Hello and welcome to my first ever fanfiction! Feel free to PM me or review!

She was no longer Éponine Thénardier. No, she was now Éponine Séverin. She couldn't believe it had been almost 6 years since Anne Séverin, well now Ponine and her siblings called her Mére, had found her shivering on the side of a Paris street. She still remembers it, like it was yesterday.

"Child, where are your parents?" A women of short stature asked Ponine. She had this aura of gentleness and grace radiating all over her person. It made Éponine feel like she could trust her.

"I don't know." Éponine said. "They abandoned my sister, brother and I a few months ago, and we haven't seen a trace of them since" It was true. After what had happened at the Rue Plummet, her parents had taken everything they had value to them, and left. Éponine and her siblings had searched all of Paris for weeks, but they found no evidence of the pair anywhere. She told the women this as well as the treatment she had at home, well you could not really call it home now could you.

The woman was quiet for a few moments then asked softly "When is the last time you had a hot meal, chérie?"

Éponine decided to tell the truth and reply "I don't remember..." Her voice trailed off, not knowing the kind woman's name. The woman asked with a sad look in her eyes "My name is Anne Séverin but you can call me anything you like. What shall I call you?" "Éponine"

"Why that's a beautiful name, mon chérie!" a smile appeared on her face. "What are your siblings names?"

"My sister is Azelma, and my brother is Gavroche."

"Good, now take me to them, because all of you are moving in with me." With every word Éponine's eyes grew wider, realizing this woman had done more in a mere 5 minutes, then her actual mother did in 16 years.

To this day, Ponine still couldn't believe what Mére had done, and she still wonders why Mére had taken in the trio of children.

Mére and Éponine had taken the carriage to the town square to get Gavroche, careful not to let any Friends of the ABC to see her. On the way there, Ponine told Mére of her home life, how the family treated Cosette, and Marius. Mére had said not to think of Marius often because it would hurt too much, but to think of the happy times. When she did this, it had a great effect of Éponine's outlook on life. It made her feel better. And still to this day it was probably the best advice anyone ever gave her. They soon found Roche and after telling the boy everything, the trio went to get Zelma who had been inside the little room they had rented on the other side of Paris. After picking her up, they were on their way to start a new life with a clean slate. Éponine was 16, Azelma was 14 and Gavroche was 10. And that night they thanked god for what Mére had done, and they will be forever grateful for her.

The reason Éponine didn't want to be seen by the ABC boys was a matter of pride. During the fight at the barricade, Éponine had been shot trying to protect Marius. She was presumed dead, but after a coughing fit, she had been found by Joly. He quickly sought out Marius, who was accompanied by Combeferre, Courfeyrac and Enjolras. Because Éponine believed she would die of the bullet, She had told Marius she loved him, and she could not handle the embarrassment that came with living. Combeferre, Joly, Courfeyrac, Enjolras and Marius were the only to survive the fight because they took Éponine from barricade to make she was safe. By taking her out they saved their own lives. They were told later by Gavroche, who had helped them, everyone else died. Éponine was awake by that time and saw the look on their faces. She was the reason they did not fall with their friends for freedom. The worst was Marius. She knew he was conflicted. His best friend had told him that she was in love with him while he was in love with Cosette. She knew he had no idea how to react. As soon as Joly said Éponine could move, she left. She soon found Azelma and Gavroche told them not to go near the ABC café, or anyone who went there. Gavroche took it hard, saying that he could not leave his friends behind and that they needed him, but soon he understood. Éponine never knew if they went to look for her, but she dreamed that they did.

Mére was an American, with French blood. She had married young, but her husband was old, and when he had died she picked up and moved to Paris. She soon became the center of Éponine's world, and she thanked God for that because that meant it wasn't Marius.

Marius. She still thought of him often, and wonders if he thought of her too. But then she thinks of Cosette. They are probably married now, but she didn't have the heart to find out. They run in a similar circles because of his wealth from his grandfather's passing as well as being a successful lawyer, but he, nor anyone else, knew that Mére had taken us in. They were always traveling, or staying in their countryside home but when they were in Paris, they only spoke with close friends of the family. For all the friends of the ABC knew, Éponine, Gavroche and Azelma were dead.

Mére was well educated for a lady. She had many tutors when she was a young girl, and wanted the trio to have the same. Due to the fact they had little knowledge of proper French, it took some time to learn it properly as well as English, but they were eager to learn and soon prevailed. After learning English, studying Italian and Spanish grew easier. After perfecting their fluency in English, Spanish and Italian, they studied history, literature, math and science. Then the utensils needed in high society, such as riding a horse, manners, etiquette and learning to play a variety of instruments. Zelma is very talented with riding her horse, Rosie, and Roche is an amazing writer. Éponine believes he will be famous for that one day. And Éponine takes pride in the fact that she has a talent for playing the piano.

So here she is, 22 year old Éponine Séverin. She has long dark brown hair that's no longer filled with dirt, but is instead soft and has a glow about it. Brown eyes that she once believed to look like mud, but according to Mére, have a warm and beautiful gaze about them, resembling dark chocolate. She still has a slight tan from the few months the family spent on the Mediterranean. Though she is still skinny, she has gained some much needed weight to be healthy. And as much as she hates to admit, she is still quite short.

As for what she is going to do for a living, she still didn't know. Being a housewife would be not sufficient. She wants to help out people in need. People who have no future ahead of them unless they have someone to guide them, to show them the way. She wants to be someone like Mére, because if it wasn't for her, Éponine would still be sitting on the streets of Paris, with a broken heart and no idea how to speak 4 languages fluently.

A huge thank you to my amazing beta, A Love Poet at Heart.

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