Go away Thénardier.

As the words "The Baron and Baroness de Thénard wish to pay their respects to the groom" rang through the air, Marius looked over at the 'baron'. In an instant he recognized the man and his wife as the horrible Thénardiers. In a second his mind raced through flashback after flash back.

First was the time he first looked through the peep-hole in his room that lead to the Thénardiers apartment. He had heard a man shouting at someone. This is what he heard and saw.

It started with the man, Thénardier yelling at an unknown person about how this person didn't care if the family starved and ranting on about how everyone had to make money for the family unless they wanted to be out on the street. Marius heard the soft yet fierce response of a young girl, around 16. She said "I'll make money another way".

Marius heard a resounding crack and looked through the peephole. He saw the girl clutching her cheek while the man towered over her, hand still raised. He then said, in a voice poorly holding back the increasing anger. "YOU ARE LUCK YOU EVEN GOT THE OPPORTUNITY. Montparnasse was generous enough to offer 10 francs, 10 FRANCS, for one night with you and what do you say? You say NO!?"

The girl timidly responded "Yes I said no" her voice grew in courage. "I said no because I don't want to be a prostitute, I don't want to, I'll make the money another way."

The man smiled a crazy, murderous smile "Oh I know what this is about. You don't want to be a prostitute because you want a man who loves you right?" She nodded. He smacked her again.

"NO ONE could EVER love YOU. You're ugly, disgusting, and you are pining over a man who will never love you back. Every sentence was given with a smack or a hit to the small girl but Marius wasn't sure if she was flinching from that or the words cascading out of her fathers mouth.

That was the first time Marius saw Thénadier beating Eponine, but it wasn't the last.

Two months later, though it had happened many other times this one was worth remembering, he heard a knock on his door. He opened it to see Montparnasse who was, of course, drunk and had no shirt on and just his pants and a belt. He had a bottle of brandy, half gone, in his hand. Marius knew he was looking for the room next door where the Thénadier's lived but he didn't think anything would happen when he sent the man on his way. He pointed Montparnasse in the right direction and the man stumbled along to the next room. After Marius closed the door he decided to invade the privacy of his neighbors again and looked through the peephole. He never forgot what he saw that night.

The drunk man walked in and handed Eponine's father some money. He strode over to where the young girl was sleeping, he woke her up and whispered a threat in her ear. He then slowly began taking of her chemise and skirt leaving her only in her underclothes, it was then when the reality of the situation hit Marius. This 17 year old girl was about to be raped. He then sprang into action as Montparnasse was taking of his trousers Marius burst through the door, and grabbed Eponine. Thénardier stopped him and he threw 30 francs at the man and took off into the darkness, he knew that Thénardier wouldn't care what happened to his daughter. Then he realized she was out in the night with only her underclothes on and decided to give her his coat and walk her back to his room. Éponine was in complete shock, one second she is facing Montparnasse and the next she is being whisked away by this boy. This man who she loved. It stirred something inside of her that reminded her of a long forgotten emotion. Hope.

Neither the student nor the girl said anything as they went back to where they had came from. As they entered the hallway they heard Montparnasse screaming in a drunken rage and Eponine startd shaking. Marius wrapped his arm around her and held her close as they passed the door to her home and kept walking. Once inside his house he gave her a blanket and an under-shirt of his to wear. She went to the water basin and said "wow, fresh and clean water, haven't seen that in a while" "you can wash up if you wish" replied the young man who was setting up a bed for himself on the floor. The light in her eyes after he said that almost broke the young man's heart. She cleaned up and he gave her some bread.

"'Ponine, I'm not going to let you go back there."

"Monsieur Marius you are too kind. I cannot stay here. But thank you"

"Why not?" she smiled at him and the slight desperation laced in his voice.

"Because my father will, and this is no exaggeration monsieur, kill you.:

"If you go back you will die" he countered.

"Oh yes Monsieur there is always that possibility but you sir have much more promise in your life. I'd much prefer you live" And it was in that moment, as she said those words that would stay with him forever, selfless words that made his heart ache, that he saw the fear and sadness underneath a mask of nonchalant understanding. In the edges of nonexistence was a powerful emotion which he could not yet identify.

They became great friends and he was blind to her love until she told him as she died on the barricade. He remembered this as he saw Thénadier and anger fueled him to say with as much anger that was possible in his being.

"No, baron de Thénard The circles I move in are humbler by far. Go away, Thénardier. Do you think I don't know who you are?"

They were kicked out after telling some important information and Marius would never forgive them, never, for doing what they did to not only his wife, but his best-friend.