A.N. Well, I hope you guys liked the last chapter. I know Jessi and Robert did, and I thank them for their reviews. I'm glad that everyone is reading, but could a couple more of you review? Just so I know what I'm doing wrong and what I'm doing right? Anyway, here's the next chapter, and I hope you all enjoy it.

OooOooOooOooO (Marius POV)

I looked down worriedly at the sleeping girl. She was so thin and malnourished to begin with, and I was terrified about what the blood loss would do to her. 'Oh, Éponine, what am I going to do with you?' I thought. 'And more importantly, how am I going to get you out of here? There's a battle raging outside those doors, a battle that I'm not even sure I want to be part of anymore. Enjolras is still down due to exhaustion, Gavroche is going to lose the bottom half of his right leg, Courferac has passed on, and Joly is out there fighting when he should be helping the wounded! I never comprehended how brutal this fight for freedom would be.' *

"I can't let you stay here, who knows what will happen to you? If you got hurt because of me, it would destroy me, 'Ponine." I then realized that I was speaking out loud, and the girl in question was beginning to stir. "No, no, Éponine. Sleep," I told her gently as I set a hand on her unhurt right shoulder. When she continued to squirm uncomfortably on the table, I began to hum the lullaby my mother had sung to me when I was young and having a nightmare. It soon transformed into soft singing.

"Sleep now little darling/ let my singing soothe you/ sleep for now, dearest one/ make you dreams come true.

"Quiet down and hush now/ just listen to my song/ when you are in my arms/ nothing can be wrong.

"Let me hold you close now/ I will save you from fear/ nightmares will go away/ when I'm with you, dear.

"Go to sleep now, sweetheart/ quiet now, don't you cry/ slumber till the morning/ in my lullaby." **

Éponine settled, and I realized that in her twisting, the hand that I had placed on her shoulder had landed on her cheek. I should have moved it immediately, but I found myself entranced as I stared at the sleeping girl. Now that she had calmed, she looked so peaceful. I realized with a start that my friend was beautiful. She was thin, tired, and haggard, but she was still lovely. Her skin seemed to glow, and I suddenly wanted her to open her expressive eyes.

The red stain on her white shirt was painful to see, and I felt that it was my fault that it was there. I had sullied this angel, and she bled because of me.

"I'm sorry, 'Ponine," I whispered. "This is all my fault. I got us into this, but I'm going to get you out. If I don't survive this, fine, but I'm not getting you killed. You're too important for that." A tear dripped down my nose and landed on her pale cheek. My fingers moved without my command and tenderly wiped the droplet away. Then I leaned down and gently laid my lips on her fair skin.

She shifted, and I quickly tore my lips off of her cheek. She simply rolled over onto her side with a sigh and settled down again. I stared at her back as my thought roiled like the angry sea during a storm. 'What am I doing?!' I thought frantically. 'What if she had woken up? What would I say then? She might get the wrong idea.'

'You just kissed her! What idea did you want her to get?' My brain retorted.

'I kissed her on the cheek, not the lips! And I'm just worried about her wellbeing. She just got shot, after all!'

'Then why were you thinking about how beautiful she is?'

Then the girl in question gave a whimper, and I realized that I was mentally arguing with myself. I forced myself to stop thinking about it.

"Éponine? Are you alright?" I asked apprehensively. She let out another small cry. "It's just a bad dream, 'Ponine. Wake up. You're safe." She didn't answer, and my worry increased.

"Éponine!" I called a bit louder. I reached out to shake her shoulder and discovered that it was her uninjured one. 'She's laying on her hurt shoulder; that's the problem.' Without a second thought, I slid my arms under her while being mindful of her wound. After a moment, I lifted her up and settled her on the table again. She looked so frail and uneasy lying there, and she began writhing again. I scooped her up again and pulled her into my lap.

"Easy there. I'm here, and it's okay," I comforted. At the sound of my voice, she ceased her struggles and relaxed in my grip. I thought she had fallen back into a deep sleep, but then her wavering voice cut through the air.

"Marius? Is that you?" I froze, but she didn't seem uncomfortable as she sat up. She looked around in front of her, and I ascertained that she was looking for me.

"Yes, it's me," I replied quietly. I watched her stiffen as she figured out that she was sitting on my lap. She turned slowly to look at me, and her eyes showed confusion.

"I think you… you were having a nightmare," I explained awkwardly as I rubbed the back of my neck.

"Yeah, I was. I feel like I should have died. It would have saved everyone a lot of trouble, and you wouldn't be having doubts about your pretty little Cosette. It would be better for everyone if I just walked out there now and got shot," she declared sadly. I could see tears running down her face in small clean streaks against the dirt as she turned away.

"No, it wouldn't," I told her quietly. She didn't reply above sniffing. "It's not your time, 'Ponine." I drew her into a tight hug while avoiding her damaged shoulder. She began sobbing into my shoulder, and I tried to calm her.

"I just feel so useless! I tried to help you, and I ended up being shot! Now I'm just a liability to you. I never wanted to put you in danger, Marius. I'm so sorry." She began weeping again.

"It's okay, Éponine," I comforted her. Then I let out the words that I had been keeping back since I had held her as she died (or so I thought.) "I love you."

OooOooOooOoooO

A.N. I know that Les Misérables is all song, but I obviously can't write like that. That's why I write one song per chapter. Tell me how you like the lyrics. I figured I'd put in Marius's confusion about his feeling for Éponine vs. his feelings for Cosette. How did I do? And what did you think of the chapter? Review and tell me!

* I know this isn't what happens in the musical, but I figured this would be easier. I decided that Éponine living would probably change things a little bit anyway. So not everyone is going to die.

** This is another original. I imagine it as a mixture of the tune to "Zira's Lullaby," from The Lion King 2, and the tune to "You'll be in My Heart," from Tarzan. You can imagine your own tune if you like.