New York City

December 25, 1996

The winds blew harshly outside, not that it made much difference in the old music publishing factory that was located on Avenue B, a slight remnant of tin-pan alley. Inside the building had been turned into apartments and was inhabited by a large number of bohemians, starving artists and even a few activists. On the top floor resided Marius Pontmercy, graduate of NYU an aspiring filmmaker and currently unemployed. One of his roommates was a young man by the name of Alex Enjolras, also a Graduate of NYU, political science major and activist. The other roommate was a boy from the Bronx by the name of Tony Courfeyrac, he had tried his hand at John Jay College of Criminal Justice before he decided that he loved his guitar more, he was not from what might be considered a well off family, and they were not poor either, but he knew his family needed the money more than he did and was excited to make his mark on the world in his own way. Enjolras and Marius on the other hand had both been disowned by their families and as a group of friends they decided to quietly celebrate the holidays together in their apartment.

"What are you scribbling over there?" Marius called from where he lay on the couch fiddling with the antiquated camera that had once belonged to his father before he died. Next to him was Courfeyrac who was busy tuning his acoustic guitar which seemed to be rebelling against him no matter what he did.

Enjolras said nothing as he continued to scribble into a spiral bound notebook.

Marius smirked slightly as he cranked up his camera and started walking towards the table where Enjolras was working, "Close up on Alexandre Enjolras, professional activist who fights for social justice, civil rights and animal welfare," as he spoke Enjolras rolled his eyes, mostly because both of them knew that the camera did not pick up sound. "Tell us Alexandre, what acts of treason are you committing against the country today?"

Enjolras was now glaring directly and Marius and his camera, "I am not committing acts of treason-"

"Wait the phone is ringing," Marius quickly shut off his camera as they screened the call.

"Speak..." their answering machine played.

"Chestnuts roasting on an open fire-"

"It's Ferre!" Marius exclaimed, "hey!"

"Let me talk to him!" Courfeyrac hollered.

"Alex picked up the phone?" Combeferre replied with a slight chuckle.

"What? No it's me, Marius!" Marius replied.

"Okay, throw down the key, it's freezing out here!" Combeferre answered.

Marius took his key, walked out onto the fire escape where he saw Combeferre standing at the pay phone just below, he let the keys fall to Combeferre and he ducked back inside and shut the window and picked up the phone, "Sorry if we disappoint, it isn't much warmer in here."

"That's okay, it's still the loft," Combeferre replied then there was a pause, "I've gotta-" the phone went dead.

Marius looked at it in confusion, "What just happened?"

Enjolras just shrugged his shoulders and went back into his work, Marius slowly put the phone back on the cradle and looked at it for a few seconds, it started ringing again and instead of screening the call he picked it up and put it on speaker.

"Combeferre is that-"

"Ho, ho, ho boys."

"Parnasse!" Marius practically dropped the phone, "shit."

"Hey, guys just wanted to let you know I'll be swinging by your place to pick up the rent," Montparnasse replied in a cool tone.

"What rent?" Marius replied.

"This past years rent which I let slide," Montparnasse continued in his cool manner that was increasingly more and more annoying.

"Let slide, come on man we've been living here rent free," Marius argued, "you said we are as good as gold, ever since you bought the building when were roommates?"

"Remember you lived here," Enjolras' voice cut through on the conversation.

"Yeah, you really think I could forget that? It was like living in bedlam," Montparnasse laughed, "it was you guys, me, Combeferre, Courfeyrac and Cosette... How is the drama queen?"

"She's performing tonight," Marius replied.

"I know, you still her production manager?" Montparnasse asked.

Marius paused, this whole situation was still a bit of an open wound for him, "Two days ago I was bumped."

"Well you two are still dating, right?" Montparnasse continued.

"Ehhhh... Last month I was dumped," Marius replied.

"Are you serious?" Montparnasse laughed, "I never thought that I would see the day, so she got a new man?"

"Well no..." Marius was trying to contain his frustration.

"So what's his name?" Montparnasse asked.

"Musichetta," Marius replied sheepishly.

""Musiche- wait do you mean- Cosette..." Montparnasse broke down laughing, "anyway rent is due or I will have to evict you, see you guys later tonight." They were then left with a dial tone as Marius hung up the phone once again.

"You know Ferre should have been up here by now," Marius muttered.

"Maybe he accosted a stranger into having a Socratic discussion," Enjolras replied in his unchanging tone, he then was about to turn on the small desk light that he had on the table when the power went out.

"Montparnasse is the biggest bastard I have ever met!" Marius shouted, "Ten bucks says that he did this."

"Will you take a quarter, that's all I've got," Courfeyac answered.

"I'm not even going to make a bet against you," Enjolras replied.

