Very Very Early Morning My Lovelies

Sorry this is a little bit late it was being awkward and then I decided to take a short break and then got hooked on YouTube and lost track of time... Sorry.

Don't know if you all remember but several chapters ago Porthos won a bet against a visiting Duke and came to an arrangement that his brothers could ask for anything from the man. Well tomorrows the day they get to make that request... What do you think it should be? I have a couple of ideas but would love to get your input :D

Notes On Reviews:

romirola: Thanks for the review - Trouble is coming very very soon for our boys and all of them will be dragged into it this time. I can't say whether the whumpage will be as bad for them this time around as I have no idea what my devilish mind will come up with but there's whumpage planned :) Enjoy the new chapter! x

Moringotho-in-Angamando: Thanks for the review - I'm glad you liked the ending, I wasnt quite sure if it was a bit odd or not but if you all like it thats all that matters :) Enjoy the new chapter! x

A reader (Guest): Thanks for the review - I'm really glad you liked it :) Athos has managed to get off quite nicely in his little trip outside the garrison but its all about to go down soon *grins evilly* We'll be looking into the letter today. Enjoy the new chapter! x

Guest: Thanks for the review - I needed an Aramis rant so I'm happy you liked it, D'Artagnan is definitely a trouble magnet :) Enjoy the new chapter! x

CaroH: Thanks for the review - No one can resist the puppy eyes :D Athos didnt really run into any trouble in his little trip but I'll go into what happened and as to why he's so uneasy today. Enjoy the new chapter! x

Tidia: Thanks for the review - After the emotionally heavy chapter before it I felt we needed some good old fashioned musketeer banter so i'm glad you enjoyed it :) It's not Athos that's in trouble... at least not at the moment. Enjoy the new chapter! x

nurse13: Thanks for the review - I think if I didn't time skip we'd be here for a while thats for sure :) I kinda have this weird image in my head of one of them (most likely Aramis) sitting in D'Artagnan's room and glaring at the boy if he so much as shifted towards the edge of the bed. Dont think that's actually going to happen as they're going to trust he'll behave. But I think having his brothers consistently around him, especially Athos, is making it difficult for D'Artagnan to think properly as he doesn't just want to give into the pressure and forgive Athos but then he also doesnt want to drive his brothers away if he doesnt forgive him. Athos understands this which is why he's offered to leave for a bit and Porthos and Aramis know that they are slight pressure as well but are still being a bit clingy and overprotective of the boy. In terms of the final bit in yesterday's chapter it's all covered today so i wont be keeping you confused for too long. Enjoy the new chapter! x

Issai: Thanks for the reviews - Don't worry about the slight delay, I'm just glad to get reviews :D One conversation is definitely not enough to put everything to bed but it was a good start. Athos is getting there at least and I have somethings planned that will help him get D'Arts forgiveness. D'Artagnan was not happy to learn that Athos left, especially as he knows that Vincent will stop at nothing to get revenge on Athos. I'm loving how much that end paragraph is confusing everyone, don't worry I'll cover it today so I wont keep you waiting long :) Enjoy the new chapter! x

Lilac Lavender: Thanks for the review - I loved writing the banter between the three of them at the beginning of the chapter so I'm really happy you liked it too :D I doubt even Athos is immune to D'Arts puppy-dog eyes so it was only a matter of time until Aramis caved. I'm barely keeping the evil contained so it's all going to start coming out tomorrow (or later on as its almost 2am here now) Dont worry I'm explaining the ending in today's chapter. Enjoy the new chapter! x

This story has over 20,000 views and 220 reviews. I'm so freaking happy about that so mega thanks to you all who follow/favourite/review/read this story.

Enjoy

xxx

Chapter Twenty-Six: Trouble On The Horizon

The road back to the garrison was a tense journey for Athos, he had no idea how to explain to his brothers what he had learnt nor did he know the reception he would be riding in to.

When he had left several days ago he had not spoken to D'Artagnan about his imminent departure, he knew the young man feared for his safety and would have rallied with their other brothers to stop him from leaving even if it made things more difficult for the Gascon in the long run.

He could only hope that the gift he was bringing with him would be enough to persuade the no doubt worried Gascon to forgive him for leaving without a word.

But then there was the issue what he had learnt during his short journey, he had yet to decide how exactly he felt about it and was even more unsure how his brother would take it. Part of him wanted to keep it from them, to deal with it on his own but then he also knew that the second he returned to the garrison both Porthos and Aramis, and possibly even D'Artagnan to some degree, would be watching him like a hawk and he would be unlikely to get the opportunity to deal with it on his own without one or more of them catching on and joining him.

Sighing he glared at the small letter clutched in his had, his mind drifting back to how he received it.

