A/N: Well, don't I feel sheepish. I know it's been a crazy long time, but this chapter gave me a ridiculously difficult time. It was difficult for me to get started, and difficult for me to get through. I'm incredibly sorry for the really long wait. I really hope you guys stick with me, despite my lack of updates. But I am on summer break now, so I'm hoping to finish this story by the end of August. I have parts of all of the following chapters written, and have them all planned out. Please review, because the lack of reviews have been discouraging as well. As much as I love writing this, and will continue writing it even if nobody reads, it will all come easier if you guys tell me how you feel. With that said, on with the chapter!
A Moment Between Siblings
Eponine was simultaneously relieved and worried whilst in her sister's presence. She was relieved because she felt like she was finally beginning to put the pieces of her fragmented mind back together after over a week of just aimlessly wandering through her mind, hoping and praying that something would eventually click. She was worried, however, because of the nature of the things Azelma was telling her. Her father claiming she was dead? Her mother crying, not because of her supposed demise, but because of all the extra money that she would need to bring in to help support her louse of a husband and his gang of miscreants?
"But Eponine, you're alive!" Azelma exclaimed as she pulled her elder sister into yet another hug. "Montparnasse and Papa made it seem as if you had died weeks ago in a terrible accident!"
"What kind of accident, 'Zelma?" Eponine hoped that her younger sister's explanation would help to shed light on what had caused her accident, since Enjolras had explained to her that Marius had not laid a hand on her, though the circumstances surrounding her injury would put him partially at fault. Enjolras had never said that Marius was partially at fault, but she could read the guilt in Marius' eyes the last few times she had seen him at the café.
"Papa said that it was a robbery gone wrong. He told me that the owner of the house came back early and you got hurt trying to get away." Azelma continued with her tale, explaining how the gendarmes had come and killed her because she wouldn't tell them where the Patron Minette had gone.
As Azelma prattled on, Eponine's mind and heart filled with dread. She had had her suspicions regarding her past: her beaten and scarred body had been evidence enough that she had not lived the most privileged of lives. Adding to that her instinct not to go home when she had gotten hurt and woken up with no memory, and Eponine had known that she was not of the same social standing as her new peers. But she had never imagined that she had been a thief! It made her feel embarrassed to be in Enjolras' presence.
Eponine risked a look up at Enjolras. His strong jaw was set and his blue eyes were ablaze with the fire that he usually reserved for his cause. The absolute rage that radiated off of him caused her to shrink away from him, fearful that his rage was directed at her. Her slight movement caused his eyes to stray from where they had been trained upon Azelma. As they alit upon her, she saw his eyes soften and the corner of his mouth pull upwards into a slight smile. For the first time since her accident, she felt as if she could read another human being's emotions accurately. She could clearly see the care and admiration he had for held for her. Unwittingly, she moved slowly back towards him and grabbed his hand. If he asked, her actions were a result of her needing comfort in the face of Azelma's story. But as it was, she just wanted to know what it felt like to be close to him, just for a moment.
Azelma was incredibly happy to see her sister alive and well. Their brief encounter in the Parisian marketplace had not been enough for her, especially considering how they had been interrupted by Monteparnasse. To put it plainly, Azelma had been worried sick about her sister ever since. 'Parnasse tended to make threats frequently, but never against her or Eponine, afraid that their father still held some semblance of love or care for any of his children. However, it was the way that the threat had been made that made her extremely nervous for her sister's well-being.
On a whim, Azelma reached out and pulled Eponine close, not noticing the way that her sister had entwined her fingers with the handsome bourgeois man standing beside her. Azelma felt tears well up in her eyes. She had always been the weaker sibling in comparison to Eponine. Azelma cried and whined and threw tantrums all throughout her childhood. Eponine was the one who took the beatings for her and Gavroche, and who was strong enough to escape (at least partially) from underneath their father's thumb. Azelma squeezed her sister tight, imaging that if she held her tightly enough, she would absorb some of her sister's bravery.
Azelma quietly listened to her sister's side of the story, which did not take long due to the lack of details. Azelma could not believe that her sister could not remember much of her life. It was heartbreaking to see her strong sister reduced to such a state. It was then that she noticed the man that was standing at Eponine's side. He was handsome and obviously rich, but there was something else about him. The way he looked at her sister, as if he would stand between her and anything that wished to harm her, made Azelma wish that she had someone in her life that would look at her that way.
The way her sister was looking at the man was surprising as well. For the first time Azelma was able to note how incredibly happy Eponine was. It was a look that was foreign to her sister's face, but not completely misplaced. Though Eponine's face was lacking a smile at that exact moment, there was a type of radiance that shone in her face and a light that had not been present in her eyes since their days in Montfermeil. Azelma made a promise to herself that she would do everything she could to keep that happiness glowing on her sister's face, while also resolving to find the same kind of happiness in her own life.
