**Authors Note: Hello Everyone! Thank you all so much for your patience! This Chapter isn't as long as I hoped it would be. I am still trying to get back into the swing of this story as its been a few years. The plot is getting to the point where its going to be a little complicated for this is really the mystery section of Eponine's life that is not included in the book or any other adaptions of Hugo's story. There are a lot of events leading up to her life in Paris and I want to take time to explore it and I'm sure you'll want longer and more detailed chapters and I promise to do my best. Again I will warn you that as Eponine gets older, the story is going to get more mature and I will probably change the rating from T to M eventually. Oh and for those who are new to reading this story, I am VERY MUCH AWARE that my past chapters are not as well written and there are many spelling and grammar mistakes. I was a much younger and different writer back then. Sorry, but those wont be getting fixed just yet. Please just over look it for now. The chapters from here on out should be better lol Enjoy! Let me know what you think!**
Before sunup, I had made it back to my bed and cried silent tears till I fell into a restless sleep. I dreamt of Michele. I saw him come running back over the hill to take me away with him. He smiled his sweet smile and held me tight in his arms once again while he whispered "'Ponine…I'll never leave you…Je t'aime... I won't ever leave you behind…" His voice kept echoing in my ears as I felt myself squeezing my arms around him tight.
As the sun rose higher in the sky, I woke up to find myself squeezing my pillow, my face still wet with my tears. I dizzily looked around, hoping that maybe I had indeed been dreaming the whole time, and that I would find Michele waiting outside my window. But the fresh wound on my palm told me true. Michele had gone and left me behind. I laid back in my bed with a headache and an excruciating pain in my chest.
When I refused to come down stairs for breakfast, Mama forbade me to leave my room, convinced I must be ill. I wasn't going to tell her otherwise because I thought I must be. I couldn't even lift my head without becoming overwhelmed by nausea. It seemed that the chill of the night hadn't left the room despite the sun shining brightly through the window. I drew my blankets close to me, trying not to shiver. I was also terribly thirsty. But even when Azelma brought me water, I couldn't bring myself to drink it! As the hours of the day wore on, i continued to feel worse. My stomach churned and head wouldn't stop pounding! Things appeared before me that I wasn't sure were really there… I could have sworn I saw Michele's face floating above me and kept disappearing as if mocking me. I could even hear his laughter down the hall!
"Mama! Mama!.." I cried "…tell him…tell him to come back…"
My shouts became so erratic that Papa even stopped what he was doing and came upstairs.
"Bon Dieu, girl, what ails you?!" I heard him say in frustration. But all I could do was gasp for air as my eyes darted back and forth. I felt him put his hand on my forehead than cheek and felt it quickly taken away. "Wife!" I heard him shout as he rushed down the stairs "Damn it, Woman! Have you no sense…" his voice trailed off down the halls.
I could feel that I was sweating even though the room felt cold. But then in a minute it felt as hot as a summer day! And even as I lay still in bed, the walls and ceiling spun round and round. It also seemed that shadows were moving all around me, even though there was nothing in the room to cast them! I tried to shield my eyes from them.
"What's wrong with her?" I could heard Mama's voice say to someone. I opened my eyes trying to find her. "Mama?" I couldn't see her or who she was speaking too but continued to stare at the shadows bouncing off the walls like phantoms and they frightened me. I could feel myself start to panic "Keep them away!" I shouted.
I suddenly felt something damp lay across my forehead, the cool of it soothing my hot, aching brow. I then heard voices speaking in hushed tones. The words "Scarlet Fever" and "Hallucinating" were mentioned. I couldn't comprehend at the time that it was my condition that the Doctor was discussing with my Mama and Papa. The dreaded Scarlet Fever had caught me. The disease that had attacked and taken hundreds and thousands of children to Jesus. But they must have crawled through hell's fire to get to him first! The burning from the fever was just so unbearable!
"There's not much I can do…" the Doctor said "She's a strong child, but I dare not try to bleed her. Best try to bring the fever down from her head. Keep her body warm and head cool…" Those were the last words I heard before fading into blackness.
