Aramis: How Would You Like Your Hair Cut?

Aramis: How would you like your hair cut?

D’Artagnan: Preferably with scissors, but a sword could be badass.

Even though he was more the romantic hero type, he was still a soldier and war his true love.

The Fifth Musketeer ~ Five Hargreeves x reader

Gif not mine

Word count: 2,356

Warnings: Spoiler alert!; It’s supposed to be a happy ending so in this story the Handler dies, the briefcases can’t be fixed and the apocalypse is prevented without any explosions.

Summary: When Five returns to the Commission after his deal with the Handler he meets the reader who hates working there as much as he does.

The constant clicking and the occasional dinging of typewriters filled the small office room. Except for one all the desks were occupied by dedicated employees. All of them busy tapping away at the typewriters keys. Unlike them, I didn’t try to get as much work done as possible. Unlike them, I didn’t enjoy working at ‘The Commission’. I despised working here, telling the agents what their next mission was. More often than not I was ordering someone’s ‘correction’, as they liked to call it. Then again, I understood that the job was important.

I looked at the simple silver watch around my wrist – another hour until the break when I could  finally escape this horrid place with the help of my new book ‘The Three Musketeers’. I just loved how the four main characters fought for what they believed in, willing to sacrifice everything if it secured the life of those important to them. The black ink on the slightly yellow pages was the only thing keeping me from going insane because of this work.

Outside on the hallway I could hear the frantic footsteps of employees, but one pair of footsteps stood out. They were confident. A woman wearing heels. And they were headed straight towards our door. I knew these footsteps oh so well. Most of the employees were scared of her especially after hearing of her ruthless work as an agent. The Handler. And just as I predicted the blonde woman appeared in the door frame, beside her a young man.

His dark brown hair was styled perfectly only a few strands hung into his forehead. He wasn’t smiling like newcomers usually did. A navy blue school uniform hung from his slender frame. Both of his hands were leisurely in his trouser pockets. He slowly and carefully looked around the room. When his gaze landed on me I inhaled sharply. His bright grey eyes were filled with such an intensity as well as mystery. The approximately 20 year old man oozed effortless beauty. I took in his appearance. He seemed so much more mature than any of the men or rather boys that I ever dated.

“Everybody, this is Number Five. I am sure you have all heard of him”, the cold voice of the Handler introduced him as she lead him to the only vacant desk. Number Five?! He was one of the most famous agents that the Commission had ever employed. Everyone knew his name. He was the best of the best. He was like the Kanye West of the time-travelling world. I had always envisioned him to be a lot older, but I wasn’t disappointed by this pleasant surprise as he was very easy on the eyes.

As soon as the Handler left I turned back to focus on the file in front of me. During the hour until break everyone tried to suck up to Five especially Dot who was sitting behind him. I almost had to laugh out loud at how hard she tried and how easily she was ignored.

When it was finally time for the break I quickly gathered my things and headed for the cafeteria. I grabbed some food and sat down at my usual table opening up my book. That break I continuously glanced up from the story to see if Five had arrived – I wondered where he would sit – but to no avail, he didn’t show up. Neither did he the days afterwards.

The first time I saw him during break time was almost a week after he had been introduced to us by the Handler. He walked in and picked up a tray of food. His stride was filled with confidence. He ignored the calls of our coworkers offering him to sit with them and headed straight towards the table only I was sitting at. I greeted him with a smile before continuing with my book.

“What’s the book about?” It took a while for me to realize that Five had been talking to me as I had expected him to ignore me as he did with the others. “What?... oh... um. It’s about these four soldiers in France in the 17th century. They are part of the king’s guard and they would do anything for their king and queen. The book is mostly about how they save the royal family especially the queen from the Cardinal’s plans.” After I had given him a brief summary both of us fell back to silence while eating.

Then a question popped into my mind. A rumour I had heard. After gathering all my courage I shyly spoke up again. “How come you’re back here? I thought you had left the Commission.” Five looked up at me with a calculated look before he replied: “Certain circumstances demanded my presence here.” I had no idea what he was talking about which was most likely his intention.