Enjolras was happy to finally have some sort of inkling as to what happened to Eponine on the night of her accident. Not only was he happy that Azelma's story seemed to correspond to Marius' story, therefore finally clearing his name (though there had never been any doubt in his mind that Marius had not harmed Eponine physically), he was also happy to finally have someone to blame for all that had happened.
Enjolras was the type of person who needed order. If something unscheduled happened, he needed to put it into context and find reasoning behind it. If someone was harmed, he needed to find somewhere to lay the blame. With everything that had been happening in Paris over past years, he was happy to have the government to blame, as they rightly should have been blamed. But with Eponine's situation, he had not known who to blame. The government? Well, yes, because they were the reason that Eponine was forced out onto the street in the first place. But they hadn't been the ones to physically harm her. Eponine had laid blame upon Marius, and though Enjolras knew that his oldest friend could not harm a fly that landed upon his food, much less hurt a person that was his friend, Enjolras knew that at some level Marius had harmed Eponine in some way. The only issue he had with finally having some answers was the answer itself. Eponine's family had done this to her? They had forced her into a position where she had been harmed?
All of a sudden Enjolras had a new respect for his estranged father. No, Alexandre Enjolras had not been the best father to his young son after his beloved wife had passed. But he had never laid a hand upon his son, nor had he ever asked his son to do something that he had not been comfortable with. Of course, the years of being ignored had taken their emotional toll on Gabriel, and they could not be more in disagreement in terms of the government, but Enjolras was now realizing that, in comparison to some familial relationships on the streets, he had had it fairly easy throughout his life.
He was shaken from his thoughts when he felt Eponine move away from him. He looked down at her and saw the faint blush rising on her cheeks. Enjolras assumed it was from embarrassment. Azelma's story did not paint Eponine or the rest of her family in the best of lights, and Enjolras knew how sensitive Eponine had become to the difference in their social standings. Enjolras sighed internally. Even after these past few weeks together, Eponine continued to refuse to believe that he did not care about such things. One need only to look around at Les Amis to see that he did not give two sous as to the value of a person's lineage. Feuilly, Grantaire, Joly, all of Les Amis came from different societies, but all worked their way to a better life, and now were working their way toward a better life for all.
He felt the corners of this mouth turn upwards at Eponine's look of embarrassment. She obviously could not see herself as he saw her. He saw her inner strength and tenacity when it came to remembering who she was. He saw the way she lit up whenever he gave her something that had blueberries in it. The way she devoured everything she read, and the way she gave him incredible insight into his speeches struck him down with awe. He hated to admit it even to himself, but he felt something for this girl, something that could be dangerous both to him and to his cause. He started a little when he felt Eponine's hand wrap around his, but immediately felt indescribable warmth spread throughout his entire body. He smiled at the realization that he did not give a damn as to whether or not his feelings for Eponine were dangerous. This feeling was not something he would give up without a fight.
Gavroche smiled as he raced through the near deserted streets of Paris. Few people with homes would risk being out at night these days, and those who didn't have homes preferred the relative safety of alleys and overhangs so that the National Guard would not find them. Gavroche preferred the city when it was quiet. Though it was more difficult for him to catch a break, he liked that there were no rich snobs around to look down upon him.
That's why he liked Les Amis. They were obviously rich (they tossed enough money at him for food and drink for him to know that) but they never treated him as any less than equal. They made sure that if they gave him money, he did some sort of task so that he could feel that he earned it. They taught him how to be economical.
For example, at that present moment Gavroche was on his way to the Café Musain to deliver the daily news to Enjolras. He would spend most of his day racing around Paris, speaking to leaders of the other anti-government factions who would be raising additional barricades throughout the city. At the end of the day, Gavroche would report back to Enjolras while wrapped in a warm blanket and drinking whatever soup Madame Huchloup had prepared for the evening.
Gavroche genuinely liked hanging around with Les Amis. Courfeyrac would talk to him, Enjolras would consult him on important decisions, and Grantaire was always good for a laugh. Marius was becoming a bit of an issue in Gavroche's mind, however. Marius was always dogging after him for information about the girl he had seen before Thénardier had gotten caught by Inspector Javert.
"Bonjour Gavroche!" Joly called out when he entered the café.
"Bonjour Monsieur Joly!" Gavroche scampered over to the young doctor, who immediately laid a hand on the young boy's forehead.
"Are you feeling well, Gavroche? I hope you have not picked anything up from all the time you spend on the streets. You really should take us up on our offer to spend the night at the flat that Courfeyrac and I share. I do worry about you, you know." Gavroche stood stock still as the brunette man looked over him and fretted.
"Come, mon ami! You know Gav will not accept our offer, even if spending his nights on the street will be the death of him!" Gavroche slunk out from under Joly's hand, ran, and jumped up into Courfeyrac's arms. The curly haired man pushed Gavroche's limp blond hair out of his eyes. "I do wish you would spend at least the cold nights at our place. You could bring your boys along, and then we could at least be helping all of you."
