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On entering the hotel D'Artagnan saw a man sitting in acorner by the fire. It was Planchet, but so completelytransformed, thanks to the old clothes that the departinghusband had left behind, that D'Artagnan himself couldhardly recognize him. Madeleine introduced him in presenceof all the servants. Planchet addressed the officer with afine Flemish phrase; the officer replied in words thatbelonged to no language at all, and the bargain wasconcluded; Madeleine's brother entered D'Artagnan's service.

The plan adopted by D'Artagnan was soon perfected. Heresolved not to reach Noisy in the day, for fear of beingrecognized; he had therefore plenty of time before him, forNoisy is only three or four leagues from Paris, on the roadto Meaux.

He began his day by breakfasting substantially - a badbeginning when one wants to employ the head, but anexcellent precaution when one wants to work the body; andabout two o'clock he had his two horses saddled, andfollowed by Planchet he quitted Paris by the Barriere de laVillete. A most active search was still prosecuted in thehouse near the Hotel de la Chevrette for the discovery ofPlanchet.

At about a league and a half from the city, D'Artagnan,finding that in his impatience he had set out too soon,stopped to give the horses breathing time. The inn was fullof disreputable looking people, who seemed as if they wereon the point of commencing some nightly expedition. A man,wrapped in a cloak, appeared at the door, but seeing astranger he beckoned to his companions, and two men who weredrinking in the inn went out to speak to him.

D'Artagnan, on his side, went up to the landlady, praisedher wine - which was a horrible production from the countryof Montreuil - and heard from her that there were only twohouses of importance in the village; one of these belongedto the Archbishop of Paris, and was at that time the abodeof his niece the Duchess of Longueville; the other was aconvent of Jesuits and was the property - a by no meansunusual circumstance - of these worthy fathers.

At four o'clock D'Artagnan recommenced his journey. Heproceeded slowly and in deep reverie. Planchet also was lostin thought, but the subject of their reflections was not thesame.

One word which their landlady had pronounced had given aparticular turn to D'Artagnan's deliberations; this was thename of Madame de Longueville.

That name was indeed one to inspire imagination and producethought. Madame de Longueville was one of the highest ladiesin the realm; she was also one of the greatest beauties atcourt. She had formerly been suspected of an intimacy of tootender a nature with Coligny, who, for her sake, had beenkilled in a duel, in the Place Royale, by the Duc de Guise.She was now connected by bonds of a political nature withthe Prince de Marsillac, the eldest son of the old Duc deRochefoucauld, whom she was trying to inspire with an enmitytoward the Duc de Conde, her brother-in-law, whom she nowhated mortally.

D'Artagnan thought of all these matters. He remembered howat the Louvre he had often seen, as she passed by him in thefull radiance of her dazzling charms, the beautiful Madamede Longueville. He thought of Aramis, who, withoutpossessing any greater advantages than himself, had formerlybeen the lover of Madame de Chevreuse, who had been to aformer court what Madame de Longueville was in that day; andhe wondered how it was that there should be in the worldpeople who succeed in every wish, some in ambition, othersin love, whilst others, either from chance, or fromill-luck, or from some natural defect or impediment, remainhalf-way upon the road toward fulfilment of their hopes andexpectations.

He was confessing to himself that he belonged to the latterunhappy class, when Planchet approached and said:

"I will lay a wager, your honor, that you and I are thinkingof the same thing."

"I doubt it, Planchet," replied D'Artagnan, "but what areyou thinking of?"

"I am thinking, sir, of those desperate looking men who weredrinking in the inn where we rested."

"Always cautious, Planchet."

"'Tis instinct, your honor."

"Well, what does your instinct tell you now?"

"Sir, my instinct told me that those people were assembledthere for some bad purpose; and I was reflecting on what myinstinct had told me, in the darkest corner of the stable,when a man wrapped in a cloak and followed by two other men,came in."

"Ah ah!" said D'Artagnan, Planchet's recital agreeing withhis own observations. "Well?"

"One of these two men said, `He must certainly be at Noisy,or be coming there this evening, for I have seen hisservant.'

"`Art thou sure? ' said the man in the cloak.

"`Yes, my prince.'"

"My prince!" interrupted D'Artagnan.

