Life for Life

Disclaimer I don't intend to make any sort of claim on this story other than putting the words down on paper and coming up with the plotline myself.

A/N: Alright, I was finally able to get this over to my Beta Reader the wonderful Lousafine on bows Anyway, I have done some minor adjustments to the story, so hopefully it will make more sense for the next chapter which should be up in a week or so. Hope you enjoy.

Rain was pouring overhead as Jacob walked down the road. He had left the village earlier that day, after a rather violent fight with Wilhelm. In the middle of it however, Jacob had felt so overwhelmed that he had run out the door and with his horse disappeared into the fog which had hung around the village for several days. He had quickly regretted his decision of leaving, but after a running his horse full out for half an hour he had stopped to rest it before turning back. Except Folly had decided that she had had enough of him and instead of resting had run off. This left Jacob in a rather sorry state, without a horse and an unknown distance away from the nearest shelter. So now he was trudging through the mud, soaking wet.

When he reflected on the fight, which had started because of Angelica of all things, he realized how foolish it had been. Although he was attracted to the woman, he hardly wanted a relationship with her; especially since she seemed so attracted to Wilhelm. His brother seemed to ignore this fact however, and instead made it a competition between the two of them. It frustrated Jacob to no end, but he couldn't just back down…

As Jacob walked on, he veered slightly on the path and caught his cloak on a rather prickly branch that he hadn't noticed before. When he realized he turned and started struggling with the rather stubborn tree that seemed to be attaching different branches to him as soon as he got on off. As he struggled, the harsh beating of horse hooves began to echo down the wood. Yet, Jacob was too involved in what he was doing to notice the horseman come around the bend in the road at full speed. Neither saw one another in time.

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Meanwhile ...

Wilhelm paced back and forth along the cottage floor, muttering about Jacob and his ridiculous antics. Angelica was watching, irritation creeping along her face. She continued to stir the stew she was making for dinner that evening. "Oh, don't be a fool Wilhelm. Jacob is perfectly capable of looking after himself." A slight pause, "It's as though you think yourself the eldest." A roll of thunder stopped Wilhelm from answering immediately. "That's because he's not capable! He's more naïve than ever with his skewed idea that the forest is another of his schemes pre-made! Who knows what kind of trouble he could be getting himself into?" Angelica noticed Wilhelm had conveniently excluded the part about Jacob being older.

The stew was boiling properly now, a strong smell of rabbit wafting up from the cauldron, telling her that it would be done soon. As the rain pounded on the roof, she wondered if Jacob had decided to take up shelter at an inn, rather than braving the storm. If that were true, then she would have the night alone with Wilhelm...

She turned around to face him. "The stew is almost done; if he's not back by the time it's done, he probably won't return tonight." When Wilhelm sent her an alarmed look, she quickly added, "There are many inns along the road. I am sure that he is at least intelligent enough to know when not to travel." Another rumble of thunder sounded, seeming to prove Angelica's point.

Wilhelm continued to frown however, speaking softly, "He shouldn't be going and doing that... I don't recall if he had money with him when he stormed off." He seemed to have calmed down slightly, though. He had managed to stop pacing, and sat down at the table, beginning to tap his fingers impatiently on the solid oak. "Well I suppose we might as well enjoy ourselves, even if my brother is attempting to start a new trend in shirking responsibility." He glanced around anxiously though and paused. "Or, maybe I will go and call on some of the inns—see where he is stopped for the night..." Angelica scowled at Wilhelm. "You will do no such thing. A man could catch his death in that weather."

She grabbed a bowl and filled it with soup. "Eat."

Wilhelm hesitated; staring at the thick goop Angelica seemed to be mistaking was an edible substance. "Oh, stop acting like a child." Her curt words brought him to at least pretend to be eating by filling his spoon and bring it to his face with a worried look.

Thankful that she had finally relaxed him enough to eat, Angelica scooped up a second bowl and sat at the table. Before she could so much as put a drop to her mouth, however, the sound of pounding hooves interrupted the almost-quiet meal. With slight annoyance, she realized that it must be Jacob arriving. And from the rather happy look on Wilhelm's face, the thought occurred to him also. Although Wilhelm tried to hide it, he cared deeply for his brother, but felt a strong sense of competition towards him, making it seem often to outsiders that instead of Jacob being the older of the two, it was Wilhelm who spoke with charisma and life.

While Angelica was thinking, Wilhelm had leapt from his chair only to sit back down a moment later. If Jacob knew that Wilhelm had been waiting for him... no he would just act like normal… In any moment now Jacob would come marching through that door, soaking wet, and Wilhelm would tell him what a fool he was for going out in such weather. Wilhelm waited. He glanced at the door. He bit his lip and then scowled. Finally he got back up and walked to the door and opened it.

The sight that met his eyes was not a welcome one. Instead of Jacob on his horse, the beast was being led away by one of the stable boys.

