Fic: French Defence (3/5)
Title: French Defence, Part 3
Rating: NC17
Word count: 1911
Warnings: Strong Language, Violence (torture), Death, merest hint of Slash
Characters/Pairings: Little John/Legrand, OMC
Disclaimer: Robin Hood is copyright to Tiger Aspect and the BBC. All Rights Reserved. No copyright infringement is intended, and no money is being made because Vaizey would only tax it.
Notes: Warning - meanness to bigs boys again - I clearly can't help myself... But they get better :)
Summary: Queen Eleanor's carriage has been ambushed by French mercenaries on the way to Limoges. Eleanor has escaped and is in hiding but John and Legrand have been captured...
Previous moves:
White: Castle to Queens' Bishop
Black: Rook to Queen's Knight
White: Queen's Knight sacrifice
Black: Rook takes Queen's Knights
La Corneille had set up his base in a large stable near the centre of Moulismes. His men dragged Legrand in and threw him none too gently against the back wall. The mercenaries then turned to their captain who organised them to start their search for the Queen in earnest.
Legrand propped himself up in a sitting position against the wall and tried to make himself comfortable. He'd only been sitting a few minutes when a rider hurried in and whispered urgently to La Corneille.
"" the mercenary leader said irritably. ""
Legrand surreptitiously grinned as the rider whispered again and gestured outside.
"" La Corneille ordered.
Legrand's smile vanished and he felt his stomach tying itself in knots as the door swung open. Two mercenaries dragged John's body into the stables and dumped it onto the ground beside where Legrand was sitting. He stared straight ahead, keeping his face impassive and didn't look down until he had steeled himself for the worst. When he saw John was still breathing, Legrand carefully checked he wasn't being watched before allowing himself a small sigh of relief.
His relief was short-lived.
La Corneille's soldiers almost tore the town apart throughout the night and as the hours passed with still no sign of Eleanor, The Crow grew increasingly frustrated. Legrand was hauled to his feet and questioned repeatedly on the Queen's whereabouts. La Corneille's blows got heavier and less controlled but Legrand stoically and silently bore the brunt of the mercenary's frustration until finally, he passed out.
When he came round Legrand could hear La Corneille's voice raised in anger once more. Legrand groggily realised his armour had been stripped from him while he was unconscious and he was now clad only in his underclothes. His hands had been retied in front of him but his feet were still free.
"Paysan putain!" Legrand scowled as he heard the insult followed by the dull smack of a fist hitting flesh. "Où est la Reine?"
"Fuck off, you French bastard."
Legrand resisted the urge to smile. John - defiant as ever. He knew John would die long before betraying Eleanor and he also knew that John was aware Legrand would do the same.
He forced open his eyes and they focused on the scene on the other side of the stable from where he was lying. There was a faint light outside indicating it was nearing dawn but most of the light still came from the flickering torches and a small brazier. Apart from himself, John and La Corneille there were four other men in the small stable. Two of them were holding John on his knees with his arms out to each side. La Corneille had grabbed a fistful of the front of John's shirt and was leaning down towards him. As Legrand watched John spat in the mercenary captain's face. Legrand closed his eyes again. He had no wish to watch as La Corneille started dishing out his inevitable retaliation.
The sounds of the beating continued for a few minutes then there was an ominous silence.
""
Legrand opened his eyes again as several pairs of armoured feet appeared in front of him. He greeted them warmly but sarcastically as they lifted him from the floor. ""
La Corneille snorted. ""
Legrand threw himself at La Corneille with a roar and kicked him painfully in the leg before a hail of blows dropped him to the floor again.
""
They dragged Legrand into the middle of the room. He carefully resisted giving any reaction to the sight of John's body lying sprawled on the floor in the corner. John was being made to pay dearly for his known position as Queen Eleanor's consort. The fact he was also English made La Corneille take extra pleasure in his work. If the French mercenaries had any idea of Legrand's real feelings for him they would definitely be used against both him and John.
