Her face felt wet. Was it blood? Had she cracked her face and she was bleeding? Her face did hurt terribly. The pain was terrible. But it didn't feel like blood. Everything ached, every inch of her body. What had happened? She just remembered falling and then now. She wiggled her fingers slowly.

"Éponine!" Erik sniffled, wiping at his face to clear away the tears he had been crying. "Éponine, shhh. Just stay still."

"Erik?" Her eyes fluttered open, it wasn't blood after all, Erik had been crying. His face was red and his eyes were puffy looking. "What-"

"You fell, no thanks to our friends. They've gone now." Erik stroked her face, smiling now that she was awake. "You're okay now."

Éponine started to sit up, clutching her stomach suddenly in pain. "Erik," Her eyes closed in agony. "What's going on?"

"There was blood." He gulped, his eyes travelling down to the white of her underclothes and where they were stained with blood where her legs came together. "Just lie still."

"The baby." Éponine gasped, resting her hand on her stomach. "No."

"Just rest, there's nothing either of us can do about it." Erik stroked her cheek, pressing a cheek against her temple. "You're fine that's all that matters."

"The baby."

"Shhh." Erik, kissed her lips trying to silence her crying. "It's going to be alright. There's time to have more."

"Our baby." Éponine whimpered, rubbing her stomach and hoping and praying that it wasn't true.

~o~

"That was a bad move 'Toinette." Montparnasse snapped, as he followed her up the winding staircase. "You shouldn't have pulled her down."

"Be quiet." She snapped rubbing the back of her head. "I fell too."

"I was at the bottom mind you."

Antoinette pushed at the window, sliding it open to let the light from the dressing room shine down the staircase. "You can go now."

"Not so fast," Montparnasse grabbed her hand and spun her around. "You've been teasing me since that night at the Tavern. You don't really think I'll let you get away that easy do you?"

"Montparnass-"

"Pierre if you please," He tucked a loose strand of her blond hair behind her ear.

"Pierre," Antoinette purred with a wide grin on her face. She wasn't going to let him get away; he could be her chance later on. Tonight had gone terribly in the wrong direction. Éponine getting injured only would bring them closer together. She ran her tongue of her lower lip, smirking at him. "What do you know? Look where we are."

Montparnasse chuckled, leaning into kiss her. "Kiss my bruises?"

Antoinette smirked, pressing her lips against his. He was a handsome man, more handsome than Jules and Erik, of course. It wouldn't be hard to go to bed with him, to keep her in his good graces. "I'll kiss whatever you tell me to."

~o~

"Marius, Enjolras." Combeferre called as he came into the ABC Cafe, he unbuttoned his overcoat and hung it up on the coat rack. "You wouldn't believe tonight."

"What?" Enjolras looked up from the book he was reading.

Combeferre sat down at the table across from him, "Éponine, I saw her tonight."

"Where?" Enjolras looked surprised, "I know that she vanished from Rue Plumet, but we have had no news."

"The Opera Populaire."

"Was she with the monster?"

"Both arrived at the gala, dressed in red and calling every ounce of attention to them." Combeferre laughed, "I've never seen her so happy before. Until,"

"Until?"

"Montparnasse that rat of a boy she runs around with. He and some little dancer went after them. They vanished in a puff of smoke right before my eyes."

"Have you been drinking?" Enjolras narrowed his eyes, watching the young man sway in his seat.

He smiled at Enjolras, "A little bit. Enough. You should've been there Enjolras."

"Tell me what happened with the girl."

"Apparently the hellspawn has been teaching dear 'Ponine to sing. They've composed a musical and expect the Manager to put it on."

"You don't say." Enjolras rolled his eyes, "Our Éponine is apparently a real something suddenly. She's lost her wits." He thumped his book down on the table. "We have got to be swift about this. If this musical happens we will be there. We will have guards. If we kill the beast this spell that he's spun will be broken."

"Kill the monstrosity you say? He didn't seem much like a fierce creature, he practically gave her to us when we went the first time."

"We should have killed him then, if we had there wouldn't be a second time needed."

~o~

Erik lay beside Éponine on the bed, comforting her as she cried. She was such a strong woman and now with one slip of her foot she was reduced to tears and agony. His mind kept going around and around everything that had happened. He was suddenly doubting himself. Had he only told her he wanted to marry her because she had been pregnant? He didn't want his child to live a life like he had, the life of a bastard. He wanted to protect Éponine and that meant marrying him.

But he loved her, he did love her. He knew he did. That ache he had felt while she was gone had been heart ache. Something he was so unaccustomed to that he thought he must've been dying. So why was he doubting that he had made a rushed decision with her? Was it just because he didn't think he deserved her love? If she didn't need him to be there for her, he knew she would hit him for feeling like he wasn't worth her time.

How did he know what love was? He'd never known one ounce of it in his life. Antoinette had been care, not love. Something, she needed to realise sooner rather than later. Éponine had returned to him, she came back on her own accord. She knew her fate, she knew his world and she came back. She needed him as much as she needed him.

Erik pressed a kiss against her cheek, resting his forehead against her cheek as she slept. He loved her.