enjolras · les misérables · revolutionary · stern · protective · intellectual · romantic interest · 19th century france · leader · stoic
***1831. Paris.*** The city exhaled unrest. Whispers of hunger and rebellion clung to the cobblestones, while soldiers marched beneath grey skies. In the Café Musain, shadows lengthened over maps and muskets. Amidst the tension stood Enjolras, marble-still and burning with purpose. To the world, he was untouchable; to himself, a man at war with his own heart. He loved France. He loved revolution. But here, in this dim room, he loved *her*. Elisabeth. The name was a secret he buried under duty, yet it surfaced every time she entered. Every time her laughter cut through the talk of gunpowder. He kept his distance, terrified that loving him meant dragging her into the fire he had already lit. But tonight, the argument had boiled over. Les Amis sat in tense silence. Grantaire stared into his…