---

             
She was back at it again, lingering in front of her house on the bench that shadowed it. The winds were chilled, tugging at her fiery locks that occasionally whipped back so hard back at her face it would catch her in the eye. She growled at the latest time, grabbing the curls between her fingers and pulling it back behind her before securing it with a band. With a heavy sigh she rose from the security of the bench and peaked into her backyard, there her bow and arrow lay against the fence with the target beckoning her back. Last time she tried her hand at archery she had Lif there to help, and well...

She wasn't really sure she got much better at it since then.

There was no way to get better other than to keep trying at it right? No matter how embarrassing. Slowly she walked to the yard, opening the gate that led to the grass with the loud clank left behind her. Slowly her slender fingers found the wooden bow, grabbing at it gently as she moved closer to the target. With a deep breath she rose the bow to her cheek, the arrow laying against her fingers as she drew it back one eye closed the other set on the bullseye.

Whoosh!

Wide eyes only showed her what she didn't want to see. She missed, the arrow penetrating the grass to the right side of it. She clicked her teeth in annoyance, grabbing another arrow and setting herself up once more. 

Whoosh!

It hit the target, but not close to where she wanted it to. Why was this so hard? Another click of her teeth and she withdrew the bow, placing it back against the fence as her arms crossed across her chest. "Fucking annoying," she muttered while leaning against the fence, her weight causing it to wail back in retaliation.

---

Had she been paying attention maybe she would have heard his call. The backyard was not so far off from the front of her home, but due to her being so distracted she did not hear him the first time. Again she picked up the arrow and again she drew the bow. She brought it to her cheek, aiming down the sights and releasing only for it to miss the bullseye, again. She growled under her breath, annoyance clear. Her fingers jerked at the last arrow, but the sound of her name on a familiar tongue caused her to turn and face her favorite face. "Hey!" He was able to ease the annoyance, thankfully as she didn't wish to think how terrible she actually was at archery. 

Lips pouted jokingly at his quip, "Mmm, sadly I do not, but were you looking to make one?" She smirked at him while arms drew out to embrace him in a hug if he desired one. It had been some time since she saw him, the last time actually was a  memorable one. Though they did not get to complete their time spent together she had to admit she had a good time regardless. They always shared good conversation, jokes, and just a general understanding of one another it seemed.

"Have you been doing alright?" She asked him, wondering what he'd been up to in the past weeks. "As you can see I have gotten no better at this," a soft sigh escaped her. It was rather devastating considering she was not good with any other weapons, and with the world they lived in that thought alone was a scary one.

---

 "Hey!" Her prior annoyance that had been written plain upon her countenance seemed to fade as if carried away by the tide. Despite himself, he found his pulse skipping a beat with the temptation of that notion. It was a dangerous sentiment for his current predicament, one that he chose to carefully avoid chasing. Instead, his chin would idly rest along the top of his arms, folded leisurely across the support of the fence. "Hey." A salacious purr readily rolling from the rugged curve of his mouth, chased by the all too familiar accompaniment of his boyish smirk.

"Mmm, sadly I do not, but were you looking to make one?" She returned the impish expression and he would allow an easy laugh to airily leave him. "Sadly?" His vocals feigned a wounded pride, and yet he was wholly unable to stop himself from the tease, readily embracing her. He pulled her tight - close to the breadth of his frame. She felt so warm in stark comparison to the biting chill of winter's avaricious grasp. There was always that sense of surprise that lingered when he held her, of just how soft she was.

"Have you been doing alright?" He would offer a slight nod, unwilling to part from the indulgence of having her flush to his frame. "As you can see I have gotten no better at this," She would add, and he would look towards the scattered shafts that had fallen short or to the sides of the target she'd set up. "Seems the King's finally gone mad," the words slipped by on a slightly dejected sigh as he reluctantly relinquished his grasp upon her. His hand rose, brushing through the already mussed strands of his fiery hair. "Started a draft. I actually came because.... Well I wanted to warn you, I suppose." For one of the few times since he'd known her, there was a seriousness within the reflection of those cold cut sapphires. "I think he means to go to war, Faina."

---

She found herself idly biting at her lip with his sultry response, but quickly she withdrew, leaving him off with a smile. Even doing bare minimum she could not help the fluttering butterflies she felt in the pit of her gut when she looked over him. He wouldn't leave her much time for admiration, however, before he swooped in and embraced her, wrapping her into his warmth. Her arms wove around his hips until she met her fingertips at his back, pressing her cheek to the firmness of his frame. She inhaled deeply, taking him in with closed eyes, marinating in the moment until he finally spoke again. There they remained in silence for a few moments and it was the only silence she found to be the most calming. They had known each other for some time now and with every hang out she found herself more and more comfortable with him. There were the banters here and there, even the flames she thought would turn into infernos, but alas fate had kept them separated. Perhaps for a reason.