Startled, he ran towards the young man, "Where is Jacob?" He yelled through the pouring rain. The boy shrugged, however, before yelling back, "There was no rider sir; looks like old Folly here ran off when her rider was resting her." Wilhelm froze for a moment before running towards the stable, Angelica close behind, not aware of the situation at hand. By the time she caught up with Wilhelm, he was simultaneously trying to saddle a horse, and lead it out into the dense rain. "Wilhelm, what in heavens' are you doing?" He was still struggling with one of the straps as he answered; "Jacobs's horse returned without him; he is still out there somewhere!" Angelica paled and began saddling her own horse. Wilhelm wasn't willing to wait, and as soon as he was on his horse he sped off, only his brother in mind. Angelica cursed, wondering where exactly Jacob could be...

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When Jacob awoke, he was in a considerable amount of pain, lying in a puddle of water. The last rays of day were streaming through the clouds, making the earth glow red. Picking himself up, he tried to remember what had happened. A rider had come galloping towards him, and at last minute, the horse had spotted him and reared. He must have been hit by one of the hoofs, because he couldn't remember anything after that but darkness. Sighing, he put his hand up to his head, and winced at the touch.

As he pulled his hand down noticed his hand was covered in blood, and from the crackled feeling of his skin, his face was covered with it. That would explain the throbbing pain pulsating around his head.

He sighed and pulled out his hanger chief, wrapping it as best he could around the tenderest and damp part of his head, hoping that it was there that the wound was, and that it would stop the bleeding.

It was raining still, the faint light from the sun penetrating wherever it could. From the violent shivers raking through his body, it was apparent he needed to find shelter before the sun set. With his head-wound and steady downfall, it would defiantly be easier said than done.

To make matters worse, Jacob sneezed violently. He scowled at the idea of getting sick; he had only been ill once, and that had been just a mild case of the flu. It was always someone else that needed to be taken care, someone else needing crazy doctors' remedies, and he often prided himself on his resistance.

Wilhelm was rather alike in that aspect, now that he was older at least. Jacob felt a cold chill run down his back at the memory of how his brother had been in bed for almost a year from illness, just before entering the college. It had scared Jacob badly thinking that
his brother was going to die the same way their sister had. In the end everything was fine, but with one of Jacob's beans gone. Which he had never told Wilhelm about... his brotherhad never believed in magic of any sort; well not until the event with the queen, but Jacob had always been slightly superstitious following some of the old ways. Wilhelm was always scoffing at this, and while Jacob wasn't sure whether the old ways actually worked, he followedthem. And more often than not, things went all right afterwards... And with the recent events proving that magic was real, Jacob was even unsure of just what magic was real and what was not. This in turn proved to annoy Wilhelm even more so.)

Jacob staggered to his feet; whoever the horseman was, he must have been in an awful hurry. Leaving a wounded stranger on the road was no way to make friends. Jacob shook his head, slowly making his way back to town, this time keeping an eye on the road ahead of him. It was getting colder by the minute, and Jacob began to feel as though his head (the wound on which still hadn't stopped bleeding) was filled with lead and his limbs were of ice. He felt unconsciousness tug at him, and wanted to give in. He spotted a large tree a little ways off the road, its large roots providing an alcove. It would do for the night… he stumbled into the makeshift shelter, and felt himself drop off to sleep immediately.
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Wilhelm was panicking; he had checked over five inns and there was no sign of Jacob anywhere. The fool had probably got himself lost somehow… although Wilhelm was at a loss as to how with such a strait road... What if bandits had found Jacob and robbed him? No, they would have taken the horse too... But, what if Jacob had lost the horse first, and then been robbed…! Wilhelm glanced around the side of the road knowing that such people rarely tried to hide their kills... Wilhelm jerked; Jacob just couldn't be dead...

Angelica had been surveying the situation from the start, growing more and more impatient as time went on. "Wilhelm?" There was no answer. She scowled, "Wilhelm?" This time her voice was quiet louder. Still there was no acknowledgement from the man. She hated being ignored. "WILHELM!" Wilhelm jumped half out of his saddle. "What in heaven's angles are you
shouting at me for?"
Angelica smirked, rather pleased with herself at getting Wilhelm's attention; "I was just going to say it would be best if we were to get some outside help. Obviously we aren't finding Jacob on our own. It would be far more helpful to ask Grandmother Toad." With that she jumped off her horse and began to lead it away from the road, into the forest. Wilhelm also paused, but wasn't nearly as willing to venture into the woods.
"Grandmother Toad?" Wilhelm called in a slightly strangled voice, remembering exactly what going to Grandmother Toad would entail.
"Yes, Grandmother Toad." Angelica didn't bother stopping, Wilhelm would catch up soon enough. The said man stayed where he was, before hopping off his horse as well. If this was the only way to find Jacob, it was the only thing. Yet… "Of all things, Grandmother Toad? Ugg..."