A/N: I can't wait for the Les Mis Deluxe Movie soundtrack to come out!
"I apologize for how Clara treated you," Enjolras said genuinely as he and Eponine walked.
They had done a lot of that lately; walking. Or so Enjolras thought. He wasn't used to walking so much and eating so little, and his pants were already starting to loosen slightly.
"I'm used to it," Eponine grunted. Enjolras looked at her with a sad expression.
"This morning, I was still half asleep and very hungry. I wasn't thinking straight, and I really do regret my actions," Enjolras said apologizing again, though this time for something else.
"You have already apologized for what happened this morning, Enjolras. I do forgive you, though. I was just being stubborn, I suppose. You didn't do anything wrong, if you put your actions in perspective," Eponine said. "I don't even know why I was mad in the first place. I invited you, you didn't have to stay. I'm not really sure why I did ask you to stay with me, though. It wasn't absolutely necessary; it just seemed like a good idea at the time."
"I think it was very astute of you to have me stay with you, and I truly do believe it could make a difference in the revolution. Maybe later in the day I could meet some of the poor and talk to them," Enjolras suggested hopefully.
"Okay, that sounds like a good idea. Many of the people on the streets are wary of me because of my father, though," Eponine said sadly.
"It is unfortunate that they judge you based on who your father is," Enjolras replied.
"In a lot of ways, I am more terrifying that my father. I am his puppet, and I am used to doing what he says. If he needs me to steal or hurt someone, I am too afraid to say no to him for I know what he will do to me. I have even more trepidation for my father than anyone else in this whole world does," Eponine said.
"If it is that terrible, run away from your father and never return!" Enjolras exclaimed.
"It isn't that easy. Father would always find me, and when he would find me, I can't even imagine what pain he would inflict upon me. He might even try and kill me," Eponine said almost indifferently as though the thought of her own death didn't even bother her.
"What if you ever wanted to get married and start a family? Your father could not detain you," Enjolras said. Eponine snorted.
"Who would ever want to marry me?" Eponine laughed a sad and dark laugh.
Enjolras knew that if any man with half a brain met Eponine, they would want to marry her. But he didn't say that.
"Don't be so pessimistic, I'm sure you will find the love you deserve in your life," Enjolras said reassuringly, but Eponine couldn't bring herself to believe him.
Eponine knew that she was just a foolish girl who was not special. She knew she was foolish because in her heart, she allowed herself to fall in love too easily.
But if a man was to fall in love with her, and then he proposed, what would Eponine say? If she said yes, she was saying yes to a lifelong commitment to one person. Maybe Eponine loved too easily, but she was not one to trust people. Would she trust her husband?
Would she want to be a wife?
Eponine was a free spirit, and being caged in one area for too long was a terrifying thought.
"I doubt it; nobody could ever love me," Eponine grumbled.
"Just wait, Eponine. The best is yet to come," was all Enjolras said about that topic.
There a grand silence as Eponine pondered what Enjolras said and what it could mean one day. Would her life truly get better? Or would everything slide even further down the gutter.
The rain began to ease up, and Enjolras was grateful to see some sunshine. He wasn't too worried about food anymore; Enjolras had used his limited skills in pickpocketing and managed to ferret some money off of his sister while she was busy arguing. Yet, he stomach still was empty and it gave him a huge headache.
When he had shown Eponine the money, she was glad to see it. Enjolras could get some food, and maybe he would be able to clear his head a bit.
The silence was still dragging on and on. Enjolras realized suddenly that the pair didn't have too much to talk about; they hardly knew each other. He scarcely knew anything about this girl that had changed his perspective on the revolution in merely minutes.
"What is your favorite color?" Enjolras asked breaking the heavy silence. Eponine's eyes snapped up and searched his face in confusion.
"What?" she said with questioning eyes.
Enjolras rolled his own eyes and stared at her.
"I'm not asking you for any in depth answer about politics or anything relating to that nature, I just want to know your favorite color," Enjolras replied.
"Er, I suppose it would be green. Or purple maybe, a nice dark purple. I don't really know, nobody has ever asked for my favorite color before," she said uncertainly. "What about your favorite color, Enjolras?"
"I like a rich red; the color of the sunset when it reaches its peak; the color of passion," Enjolras said shortly.
"You do often wear the color, I've noticed," Eponine said casually as she gestured to his coat that she still wore.
"I suppose I do. Alright then, I know your favorite color, now I would like to know: do you have any brothers or sisters? I think I heard you mention a brother earlier?" Enjolras asked.
"Yes, I have a brother named Gavroche, and he is about nine years old. My sister Azelma is fourteen years old," Eponine said. She gave such brief descriptions of the two due to the fact that she hardly knew them; she hadn't seen Azelma in years, and she only saw Gavroche every once in a while at the café.
"I know Gavroche! He frequents the café and attends some of my speeches! I did not know you two were related," Enjolras remarked. "As for myself, Clara is my only sibling. I told you about how she gave me the money and helped me, but I did not tell you all. Clara has always been in favor of the king, and she didn't want to bring about a change. However, politics aren't as important to her as they are to my parents, and Clara somewhat accepts my beliefs. It seems that whenever we are around each other, though, we always end up fighting about the smallest of things. About a year ago we had a big argument over the money, and I swore I would never see her again so we wouldn't argue anymore. I guess she's over the disagreement seeing as she has come to visit."
