The time was drawing near. Enjolras knew it. He could see it in the angry faces that flocked to his rallies, hear it in the cheers that erupted noisily at the conclusions of his speeches. The revolution would soon be upon them. And with the revolution would come the fighting. Enjolras sighed as he walked towards the café. He would have to tell Eponine she couldn't come with them to the fighting soon. He shuddered at the thought of that inevitable conversation. He had carefully thought through every single protestation she would bring up and he had carefully planned out every counter-argument. He felt himself well-prepared for it. He just didn't know how to bring it up. He gathered his books and papers that had somehow become scattered all over the café during the course of the meeting, mulling over his problem.
As he came down the stairs, he saw Eponine and Courfeyrac at the bottom, apparently involved in an argument. The pair turned to face him as he approached. Eponine's face was indignant and worried. Courfeyrac's was helpless and distraught. "What's the matter?" Enjolras asked as he came near.
"This idiot has been encouraging my brother. Gavroche thinks he is going into battle," Eponine explained, narrowing her eyes at the offender.
"I was not encouraging him!" Courfeyrac interposed.
She turned on him, fiercely. "Explaining to him the finer points of shooting isn't exactly discouraging him, is it?"
"How was I supposed to know he'd take it to mean he'd be going into battle with us?" he said, defensively. Eponine just glared at him, shaking her head disapprovingly.
"You're going to be the one who has to explain to him that he can't," she said. Courfeyrac scowled and shrugged, turning to go back inside.
"Wait, Courfeyrac. I'll deal with him," Enjolras called out. Courfeyrac looked visibly relieved. Eponine cast a quizzical glance at him. Enjolras faced Eponine.
"I don't think Courfeyrac telling him is going to make any difference. He'll still come," Enjolras said, secretly voicing his own opinion about Eponine. "Gavroche will have to be preoccupied some other way so we can be certain he won't come."
"Oh? And what do you propose?" Eponine asked, guessing there was something deeper behind this. Enjolras paused a moment to compose his thoughts. The idea had come to him only moments before and he was trying to find the best way to express it.
"He's going to need to something to do and he'll have to think it's extremely important," Enjolras began, slowly. "He'll have to think it's important to the cause or he won't want to do it." He paused again and Eponine waited expectantly. "He'll need somewhere to stay, too. I don't want him on the streets during the fighting."
"I'm assuming you have some place in mind. He can't very well stay with our parents," she commented.
"He can stay in my flat," Enjolras said and Eponine's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "I want you to stay with him." Her eyebrows shot down into a scowl.
"Me? What do you mean? You want me to stay with him?" she spluttered.
"Eponine, someone needs to keep Gavroche safe. He's going to do everything he can to get back to the fighting and Courfeyrac. Those two are practically inseparable," he said.
"And the something that's he supposed to do to keep himself preoccupied? Or rather to keep us preoccupied?" she asked, huffily.
"Rouse the people," he replied. "I know you are smart and intelligent and you've helped me write so many speeches I'm sure you can do it."
"Isn't that your job?" she argued.
"I'll be fighting," he said. "You have to go out to the people far from the fighting and rouse them. Explain to them what's going on. They might know there's something going on but they might not know what. You can spread the news. You and Gavroche."
"Why do I feel like this method of keeping Gavroche away is also to keep me away?" she said, scowling. "You have no say over what I do, Enjolras."
"Eponine, please understand. I want to keep you and Gavroche safe and this is the only way I know how. I have to keep you away from the fighting." She glared at him, silently, and he knew she was preparing an angry verbal assault. He tried to head it off and started talking.
"I know you don't like this –" he began.
"I sure as hell don't!"
"But please understand this is for your own good."
"Who are you to say what that is?"
"I'm not trying to control you –"
"Sure as hell looks like you are."
"You could get hurt –"
"I can take care of myself."
"And I don't know what I'd do if you got hurt."
"Send me off to Joly?"
"The battlefield is no place for you."
"It's exactly the place for me."
"The rest of us understand what could happen and we're prepared to pay the ultimate price –"
"This is my fight just as much as it is yours."
"What if you die, Eponine?"
"What if you die, Enjolras?"
