Disclaimer: I don't own the Three Musketeers. I think that they would be highly resentful of being "owned…"
Author's Note: This is a fanfic for the new movie. This is about what D'Artagnan is thinking when he sees Constance tied up on the front of the Cardinal's ship. And, yes, I know that I changed a lot of the dialogue and what happens. But the opportunity to make it even more romantic was just too hard to pass up! 'Cause that's me, the hopeless romantic with these characters… *sigh.*
D'Artagnan was looking through a long telescope, out through the clouds. He liked the exhilarating feeling of being a thousand miles above the ground. He knew that Athos had just given him the telescope so that he could keep lookout, but he got sidetracked as he looked out through the wispy clouds, knowing that he only had to climb up to the crow's nest and then he would be higher than any man in the whole world.
The young hero's fantasies were interrupted when he saw a flash of orange light. He focused back to the area where he saw the flash, and saw the sudden burst of flame once again, and he was suddenly thrown off balance as something hard collided with the ship's hull. D'Artagnan was regaining his balance when the telescope was ripped out of his hands by Athos, who brought it up to his eye.
"Oh my god..."
It was a ship, much like their own, but much, much larger. This ship was painted red, the color of the Cardinal. Whatever the three musketeers would have you believe, their hearts sank to the floor. The last thing that they had thought to encounter up here was them. But they had managed to produce a bigger and grander version of the war machine, and it was firing at them.
Before they had time to begin to retaliate, the enormous ship had pulled up to the side of theirs. Rochefort was hanging cockily from one of the ropes and D'Artagnan realized all too soon why.
At the front of the ship, instead of a carving that would normally decorate the front of a grand ship such as this, they had tied a beautiful, young girl to the front of the ship, who was looking rather sick and scared out of her wits.
D'Artagnan's world slowed down drastically. He felt a black hole develop in his chest, swallowing his soul and heart whole. They were absolutely barbaric. Why would they go as far as tie a innocent girl to the front of the boat? To terrorize her like that? To completely manipulate D'Artagnan in such a harsh and cruel way.
However barbaric they were, their plan definitely worked.
D'Artagnan started to rush forward, but Athos put out an arm to stop him.
"Let me go!" said D'Artagnan, struggling against Athos's strong arms. "They have her! They have Constance! Those-"
"Yes, D'Artagnan, I know, just wait a minute." said Athos, holding D'Artagnan steady.
Rochefort laughed evilly. "I see that you've seen our trading terms!" he called over to the smaller boat.
"Yeah, you little-!" started D'Artagnan, but was cut off by Athos.
"What do you want?" he called back.
"The necklace in trade for the youngster's schoolboy crush!" Rochefort said, much to the amusement of his crew.
"You think you're funny, do you?" growled D'Artagnan, struggling harder than ever against Athos. The whole of Rochefort's crew bent over with uncontainable laughter. Constance's eyes filled with tears as she watched D'Artagnan reach hysterics.
"You have sixty seconds to make your decision." shouted Rochefort. "But keep in mind, you're decision decides missy's fate! No pressure!"
The musketeers and D'Artagnan came together into a tight circle.
"I'm going over there," said D'Artagnan immediately.
"We can't win in a cannon-battle," said Porthos, completely ignoring D'Artagnan's statement.
"Nor can we outrun them," said Aramis, ignoring D'Artagnan as well.
"I'm going over there!" D'Artagnan repeated, more firmly.
"We can't hand over the necklace, though, that was our whole mission…"
"HEY!"
The three musketeers looked surprised, like this was the first time that he had spoken. D'Artagnan took a deep, frustrated breath.
"I'm-going-over-there." He said evenly, enunciating every word as clearly as he could. "I'm brining them the necklace. I don't think that a necklace is more valuable than Constance's life!"
Athos pondered this for a moment, Porthos and Aramis giving him worried looks and D'Artagnan breathing heavily.
"Alright…but D'Artagnan, we can't trust these men. Be careful." Athos finally concluded.
D'Artagnan nodded and held out his hand impatiently like a child demanding a cookie. Athos pulled it from his pocket, handing it cautiously over to D'Artagnan who briskly walked to the side of their boat, holding the necklace up for Rochefort to see. Rochefort smiled evilly and made a quick motion with his hand, and three of his men hurried to untie Constance, bringing her up to the deck of the ship. D'Artagnan's blood boiled as he saw how pale Constance really was, how wobbly her knees were. Clutching the necklace so hard in his hands that the gold cut into his skin, he waited as the pathway that was expanding itself between the two ships. As soon as it had connected with his ship he walked out onto the pathway, meeting a weak-looking Constance in the middle.
No words passed between them as they met each other in the middle of the walkway, but no words were needed. Their eyes said it all: the emotion that was plainly displayed across their eyes was evident most in D'Artagnan's, and that emotion was this: unconditional and irrevocable love.
D'Artagnan wanted so bad to reach out and touch her, to have his lips meet hers again, but he wouldn't give the enemy the satisfaction of seeing so helplessly in love. He merely nodded at her, feeling that he was leaving behind his soul as he passed her on the walkway.
He boarded the enemy's ship and held out the necklace to Rochefort. A look of utter dislike was clearly displayed across D'Artagnan's face.
Rochefort nodded at the necklace, cuing the guard next to him to hit D'Artagnan across the head with the butt of his gun. D'Artagnan let out a sound of cut off surprise, and shrieks from Constance could be heard from the neighboring ship.
"D'Artagnan! D'Artagnan!" she screamed, and now Athos had to hold Constance back as the pathway connecting the two ships withdrew.
Rochefort looked at the other ship with a look of triumph, then, with a mighty, ear-splitting roar, called, "FIRE!"
Review please!