Chapter XXXIX

It would not do to cross the Queen when she gave orders so her wish to head back to the capital city was quickly granted. Two days after taking the decision, she was helped into her carriage with Marguerite, another servant and her two sons. Aramis could not help but worry that the journey would be too much for the newborn prince. On the other hand, he was looking forward to be reunited with his wife. His apprehension was dismissed as soon as they were on their way. The thought of Elise was all he needed to smile and not think about how royal and elegant the heir had looked when he saw him.

The Musketeers were quite attentive on the road, none of them having forgotten the attack suffered on the way to Saint-Germain. Nothing of the sort happened this time. They reached the Louvres early in the evening. They had to make several stops along the way, the baby being often displeased by the uneven road they were on.

Once the royal family was safely inside, their security was handed over to other guards, leaving the three Musketeers and their companions free to head to the Garrison. Reporting to the Captain did not take long and since Porthos was nowhere to be found in the barracks, they assumed he was somewhere else, playing cards.

"I'm not coming with you," Aramis decided after Athos stated he would go find him.

"Very well. We'll see you in the morning, then."

When he reached his house, the front door was closed. It was odd, but not surprising. Elise did not like staying by herself. Since she was not at the Garrison, she was certainly with Constance. Aramis was a bit disappointed.

The feeling faded away as he stepped into their bedchamber to change his clothes. His wife was home, sleeping. Very gently, he sat down next to her, his hand touching her swollen stomach. Aramis bent down to kiss Elise's cheek and the young woman stirred.

"You're home," she whispered, her eyes fluttering open.

"I am."

"Good." The Musketeer laughed quietly when she closed her eyes again, her hand resting on the one he had put on her belly. He lay down next to her, her head on his shoulder.

"How are you feeling?" he asked after a while.

"I've been feeling so tired lately, I haven't even made it out of the house today."

"I'm sorry to hear it. I'm here now so there's nothing to worry about. I'll take care of you." Aramis kissed her lips and he felt them stretch into a smile.

"Have I found myself a servant?"

"Absolutely. You're carrying something too precious. My baby needs his mother to be in the best shape possible."

"I love you, Aramis."

The baby kicked inside her stomach, against their hands. In his heart, his father knew it bet any night he could have spent with the Dauphin. The heir could never truly be his child whereas the one making his presence known would be able to openly call out for him without Aramis fearing any consequence.

"I love you too."

"Can you imagine we've been married for almost a year?" Elise asked. She looked up at her husband who was staring at their hands. He averted her eyes to look at her. The last year had gone by so fast. There had been so many changes in his life that it almost made his head spin. This woman had changed everything for him; she made him realize he could be happy once again. She was giving him a family.

"Time flies when you're in such excellent company."

"I did spend quite a few nice evenings with Porthos while you were away." Aramis raised an eyebrow and Elise smirked.

"Should I go and challenge him to a duel? What has he been doing to you?"

"Nothing that requires such a harsh consequence. He had some very entertaining stories to tell about you. My brother quite enjoyed them, as well." The Musketeer groaned. Elise propped herself on her elbows. She noticed how tired he looked as she traced around his eyes with her fingers.

"Half of what he said is not true."

"How could you know?"

"I know Porthos."

"That's a fair point."

She kissed his forehead, her fingers running through his hair. It was something he rather appreciated, a soothing feeling. It was a relief to be back home. Aramis wanted to stay awake and ask her everything that had happened while he was away, but he was exhausted. Sleep overtook him a few minutes later.

Elise woke up late in the morning. There was sunshine on her face, but nobody else by her side. It took her a great amount of time to find the courage and the strength to stand up from her bed. Even if she dreaded the actual process of giving birth, she could not wait for her pregnancy to be finished. Aramis was back, though, so it gave her some joy. She had been afraid that he would not return before the birth.

Slowly, she made her way downstairs but the house was so silent, she knew she was by herself. She had slept for too long and even though Aramis had wanted to wait, there were other duties awaiting him elsewhere.

Elise nibbled on a piece of bread, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. Food was not something that tasted or smelled appealing to her lately. The sickness was once again part of her routine so she had been content with staying at home these past days. Usually, it was her brother or Constance coming to keep her company. Yet, knowing that Aramis was probably at the Garrison today, it did not sound like such a bad prospect to make the walk. It took her quite some time and when she reached the Garrison's gates, the familiar sounds of fencing and horses comforted her. At least she would have some other sort of distraction here.

Putting one hand on the wall, the young woman watched as Christophe engaged in a fierce fight against Porthos. The older Musketeer was giving him no chance to actually win, yet she was pleased to witness how much her brother had improved. There was some hope for him after all. It was amazing for Elise to realize how much he had grown and changed this past year. He knew he could not outdo the other, still he was putting all his heart in it, barely flinching at the insults raining on him. She would never thank Aramis and his friends enough for their work.

After a couple more minutes, Christophe was disarmed and stuck between the stable wall and the tip of Porthos' sword.

"Not bad," the Musketeer decided, sheathing his weapon and wiping his brow. It was already very hot in Paris. "It must have lasted five more minutes than the previous one. You did quite a good job with this one, Aramis." His friend tipped his hat at the compliment. He was reclining on a chair in the shade.

"You should be careful or else the roles will soon be reversed," Elise chimed in, making her presence known. Porthos dismissed the thought with a wave of his hand.

