Chapter 5
To thank you all for your amazing reviews, and to make up for taking so long the last time, here's an update!
...
"Excuse me, but what exactly are you two doing?!"
Éponine squeaked and pulled away immediately, but found she missed Marius' lips.
There, in the doorway, was Enjolras, a massive grin on his face, and his eyebrows raised.
"Oh, go away, Enjolras."
"You wish, I'm not letting this one go."
Éponine stuck her tongue out at him, causing Marius to laugh.
"Anyway, love bird," he announced, jerking his head at Marius, "you have a visitor, in the kitchen. This could be interesting," he chuckled.
Éponine groaned. Marius leant down to place a kiss on her forehead, pausing to whisper into her ear.
"I'll be back soon."
"You better be!" she threatened playfully.
...
"Is he coming?" asked the visitor, to Madame Phillie.
"Oh, yes," with a disapproving glance at the guest.
"Bonjour, Phillie!" grinned Enjolras, accompanied by Marius.
"Bonjour, mon Cherie!"
"Cosette?!" squeaked Marius, when he first spotted their bonnet-clad visitor.
"Oui, Marius!" she giggled, running over to plant a kiss on his lips, throwing her arms around his neck.
He responded with little enthusiasm, but still kept up the charade.
"Phillie, there's a spillage on the living room floor-"
"Let's go, dear boy!" she rushed over and out of the room, followed by Enjolras, both of them eager to escape what they knew would be an awkward situation.
When Cosette finally broke away, she beamed up at him.
"I missed you, Marius."
"I missed you too, 'Sette," he smiled weakly.
"I love you Marius!"
"I love you too, Éponine!"
"WHAT?!" Cosette screeched, backing away quickly.
"I...," Marius ducked her head.
"Surely, that was just an accident, he can't love...that!" she tried to reason with herself.
"Cosette, I... I do mean it. I think I'm starting to fall for her."
"WHAT?!" she shouted, even louder.
If the arguing pair had listened closely, they might have heard Phillie's giggle, and Enjolras' loud laughing.
Marius shrugged. "Cosette, I'm not sure I had love with you-"
"Well, you listen here, Monsieur Pontmercy. Surely you realise that you and your revolutionary friends are not going to be welcomed back to the streets of Paris very nicely by the Government, after that little revolution episode. Papa and I, can keep you safe. We have various houses to flee to, and Papa has told me everything about his life. He's run away from the government more times than you might think, he knows a thing or two. I can keep you, and all your friends safe, spare that ugly gamine. Serves her for treating me so terribly as children."
"You can't do that to 'Ponine! She obviously didn't know any better, Cosette-"
"Or, I could leak you, and your friends, to the National Guardsmen, whom I'm sure would be glad to know where you all are," she smirked.
"But, of course I want the first option. You know, with 'Ponine included!"
"Ah, but there are conditions."
"I'll do anything, Cosette! Honestly, I promise!"
"Marry me, then."
Now it was Marius' turn to splutter.
"WHAT?!"
"Spending time around that awful, thieving street urchin has obviously-"
"She is not an awful, theiving street urchin! She is a beautiful, respectable, honest woman!"
"As if, she's a Thernardier," Cosette smirked. "As I was saying, before some infatuated fool interrupted me, I was simply going to state that you do still love me. Your best friends died, it's okay to be going a bit mad. And you nearly thought Thernardier died," she proclaimed the name with a bitter tongue, "so, of course, you value her more than you did afore. But you clearly do still love me. And if you refuse to go along with this plan, the least that the Government would grant you, and your friends, would be a painless death. Is marrying me really that bad, in return for your safety?"
"Are you mad?!"
"Stop talking to yourself, Marius, dear. It sounds quite stupid."
"You sound quite stupid! I'm not your dear, either! I'm not marrying you, never! I don't know what this scheme of yours is-"
"Marius, I am the love of your life, as you've told me many times before. You've just gone momentarily mad, that's all."
As she talked, Marius began to doubt himself more and more.