“Oh... if I ever had the chance to leave I would leave for good no matter what.” “Why?”, Five asked me curiously. “I just hate working here, especially with the Handler as my boss.” “Why? What’s the deal with the Handler? I know she’s a horrible woman but the others don’t seem to have a problem with her either.” His question made me sigh. “A few years ago there was a confrontation between me and her. I wanted to leave. She wanted me to stay. Let’s just say it didn’t end well for me.”

Silence befell us again until the young man sitting across from me raised his voice again. “And what would you do if you didn’t work here anymore?” That was a good question. My plan always was to leave this place and settle down somewhere else but what exactly I would do I had no concrete ideas. I was lost in thought, going through all the possibilities. The thought of the things I could do put a smile on my face. In turn this made the corners of Five’s mouth slightly tilt upward which seemed like something he didn’t do too often.

“Ah, well... maybe I would open up a secondhand bookstore... Oh! I could have an integrated coffee and lounge area!”, my eyes lit up in joy at this idea, “maybe I would finally meet someone and start a family.” Thinking of my future with a man I couldn’t stop myself from picturing Five as that man.

Five sitting across from me at a small Italian restaurant laughing at me for getting tomato sauce onto my nose – our first date. Five standing in the kitchen cooking something while I tiredly sat on the chesterfield in the living room watching him – our first night of living together. Five comfortingly looking at me as I nervously ran my hands over my dress before walking down the aisle – our wedding day. Five running after a little girl with dark brown pigtails, gently throwing her  up into the air as soon as he caught up with her and catching her again – our first child.

Suddenly I awoke from my daydream and blushed furiously as I noticed that Five was looking at me. “What would you do?”, I asked him. “Dunno”, he answered before turning back to his food. We finished eating in silence.

It was a few days after my talk with Five. I was on the way to our office room from a meeting. I was lost in thoughts until I walked past the tube room and heard a familiar voice. It was Five. He was talking to someone. Then there was a thumping noise like something had fallen to the floor. I carried on on my way. He was probably just talking to Gloria.

Suddenly Five came running out of the room. As soon as he saw me he grabbed my arm pulling me with him. “Quick! Come with me!” What was going on? What was so urgent he had to pull me with him?

Suddenly there was a loud explosion behind us. It shook the floor and walls causing clouds of dust to fill the hallway and me to stumble. As I threatened to fall Five quickly grabbed my waist with his free arm keeping me upright.

“What was that?! Where are we going?”, I asked my companion, my voice filled with shock and fear. “I can’t tell you now. Later. We just have to get going. Get out of here”, he rushed. “Why? What did you do?” This made him stop in his tracks and turn around to me. His face was completely serious as he asked me: “Do you trust me?” I thought about it. If I was honest with myself, I actually didn’t know him. I knew nothing about him about him but still I found myself trusting him with all that I had – with my life if it had to be – and so I nodded. He seemed relieved at my answer like he had held his breath while I contemplated. “Then just do as I say, OK? ”, Five asked of me and I nodded again.

After taking a lot of unknown hallways and occasionally hiding behind a closed door we arrived in the briefcase maintenance room with a clear view of the storage area for functioning briefcases. Five turned towards me whispering: “Wait here. Be ready to run as soon as I’m back. Do you understand me?” Then he disappeared with a spacial jump before I could even answer properly.

Now I saw him in the storage area. He grabbed one of the black briefcases before dropping something I couldn’t quite see. With a blue flash Five stood in front of me again. The two of us immediately ran. Behind us I heard another explosion. We ran and ran until we reached a secluded hallway. Here Five took my hand in his, gave me a comforting look and opened the briefcase.

The next thing I saw was an old living room with antiquities covering every free space. Standing right in front of us were a handful of people, all around 30 years old, staring at us full of surprise. Five let go of my hand and grabbed the coffee-to-go cup from the curly haired woman’s hand. Then he emptied it in one go throwing the cup over his shoulder.

“Where did you come from? And who is the girl?”, inquired a tall and muscular, blonde man. “I was at work. And this is my coworker (Y/n).  (Y/n) these are my siblings”, Five replied nonchalantly, “So, where are we at with the apocalypse? Any new ideas?” The four young people looked at each other embarrassed. “Well... um... we were kinda giving up.” “Of course you were. Well, at least someone did their work”, Five replied sarcastically, “I figured out who causes the apocalypse.” “Who?”, his four siblings cried out in unison. “Harold Jenkins.”

