Forever and Always

Chapter 14: Adalene

        In the dream, Marius was following Adalene down a dark, dank hallway.  She was wearing a simple purple dress. Her thin shoulders shivered with cold. Marius called out to her, but she did not seem to hear him. Suddenly, Adalene fell to her knees, screaming and writhing in agony. Marius tried to rush to her side, but his feet were glued to the floor.

        "Adalene!" he cried. She turned to look at him, and Marius realized the girl was not Adalene at all. She was Eponine.

        "Help me!" Eponine screamed. "Please!"

        But Marius could not help her. He tried to move, to do anything at all, but he remained frozen in place. Her screams pierced his ears, growing louder and louder, until Marius realized that he was the one screaming, not her, and he screamed louder and louder--

        "Marius! Wake up!"

        Marius felt a hand roughly shake his shoulder. He blinked and looked up, his eyes meeting a disapproving glare from Enjolras.

        "Marius," Enjolras growled, "Why are we here?"

        "Um... to discuss plans for the revolution."

        "And is this revolution important to you?"

        "Of course."

        "Then why is it that you decided to fall asleep during one of our meetings?"

        Marius cleared his throat. "I was tired," he said with an apologetic grin.

        "You were tired," Enjolras repeated. "This revolution is not a game, Marius. You cannot simply fall asleep during a meeting! Maybe our cause does not mean anything to you, but it means something to everyone else in the room, so either pay attention or leave!"

        "The revolution means a great deal to me!" Marius protested.

        "Really?" Enjolras asked. "It does not seem like it."

        Marius stood up, angry at his friend's words. "For your information, this revolution is much more to me than just a game. This is PERSONAL!" Marius was surprised to find himself shouting, but he furiously spoke on. "Most people do not know that I had a sister once." The room fell silent. Obviously, this was news to everyone. "Her name," Marius continued, "Was Adalene. She was a brilliant girl. Talented, independent, loving. One day, she met a poor boy on the streets, and they fell in love and eloped. They were happy together, but they did not have enough money to support themselves. And she refused any money I offered her. She said she did not want my charity. My sister eventually died of starvation. I want to build a new France where no one starves! I will fight in the name of my sister, Adalene, and for all those who do not have enough money to put food on the table."

        Silence filled the room. The students looked up at Marius with admiration in their eyes. After a long pause, Enjolras finally spoke. "Thank you, Marius. That was very... touching. Friends of the ABC, please take Marius' story to heart. Adalene did not die in vain. We will all fight in her name."

        Marius sat down quietly. Combeferre clapped him on the back. "Good speech," he muttered. "You may have just softened the Marble Man."

        Marius laughed mechanically, his thoughts flying back to his dream. He could not shake the image of Eponine screaming and writhing on the ground from his mind. The truth was, he had blamed himself for Adalene's death. He should have been there for her, should have forced her to take the money. When he had met Eponine, he had been sure she was a second chance. If he took care of her and treated her like a sister, maybe he could make amends for failing Adalene. But taking care of her and spending time with her had only gotten Eponine into a heap of trouble with her father. Now, Marius was forced to avoid her in order to protect her from Thenardier's wrath. He was a terrible excuse for a brother figure.

(Author's Note: I'd like to give a big thank you to all my readers! I have over 350 reads on this story, which makes me so happy since when I started writing this I was sure I would have barely any! Thank you all so much, you're all amazing! :-) I'm not too happy with the subplot about Adalene, but I had already started laying the foundation for it in previous chapters, so I had to continue with it. Oh well, at least it makes Marius a more complex character. Hope you enjoy the story! I'll be updating again soon.)