"I'm prepared to make that sacrifice."
"So am I."
"I can't let you. I can't let you die."
"You know what else you can't do? Tell me what to do."
"I'm being serious, Eponine!" he was almost yelling. She had been yelling, but he never raised his voice at her.
"You know, you keep talking about how I'm not being serious and I don't care," she stormed. "Well, I do care. I'm not a child, Enjolras. I know what I'm doing. I want to fight. You can't stop me. I can do whatever I damn please and no little bourgeois boy and his little group of friends can stop me. "
He glowered. "Stop being so flippant about this! This isn't a joke. There's going to be a battle. There will be guns and people shooting and – " He stopped as a mental image of Eponine being shot flashed through his mind. He paled; his nightmares had somehow found their way into his waking hours.
"Well, that's generally what happens in battles, in case you didn't know. Big booms and people yelling," she said, with a stinging sarcasm. Enjolras' face was drained of color, she noticed. "What's this? Why so quiet? Did you not know this is what happened? Are you scared? Is little Enjolras scared?" Her anger had carried her away and she didn't care any more what she said. "I think he is. I think you're all just a bunch of cowards and you're the biggest one of them all."
His face so pallid before suddenly blazed with color and Eponine was suddenly afraid she had gone too far. They stood there – him glaring and her resolutely meeting his gaze. Suddenly, something inside him seemed to snap. The fire went out from his eyes and his shoulders slumped in defeat. "You're right," he said, brokenly. "You're right. I am scared. I'm scared that I'll die and I'll never see you again. I'm afraid that you'll die and your blood will be on my hands. I have nightmares every night that you're dead. I can't let the nightmares become a reality. I'm scared of a world where you're not. You're right, Eponine, I'm terrified. I love you too much to lose you."
Her eyes which had stayed on his all through his little speech finally tore themselves away and she looked away down the street, very pale. Enjolras watched her carefully, trying to gauge her reaction. She looked like she might possibly cry. He waited for her to do something but she didn't. He hadn't meant to say all that. He hadn't meant to tell her he loved her. He hadn't even realized that he did until he said it. He hadn't meant for any of this to happen. Eponine just had this way of turning him around and making him do things he never meant to do. Like falling in love.
She spoke, snapping him out of his reverie. The color had somewhat returned to her face and, though she was breathing heavily, she seemed to have composed herself. It was certainly more than could be said of him. "You know, that's the first time you've ever admitted I'm right," she said, softly. He stared at her in shock and a little grin crept onto her face. He started chuckling and then stepped towards her, pulling her into his arms and kissing her deeply. They both knew what she really meant.
They held each other for a long moment. "Funny, isn't it? We're all fighting for love. You're fighting because you love France and you love your ideals. The king's fighting you because he loves his power too much. Gavroche wants to fight because he loves excitement and Courfeyrac. I want to fight because I love you and want to be with you no matter how it ends. We're all fighting for love but you never think fighting has anything to do with love," she mused. He nodded. "Enjolras," she stepped back and looked up at him seriously. "I'm not going to go to the battle. I'll stay with Gavroche. We'll rouse the people and pray for you." He couldn't really believe what he was hearing. "You conceded that I was right and so I'm going to listen to you. I think it's only fair," she said, her voice holding a trace of amusement. She had thought through his plan and while she still didn't like it, she would do it. It was reasonable and she weighed the merits of listening to him and ignoring. If she listened, he would feel better not have to worry about her so much. Plus, someone really did need to look after Gavroche. If she ignored him, he would do nothing but argue with her about it and cause him to excessively worry and she didn't really know how to shoot a gun anyways. And then of course, no one was there to watch after Gavroche.
He grinned down at her. His heart was soaring. He hadn't actually thought she would do it. He had expected to fight with her about it at every step. He kissed her again. "Since I've agreed," she said, pulling away, "I get to stay in your flat, right?" He raised his eyebrows and nodded. She smiled. "I think I'll move in early and get used to the place." He grinned and didn't say anything. She went home with him that night and together they found his new favorite thing.
A/N: Happy Saturday! Hope you liked. Let me know if there's anything I can improve. :)
