13

Enquiring at the desk, Éponine and Combeferre learned that whilst there were thousands of books in this library they would not find one from the living world.

A man who was a lot kindlier than the toad-faced woman that had spoken to Éponine explained this. He had a shock of flyaway white hair, big, pale blue eyes and was missing one of his front teeth. He explained to them that, although there were famous writers living here, they were unable to recreate their more famous texts word for word, although summary texts were available if they wanted them.

He also said that the majority of the texts in the library were fictional, but he could direct them to the non-fiction section if they so desired.

Combeferre said he did desire that, and the elderly gentleman led them down a flight of stairs into a basement.

There were more shelves here, but the room was smaller and felt a lot more cramped. It also smelled dusty and old, and Éponine suspected that this wasn't the most popular section.

"My name is Etienne," the man said.

"Etienne, why is the non-fictional so unpopular here?" Combeferre asked, looking confused.

"Oh, I don't know," Etienne replied. "I have wondered if it's because it's not relevant. History matters not to us unless it is the history of this place; and the sciences are irrelevant. Writing is a popular venture for the inhabitants of this world to keep themselves occupied, and it just seems that they veer towards the fictional every time."

"So there are books here, on…on this world?" Combeferre asked. They paused a moment as Etienne shoved his shoulder against a rather squat door. It opened with a rough chafing sound as the door scraped along the stone floor.

"Yes, of course." Etienne had showed them into another room – still quite large, but compared to the rest of the library it was a lot smaller. "A lot of it, actually. This place brings out people's curiosity, as you can imagine. If you are interested, monsieur, I recommend the works of Clémence Lefèbvre. She writes an ongoing text on this entire world. It's updated in volumes, we get a new one every six months. She's been here for an awful long time and it's an amalgamation of everything she has learned about this world with contributions from people she meets. A fascinating woman, fascinating…"

"Well, seeing as you don't have what I was looking for, I'll certainly take a chance on reading some of Madame Lefèbvre's works. Should I start at the beginning?"

Etienne led them to a shelf lined with quite thin books bound in read leather. They had the lady's surname printed on the side in gold, and the number of the volume.

"You can take the first three, and come back for the rest when you've finished them," Etienne said, plucking the books from their respective positions on the shelves. He handed them to Combeferre, who gently pulled away from Éponine to take them.

"Thank you, monsieur," Combeferre said, looking down at the books in his hands. "I'm sure they'll keep me occupied for a couple of days at least."

"Come with me, then, and I'll process it for you."

XXX

Éponine decided to go back to the library at a later date to get a book for Gavroche's reading lessons. Once Etienne had made a record of Combeferre's name and address and the titles of the books he had taken, they left the library.

"So how are you settling in, Éponine?" Combeferre said. "Courfeyrac and Jehan told me that they'd been to visit the other day…"

"Jehan?" Éponine glanced up at him. "Oh, you mean Prouvaire. Yes, they did come to visit – I think for Gavroche's benefit."

"How is he doing since the other day?"

Éponine shrugged. They were walking at a slow, leisurely pace away from the library. "Better. We had a talk and we've come to an agreement. He can wander during the day as long as he's back by night. This is the first day we've really tried it, though. I hope he sticks to his word."

"I'm sure he will," Combeferre said. "And it's good he's better."

"What about Enjolras?" Éponine folded her hands behind her back. "How has he been? I saw him today…" She explained about her throwing the book out of the window, but left out the precise details of what the book had been exactly and why she had thrown it.

Combeferre gave a heavy sigh and rubbed a hand over his face. His eyes had suddenly darkened and become very serious indeed, his mouth thinning into a straight line. "He isn't adjusting very well," he said, his voice slow. "Everyone else seem to be settling in to this place in their own little ways – Feuilly's been painting on the streets and he loves it, Joly's thrilled there's no disease and Bossuet has never been this happy, it's impossible for him to hurt himself here – and other things, of course. Me, I admit this place isn't ideal but I do find it fascinating and it makes a nice change. But Enjolras…It's like he's lost something, Éponine. And what's more, it's like he doesn't know what to do with himself. It worries me, I won't lie. I'm not used to seeing Enjolras like this. He's always been so…"

"Determined?" Éponine suggested.

