A/N: Uploading twice in one day because you guys are so nice. I've caught up with myself now, so the updates won't be as quick, but I'm going to try and get chapter 4 up sometime this week. This is kinda a weird chapter, but hopefully you'll forgive me.
"So, what's the verdict?" Courfeyrac asked as he swept into the room, glancing between the men huddled in a makeshift circle. Éponine was alone in the interrogation room, after spending half an hour talking to Courfeyrac.
"I trust her," Bahorel shrugged. "Everything she's saying checks out."
"She's also a junkie," Joly pointed out. "We don't know how trustworthy that makes her. Her promises could easily fall through when she goes into withdrawl."
"Who says she has to go into withdrawl?" Grantaire added, suddenly standing from his chair to join the circle. "We don't need to make her an honest citizen, we just need her help. What she does on her own time is none of our business."
"Actually, it is," Enjolras argued through gritted teeth, eyes darting up to the rest of them for the first time. "Abuse of illegal substances is, surprisingly, illegal."
Combeferre sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers as he thought. "Do we think she can stay sober for as long as we need her?"
"We're gonna need her for a while," Courfeyrac admitted. "She can't tell us just where her father is, only aid us. The girl's smart though, she could be a real help, and she's willing to testify in court."
"We can't just abandon her," Feuilly reasoned. "Her father will know she came here, she risked everything to come to us. The least we can do is protect her."
"The testimony of a drug addict means nothing," Joly sighed. "It'll be the defense's golden ticket."
"Enjolras," Combeferre suddenly addressed him as he raised his head. "You've been surprisingly quiet. You're the one who found her, what do you say?"
Enjolras looked around at his friends, contemplating his thoughts from an unusual position against the wall. For once in his life, he was unsure.
"I say we keep her," he sighed, keeping his eyes locked with Combeferre's. Combeferre gave him a short nod in return.
"I say we keep her too."
"And me."
"And me."
"Me too."
"Yeah, whatever."
"I'm in."
"Got my vote."
"I say no, but that doesn't matter now does it?"
"So we've decided," Combeferre stated, ignoring Joly. "I'll get the paperwork."
As the group dispersed, Enjolras glanced through the glass at the girl lazily drawing circles on the table. After a moment, her eyes flicked up to his, her usual smirk lounging on her lips.
She can't see you, he reminded himself as she held perfect eye contact. She just sees a mirror, this is a coincidence.
The side of her mouth twitched as if she was trying to stop herself from smiling, a sadistic gleam flashing across her eyes. Enjolras shuffled where he stood before ducking out of the room, trying to shake the feeling that she was still watching every move he made.
Enjolras had buried himself in reports by the time Combeferre knocked on his doorframe, lounging in the doorway.
"You're being uncharacteristically quiet today," he observed. "Anything you want to tell me?"
"I'm fine," Enjolras answered robotically, not lifting his head from the sea of papers before him. "Although, I must admit, I'm a little confused as to why no one thought it might be necessary to tell me that Thénardier has a daughter."
"We didn't think Éponine was going to be relevant," Combeferre sighed. "She has no loyalty to her father, she just does what he says to survive. We figured if you ended up establishing a long-term relationship with the Patron-Minette, you'd end up knowing the children as well. There was no reason for earlier preparation.
"Besides," he added, biting his lip in hesitation. "You do tend to overlook the personal details. This isn't entirely our fault."
"What do you mean?" Enjolras asked, confusion and anger stirring in his words.
"You did neglect to even try and find out any more beyond the basics, Enjolras," Combeferre sighed. "It's just what you do. You plan everything out, have brilliant ideas and structures, but you've never been good with people. You never understand how they'll react, or how they feel. You never realise the human aspect to operations. It isn't our fault that once more, you didn't bother to check on Thénardier's life beyond his prison sentences."
Enjolras tried to splutter a response, shocked at his friend's honesty. "I don't see how this is my fault, Éponine is a major part of this puzzle—"
"She's not a puzzle piece, Enjolras, she's a person. I can't handle your personal relations with everyone forever. She's assisting your case, she's your responsibility, and you need to man up and figure out how to talk to her like a human."
Combeferre didn't wait for a reply before exiting the room, leaving Enjolras to mull over his lecture. Combeferre's words resounded in his head, echoing louder and louder with every passing moment. The echoes began to tie together, twisting and curving into a portrait of a girl.
She's not a puzzle piece.
Olive skin that was calloused and rough, bearing a yellow tint of poverty.
She's your responsibility
Stormy grey eyes that bore into his with an intimidating brashness.
Man up and figure out how to talk to her like a human.
Inky black hair that fell straight to her waist, tied back into a sloppy ponytail.
You never realise the human aspect to operations.
Shell-pink lips, chapped and bleeding, contorted into a self-assured smirk even with a gun pointed between her eyes.
She's a person.