~o~Later that night~o~

"Enjolras? Are you coming to bed?" he heard Lynette call from behind him. He smiled, putting down his pen to answer, "Yes, in just a moment. I must finish editing this old piece of mine; I can't stand looking at it in its rough draft state a second longer."

"Can't you just finish it in the morning?" she pouted in feigned exasperation.

"No, I'm nearly done and am intent on culminating the task since I am so close," he chuckled in response.

"Oh, fine. You're too stubborn for your own good, you know that?" she teased.

"So I've been told. Go on to bed; I'll be there in a little bit," he turned to smile softly at her. She returned the tender expression, ducking through the doorframe and only turning back to say, "Alright. But don't keep me waiting too long."

"You needn't wait up for me, you know," he shouted after her.

"But nevertheless I will!" she laughed merrily.

He couldn't help but beam at the cheerful, sweet sound; and with the newfound spur of her anticipating him in the other room, he finished his proofreading in no time. And as soon as he had, he scurried into the bathroom to change before making his way into the bedroom and shutting the door behind him. She had lain down and shut her eyes in his absence; but they immediately flickered open at the sound of the door. She began to sit up, but he was quick to stop her. "Do not bother yourself with rising when you are only going to sink back down into the bed directly after," he told her sensibly. She simply nodded with a small smile in response; and he could tell by her drooping eyelids that she was extremely tired. So, he said not a word more—refusing to let her deny herself of any more sleep because of him a second longer—before putting out the light and climbing into the bed. As soon as he'd lain down next to her, he wrapped his arms around her limber body; drawing a blissful sigh from her lips as a result. He closed his eyes and tried to clear his mind of all but her warm form and his fast growing fatigue; but found that the thought that had been plaguing his mind all day would still not leave him in peace. And as soon as he realized that it was still there—silently clouding his mind with its unstinting existence—he knew he could not bear holding back any longer.

"Netta; I want to meet your family," he said quietly but steadily into her hair.

"Hm?" she mumbled; obviously only half aware of what had just been said. He took a deep breath, straightened, and propped himself up on his elbow before more surely reiterating, "I want to meet your family."

That woke her up. "M—meet my family?" she exclaimed; snapping up to face him with her eyebrows arched in disbelief.

"Yes. Soon. Before we are married."

"Surely you jest. You are joking, aren't you?" she sputtered; utterly flabbergasted.

"Not in the least. It doesn't feel right that they don't know where you are or who you're with. Especially when you are about to be lawfully declared as my wife," he smiled enticingly at her in an attempt to ease the tension. He met no avail.

"Well perhaps it isn't; but that's just life. And this one with you is mine; so I can do whatever the hell I want with it—even if that includes isolating myself from my family," she responded; temper visibly flaring as her resentment bubbled to the surface.

"And I don't deny that. In fact; I find myself feeling nothing but grateful that one shared with me was the life you chose. But still, I cannot help feeling that—"

"Where did this even come from? I thought you couldn't care less about my relatives," she inquired in riled bewilderment.

"Well, our conversation from earlier today. It got me thinking… and I've decided that I want your mother's blessing to marry you. I know it's normally the father a man asks, but since yours is no longer with us—"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Do you have any idea how large of a jump you just made? First you are speaking of meeting my family—which is nearly implausible in of itself—and now you talk of getting my mother's blessing as well?" she asked; mouth slightly agape—as she was now too stunned to even be angry.

"Well it is the traditional and respectful thing to do," he pointed out. She snorted caustically. "Traditional? Respectful? When has anything we've ever done been traditional? When did the dear Beauchene bloodline become worthy of respect?"

"I know it must be difficult for you to fathom—going back there after being gone so long—but I really feel that it would be the right th—"

"You're right; I can't fathom it! Have you forgotten why I've stayed away so long in the first place?" she expressed despairingly. He averted his eyes for but a moment. "No; I have not disregarded the issue of your aunt. But—"

"No, not just my aunt! She's the worst of them, yes; but my father is dead, my mother has not the backbone to stand up for her own children, my sister's gone, my eldest brother's been jailed for years, and all I have left is my little brother Henry!" she burst out before slumping back onto the pillow; fingers massaging her temples. He sighed as he watched her react so stressfully; tentatively reaching forward to stroke her cheek. "And I know how abstruse this must seem. But consider your brother, Lynette; don't you think he of all people would want to know what's become of you? That you are soon to become another man's wife?" he asked her hopefully; desperately trying to make her see his point. She exhaled luridly in defeat, looking up at him. "I suppose. But I could always invite him here to solve that problem; I don't see why it should take a visit home instead," she countered.

"Ah; but that is not all I wanted to accomplish, was it?" he reminded her with a half smile. She scowled in response. "I also don't see why the woman who has hardly been a parental figure to me these past few years should define whether or not you become my husband."

"But she wouldn't be defining it. We would ask, and if for whatever reason she rejected the proposal; we would go on with the wedding anyway. I'm much too selfish to let you go that easy," he teased.

She was silent; staring down at the sheets beneath her. The smile fell from his face, and he made one final attempt to convince her. "Please, Netta? It would ease my conscience if I at least met her. And besides; what have you to lose? Your aunt will not get one scathing comment out if I have anything to do with it," he pleaded. She huffed; looking up and locking eyes with him again. "Fine. We'll go tomorrow. But we're going, asking for the blessing, and leaving. Understood? I'm not one to linger when Virginie could be prowling."

A/N: ERMAGAWD SHE CAVED!

Ahem… I mean… looks like Enj gets to meet her family after all. How… nice? I guess we'll just have to see. ;) Surely Lynette will be happy to see her brother again… but her aunt? Her mother? Is this a foreshadowing?

R&R, loves… I love hearing from you and listening to your ideas and theories for these plotlines. It means a lot to me AND Enjolras! :D ~DonJuana