I had tried to help the Hargreeves siblings as much as I could but without any powers I wasn’t the most useful. In the mean time we had figured out that actually Vanya would cause the apocalypse. We were at the theatre trying to stop her. To our luck Allison was able to stop her sister from hurting anyone. When Allison fired the gun Vanya fell to the floor unconscious.

Immediately the weight of the world fell from our shoulders and all of us were flooded with relief. I was so happy that everything had went so well that I couldn’t stop myself from hugging Five, my arms around his neck, a huge smile on my face. To my surprise Five hugged back tightly instead of pushing me away.

Suddenly we were torn out of our embrace when Luther cleared his throat. Everyone was staring at us which made us jump away from each other blushing furiously. “What should we do with Vanya?”, Luther asked his seemingly younger brother. We settled on taking her with us to the Academy where Grace could take care of her.

The six of us celebrated our success with a few drinks in the living room. I enjoyed spending time with the Hargreeves siblings, especially now with all the stress of the last few days gone. It almost felt like I was a part of their family. I was sitting on the couch next to Klaus laughing about one of his comments. I hadn’t been this happy and carefree for a long time and I enjoyed it.

Just as I finished my drink I looked up and saw Five looking at me, silently gesturing me to follow him out to the hallway. “I’ll be right back”, I told Klaus while setting my glass down on a side table. Klaus wiggled his eyebrows knowingly. “Stop that!”, I had to laugh as I left the room.

Five was leaning against one of the pillars waiting for me. As I walked over to him he straightened up. He seemed a little unsure of him self, which was surprising to me.  I stopped in front of him wondering why he wanted me to come with him. He loosened his tie and gulped nervously.

“What happened back at the theatre, I... I would never have done that with anyone but you. And... um... I... I’ve been having these... these feelings for you for.... a while now. And... um... I...”, Five stammered out.

I had never seen Five as nervous as this. He never stuttered. For the past few days that I had known him he always was confident and sure of himself. I knew where this conversation was going and so I decided to make it a little easier for him by interrupting his stammering with a kiss.

At first Five was surprised and a little shocked but then he started to kiss back shyly. “I like you too and I would love to be your girlfriend”, I answered his silent question when we broke apart in need of air. Right then we heard wolf whistling and as we looked up we saw Klaus standing in the door frame.

“Shut up, Klaus!”, Five replied, back to his normal confident and sarcastic self before he turned back and kissed me passionately.

Rescue in a Heartbeat ~ Will Scarlett x reader

Picture not mine

Word count: 1,829

Warnings: some violence

Summary: Robin and his gang go to save one of their friends and meet the reader. Will then saves her and takes her to their camp.

A/N: The last few days our internet connection didn’t work, so I started watching the BBC Robin Hood DVDs we have at home. I immediately fell in love with Will.

Cold. So horribly cold. The floor and walls were made of dirty, grey stones sucking all of the heat from my body sitting on the straw covered ground. Through the little slit of a window at the top of the room hardly any sunlight and therefore no heat entered this godforsaken hellhole. It was damp and smelt putrid. The prison of Nottingham Castle. The last place I had ever hoped to end up, especially at the mercy of the cruel sheriff and his goons.

Since the new sheriff had replaced Lord Edward working at the castle had changed from a wonderful, stable job to secure my family’s living to a maze full of death traps, every step, every decision could be a reason to be killed. And I prayed every day for King Richard’s return so he could free us from this evil. 

But now I needed to pray for my life and soul for as much as I knew I would never see the light of the next day. If I had overheard the jailer correctly I was to be hanged for treason. Supposedly I had tried to poison the sheriff.

I wasn’t the only one down here fearing for my life. A few cells away from me sat a man playing with a wooden tag around his neck. He was skinny, had blonde hair and a beard. His eyes were a bright blue and he was clad in somewhat worn out, dirty clothes in different earthy colours. The man had been brought in this morning and Gisborne had said something about a fateful end. So far he didn’t seem worried or scared for his life. It rather seemed like he was bored, waiting for something.

