Authors note: It's October again and that can only mean Whumptober is back. I've taken the prompts (and sub prompts) from Tumblr and created a collection of one-shots and short stories for your (and my) entertainment. I will note the afflicted party(ies) at the end of each story/chapter for those that need to know to avoid spoiling it for those that like to be surprised. I hope you enjoy them. We'll start with a one-shot to ease you in.
'Are you here to break me out?'
D'Artagnan looked up. He could not work out who was silhouetted in the doorway. But whoever it was he was grateful. It could not have been easy breaking into the chateau and making their way to the cellars. He knew the key to the room they had locked him in was hanging on the waist of the Baron.
'They tried to get the intelligence from me, but I didn't say anything,' d'Artagnan continued as his rescuer walked forward a few paces.
It was Aramis who smiled at him.
'Of course, you didn't,' said his friend.
'How long have I been here?'
'Three days,' said Aramis who was crouched in front of him gently searching him for injuries.
D'Artagnan knew where his injuries were. The Baron had allowed his men to beat him several times. He might have been knocked out. He was tired. He wanted to sleep. But he would make every effort not to make it hard for Aramis to get him out.
'Have they given you anything to eat?'
D'Artagnan shook his head.
'There was water,' he replied after a few moments of thinking.
Aramis was looking at his wrists where d'Artagnan remembered the heavy-set man grabbing him and forcing his arms back. There were bruises. The bruises were bad enough that d'Artagnan could barely lift his hands.
But Aramis would have a balm or something that would help with the pain.
'Is anyone with you?'
Aramis paused before he responded, 'Athos and Porthos are keeping watch, ready to help when we get out.'
'I was caught too easily,' said d'Artagnan with a shake of his head. 'I got distracted. I think they used something to make my horse agitated. It was too easy.'
'Don't worry about that now,' said Aramis. 'We'll get you out soon enough.'
D'Artagnan wondered why they could not leave straight away.
'Are you injured?' he asked, taking in Aramis' dishevelled appearance for the first time.
His friend was not wearing his doublet and had specks of blood on his shirt. A smudge of blood around Aramis' nose and a darkening bruise around his eyes indicated he had been punched.
'It's nothing I can't handle,' Aramis replied. 'Are you able to walk?'
D'Artagnan thought about his injuries. He had been punched to the body and head. His wrists had been grabbed hard. But he did not think he had any injuries to his legs, knees or ankles.
'I think so. I don't remember walking back here,' he admitted. 'But I must have.'
Aramis smiled again. It did not reach his friend's eyes. D'Artagnan thought the smile might be one to humour him. He could not work out why.
'Are we leaving now?'
'Soon enough,' said Aramis, who moved to sit by him.
D'Artagnan realised for the first time that the door was shut again. Had Aramis shut it to hide them from prying eyes?
That had to be it.
D'Artagnan was sure.
MMMM
The thug that punched Aramis was a heavy-set young man. His meaty fist and the heft of his arm nearly knocked Aramis flat. If he was not being held firmly by two of the Baron's other thugs he would have stumbled to the floor and struggled to get back up. He blinked a few times. He tasted blood in his mouth and suspected his nose was bleeding.
Aramis was fast deciding he should not have volunteered to be the one to pretend to sneak into the chateau. The plan was a good one, but the man acting as the distraction was not going to get off lightly. They knew there was a fair chance that man would have to take some sort of beating, but Aramis now thought it might be a bit more than that.
The Baron sneered at him.
'Come to get your young friend, have you?' he said.
Aramis remained silent.
'He's not talked yet and I suspect you've had long enough service to be able to put up with a lot and therefore it will be pointless torturing you for information. And I also suspect that forcing you to watch your friend being tortured will also not encourage you to talk … '
Aramis' heart sank as he worked out what the Baron planned to do. He wondered how long it would take Athos and Porthos to enact their part of the plan and get both him and d'Artagnan out. Sooner rather than later was preferable to Aramis at that point.
' … but if we force him to watch you being tortured …'
The Baron's sneer turned into a sly grin. Dirty teeth were revealed as his thin lips pulled back. His thugs chuckled as well.
'But for now, I think we should see you reunited with your friend.'
The Baron nodded to the thugs holding Aramis who forced him forward, their tight grip leaving him no wriggle room. Aramis had no choice but to go where they wanted him.
The chateau was of a modern style. The walls were clean with no signs of wear and tear. Either the building was new or had been renovated recently. As he was marched along a corridor towards a stair that led downwards Aramis took in the paintings that lined the walls. The Baron, at various ages, appeared in most of them. He was portrayed in a more flattering and athletic manner than the reality. The portly man would not look good in the uniform of a general as he was depicted in a couple of the paintings.
