Okay, this story is long past due! I've had one follower in particular who's very eager for this story to be posted (you know who you are :)). So without further ado, I present Apollo-a Disney Hercules AU!

Starring:

Victor Hugo as The Narrator

Azelma, Gavroche, Grantaire, Jehan, and Feuilly as The Muses

Enjolras as Hercules

Éponine as Megara "Meg"

Montparnasse as Hades/Meg's ex-boyfriend

And I think those are all the important main characters. The cover illustration is my own creation on a virtual paper dolls website. It's Enjolras and Éponine dressed as Hercules and Meg, as close representations as I could make them. My visual inspiration for Enjolras is Aaron Tveit, and for Samantha Barks for Éponine.

I've sprinkled lots of "Easter eggs" throughout this fic referencing other works, musicals, songs, etc. If you find one, leave a review saying what it is and you'll get a virtual dessert of your choice and an LBBB (Little Barricade Boy Buddy, think of it as a tiny, imaginary version of one of Les Amis), also of your choice!

The story begins with an old man seated in a chair by a fireplace. He has a thick book in his lap. He opens it to a section in the middle and reads, "At that epoch, which was, to all appearances indifferent, a certain revolutionary quiver was vaguely current. Breaths which had started forth from the depths of '89 and '93 were in the air. Youth was on the point—-"

"Oh come on, Monsieur Hugo," a feminine voice interrupts, "would you listen to yourself? You're making this story sound like some romantic French tragedy!"

"But that's exactly what it is!" protests the author, Victor Hugo.

"Most people who enjoy this story do so in the form of a musical! Which I'm not even in! Can't I make this retelling a little more fun?"

Victor Hugo smiles at the character of his creation. He might as well give her this time in the spotlight she's so desperate for. "You go, Azelma!"

Beaming, Azelma calls, "Boys!" She snaps her fingers, and Gavroche, Grantaire, Jehan, and Feuilly join her in the pages of the book. The screen zooms into the pages and the viewers are now fully immersed in the world of Azelma's tale. The pages show an image of the Bastille in 1789. Azelma and her ensemble strut across the picture, Gavroche doing his best to keep up, as they sing a brief history of France's political upheavings from Louis XVI to Napoleon to Louis Philippe.

Then the page turns to a picture of a young man, twenty-two years of age. Soft golden curls frame his chiseled face. His blue eyes stare confidently out from the page. "This is the hero of our story," Azelma announces to the audience. "Adrien Enjolras."

"Honey, you mean Apollo!" Grantaire cuts in. "Boy, was he a head-turner! And quite the orator! I'd listen to his speeches just to play devil's advocate with him!"

"He was passionate about the state of the abaissé and wished to elevate their status. It was his dream to see a new France where poverty was nonexistent and everyone was equal in the government's eyes," said Feuilly.

The scene then turns to a well-dressed man, though his clothes are ragged, and a gamine together in an alley. The man has his hands on the gamine's hips and he is preparing to kiss her. The gamine has a disgusted look on her face and is trying to lean out of the man's way.

"If there's one criminal you don't want to mess with, it's Montparnasse," warns Gavroche. "He's easily angered, and when he gets angry, he gets violent!"

"He's also very aware that he's handsome," Azelma adds. "He could have his pick of any girl he wished, but he chose Éponine Thénardier. Her father saw an opportunity for profit from Montparnasse's attraction to her, and he sold Éponine to the young criminal. She belonged to him, body and soul. She had been in love with him at first, but when he started abusing her, she realized her mistake too late."

"She put on a brave front and tried to hide how Montparnasse's treatment had affected her," Gavroche says, "but underneath her 'tough girl' shell, she was a rose in misery."

"Éponine was the very definition of the cause Enjolras was fighting for!" Azelma exclaimed. "But Enjolras never paid attention to women or gave any thought toward romance. Would he be able to break into Éponine's cold and dark life and allow her to see the light? Could he do it without jeopardizing his revolution?"

"You bet your unabridged copy of the Brick he could!" Gavroche grinned. "And we're going to tell you exactly how he did it! C'est du gospel pur, je promets!"

And with that, dear readers, you are presented with the story of a man who wanted to change the world, but would discover what makes a true hero.

translations

gospel pur—gospel truth

abaissé—oppressed

C'est du gospel pur, je promets!—That's the gospel truth, I promise!