The Man in the Iron Mask Page #11

ATHOS:

What is your name?

MAN IN THE IRON MASK

The old man and woman called me...

Phillippe.

ATHOS:

Phillippe. Rest now.

Athos moves to the door.

MAN IN THE IRON MASK

Thank you... for your kindness.

Athos nods, pauses a moment... and leaves.

INT. A DARK APARTMENT IN PARIS - NIGHT

The lock rattles, and the door swings open. D'Artagnan

enters, lifting a lantern to throw light on the dark room.

It is Athos' apartment, the one he visited earlier; now he

finds it empty, devoid of clues. He stands there alone.

He turns to leave, then glimpses a familiar painting hanging

beside the door. Lifting his light he studies the portrait:

Athos, Aramis, Porthos and himself -- four Musketeers, beat

friends, in their prime. Together then, inseparable.

D'ARTAGNAN

My friends... Where have you gone?

He lowers the lantern, and leaves.

CUT TO:

THE MESSAGE FROM THE PRISON...

has reached the court. Gloved hands pass the message from

one advisor to another, and finally to the King.

INT. PALACE - KING'S STUDY - DAY

The King reads the message, rerolls it, thinks a moment, and

hands the scroll to Claude.

LOUIS:

Take this to my mother.

THE MESSAGE:

is again passed, this time into the hands of the Queen

Mother's eldest nun-attendant, and then into the hands of the

Queen Mother herself. The Queen is in her private rooms, and

for the first time we see her with her hair down. She

accepts the scroll, opens it, and reads.

Her eyes fill with pain, grief, guilt... emotions she hides,

turning away.

NUN:

M'lady... are you...?

ANNE:

Please, just... go away.

INT. D'ARTAGNAN'S ROOM - NIGHT

D'Artagnan returns from his ride to Athos' place. He looks

down at the Queen's door. He checks the clock on the wall;

it is a few minutes past nine. He enters his room, moves to

the window, and waits there, to catch a glimpse of her.

INT. COUNTRY MANOR HOUSE - FRONT ROOM - NIGHT

Aramis is digging into a hearty meal, while Porthos only

stares at his plate.

ARAMIS:

See? There is plenty of food in the

country. But the King keeps it

going to the army instead of --

Athos marches in, all business.

ATHOS:

He is sleeping. Now see here,

Aramis, it's time you told us --

He breaks off as a voluptuous serving girl leans over to

spoon food onto Porthos' plate; her breasts jiggle below his

nose, and she gives him a smile.

PORTHOS:

I have no appetite for food, I am

wasting away. Say goodbye to

Porthos, for he is gone. Even women

don't interest me now.

The girl moves to whisper with two other serving girls, who

seem fascinated with the roguish Porthos; their giggles and

winks make Porthos even more morose; he tells his friends...

PORTHOS:

I tell you a secret. I sleep with

three women at once, not because my

appetite is so great, but because

now it take three to excite me.

Porthos heaves himself to his feet and shuffles off; Aramis

sighs, having heard all this before. Athos sits down.

ATHOS:

Who is he, Aramis?

ARAMIS:

Tomorrow.

ATHOS:

Tonight! Right now! We steal a man

from a royal prison, we hide in a

country chateau among an assortment

of saints and sluts such as only you

could provide, and still you wish to

tell me nothing?!

ARAMIS:

You seek facts, when it would be

better to seek truth.

ATHOS:

You are not my priest, Aramis! You

would not be, even if I had one.

ARAMIS:

You are bitter, Athos. You are torn

by grief, not only for Raoul, but

for d'Artagnan, whom you love, and

now treat as an enemy.

ATHOS:

He who is not with us is against us.

ARAMIS:

Those are the words of a broken

spirit. My spirit is whole. I have

trusted d'Artagnan with my deepest

secrets, and I will never believe

he is my enemy.

ATHOS:

Then you are a fool -- a fool who

has never lost a son. What gives

you the right to judge me, to play

God with the lives of others? Is it

because you are so much holier than

everyone else?!

ARAMIS:

There is that, of course -- but

mainly it is because I am so much

smarter than everyone else.

They are interrupted by Porthos' bloodcurdling SCREAM.

ARAMIS:

Porthos?!

He draws his sword and runs for the outside.

EXT. MANOR HOUSE - NIGHT

Aramis and Athos rush through the courtyard, surrounded by

moonlight and trees, confused about where Porthos is. Then

they hear bellowing SCREAM OF PAIN from the latrine.

Swords drawn, they bang into the latrine, to find Porthos

just finishing urinating.

PORTHOS:

Kidney rocks. It hurts when I pee.

It hurts when I sh*t. I'm just a

fat old fart with nothing to live

for any more. I'm going to hang

myself, as soon as I'm sober.

They watch him shuffle toward the main house.

INT. THE PALACE - THE QUEEN MOTHER'S ROOM - NIGHT

Anne paces in her room, her hands trembling, her beautiful

lips quivering with tortured emotion. With a sudden impulse

she bolts from her room, through the outer room where her

attendants sit, and into the corridor.

NUN:

M'lady...?

The eldest nun follows her.

EXT. PALACE GARDEN - NIGHT

Anne rushes through the evening, toward her little chapel in

the palace garden; she is a tragic, romantic sight, her long

hair flying behind her as she runs.

IN HIS ROOM, D'ARTAGNAN

has been standing at his window, for his nightly glimpse of

Anne. Now he sees her, not with her retinue of nuns, but

running to her chapel, clearly distraught...

INT./ EXT. PALACE GARDEN - GARDEN CHAPEL - NIGHT

Anne reaches the door, and finds a few nuns and an old priest

praying in the little chapel. She staggers forward to the

altar. and falls to her knees there. The nuns and the old

priest, seeing the Queen Mother so distraught, stand silently

and file out, leaving her in solitude.

ANNE:

Oh God I -- Forgive me...

D'ARTAGNAN

M'lady...?

She whirls to see him; the sight of her face, bursting with

emotions she has kept buried, draws him nearer.

D'ARTAGNAN

What -- ?

ANNE:

No, stay back! Stay back!

He freezes in his tracks; she holds her hands out toward him

as if warding off a blow. He's desperate to move to her; she

sees it on his face.

ANNE:

D'Artagnan!

Her emotions break all her resolve to keep him away; she

rushes into his arms. They clutch each other, in an embrace

they have denied for many years. They kiss hungrily.

D'ARTAGNAN

M'lady... if anyone sees, it is

death...

ANNE:

If I don't kiss you, I die anyway.

D'ARTAGNAN

I can't bear to see you cry. What

is wrong?

ANNE:

Nothing... Nothing.

She draws back; he tries to hold her. But the thoughts of

answering that question makes her stiffen.

ANNE:

Nothing. This... didn't happen. I

must go back now.

And just like that, their moment is gone.

EXT. GARDEN - NIGHT

D'Artagnan and Anne move back to the palace in a stiff

procession, she walking ahead, he trailing like a proper

commoner, several feet behind.

INT. PALACE CORRIDOR - NIGHT

They reach the Queen Mother's room; d'Artagnan reaches to

open the door for her, and she keeps her eyes lowered. But

before he can let her go, he must whisper...

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