A/N: FINALLY! Got the first forum challenge fic up. Sorry it took a while, lilgenious, but here it is :), hope you all enjoy it. Compared to Suthern-bell85, who got "alive," I actually got the word "kill" and after a few minutes, an idea came into my head of Constance's death and Milady's execution and this is what I came up with of what would happen in the 2011 version sequel (that is IF there ever is going to be one, I'm beginning to doubt Anderson will make one). Before any of you get a little confused, yes, I know Buckingham really died in the book and it was really Milady's brother-in-law that was present, but I changed it on what I thought what would happen in the scene if Anderson does not kill Buckingham off.
WARNING! This story will have some spoilers for my Lady Musketeer fic. There are some that are obvious while others are not, but if you don't want any spoilers on what happens in Lady Musketeer, then don't read this.
BTW, before I forget (like I did last time), I would like to thank my beta-writer for helping me with BOTH this one-shot and The Lady Musketeer, I appreciate the help :).
Disclaimer: Okay, I do not own The Three Musketeers', it belongs to Dumas and Anderson, most of the characters belong to Dumas and Summit Entertainment, except for Adeline, she belongs to me.
Enjoy!
Adeline made Buttercup ride hard and fast towards the convent at Béthune where Constance Bonacieux, her new, but close companion, was now hiding. She feared that her friend was in danger, and that was why she was having Buttercup go faster than normal. It was a surprise to both the three musketeers and Buckingham that the beast could go that fast.
Buckingham was allying himself with the musketeers and the femme musketeer, if only for a moment, to go in search of the one thing they all wanted: Milady de Winter. The musketeers wanted justice for all the crimes Milady committed, and so did Buckingham, but they first had to go fetch the lady musketeer's friend.
What made Buckingham switch sides was simple: he wanted revenge for the attempted murder on him. He had been talking to Milady in his tent when he turned around and recoiled when he felt a sharp point pierce through his skin and looked down to see a blade in his stomach. The last thing he saw before he went unconscious was Milady's sinister smile and heard her say, "Trust no one, especially women." To hear his own words used against him made Buckingham realize that everything the femme musketeer told him about Milady was right, and he felt like such a fool for not believing. The meaning of betrayal had cut deep within him, and he lost his pride and honor, just as Milady took Athos' pride and honor, and Buckingham wanted revenge for that.
He lost conscious before Milady left and believed himself to be dead, killed by the very same woman he has come to know as a trusted ally, but now as an enemy. He was grateful, though, when he woke up and found himself in the infirmity where one of his loyal servants explained that his physician saved him. Buckingham was grateful to be alive, but that still did not make him want to go out and avenge his attempted murder on the woman. He was still very weak, but he immediately set out on a hunt for Milady de Winter to bring her to justice against the English court. On the way, he came across the musketeers and decided to join them on the road. He had gotten many death threats from the three male musketeers, all of them threatening to slaughter him right on the spot if he made any eyes on Adeline, though he could not help but glance towards the femme musketeer's way. Every time he did, he would snap out of it and remind himself of the reason why he is out here with them.
They arrived at the convent, and Adeline immediately got down from Buttercup before running up to the gate, ringing the bell. It was a few minutes later, as Adeline waited in anticipation, until the eyehole was opened by a nun.
"What is it that you want, my child?"
"I need you to let me in, there is a woman named Constance Bonacieux being kept here, and I need to see her," Adeline said hurriedly, desperately in need to see Constance.
"For what purpose?"
"I am here to take her home. My name is Adeline d'Artagnan, I sent a letter here not too long ago to the Reverend Mother that I was to come here as soon as I could and take Madame Bonacieux home." (1)
The eyehole was closed before there came the sound of a key being unlocked, and the gate was opened, revealing a middle-aged nun. She took one good look at Adeline before looking at the men behind her, but mostly looking closely at Buckingham.
"Is he a Protestant?" she asked, referring to Buckingham, looking at him disgustingly.
Everyone looked at Buckingham, making the latter feel very awkward with all the stares. Buckingham has been stared at plenty of times, but the stares made him feel awkward now because, with him being a Protestant and everybody around him a Catholic, he felt like a sore thumb that stood out. It was then Adeline who answered the nun.
"He may be a Protestant, sister," she began, "but we all here believe in the same God, he means no harm to you, God, or anyone in this house. Please let him through."
The nun opened her mouth as if to protest, but then she closed her mouth as if in deep thought before saying, "Alright, I will let him pass. Hopefully, his soul will be saved while here, the Lord knows he needs it." She ushered Adeline, the musketeers, and Buckingham inside and closed the gate once they were all in and then lead them to Constance's room.
"Sister, how is Madame Bonacieux?" Adeline asked. "Is she alright?"
"Oh, she is doing just fine," the nun answered. "Poor child has been waiting on you for so long, wanting to return home. She spoke very highly of you, said that you would return to take her home, but days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months. My sisters and I were beginning to lose faith in you ever coming, but, bless her soul, Madame Bonacieux never lost faith in you, even when that woman she just befriended tried convincing her so."