From all around the building and out on the fire escapes they could hear their unknown neighbors shouting, swearing and cursing Montparnasse's name. What they didn't know was that on the street below Combeferre had not accosted some poor stranger into having a Socratic discussion, he had been mugged in the alley beside their building. At the other end of the alley closer to where it met with Avenue C was a young street performer who had been making use of a pickle tub as a part of his act, he hadn't gotten much today from the streets but that did not matter, due to some serendipitous moment earlier in the day this young man had no worries. Well, he did have no worries until he heard what sounded like coughing and hear muffled groans. Quickly he picked up his things and started to walk down towards the alley attempting to locate the injured person, he found them curled up by the wall.

"Oh my god!" he exclaimed, "are you okay honey?"

Combeferre groaned, "afraid so."

"Did they get anything?" the street performer knelt down beside Combeferre.

"Didn't have anything for them to get, except my coat," Combeferre grumbled as he pulled the remaining sleeve off his arm and threw it on the pavement.

The street performer pulled out towel from his bag and handed it to Combeferre, "By the way my name is Jehan."

"Jehan?" Combeferre looked up at him and the light from the street light glowed around Jehan's head almost like a halo, he then proceeded to take the towel and dabbed at his wounds, "nice name."

"Thanks," Jehan's smile seemed to brighten his whole face, "what's yours?"

Combeferre inhaled, "Combeferre, Thomas Combeferre."

Jehan then gently draped Combeferre's arm over his shoulder and tried to bring him to a standing position, "We'll get you back to my place and clean you up, and I've got a meeting in about an hour-"

Despite knowing that Jehan was doing what was best for him Combeferre protested, "But my friends are waiting, they must be worried sick!"

"You're cute when you blush," Jehan smirked slightly, "don't they always say the more the merrier?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Up inside the loft the phone rang, "I guess we still have the phone lines, I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing," Marius commented as the call went to voice mail.

"Speak..."

"Marius? Marius, please pick up the phone, I have 'Chetta down at the space and she doesn't know what the hell she's doing-" Cosette's voice came through.

Marius sighed and picked up the phone, "Hey Cosette."

"Hi baby! Can you please come down and help? Pretty please?" Cosette pleaded.

"Cosette, need I remind you that you fired me," Marius replied.

"Sweetheart I know but that was before I realized 'Chetta is worthless in the performing arts, please come I'll be there," Cosette continued.

Marius desperately wanted to say no but he had to admit that somewhere in his heart he still loved Cosette, "Fine," he sighed, "I'll be there."

"Thanks baby!" Cosette replied before hanging up the phone.

"Man, the girl has you w-i-p-e-d whipped!" Courfeyrac laughed and then a string on his guitar snapped, "Fuck!"

"I hate to break it to you Coufeyrac but you just spelled wiped, not whipped," Enjolras commented offhandedly.

"Ignoring you and I'm gonna go down to the music store and see if I can get some new strings," Courfeyrac replied as he put on his jacket and walked out the door.

Marius was putting on the blue and white striped scarf he had got from Cosette three years ago on his birthday, "I'm going to look for Combeferre, you going to be alright by yourself?" he asked.

"I'll be fine," Enjolras replied, "I've got work to do, just go."

"Alright," Marius shrugged, "I'll be back soon, take your AZT."

"Yeah okay," Enjolras replied as Marius shut the large metal door behind him.

Enjolras was now alone in the apartment left with nothing but his dark thoughts of that horrible riot that had left him a broken man. It wasn't supposed to have happened that way, it wasn't even supposed to have been a riot, that was just what it had become and now his sister was dead. He had tried to protect her, he had stood in front of the gun and had taken the bullet for her, landing himself in the hospital, but Rory had still been killed. He had lost the passion and fire he once had about fighting the good fight, he no longer had Rory, the only person in his family who believed in him. That day he lost everything, and once he was in the hospital he lost even more. Hospitals were supposed to save your life but instead they had destroyed his own, one bad blood transfusion and now he was HIV positive.

He put his head in his hands and sighed, but a knock at the door disturbed his thoughts. Enjolras got up to answer the door, "Goddamnit Pontmercy can't two of you leave without forgetting something?" He complained as he opened the door, but it wasn't Marius or Courfeyrac who stood there, it was a girl.

This girl was very skinny, with long dark brown hair and brown eyes and the shape of her face reminded him of Rory, the resemblance was rather uncanny.

"Hey man you got a light?" She held up a candle.

"I uhh..." Enjolras seemed stumped.

"Well?" She held up her candle higher.

Enjolras stepped back inside and went to go pick up a box of matches, when he turned around he realized she had followed him. He pulled out a match and struck it against the striker and it blazed forth with light which he transferred to the candle, "You're shivering.." Enjolras commented.

The girl shrugged her shoulders, "My heat is out too, why are you looking at me that way? It's kinda weird," she laughed slightly.

"It's nothing, you just look like-" Enjolras noticed that she seemed to trip, he reached out and steadied her before she fell, "are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she smiled, "just one of those times where it's been hard to afford a weeks worth of Ramen, but everything is good now... You are still staring at me."