The mercenaries tied a rope between Legrand's hands, around the one holding his hands together, then threw it over the beam in the centre of the roof and hauled on it till he was suspended just above the floor.
"" La Corneille told him.
"" Legrand answered, calmly.
"" La Corneille eyed the poker heating in the brazier and the horsewhip lying beside his jacket. "" La Corneille slowly walked around Legrand, halting just in front of him. ""
Legrand looked down at the French mercenary in defiance. " Fuck off." Legrand deliberately swore in English knowing it would annoy La Corneille even more.
La Corneille smiled grimly. ">" He suddenly turned and punched hard into Legrand's stomach. Legrand's legs jerked up as he gasped for air. La Corneille pulled back to strike again when there was a sudden commotion at the door. One of his men came running over and whispered urgently in his ear.
""
Legrand smiled. His pre-arranged decoy should have broken cover since they hadn't heard from him. If he was guessing the time right, they should have been on the Limoges road about now.
The mercenaries ran from the building and Legrand heard them swiftly mounting their horses and riding off, leaving him alone with La Corneille.
La Corneille saw the smile and assumed Legrand thought his queen was escaping. He picked up the whip and walked behind Legrand. "" His eyes narrowed as he looked from John back to Legrand. ""
""
The French mercenary cracked the whip across Legrand's back. "" He stepped forward and roughly tore down Legrand's breeches. ""
"" Legrand spat back at him.
La Corneille threw the horsewhip aside, wrapped the end of the poker in some cloth, grabbed it from the fire and pressed it to the side of Legrand's thigh.
Legrand screamed with pain. He gagged back a sudden wave of nausea and only just stopped himself from throwing up.
"" La Corneille said, nastily. ""
Legrand spat, trying to get the taste of bile from his mouth. A small movement in front of him caught his eye. "" he gasped.
La Corneille transferred the poker to his other hand and slapped his palm against the burn.
Legrand hoarsely screamed once more, almost passing out.
The mercenary grabbed Legrand's hip and prepared to apply the poker again.
"" Legrand called frantically back to him.
""
""
La Corneille hesitated. Legrand knew he must be suspicious that Legrand was just stalling, but he hoped the mercenary would think he may as well hear him out.
""
Legrand hung his head and mumbled something indistinctly.
"" La Corneille strode round and grabbed Legrand's chin. "
Legrand spoke slowly in English. "I said, you really should have got your men to tie John up before they left."
"" La Corneille didn't even have time to turn before John's arm was around his throat in a choke hold. He dropped the poker and his hands came up desperately trying to loosen John's grip. When that had no effect he started fumbling at his belt for his dagger.
Legrand could see John quickly taking in the bruises covering Legrand's face and body and the burn on his leg. The sickly smell of burning flesh still hung in the air.
John looked up into Legrand's eyes and then, still holding Legrand's gaze, very calmly twisted his arm and snapped La Corneille's neck like a piece of wood. The mercenary's body instantly went slack and lifeless in John's arms. John dropped it to the floor and didn't even give it a second glance as he stepped over it. He walked over to the wall and untied the end of the rope holding Legrand up.
Legrand winced at the stiffness in his shoulders as he brought his arms down in front of his body and John untied both ropes. Legrand gingerly pulled his breeches back up but stopped and hissed through his teeth as the material made contact with the burn on his leg.
"Let me see." John leaned over and inspected the burn. "It's not too bad - pretty clean. Can you stand on it?"
Legrand nodded. "It's fine. Just stings like hell. What about you?"
"The cut on my side will need looked at." Legrand could see the ugly red line across John's ribs through the gash in his shirt. "But it's fairly shallow and so's the one on my head. Fine otherwise." John straightened up as Legrand lifted and tied his breeches.
"I'm certainly glad you woke up when you did," Legrand said as he found his boots and armour and pulled them back on.
John took La Corneille's sword and passed it over to Legrand. "I bet you are. You didn't tell him the really important thing, did you?"
