The Barricade Girl (A Les Miserables FanFiction)

Chapter Three

I return to the spot that I was standing in before, not able to stop thinking about the little boy Gavroche. I wish I could have done more to help him, and I feel terrible for letting him get away when I am capable of giving him so much more than the little piece of bread and cake that I gave him just now. I stand with my back against a wall, facing the building that Marius has yet to emerge from – he's definitely taking his time!

"That was nice what you did", a girl's voice addresses me. I turn my head to my left and see a young girl, perhaps a year or two younger than me, standing a few feet away with her back pressed against the same wall. Like Gavroche, she too wears rags – a dress with holes and rips in, falling off her shoulders, and fixed to her waist by an old, thick, leather belt.

"Excuse me?" I answer quietly, unsure of whether she was talking to me or not.

"What you did for the little blonde boy – that was really nice...not many rich folk think to do that..." She smiles sweetly. Underneath all the dirt and grime, there lies a beautiful girl.

"Oh...thank you..." I reply, again unsure of what to say. I can feel myself starting to blush a little, feeling embarrassed. "But...I'm not rich...not like 'them' anyway...I just live with my Grandfather, that's all..." I shrug. I take another look at her as she smiles and then looks at the ground. I open up my bag again and take out some coins and hold out my hand to her.

"Here", I nod to my hand. "I want you to take this..."

"Oh no..." She shakes her head. "I don't need –"

"Please...I insist...you need it more than I do..." I smile. She looks at my hand thoughtfully, and I nod again to let her know that it's okay for her to take it. She finally reaches over and takes the coins from my hand.

"Thank you..." She smiles shyly.

"You're welcome...uh...sorry, I don't know your name..." I let out an embarrassed laugh.

"Eponine..." She answers.

"Juliette..." I offer my hand to her, and she takes it, and we shake hands.

"What's someone like you doing here anyway?" She asks, leaning back against the wall, staring at the building that I've been watching for the last fifteen minutes.

"I'm waiting on a friend..." I say quietly.

"Me too..." She smiles.

After another five minutes, Marius finally leaves the building suitcase-less, meaning that my hunch was right and that he has indeed found somewhere to stay. I scan the street for a nearby signpost so that I'll be able to find his new home again.

"Well, I better go..." I sigh, turning to look at Eponine again. It's a strange feeling inside – I feel like, even though I've only met her and know very little about her, that I've made a new friend. I feel sorry for her and for her situation – it could quite easily be me. How would I feel if I were her? I look at the shawl that's wrapped around my shoulders – I must have at least three of this exact kind at home, and Grandfather could easily buy me one again – what do I need three for? I unwrap the shawl from my shoulders and place it around Eponine. "I want you to have this, too..." In a sudden rush of emotion, I wrap my arms around Eponine and hug her. "Look after yourself, Eponine..." I whisper quietly.

"Thank you, Juliette..." She whispers as she hugs me back. We break the hug and I clutch her hands for a moment longer, praying that God will keep her safe.

"Goodbye..." I smile and then walk away in the direction that my brother is headed.

I try not to lose sight of him, but he's very fast as he walks in and out of the crowds. I bump into a couple of passers-by by accident. I hold onto my bonnet as it threatens to fall off of my head. I speed up my pace in an attempt to catch up with Marius a little bit. For the last stretch of the walk, I'm just a couple of feet behind him, trying to keep my head down so that he won't see my face. He stops outside a building and then enters through the front door. I stop in the street and look up at the sign above the door – "Café Musain". I take a deep breath, wondering whether I'm about the make the right and wise decision or not. Chances are I'm about to do something extremely stupid that I'm going to regret later, but at the minute, my curiosity is stronger than my fear. I reach for the door handle and open it, taking one last look at the street outside before heading in.

The door slams shut beside me and I stand frozen to the spot as I take in the room before me. Filled with wooden chairs and wooden tables, with walls, floors and ceilings made of wood, the place seems a little too poor for Marius' standards – why would he come here? A woman stands behind the wooden counter at the far end of the room and looks at me.

"What can I get for you, Ma'am?" She smiles a toothy grin. I tentatively walk towards her, clutching my bag, a little nervous and scared to be here – and I can't see Marius anywhere. Where could he have gone? He only came in here a second ago, and I definitely didn't see him leave. He definitely did come in here, didn't he?

"Oh...uh...could I just get some water...please?" I ask quietly, swallowing to make sure that my words don't get caught in my now dry-with-fear throat. She nods, and turns her back to a nearby pump to get some water. I clear my throat. "Do you own this place?"

"I do indeed!" She answers proudly. "My name is Madame Houcheloup", she places a glass of water down on the counter in front of me. "I like to make a point of getting to know all of my customers...and I've never seen you here before, so I don't think we've met..." She says, fishing for a name.

"Oh, I'm Juliette...Juliette Pontmercy..."

"...Pontmercy, you say?" She raises an eyebrow. "Any relation to our young Marius?" She folds her arms across her chest.

"Uh...yes..." I answer nervously as I fish in my bag for a coin to give her in payment for the water.

"Wife?" She asks quickly.

"Oh no, no! Sister..." I exclaim. "Here..." I say, reaching my hand over the counter to pass her the coin.

"Don't worry about it, since it's your first time...I'll put it on your brother's tab!" She laughs, making me laugh with her, and suddenly I feel a little more at ease in this place and in her company. "So what brings you here, Miss Pontmercy?"

"Oh, please call me Juliette..." I smile. "Uhm...well...I'm actually looking for my brother. I needed to speak with him...but I guess he's not here – I can't see him..." I explain. "Has he been in here at all today?"

"Back room, and up the stairs..." She nods her head towards a wooden door beside the counter.

"Is he –? Can I –? Do you mind if –?" I try to ask, not able to get a complete sentence out.

"One question at a time, my love!" She laughs. "Yes, he is in there. And as for you going in there...well...Enjolras doesn't really like women going into their meetings..." She walks around to my side of the counter and takes me by the shoulders, leading me towards the wooden door she'd nodded to before. "...but they'll have to make an exception for you..."

"Who's Enjolras?"

"Oh, you'll meet him soon enough..." She smirks. "...and if he or any of the boys give you any trouble...you send them straight to me..."