"Yes, `my prince;' but listen. `If he is here' - this iswhat the other man said - `let's see decidedly what to dowith him.'

"`What to do with him?' answered the prince.

"`Yes, he's not a man to allow himself to be taken anyhow;he'll defend himself.'

"`Well, we must try to take him alive. Have you cords tobind him with and a gag to stop his mouth?'

"`We have.'

"`Remember that he will most likely be disguised as ahorseman.'

"`Yes, yes, my lord; don't be uneasy.'

"`Besides, I shall be there.'

"`You will assure us that justice - - '

"`Yes, yes! I answer for all that,' the prince said.

"`Well, then, we'll do our best.' Having said that, theywent out of the stable."

"Well, what matters all that to us?" said D'Artagnan. "Thisis one of those attempts that happen every day."

"Are you sure that we are not its objects?"

"We? Why?"

"Just remember what they said. `I have seen his servant,'said one, and that applies very well to me."

"Well?"

"`He must certainly be at Noisy, or be coming there thisevening,' said the other; and that applies very well toyou."

"What else?"

"Then the prince said: `Take notice that in all probabilityhe will be disguised as a cavalier;' which seems to me toleave no room for doubt, since you are dressed as a cavalierand not as an officer of musketeers. Now then, what do yousay to that?"

"Alas! my dear Planchet," said D'Artagnan, sighing, "we areunfortunately no longer in those times in which princeswould care to assassinate me. Those were good old days;never fear - these people owe us no grudge."

"Is your honor sure?"

"I can answer for it they do not."

"Well, we won't speak of it any more, then;" and Planchettook his place in D'Artagnan's suite with that sublimeconfidence he had always had in his master, which evenfifteen years of separation had not destroyed.

They had traveled onward about half a mile when Planchetcame close up to D'Artagnan.

"Stop, sir, look yonder," he whispered; "don't you see inthe darkness something pass by, like shadows? I fancy I hearhorses' feet."

"Impossible!" returned D'Artagnan. "The ground is soakingwet; yet I fancy, as thou sayest, that I see something."

At this moment the neighing of a horse struck his ear,coming through darkness and space.

"There are men somewhere about, but that's of no consequenceto us," said D'Artagnan; "let us ride onward."

At about half-past eight o'clock they reached the firsthouses in Noisy; every one was in bed and not a light was tobe seen in the village. The obscurity was broken only nowand then by the still darker lines of the roofs of houses.Here and there a dog barked behind a door or an affrightedcat fled precipitately from the midst of the pavement totake refuge behind a pile of faggots, from which retreat hereyes would shine like peridores. These were the only livingcreatures that seemed to inhabit the village.

Toward the middle of the town, commanding the principal openspace, rose a dark mass, separated from the rest of theworld by two lanes and overshadowed in the front by enormouslime-trees. D'Artagnan looked attentively at the building.

"This," he said to Planchet, "must be the archbishop'schateau, the abode of the fair Madame de Longueville; butthe convent, where is that?"

"The convent, your honor, is at the other end of thevillage; I know it well."

"Well, then, Planchet, gallop up to it whilst I tighten myhorse's girth, and come back and tell me if there is a lightin any of the Jesuits' windows."

In about five minutes Planchet returned.

"Sir," he said, "there is one window of the convent lightedup."

"Hem! If I were a `Frondeur,'" said D'Artagnan, "I shouldknock here and should be sure of a good supper. If I were amonk I should knock yonder and should have a good supperthere, too; whereas, 'tis very possible that between thecastle and the convent we shall sleep on hard beds, dyingwith hunger and thirst."

"Yes," added Planchet, "like the famous ass of Buridan.Shall I knock?"

"Hush!" replied D'Artagnan; "the light no longer burns inyonder window."

"Do you hear nothing?" whispered Planchet.

"What is that noise?"

There came a sound like a whirlwind, at the same time twotroops of horsemen, each composed of ten men, sallied forthfrom each of the lanes which encompassed the house andsurrounded D'Artagnan and Planchet.

"Heyday!" cried D'Artagnan, drawing his sword and takingrefuge behind his horse; "are you not mistaken? is it reallyfor us that you mean your attack?"

