Sorry it has been a while since I posted but I hope this extra long chapter will make up for it!
It was late morning when Porthos finally woke. The sun's dull light spreading a light glow that was comforting compared to the harsh light he had been forced to endure the day before. Porthos could feel his skin blistered and raw beneath his shirt and flinched slightly at the thought of the torture he had had to endure to keep his kings secrets safe. So far there had been know sign of Kiron or his men and so Porthos had spent most his time shifting from one position to the other trying to survey his surroundings and look for any way to escape.
Suddenly the door opened and was quickly closed behind the person who entered it. Porthos couldn't help but let a grin come across his face. The blond haired women came forward carrying her tray again. Carefully she knelt down next to him and gently removed his shirt to reveal the red scorched skin. She then dipped a cloth into the bowl and slowly put it against his skin. A great gasp of relief suddenly escaped from him and Porthos couldn't stop himself from instinctively shivering as the ice-cold water ran down his chest. Gradually the women moved the cloth from one burnt part to another, slowly relieving his pain.
As she worked Porthos let his lay back against the wall and closed his eyes. The out of the blue, the woman began to hum. It was a sad but lifting song, one that Porthos had heard before, but he could never quite remember the lyrics. He opened his eyes to find the women's glassy blue ones looking straight back at him. 'That song, I know it, where's it from?' He asked taking her hand. A look of sadness seemed to pass across her face. She took a deep breath, pulled her hand from his and with a shake of her head she spoke. 'You really don't remember do you Porthos?'. And with that question, memories began rushing back.
'Hey mongrel, get back here'. Porthos could feel his heart racing as the sped through the streets of Paris, the boys following hot on his heals. All he had done was accidentally run into one of the rich boys and knock him into the mud. Then suddenly he had been on the ground being punched, kicked and spat on. When he had seen his escape he had quickly taken it and fled through the city hoping to lose them but the boys were quick and he could feel his ribs rattling where he had been repeatedly kicked. Swiftly he took a right turn, zig zagging through the stalls and carts that lined the street, trying to shake the young nobles off but they were just as swift and clever.
'Look there he goes' one of them yelled 'Stop him!' another one shouted and suddenly hands were reaching out, trying to grasp him. Panicked Porthos spurred himself towards an empty alleyway, knocking over a cart of melons as he went. Porthos couldn't help let out a little chuckle as a squelching sound accompanied by a loud cursing told him that the melons had caught their intended target. Looking back he saw the young nobles looking red faced and sweating as they rounded the corner. But what he saw when his attention turned back to where he was going made his heart sink. It was a dead end. The alleyway he had hung all his hope on was blocked by a tall wall.
Porthos ran his hand along the wall, trying to find some kind of grip that he could use to climb up and out of the ally. 'There's no escape now mongrel' Turning he saw the nobles slowly drawing towards him. 'You are going to pay for what you did' he leader growled, his face dark and angry. Like a trapped animal Porthos frantically began looking around for some kind of way out. His sharp eyes quickly spied a pile of boxes stacked up against the wall to the right of him. Although they looked unstable and a fall from that height would most likely break his neck, Porthos knew from the look on the nobles face that it was his best option.
Quickly he jumped towards them and began to scramble up them. The leader let out a snarl like an animal and race towards him as Porthos climbed higher and higher towards the roof of the house. His was just about to grab onto the side of the roof when the boxes were pulled away from beneath him. Suddenly Porthos found himself falling. It was as though time slowed, one minute he was plummeting to the ground, the next thing he knew he was hanging in the air with two hands wrapped tightly around his wrist.
Looking up Porthos let out a gasp of surprise, above him stood a young girl with great locks of bright gold hair that was blowing wildly in the wind. She stood, feet plastered to the edge of the roof, face screwed up as she strained to keep him from falling to the ground below. Beneath him Porthos could hear the young nobles shouting and cursing at the girl, telling her to let him drop but she ignored them and slowing began to try and pull Porthos up, grunting with the effort. As soon as he was able to, he grabbed the side of the roof and pulled himself up. As soon as his weight was removed the girl collapsed onto the roof panting and Porthos sat next to her gasping for air whilst trying to slow down his hurriedly beating heart.
Suddenly there was a commotion below them and Porthos looked down to see a ladder being placed up against the roof. At this he let out an exasperated gasp. Don't these nobles ever give up? A hand grabbed his and Porthos found himself being dragged to his feet by the girl. Swiftly she began to run across the roof, dragging Porthos with her. As they neared the edge and the girl didn't slow down Porthos began to worry. She picked up speed and Porthos could feel her body tensing and so did the same and suddenly they leapt across the gap that separated one of the houses from another. Porthos looked down just in time to them pass over the ally way before they landed on the other side. The girls' landing was graceful, it was obvious that she had done this before but for Porthos the landing was rough and he stumbled slightly.
Quickly she helped him up and they were off again. Racing across the rooftops of Paris, jumping alleyways and scrambling across balconies until finally they came to a stop above what appeared to an alleyway that had been blocked off at both ends. There the girl quickly shimmed down a drain pipe and leapt elegantly to the ground before beckoning Porthos to follow. Carefully he made his way to the ground and couldn't help the feeling of relief that came across him when his feet hit the ground.
