Timothée Ambroise de Giverny

Timothée Toulouse Ambroise( later stylised as: Timothée Toulouse Ambroise de Giverny de Vallois) is the main protagonist of The Gathering Dark. He was raised in poverty by his mother, Céleste Ridelieu, and her husband, Émile Ambroise. At the age of thirteen he accepts a job at the Château de Vallois where he subsequently discovers his true identity.

Background
Timothée was born on March 17th, 1775, the illegitimate son of Céleste Ridelieu and Charles de Giverny, the Marquis de Vallois (Book I, Chs 6 & 11) In order to conceal from her parents the fact that she was pregnant by the Marquis, Céleste and her childhood friend Émile Ambroise agreed to marry and raise the child together. Thus, Timothée was brought up believing that Émile was his father (Book I, Ch 11).

Childhood
Although he was raised in poverty, and went through hard times growing up, Timothée had a relatively happy childhood because of his parent's love and support.

Family
Timothée has one surviving sister, Louise, who was born in 1780. He also has a maternal aunt, Thérèse, and a maternal uncle, Edgard, who is his mother's twin.

The Fortune Teller
In March of 1788, Timothée, along with good friends Pierre d'Eon and Léonie Lavoilette, meets a mysterious Gypsy woman who is travelling around offering to tell fortunes for two sous. Since the children have no money, the Fortune Teller offers to give them a free tarot card reading. The tarot card reading proves ominous, depicting a future that the Fortune Teller says is full of confusion and chaos. The fortune teller also reads Timoth ée's palm and says that "when darkness falls (...) [he] must protect he that is part of [him]." This confuses Timoth ée greatly (Book I, Ch 2).

Timoth ée Meets the Marquis
The following day, after still mulling over the Fourtune Teller's bizarre prophecy, Timoth ée decides to see the woman again while he is on his way to the well in hopes of having her explain more to him. Before he gets to her, however, he stops because he realises there is already a man there to see her. Timoth ée observes unnoticed from behind a tree. The man, he realises, is the Marquis de Vallois, who has just recently returned home from a very long stay in Paris. Timoth ée has heard various opinions from other tenants about him, ranging from dislike to indifference, and Timoth ée is in awe and fear of him. The Marquis demands that the Fortune Teller leave his lands immediately and she agrees only after she insults him by calling him "arrogant and ignorant".

As the Marquis is leaving to head back home, Timothée attempts to flee without being seen by him. He, however, trips of the root of the tree and cuts his knee open on a rock. The Marquis witnesses this and rushes to aid him. At first, Timothée is mortified by the Marquis's presence, but after the Marquis realises he is from the village and asks him how things have been for the tenants, Timothée becomes less wary of him. He explains to the Marquis that sometimes things for the tenants are bad, but a lot of times they are good. The Marquis, however, is most disturbed by the fact that Timothée has no shoes on his feet.

Since Timothée's knee is bleeding, the Marquis convinces him to come back to the chateau so his housekeeper, Rosalie, can take a look at it (Book I, Ch 3)