Part Two
DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything.
As soon as they get the lone survivor back to Paris, Athos is dispatched to find a doctor. He asks why the garrison surgeon can't help Aramis.
"Aramis is the surgeon," replies Treville, his face heavy and as grey as the sky. "He's as close as we can get to one."
Athos cannot find the local physician, but his apprentice is there – a gentle-faced man with a calm demeanour. He follows Athos back to the garrison and immediately sets about tending the wounded Musketeer.
"He keeps askin' for someone called Marsac." Porthos hasn't left Aramis' side since they returned.
Athos vaguely remembers the name, but cannot put a face to it. Then he realises something. "Did you bandage his head?"
Porthos shakes his head. "No."
"Neither did I."
xxx
Both Athos and Porthos continue to visit Aramis as he recovers. The apprentice physician is clearly a skilled surgeon, but he cannot bring Aramis back to consciousness. He can only heal him physically. When Lemay leaves, his face is full of sadness and regret.
Athos does not blame him – or hold him accountable.
xxx
Someone bandaged Aramis' head; when they were finished, they ran away and left Aramis alone in the snow. Athos doubts that whoever murdered the other Musketeers was responsible for that. That only leaves one person.
"Was a man named Marsac sent to Savoy?" he asks Treville. He doesn't know why that name seems synonymous with the bandage.
"Yes."
"Is he among the dead?"
"No," Treville replies. "He and Aramis are friends."
Athos notices his choice of words. "You think he's still alive."
"I do."
For the first time in months, something stirs inside Athos' heart that isn't grief. It's anger.
Marsac left Aramis. He left his friend in the forest, surrounded by corpses of their fellow Musketeers. Aramis could have frozen or bled to death. What kind of coward…
A figure in a white dress enters Athos' mind. A noose is around the slender neck.
He closes his eyes.
xxx
Two days later, Aramis opens his eyes. He emerges into the daylight, slowly and shakily.
Athos watches him. He glances to his right and sees Porthos standing there, eyes fixed on the solitary figure.
Together, they approach him.
Author's Note: It was obvious that Aramis was good friends with Marsac before Savoy, but that Athos and Porthos weren't. I have a headcanon that the three of them befriended each other properly after the Savoy massacre.
Hope you enjoyed it!