I had lost all perception of time. My mind even now is still clouded for I kept dodging in and out of consciousness. I was constantly suffering from fever dreams. I didn't always remember them, but it was difficult to tell what was real and what wasn't. Sometimes I would wake up, not knowing if it was night or day in a daze, other times I would wake up screaming. But almost always, I would wake up reaching out…
I walked down a long, empty street. The cobble stones feeling cool on my aching bare feet. I looked about wondering where I was but I couldn't make out any of the buildings surrounding me, it was dark save the dwindling light of a single street lamp. I stood still for several seconds, trying to decide which way to turn, when I felt a breath of wind that chilled me to the very bone. It seemed to be whispering my name, beckoning me to follow. I journeyed on through the foggy streets. With each step I took, the whispering became clearer "'Ponine…'Ponine…"
I looked around. The voice I heard was a mere whisper, but it made the hairs on the back of my neck stand stick straight. Only one person in the world could do that.
"Michele…?" I spoke softly.
Having received no reply I continued on the unfamiliar streets, hoping that around the corner I would find my dear friend. What I found was a dwelling, the likes of which i had never known. In the dim light I could see a number of people huddled together trying to keep warm. Many were starving to the point where you could see the bones through their skin. Their eyes were sunken in and cheeks were hollowed out. I saw women dressed only in their corsets and rags with too much rouge and sores on their faces. Men with missing arms and legs, begging for alms. The stench from them was nauseating! Then there were the children. A dozen little boys and girls that were barely clothed, few were even naked, clinging to one another in fear. My eyes darted from one child to another as few of them coughed and wheezed. One little girl, she was almost a baby, crawled near my feet and puked up blood on the pavement! She reached out to grab at my skirt and I jumped back startled as she cried out in anguish. As disgusted as I was, my heart broke not knowing how on earth I could help her.
"You can't help her…" I heard it said. "You can't help any of them…"
I looked up from the pained child at my feet to see what I hoped I'd never have to see in my life. There, in the midst of these dying children stood Michele, looking beaten down and torn to the point where he shouldn't have been able to stand up straight. Looking deep into his blood dripping eyes, I saw the very face of death! I opened my mouth to scream but no sound came out.
"YOU CAN'T SAVE US!" his jarring scream echoed.
My eyes snapped open. At first I couldn't see anything. But slowly my eyes began to adjust and come into focus. I saw the ceiling above my bed and my hands reaching up towards it. I lower my arms as I feel my stomach churn and roll over and vomited into a pot left at my bedside. That's when the horrendous stench returned. I looked into the pot and saw it hadn't been rinsed and my old puke was rotting in it! If I had anything left inside, I would have been continuing to get sick from the smell alone. I laid back on my pillow. What day was it? Where was Mama? Judging by how quiet it was, I guessed that it was fairly early in the morning. I tried calling out for Mama and Papa, but my voice was reduced to a mere raspy sound. I took to trying to knocking on the wall, rattling my bed, anything to make noise to get somebody's attention! In time I heard voices. "Damn it, see what she's doing now!" it was Papa. "I'm not going in there! She's been mad for past four days!" Mama said in her frustrated tone. "It'll be the death of us if this disease spreads further, Wife. People are starting to talk of the smell! If she's alive in there, by Dieu, you go take care of it! " My parents then started their bickering and I could no longer distinguish what was said. I felt my throat tighten upon hearing what was spoken. Mama…she didn't want to come see me? And what did Papa mean? Was there any question of my survival? I couldn't understand any of this.
Just then I heard the creak of my bedroom door open. I looked to see the face of Azelma peeking in. "'Ponine? Sissy, are you awake?" she said not stepping into the room. I felt it was a bit odd, I hadn't heard Alzema call me that since we were quite small. "I'm awake Azelma…come in…"
"I can't, I don't want the fever. Me and Gavroche were told not to come in." she said. I nodded. Even though I felt better now, I knew I wasn't well yet. "Is Gavroche alright? Are you being nice to him?" I asked, knowing that he would be left strictly to my sister's care. Azelma nodded her head, she turned to leave but I halted her "Wait! 'Zelma! What day is it? How long has it been? Mama said four days…" what was left of my voice trailed off. My sister stood still in the doorway for several seconds before speaking "Mama, brought that pot up to your bed on Tuesday…today is Thursday of the later week." And with that, she left me, closing the door behind her.
My head fell back onto the pillow. My Mama had left me alone in this room for nine days…