It was true, he valued Éponine a lot more than before she nearly died. He was still mourning the loss of quite a lot of friends. He had been so in love with Cosette...Surely a love that strong couldn't die easily?
No! He reasoned with himself. If a love for Éponine is beginning to develop this quickly, love can probably die this quickly too.
"Let's face it, Marius, you have no choice. You're going to have to stay well hidden, and Papa can do that for you. He's not going to do so if you've broken his innocent little Cosette's heart."
"Innocent? You call this...this blackmailing, you call it innocent?" he shook his head.
"My Papa will not know any better. For you either play along, and that involves being nice to me, and about me, or I land you and your friends in heaven – no wait, you lot would go straight to hell. Where you obviously cannot tell my Papa," her cunning smirk was growing bigger by the second.
"What shall it be...love?" she winked.
"I hate you," he mumbled.
"I love you," she chirped, now just trying to annoy him.
Marius sighed, he understood he had no other choice.
"I will go along with your plan. But when we are alone, away from your Papa's eyes, don't expect me to be nice to you."
She ignored this, leaning forward to kiss him, but he soon pushed her away.
"Now, go tell that gamine."
"Can't she come with me?"
"No, you fool!"
"Well, then, I'm not going."
"Marius, if you don't, I will personally make sure you and all of your friends, are landed in court, where they're guaranteed to sentence you to death. Do you want that? Or I could keep you alive, if you liked. So you could live a happy life with me, while even more of your friends died at your hands. Hear that, Marius? It was your fault the first time. And it will be again, if you don't come with me."
"You are a disgusting person, Cosette," he shuddered, holding back tears.
"When you grow up with one man's undivided attention, it's quite easy to get used to getting what you want all the time. And now is one of those times. So we're going to announce our impending marriage to your horrible Thernardier friend, and then go home to Rue Plumet. Does that sound like a plan?" she ordered, with a mean look on her face.
"You really do disgust me, Colette."
"It's Cosette!"
"Oh really? I hadn't noticed. I thought the nice, kind, gentle Cosette I met a few weeks ago died with the barricade."
"And for that, Marius, we will kiss in front of that girl."
"I can't do that to 'Ponine."
"Do you want to be sentenced to death, do tell me Marius?"
"I hate you," he proclaimed again.
She dragged him in to Éponine's room, and stood in the doorway, grabbing his hand, and holding it tightly.
"Isn't it great news, Éponine? Me and Marius are to be married!" she announced, in that fake, sickly sweet voice.
Éponine gulped and tears started to brim in her eyes.
"What?" she barely whispered.
Cosette turned, and made a massive deal of throwing her arms around Marius, and kissing him passionately. He did not respond at all, merely standing there while she kissed him.
He thought it was better for Éponine, to keep her out of the way of harm, to keep her away from this dangerous life that Cosette was planning.
"It's true," he shrugged helplessly, regretting it the instant he saw the expression on Éponine's face.
Éponine brought her hands to her face, wiping away the tears that were fastly pouring out of her glistening, brown eyes.
"Goodbye, 'Ponine." Marius' voice was weak, and trembling. He never wanted to say goodbye to Éponine again, he told her he never would after he said goodbye at the barricades. But it was for her safety.
Éponine rolled over on her side, away from what she believed to be a "happy couple."
"Goodbye...'Ponine?"
Marius never got a response.
...
*Hides from angry Cosette fans*
I'm not a Cosette fan, as you can tell. She's never very well described, so I took liberty with her character, and just went for it...Big time.
Not a very romantic read for valentines, sorry!
Just remember, I love Marius! And he is definitely not willing in this plan, it's all that mean Cosette.
BOO.
Illa Darling: I can't respond, 'cause you were anonymous. But I think that, yes Marius' love is progressing fastly, but that's how I need it to be, for Cosette's plan. Thanks for the review, and I'm glad you enjoyed it.
So sorry again for the wait the last few times! This is a sort of "I love you for reviewing and following and favourite-ing this story, please forgive me?"
Hehe, leave us love!
Go raibh maith agat,
Ó Niamh Ní Luachra.