A/N: Wanted to have a quick try at modern day writing before I start the AU fic with Rainbow-Bunnii. I don't read modern AU's much, so feedback greatly appreciated, constructive or not :)

He heard his doorbell ring again, frowning. Who was calling at this time? It was going on eleven - most people were asleep already and whilst it was a Saturday, he was tired.

Dragging himself out of bed, Marius walked over to his front door, opening it. Still slightly bleary-eyed from sleep, he saw someone he certainly wasn't expecting to see.

Éponine.

She was standing there, soaking wet, clutching something in her hand that she couldn't quite see. Her hair was dripping, and she was shivering quite violently, not helped by the fact that her clothes were rather badly torn.

"My God, Éponine, what happened?"

She looked up at him, biting her lip. "Bad evening" she said quietly, and it was then he acknowledged a large cut on her arm, bleeding and new.

Opening the door wider, he let her in, heading immediately for his bathroom and returning with bandage. "Let me-"

"I'm fine."

"You're not fine. If this gets infected you'll spend your time in hospital, which I know you won't want to do."

She continued biting her lip, giving a small nod. He sat her on the sofa, deciding to address the cut before anything else.

Bandaging it tightly, as it was clean from the rain, he looked at her bedraggled form. "What happened?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

He nodded, tight-lipped. If she didn't want to talk, there was no way he could make her. Nobody could.

"Lets get you dried off first."

Usually she wouldn't allow someone to attempt to care for her. But why else had she come to Marius? Certainly that hadn't been her intention - she'd just known to get out of the house with Gavroche and Azelma before anything worse happened, dropped them off with Courfeyrac and ended up here.

So she didn't protest as he led her through to his bathroom, fetching a towel. He placed it around her shoulders and dried off her hair, ignoring the tangles for the time being. "I think you need to change too, you'll get hypothermia if you stay in those clothes."

"I brought another shirt with me, but I used it to stop the blood instead" she replied, showing him the bundle, which turned out to be an old shirt, now stained rather badly.

"You can borrow some of my things. I don't mind."

She nodded, as he left, heading to get one of his t-shirt and his jogging bottoms. They had a cord to tie around the waist, so they wouldn't be too big, but the shirt would be. Still, they were warm and dry, so it was something.

Picking up a second towel for her to dry herself with, he handed her the clothing, kissing her forehead quickly. "Stay here tonight. You're going nowhere."

"I can't, I-"

"You can, and you will."

She gave him a small smile, taking the bundle. He left the room to give her some privacy, and heat up something to eat.

He ended up just cooking some chips and sprinkling some cheese on them, realising he hadn't been shopping. She emerged as he did so, in his clothes, her hair having had a brush dragged through it in a half-hearted attempt to tidy it up.

Whilst the chips were cooking, they sat on the sofa again. "Better?" Marius asked, to which Éponine nodded. Leaning over, he gently pulled her in to a much-needed, reassuring hug, clutching her too-thin frame to him closely. She returned his hug silently, burying her face in his shoulder to stop any tears. They sat in their embrace for a few minutes, Éponine consoling herself and Marius helping her to do so.

"Fancy a film?"

"Sure."

"Which one?"

"I-I don't know. I haven't seen any. Didn't they make some Harry Potter ones? Azelma loves the books, and I've read some of them too."

He noticed the hint of pride in her voice, finding it sweet how proud she was of her education. Her parents clearly didn't give a damn, so how she'd gotten the determination was a mystery. Still, she was happy with her accomplishments, and had every right to be.

"They did, all the books. Shall we watch the first then?"

She nodded with a smile as he got up to put the DVD in. Just as he pressed 'play', the timer went off, letting them know the chips were ready. Adding the cheese and letting it melt, he picked up a fork and gave the bowl to Éponine, who smiled before hungrily devouring them, seemingly not caring how they were likely burning her mouth.

"Éponine, when did you last eat?"