FLASHBACK

"Are you sure you don't want to wait until the morning to leave?" asked Marie, Treville's younger sister worriedly as she gazed up at the slowly darkening late afternoon sky.

"Thank you for the offer Madame but the sooner I am back in Paris the less worry there will be for me" Athos declined, tipping his hat to the woman as he moved to mount the horse he had borrowed from Aramis. The mare was accustomed to how he liked to ride thanks to the many hours they had all worked together so Aramis had offered her to Athos for the duration of his short mission, stating that he had no plans to leave D'Artagnan alone until his return so would not be needing to use her in the immediate future.

After making one last promise to Treville's young nephew that he would try to persuade the Captain to take some time off to visit him Athos departed and headed for home.

As he rode his thoughts constantly drifted back to D'Artagnan, no matter how much he tried to force them from his mind. He knew there was little he could do to earn back the young man's forgiveness except to prove to him that he truly was sorry and that that was something that would undoubtedly take time.

If he wasn't fretting over their precarious relationship then he was worrying over the boy's health. When he had left the garrison D'Artagnan was finally able to start eating more solid foods again. Due to the injuries D'Artagnan had sustained during their time away he had struggled to keep much food down as the pain was enough to make the boy constantly nauseous. The fact that he had also been eating very little since before their initial capture meant that his stomach was not used to eating a lot of food and so when he tried to eat everything his brothers put in front of him, trying to ease their worries by being a good patient, he was unable to keep it down. It was a painful experience for the boy whenever that happened but the three of them remained supportive of their youngster, gradually building up what he could eat as well as how much he could eat and Athos couldn't help but smile when he remembered how happy D'Artagnan had been just before he left as it was the first time he had been able to eat and keep down a completely solid meal.

So lost in his thoughts as he was Athos almost didn't notice how dark it had gotten until it was almost too late, cursing himself for his obliviousness the musketeer set to work finding somewhere to camp for the night, thankfully he had been able to find somewhere before the night completely extinguished all the light.

The following morning Athos was eager to reach Paris and his brothers as soon as possible, an uneasy feeling brewing in his gut.

He had been riding along the main road for a few hours in complete silence when he heard it, a soft snort and a neigh that was all too familiar to the musketeer's trained ears. Whirling Aramis's mare around, Athos's eyes darted about trying to find the source of the noise. Within seconds two riderless horses appeared. The appearance of the two horses had all four of them, horses and rider included, brightening.

"Roger" Athos whispered, a fond smile gracing his face as he watched his beloved stallion ride over to his master. Spending so much time with his brothers meant that their horses were as close as they were so Athos was not surprised when Aramis's mare moved underneath him to meet the two horses in the middle.

Looking both horses over Athos was pleased to see they had not suffered much in their separation. His own horse was simply in need of a good clean and brush… and maybe some food if the way he kept nudging Athos's pockets with his head was any indication… D'Artagnan's though… Athos wasn't sure whether his reaction was an entirely appropriate one given the mare's state but he couldn't help but smile when he realized that the horse was almost as stubborn as it's master.

They had all known it for a while, given that D'Artagnan's mare was one of the few horses in the garrison stables that absolutely refused to have any other rider besides D'Artagnan. The only ones exempt from that rule were the inseparables, much to the young Gascon's embarrassment.

It would seem that one of Vincent's men had tried to ride the stubborn mare and she had refused them. This had led to whoever it was whipping the horse and as Athos let his fingers gaze gently over the marks on the horse's flank he couldn't help but think that now she was even more like her master.

It was during this examination that Athos noticed the small piece of parchment sticking out of the mare's saddle.

Knowing that D'Artagnan was too careful about his horse to leave letters and parchment there he pulled out what appeared to be a letter. His breath caught in his throat as he saw his name envelope.

Looking back at the two horses that were now thoroughly enjoying being in the presence of Aramis's mare, Athos now realized why they were here… Clearly someone knew he was out on this road and had released the horses knowing that their training would have them heading back to the garrison, meeting up with him on the way. They had been released to send him the message.

With one last look around the area, checking that no one was about to jump out at him, he opened the note.

Musketeer Athos

I will leave you for Vincent to deal with but rest assured, that brat of a boy D'Artagnan will pay for what he did to my brother

Fabien

Cursing the fact that he had not insisted on checking that Fabien was dead before they left him all those days ago, Athos raced to Aramis's mare's side, mounting the horse within seconds.

Personally he would have preferred to ride Roger but he had no idea how long the two horses had been travelling for and despite not seeing any injuries on his horse he did not wish to push the animal until he was certain he could handle it.

Luckily the training all the garrison horses underwent meant that both Roger and D'Artagnan's mare followed Athos on Aramis's mare with no orders or rope needed.