The stone steps down to the cellar were worn and uneven. The renovations stopped short of enhancing the cellar and the servant's quarters. The Baron was a man who looked after himself before anyone else. And if that meant gathering intelligence to sell the Baron would not hesitate.
The thugs stopped Aramis by the first door they came to at the bottom of the steps. Aramis could see that a room had been built into the cellar, the rest of the area was open and airy. Wine racks with pristine bottles lined the walls and formed corridors. D'Artagnan was being kept in a purpose-built cell.
And Aramis was about to join him.
The Baron took a key from his belt and pushed it into a shiny lock. The stone steps might have been neglected, but the lock on the Baron's cell was well looked after. One of the thugs pulled the door open. Aramis was pushed forward a step. He spotted the thug holding the door also holding a gun, aimed squarely at Aramis' chest.
He looked into the cell. D'Artagnan looked back at him.
'Are you here to break me out?'
Aramis was shocked at the state of his friend. Blood on d'Artagnan's face and his shirt was mixed with sweat and dirt from the floor of the cell.
Aramis was given a shove into the cell. The door was closed behind him. Aramis was aware of the lock being turned, but his attention was focused on d'Artagnan. Aramis crouched in front of him.
'They tried to get the intelligence from me, but I didn't say anything.'
'Of course, you didn't,' replied Aramis.
D'Artagnan had a vacant expression. His words were slurred and his head kept lolling. Aramis was sure he had a head injury.
'How long have I been here?'
'Three days,' Aramis answered, seeing no reason to lie to his friend, despite the confusion he was suffering.
Aramis doubted d'Artagnan had the capacity to remember details at that moment.
He reached out and started to check d'Artagnan for other injuries, besides the obvious ones to his head and face.
'Have they given you anything to eat?' he asked.
D'Artagnan did not respond. He was staring into the distance. Aramis went back to looking at the injuries d'Artagnan had picked up. His wrists were black with bruises. Aramis guessed he had been grabbed by one of the thugs. He already knew how firmly the big men could grip.
D'Artagnan shook his head. Aramis looked up at him.
'There was water,' d'Artagnan said.
Aramis had to think for a moment about what d'Artagnan was talking about, then remembered his question which had been asked a few minutes before.
'Is anyone with you?'
Aramis paused before he responded, 'Athos and Porthos are keeping watch, ready to help when we get out.'
Aramis knew d'Artagnan did not realise he was a prisoner as well. D'Artagnan thought they would be leaving at any moment. Aramis knew it was pointless trying to get him to understand what was happening. His friend would not take in any information at that moment.
'I was caught too easily, I got distracted. I think they used something to make my horse agitated. It was too easy.'
D'Artagnan looked frustrated. Aramis guessed he was reliving being caught. They had found his horse a few hours into their search for him. The saddle was twisted. They had concluded it had been tampered with when d'Artagnan stopped for some lunch on his way back to Paris. The tampering was clever, it would not have been spotted by d'Artagnan until it was too late. All the Baron's thugs had to do was wait for the horse to become distressed and d'Artagnan to try to deal with the issue.
'Don't worry about that now,' said Aramis. 'We'll get you out soon enough.'
D'Artagnan leaned away a little and looked at Aramis quizzically for a few seconds as though he was seeing him for the first time.
'Are you injured?'
'It's nothing I can't handle,' Aramis replied, trying not to worry his friend.
He did not like to think about what was likely to happen if Athos and Porthos did not mount the real rescue soon. The Baron had been serious about forcing d'Artagnan to watch Aramis being assaulted. And Aramis suspected the Baron was correct, his friend would talk readily if he was watching someone else being hurt. The head injury was affecting d'Artagnan and Aramis could not trust him to continue to stay quiet.
'Are you able to walk?' he asked, trying to keep his thoughts from wandering to what might be in store for them both.
D'Artagnan looked away. Aramis wondered if he was trying to remember all the things that had happened to him.
'I think so. I don't remember walking back here. But I must have.'
Aramis tried to give d'Artagnan an encouraging smile. He was not sure how successful he was.
'Are we leaving now?' asked d'Artagnan, an oddly youthful hope in his voice.
'Soon enough,' Aramis said.
He moved to sit next to his friend, who was staring at the closed door as though noticing their escape route was closed off for the first time.
The End.
Authors note: Whumpee - D'Artagnan. Featuring Aramis (also whumped a little bit).