At the word 'that woman,' the musketeers and Buckingham stopped and stared at the nun, suddenly fearing who this woman she was talking about was.
"Woman? What woman?"
"Oh, this lovely young woman who came in about a few days ago for sanctuary, she's been one of the victims of the Cardinal as well."
"This woman, what did she look like?" Buckingham asked.
"Red curly hair and blue eyes, about 5'7, maybe," the nun said. The description of the woman made the musketeers and Buckingham's blood freeze, for it was the exact description of Milady.
"Did the woman say her name was either Milady de Winter, Charlotte Backson, Sabine, Lady Clarick, or Anne de Breuil?" Athos asked.
"Um, I believe the Cardinal guard called her by Milady," the nun said with a confused expression on her face, getting confused with their questions. "Why? Is there something wrong?" She then asked that when she saw the fearful looks on the musketeers and Buckingham's faces. None of them answered her because, just then, they heard a shout from above them.
"Constance…"
Adeline then broke out into a run, taking out her pistol along the way with her friends and Buckingham following after her up the stairs.
"Constance! Where are you?"
"Adeline, is that really you?" came a voice, coming from a room not too far from the group. "I'm in here! I'm in here! Oh, please help me!"
"I'm coming, Constance!"
Adeline ran towards the room before flinging the door open and finding a very pale Constance sitting at a table, shaking and sweating. She looked up when the door was swung opened and gave Adeline a weak smile when she saw her. "Adeline…" she said, standing up from the chair. After a few seconds, her legs gave away, and she fell to the floor.
"Constance!"
Adeline dropped her pistol on the ground and ran to Constance, gently turning her over on her back and holding her in her arms. She looked her best friend over and saw that her face was contorted with pain, her forehead broken out into a sweat, and her skin very pale and cold. It scared Adeline to see Constance like this, but, despite all of that, the latter gave her a grateful smile.
"You came back," Constance said weakly. "She said you wouldn't come back, but I never believed her…"
"Shh, don't talk, Constance, save your strength, you are going to need it to stay alive," Adeline said before turning to the nun, who stood in the doorway of the room, completely shocked by what she was seeing.
"Go get help, and quickly!"
The nun nodded before turning and running off for help.
"Now, Constance, I need you to stay with me for a little while, just stay awake."
"But I am in so much pain…"
"I know you are, but please just stay awake for a little while longer, the nun is going to get a physician who's going to make you feel better once you wake up again."
"My lady, who did this to you?" Athos asked Constance.
"I—I think it was her…"
"Who is 'her'?"
"Milady…Milady de Winter. She gave me a drink in that cup over on the table."
She did not point at the cup, for she was too weak to do so, but there was no need to. The cup was laying right there on the table, and it was Aramis who was the first one to grab it. He inspected it while the others watched him expectantly until he looked up at Athos with a grave look and shook his head.
"There is nothing that can be done, Milady used a deadly poison and there is no antidote for it."
"What? What do you mean there is no antidote? There has to be!" Adeline cried franticly.
"I'm sorry, Adeline, but there isn't."
"Surely, there must be something that can help save this girl," Buckingham said, stepping in. "Don't you priests know everything there is about curing a poison?"
"A priest doesn't always know everything, so why don't you just shut up!" Athos snapped at him.
"Athos, there is no need for that," Aramis said. He then turned to Buckingham. "Some priests have been trying to find an antidote for this poison, but if I were to use it, I would risk having Constance die an even more painful death."
Everybody looked down at Constance with such sympathy, except for Adeline, who only had a fearful look on her face, for fear of losing her best friend. Constance kept on convulsing, and Adeline tried her best to soothe her.
"Adeline, I'm so cold and in pain…"
"I know, you'll be alright, don't worry," Adeline soothed as she held onto her best friend tightly, knowing that this would be the last time she would ever be able to share another moment like this with her. Tears brimmed in her eyes, and she tried to hold them back, but a few tears trickled down her cheeks.
"Thank you for coming for me," Constance said.
"And thank you, my friend, for not giving up on me," Adeline said with a sad smile.
Constance returned it before she took a sigh of her last breath and was no more.
Adeline has seen death two times before Constance. One was when she was only three and a half years old when her father died, trying to protect King Louis' father, Henry IV. The other time when she just turned 19 when her best friend, Henri, died trying to protect her virtue, (2) and now she just witnessed the death of another loved one.
The one thing that Bertrand, Henri, and Constance all have in common is that they all were killed by three people Adeline hated the most in the world.
Adeline thinks bitterly of what the meaning of death is to her. Many people see it as a natural thing where humans die of natural causes, but to Adeline, the meaning of death was tragic. She's seen too many people's lives end tragically where they are killed, murdered, brutally slaughtered, so it would be impossible for her to say that death was a peaceful thing, as most people try to lead her to believe. To Adeline, the meaning of death is someone who has a tragic end in their life because it is all she has ever known. Never has she seen anybody die of a natural cause.
