#d'ArTAGthislater

[majorxmaggiexboy]

Constance Bonacieux...

...Will never again not look like Beauty and the Beast’s Belle to me. I don’t know when that particular connection was made, but they register as very similar to me.

Initially it was a visual thing, I think? They both have that reddish tint in their hair, and some facial similarities (at least, to me)

But, thinking about it further....they actually are a match in other ways. Belle sings about being bored with her life, about wanting “so much more than they’ve got planned” and Constance’s entire storyline is basically just that. She’s not in a terrible situation, but is underwhelmed with her life. Her marriage, her role in society...they’re a far cry from what she wants and the majority of her story is about gaining the courage to make her own way.

I don’t see d’Artagnan as the Beast character, really, though. I mean, kiiiiinda, I guess? If we replace The Curse with the death of his father and draw comparison with his S1E1 “ill manners”...and a lot of his character growth (breaking the curse, theoretically speaking) does revolve around Constance. One example is how he goes from “I don’t need a woman to protect me” to trusting and relying on her as an equal.

You know who would be a better Beast, though?

Olivier ‘Athos’ de la Fere.

I hear the screeching of breaks and a resounding “whaaaaat”

Hear me out.

I don’t mean this in a shipping sense, although obviously if we’re talking AU, hey, maybe you do ship Constance/Athos and that’s fine! But from a canon, drawing-of-comparison standpoint with no romance involved, and with a little headcanon thrown in, Athos is perfect for The Beast.

“The Curse” is his brother’s death- more than that, it’s Milady’s betrayal (however you feel about that) and it’s grief and guilt and all that pain Athos carries with him. You could even say it’s his implied alcoholism and lack of interest in his own life following Thomas’ death.

Now, it’s generally accepted that d’Artagnan is the one who came charging in and saved Athos’ heart, and I don’t disagree. D’Artagnan became a younger brother to Athos and, arguably, almost a son. (According to book!Athos There are only 15 years between them, but honestly it’s enough to throw some paternal shades into their dynamic. Friend, brother, mentor...) And there is no denying d’Artagnan was ultimately great for Athos in a different way from Porthos and Aramis. But, Athos had already become a Musketeer before d’Artagnan showed up.

Here’s a man who, even in S1E1, is so ready to accept a death he doesn’t deserve. He offers no complaint post-sentencing when most, I feel, would pitch a fit at the prospect of such a dishonorable end, especially being innocent. And he regularly drinks his sorrows.

So, aside from perhaps thinking it a convenient way to eventually die, why would this grief-stricken man sign on as a musketeer to begin with? Maybe because it’s as good a way to get through a day as any, but there’s a snippet where headcanon comes in: In S1E1, Constance shows no sign of knowing Aramis or Porthos, and they both act like it’s a first meeting when she arrives in the Garrison. But she not only knows Athos, she tells d’Artagnan that Athos is her friend. By that time, Athos is already close friends with Aramis and Porthos, so for Constance to know one but not the other two, she and Athos would have to be friends well outside his life as a Musketeer. Enter Headcanon, and getting back to the Beauty and the Beast comparison.

This is purely speculation but, what if Constance is the one who got Athos to try for the Musketeers in the first place?

What if Athos came to Paris, drifting from tavern to tavern in the throes of heartbreak and grief, throwing his life away one bottle at a time (the Beast, in the depths of hopelessness, resigned to his fate.) And then, by some chance or the hand of God, Constance Bonacieux crossed his path. And at that time she’d be engaged or newly married, settled into a dull pattern of life that she knows isn’t what she wants, but...she’s never really known different, outside of books. Where reality is concerned, she’s left to assume this is really all life has for her, and so while she isn’t happy, she’s not miserable. And anyway,

Going by the Beauty and the Beast analogy; Athos’ curse - he’s in such despair, wasting his life trying to drink the pain away. He’s distrustful, in a sense, of women in general, or tries to be. As far as he’s concerned, life has come to a halt. (Plus we could go as far as to consider Milady as The Enchantress, and compare Athos’ Nobility and post-Thomas’-death rejection thereof to the Beast’s royal status and post-curse ruination of the castle...torn portraits are present in both cases)

And then Constance Bonacieux finds herself in this man’s life, and she’s having none of it. (in addition, headcanon: for their first meting, Athos passes out at Constance’s feet, drunk. Call-forward to meeting d’Artagnan?) She almost forcibly befriends him, and he comes to accept her friendship.

Think of the Beauty and the Beast scene after Beast fights off the Wolves, where Belle and Beast argue as she tends his wounds.

That becomes the exact picture I imagine for Constance and Athos. Instead of falling in True Love, though, they build a friendship, and Athos, while not fully whole again, starts to regain his life, joins the Musketeers. This puts him in place for later development when d’Artagnan arrives. Constance, meanwhile, becomes more sure of herself. Not quite ready yet to question society’s notions of her role in life, but beginning to realize she wants more. Consequently, after wrangling Athos at his worst, she is far less likely to take nonsense from anyone.

This got long and fell apart a bit toward the end, but TL;DR: Constance is totally Belle and Athos makes for a really good Beast and you know what? It might even be a fun AU with the original storyline rearranged a little bit.