A/N: I AM BACK! My extended delay was because I had no internet over the summer. And then I came back and had to choose which story to update first, and this was the funnest one. Sorry, most fun? I'm not sure about that word.
I want to explain myself before any Swiss Family Robinson fans come and wait at me because this isn't the same plotline as the book. I started to read the book...but then I started LesMis and am still trying to finish that. So this is based on the Disney movie with the two kids who are in the Shaggy Dog too. And when I was reading the book, the only thing I remember was Ernst (is that his name?) getting a lobster. Hence my lobster reference. Even though Gavroche is supposed to be the small annoying kid who shouts everytime he talks. So...
Oh, and I know some of the stuff seems impossible, but it was impossible in the movie too!
I REALLY tried to make this longer because I KNOW my chapters are wayyy to short. Writing this now, I only got to "they heard a loud scream" before I decided to come back and actually write this note. I have attention disorder, along with a ton of other medical problemos, so that's why I can't sit and write and write and write and write like some other people do. So I'm sorry for that. But please review, I'm so happy people are actually reading my work! :D
And thank you for all those people who favorited it. You made my day!
And this is a really long A/N so I'm going to shut up now and let you read.
Enjolras walked over to Eponine and Azelma, after making himself very proud with his fire feat. They were setting up a tent with what they had. It was basically a blanket held up by two sticks so it made a sort of a triangle. He was just about to comment on their work, when they heard a loud scream. It sounded like Gavroche.
"Gavroche!" Eponine shouted. "Where are you?" No one had noticed he had disappeared in the first place. All of a sudden, they saw something approaching fast from the distance. As it came closer more and more of Gavroche's features were discernable. Gavroche quickly ran up to the quartet and held out his hand, a pained expression on his face. Something large and red had attached itself to his palm. It was a lobster.
"Get it off!" Gavroche wailed. "It hurts!"
"Uhh..." Enjolras poked the lobster gently and Gavroche whimpered. It was stuck pretty tight. He looked around frantically for help from the others, who had backed away quickly. Enjolras sighed, doing only what instinct told him. He didn't know how to de-attach a lobster.
"This...might hurt," he warned.
"I don't care, just get it off!" Enjolras grabbed the lobster's tail, away from its claws, and pulled. Nothing happened. He pulled harder. Gavroche screamed.
"Okay, that doesn't work..." he muttered. He grabbed the lobster's stomach, the only part not covered by shell, and squeezed tightly. The lobster let go and tried to grab Enjolras instead, but he quickly held the lobster upside down by its tail. Gavroche looked very relieved. His eyes were tinged red.
"It hurt that much?" Enjolras asked. Gavroche wasn't known to cry, but he nodded.
"Well, little man," Enjolras said, adopting a smile, "You have just caught us supper for tonight! Well done." Gavroche perked up a bit at the praise. The others came over hesitantly.
"Is there a knife in amongst our supplies?" Enjolras asked. Eponine went over to look.
"A small one!" she called back.
"Well, bring it here!" said Enjolras. Eponine brought the knife over. She was right, it was small, it looked more like a piece of flint. It was the same length as Enjolras's pointer finger. He quickly flipped the lobster over and sliced it down its weak spot. It immediately ceased its struggling.
"Well, that's that." Enjolras looked up at the others, and noticed Marius scowling.
"Marius, what on earth is the matter?"
"You shouldn't have killed it."
"Why not?"
"It's not right."
"It's food! Don't you want to eat?"
"Well..."
"Mon ami, it's either this or stale biscuits. You can have the biscuits if you'd like, but I'm pretty sure the rest of us would like to eat lobster. Especially Gavroche." Gavroche nodded quickly. They all walked over to the fire as Enjolras divided up lobster guts and put them on five different sticks. He handed them each other and they held them over the fire. It was awfully quiet. Gavroche got up and gave the dogs some biscuts just to have something to do, but when he came back it was still deathly quiet.
"My...hand hurts." said Gavroche, trying to break the silence.
"I'll take a look at it later, alright?" said Eponine, smiling warmly. Gavroche nodded and muttered his thanks, then they all fell silent again.
"Do you think we'll get off here?" Gavroche said, breaking the silence again since no one else seemed to want to.
"I hope so." Marius murmured. "I never did get to find my Ursula, and I don't know how I could bear not being able to see her again." This comment made Eponine cringe, so Enjolras kicked Marius's leg discreetly. What? Marius's look shouted. Enjolras had an I'll tell you later look on it, so Marius, dropped the topic. Enjolras's face changed to a faraway look.
"I hope we get back for the revolution." He said, staring into space. "To imagine Courfeyrac, and Joly, and Bahorel, Jehan, Feuilly...and Combeferre," at this he sighed, "fighting without me...it breaks me in two. Now, I think our food is cooked, so let us eat." Everyone dug in, and there was the usual dinner murmurs, like Oh, this is good, and Could you pass the tartar sauce? Oh wait, there isn't any, and I think I got it's brains. After dinner, they unanimously agreed they should all get some rest.
"You can all rest, I'll take first watch," declared Enjolras. Eponine, Azelma, and Gavroche had no protestations, and fell asleep almost immediately. Marius however, found he couldn't fall asleep, and came to sit next to Enjolras who was mostly watching the ocean. The sky didn't look very good, and Marius was going to suggest Enjolras come back underneath the cover before he got soaked.
"Enjolras?"
"Yes?"
"It looks as if it's going to rain."
"So it does."
"Are you going to stay out here."
"Yes."
"Oh." Marius felt there was nothing left he could do, it was hard to change Enjolras's mind and he knew it. He had done it once to get him to come on this vacation, and look where they ended up. He thought Enjolras was furious at him on the inside and wanted time to himself. "Well...goodnight, then." Marius started to walk back to the cover.