"That's one word for it." Combeferre adjusted the books he had tucked under one arm. "He goes for walks every day. He comes back at odd times, not always at night. Shuts himself in his room. I don't know what he's doing if he's doing anything at all. And then there's Grantaire."

"Grantaire," she said. "I think I've spoken to him before. What has happened?"

"We don't know," Combeferre responded. "That's the point. We haven't seen him since we left the Guardian's building. Now, the others have been in and out of various bars and inns and what have you around this place and sometimes – just sometimes – they catch a glimpse of him, but then he's gone. He won't speak to any of them when they shout for him. I know he's probably fine, but…"

"Could he have…you know, done that thing," Éponine suggested. "Like Éléonore said – when people just disappear one day?"

"He could have, but I doubt it. I don't feel like he's gone anywhere. I just think he wants to avoid us all. It's sad, because we're all worried about him. I just want to talk to him and see if he is all right, that's all."

Éponine patted him on the elbow. "I'm sure he'll come round eventually," she said. "Just give him time. Both of them, actually, Enjolras as well."

"I know, I know." Combeferre managed a small smile. "You know, it's been me saying that to everyone else for the past few days. It feels strange to have it said to me."

"It feels strange to be saying it to you, if that's any consolation." Éponine played with the fringe on her shawl.

"Anyway, that's enough about me," Combeferre said. "What about you? That's how this conversation started and I don't remember getting a proper answer…"

"Me?" Éponine tucked hair behind her ear. "I'm okay. Very, very bored, hence why I went for a walk. I actually spent the morning drawing but it didn't end very well for me. I ended up seeing a Portal."

She didn't know why she was telling him this.

Combeferre paused in walking for the briefest of seconds. "Did you?" he said, obviously trying to keep his voice casual.

"Yes. I saw Marius and Cosette, walking together," she said, trying to do the same with her voice. "It was obvious they loved each other. I got a bit angry. Hence why the book went out of the window."

Combeferre winced. "Ah. I can understand why that was a bit…"

"It was a bit of a kick in the teeth, I won't lie," Éponine muttered. "And I hope I don't see one again."

"I hope so, too," Combeferre said. "I must admit, the idea of these Portals fascinates me and I almost want to see one. But Éléonore's warnings…"

"I can't understand how someone could become addicted to those things," Éponine said, shaking her head.

"Maybe that's because the ones you've seen so far have all been things that upset you," Combeferre suggested. "That's a possibility, don't you think? If you saw positive things – say, you were seeing your child, happy, doing something they enjoyed, you might want to see it as much as you could…"

"Maybe," Éponine allowed. "I hadn't thought of it like that." Maybe because there was little positivity in her life, she thought to herself.

She realised that they had reached her apartment. She paused outside. "This is where I live," she said, gesturing up at the house.

"The next time I see you I'll be sure to show you where I live too," Combeferre smiled. "You're always welcome to come and visit, and Gavroche as well."

"You too," Éponine said.

The sky was beginning to darken. She'd notice that night fell swiftly here. Combeferre glanced around them, and nodded at her.

"I'll go now," he said. "I'm meeting Éléonore tonight for drinks, and we're supposed to be meeting just after sundown. I'm afraid I might be late."

"I'd hurry, then," Éponine replied. She watched him walk away with a smile on her lips, and once he was out of sight, she climbed the stairs and let herself into her flat.

She got inside to find Gavroche sat cross-legged on the floor, using the chess pieces to re-enact some battle of his own invention. She pulled off her shawl as she came through the door.

"It's not night time just yet," she said, instead of hello.

"I was bored," Gavroche said, smacking one of the knights into a king.

"You too?" She joined him on the floor, her skirts pooling around her. "That made two of us. That's why I went for a walk."

He glanced up at her. He pulled a face. Then he was shoving a queen into her hand and telling her to join in.

So she did.

A/N: Thanks for the reviews/alerts/favourites, I really appreciate it :)