The Three Musketeers (IN EDITS)

Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

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À cœur vaillant rien d'impossible.

À l'impossible nul n'est tenu.

The young maiden's eyes were closed, deep breaths escaping her to calm her nerves, her mare trotting over the cobble roads into the city of Paris as the words her governess had said to her when she was eight resonated with her as they always had since she was a child.

Ville de Paris.

The city of her childhood.

The city of her friends.

And the city she was taken away from and sent to England.

Her life had always been set out for her - it was one of the downsides of being born a noble.

But for the past year, she wasn't Arianne Batz-Castelmore, Comtesse d'Artagnan, she was simply...Arianne.

A free woman.

And after years of rules and regulations, it felt like a breath of fresh air - a new beginning.

A new chapter in her life.

But the horrors she witnessed and the things she did in England were always going to haunt her, so living her life as a commoner, not as a noblewoman was for the best - as of now.

Her mare casually trotted along and Arianne felt utter relief that no one knew who she was. As she arrived at the town centre, she was in awe of how much everything had changed.

Including the royal standards.

Now waving the insignia of the new King, Christophe I.

He had become King six years ago at the age of fifteen when his father, King Louis XIII died suddenly from stomach problems.

The entire country was said to have been thrown into mourning - Arianne remembered how kind and caring the late King was so she understood how upset everyone was when it reached them that he had died so young at the age of forty-one.

Every summer, King Louis XIII travelled to his country and met his people who showered him with gifts and affection and he would listen to their grievances and help them. He was strict with criminals, whether they were poor or rich and he made sure no one took advantage of his kindness.

He had fixed relations with all the countries around him, including England and Spain where hostilities had lingered for over 100 years.

But an assassination attempt only years before his death led to hostilities with the powerful Habsburg family.

Many of the states of the Empire were ruled by Habsburg, who also happened to rule Spain and the Netherlands.

And they were supported by the Pope.

The continent was now in chaos and Arianne knew to come to Paris was risky.

But she had been all over the North of her homeland (avoiding the South for obvious reasons) and now it was time to go to where her heart was calling her to.

Coming to Paris was what she wanted and now she was ready to take the city by storm.

But...not as a noble.

The stone bridge over the dirty river Seine where barges and boats were slowly travelling along was the first disappointment. From then on, her memories were repressed and she now saw just how much Paris had changed - for the thirteen years she had been away.