Months passed. Gavroche became the most important part of my life in the wake of harsher laws against people like us. We could be arrested simply for begging on corners if we weren't careful now. People grew afraid, and the fear turned to anger that radiated in the alleys. Protests were organized in secret, there were whispers of revolution.
Personally I stayed out of it as long as could, and I actually managed to succeed until a large section of those who supported revolution-the friends of the ABC, they called themselves- asked Gavroche to start running errands for them. He was small, they said, could do what a bunch of twenty-year-olds couldn't. Naturally he agreed to it.
"You'd like 'em." he'd say, cheerfully walking beside me on his way to the cafe where they held meetings. "They're real smart."
I scoffed. "They're a bunch of idiots who don't know what they're getting into."
He always gave me a sad kind of look when I said things like that, a look that made me wish I hadn't said it. But I never took it back; it was what I believed. "You wouldn't say that if you heard 'em givin' speeches. Maybe you should come with me sometime, just listen."
I'd shake my head. "Politics aren't my area."
And then he'd sigh and twist his cap. "It's not the politics, Kat. They could do just about anything with their lives but they're THERE, fighting for people like us. You can't go your whole life not believing in anything."
He was young, so damn young. Well, we all were, but Gavroche WAS youth. Hopeful, ignorant of any kind of consequence, of how the world really worked. I didn't want to see the day that changed, so I tried to protect him, but I was failing, I knew. He had his own ideology, and no matter how much I really wanted to be his sister, his mother, whatever, he couldn't be tied down. So I gave in one day to his request that I simply listen once.
There were less of them than I'd pictured, but they still took up most of the cafe. Gavroche pointed to each one in turn, telling me their names. "Courfeyrac, real friendly...Joly, I think 'e studies medicine...Grantaire, he's like you, don't believe in much 'cept for Enjolras." he pointed towards the middle of the group at a man I couldn't see clearly. "Enjolras is the one who usually talks, he'll probably start up once everyone's 'ere."
"Who're they waiting on?"
"Let's see...Combeferre, Feuilly, Prouvaire, and...I think Marius. Bit of a dreamer, that one."
I nodded and waited, listening for snatches of their conversation.
"-rricade can't go up in that area, we'd be surrounded."
"-and guns are obviously important, how d'you suppose we get more?"
"-omplete idiot, I swear."
"-put the bottle down for just a moment?"
They were clearly very involved in whatever they were planning, had probably done their research . I couldn't help but be a little impressed, but I wasn't about to dive into the talks before I heard this Enjolras man speak. The men Gavroche had said were late began filing in. There was Feuilly, a man who studied, Combeferre, Enjolras' second in command, Prouvaire, a poet by nature. Marius the dreamer was the latest, stumbling in flushed, the dark hair that sprawled over his head in disarray.
The man named Grantaire laughed when he saw him, barking a few teasing insults until the man in the middle, Enjolras I supposed, stood at last.
My breath caught, just a tiny bit. A minuscule hitch. Girls like me don't waste time looking at people, but...he was worth a few seconds. Every story I'd been told about some hero on a horse seemed to have had him in mind. Very tall, built lean, strong. He WAS a leader, you could see it in his posture, in the way he took on public speaking as if it were perfectly natural. He had a ridiculous amount of thick blonde hair, even tied back, but it framed his angular face well. You couldn't help but notice the features in that face, the striking blue eyes full of fire, the long, tapering nose, high cheekbones, even the almost feminine curve in the mouth.
The man was a fucking angel.
Was that the only reason people listened to his speeches? To stare at him? Oh, how I wanted to believe that. He could've just been another stupid pretty boy with dreams only he would ever grasp and I could've walked out still ignorant, still not caring a whit for politics or revolution or any of it. In fact I should've walked out right then, angels are trouble for the people who live in shadow. But I listened because my little brother asked me to and I just couldn't deny him a damn thing.
"We're all here now, I see." he began, glancing pointedly at Marius. "Reports, Combeferre, you start."
"We have building materials for the barricade but we still need a location and more labor."
"Feuilly?"
"We're stocked on ammunition, but there's little to put it in."
"Courfeyrac?"
"Nothing new on the armies."
He nodded, taking it in. "Combeferre, you, Marius and I will take on recruiting for labor and location strategy. Feuilly, you, Joly, and Prouvaire can continue your supply search and take note that ammunition is useless without guns. I have no intention of throwing bullets. Gavroche!"
The child ran forward. "Yes, sir?"
"Keep an eye on General Lamarque. Marius tells me his health is failing and whether he lives or dies can affect all of this. Is there anyone in your gang who can read?"
Oh no.
"Yes, she's with me, over there." he pointed.
Damn him. And damn the woman from years ago who'd insisted I learn to read.
"You there!" Enjolras beckoned me over. I came hesitantly. "Your name?"
"Katarine." I muttered, trying not to stare. Up close he was even more radiant.
"Katarine. That's lovely." he smiled. "You can read, can you?"
I swallowed. "I'm out of practice, but yes, a little."
He handed me the paper he was scribbling on. "That is where General Lamarque is staying. You and Gavroche check up on him in turns. Say you're his niece and nephew or whatever you have to. You should come back here every evening to report. Is all that alright?" he looked up. Direct eye contact. For some reason it made me squirm.
"Of course. May I ask why this is so important?"
He sighed. "You know who Lamarque is, of course?"
"Some politician. I'm supposed to like him."
He half-smirked. "He is the only person in the entire system of our government to speak up for people like you and Gavroche. He is the only thing keeping our king and his officers from trying to wipe you all out completely. I don't just mean arrests, I mean on-the-spot executions. If he dies...well I don't honestly know what will happen, but it will be bloody. And it will change the way all of us live for centuries to come."
"So we want him to live?"
He smoothed a piece of hair behind his ear. "If he survives this illness he still won't have long. We need to think of this as an opportunity for some real change!"
"How so?"
"Lamarque's doesn't have to be the only voice out there. If the people-people like these men, people like you, everyone- were to stand together in a united display against how the government is run now, they would have no choice but to change. Government rely on the people being afraid of them, but it should always be the other way around. That's why we're here, Miss Katarine, to stir up a little fear for the politicians. Do you understand?"
They were just words, of course I knew that. But there was something behind them, a kind of promise of something that I couldn't quite grasp, and despite myself, I was intrigued, drawn to him, to all he represented. "Yes, I understand."
"Well alright then." he smiled again. "One more job for you, Miss."
"Yes?"
He glanced out the door where Gavroche had run out. "Look after him for me. He's smarter than most, but...well you know how young he is. Liable to get into trouble."
I nodded. "I'll do my best, sir."