"I could bet my horse that it will not happen in the foreseeable future."

"I could take you up on that offer," Aramis warned as he stood up to walk to his wife. His eyes roamed her body and her face, quickly examining her.

In the morning, he had woken up a long time before her, his body used to his routine in Saint-Germain. It was dark outside and he had not wanted to wake his wife up so he had stayed in bed, watching her sleep. Her slumber was not as peaceful as his had been. Finding a comfortable position seemed to be an impossible task. Moreover, her face regularly contorted as if she was in pain. It was with a sinking heart that he had not waited for her to awake.

As he looked at her now, she did not seem in such a bad shape. Her hair was longer than he remembered and barely brushed. It was still very pretty, being tied up in a loose braid over her shoulder. However, she was rather pale and he could never be too careful. He had somewhat lost a child already, so he was not going to take any chance this time.

"Shouldn't you be resting at home?"

"It is never a bad thing to breathe some fresh air. I'll be fine. Don't worry." Elise smiled.

"Have you eaten anything? You do not look so good to me."

"I am fine, Aramis. I promise," she repeated. She did not want to alarm him because there was nothing he could do to ease the sickness anyway. There was a lot on his mind already, she reminded herself as she twined her hands around his neck. It was a strange sight for her to see that his necklaces were not there anymore. As far as she could remember, Elise had always seen them on him, up until he returned from Saint-Germain last winter.

The Musketeer held her by the waist, not completely satisfied with the answer.

"Will you stop pestering this poor woman? She told you she was fine!" Porthos shouted from the other side of the courtyard. Christophe was getting ready to start another duel.

"Mind your own business!" Aramis shouted back. "Elise..."

"I want to be with you if you do not have to go anywhere else. I've missed you. Is it such a bad thing?"

"Probably not. I am quite irreplaceable after all," he conceded after a short while. Her smile looked genuine and apart from her white complexion, nothing else seemed out of place. Besides, he would indeed feel better if she was nearby. The soldier bent down to kiss her as fencing resumed behind him. "The King wishes to meet some boatmen in the afternoon so I must accompany him. You know how greatly fond of me he is," he muttered the last part. Elise did recall a few complaints her husband had made about the King's attitude. Even though she did not think it was wise to make them, it often made her feel sorry for Aramis. "You can stay here until I have to leave and we'll find someone to take you home."

The young woman happily agreed and spent the following hours sitting in the courtyard, watching Porthos, Aramis, and eventually d'Artagnan when he joined them, practice against her brother. It was a wonder he could still stand up after all the blows he had suffered. As amazing as it sounded, Christophe actually liked it.

Every time he could rest, Aramis would press her to eat and drink. Elise forced herself to do so, but the pain was almost overwhelming her. She was thankful she was sitting down or the dizziness might have been too much. It was too hot, even in the shade.

She was grateful when Porthos and Aramis packed their things to head to the Palace, leaving her with her brother. Lying down on her bed sounded like perfection to her now.

The King had rather enjoyed his excursion along the Seine, despite his constant whining that the air smelled putrid and that there were too many flies. The streets of Paris were hardly as healthy as any of the Palaces he occupied. Content with his transactions, he spent the entire ride back talking about his next hunting party. Aramis had to dismount in order to walk by the carriage door so he could hear all the details. There was no precise date yet so he hoped it would not be too soon. For one, he was not looking forward to re-enacting what happened to him during their last hunting party the previous year. Morever, leaving Elise would certainly be too difficult for him, especially these days.

The two Musketeers were thankful to be back at the Garrison, later in the evening.

"You'll have to tell me what happened between the King and you while we were in Saint-Germain. It is almost as if he cannot make a decision without you by his side," Porthos joked as they unsaddled the horses. His friend rolled his eyes.

"I wish he would forget me. It is beyond tiring to have a conversation with him. I never know if I am going to offend him or not. He can be so...unpredictable."

"It is a nice change to see that he is able to appreciate us, though."

"Would you like to switch positions with me?" Aramis asked, laughing when he saw Porthos raise an eyebrow.

"Not for a hundred livres! Absolutely not. I'd rather spend my time drinking and playing cards. Come on. She's made it two weeks without you, she'll make it one more night," he added when he noticed her friend hesitate. It had been months since they were able to go out for drinks together so Porthos was not going to take "no" for an answer tonight.

"I suppose I can come for an hour or two," the soldier agreed reluctantly. Elise was stubborn and if she found out he had declined the offer to be by her side, she might get angry. Somewhat he feared this more than his friend's disappointment.

They found Athos and d'Artagnan sitting at their usual table. After a few drinks, Aramis managed to make himself believe that Elise would be fine without him for the night and his problems were dimmed by the alcohol. There were banter and laughter, ludicrous comments and loud jests. It felt like old times, he decided, sitting back down with yet another bottle of wine.

He had forgotten his first decision to merely stay a couple of hours. Porthos was telling a story about some woman he had met the week before and even Athos could not help but smile at the description he was sketching. Aramis was somehow slouching on the table, laughing every few seconds, much like d'Artagnan was doing. Then, there was someone tucking on his sleeve.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, squinting until he recognized one of his neighbours' sons. "You should not come to such places."

"My mother sent me," the young boy replied, taking in his surroundings. "It's Madame Elise. You must come with me, Maman said."