41

"What happened?" Combeferre repeated. He held the shawl in his hands, staring down at it in confusion, and then he crouched in front of her.

"She didn't want to go," Éponine murmured.

"Yes, you said that," Combeferre said, his voice slow. "But what does that mean, Éponine?"

"She…We…We went…Fantine and I…" Éponine pressed the heel of her hand into her forehead.

"Fantine? Who is Fantine?" Combeferre's brow furrowed in confusion.

"Inès." Éponine pressed harder, until she could almost make herself imagine that it hurt. Almost.

"What about Inès?" Combeferre said. His words were gentle as he tried to coax the information out of her.

"The woman…That woman…She lived with Inès. We went to the…the living world," Éponine said, trying to clear her throat. She looked up, at the people surrounding her, her eyes swimming with unshed tears.

"The living world?" It was Courfeyrac who spoke this time, stepping forwards with an expression on his face that was somewhere between eager and horrified.

"Yes. She's – she's Cosette's mother." Éponine spat the other woman's name out of her mouth.

"Cosette?" Enjolras sounded very confused. "Who is Cosette?"

"Well, Marius' sweetheart was called Cosette," Courfeyrac said. Éponine blinked when Courfeyrac said Marius' name, and after that, the tears began to fall heavy again. "Did you mean that Cosette, Éponine?"

She nodded. "His wife," she said, her voice strangled. "We went to see them. A man was dying and Fantine…She wanted to be with him. I saw Marius," she added.

Combeferre put the shawl down on the ground and reached out to grip her shoulders. "Has a man just arrived here?"

Éponine shrugged. "Possibly," she said. "I don't know. He was called…He had a name – Val…Val-something-or-other…" She groped in her mind for the name and found it. "Valjean!"

Combeferre gave her shoulders a squeeze. "I'm going to go to the Guardians," he said, in a soft and soothing tone, "And let them know what has happened. But I need to know what happened. What has got you this upset? Éponine, you're crying…"

Courfeyrac made a noise in the back of his throat. "She saw Marius," he hissed. Combeferre glanced at his friend.

"I understand that," he said. "But that is not…"

"I don't want to talk about it," Éponine said.

Combeferre sighed. "Just tell us," he said. "You said she didn't want to go?"

"She's gone," Éponine said.

"Yes," Combeferre said. "Fantine, I assume?"

Éponine nodded.

"And where did she go?" Combeferre prompted.

Éponine shook her head and gestured at herself. "I don't know. She – she changed. She put on weight and her hair grew. It was odd. And she just – she just vanished. I've never – I don't know, Combeferre."

"Shh," Combeferre said, brushing a hand over her hair. "That's enough. I'm going to leave now, all right? Enjolras, Courfeyrac, you…You keep her company."

He straightened up from his crouch and walked away. It was Gavroche that took his place, sitting cross-legged and staring at her with an almost angry look on his face. She was dimly aware of the sound of the front door shutting, and then Enjolras was at her side. He wrapped an arm around her waist and hoisted her onto her feet without asking for her permission and more or less dragged her to put her on the sofa. Gavroche hurried to sit next to her, curling up against her body like a cat.

"You gave us all a fright," Courfeyrac said, cheerfully.

"I thought you weren't coming back," Gavroche admitted in a terrified whisper.

She covered her face with her hands again. "Don't say that," she snapped. "She didn't want to go. It was horrible. She just – And she didn't want to leave! She had things she wanted to do! She wasn't- she didn't want to leave Inès! It's so unfair – I can't – What if I do that?"

She knew she was babbling and panicking and her hands were knotted too tightly in her hair.

"I don't want to go," she said. "I don't want that to happen to me! Or to any of you! I can't – I can't leave Gavroche, or…"

"Éponine," Enjolras tried to interrupt, but she ploughed on regardless.

"It was horrible and I can't bear the thought of it happening to me! She looked so scared and she didn't want to go – I can't –"

"Éponine!" Enjolras almost shouted her name and his hands wrapped around her fingers, prising her hands away from her face. "Éponine, look at me. You're not going anywhere."

"But I might!" Éponine tried to pull her hands away from his, but he held on fast.

"No, you won't," Enjolras said. "I promise you. I have looked you in the eye – I am looking you in the eye – and you are not leaving here. You are going to stay here. You are never going to turn to smoke, Éponine, not like the rest. You're not going to leave Gavroche alone, do you see? You're going to stay here and you're going to be happy, I promise."

He was looking her in the eye, as well. His eyes were so blue and they were sincere and honest. She didn't understand what he was saying but she believed him – you are never going to turn to smoke, Éponine, not like the rest…

"How do you know that, though?" Éponine whispered.

"I just do," he replied, his voice just as quiet as hers. It must have sounded loud in the quietness of the room, though. "I see what happens to people, at the end of their time here, and you…Your time here doesn't end."

Enjolras allowed Éponine to pull her hand away again so that she could wipe it across her face, dashing the tears away from her cheeks. She managed a small nod, and turned to Gavroche. He was staring up at her with big, nervous eyes, and she folded her arms around him and pressed her face into his short, scruffy hair.

She was aware of Enjolras and Courfeyrac moving around her flat, but she didn't look up to see what they were doing. She felt a light weight press into her knee and looked down from Gavroche to see Hyacinthe creeping onto her lap, nosing her face into Éponine's hand. Éponine let go of Gavroche for a moment to stroke the top of the kitten's head, and sighed as Hyacinthe curled up into a little fluffy ball on her knee. Not long after, Éponine felt her eyes drifting shut, the events of the evening having exhausted her completely.