Eponine nodded her head every so often when Enjolras spoke to show she was paying attention. It was nice for a change to have someone talk to her as though she were equal; as though she was worthy to hear words of a rich man.
Marius did indeed treat her with respect, but he also failed to treat her as an adult. Eponine noticed that when he spoke to her, he would use simple words and delicate phrases as if Eponine wouldn't understand him when he truly spoke his mind. And that has always slightly angered Eponine, but she never really thought about it until now.
"What is your favorite season?" Enjolras asked. He knew it would probably be the spring where the weather was warm but not too hot; crisp without being cold.
"I think that all seasons are equally enchanting, honestly. I could not choose a favorite; each season has its good parts and each season has its bad parts. Nature astonishes me every day with new wonders that I had overlooked the day before," Eponine said sighing.
Enjolras smiled at the girl. He enjoyed talking to Eponine; she was full of surprises and always made him feel… How exactly did Eponine make Enjolras feel? Enjolras still couldn't label his feelings, and he constantly tried to fight the tugs in his heart whenever he looked at her. He kept telling himself that Eponine meant nothing to him other than being a street rat that helped his revolution, but he knew that wasn't true.
He wanted it to stop. He wanted Eponine to go away. But he also never wanted her to leave his side again.
It was very conflicting for the boy.
"When you were little, what did you always dream of being when you were grown?" Enjolras asked.
Eponine thought long and hard. The question was so simple, yet the answer was so complicated. When Eponine had been a child, she had different dreams than she does now; she has completely changed into a different person with low expectations and little hope.
"I always wanted to be a wife and a mother. I would always play 'family' with my dolls and pretend that I had a loving family who cared. But that dream has changed, and shifted, and has been stored into the back of my mind. I hardly wish to be a mother anymore," Eponine scoffed as she ran her calloused hands against the stone bridge that covered the Seine River.
Enjolras fell silent again; he had been expecting a simple answer, but again was surprised at the gamine's answer.
"What about you, Enjolras? When you were a child, were you plotting out a revolution for toddlers?" Eponine asked out of politeness rather than interest.
"Me, I wanted to be a pirate. It was a foolish fantasy, but I always imagined myself as a pirate," Enjolras chuckled running a hand over the small hairs sprouting on his chin that were caused from his lack of shaving in light of recent events.
"A pirate?" Eponine said incredulously. She was not moved to laugh, but she did give Enjolras a sincere smile which he happily returned.
"Not any pirate, but the most feared pirate on the seven seas! I would be the Dreaded Pirate Enjolras," he said recalling his childhood. He had definitely been a little too fond of pirates as a boy.
"I can't imagine you as a pirate. You seem so serious all the time, a pirate seems a little too whimsical and frivolous for you," Eponine commented.
"If you aren't serious, you will never get any work done. Being focused is so important, and nobody around here seems to understand how much I work I try and manage all the time," Enjolras grumbled, but then felt bad for Eponine's comment was only meant as a light tease and not an insult.
"I could be a pirate if I wanted to," he challenge with a coy grin spreading on his face.
"A pirate of the textbooks and knowledge," Eponine retorted.
"I think I could be a little more terrifying than that," he said involuntarily taking a step closer to Eponine as though she were a magnet pulling him in.
"You don't scare me; you talk big but I doubt you could scare a fly," Eponine joked shoving him lightly.
In response, Enjolras scooped Eponine's frail body up in one swift motion and mimicked throwing her into the Seine (while he held on to her with a steal grip, of course). Eponine squealed in fear as she looked at the fast rapids below.
"I can be whimsical and scary if I wanted to be," Enjolras said setting Eponine down.
"You could have dropped me in the water if you let go by accident!" Eponine whined, annoyed that Enjolras had just risked her life.
"Even if I had dropped you, you would have landed on the bridge instead of the water," Enjolras said with a stupid grin on his face.
"Okay, it was still quite scary though," Eponine said looking down at the Seine.
"Aha! You admit it! I can be scary!" Enjolras said with a triumphant look on his face. Eponine wanted to punch it off.
"Whatever, you just caught me off guard," she muttered.
Enjolras kept smiling his grand smile, and eventually it affected Eponine too as a grin spread across her face.
"Maybe you could take me to meet some of the people on the streets, now. I really am excited to talk to them about the revolution, and maybe hear some ideas they have. After all, we are fighting for the people, I may as well listen to what they want in the new world," Enjolras said.
"I can take you to the other parts of the streets where more people are," Eponine suggested.
Enjolras said he would like that very much, and Eponine led him one step closer to a more successful revolution.
A/N: So sorry if this chapter didn't make any sense, I just wrote it and I am so tired, I am starting to fall asleep. I felt like Eponine and Enjolras should talk to each other to get to actually know each other better before they really started to fall for each other and all that good stuff. The next chapter will probably just focus on Enjolras spreading the word of his revolution to the people of the streets.