Just at that moment loud crashing and banging was to be heard from outside the prison door. This was my time, I was sure of it. This was the end. Scared for my life my eyes started to tear up, but when the heavy wooden door flew open unlike I expected guards didn’t wash in. Instead a handful of men similarily dressed to the man in the cell cane rushing in.

One of them was carrying a bow while most of the others held swords in their hands or at their sides. Quickly one of them closed the door behind them as the others made their way down the steps. Hearing the noise of them entering the man in the cell a little away from me stood up a slight grin on his face.

“Robin! Over here!”, he called out to get their attention. I knew who this was. It had to be Robin Hood and his companions, the outlaws that everyone was supposed to fear. “Allan!” The group of people rushed over to his cell. A few of them were nervously stepping from one foot to the other once in a while glancing towards the door.

One of Robin’s men, a rather young brunette, knelt down in front of the door to the cell and pulled an axe from his back starting to work on the hinges. I quietly sat there watching them. I knew they hadn’t come for me and they were already putting their lives on the line to save their comrade so I didn’t call out to the to help me out. I had accepted my fate.

Just as the door to the cell fell aside and their friend was freed heavy footsteps were audibly coming closer. Someone must’ve noticed them breaking in. “Quick, we have to get going!”, Robin exclaimed and the outlaws immediately sprung to their feet and rushed to the door. The first few of them had already left the room when the one man who had broken the hinges who was also trailing behind noticed me and stopped dead in his tracks. The footsteps were becoming louder and louder. Robin noticed that one of his friends was missing. Turning around he saw the young one staring at me.

“Will, we have to go! Come on!” Will ignored the words of his leader and called out: “We can’t just leave her here! Who knows what the sheriff and Gisborne will do to her.” He ran over to me and started hammering on to the hinges that kept my cell door up. “We have to go! Otherwise they’ll catch us!”, the famous archer pressed.

“Yes, he’s right”, I whispered, my voice rough from not having spoken for too long, causing the man in front of me to look up. He had the most beautiful, mesmerizing green eyes full of warmth. “Leave! Save yourselves! I’m not worth it.” But he refused, continuing his work.

In the meantime the shouting of the guards was right in front of the door and I could hear the clashing of metal on metal as the outlaws fought for their life. Finally my cell door fell to the floor and Will quickly pulled me up and along through the prison door causing me to stumble over my own feet. Luckily he had held onto me tight and prevented me from falling. The others kept fighting to clear us some headstart but soon they were sprinting next to us out of the castle and into Sherwood Forest.

Running through the forest and undergrowth wasn’t easy for me especially after sitting for so long. I kept stumbling over my own feet, over branches and over stones. So after a while the tallest of the group who was carrying a staff came over to me and motioned to me to hop on his back so he could take me piggy-back. This way I wouldn’t slow the group down and we could lose the guards that were riding after us. When I jumped on the man’s back I saw Will in my peripheral field of vision watching me. His eyes grew sad and his jaw clenched.

After a few more minutes of running the horses weren’t audible anymore. “We’re almost there”, Robin informed me and he was right. Not more than one or two minutes later I was set onto the ground and walked into the outlaw camp. Seeing the interior I was amazed what could be built out her in the woods. I turned in a circle in awe admiring the work of a true master.

The smallest of the gang came up to me and took my by the hand. “Come with me”, she said smiling warmly at me. I followed her into a separate room with multiple makeshift beds. “How are you doing? Are you hurt?” I shook my head. “No, I’m a little cold and tired but I’m not hurt.” “Good”, she said, “here, you can take this bed. I’ll quickly get you something to drink that will warm you up and make you sleep peaceful.”

Then she disappeared out of the room. I sat down on the bed she had pointed out to me and pulled one of the blankets over my tired body. The woman in disguise came back in with a cup that she handed to me. I quickly drank the liquid, which didn’t taste of much, and soon I drifted of into sleep, finally being able to rest from the excitement of the past few days.

“Wake up. Wake up.” I heard someone softly call out to me and gently shake me awake. Slowly but surely my eyelids fluttered open to reveal the roof of the camp and the attractive face of the man named Will. When he saw my eyes opening he grinned and let go of my shoulders. I slowly pushed myself up into a sitting position and then stretched.