During the rest of the ride back Athos felt his worry for his young protégé grow and he couldn't stop himself from continuously glancing at the note in his hand.

END FLASHBACK

Arriving back at the garrison Athos's first point of call was to speak to the men currently on watch duty at the gates.

"Félix!" Athos called, dismounting from the mare as he waited for the musketeer to descend the ladders.

"Athos?" Félix replied, his eyes shooting up in surprise as he noted the two familiar horses now traveling with the musketeer.

"Has anyone new entered the garrison since I've been gone?" Athos asked, not even bothering to respond to the man's questioning gaze at the horses.

"Just the usual, no one new, why?"

Athos then went on to give a brief description of Fabien to Félix, asking him to alert whomever was on watch next not to allow him access into the garrison.

Félix wanted to ask why but the poorly concealed worry in the lieutenant's eyes reminded him all too well of the look D'Artagnan had in his when he brought the pair of them back so he kept his questions to himself and assured Athos that he would do as he had been asked.

"Oh Athos" Félix called, making the musketeer turn back to face him as he had been heading to the stables. The grin on Félix's face made Athos raise an eyebrow in question.

"You might want to check in with D'Artagnan soon" he offered by way of explanation, "from the sounds of things he was not impressed that you decided to leave"

Feeling his lips twitch upwards into a small smile, Athos nodded his head and continued leading the horses to the stable.

"Bout time you got back" called a voice, making Athos pause in his brushing down of the horses. Technically it would normally be the stable hands job to do it but Athos wanted some more time to get his head together and to ensure that his and D'Artagnan's horses received the attention they had clearly been missing.

Taking Athos's pause as acknowledgement of him, Porthos walked over, leaning against one of the beams as he watched his friend work. "Whelp's been drivin' 'Mis mad asking bout you… Ranted for a full hour about you leaving until 'e tired himself out" he explained with a smirk.

"Where is he now?"

"His room, finally managed to convince 'Mis to let him out of the infirmary."

Athos snorted at this, imagining how that conversation had gone.

"I will check in with him in the morning…" he said, trailing off at the end

"What happened?" Porthos asked having noticed the bordering on paranoid nature his brother had seemed to adopt upon his return.

Athos was silent for a few moments, internally warring with himself as to whether on not to tell him what he had learnt. Sighing in frustration as he settled on his earlier thoughts that none of his brothers would let him handle this alone anyway, he reached into his pocket and passed Porthos the note.

Porthos swore as he read the note, "I'll get Aramis. Probably better to keep this from the whelp for now otherwise he'll only try to join in with whatever we plan"

Athos nodded and resumed his work while Porthos went to get Aramis. He had no intention of involving D'Artagnan in this when the boy couldn't even stand yet.

Once Porthos arrived with Aramis, Athos had finished tending to D'Artagnan's horse and left the rest with the stable hand before following his friends out to their usual table. He then proceeded to explain how they knew Fabien and why the man was out to get D'Artagnan. Neither Aramis nor Porthos were pleased to learn that trouble had followed their brothers home and were adamant at not being left out when it came to dealing with those behind it and despite his earlier hesitation, Athos was pleased that his brothers were behind him with this.

The trio then spent the following few hours creating several plans on how to deal with Fabien. Unfortunately most of them relied on them waiting for Fabien to make the first move as the musketeers had no information as to where the man was hiding out or what he had planned.

"Come" Aramis said, rising from his seat on the bench, "There is little more we can do tonight and you my friend" he said looking at Athos, who during the course of the conversation had been leaning more and more on the table, "You need to let me look over those wounds before getting some rest"

Knowing from past experience that it was better to just accept the Spaniard's orders than to fight them Athos conceded and stood himself, about to go to his rooms before a call from Treville stopped him.

"You three are needed at the palace first thing tomorrow" Treville informed them once Athos had filled him in about everything from the message from the Captains family to the threat to D'Artagnan

"The three of us sir?" Athos asked, surprised he was being included given that he had yet to receive approval to return to duty.

"Apparently the Duke is leaving in the morning and wants to know your decision before he leaves" Treville explained

"My decision?" Asked Athos, thoroughly confused

"Ah… Yeah, forgot bout that" Porthos said looking sheepish as he rubbed the back of his neck, "I'll explain when we're out of the cold"

Nodding to his friend the group then said goodnight to their Captain before heading off to Athos's rooms.

The following morning had the three men departing for the palace in the early hours. Not wanting to wake their young friend the three men decided to simply check in on D'Artagnan when they returned, having assumed that the boy would probably still be asleep even when they returned.

As the men headed for the palace they were so wrapped up in their friendly conversation that none of them noticed the man smirking at them from the shadows of a darkened alley… nor did they notice the man turn to the direction of the garrison as soon as they passed.