"The old elephant keeps us warm enough, Courf. Don't worry about us; we can take care of ourselves. Who needs charity?" From Gavroche's newfound vantage point, he spotted Eponine, Enjolras, and—he had to stare for a few seconds to be sure—Azelma! He immediately scrambled down from Courfeyrac's arms and ran over to them, nearly toppling Azelma over from the force of the hug he gave her. With the speed at which he moved, he missed the disappointed look that Courfeyrac gave him.
"'Zelma, what are you doing here?" Gavroche had not seen his older sister in years. He had caught sight of her a few times, but she had always disappeared before he got a chance to go over and say hello.
"Gavroche, is that really you?" Azelma squealed as she pulled him even closer. "Mon Dieu, you look so grown up!"
"Pardon me, but do the two of you know each other?" Enjolras asked, looking incredibly confused.
"Oh pardon-moi, monsieur, Gavroche is my—our—younger brother," Azelma explained. "Our parents sold our two youngest brothers when the inn ran out of money, and moved us all to Paris. Then they kicked Gavroche out onto the streets because there wasn't enough money to go around." Azelma turned from Enjolras to Gavroche, and grabbed his hands. "Gav, you don't know how bad I feel about that. I feel like I should have stood up for you. Maybe if it hadn't been Eponine all on her own defended us both, things would have been different."
Gavroche smiled and pulled Eponine and Azelma into a three way hug while Enjolras sat back on his heels, stunned by the news of the siblings' past. He knew that they had to have lived a difficult life, but with Azelma's admissions, he found himself even more admiring of Eponine and Gavroche for their strength and vitality. He would have told them so if Eponine had not sneezed as the small family began to pull away from one another, which caused Joly to go into a frazzled rant about how many different diseases had the symptom of random sneezing while trying to push them out the door without actually touching Eponine.
"Take her home, and do not allow her to come back until she has not sneezed for at least 24 hours, Enjolras!" Joly called from the doorway of the café, holding his handkerchief over his mouth.
Enjolras waved his arm over his head as he began to lead Eponine back towards his flat.
"Eponine, Enjolras!" The duo turned and saw Musichetta racing towards them. "Tante Avis is working late in her shop tonight due to Hélène and Combeferre's upcoming nuptials. I stopped in on her before coming here, and she told me that you had not picked up your dresses yet. She said to stop in tonight and get them."
"Merci, Musichetta. We will go immediately." Enjolras replied as both he and Eponine waved goodbye to her.
Eponine took the packages holding her dresses from Enjolras as he attempted to coax a flame from the coals in his fireplace. She took them out of their paper wrappings and ran her hands over the smooth fabrics. She had not owned something so luxurious since the inn had been sold and they had moved to Paris. She blushed as she remembered the red dress that Musichetta had forced her to buy for Combeferre's wedding—the wedding that she had not even been invited to.
"What are you thinking about?" Enjolras questioned, noticing the faint tinge to her cheeks. He thought it made her look quite beautiful, but did not like that the colour was usually caused by some sort of embarrassment. He also did not like when she shrugged her embarrassment off, as she did at that moment.
"It's nothing, Enjolras." Eponine felt like she could not tell him about wasting his money on something as frivolous as a gown for a wedding that she would not even be attending.
Enjolras walked up to her slowly, grasped her shoulders, and turned her to face him. "Epona, if there is one thing that I have learned over the past two weeks; it is that it is never nothing when it comes to you."
Eponine looked up at him with shining eyes. "When Musichetta and I were shopping, she told me to buy a dress to wear for Combeferre's wedding. I tried to tell her that I was not attending, but she insisted. I am so sorry that I wasted your money, please do not be mad."
Enjolras struggled to bite back a chuckle. "Eponine, of course you are attending Combeferre's wedding. Even if he had not invited you, which he has, you are going to attend the ceremony and the dinner afterwards with me. That is, if you will have me as your escort?"
Eponine smiled shyly. "Gabriel, you do not have to feel obligated to escort me to the wedding. I do not have to go if you do not want me to."
Enjolras sighed and grabbed her hands in his, a pose similar to how Gavroche and Azelma had been standing earlier. "Eponine, of course I want you to attend with me. It will be nice to celebrate with Combeferre and his new bride, but it will be even nicer to not have to be there by myself. In the past, events such as a wedding have been fairly tedious and boring. With you, it has the potentiality of actually being…fun."
Eponine gasped dramatically. "Did the Marble Statue actually just admit that something other than a revolution could be fun?" Eponine teased before becoming suddenly quiet. "That—that is what Grantaire used to call you, non?"
This time, Enjolras did laugh. "Yes Eponine, that is what Grantaire, and yourself on occasion, used to call me. Now please, get to bed. If you actually are sick after our little adventure out in the rain, then Joly will actually lock us in here until he deems us healthy, which could take quite a while."
Laughter was all that was heard throughout the apartment as its two occupants prepared for bed.
A/N:So I know this chapter was mostly just information, and getting caught up with everyone and what they have been doing. Please review! Next up, Combeferre moves back into the flat on the night of his wedding, which causes an awkward situation between Enjolras and Eponine. I will update at least once before May 20th, so keep an eye out for that.