She paused for a minute, thinking. "Yesterday lunch, I think."

"Eat up then, that's bad."

"I get by."

"You shouldn't be used to that though. You should be eating three or four, maybe even five times a day if you include snacks."

"A day? Don't you mean a week?"

Those simple seven words almost ripped his heart out. The fact her parents couldn't be bothered to even fill out a form to let her get free college dinners was ridiculous. It wouldn't cost them anything, and they were entitled, yet they let their children go hungry, Éponine more than the others as she gave everything to her siblings. Five decent meals a week was what she got, not including the odd snack she found, sometimes not even that.

"I mean a day" he told her quietly, to which she shrugged. "Don't have that much spare. Or so Mum claims."

They fell in to silence as the film started. The Philosopher's Stone was a classic, one of his personal favourites, and Éponine already seemed captivated.

Seeing she'd finished the chips, he gently removed the bowl from her grasp and filled it with some ready salted crisps, placing it back in her hands. She ate them noisily too, clearly starving, as he got her a large glass of water.

After she'd had something to eat and drink, they watched the film in silence. Éponine's eyes lit up like a child's as Hagrid said "yer a wizard, Harry", not leaving the screen for a moment.

As Marius had a pretty wide sofa, they ended up lying side by side. It was a tight squeeze, but Éponine didn't care, leaning in to him. She blushed slightly as his arm went around her shoulders, glad the lighting in the room stopped him from seeing.

They sat like that for the rest of the film, her head leaning against his shoulder. Every so often he kissed her head, making her smile as he did so.

Once the movie had ended, she stretched, as did Marius. She stood up with him, placing the now empty bowl on the side and padding over to get some more water.

"I'll sleep on the sofa tonight."

"'Ponine, don't be ridiculous. My bed's big enough for two easily."

"You wouldn't want me sharing your bed."

"And why not?"

"Well, I'm me. I'm a Thénardier."

"So? That sofa will give you nightmare back pains if you sleep there, I've tried it. Come on, please. Do it for me if not for yourself."

She sighed, giving a slight nod as she followed him through to the bedroom. He offered er a pair of fluffy socks, which she accepted gratefully. "Why do you have fluffy socks?"

"I don't know, I was cold."

"Fair enough."

She slipped under the covers next to him, surprised at how comfortable the mattress was. She slept on a bit of hay in the corner of her house, and wasn't used to such softness. She found herself subconsciously shuffling closer to Marius, who wrapped both arms around her as she buried herself in his chest.

"What happened?"

She sighed. "I got so fed up of how Dad kept refusing to get Gavroche a coat, and wasn't listening to any if us, that I threw his favourite watch across the room and broke it. He wasn't happy."

"He did this over a watch?"

"Mmhmm."

"Where are Gavroche and Azelma now?"

"I left them with Courfeyrac, he doesn't have enough room for me and I didn't want to impose. I didn't intend to come here either to be honest, I just found myself heading in this direction."

He kissed her head tenderly. "I'm glad you did. The door's always open, no matter how late or early it is. You can always come to me, you know."

She nodded, smiling. He cares. He really and truly cares.

"Stay here tomorrow night too if you want."

"Would you mind?"

"Of course I won't. We can stop by to get some of your clothes if you want, and some pyjamas?"

"I-well, I don't exactly have any pyjamas. I sleep in my clothes."

"Okay, well, you can borrow some more of my things if you want. I'd feel better knowing you're here, at least for tomorrow night. Promise you'll let me?"

She nodded again, lifting her head and laying it on the pillow next to his, looking him straight in the eyes. "Okay, promise."

"Good."

They exchanged smiles as Éponine's eyes began to flutter, her closing them and shifting down slightly so that his chin was resting on the top of her head. "Night, 'Ponine" he whispered, kissing her head as she began to slip into a slumber, having time to mutter a goodnight to him before she fell in to a deep and much needed sleep.