Part 3
The town was small so they stopped at the main square.

"Welcome to Ville D'Avray, Milady." This time Athos didn't bother opening the curtain, but knocked on the carriage door lightly. "What's this smell?" he sniffed the bittersweet air, dismounting and opening the carriage door for her.

"Lavender." Milady's hand clad in thin leather glove fit into his larger hand in rough leather glove perfectly, as she descended onto the filthy street. "They make lavender here." She stood motionless for a moment, taking the town and it's scent in. With her head thrown back slightly she was a vision in gold and black. Black boots. Gold dress. Black cape. Black hair. Golden collar sparkling with diamonds, an exquisite piece hiding the ugly reminder of the past under it.

"I shall dine alone. You sort yourself out." She was headed in the direction of one of the smaller streets a second later, but Athos followed close by.

"My duty is to guard you at all times."

"Have I mentioned the irony yet?"

"Believe me, I'm well aware of it."

"Believe you? I don't make the same mistake twice, so no thank you."

She quickened her pace, he followed suit.

"Would it be my turn to mention the irony now?"

"I let you have the last word this time if you let me have my dinner in peace. How does that sound?"

"From giving out orders to bargaining in less then ten minutes. Be careful. that royal attitude of yours is slipping Milady and I can see through the cracks. And the answer to your question is a no. I know you and what you're capable of and I'm not letting you out of my sight."

"If you can help it."

Her motion was lightning-quick, but he managed to duck and block her armed hand with his elbow, pining her to the nearest wall. The armour turned out to be a wet white cloth, now laying on the ground like a sign of someone's defeat.

"Now, Now. Poison?" He asked casually, as if there was anything casual about the situation. (Well, maybe with a number of times history repeated itself there was.)

"Sleeping draught. I would never be able to explain your death and my miraculous escape to the king. Well… maybe, but I would have to work really hard."

She twisted the last two words into him like a knife (that surely is also hidden somewhere on her). That did it for him. Well, that and her firm body pressed against his, foreign and familiar and perfect and the same time. That and the madly pulsing vein on her neck right over the precious golden collar, making him want to calm it down or maybe spur it on with his lips and tongue. That and the familiar desire burning him up from inside and angering him to no end, laughing at his futile attempts to persuade himself he was finally free of her. No, never. The truth being that he was the one trapped here, even though it was her who couldn't move an inch pressed against the wall, her hands pinned over her head by his own.

"I bet you would." He growled, fighting not to kill her or kiss her right then and there. "Don't think for one second that I will let you get on with your sordid affairs on my watch."

"I would try to avoid leaving bruises on me if I were you." she cut him off in that unflinching mocking tone of hers that sent another flash of anger rushing through him. He tried to control his breathing, to get himself together, not to let her derail him like she had always been able to in one way or another. "I doubt you'll be able to explain that at all, no matter how hard you work at it."

"Must you always resort to vulgarities?" He loosened his grip on her hands and in an instant she wiggled out of his grasp, pushing him off her roughly.

"It would seem so since they are the only things you can't come up with an indecent answer to."

"I am a gentleman."

"Well, luckily, I am not." She smirked and added, spicing her voice up with innocence: "And when did a quiet dinner become a sordid affair?"

"You don't do quiet."

Her arched eyebrow and contained smile let him know he was in for another dirty comment. The dirty comment that played out in his mind at the sight of her smug expression. The dirty comment that she didn't even have to say out loud. She didn't, seeing that the desired effect had been achieved for the price of no words.

"Fine. Have it your way." She finally relented and turned around, walking back in the direction of main square. Athos thought he noticed a trace of sadness in her voice, but he was quite sure he was imagining things.

"I would have been happy to dine at the place of your choosing, we don't have to go back." He was pretty sure she hadn't been going to a tavern before so he probed just in case. He knew there was no chance she'd tell him her plans, but he wondered what made her take on four additional hours on the road - whatever it was it must have been important enough. Not that she was getting it now, he smiled to himself. An evil smile, not very becoming, but heartfelt. This whole trip was supposed to mess with him, but so far he had managed to turn it around on her and he felt positively victorious.

"I was going to visit a friends's house. But I'm not sure that bringing your enemy over for dinner is accepted practice in this region. So now we're both going to eat in a lousy tavern, I hope you are happy to have ruined my evening."

"I'm not going to pretend otherwise."

She didn't answer and they walked in angry silence for a while. She had lied to him. Again. Visiting her friends? What kind of a fool did she think him to be?

The dim lights at the main square appeared in sight. Milady stepped into the well-lit square first, instantly colliding with someone hurrying into the small street they were just leaving.

"Oh, dear, I'm so sorry!" Someone who turned out to be a small plump woman exclaimed. What drew Athos's attention was his demon wife's reaction: instead of rolling her eyes in annoyance or letting out a demeaning comment she froze, staring at the woman intensely. And then it was the woman's turn to stare as she took in Milady's face. "Elise!" she whispered and the next thing Athos knew was that said "Elise" was wrapped up in a hug as the woman chanted: "My Dear Lord, Elise, is this really you?"

"It's me, Annabelle. It's me."

Athos couldn't see her face, but her voice sounded like she was smiling. It could even be one of those real smiles he remembered so well. He couldn't see her face so he couldn't know for sure and he really wished he didn't care to.