"Why are you so blind, Marius?"
"Huh?"
"You can't see what's right in front of you."
"Yes I can, what do you mean?" Enjolras patted the sand next to him, and Marius sat down.
"At dinner today, didn't you see you seemed to hurt Eponine's feelings?"
"No I didn't!"
"Yes, you did." Enjolras repeated. "She likes you, you know, and it hurts her when you talk about this mystery woman of yours." Marius looked flabbergasted.
"She...likes me? I never-"
"No, you never knew, did you?" Marius shook his head, still looking surprised. "I don't see what's wrong with you, Marius! You have a perfectly good girl who fancies you, and you don't see a thing! In fact, I would think anyone would notice her. She's quite nice to be around, you know, nicer than most of those bourgeoise girls, and she's quite smart on her feet as well. What if she's nicer than your mystery woman? You haven't even talked to her, have you?" Marius blushed. "But you've talked to Eponine, in fact, you've been friends with her quite a while if I recall correctly."
"You...make a good point, Enjolras."
"All I'm saying is perhaps for you to try to be a little nicer and acknoledge her more. She's quite a pleasent girl, and I don't think she deserves to have her feelings hurt like that." Marius nodded, stunned, and walked back to the cover without saying a word. Enjolras laughed to himself. He really didn't know she liked him, he thought. But what I said was true, he admitted to himself, she really is quite a pleasure.
By the next morning and a with bit of sleep on his side, Enjolras had come up with a plan. He and Marius would start building a treehouse for them to live in, (because last night the girls had a scare with a lizard on the ground) and the ladies would start looking for food and other useful supplies. Gavroche would do his own thing, because, despite whatever Enjolras would tell him to do, he wouldn't listen.
Enjolras and Marius chose a tree, and Marius somehow managed to climb up it and secure ropes as harnesses so he and other people wouldn't fall out. He also secured a rope ladder to climb up much more easily, and a rope lasso so pieces of would could be transported up easily. Luckily, they had a hammer with them, and they found long thorns off a plant that were sufficiant as nails, in fact, maybe even better! The two men were hard at work the whole day. By the end of the day, they had their architecture figured out, and had finished their first platform which was tightly secured to the tree.
When they went back to find out how everyone else's day went, they were quite impressed. Gavroche had captured an elephant which helped him get bananas off the trees, so food was pretty much covered. Eponine and Azelma had found a cotton plant, had created a makeshift loom, and were at work creating pillows and matresses so they could be more comfortable.
"You ladies are amazing!" exclaimed Marius, taking time to flash an extra dashing smile at Eponine, who looked rather confused. Enjolras started laughing, which turned to coughing, so he had to excuse himself for a while. Oh Marius, he thought, still laughing on the inside, The way you are, I'd sooner wind up winning Eponine's heart than you!
When he returned, everyone was starting to make a meal of bananas and biscuits. Gavroche was feeding his pets, and Marius was wooing Eponine, who looked rather concerned and at the same time a bit pleased.
Life for the five went on like this for a little while, with the men building, the ladies making good items, and Gavroche finding more pets and getting more bananas. Enjolras couldn't express his loathing for bananas after a few days straight of them. Why can't you find another lobster? Enjolras asked Gavroche one day, to which his response was a rather terrified glare from the gamin.
Finally, after about 10 days, Enjolras and Marius's masterpiece of a treehouse was done. It had four rooms- a common area, Gavroche's room (who would accept no more than his own personal space and was not willing to share with anyone), and two bedrooms, originally one intended for Eponine and Azelma, one intended for Enjolras and Marius, but after the way Marius had been acting around Eponine, Enjolras just wasn't sure anymore.
"Close your eyes, both of you!" Marius ordered as Gavroche scampered into the treehouse. Eponine and Azelma, whom both Marius and Enjolras wanted to surprise with their handywork, did as they were told. Marius took Eponine's hand and started leading her up the stairs, which means Enjolras was stuck with Azelma. He turned slightly red, glad her eyes weren't open.
"Mademoiselle," he said, and reached for her hand. She flinched for a moment, then allowed Enjolras to take her hand without protest.
"Are you ready?" Enjolras asked, regaining his normal color. Azelma nodded. He led her up the stairs carefully, until they reached the top.
"You can open now," he said with a grin. Azelma opened her eyes and was impressed. She was standing in an open aired living room made out of wood and bamboo! She looked around and saw some of the furniture she had made inside. Gavroche was grinning like mad.
"Your room is up there, little man!" Enjolras said, pointing to a rope ladder that was easy for Gavroche to climb up bit could prove quite a challenge to others. Marius started up a flight of stairs.
"Come, Eponine, our room is this way." Marius said. He ran up, and Eponine followed, slightly reluctantly, shooting what seemed to Enjolras to be a desperate glance back at Azelma.
"I...er...suppose that means..." Enjolras turned positively red in the face. He looked down at Azelma and noticed she was blushing too. He could tell she felt extremely uncomfortable with the arrangement, and he wasn't too hot about it himself. He couldn't do that to the poor girl. He sighed.
"Why don't...you take that room," he said gesturing to another flight of stairs. "I can sleep down here on these chairs."
"B-but..." she started to say, "it's not...comfortable for you." He smiled gently at her.
"I'll be fine," he assured.
"How about... I-I make another mattress for down here?" she stammered, looking at her feet.
"That would be...nice." Enjolras admitted. "Thank you. I'd already moved your loom to the room I thought you and Eponine would be staying in."
"I-i'll start right away!" she said, glancing up for a moment before scurrying up the stairs.