#balzac hell

When the commandant gave vent to this military oath (an object it must be      said of Republican atheistical remonstrance) it gave warning of a storm;      the diverse intonations of the words were degrees of a thermometer by      which the brigade could judge of the patience of its commander; the old      soldier’s frankness of nature had made this knowledge so easy that the      veriest little drummer-boy knew his Hulot by heart, simply by observing      the variations of the grimace with which the commander screwed up his      cheek and snapped his eyes and vented his oath. On this occasion the tone  of smothered rage with which he uttered the words made his two friends      silent and circumspect. Even the pits of the small-pox which dented that      veteran face seemed deeper, and the skin itself browner than usual. His      broad queue, braided at the edges, had fallen upon one of his epaulettes      as he replaced his three-cornered hat, and he flung it back with such fury      that the ends became untied. However, as he stood stock-still, his hands      clenched, his arms crossed tightly over his breast, his mustache bristling, Gerard ventured to ask him presently: “Are we to start at once?”    

Honoré de Balzac, Les Chouans

Uniform references for Hulot, chief of a half-brigade (a rank used instead of the aristocratic “colonel” in the years 1793-1803) in 1799, including sabers and pistols used by officers of the line infantry. During the events of Les Chouans, Hulot is 33 years old (despite being referred to as a veteran and “old soldier”).

The universe:

An Idea of Fouché’s (11615 words) Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Les Chouans - Honoré de Balzac, La Comédie Humaine - Honoré de Balzac Rating: Explicit Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Corentin/Hulot Characters: Hulot, Corentin Additional Tags: Mutual Dubious Consent, Fouché Made Them Do It, Bad Practice in Government Summary:

The Ministry of War really needs to stop sending Hulot awful letters.

The Ball at Saint-James (18032 words) by Esteliel Chapters: 3/3 Fandom: Les Chouans - Honoré de Balzac, La Comédie Humaine - Honoré de Balzac Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Corentin/Hulot Characters: Corentin (Comédie Humaine), Hulot (Comédie Humaine), Chevalier de Vissard Additional Tags: Duelling, Strip Duel, Huddling For Warmth, First Time, Captivity, Undercover Missions, There Is Only One (1) Goatskin Summary:

Corentin decides to attend the ball of Saint-James undercover. It is not long until his cover is blown and he finds himself fighting a duel to the death...

And my main Yuletide assignment for @kainosite  who gave me an opportunity to write stripping duels, because surely that’s what any good royalist with a saber would do when faced with an obnoxious muscadin spy?

“Those men,” continued Malin, “are Fouché’s two arms. One, that dandy Corentin, whose face is like a glass of lemonade, vinegar on his lips and verjuice in his eyes, put an end to the insurrection at the West in the year VII. in less than fifteen days. The other is a disciple of Lenoir; he is the only one who preserves the great traditions of the police. I had asked for an agent of no great account, backed by some official personage, and they send me those past-masters of the business! Ah, Grevin, Fouché wants to pry into my game. That’s why I left those fellows dining at the chateau; they may look into everything for all I care; they won’t find Louis XVIII. nor any sign of him.”