Author's Note: Dear Readers, I am reporting back to you by presenting a short one-shot about things that could have been...

I have been very busy in the past few weeks publishing my first book in English! I am very proud of that and if you are curious, take a look at the annotation at the end of this story.

I look forward to feedback!

Two Creatures of the Cardinal

The weather in Brussels was grey. There was no other way to describe it, because the sky had been covered in dark clouds for days and the sun didn't creep out just for a single moment. It was raining cats and dogs, and the elders said that the last time they had experienced such a bad summer was many years ago. However, they could not agree on whether this was in 1602 or already in 1599.

The exact date did not matter to the monsieur and madame who were sitting at a table under the window in a room of "The Golden Stag" tavern. They were not in the town to enjoy the panorama and the good air or to explore the delightful little alleys and show booths. No, they had been sent on behalf of the first minister of France. Not officially, though, and what exactly each of them had to do in Brussels, only they themselves knew.

In front of them was a chess set placed conspicuously dominated by the white pieces, which were slowly but surely putting the black king in dire straits. Just at this moment, the dame lifted one of her delicate hands to pull the white queen a few squares. A smile played around her lips and made the woman look even more beautiful. Her face was framed by brunette curls that fell gently to her shoulders and her strange sea-green eyes now flashed with triumph as she said, "Check."

Her counterpart startled up and turned his gaze away from the window to the game board. He frowned slightly and reached out a hand to keep his king safe. It remained indecisively over the bishop.

The smile on the woman's face did not change. Proudly and aloofly, she waited for the other's move, who now looked up and scrutinised her inquiringly before placing his pawn without looking at the board.

She did not look at the chess set either. "Two moves, Rochefort, and I will checkmate you."

The man addressed as Rochefort did not indicate with any gesture whether this announcement worried him in any way. In fact, his thoughts seemed to be miles away, so that the outcome of the game was of no concern to him. "Your turn, Milady."

He looked out the window again. The rain was lashing against the panes, thick drops were running down incessantly and it was gurgling in the gutter. It was an uncomfortably weather all through and although it was only afternoon, they had already had to light candles in the room. The light reflected in the windows, as did the silhouettes of the two persons.

Milady's twin in the pane sat thoughtfully engrossed in the game. But suddenly she raised her head and her gaze met Rochefort's. For a moment they held each other captive, then the stable master turned away.

"What are you thinking about?" The woman's voice might sounded soft and almost understanding as she too looked away from the reflection. Anyone who did not know His Eminence's female agent would have entrusted all his little secrets to her when she spoke in that way while tilting her head a little so that her slender neck was even more accentuated. Her eyes were so convincingly able to feign innocence and naivety that she hardly needed to use her physical charms - and if she did, her opponent was lost right from the beginning.

"Of the next move," replied Rochefort with an uninterpretable expression, but after an overly long pause.

"Yours or mine?"

"Both."

"I shall win, you know that."

"Quite possibly."

Milady's noncommittal smile didn't vanish, however tersely her counterpart's answers were. "Your turn."

Rochefort fell silent and randomly picked a chess piece.

"Are you sure?"

"This one, or another. It does not matter." Rochefort placed the black rook and leaned back. The game was lost for him anyway, why delay it? The rain outside seemed to have become even heavier, for now the wind was also howling through the streets, penetrating every crack, every crevice. The candles flickered.

"In one move then." The white queen took the rook, placed herself almost provocatively out of reach directly in front of the bishop, which was not allowed to move forward, and again threatened the black king. "Checkmate."

For a moment Rochefort contemplated the line-up on the board. Then he knocked over his king, which rolled slightly to the side."You won, Milady."

"It was bound happen. White was in the advantage all the time."

"Yes, I suppose it was."

Milady propped her chin lightly on one hand and eyed the stable master. Something in her expression changed almost imperceptibly. Her smile seemed to become a little more genuine, her gaze less haughty. "Do you wish a rematch?"

"With you as my opponent?" Rochefort raised an eyebrow. "You wish to see me lose again? That is cruel, Milady."

"How, if not as an opponent, could I play against you?"

"Indeed. How else?"

"Monsieur?" Confusion settled on the woman's face, and a little more attentively than before she studied the stable master, who did not avoid her gaze, but now sighed. "No rematch, I concede defeat. I cannot win against you, nor with you together-"

"Together, what?"

Rochefort fell silent for a moment. Then a thin smile appeared on his lips as well. "Chess is two people playing against each other. We cannot contest it together, for that would be against all rules."

"When would you ever have cared about rules, Rochefort?" Milady's laugh sounded cheerful, but also uncertain, as if she had to struggle to do so.

"Rarely, that's true. But in this case I will stick to it."

"What a pity. Together we would surely beat any opponent."

"Even ourselves?" Rochefort asked seriously and quietly, almost inaudibly, so that Milady's confusion grew even more. She stood up and took a few steps away from the table, as if she now needed to get some exercise after sitting for so long. At the door she finally came to a halt and turned around once more.

"No, not ourselves..." she finally confessed just as quietly and seriously.

Rochefort turned back to the window and watched in the pane as Milady left the room.

The End

Dear readers and fans of the Musketeers,

I am so excited to tell you about the publication of my story 'The Cardinal's Red Lily'!

The work of Alexandre Dumas is legally considered 'in the public domain', so it is possible to publish your own stories as an (e-)book. Of course, this does not apply to the BBC series! 'The Cardinal's Red Lily' refers solely to 'The Three Musketeers' by Alexandre Dumas and does not affect the copyright of any other works.

The story might sound familiar, I wrote it as a regular fanfiction and then revised it as a proper novel.

The e-book will soon be available in all online bookshops. The easiest way to find it is at Amazon:

ISBN 9783754123485

You can also find a reading sample of the first chapters there.

I would also like to thank the community very much for the reviews I received for the fanfiction version, which encouraged me to take the plunge and publish the novel! Thank you for your continued support!

Yours sincerely

Stromi