A/N: Bonjour you delightful people! For some reason my one-shots have been a bit shorter recently..I have no clue why, but there ya have it. Also, I'm happy to announcer that I have decided to go with the story (as I've said already but oh well) AND I have started on Chapter 1 today. I hope you all like it, it won't be up for a bit, maybe Saturday or Sunday, since my aim is to get each chapter at about 2000 words. I might put it up today if I get it finished, which is unlikely, but possible.


Prompt (last one from the website before I work in ones you guys have given me, don't be afraid to keep on submitting!): Imagine your OTP lost in the woods. It's evening and it's starting to get cold. Person A puts half of their jacket around Person B. There is a strange noise from somewhere in the darkness, and they draw closer together.


I have no idea where this is set, kinda post-barricade but without Éponine dying. So...yeah. Have a cookie (: :)


"Marius?"

"Yes?"

"Where the bloody hell are we?"

Marius sighed. He'd thought that a walk through a forest just outside of Paris would be a good idea, something to just enjoy and relax during.

Well, never mind what Marius thought, because Marius had thought wrong.

The afternoon had started out okay - they'd been walking through sharing sandwiches (although Éponine had more than Marius, who was worried about how much she was, or rather wasn't, eating) and Marius had caught himself whistling at one point.

At about half past five, Éponine had found a tree that she could climb, and decided it was time for a rest. Marius had watched enviously as she scuttled to the top as easily as any squirrel, whilst he was stuck on the lowest branch, no idea what to do next.

She'd spent a good couple of hours up there, and even though Marius knew it was getting dark, she seemed so happy that he couldn't bear to ruin the moment.

Although now, at about nine thirty, he was really wishing he had.

Éponine kept eyeing up the shadows, and pressed herself a little closer to Marius. She hated being in places she didn't know her way around, so being in one of these places at night in almost the pitch-dark was beginning to turn into a nightmare.

Marius put his jacket over her slim shoulders, and she smiled gratefully, wrapping it around herself and trying to relax herself. Marius placed his arm around her waist and suggested they start walking again, they may end up back in Paris somehow.

Éponine was a bit doubtful but nodded, not sure whether the fact that the woods were completely silent was a good thing or a bad thing. At least it would tell them if anything was coming towards them.

Marius decided to lead them in what he guessed to be north. After all, the woods were in the south of Paris, so surely that would be the logical thing to do? Gently cupping Éponine's elbow, he helped her up and steered her towards a sort of pathway.

They walked for what felt like hours, when Éponine thought she heard something.

"What the bloody hell was that?"

Marius frowned. "I didn't hear anything, what was it?"

"I guess it was nothing."

Marius shrugged, and they kept walking.

About ten minutes later, they both heard the noise. It sounded scarily like a gunshot, and Éponine let out a kind of squeak before practically flinging herself at Marius. She wouldn't normally have been so freaked, but the last time she heard a gunshot was when Gavroche was killed, so understandably she wasn't too happy.

Marius was a bit confused at first, normally it was her comforting him, but then remembered the barricade and drew her tighter. "Sssh, Éponine, it's okay, probably just somebody hunting, I bet it wasn't even a gun at all. Calm down."

Éponine nodded to show she'd at least acknowledged his words, but her grip on him didn't loosen, and her trembling didn't stop either. Marius kept a firm arm around her as they continued to trudge through the path. She stopped shaking after a while but it was clear she could still remember everything.

After about three hours of walking, they got out of the forest, both stiff and with aching feet. Marius still had an arm around her, but that arm tightened slightly when he realised that they hadn't come out in Paris. Éponine immediately realised this too and sighed.

Before she could say anything, Marius kept her walking, despite their protesting feet. The town was much nicer than the Parisian slums - it didn't smell, there were no open gutters and the whole town seemed peacefully quiet. It was clear you didn't have to fend for yourself out here.

After a few more minutes, Éponine spotted a sign for an inn - a small terraced building that looked open. Marius stopped to give her a quick, spontaneous hug in thanks before heading over, paying for a cheap room and heading upstairs.

"Why is it we can never go anywhere without getting lost and sleeping somewhere else?"

"Believe me, 'Ponine, I've been asking myself the same question for about three months."

Éponine just smiled and settled down next to him, glad that they'd been given one bed rather than two, as it gave her an excuse to stay with him. Not that Marius had any complaints, feeling a skinny arm rest itself on his stomach as Éponine was asleep in minutes, clearly exhausted. He watched her for a bit, checking to see if she was okay after the gunshot incident, before kissing her forehead lightly and drifting off himself.