“How are you feeling?” “Good”, I replied before yawning. He chuckled. “I’m Will by the way”, he introduced himself before he stood up from his crouching position. “(Y/n).” “What a beautiful name.” His words made me blush. Will held out his hand to me. “Come, dinner’s finished.” I took his outstretched hand and he pulled me up.

When he walked out to a fire place I followed him. The other outlaws were already sitting around the fire, each of them a bowl of stew and a piece of bread in their hands. “Guys, this is (Y/n)”, Will introduced me to everyone. I smiled at them shyly. “(Y/n), this is Little John, Djaq, Robin, Allan and our amazing cook Much.” At that last part the others had to chuckle. Much gave me some food and I sat down next to Will on a log.

Before I started eating I cleared my throat catching everyone’s attention. “I wanted to thank all of you for risking you lives to rescue me from that hellhole.” There were multiple murmurs of ‘No problem’ and ‘Of course we would’. “Why were you down there in the first place?”, Much asked. “Much!”, the others scalded him for asking such a question. “It’s fine. It’s a justified question. Uhm... well, I was accused to have tried to poison the sheriff when I brought him his food. Which is a false claim”, I explained. They gave me understanding looks.

After having eaten the seven of us stayed sitting around the fire immersed in a conversation about the reigning injustice. It was starting to get dark. As I only wore my thin dress I started shivering. Will must’ve noticed as he pulled me closer to him draping his dark wool cloak over the both of us. His arm rested around my shoulders lending me additional warmth. That gesture of his made me smile softly. I think I began to truly like him.

One after the other the others left and headed to bed. Now Will and I were the only ones sitting around the fire. After a moment of silence I turned so I could properly look at the young man sitting next to me. My movement tore him out of his thoughts as well. He looked down at me smiling. I was somewhat scared of what I was about to do, but it was now or never.

“I wanted to thank you separately for saving my life.” This caused him to tilt his head in both curiosity and confusion. I gathered all my courage, hoping he felt the same way. Then I leaned up and kissed him.

When I pulled back I saw Will’s flustered, blushing face. He was starting to grin goofily. Will carefully took my hands into his rough ones. “I... I think I love you”, he told me looking away shyly. I rested one of my hands on his somewhat scruffy cheek and made him look back at me. “I think I love you too”, I confessed, which made him sigh in relief like he was scared that I would push him away. “Will... will you stay here with me?” “Yes”, I replied beaming widely, “I wouldn’t have anywhere else to go anyway.” The two of us stayed there, sitting on a log cuddling until the fire burned out to glowing embers.

Water

The cold surrounded me

I couldn’t feel my limbs anymore

Pain

But wonderful pleasant pain

Breathe!

I couldn’t and didn’t want to

The weight of the water pressed all the air out of my lungs

My clothes dragged me deeper and deeper down

Into the all-devouring darkness

Still Standing ~ Tincke x reader

Picture not mine

Word count: 2,147

Warnings: mentions of violence

Summary: Reader wants to join Jan and Tincke on an ambush but they don’t allow it.

A/N: I saw Thieves of the Wood earlier this year and just immediately fell in love with it, with the characters, the setting, everything.

“Come on, Tincke. Please, let me join you!”, I begged desperately. “I’m sorry (Y/n), you’re staying here, at camp”, said the red haired man in front of me with insistence in his voice. “Why can’t I come? You never let me join you.” 

For the last few days Jan and Tincke had been planning an ambush on a carriage full of valuables and today was the day that they were going to implement that plan. Many of the men from the camp were going and I wanted to be part of it as well.

“You’re a woman. It’s too dangerous!”, Tincke answered me. This answer made my blood boil. “De Schoen is also a woman and you have no problem with her coming along! And just because I’m a woman doesn’t mean I can’t take care of myself!”, I yelled at him angrily. 

My hands turned to fists around the worn fabric of my old skirts, preventing me from striking him in anger. Having lived with the others, banished in this forest camp for multiple months now I had gotten used to audacious remarks like his, but never before had I heard any from him. 

