Disclaimer: The Musketeers are not mine. I'm just borrowing the concepts and characters for a little while.

Spoilers: 2.01 Keep Your Friends Close

A/N: The short scene where d'Artagnan turned his horse back after hearing the gunfire really stuck out to me, so naturally I had to write something about it. My 100th story - I hope you enjoy!

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"You're not dead then."

"Not even close."

~~~~ d'Artagnan & Porthos, 2.01 Keep Your Friends Close

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When he hears the echo of gunfire from behind him, d'Artagnan's heart plummets into his stomach and his head fills with equal parts dread and panic.

He turns his horse around, his heart demanding he go back. His friends are in danger and he needs to help them, wants to be there for them.

Then, in the back of his head, he hears the orders that Athos gave him, and what he was to do if anything should go wrong. Athos had trusted him to scout ahead, trusted him to complete their mission at all costs, and he didn't have it in him to knowingly disappoint the older man.

Their friendship had been hard-won, their reliance on each other in the field more so; he would do his duty – it was the only thing he could do now.

With a heavy heart, he resumes his trek towards the prison where de Foix is being held, his mind alternately on the road ahead and on the final two, delayed gunshots he'd heard. Had his friends prevailed or had he heard the last of them being executed?

As d'Artagnan rides, his thoughts go back in time to the night his father had been murdered. The echo of those gunshots still haunted his dreams, especially on stormy nights. He hopes that the ones he'd heard only minutes ago are not portents of his friends' deaths. He prays to God that the sounds he turned his back on don't end up becoming another set of nightmares he is plagued with.

His heart is back with Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, but he must keep his head in the here and now. His friends and his King and his country are all depending on him to succeed or die trying.

Doubts creep in to every corner of his being the farther away he gets from his friends and the closer he gets to the prison. He is a lone Musketeer up against a prison full of guards and soldiers. Can he even find a way to get within the walls without alerting anyone to his presence?

If he were to find de Foix, but find it impossible to get the man back out again, could he really kill someone in cold blood? His heart rejected the idea and his soul concurred but his head argued with both, citing duty and his country's safety. His head eventually managed to overrule both his heart and soul.

The personal cost did not matter; he was a soldier and a soldier followed orders – even if it leads to death. De Foix is a soldier, battle-hardened and with decades of experience, therefore the man would undoubtedly understand d'Artagnan's actions should they become necessary.

Somehow he keeps his head and his heart in balance as he infiltrates the prison. He stays focused on what he must do in order to carry out his improvised plan, while maintaining stubborn hope that his friends are not lost to him forever.

He only makes it so far before he hears a guard coming and realizes that he has no other choice. His mind says he must do his duty; his heart begins to resist pulling the trigger.

When the door bursts open and Porthos comes through, d'Artagnan can hardly wrap his head around the sight, yet his heart leaps for joy; killing de Foix is unnecessary for the time being.

They are far from being out of danger, but for one glorious moment he lets his heart overrule his head and bask in the knowledge that his friends are alive.

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"Talent won't keep you alive if your heart rules your head."

—Athos to d'Artagnan, 1.08 The Challenge

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The end.

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A/N: Feels like forever since I posted anything new, but more will be coming very soon. I've written a second tag for episode 2.01 and am almost finished with a much longer story.

No beta; many apologies for any remaining errors.

Thanks for reading!