Cautiously he quickly surveyed his surroundings. The cornered off street was obviously the mysterious girls home. Already there appeared to be a warm fire burning, which cast a soft glow onto the cold stonewalls, and surrounding it were pots and pans that seemed to be used for cooking. Nearby there were some furs lying on the floor which took the appearance of some kind of bed and next to it lay a pile of old, worn out looking clothes. What did surprise Porthos though was what appeared to a bow and some quivers lying next to a few apparently full water skins. It was at this point that Porthos finally looked at his savoir. She appeared to be about his age, whatever that was, and just a little smaller then him. The clothes she wore were baggy compared to her lean physic and her hair hung down past her shoulders. She appeared to be wearing some kind of chain but whatever was on the end of it was hidden inside her shirt. The girl's eyes were a sharp blue but when she looked at him he felt only kind warmth.
Beckoning him over she unclipped a dagger in a sheathe that appeared to have been fastened to her leg. Slowly Porthos crept over and seated himself by the fire, enjoying its warmth. 'You hungry' she asked and Porthos nodded but when he was handed the bread he accepted it cautiously, his Court instincts reminding him that there was usually a price to pay for charity. In the end hunger got the better of him and he wolfed it down. The girl sat opposite him, the fires refection dancing in her eyes. 'What's your name?' she finally asked. 'Porthos' he grunts, mid mouthful. 'What's yours?' She pauses for a minute before answering. 'Alexandria, but most people call me Alex, it's easier to remember'. She grins at me, her face lighting up for a second before creasing into a frown.
'Why did they call you mongrel?' Porthos looked up, anger and embarrassment filling inside of him. 'They called me a mongrel because I'm black, because I'm different to them' he growled. 'Then they do not see what I see, a boy like me fighting to survive on the streets of Paris,' Porthos looked at her face expecting to see mirth in her eyes but instead saw only anger and hatred. 'You should not let them get to you Porthos, you should always be proud of where you have come from'. 'That's easy for you to say' he huffed fumbling with his shirt. When the Alex didn't speak Porthos looked up and the look on her face made him feel ashamed. 'I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be offensive, you're just trying to help'. 'It's ok, hey would you like me to stop that?' indicating to Porthos' arm where a trickle of blood appeared to be running sluggishly.
Nodding Porthos made his way round the fire and settled down next to her. Alex reached for a bag next to her and brought out a bandage and a cloth. Carefully she rolled up his sleeve and began to clean the wound, as she did she began to sing softly under her voice.
À la claire fontaine m'en allant promener
J'ai trouvé l'eau si belle que je m'y suis baigné.
Sous les feuilles d'un chêne, je me suis fait sécher.
Sur la plus haute branche, un rossignol chantait.
Chante, rossignol, chante, toi qui as le cœur gai.
Tu as le cœur à rire… moi je l'ai à pleurer.
J'ai perdu mon amie sans l'avoir mérité,
Pour un bouton de rose que je lui refusai…
Je voudrais que la rose fût encore au rosier,
Et que ma douce amie fût encore à m'aimer.
The song was sad and slow but it was also beautiful 'There all finished' Alex said once the bandage was wrapped tightly around Porthos arm. 'That song, what's is it ?'. 'It's an old lullaby that my mother used to sing to me before she….before she died.' 'A la claire fontaine, she used to call it.' Alex smiled and Porthos couldn't help but smile back. 'You should get some rest, it's late and you look tired.' At this she grabbed a blanket and draped it around his shoulders. Slowly Porthos let sleep take him and he slipped into oblivion.
That was the first time Porthos met her. The next morning he had left and joined up with Flea and Charon again but he had never stopped thinking about this mysterious girl. Though he tried many times Porthos had never found her home again but he didn't have to, as she would always find him. During his time growing up in the Court Alex taught him many things that he couldn't have learnt on the streets of Paris. One time she took him out of Paris and to the woods surrounding it.
There she taught him the art of hunting using a bow and arrow as well as how to skin and gut animals. It was from her that he had learnt how to make a meal out of the simplest of things you could find in wood. She had also shown him that you did have to steal to get by. Although she kept some of the prey she killed, she sold the rest and bought supplies such a furs and water skins. Porthos never really got the hang of learning medicine but whenever he was injured Alex would fix him up and make him better and at night in the woods when the darkness and openness was getting to him, she would sing her lullaby.
When Treville came to invite him to join the musketeers Flea and Charon negativity had almost persuaded him to not to accept the offer but Alex had told him that it was a once in a life time opportunity to do some good in the world. She had stood by him and his decision to leave and had even accompanied him the barracks, promising that she would visit him every once in a while but once they had waved goodbye Porthos never saw her again. Until now.
'Alex' gently he brought his hand to her cheek, 'what happened?' Sighing, she took a deep breath whilst taking hold of his hand. 'Not long after I left you I was hunting in the woods when I was ambushed by Kiron and his men and they brought me here. I have been a prisoner here ever since'. 'Why didn't you try and escape?' She let out an exasperated cry. 'You don't think I didn't try! Kiron would just send the dogs after me and eventually I would be brought back kicking and screaming and then I would be punished'. At this she indicated to and old burn mark on her shoulder. Porthos felt rage building up inside him. How dare Kiron treat her like this, like a slave! 'I'm sorry Porthos, I …I have to go.' Quickly she squeezed his hand and let it drop. Hurriedly she gathered up and made her way to the door. 'Alex' she stopped and turned back to look at him. 'We will get out of here, I promise.' She nods and he saw a flash of hope in her eyes before she turned and quickly left.
À la claire fontaine
By the clear fountain, going for a walk
I found the water so clear I had to bathe.
Under the oak's leaves, I lay and dried.
On the highest bough, a nightingale sang.
Sing, nightingale, sing, you of the joyous heart.
Your heart is to laugh, mine is to cry.
I lost my friend, which I didn't deserve,
To a rosebud I kept from her...
Were the rose still on the bush,
And my friend still loving me.