Porthos was a man with very little fears- growing up in the streets of the Court he couldn't afford to have fears;if he did have any they were pushed down and suppressed so as not to appear weak in that world. He was well versed in swallowing down his worries and agitations; pushing them from his mind was always better than facing it, he had found...

So why was he currently cowering behind Aramis in the middle of a meadow, head ducked into the other man's shoulder as he tried- and failed- to withhold his panic?

'You know, as fears go,' Athos said from his place beside Aramis, casting an eye around the wide meadow with a quirked eyebrow before looking across to Porthos, 'this one is quite...niche.'

'Unique, I'd say.' Aramis replied with a nod, swatting the offending creature away as he felt Porthos shake behind him.

'Bees would be more understandable.'

'Oh yes- bees and wasps are horrible little things...' Aramis agreed.

'Even birds, perhaps- I had a landlord who was deathly afraid of birds.'

'Birds, too.'

'Lads, you said you wouldn't make fun of me.' Porthos grumbled.

'Oh, no fun being made here, my friend!' Aramis turned, clapping a hand on Porthos' shoulder with a reassuring smile. 'It's just...' Aramis cut of his sentence as he flapped a gloved hand around as another one came closer, causing Porthos to yelp and dart to Athos' other side with a cry of 'get it away!'

'Try to relax, my friend,' Athos calmed him in a quiet voice as he watched Aramis swat it away with a smile before stepping closer to the other two men.

'But why butterflies?' the medic asked, voice light as Porthos stepped backwards, face reddening slightly, 'they're beautiful!' he added.

'Look- I'm from the Court, right? I didn't even see proper fields and grass until I was well into my childhood; we weren't exactly the day-tripping kind of community...' he said with a sigh as he stood up straighter, his voice now returning to a more Porthos-sy pitch and tone as he explained, eyes always looking around. 'One day we did leave the Court for an afternoon; it was the first time I had seen proper birds, heard the gush of a river, smelt real wild flowers,' he smiled at the memory, before his face darkened.

'I was going around this meadow, right, sniffing all the flowers, trying to work out which one I liked best and could bring a bunch home for Flea, when this massive butterfly came out of nowhere and flew straight into my face!' his voice hitched up, as did Aramis' eyebrows as he suppressed a fond smile as he imagined a child-sized Porthos scared by a butterfly.

'It actually landed on my nose! It stayed there for ages, just moving its wings!' Porthos added, feeling his legs tremble just recounting the tale.

'Why did you not swat it off?' Athos asked as he gathered the reigns of his horse.

'I didn't want to hurt it, it looked so delicate- I was crying so loud one of the others had to come and get it off!'

'Oh my friend- for a child that must've have been very scary,' Aramis nodded. He tried not to smile as another butterfly hovered closer, causing Porthos to tense, eyes squeezed shut; Athos stepped forwards and gently caught it in a gloved hand before he released it to the side with a call of 'gone.'

'What a coincidence we've come into this meadow in the middle of butterfly season!' he remarked, passing Porthos his reigns. 'Come- the sooner we ride the sooner we can get through this field.'

'You won't tell the others, will you?' Porthos asked, voice quiet as he got comfy atop his horse.

'Why do they need to know?' Athos replied as he too readied himself.

'Your secret is safe with us, my friend!' Aramis promised, putting a hand on Porthos' shoulder and squeezing lightly. 'You have our word.'

'Thanks, lads...' Porthos nodded, before ducking with a panicked yelp as a butterfly flew close to his face. 'Blasted things!' he growled, casting Aramis a glare as the other man snorted.

'Come- I will buy you a drink at the nearest tavern to take your mind off these pesky things, deal?' he smiled, before clapping Porthos on the shoulder as they started off on their journey back to Paris, leaving the meadow far, far behind them.

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