Set after Tattoo? What Tattoo?
"Djaq." Will stood a little way up the hill, a short distance from the others, watching the other men all fuss over their Saracen friend. Despite her protests, they'd insisted on looking after her for the evening, undoubtedly as some kind of repayment for failing to prevent her capture, and for taking so long to rescue her.
At the sound of her name, Djaq looked over her shoulder to see where his voice was coming from, smiling and excusing herself from the rest of the gang. She walked up to him and once she was close enough, he reached out and gently touched his fingertips to her left arm. "Yes?"
He noticed her turn her arm slightly, bringing the back of her hand round towards him. "Please." He ran his hand down the back of her arm, carefully turning it to bring her wrist into view. She kept her gaze fixed on his face, watching as he looked down at the burn on her skin. "Let me look at it. Let me do something, none of the others have to know."
"Will." He met her gaze and she found herself smiling.
He moved his left hand so both were cradling her arm. "I don't want to see it get worse. I wanna see it heal, and I know that's what you want too." She nodded, walking with him to the shelter of the rocky outcrop where their possessions lay. He sat down, grabbing a satchel as she joined him, and then reaching out so her wrist rested in his left palm. She watched as he gazed at her arm and then looked up at her again. "I need to know, but you don't have to tell me anything. Did they hurt you?"
She lifted her arm slightly. "Apart from this, no."
He closed his eyes for a second, exhaling deeply, and met her gaze again. "Good." He smiled. "What happened?"
"He poured the Zayt al-Zaj on my skin."
His brow creased. "Oh, Djaq." He used his free hand to find a flask in the satchel, pulling the cork out with his teeth, and then pouring a little water over the burn. "I'm sorry, I didn't know they'd got you until we were back here. I was on lookout, and leading the gang away and I thought Much and Robin would make sure you were safe because you were with them. As soon as we stopped I noticed, but I should have noticed sooner."
She smiled at the worry and touch of guilt evident on his face. "It's not your fault. You came for me, twice, that's enough."
"I couldn't just leave you."
Her smile grew, and before long she was grinning. "Much told me how you fought for my safety, he said you wouldn't stop fighting for them to help you rescue me. Thank you."
He looked down at the ground, and gradually lifted his gaze, entirely unable to keep from looking at her. His lips curled upwards; Djaq was gazing right back at him so her eyes met his, a softness in their depths that filled him with love. "You have no idea how welcome you are. Is there something I can put on this to soothe it?"
"Yeah." She reached for the medical bag, pulling out a vial. "For burns, it should work on this too."
He took it from her, removed the stopper and carefully poured a little liquid onto her skin beside the burn. With the upmost tenderness, he spread the lotion out over the wound with his fingertips, using a small circular motion to work the ointment into her skin. With the lotion no longer visible, he reached into her bag for a bandage and began to wrap it around her wrist. "It needs protecting like any other wound, to stop it getting irritated. Then I can see to it again later if you'll let me. And I know the others might notice this, but if they ask about it, you can just tell them you scratched yourself on something. I promise this will be our secret." He fastened the end of the bandage to keep it in place. "Does it feel better?"
She nodded, a little too focussed on how his hands encompassed hers to form a substantial reply to his offer of further care or his question. "Thank you."
Will stood, instinctively reaching down to help pull her to her feet. She felt her eyes drift shut as he reached up to cup her face and softly kissed her forehead. "Thank you for letting me tend to your wound."