"N-nothing," Enjolras was getting a tad flustered, the resemblance was uncanny, "You just make me think of-"

"Say no more, that is the oldest line in the book and if you say I look like Marilyn Monroe I will have to slap you," she smiled, "so let's end the pain, who do I remind you of?"

"She died, it was my sister Rory," Enjolras replied.

"My candle went out," she interjected, "I'm sorry about you sister."

Enjolras sighed and said nothing as he lit the candle once again and silence fell between them, "Well?"

"Yeah... Ow!" The girl exclaimed.

"Did it burn you?" Enjolras asked.

"I've had worse, I'll be okay," she replied.

"Okay, goodnight," Enjolras shrugged.

"Well then goodnight," she replied and started walking out the door but she knocked again.

"Don't tell me it's out again?" Enjolras sighed.

"Well that and I dropped something," the girl admitted.

"Is it possible I've seen you somewhere else?" Enjolras asked.

"Certainly, but I really need to find something before we get too cozy," she added a wink and then got on her hands and knees searching with the candle as her only light source.

"I'm trying to place you," Enjolras exhaled, "and so just don't know why I know you."

"Like your sister, we've been through this," the girl rolled her eyes and continued to search.

"Only when you smile but I'm sure I've seen you somewhere else," Enjolras looked down at her.

The girl smiled mischievously, "Only if a nice boy like you spends your time at a place known as the Back Room, I work there as a dancer."

"Yes, I remember now, a few of my friends took me there one night as a joke," Enjolras, "if I recall correctly you were tied up?"

"It's a living," the girl blushed slightly.

"I didn't recognize you without the handcuffs," Enjolras smiled a little bit as well.

"Fuck off," she replied harshly.

"So why do you work in a place like that," Enjolras asked, "how old are you? Sixteen?"

"Nineteen, get it right," the girl replied, "but I'm old for my age I was just born bad I guess," she shivered involuntarily.

"Are you sure that you're okay?" Enjolras asked again, somewhere in his brain he was running through various symptoms that Joly had told him about and trying to see what was with this girl, "you seem like you're sweating, do you have a fever?"

The girl rolled up the sleeved of the oversized sweater she was wearing, "Yes, just a cold," she shrugged.

Enjolras could see angry red track marks all up and down her arms, "You're a junkie." It was then he realized what she was looking for.

"Am not," The girl replied defensively.

"Really?" Enjolras cocked his head.

The girl gripped her arms, "Alright maybe I am, but you don't know what kind of a crap lif-"

"Is this-" Enjolras found a small plastic baggie on the ground and immediately stopped speaking, he quickly stuffed it into his own pocket. He figured he would just flush it down the toilet later, that would be a hell of a lot better than letting this girl have it.

"Did you find it?" The girl looked up at him.

"Nope," Enjolras shook his head, "just some garbage on the ground, false alarm."

The girl rolled her eyes, "Right, so you gonna light this damn candle or not?"

"Only if you quit blowing it out," Enjolras smirked slightly.

"You think I'm doing this on purpose?" The girl raised an eyebrow.

"Who is to say you aren't?" Enjolras shrugged his shoulders, "anyway, you've used up the last of my matches."

"Well isn't that a downright shame," The girl laughed, "but I think that the moonlight is more than enough for us," there was a mischievous sparkle in her brown eyes.

"I suppose you will be going since you don't need a candle anymore?" Enjolras asked calmly, in truth the muscles in his throat were tightening the way they did whenever any girl flirted with him. His sister used to make fun of him for that, before she well.

"Go? Why should I go?" The girl got closer to him and took his hand in hers.

"Y-your hands are cold," Enjolras stammered.

"Your's too..." The girl laced her fingers in between his own, "big strong hands, almost like my father's..." The girl sighed and pressed herself close to him, "you know I've been here an awful long time and you still haven't told me your name."

"E-enjolras," Enjolras managed to choke out.

The girl ran her hands up and down his back, "Nice name Enjolras, almost regal," she smiled, "very foreign."

"Just a surname," Enjolras spoke in a lower tone, the girl was gently swaying now, "a-and your name?"

"Nothing special," The girl looked straight into his icy blue eyes, "but I guess if you ever come knocking you should just ask for Éponine." Éponine winked and broke off her embrace, she then flashed a small plastic bag in front of his face, "good night sweet prince." She then walked out of the apartment with a swing in her step.

A/N: So I'm back with a new story! This one is rather close to completion and it was developed by listening to La Vie Boheme too many times on loop... And plot bunnies are terrible. I do plan to update Coming Clean soon, I have also been working on Victor Hugo High School: Junior Year and Patria Sets Sail so please keep your eyes peeled for that and as always read and review! I know right now it is closely tied to the RENT story line but they will slowly drift apart into their own thing to some extent. Please enjoy!