opinion, the bastard Sophie fulfilled her threat, the regiment commander is coming to us!
- So what? Let yourself go!
“What, Lucien, don’t you understand? He…
An explosion shakes the tent. The doomsday begins... For the second time in a day, a battle breaks out. Picking up a struggling Lucienne, Jeannette runs out of the tent. And on time. A few minutes later, a funnel smokes in place of the tent. Jeannette is shouting something to Lucienne, but because of the roar of the guns, she hears nothing. Jeannette, throwing Lucienne over her shoulder, drags her somewhere. As Lucienne realized later, the compassionate friend wanted to take her away from the battlefield. But nothing comes out, next to Jeannette falls a soldier in clothes of the same color as Jeannette and Lucienne. Without lowering Lucienne, Jeannette leans over the soldier and turns it over. A wail of sorrow shakes the battlefield. Even through the whistle of the guns, you can hear Jeannette screaming. Gently laying Lucienne in a miraculously preserved island of grass, Jeannette takes a gun from the soldier's hands and, aiming at a target visible only to her, shoots. Glancing back at the groaning soldier, Jeannette raises her gun to the sky and screams again. Tears stream down the girl's weathered face as she screams and shoots. Something is going on around, but Lucienne's back hurts terribly, and she can't get up to see what's there. Lucien tries to call out to Jeannette, but the brave girl suddenly rushes into the thick of the fight. Entrusting herself to God, Lucienne closes her eyes. The sounds of combat fade away. Deciding that the time had come to decide their own fate. Lucienne crawls to the opposite side of the fight. Resting every few meters, the girl stubbornly crawls away from the battlefield. So a lot of time passes. Finally, when the sounds of battle are barely audible, Lucienne allows herself a breather.
Stretched out in the grass, she immediately falls asleep. She sleeps for a long time. Wakes up when it's already night. Lucienne had never seen such darkness before. It's so dark that she can't even see her own hands. Lucien is terrified. The girl understands that the best option now is to stay in place until the morning. But fear drives her forward. In a panic, not understanding the road, she moves forward. She runs away from trouble, and trouble is already waiting for her ahead. The steep slope suddenly begins to crumble under her feet, and she flies head over heels down. The waters of an unknown river gently embrace her. Stunned by the fall, Lucienne begins to sink. The instinct of self-preservation does not let the girl down this time either. Gathering all her strength, she begins to flounder and floats to the surface.
VLADIVOSTOK. 1908
The bright sun beats into the eyes. It hits so hard that the girl cannot immediately open her eyes. Plus, they sting a lot! The girl still does not have time to think about what happened to her, and someone is already calling her.
— Madame Lucienne! Madame Lucienne! Well, stop diving! It's not a woman's thing! So drown not for long! Yes, and Mr. Loval is angry! He says that if you do not come out in half an hour, he himself will enter here, into the women's bath! Do not be afraid of scandal and embarrassment! Madame Lucienne, well, get out of the water!
Lucienne gets out of the water on autopilot. A serious cheeky girl immediately jumps up to her and helps Lucienne get dressed! Clothing sticks disgustingly to the body, soaked in sea water. The girl, who looks like a maid, helps Lucienne dress and chats incessantly. The girl's tone is patronizing. Lucienne is silent. The abrupt transition from suffocating in river water to sea bathing did not inspire her. The injustice of the situation upsets her. What could be more disgusting when you don't know who you are, where you are and why?
sank right here? However, to the question “where?”, Lucienne immediately receives an answer. Leaving the baths, she turns around and reads the sign: “Kamnatsky Baths. Vladivostok city". And in a minute, stunned by the flow of speech, she learns from a young dandy, dressed in the fashion of a hundred years ago, who she is. Nothing new. She's a night moth, Lucienne. He is the pimp Anatole Loval. They came from distant France to earn extra money in a young and rapidly developing city, on the shores of the Amur Bay. As soon as the construction of the railway began, priestesses of free love poured into the city from all over the world. Madame Lucienne was considered one of the most piquant and charming. Outside in the summer of 1908. Lucienne looks around in horror. She is in her hometown. However, this is not the city in which she was born! Her peers will live in this city only after more than a hundred years.
Looking into the face of Anatoly Loval, Luciena realized that Vladivostok of the last century was not the last stop. Apparently, everything has just begun!