"About the Queen? Of course not!" Legrand was hurt at the mere suggestion. Surely John knew him better than that?
"No, not that."
"What, then?" Legrand was puzzled.
"You should have told him..." John said, pulling Legrand towards him, "Your arse already belongs to me." He gently patted it and Legrand laughed and kissed him.
"Come on, we need to find the Queen. That decoy won't fool them for long..."
Next move: White: Queen to Queen's Castle
Rating: NC17
Word count: 1911
Warnings: Strong Language, Violence (torture), Death, merest hint of Slash
Characters/Pairings: Little John/Legrand, OMC
Disclaimer: Robin Hood is copyright to Tiger Aspect and the BBC. All Rights Reserved. No copyright infringement is intended, and no money is being made because Vaizey would only tax it.
Notes: Warning - meanness to bigs boys again - I clearly can't help myself... But they get better :)
Summary: Queen Eleanor's carriage has been ambushed by French mercenaries on the way to Limoges. Eleanor has escaped and is in hiding but John and Legrand have been captured...
Previous moves:
White: Castle to Queens' Bishop
Black: Rook to Queen's Knight
White: Queen's Knight sacrifice
Black: Rook takes Queen's Knights
La Corneille had set up his base in a large stable near the centre of Moulismes. His men dragged Legrand in and threw him none too gently against the back wall. The mercenaries then turned to their captain who organised them to start their search for the Queen in earnest.
Legrand propped himself up in a sitting position against the wall and tried to make himself comfortable. He'd only been sitting a few minutes when a rider hurried in and whispered urgently to La Corneille.
"" the mercenary leader said irritably. ""
Legrand surreptitiously grinned as the rider whispered again and gestured outside.
"" La Corneille ordered.
Legrand's smile vanished and he felt his stomach tying itself in knots as the door swung open. Two mercenaries dragged John's body into the stables and dumped it onto the ground beside where Legrand was sitting. He stared straight ahead, keeping his face impassive and didn't look down until he had steeled himself for the worst. When he saw John was still breathing, Legrand carefully checked he wasn't being watched before allowing himself a small sigh of relief.
His relief was short-lived.
La Corneille's soldiers almost tore the town apart throughout the night and as the hours passed with still no sign of Eleanor, The Crow grew increasingly frustrated. Legrand was hauled to his feet and questioned repeatedly on the Queen's whereabouts. La Corneille's blows got heavier and less controlled but Legrand stoically and silently bore the brunt of the mercenary's frustration until finally, he passed out.
When he came round Legrand could hear La Corneille's voice raised in anger once more. Legrand groggily realised his armour had been stripped from him while he was unconscious and he was now clad only in his underclothes. His hands had been retied in front of him but his feet were still free.
"Paysan putain!" Legrand scowled as he heard the insult followed by the dull smack of a fist hitting flesh. "Où est la Reine?"
"Fuck off, you French bastard."
Legrand resisted the urge to smile. John - defiant as ever. He knew John would die long before betraying Eleanor and he also knew that John was aware Legrand would do the same.
He forced open his eyes and they focused on the scene on the other side of the stable from where he was lying. There was a faint light outside indicating it was nearing dawn but most of the light still came from the flickering torches and a small brazier. Apart from himself, John and La Corneille there were four other men in the small stable. Two of them were holding John on his knees with his arms out to each side. La Corneille had grabbed a fistful of the front of John's shirt and was leaning down towards him. As Legrand watched John spat in the mercenary captain's face. Legrand closed his eyes again. He had no wish to watch as La Corneille started dishing out his inevitable retaliation.
The sounds of the beating continued for a few minutes then there was an ominous silence.
"
Legrand opened his eyes again as several pairs of armoured feet appeared in front of him. He greeted them warmly but sarcastically as they lifted him from the floor. "
La Corneille snorted. "
Legrand threw himself at La Corneille with a roar and kicked him painfully in the leg before a hail of blows dropped him to the floor again.