The cold hit her as he released her from his grasp, the conversation of the king hung heavily on his lips. Faina could not hold back the frown that tugged at the edges of her cheeks, a heavy crisp inhale filled her lungs with the winter air. 

Started a draft.

That was all he had to say. Her hands dropped to her sides before she became rubbing at her arm. Immediately she felt sick to her stomach at the thought of him having to go to war. "The King should fight in his own war," she scoffed, another heavy sigh escaped her. She met his intense gaze and it was the first time she had seen him so serious. It was enough to make her stomach feel like it now lay across the floor due to its heaviness. Her arms wrapped around his hips again, resting her face against his chest to hear the pattering of his heart. "I don't even want to think about it," she spoke softly, her embrace becoming just a little tighter. 

---

 It was indulgent, the way she held him. Genuine. Truthful. It was one of the few times he didn't feel like those hands may slip a dagger through his back. He trusted her, beyond what words could fathom. Perhaps that's why he hadn't gone further, why he didn't press onward despite his fervid want when distraction arose. Normally, he'd have been undeterred, amused and passing off any embarrassment his companions felt with a laugh. However, he wouldn't see them again after that night. He wouldn't seek out their company again, even if he promised otherwise. Once his jacket was buttoned once more, any sordid whispers were just pretty lies. Enthralling, impassioned, certainly, but that was it. Pretty lies. He'd said them all, and yet he'd never meant a single one of them. Words were cheaper than coin, and the truth was he didn't believe in paying for anything he could get for free.

But not to her.

He didn't even like the frown that dressed the plump cherub curve of her lips. As with his lies, when he crossed paths again with the women scorned, he could easily shrug away their soured expressions. Their accusations, even their tears. He could even spin another web, should that be what they desire, but again. Not to her.

"The King should fight in his own war," the sound of her intonation was bitter. Frightfully so. She again leaned into him, though this embrace held no mirthful play. Her cheek was warm against his chest, and his arms wound around the mid of her back, leaning his head down to breathe in the scent of her wild hair. His mouth was light as he brushed a slight affection to the top of her crown. "I don't even want to think about it," he heard the muffled woe. His shoulders would roll in a slight shrug. "Well, I suppose I'm glad we share the thought." The words were a bit slow coming as he inwardly cringed at his rash decision. Perhaps he should have only been here to tell her he was off to war - and truthfully this time, not just a line that lead to his bed - and that he would one day return. Instead, he was a fugitive, wanted for abandoning his country. His jaw clenched, his eyes slipping closed. In another life, he'd have served honestly. If they had taken him from the beginning, he would be neck deep in their damned violence. But they hadn't. He'd had to make a living in other ways. "Lest you'd prefer I keep my honor." While there was humor in his tone, there was also a hint a seriousness. A foolish notion, he realized as he opened his eyes quickly with the epiphany. And he would curse himself later for it. For going to war for a woman.

---

Her cheeks felt hot, though they would not be displayed with rosy red. Everything she felt was internal. The sadness, she anger, the confusion. Why did the king feel he could banter with the lives of the less fortunate? As if they were all some play things on a chess board, knocked away to the sidelines, to the death, with only the snap of a finger. It made her sick, her stomach churned with discomfort, but she couldn’t wash away the biggest feeling of all her emotions combined. 

The sadness…

The sadness would always win. The doubt she would ever see him again. The what-ifs would get to her, she wouldn’t be able to get a lick of sleep, she already knew it. Every day she would worry what had become of him, unable to speak to him with only the hope that one day she would hear him calling her name at the fence again. To see her standing there with embarrassment that she still could not shoot a bow efficiently. And if he never came back she would wonder. No one knew of their acquaintance to give her the news if there were to be any grave fate. He would be gone like the wind, only someone she once knew, once cared for deeply someone she could find herself…

Her heart sank. She dug her face into the cloth of his clothes deeper before relieving a heavy sigh. ”I would run away with you,” the truth. She had nothing here, there was nothing to leave behind. Her family engulfed in a fire, her lack of friends due to her hard working lifestyle. He was the only one she’d let so close in such a long time and now? Well now the king was threatening to rip that away. She could feel her eyes grow wet, but she would not allow him to see her cry. Instead she wiped them into his jacket and pulled her face away from his chest slowly. Without any other words her hands would find the softness of his cheeks along with the light stubble that lingered there. Her lips would find his own as she placed a gentle kiss upon them, not over indulging as she usually would—no. This kiss had a hint of sadness, one that she knew could possibly be her last and with that in mind she wanted it to be tender, sweet. She wanted him to know he meant much more to her than what was so easily given by others. 