Tincke had always shown respect towards me. Furthermore he was the one who taught me how to protect myself both with daggers and the pistol, so he knew that I could actually protect myself - although I was a woman and women weren’t suited to know  their way around weapons as was decided by men, probably just because they were scared what we could do if we did actually know our way around swords and daggers.

“She knows the risks”, was his calm but infuriating reply. Although he seemed to keep a level head I could see it in his eyes that I was slowly getting to him. Tincke knew raising his voice and causing a scene might cost him his reputation of a mostly dependable leader and the respect of the others. 

“I know the risks too, I know I could die in this attack, see I’m not as naive as you think I am!” Tincke mumbled something under his breath that sounded a lot like ‘oh, I know you’re not naive at all’, but I decided to ignore him in order to continue my rant, “So why can’t I actually come along? All I ever do is sit here in this camp and wait for you to return. I want to help. Please!” 

“No! You will not accompany us. You will stay here. End of discussion!”, and with those words he walked off towards Jan, leaving me standing in front of ‘Der Hunger’, seething in anger. 

I was going to join them on the ambush no matter what Tincke said. Whether he allowed it or not, I was going to be part of the action. At that very moment I didn’t care about any repercussions in any which way.

Already having a plan in mind, I stomped off into the direction of the tent I was staying in, but before I reached it I took a turn, doing a small detour around the camp, towards the hut in which I knew I could find an extra set of somewhat clean men’s clothing - a rarity in a place like this. 

Trying to seem unsuspicious I stopped to chat with some people here and there. Taking one last look over my shoulder, I quietly slipped into the hut pulling the makeshift canvas doors shut behind me. Inside I quickly found a bundle of dry clothing, stored alongside a few other trivial items in a simple oak trunk. 

Having in mind that Tincke, Jan and the others would depart very soon I swiftly shed my garments and rolled them into a more or less neat bundle, putting it in that very same trunk. Then without losing any time I slipped into the new clothes - first the dark brown, worn out pants, then a slightly cream coloured, wide and flowy shirt. Last but not least I pulled an old, tattered, dark wool coat over my shoulders.

The final touches were a dark blue scarf that I tied around my neck and an old hat that I had nicked from a man napping on a log next to the big, open, central fire pit. The fire pit was the centre of our community. 

So many drunk nights with friends had been spent here, so many nights had been spent here celebrating, so many of  Vagenende’s prophecies had been told here. 

The warmth of the fire and the ale gave us courage and hope in our dire situation.

Before I left I made sure the pistol in my belt was loaded.

As I stepped out of the tent I pulled  the scarf over the bottom half of my face, hoping no one would recognize me.

The cluster of men had already started to break apart when I reached the place where they had gathered in front of our small, little tavern. Keeping to the back of the group and out of the sight of Tincke, Jan and anyone else I knew too closely for them to recognize me, I followed them towards the main road through this part of the forest.

My head was spinning with thoughts and feelings. I was starting to regret my rash decision. My heart was beating with nervosity and fear. Tincke’s words reverberated in my mind. Maybe I should turn back. What if he was right? What if I was naive and helpless? What if I had no idea how much trouble I was getting into? 

But coming back from my trance I saw the somber faces of the men around me. I couldn’t run  back to the camp and hide. It was too late to do so, I was one of them now and I was not going to bail on them. They needed every help they could get. So I shook my thoughts away and swallowed my fears. I was ready for whatever came our way. I would gladly lay down my life for this group of men, these men who had saved me from starvation and hypothermia, if necessary.

We were concealed through some bushes and the verge along the dirt road, waiting for the signal. After what felt like an eternity of waiting, crouching behind some shrubs and greenery, my ears finally picked up on the faint sound of horses hooves in the distance. 

Looking around I saw that I wasn’t the only one who noticed, most of the banished tightening their grip on their pistols or daggers hanging from their belts. The sound grew louder and louder and soon enough we could see the top of the carriage move through the trees, the roof packed with trunks. 

Now my heart started racing again, but this time not out of fear but out of anticipation. Adrenaline rushing through my veins. I couldn’t wait  for all this to go down. 

Suddenly the coach rolled to a stop. My breathing hitched in excitement. The door was pushed open and a red haired girl stumbled out and fell to the ground. I recognized her, she was one of the working girls at ‘The Yellow Prick’, Tincke’s ‘favourite one’ as I once overheard him say.

