Aramis made Remy stay in bed all day, much to Remy's annoyance. He did consider getting up anyway, but his clothes weren't in the room, so unless he wanted to run naked through the barracks, there wasn't much he could do. Porthos played cards with him for a while, and Athos decided it was as good a place as any to catch up on some paperwork, so it wasn't so bad. And the following day, he felt a lot better, so maybe Aramis had been right. He was laid in bed, staring at the ceiling, when Athos came in.

"You had breakfast?"

Remy nodded. "Yes, thanks, Porthos brought it. Can I get up now? I'm bored."

Athos smiled. "Aramis said you were pestering him to let you up. Alright, you can get up, but if you feel tired or in pain, straight back to bed. Deal?"

"Deal," agreed Remy, eagerly.

Athos put the bundle he was carrying on the bed. "I got your pants fixed up, but your shirt was beyond repair. I managed to find another one in your size."

Remy looked through the bundle, noting the new patch on the knee of his pants, and pulled out the shirt. It was clean and much less frayed than his old one had been. Remy grinned, then frowned.

"I'll pay you back, and for getting me out of jail too. Not sure how or when, but I will."

Athos raised his eyebrows questioningly.

Remy shrugged. "I know you paid the guards to let me out. I thought they were supposed to let us out if we were claimed though."

Athos chuckled. "I could hardly claim you legitimately, could I, so yes, a few coins changed hands. You can pay me back by doing some jobs for me."

Remy nodded and grinned. "Ok."

"Now, get dressed ... slowly please. It took some convincing for Aramis to approve of you getting out of bed. I'll be the one he gets mad at if you hurt yourself by trying to do too much, too soon."

Remy was bored. He'd played cards with Porthos, draughts with Athos, and Aramis had tried to teach him chess. Completely unsuccessfully. They wouldn't let him help Jasper or stray too far from one of them, and it was starting to annoy him. He was used to doing what he wanted, when he wanted to. He sat quietly, occasionally kicking the table leg, wondering how much more of this he could take.

"The Captain is back." Aramis was staring out of the window. Remy's heart skipped a beat and his stomach dropped. He was convinced that the Captain would take a dim view of his recent exploits, and the fact that one of his Musketeers has rescued him from jail. Athos read all that in his face and ruffled his hair reassuringly.

"Come on. Let's go do some explaining."

Remy stared around the Captain's office. It had a massive oak desk, littered with piles of papers, with a chair either side of it, as well as several other chairs around the room, a couple of cupboards, and two large tables, one of which was covered in a map of the city, and the other with manuscripts and books. There were also a couple of bookcases, full of books of varying sizes. Remy wasn't sure he'd ever seen that many books in one place before. The Captain was sat behind his desk. Athos was perched on the edge of the desk, and Remy was stood facing the Captain.

The Captain sighed. "So, let me get this straight. You were in the middle of a fight that you didn't want any part of."

Remy nodded. "Yes, Sir."

"And when you tried to leave, you got hit by a Red Guard."

"Yes, Sir."

The Captain stared at the bruise on the side of Remy's head, and then looked to Athos. "Rifle butt?"

Athos nodded. "Apparently so."

"Witnesses?"

"Several. All in my report."

"Which is quite lengthy, and I will read it thoroughly, later. And his other injuries."

"Kicked in the ribs a few times, and someone stood on his hand, possibly accidentally."

"Anything broken?"

"No, though more by luck than judgement."

"And do we have a name for this Red Guard?"

"Romaine."

The Captain whistled. "Are you sure?"

"Remy described him perfectly, and at least six other people confirmed it."

"Well, I'd say he's gone too far this time."

Athos inclined his head to one side. "I agree, but Romaine is one of the Red's chosen ones. The word of a couple of street rats and stall holders against a Red Guard may not carry enough weight."

The Captain scratched his chin. "There may be a way, if you're willing to help, Remy."

Remy was confused, but nodded. "Yes, Sir."

Remy dismounted from his horse and was momentarily confused as a stable boy took the reins from him. The Captain chuckled.

"Come on, Remy. Stay close."

Treville led the way through a bewildering succession of corridors, until they came to a small room with a view through an open doorway to a courtyard. This was apparently the barracks of the Red Guards, if the amount of Red Guards draped around the place was any indication, but it was vastly different to the Musketeers courtyard. There was a rather impressive water fountain in the middle of the courtyard, formal flower beds to each side amid neatly manicured lawns, and a tree in each of the far corners. The guards were standing around in small groups, apparently admiring their fancy uniforms and hats. None of them were sparring the way the Musketeers did, seemingly preferring to fence to one side of the courtyard, in the shade of one of the wings.

"Alright, Remy, take your time. See if the Red Guard that hit you is out there."

Remy scanned the courtyard slowly. "Over by the fountain, eating."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. Right height and build. Can't be two people with that beard and moustache combination. And he laughs the same too. Throws his head back so you can see right up his nose."

The Captain nodded. "Wait here, Remy."

Treville strode confidently into the courtyard and was met with a few jeers from the Red Guards. He ignored them and walked over to the far side, where a portly man was sat in a chair with his legs stretched out comfortably. Remy couldn't hear what they said, but the red guard he'd pointed out was glancing their way with some concern.