"Here he is! we have him!" cried the horsemen, rushing onD'Artagnan with naked swords.

"Don't let him escape!" said a loud voice.

"No, my lord; be assured we shall not."

D'Artagnan thought it was now time for him to join in theconversation.

"Halloo, gentlemen!" he called out in his Gascon accent,"what do you want? what do you demand?"

"That thou shalt soon know," shouted a chorus of horsemen.

"Stop, stop!" cried he whom they had addressed as "my lord;""'tis not his voice."

"Ah! just so, gentlemen! pray, do people get into a passionat random at Noisy? Take care, for I warn you that the firstman that comes within the length of my sword - and my swordis long - I rip him up."

The chieftain of the party drew near.

"What are you doing here?" he asked in a lofty tone, as thatof one accustomed to command.

"And you - what are you doing here?" replied D'Artagnan.

"Be civil, or I shall beat you; for although one may notchoose to proclaim oneself, one insists on respect suitableto one's rank."

"You don't choose to discover yourself, because you are theleader of an ambuscade," returned D'Artagnan; "but withregard to myself, who am traveling quietly with my ownservant, I have not the same reasons as you have to concealmy name."

"Enough! enough! what is your name?"

"I shall tell you my name in order that you may know whereto find me, my lord, or my prince, as it may suit you bestto be called," said our Gascon, who did not choose to seemto yield to a threat. "Do you know Monsieur d'Artagnan?"

"Lieutenant in the king's musketeers?" said the voice; "youare Monsieur d'Artagnan?"

"I am."

"Then you came here to defend him?"

"Him? whom?"

"The man we are seeking."

"It seems," said D'Artagnan, "that whilst I thought I wascoming to Noisy I have entered, without suspecting it, intothe kingdom of mysteries."

"Come," replied the same lofty tone, "answer! Are youwaiting for him underneath these windows? Did you come toNoisy to defend him?"

"I am waiting for no one," replied D'Artagnan, who wasbeginning to be angry. "I propose to defend no one butmyself, and I shall defend myself vigorously, I give youwarning."

"Very well," said the voice; "go away from here and leavethe place to us."

"Go away from here!" said D'Artagnan, whose purposes were inconflict with that order, "that is not so easy, since I amon the point of falling, and my horse, too, through fatigue;unless, indeed, you are disposed to offer me a supper and abed in the neighborhood."

"Rascal!"

"Eh! monsieur!" said D'Artagnan, "I beg you will have a carewhat you say; for if you utter another word like that, beyou marquis, duke, prince or king, I will thrust it downyour throat! do you hear?"

"Well, well," rejoined the leader, "there's no doubt 'tis aGascon who is speaking, and therefore not the man we arelooking for. Our blow has failed for to-night; let uswithdraw. We shall meet again, Master d'Artagnan," continuedthe leader, raising his voice.

"Yes, but never with the same advantages," said D'Artagnan,in a tone of raillery; "for when you meet me again you willperhaps be alone and there will be daylight."

"Very good, very good," said the voice. "En route,gentlemen."

And the troop, grumbling angrily, disappeared in thedarkness and took the road to Paris. D'Artagnan and Planchetremained for some moments still on the defensive; then, asthe noise of the horsemen became more and more distant, theysheathed their swords.

"Thou seest, simpleton," said D'Artagnan to his servant,"that they wished no harm to us."

"But to whom, then?"

"I'faith! I neither know nor care. What I do care for now,is to make my way into the Jesuits' convent; so to horse andlet us knock at their door. Happen what will, the devil takethem, they can't eat us."

And he mounted his horse. Planchet had just done the samewhen an unexpected weight fell upon the back of the horse,which sank down.

"Hey! your honor!" cried Planchet, "I've a man behind me."

D'Artagnan turned around and plainly saw two human forms onPlanchet's horse.

"'Tis then the devil that pursues!" he cried; drawing hissword and preparing to attack the new foe.

"No, no, dear D'Artagnan," said the figure, "'tis not thedevil, 'tis Aramis; gallop fast, Planchet, and when you cometo the end of the village turn swiftly to the left."

And Planchet, with Aramis behind him, set off at fullgallop, followed by D'Artagnan, who began to think he was inthe merry maze of some fantastic dream.