Chapter 11
AN- On time! Yay! :D Anyway, this chapter is bit longer then the last few. I hope you all like it!
Disclaimer- I do not own Les Miserables or Enjolras's speech that he makes in this chapter, though I did write the last little part of it.
May 31st, 1832
"Citizens, do you picture the future to yourselves?" Enjolras called. He was in front of General Lamarque's home. Les Amis de l'ABC was there for another rally. General Lamarque was their only supporter. He cared about the people. Now, he was sick, and close to death. Enjolras decided to hold this rally in honor of Lamarque. He hoped that he would live to see the revolution.
Enjolras continued his speech. "The streets of cities inundated with light, green branches on the thresholds, nations sisters, men just, old men blessing children, the past loving the present, thinkers entirely at liberty, believers on terms of full equality, for religion heaven, God the direct priest, human consequence become an alter, no more hatreds, the fraternity of the workshop and the school, for sole penalty and recompense fame, work for all, right for all, peace over all, no more bloodshed, no more wars, happy mothers!" Enjolras stopped there so it could sink in. Then, with a big breath, he continued on. "To conquer matter is the first step; to realize the ideal is the second." Everyone cheered. There were about two to three hundred people all crowded on General Lamarque's street, and still more were coming. Enjolras only hoped that Lamarque himself heard his speech.
After the cheering died down, Enjolras completed his speech. "Reflect on what progress has already been accomplished. Formally, the first human races beheld with terror the hydra pass before their eyes, breathing on the waters, the dragon which vomited flame, the griffin who was the monster of the air, and who flew with the wings of an eagle and the talons of a tiger; fearful beasts which were above man. Man, nevertheless, spread his snares, consecrated by intelligence, and finally conquered these monsters." Everyone bursted with applause as Enjolras stopped to take a breather. He looked out to the crowd, and then thought of something to add.
"People of Paris! If man could take down such fearful beasts, then why can't we take down this monarchy? We can and will fight! Soon, the people will be free. There will be no more suffering, no more struggling to put food on the table, and no more pain. All we have to is fight! Then, liberté, égalité, and fraternité will be ours!" Enjolras finished that last line, screaming. That's when the chaos started.
Javert rode in on his black horse, accompanied by at least a dozen officers. The crowd scattered in fear as Les Amis all ran their separate ways. They all knew that this would happen. They just hoped that the officers wouldn't catch any of the revolutionary's faces. Their faces would be posted all over Paris, possibly all over France. Every police officer would be looking for them. If that happened, they were dead, literally.
Les Amis met at Enjolras's flat to celebrate. Eponine had made cookies for the boys, and Grantaire brought wine. Together, the men ate, drank, talked, and sang for hours.
Finally, at about midnight, the men started to trickle out of Enjolras's apartment. It had been a long day, and they all needed to sleep. Enjolras had been ready to go to bed hours ago, but no one had been ready to go home yet, so he did his best to stay up.
Enjolras retreated to his bedroom, but found his bed already occupied by Eponine. Apparently, she had snuck away sometime in the last few hours and was already asleep. Enjolras sighed and then tiptoed to his dresser. He then changed for bed. Slowly and quietly, Enjolras lied down on his bed, careful that he wouldn't wake Eponine. Enjolras hadn't realized how tired he was, for as soon as his head hit his pillow, he was instantly asleep.
June 1st, 1832
Eponine rose early, earlier than Enjolras even. Quietly, she got out of bed and headed to the kitchen. Because of the boys' great achievement from the day before, Eponine decided to make a special breakfast for Enjolras.
Eponine had been at the rally, and she saw the fire in Enjolras's eyes when he spoke. She heard the passion in his voice. The way he spoke about liberté, égalité, and fraternité was amazing. The people defiantly loved him.
That got her thinking. He wanted the people of Paris to fight with him, but what if they don't fight? She was from the streets, so she knew that they wouldn't do anything that jeopardized the lives of their families. If the men got killed, who would provide for the women of children? If the men fight, and they lose, Paris would be worse off than it is now.
AN- I'm sorry for the downer ending, but I hoped you liked the speech. It is from Les Miserables, but it's not from an actual rally. It's from the barricades, but it sounded good here, too. I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Thanks for reading! :)