"Romaine. Join us, will you?" Although it was phrased as a question, the tone left no doubt that it was an order. Romaine swaggered over. Remy could make out a few words as the discussion got more heated, and it was definitely about the incident at the docks. The Captain was certain Romaine had been at fault, and Romaine was protesting his innocence.

"Remy, come here please." Treville shot him a quick reassuring smile.

Remy took a deep breath and walked steadily across the courtyard to the Captain's side, trying to look more confident than he felt. He was convinced that every Red Guard was staring at him intently, waiting for him to trip up so they could laugh.

"Remy, is this the man that hit you with his rifle butt?" Treville was staring at Romaine, who tried to look nonchalant.

"Yes, Sir."

"How can you be sure?" The portly man looked vaguely amused.

Remy considered the best way to answer. "Well, there aren't that many people with a beard that pointed and a moustache that twirly. Does he have a hat?"

The man frowned. "A hat? Why?"

Remy shrugged. "Well, if he does, I'm willing to bet it's black, with a large brim that has a slight cut to the left side above the eye, and a massive red feather that's way too big for it."

The man stared at him, then roared with laughter. "Romaine, where is your hat."

Romaine was currently looking a little uncertain. "In the barracks, I believe, Sir."

"Well, fetch it. Let's see if the boy has described it correctly."

"That wouldn't prove a thing, Sir. He may have seen my hat at any point in time. And, if I may speak frankly, Sir, this is ridiculous. I was nowhere near the docks that day."

"Hmm. Yes, I see your point. Just because the boy can describe Romaine does not mean Romaine was at the docks that day, or that he struck the boy. So, Treville, do you have any other proof?"

The Captain stroked his chin in thought. Romaine glared evilly at Remy and adjusted his jacket. Remy caught sight of the knife in his belt and grinned.

"How about if he has my knife in his belt?" asked Remy, looking the large man directly in the eye.

"Your knife, boy?"

"Yes, Sir. I had it with me at the docks, but I haven't seen it since. I assumed it was lost. Maybe not, though."

The mans eyes narrowed and he sat upright. "Describe this knife."

Remy held his hands about eight inches apart. "About this big. The handle is the same length as the blade. Blackened wood wrapped in leather, fraying a little at the hilt. I keep meaning to get that replaced. The blade has a scratch in it, about a third of the way down on the back."

The man nodded. "Well, Romaine, there is no way he can know all that unless he's held the knife in his hands and examined it closely. Give me the knife."

"Sir, I must protest …"

"Protest all you like. Give me the knife."

Romaine glared at Remy, but handed the knife to his Captain. The Red's Captain turned it over in his hands, examining it closely."

"A good knife, boy, and exactly as you described it. How can I be sure it's yours, though?"

"I can give you my word that it's his," confirmed Treville. "I've seen him using it, in our stables, when working on a horse a few days before the incident at the docks."

"Care to explain, Romaine?"

Romaine spluttered a little. "I'm not sure I can, Sir."

"Hmm. So, Treville, you tell me one of your men paid to get the boy out of jail?"

"Yes, Bouchert. We had to fix up his injuries and buy him a new shirt as well. We also lost several days work from him as a result."

"Well, this seems to belong to you, boy." Bouchert handed Remy his knife. "And I believe some compensation is in order, Romaine."

Romaine glowered, but produced a few coins and handed them to Treville.

Treville looked at him, completely unimpressed. "That almost covers the cost of the shirt."

Romaine muttered under his breath, but handed over some more coins.

"Hmm. That just about covers the jail fees."

Romaine glowered, but handed over yet more coins. Treville nodded, apparently satisfied.

"Thank you, Romaine. Bouchert, a pleasure as always. Come on, Remy. Best we leave before we outstay our welcome."

He turned and strode out of the courtyard, with Remy close on his heels. Once back in the small room, he stopped and patted Remy gently on the shoulder.

"Well done, Remy. You never mentioned losing your knife."

"I honestly thought it was lost. I never thought that someone might have stolen it, let alone a Red Guard. Good job he did, though."

The Captain chuckled. "True. Alright, let's go give Athos his money."

"He just paid up?" Athos looked surprised.

Treville smiled. "Well, with a little persuasion. Here you are, Remy."

The Captain handed some coins to Remy, who blinked at him.

"Compensation, Remy," explained Treville. "For loss of earnings."

Remy grinned. "I wouldn't have earned that much. It was almost worth it."

Athos rolled his eyes.

The Captain chuckled. "So, I'm told you're looking for a job and a place to sleep."

Remy looked a little uncertainly at Athos, whose face was impassive and unreadable. "Yes, Sir."

"Well, Lucas rarely turns up at weekends, so how about you work here weekends, and help out at other times if Jasper is over worked, and in return you get to carry on sleeping in the room you've been in for the last week."

Remy's face lit up. "Seriously?"

"Seriously. I expect that room to be kept neat and tidy, though. And I'll make sure the kitchens know to feed you from time to time as well. Do we have a deal?"

Remy grinned broadly. "Yes, Sir."

Treville threw a coin at Athos, who caught it deftly. "And get his knife fixed. The handle needs rebinding."