Gin and Bitterness

Fandom: Les Miserables
Rating: M (whole series) / T (this chapter)
Setting: 1920s Prohibition au (dw tag)
Characters (in this chapter): Babet, Javert, Azelma "Az" Jondrette, Montparnasse, Éponine Thénardier
Warnings: Implied Transphobia
Word Count: 3672

General Summary: The ABC Group is a small organisation who operate purely on principle - a group of bootleggers who run a not-for-profit speakeasy known as The Corinth out of the upper room of the Musain Café, with all profits going to aid the finances of one Mr. Jean Valjean and his daughter.

Despite run-ins with rivals, including the notorious Thénardier crime family, the group has managed to thrive in the heart of the city, but things have taken a sudden turn for the worse, with the Feds slowly circling under the direction of BOI agent Javert.

[Note: There will be major character death in later chapters.]

Important note involving ages of characters: Most of Les Amis (as well as Éponine, Azelma, and Cosette) are between the ages of 23 and 30, with the exception of Gavroche, who is 14/15. Valjean is 60ish, but due to the way in which I’ve set up where his backstory intersects with Javert’s, Javert is around 39.

Chapter Summary: In which Special Agent Javert of the BOI receives a visitor, and the Thénardier twins prepare for their respective roles in the ABC - Thénardier negotiations the following night.

Author’s Note: I started this as part of a Les Mis Across History event and only got two chapters in before losing my confidence. I would still like to finish it someday but don't know if I could do it as well as I thought.


In her three years working as a secretary for what the office ladies called “the biggest stick in the mud the BOI has to offer,” Jeanette Delaney had become accustomed to all manner of people walking in and out of the central office to see her employer. No one claimed to understand his methods, but he was ruthless and he was effective, and so as long as the paperwork was filed at the end of the day, no one seemed to question the ways in which he chose to conduct his investigations. As a result she hardly even bothered to glance up when the front door opened, then thudded shut again, allowing for the harsh click of high heels on tile to reach the desk before looking at the person in front of her.

Her gaze slid up a pair of long, shapely legs, bare from just below the knee down; from there up skin was covered by a straight-waisted, dark green dress, the lack of sleeves remedied by a stylish black, silk scarf that wound around their throat and draped over their bare shoulders. Finally, she reached their face, and was stunned to find a face that was somehow both beautiful and handsome under a light dusting of makeup, dark hair done up fashionably with a series of small, silver filigreed hairpins, rouged lips twitching into a wry smile as their brown eyes watched them with something bordering on amusement.

“Can I help you, um,” darting her eyes back down to her desk, Jeanette began leafing through the scheduled appointments, “Can I help you, Mist–”

“Jondrette.” The visitor interjected smoothly, “Ms. A. Jondrette – I won’t be on the books, but I assure you, I am expected.” When the girl hesitated, she nodded towards the phone. “You can call and check if you’re worried – I won’t mind.”