Colour of Desire {Enjonine}

Chapter 33

*Enjolras POV*

Eponine seemed overjoyed at the arrival of her grandfather. She had invited him a few weeks ago, but she didn't think he would come. He wanted to know all about her and Gavroche and the stories they had of Madame Thenardier. He was a very nice man, often taking time out of his conversation to talk with me. No one could break Eponines joy that day, not even the extensive wedding planning.  Her grandfather had some lovely stories to tell about Eponines mother and grandmother.

"How did meet Elaine?" Eponine asked, as we walked through the reception area.

"You can just call her grandmama, my dear." Monsiour said. "It was quiet a nice story, I'll be honest. Her mother was one of the ladies who lived at the docks. Obviously, her father wasn't in the picture. He could have been any one of the men in Paris, for all we know. Anyway, I was a young sailor at the time, living alone in Montfermiel. We came home one evening, terribly late, because of a winter storm. I have to admit, the docks are not a nice place to be."

"I know. I got lost once when we moved to Paris and wandered into the docks. It was the afternoon, but not a  nice place." Eponine said.

"Continue with the story." Gavroche urged.

"Alright, alright. So, there I was, trudging home through the snow, when I heard some calls in one of the alleyways. Some drunk fools were taunting some poor girl, who was lying in the snow, coughing up a fit. Obviously I went over and chased them off. The girl was clearly very sick so I brought her back to my home. As you may have guessed, this was Elaine. It was only her second or third night out alone, but she was running a high fever and seemed afraid to return to her mother. So, I nursed her back to health, as best I could. I ended up quitting my job as a sailor and started working in an old factory close by. Come spring time and Elaine was back to full health, and by the summer, she was my wife."

"That's really lovely." Eponine sighed.

"So, how did you meet Enjolras?"

"Oh, that's not a nice story." I said, apologetically.

"Well, now you'll have to tell me." He replied.

"It's nothing nice, grandpapa." Eponine sighed. "Papa was drunk last year at Christmas. He beat me terribly and I was brought to the Café Musain where Enjolras offered to take me under his wing until I was better."

"I'll kill that fool Thenardier. He's been nothing but trouble ever since Helena first began to fall for him. Do you know, he lied to my daughter when she was a mere nineteen year old girl. He fed her this lie that I had given my blessing for their marriage. And what happened? She stopped loving him and moved on with her life, until we later discovered that she was pregnant. And now he's beating up his daughter."

"Perhaps we should talk about something else." Eponine suggested.

"Okay, who ordered three boxes of candles?"

"Grandpére!" Eponine laughed.

"What? It's an honest question."

"My love, you seem distracted again." I said, just as we made our way out of the dining room after supper.

"Oh, sorry. My mind is completely full today. All I can think about is which side of a napkin must be folded first." Eponine sighed.

"Well, you've had a very busy day. I'm surprised you haven't fallen asleep yet."

"Grandpére fell asleep, when we had to listen to your father talk about which wine was best to be served after a cheese platter." She giggled.

"I hope he got back into town safely." I said. Her grandfather was staying in a nice inn in the nearest town. He had come alone, leaving his old wife at home in Paris.

"I'm sure he did. He has a very good sense of direction." She said, just as my father approached us.

"Enjolras, will you be joining us in the library? There are some very important business men here who want to speak with you." He said.

"No, thank you, Pére. We were going to meet the others outside." I replied. By 'the others' I meant Marius, Joly, Cosette and Musichetta.

"Fine, fine, but perhaps you could talk to us at another time." Pére said.

"Maybe I will." I said vaguely, leading Eponine down the hall. Our friends were waiting at the back door.

"What did your father want?" Marius asked.

"He asked me to come into the library with him to talk business." I replied.

"Poor you." Joly grinned.

"Easy for you to say, you run your own business. You have no need for little meetings in the library with over expensive wine." I said.

"Some people just don't share your immense luck, Enjolras." Marius said,  laughing out loud. We began to walk down the garden path, with our beautiful Mademoiselles walking behind us.

"So, how are the wedding plans coming along?" Joly asked.

"Very well, actually. I needed to ask if you could both help me with something." I replied.

"We don't have time for last minute decisions, the wedding is in two days." Marius said. I felt suddenly shocked. It had seemed so far away, but tomorrow was, in fact, our last day to get ready. I would not be allowed to see Eponine at any time after breakfast, just to go with the tradition.

"It's just something small. I'm sure I already mentioned it to you." I said, after my momentary shock had left me. "About the candles."

"Oh, I remember. Do you want us to help you light them?" Joly said.

"Yes, if it's not too much trouble. Just before the ceremony starts. I also have the original register of names."

"Well, I'm sure we can help in every way possible." Marius promised.

"Thank you both. It really means a lot." I sighed. We talked for a while more, just the three of us, as we used to when we were children.

Eventually, Alina began to fuss, so we all decided to go to bed.

As the others went inside, I held Eponine back for a moment.

"What are you doing?" She giggled, as I pulled her further into the garden.

"I won't see you for a whole twenty four hours. I wanted to spend a little bit of time together." I said, twirling her around. Unfortunately, she tripped on a stone and feel to the floor, which made us both laugh.

"Would you like a hand?" I chuckled, offering my arm. She gladly took it and I lifted her up, pulling her close to my chest again.

"I'll miss you tomorrow." Eponine whispered.

"It's not that long, only a day." I said.

"It feels like an eternity." She sighed. I took her face in my hands, pushing back a few stray strands of hair.

"I love you, Eponine." I whispered. She stood up on her toes and kissed me softly.

"I love you too, Enjolras."