"Hey, you!"
Eponine snatched the apple out of the basket as quick as she could, while the storekeeper shouted out after her. In her hunger she had been careless with her thievery. Her bare feet dashed through the streets, but the yelling followed her like a hawk. The skinny hand held the apple close to her dirty shirt while the other gripped her hat.
"Thief!" An old woman pointed at her. That caught the attention of a policeman. Before Eponine could move out of the way, he grabbed the arm that was holding the hat, causing it to fall upon the dirty streets.
"Let me go!" She cried. She was so hungry and the thought of being back in that prison cell that he had only left a few days ago scared her.
"Don't you try getting away now, brat!" The policeman ordered her, gripping the dark stringy hair.
"Oh please..." Eponine whimpered. What had she turned into? A few days out of jail and she had become a thief just like her father.
The policeman roughly shoved her along the boulevard, while the people stared and snickered at her. Eponine tried to keep a solemn face, but she was too scared. How am I going to get out of this one? She wondered. The policeman stopped for a moment, and Eponine saw her chance. She began to struggle out of his grip, slipping out for only a few moments until he grabbed her wrist, yet Eponine would not give up. She squirmed and wiggled; yet the only result was a hard punch to the face.
The girl fell to the dirty street, smudging her skirt with more dirt and more tatters. Even with her face burning, Eponine knew she had to get away. She struggled to crawl but was met with a kick in the ribs that knocked the wind out of her. The child struggled to breathe, but the policeman obviously did not care. He grabbed her by the shirt and pulled her to the feet, dragging her away with no mercy. The people of Paris merely walked by without a second glance.
The policeman shoved her inside a carriage, tying her right hand to a bar. "Now, stay 'ere, 'cause I already got enough charges on you. I'll be back." He growled.
"Where you goin', your mother?" Eponine asked fiercely. The policeman glared, than slapped her across the face. This did not scare her, for she was used to this kind of treatment by policeman, and virtually every man she came into contact with. Except maybe Monsieur Marius, but he hurt her in a different way.
"Hold your tongue, missy!" The man snapped, and left her alone.
What a fool! Eponine laughed. Did he think she'd never been tied up before? She took her left hand and quickly undid the knot, leaping out of the carriage. She took off, walking quickly so as not to attract attention. People would remember her dirty face, complete with a black eye from the policeman's blow. Walking so fast, she did not see a young lady walking in the opposite direction, and she ran right into her.
The fragile young lady fell to the ground. "Excuse me." Her light, frilly, perfect voice said to Eponine. She stood up, and brushed the dust off her silky dark blue dress, and reached down to pick up the thing that she dropped. It looked to Eponine like a large brown rat, but with a closer look the girl noticed it was her hat.
"Hey, that's mine! Give it 'ere" Eponine snapped, grabbing the dirty cap out of the girl's perfect white hands.
"Is it really?" The girl asked in wonder, as Eponine shoved the ragged hat on her head. "I just found it on the street, and I was thinking to give it away to the poor..." The girl was a little shocked as Eponine gave a sharp cough. "Oh... well, I'm Cosette. Who are you?"
"Eponine..." She said, raising an eyebrow. "Why? You gonna turn me in or sumthin?"
Cosette laughed, a little confused. "No, of course not. I just-"
"Just thought you'd come slumming down in this part of town, huh? Well, I don't need people like you hangin' 'round me anyway..." Eponine turned to leave, but Cosette cried out.
"Wait!" She said. "Please, wait. My father and I try to help people like you all the time. Is there anything I can do for you? Are you lost? Where are your mum and dad?"
"Jail." Eponine responded simply. Cosette looked shocked, but the girl merely laughed, which turned into another harsh cough. "I was too, until a couple days ago. They let me out 'cause they didn't 'ave nothin' against me. Well, that they knew off..." She smiled. "Any way, listen 'ere, you she probably go. You wouldn't want to spoil the pretty dress hangin' around dirt like me."
Cosette was still stuck on the jail subject. "But... where do you live? Don't you 'ave a family to stay with?" Eponine merely stretched out her arms.
"This is me 'ome." She shrugged. Cosette's eyes widened. A girl the same age as her had to suffer the streets, it was a horrible thought. Eponine laughed at her ignorance. "It ain't that bad." Unless Montparnesse finds you... She shuttered.
"Please, say no more." Cosette looked sadly upon the girl's dirty face. "Come home with me. I'll give you a wash, and some proper clothes, and put something for that nasty bruise on your eye, and-" She held Eponine's hands.
"Let go of me!" Eponine snapped, and Cosette took a step back in shock. "No, I can't accept that." Eponine snapped.
"But... jail just sounds so awful... I mean, you must be recovering." Cosette stuttered.
"They gave me food, and didn't beat me too much..." Eponine flipped her hair behind her ear. Not as much as father, she thought to herself. But with her hair out of the way, Cosette could see something. A large red a purple mark on her neck. It was a cut and a bruise all at once, and it looked ugly and horrifying.
Cosette took a step forward and reached out her hand. She had never seen anything so awful on a beggar before, especially one as innocent looking as Eponine, who at the moment could only hold her breath while recalling the terrible memory of how the mark was obtained.
She remembered trying to escape one day. But she did not get far before a guard caught her and beat her half to death, hitting, punching, kicking, throwing against the wall, whipping, just about any awful thing you could imagine. Eponine really felt as if she was going to die, and the guard refused to bring her food for the next two days. Hours after the beating was over she felt as if she could not breath, and she didn't dare move. She had received worse punishments from her father, but she had always deserved it.
The memory over took her too much when Cosette's beautiful white hand came into contact with the ugly bruise. The once tough street woman jumped back, suddenly becoming a frightened little girl. Cosette stared, not knowing what to think, as Eponine's lip began to tremble. Cosette blinked, and the girl was gone. She had escaped back to the streets, while the other girl could only stand there in horror.
That night, Cosette returned home. She felt guilty as she changed into her silk nightgown, while she knew the other girl had no bed. Yet she knew nothing could be done. All she could do was cry into her pillow. Why regret what could not be? The girl was beyond her help. She had only tried to show love.
Eponine huddled in the corner of an alley, trying to keep warm in the rain. The man who owned the stable Eponine often slept in had quite literally thrown her out. She sobbed silently into her skirt. Why regret what could not be? The girl couldn't even try to help her. She had only wanted love.