A pang of  jealousy and hurt filled my heart, remembering the times I had gone looking for the red haired leader at the brothel and having found him and her sharing an intimate moment. 

But enough of that! I pushed my feelings aside and observed the events in front of me.

A man in uniform and a little boy, who I also recognized, had followed her out of the carriage. From my vantage point I could see two more men inside the vehicle, both dressed in elegant, noble garments and wearing wigs. All of them were accompanied by at least two or three guards. 

But just as the Bailiff bent down to check on the girl, she sprung up and started running into the woods. This was not at all what I had expected to happen, but obviously this was the sign we had been waiting for, for the other men around me charged, shouting with arms raised. I sprang to my feet and slid down the slope.

 The ambush was in full swing and so far there were no injured. I tried to help where I could. Some of the men had started pulling the wooden and leather trunks from the roof of the coach, some were busy unarming the passengers and the few guards that accompanied the travellers. The Bailiff must’ve fled at some point for he was nowhere to be seen. What a coward! 

I was currently busy helping two men lift one of the trunks, when I heard a faint but suspicious ‘clink’. Looking around I spied another guard that had gone unseen, standing in the shadow of a tree to the front of the coach. The man in blue and red uniform had just returned his ramrod  from the barrel when he raised his musket, ready to fire. 

Time seemed to slow as I turned around to see who was in his line of fire - Tincke. 

He was standing with his back facing the guard talking to one of the other men, not noticing the weapon pointed at him. It seemed like no one except for me had noticed the opponent.

For a second everything froze. My heart jumped in fear.

No, I couldn’t let him die. Tincke wasn’t supposed to die, these people needed him. I needed him, I realized. 

Without thinking any further I dropped the handles of the trunk I was holding and started sprinting with all my might. I couldn’t be too slow. I couldn’t fail. I would never forgive myself if I did.

I would risk my life for him. I would give everything for him. If he died it would most likely be the end of the banished. If I died it would only be one hungry mouth less.

I was expecting the impact and welcomed it happily. I felt the soft fur on my hands and his red locks tickling my neck as I shoved him.

The suddenness and force of the impact surprised him and toppled him off of his feet causing him to end up on the floor a few paces away from me. I slid to a stop where he was standing before. Then time seemed to restore to its former pace and everything went so fast I couldn’t quite comprehend it.

BANG!

 - the loud shot of a gun in the now otherwise silent forest, even the birds seemed to stop singing their tunes and all eyes were on me.

The uniformed man standing across from me crumpled down to the floor, a huge patch of red blood spreading over the spot where his heart was. 

Without even noticing, I had pulled and fired my pistol just in time to prevent him at his own shot, for I still stood there arm raised, some smoke still coming out of the barrel.

I did it, I saved Tincke. A smile spread across my face.

Suddenly  I felt a sharp pain searing through my body then gathering in my abdomen, causing me to crumple up and immediately fall to my knees.

From somewhere behind me I heard a gasp but I couldn’t place who it might’ve been from.

Only half aware of my surroundings I looked down at myself  shocked and saw deep red spreading and staining my light linen shirt. I couldn't wrap my mind around what was happening. My brain seemed to be stuffed with cotton. 

I carefully lifted my empty hand to the red stain. Removing my hand again, surprise filled me at the blood on my fingers. 

Blood, my blood - I was dying, but this realization didn’t fill me with fear as I would’ve expected. A strange calm flooded through my body. As my body went limp and I slowly fell backwards only one thought crossed my mind, ‘I saved him.’

I didn’t hit the hard, cold, dirty forest floor but landed on something soft. Then Tincke’s face appeared above me. At the sight of him my lips turned upwards into a small smile. 

His face was distorted in terror and shock. His beautiful grey eyes were filled with fear and as he cupped my face in his rough hands tears started to roll down his cheeks. 

Tincke’s soft lips were moving as he tried to tell me something, but I couldn’t hear a word he said - everything had gone silent. And as my peripheral vision started to grow dark the only thought I could think of was how happy I was to have been able to see Tincke one last time, that his handsome face was the last thing I saw on this earth. 

Then everything went black.