Chapter 1: Deception
November 1831
"What would I do to get away from the water?" Eponine wondered aloud as she stuck her hand in her mouth if only to prevent hunger from overtaking her. The gnawing hollowness in her stomach seemed to somewhat balance out the heavy chill in her feet that were still wet with the putrid river water from under the bridge where she lived. In the November morning, Eponine was a pathetic sight: her hair was matted, she'd lost yet another tooth the day before, and her clothes were full of holes. But she did her best to wash her face and hands before setting out; now her skin was reddened from the effort.
The skinny sixteen year old boldly walked up to the house that had been pointed out to her. "I wonder if they'll take me. Magnon is always busy with something, and Mamselle Miss too. So they could use someone to sweep the hall."
With her hands trembling, she knocked on the oaken door. "Maman! Someone's outside!" a child called from within the house. Moments later, Eponine heard footsteps padding towards the door before it opened slightly.
"You? The Jondrette girl?" Magnon asked critically.
Eponine nodded. "I need to earn a few sous for my sister. She's sick. Papa is out, I don't know where. Maman doesn't know what to do."
"What can I do for you?" Magnon asked, opening the door more widely. The older woman was dressed rather gaudily, with a heavy string of stones around her neck and a silken blouse. Still, the effect was richer than that of Eponine's ragged dress.
Eponine held on to the doorknob. "Let me work. Cook your food, sweep your hall...anything, take care of your house...your child even..."
"Child?" Magnon said. "Oh yes. You heard him. Well, it's only me who has anything to do with them. But if you are eager to work for five sous a day, then I could let you sweep the hall, wash our clothes, and clean up the backyard."
"Oh, merci Magnon!" Eponine said, almost grabbing the woman's hand. "Parnasse was right to tell me to come here."
"By the way, he's not allowed to visit you here, not while you're working for me," Magnon said coldly, showing her in.
The house that Magnon and Mamselle Miss lived in was a rather stately affair, well-furnished even by criminal standards. As Eponine peered in, she caught sight of two well-dressed little boys playing on the stairs. Their chatter was lively, and their cheeks rosy as they rolled marbles down the steps.
Mamselle Miss, an elegant yet steely-eyed Englishwoman, watched them from nearby. At the sound of the door closing, she looked up from her knitting. "I was almost afraid it was the bourgeoisie from the Rue des Filles du Calvaire," she said to Magnon.
"Oh, he's not due to visit for some time. But he'll pay next week," Magnon said flippantly. "You remember Eponine Jondrette? Well, she's here to help out."
"Of course I do," Mamselle Miss said. "My you've grown, little girl."
Eponine looked down. The truth was, she hadn't grown much at all, at least not in recent memory. "My sister is sick," she simply said.
"I'm sure she'll get better soon," Mamselle Miss said soothingly.
"Did you say Rue des Filles du Calvaire?" Eponine asked.
"Oh yes. Why you have a friend there?"
Eponine colored slightly. "Oh something about the grandfather of a young gentleman who I sometimes see going about in his old clothes. He used to be rich, so some of the men at the cafes used to say when I'd ask..."
Suddenly, one of the boys, the younger one, began to cry as he looked around. "Maman, I lost the marbles!" he wailed over the older's teasing.
Magnon quickly went up to him. The child sniffled and buried his face in her skirt. "They're under the table." he sobbed.
"Don't worry, petit, we'll get them with the broom," Magnon said, nodding to Eponine.
However, the waif did not hear her. Eponine's eyes were on the little boys, taking in their reddish hair, their bright eyes, the rather crooked lips, and their plump hands.
"I remember Maman's two smaller ones...so long ago..." she whispered, staring at the children.
"Eponine?" Magnon asked. "Go get the broom!"
The girl snapped out of her trance. "Oh!" she exclaimed, hurrying to the cupboard, feeling more confused than she ever had before.
