The air was light and merry. People danced, twirling their partner around the room. Laughter hung in the air, and smiles were passed around. The food was plenty, and the drink was flowing. Outside, the sun shown warmly, the wind danced lightly around the courtyard.
Cosette stood at the center of all the attention. She offered a shy smile to each person she was introduced to, her cheeks rosy red, her blonde curls falling in a cascade down her back. His arm wrapped lightly around her waist was Marius, his grin wide as he accepted the congratulations and compliments. The couple melted together, joined seamlessly at the waist. To the side sat her father, Jean Valjean. He sat in an easy chair, a small glass of wine pressed in his hand. His eyes had a tired look to them, but his love and happiness for his daughter was genuine.
It was the perfect day for a wedding.
As day melted into night, candles were lit, their flames flickering in the slight breeze. Chairs were brought out for the guests, who were full with the fantastic supper served. Many had retired to the corners, their conversations mingling in the air. A band played a slow song, a song about lovers on a moonlit night. Marius led Cosette to the center of the dance floor, his hands wrapped tightly around her delicate ones. He placed his arms around her as she snuggled against his chest. They swayed gently to the music. A small smile grew on her lips as he murmured words of love to her. She was so happy.
Suddenly, a cold breeze blew through the open windows, sending a sudden chill to the guests. They shivered, and pulled their wraps tighter, rubbing their cold fingers for warmth. The conversation drifted to the sudden change in temperature.
Through the window, peeped an uninvited guest. She wasn't an old friend of Cosette, nor was she an old forgotten cousin. What remained of Eponine Thenadier stood, leaning slightly against the window frame. No longer alive, the ghost of the gamine stood, the moonlight flickering through her pale skin. There was still an emptiness to her expression, and a hollowness to her bones. She couldn't remember dying, how she woke up. She just remembered getting shot, and jolting up, like someone had shouted at her. Sitting up with her ears ringing, she had looked around. She was no where near the barricade, or the other students. She had no idea where she had come from, or where she was supposed to go. Looking around, she seemed to be on the street where the rich lived, with their fancy dresses and well trimmed horses. Steadily, she started to walk, prompted by a tugging in her chest. She gravitated towards the window, and finally understood why she was here.
This was the wedding of Marius and Cosette.
And so, she watched. The ghost of the broken girl, standing alone at the glass windows. There was no frosty breath, nor were there fingerprints. Just a cold breeze that seemed to follow her, wherever she went. She watched as Marius pulled Cosette closer, hugging her to keep her warm. The blonde girl looked up at her lover, and reached up, kissing him gently on the lips. A faint smile grew on his lips as he leaned down to kiss her again.
Eponine watched the happy couple as they swayed on the spot, in their own little world. She looked back down at herself, just a cold, forgotten ghost. There was an unexplainable heaviness in her. Even after death, she yearned for the love she had been denied for so many years. But looking back up, she caught sight of the smile, the happy glow from Marius. He looked so...content. So blissful.
And that was when she knew he'd be okay.
She left, taking the cold air with her. All the guests, shivering under their scant layers, suddenly sat up, and mentioned how the weather seemed to have changed.
The ghost of the eldest Thenadier walked the dark, wet streets of Paris alone, like she had every night of her life. She had no home to return to, no money to make. She had nothing.
She was happy though. In her heart, Eponine knew she was never what Marius had wanted. All along, she could never give him what he needed. But Cosette could, and Eponine would allow her that much. As long as Marius was happy, Eponine was happy.
Would Marius and Cosette remember her? Maybe. Would they ever know she had been there? Probably not. And yet, whenever Marius walked the streets of Paris at night, late from a day of work, he finds himself humming a strange tune, one achingly familiar, and yet, he can't bring himself to place. When Cosette visits her old home, she'll find herself feeling a strange sense of sadness, a heaviness that settles in her stomach.
And so she walked, the strange girl in her tattered dress, and matted hair. She walked, humming a little song, until she got further, and further away. Until she disappeared all together.