Now, Adeline has killed people before, but never actually murdered anybody like Rochefort and Milady. Adeline killed to protect her king and country, but mostly her friends and family while Rochefort killed for power and Milady killed for revenge, and that's exactly what Milady did to Constance. She murdered Adeline's best friend just to get revenge on her.
Adeline should feel no qualms towards the woman who killed her best friend and also attempted to kill and sell her and other unspeakable sins. If that was so, then why was she feeling so guilty of sending this woman to her death?
Here Adeline was, gritting her teeth and clenching her fists, trying to block out Milady's pleas because the more she heard them, the more guilty she felt and the more sympathy she had for her. Just hearing them made Adeline wish she wouldn't have judged Milady's punishment for death, but she knew it was all part of her game, and that was why she was trying to block out her pleas…until her cries of mercy turned to her.
"Adeline! Adeline, please," Milady began. "Sweet, beautiful, young Adeline, please save me! Have mercy! I did not mean to kill you or try to sell you, I only did that out of envy for the attention you received from my love. Please forgive me for my sin, I was blind by it and did not see that it was hurting your friends and admirer. Please save me just as I saved you."
Adeline found herself giving in to the woman's pleas as she gave Athos a hopeful look. "Perhaps if we gave her a real fair trail—"
"No!" Athos immediately snapped, interrupting her. "We've already given her one, and she deserves no less than what she is judged on. She has to pay for her crimes, Adeline, there is no other way."
"Athos, please, I am your wife," Milady begged him.
At those words, Athos gave her an icy glare that it even made a cold woman like Milady flinch and back away.
"Do not even dare call yourself my wife, you are not worthy of that title!" he said. "Even though I forgive you for deceiving me more than once and taking away my pride and honor, you still have to pay for your crimes."
Milady then turned to Buckingham. "Buckingham, please, I did everything for you," she said. "I've given you the war machine chart and the woman you've always wanted—"
"Do not even mention that misdeed to me, vile creature!" Buckingham snarled. "You insulted my honor by even suggesting I would take a woman by force, you should have known better that I treat women with respect just as the way I treated you, but what do I get in the end for such kindness? A stab in the back! Do not think for one minute that I will save you because of what you suggested. These gentlemen may be able to forgive you of your crimes, but I most certainly will not, so leave me and everyone else here in peace. There is no one here to save you this time."
Milady looked pleadingly at Adeline, but the latter turned away from her, not wanting to look into her eyes and fall under her spell again. When Milady realized that no one was going to save her from her fate, she cried in defeat before she allowed the executioner to drag her into the boat and went across the bank.
Adeline did not bother looking back because she felt she would see Milady's pleading look in her eyes, even with her across the bank. No matter what Athos told her, Adeline still felt like this was murder and that Milady needed an actual trial, one that was fair and just. Then again, if Milady did have one, she would have the whole court on her side and turn them against Adeline and the musketeers; plus, she had Cardinal Richelieu on her side to protect her and Lord knows that Cardinal Richelieu would do anything to set her free. Adeline saw that possibility, but she still felt guilty of condemning Milady to her death. There was the sound of a swipe from across as if someone had cut something, making Adeline flinch at the sound, knowing that Milady was now dead.
"Did we do the right thing, Athos?" Adeline asked after a few moments of silence. "By sending Milady to her death, are we not killing her the way she killed others?"
"Yes, we are," Athos responded, "but lawful men do the exact same thing when they condemn a man to death. The difference between us and Milady is that we are doing the world a favor by ridding of the devil. Do not feel sympathy for that woman, Adeline, she would have done worse if we let her go free. She was condemned to death before we even judged her."
Adeline nodded in understanding, but she still felt sympathy for Milady. With Athos' words, though, she did not sympathize Milady because they killed her, but because of what she had become. If Adeline had her way, she wouldn't have killed Milady and just send her to the Bastille, but Adeline knew better that Milady would just escape and attempt to slaughter them all or anybody close to them, and Adeline believed she couldn't take to see any of her other loved ones murdered. Milady's done it before, so Adeline wouldn't put it past her for her to try it again.
'Maybe Athos is right, we did the world a favor by killing that devil of a woman.'
The End
A/N: Sorry if it was so fast paced or if I did not focus so much on the word "kill," but I felt as if I could only express it through the action. Basically, "kill" means to deprive of life in any matter; cause the death of; or slay. Hope you all enjoyed it :).
(1) I was not sure if D'Artagnan went there to take her home or just see her, so if anybody knows, please let me know.
(2) If you didn't catch this, that was a spoiler of how Adeline goes on her adventures. Originally, it was suppose to be her father, but I suddenly felt really bad because she already lost her father, and I didn't want her to lose her uncle too. Besides, there is a surprise waiting for all you readers that has to do with her uncle ;D, but I am gonna keep THAT one to myself.