---

”I would run away with you,” again, her quiet sincerity had his heart skipping slightly, but it was laden with emotion. It was heavy with a feeling that only anchored him amid a sea of tumultuous unknowing. It stirred a different reaction, a wholly different notion. He'd certainly allowed himself to grow close to her, fond of her in every since of the word. Their banter, her softness, the myriad of scent that clung to her between her own perfume and that unintentional that accompanied her from work. Her mouth. He curved his thoughts, the trail they were leading down. After all, he knew he would no longer be welcome within the arms of any training camp at the king's behest. Not without some manner of stipulation he would be forced to be under. No, he would merely continue waging his own war in the shadows. The only way he knew how.

Her hands were soft upon his features, drawing him from any inkling of thoughts as he rubbed against the tenderness of her palms. His gaze sifted over her, over her expression as she pulled his face closer to her own. It wasn't the same wild and impassioned way they had before, when their lips had clashed with near gnashing teeth. This was far more dulcet, tame, planned. It was innocent and tentative and it left him staring hard at her for a long moment. Salt laced his tongue, as if he could taste the tears in her kiss that she'd kept from his eyes. Honesty was all he found in her façade. No matter how closely he looked, the mask didn't crack, didn't bely any ulterior motive for her to continue any charade. After all, she'd left him wanting more times than not, and he the same. The rumored money his family had buried away here didn't seem to spark her interest - if she even heard of such a weaving tale.

His hands would wind along her waist, his grip soft as he lifted her, spinning her to neatly set her atop the pine that had held his arms earlier. Even, eye to eye. One hand rested along her thigh, steadying her, the other curling under her chin. There was a low rumble of vocal cords reverberating deeply within the breadth of his chest as he reciprocated her tenderness, continuing to watch her. Sharp. Cutting. "Where will we run to, Faina?" The words escaped him on a heated breath despite his best efforts. He nearly chewed the inner corner of his cheek, yet kept himself under leash and chain. His thumb grazed along the curve of her jaw, his sight lowering, following the path he traced. "Where do you want to go, and I'll take you there."

---

There was no denying the fact that he knew her better then she would have liked to admit. The time they spent together never was dull, and never did a conversation lack. Despite their best efforts to attempt to ravish one another with heated breaths, spending time in each others company took them over more often than not, causing them to learn each other’s quirks. She was aware that he would know she was sad after delivering such information, but just like that he knew how to make her feel better. He held her softly, moving her effortlessly until her eyes locked with his, the intensity behind his gaze caused her heart to to catch flame within her chest. When his hand lay against her thigh, heat immediately flushed her cheeks. A soft smile tugged against the edges of her mouth, ”what do you do to me,” she questioned softly as her smaller hand rested upon the one on her thigh, the other cupped the hand that held her chin. Having him so close felt so comforting, yet intense. She could not find herself to grow bored of him or his company. Someway, somehow, he always was able to make her feel more important than the day before. 

”Anywhere,” she hushed against his lips, scooting herself closer to him so she could wrap her knees around his hips. They were like night and day. Here she thought he would come to the house and poke fun at her archery, but was instead met with grave news. And now…well it had always been apparent that they could not quite get enough of one another. ”Why don’t we go inside for now and maybe then we can make a plan of where we will run away together,” her thumb trailed his lips idly as she bit at her own softly. ”As long as I’m with you, anywhere would be fine,”. Faina had grown fond of him in the time they knew one another. If asked months ago would she be able to see herself entangled in what they were now she would have been hesitant. In this moment, however, she had never been so sure about anything in her life. 

If he really did want to run, she would follow. 

---

Her softly murmured inquiry was all it took for the snares of searing fire to ensnare him, a light snort of dark laughter abandoned him. His forehead pressed to hers endearingly, his fingers holding against the back of her neck gently. His lips a mere breath from hers, able to feel the warmth, the soft fall of his breath, but not quite touching. "Oh, but I could ask you the same thing," The words were little more than a growl, the hand upon her thigh squeezing in emphasis.

”Anywhere,” she moved closer, and he felt her knees on either side of his hips. Felt them press against him. ”Why don’t we go inside for now and maybe then we can make a plan of where we will run away together." The pad of her thumb traced the curve of his lip, and he didn't miss the impish bite of her own. She was serious. Or at least he believed her to be. If she wasn't, then she was an even better actor than him, a long con kinda gal, but there was no long term goal at the end of all this. There was no rainbow with some pot of gold, there would only be miserable days and nights spent in the wilds. He swallowed hard, uncertainty eating away at him. Was that worse? Sure, he was accustomed and used to such trivial inconveniences, but was she? Was it fair to drag her from the comforts of her life? ”As long as I’m with you, anywhere would be fine."

But her hand was warm and firm upon his own, reassuring. A plan. Once they got inside, sure. The hint of his simper returned in full, unfurling beneath her touch as he affectionately nipped her thumb. "Very well then, m'lady." He would force himself to take a step back, bending into the mockery of a flourishing bow, flashing her a playful wink. "Indoors, to form a plan, of course. Where we won't be disturbed." The last he couldn't help but tack on in dry humor considering their last run in at the inn had been interrupted by the ghastly housekeeping.