"
They dragged Legrand into the middle of the room. He carefully resisted giving any reaction to the sight of John's body lying sprawled on the floor in the corner. John was being made to pay dearly for his known position as Queen Eleanor's consort. The fact he was also English made La Corneille take extra pleasure in his work. If the French mercenaries had any idea of Legrand's real feelings for him they would definitely be used against both him and John.
The mercenaries tied a rope between Legrand's hands, around the one holding his hands together, then threw it over the beam in the centre of the roof and hauled on it till he was suspended just above the floor.
"
"
"
Legrand looked down at the French mercenary in defiance. " Fuck off." Legrand deliberately swore in English knowing it would annoy La Corneille even more.
La Corneille smiled grimly. ">" He suddenly turned and punched hard into Legrand's stomach. Legrand's legs jerked up as he gasped for air. La Corneille pulled back to strike again when there was a sudden commotion at the door. One of his men came running over and whispered urgently in his ear.
"
Legrand smiled. His pre-arranged decoy should have broken cover since they hadn't heard from him. If he was guessing the time right, they should have been on the Limoges road about now.
The mercenaries ran from the building and Legrand heard them swiftly mounting their horses and riding off, leaving him alone with La Corneille.
La Corneille saw the smile and assumed Legrand thought his queen was escaping. He picked up the whip and walked behind Legrand. "
"
The French mercenary cracked the whip across Legrand's back. "
"
La Corneille threw the horsewhip aside, wrapped the end of the poker in some cloth, grabbed it from the fire and pressed it to the side of Legrand's thigh.
Legrand screamed with pain. He gagged back a sudden wave of nausea and only just stopped himself from throwing up.
"
Legrand spat, trying to get the taste of bile from his mouth. A small movement in front of him caught his eye. "
La Corneille transferred the poker to his other hand and slapped his palm against the burn.
Legrand hoarsely screamed once more, almost passing out.
The mercenary grabbed Legrand's hip and prepared to apply the poker again.
"
"
"
La Corneille hesitated. Legrand knew he must be suspicious that Legrand was just stalling, but he hoped the mercenary would think he may as well hear him out.
"
Legrand hung his head and mumbled something indistinctly.
"
Legrand spoke slowly in English. "I said, you really should have got your men to tie John up before they left."
"
Legrand could see John quickly taking in the bruises covering Legrand's face and body and the burn on his leg. The sickly smell of burning flesh still hung in the air.
John looked up into Legrand's eyes and then, still holding Legrand's gaze, very calmly twisted his arm and snapped La Corneille's neck like a piece of wood. The mercenary's body instantly went slack and lifeless in John's arms. John dropped it to the floor and didn't even give it a second glance as he stepped over it. He walked over to the wall and untied the end of the rope holding Legrand up.
Legrand winced at the stiffness in his shoulders as he brought his arms down in front of his body and John untied both ropes. Legrand gingerly pulled his breeches back up but stopped and hissed through his teeth as the material made contact with the burn on his leg.
"Let me see." John leaned over and inspected the burn. "It's not too bad - pretty clean. Can you stand on it?"
Legrand nodded. "It's fine. Just stings like hell. What about you?"
"The cut on my side will need looked at." Legrand could see the ugly red line across John's ribs through the gash in his shirt. "But it's fairly shallow and so's the one on my head. Fine otherwise." John straightened up as Legrand lifted and tied his breeches.
"I'm certainly glad you woke up when you did," Legrand said as he found his boots and armour and pulled them back on.
John took La Corneille's sword and passed it over to Legrand. "I bet you are. You didn't tell him the really important thing, did you?"
"About the Queen? Of course not!" Legrand was hurt at the mere suggestion. Surely John knew him better than that?
"No, not that."
"What, then?" Legrand was puzzled.
"You should have told him..." John said, pulling Legrand towards him, "Your arse already belongs to me." He gently patted it and Legrand laughed and kissed him.
"Come on, we need to find the Queen. That decoy won't fool them for long..."
Next move: White: Queen to Queen's Castle