.

ooooooo

Chapter Eleven: New Normal

D'Artagnan was startled by someone grabbing his shoulder, and he had to pull back his fist in order to keep from hitting Aramis in the face.

"Sorry," he said, smiling sheepishly.

From the light in the room, he could tell that it was well into morning, and realized he must have dropped off again at some point. What he didn't understand was why neither Porthos nor Aramis had bothered to wake him up before then.

When he asked, Aramis replied, "We, uh… We decided you needed your sleep."

Something definitely rang false in the way Aramis had relayed the excuse, which seemed flimsy to his ears. It made him think his friend was either lying or wasn't telling him everything – or both.

D'Artagnan almost argued the point, but then he remembered his thoughts from the previous night and instead nodded his acceptance of the explanation. At least his insomnia had finally allowed him to get some sleep, though he was feeling far from rested.

When they had first arrived at the inn with Athos unconscious and sitting in front of Aramis, there had been no thought as to how many rooms they would get. They would only need one. None of them had even considered otherwise, not wanting to be separated from their wounded friends.

Even when an entire day had gone by without a change in Athos's condition, there had been no thought given towards taking another room. It didn't matter that they had to take turns sleeping on a barely-cushioned pallet on the dusty, wooden floor; they were not leaving the room unless absolutely necessary. When the need arose, one of them would remain behind while the others would check on the horses, get sustenance, or do whatever else was needed to be done. It was how they had always done it. They were there for each other no matter what.

However, now that Athos was awake, it was apparent the man did not seem to want him around, and the others didn't seem overly bothered by the idea that the older man was snubbing him. As the time passed, Athos would only really relax if one or both of their friends was also in the room, so d'Artagnan spent a lot of time outside of it doing chores. When Athos deigned to look at him, it was with suspicion in his eyes. It seemed the older man could not, or would not, even provisionally trust him as a fellow Musketeer, despite the fact that Aramis and Porthos treated him as a friend.

Due to Athos's behavior, d'Artagnan had yet to sleep in the second bed, mainly because it was in Athos's line of sight. Every time he got what Athos deemed to be too close, which was really not that close at all, the man's face would change – and not for the better. D'Artagnan could hardly recognize it as the one belonging to someone he considered his best friend. The eyes, which already held no recognition for him, would turn cold and bordered on contempt when they beheld him, especially when the other two men weren't looking.

Eventually, he decided he did not want to cause Athos any more pain or grief than what the man's head injury was already causing. Therefore, he was the one who consistently used the bed hastily put together on the floor, believing it was better for him to be out of sight. Even now, when one of them stayed awake and kept watch, he was relegated to the watch Athos would consistently sleep through.

In this way, the next two days passed. On the third day, he began considering getting a separate room, though he wasn't sure he would be able to afford one for more than two or three days. It all depended on how long it would be until Athos would be fit enough to travel. He needed to ask Aramis's opinion of how much longer it would be until they could get back on the road.

The first full day Athos had been awake, they had immediately discovered that the sunlight coming into the room was too bright for the man to handle, causing tremendous pain if the reaction was anything to go by. They would need to stay at least long enough that Athos could stand light stronger than what a few candles provided.

If he remembered correctly, the Roue Brisée only had four rooms besides the quarters for the innkeeper and his family who lived on the top floor. From what he had discerned from the talk he'd overheard when he'd been sent to gather meals or check on the horses, d'Artagnan believed there was still one room left unoccupied.

Their other concern was that they were due to be back in Paris in less than a week, otherwise Tréville would consider them overdue. At this point, it seemed almost certain that they would be late in returning to the garrison. They needed to get word back to Paris before their Captain sent other Musketeers out searching for them.

When he'd gone to get them something to eat at midday, Aramis actually came with him, which he considered a sign of Athos's continued improvement. When it didn't take personal needs or a form of coercion to get the man to leave the room, it meant that the injured was finally on the road to recovery.

Aramis brought up the topic of getting a separate room before he did.

"D'Artagnan…" Aramis ran a hand through his hair. "I think it might be a good idea if you slept elsewhere. Athos, with his memory gone, can't seem to get proper rest when you are around."

"I've noticed," d'Artagnan said. "I was thinking the same thing myself."

He looked into his friend's face and saw both shame and guilt.

"Aramis, I understand why. I do."—He laid a hand on the older man's shoulder—"I want Athos to recover as soon as possible. If my sleeping in a different place will help, then I'm happy to do it."

Aramis patted the hand he'd put on the man's shoulder, favoring him with a smile that was more sad than encouraging.

"Either Porthos or I will join you tonight. If that's alright?"

D'Artagnan rolled his eyes. "Of course. You don't need to ask."—He stood up from the table that they had been sitting at—"I'll go speak to the innkeeper."

For once on this cursed mission, d'Artagnan had a bit of good luck. There had indeed been only one room left and he had managed to secure it only minutes before someone else inquired about a place to stay. Given their unfortunate situation, Monsieur Lavoie charged less than half the amount they had been charged on their last visit, something he was extremely grateful for. The room was decent, but small, and he managed a smile at the thought that Porthos might be too big to fit in the room with him. In the end, it hadn't mattered; he had spent that night alone in his new room.

Earlier in the evening, he'd been sent to fetch them all dinner. With heavy tray in hand, he'd lightly kicked at the door to be let into the room. However, when Porthos had opened the door and d'Artagnan tried to enter, the taller man had blocked his way.

Taking the tray from his hands, Porthos said, "Athos…He, uh… He's not in the mood for company right now."

"Is he alright?"

"He's fine. He just—"

"Doesn't want me around," d'Artagnan finished for the other man.

Porthos' look of apology and compassion made it difficult for him to be too angry, but the feelings of hurt blossomed regardless.

"I understand," d'Artagnan said even though his heart felt like a lead weight in his stomach. Hoping to have some company later, he asked, "Who is going to be my roommate tonight?"

"Dunno. We haven't talked about it yet."

D'Artagnan nodded; he had the feeling he wouldn't see either Aramis or Porthos again that night.

"I'll see one of you later, then," he said. "Good night."

"Good night, d'Artagnan," Porthos said, taking the tray into the room and quietly shutting the door.

D'Artagnan thought of the food on the tray that was supposed to be his portion only after he'd entered his own room. He decided it no longer mattered as he had lost his appetite.

Too many negative thoughts rolling around in his head kept him awake much of the night. He attempted to tire himself out by cleaning and sharpening his weapons. It worked to an extent, but in the end he only got a couple hours of sleep.

Neither of his friends came to the room, and he spent another night entirely alone.

It was becoming ever more evident that alone was going to be his new normal.

ooooooo

To be continued

Next time: Chapter Twelve: Return Trip

ooooooo

.

A/N: Many thanks to Tidia for proofing this chapter for me. Remaining mistakes are my fault.

Thanks for reading!