I had a very hard time writing this chapter, especially the action part at the end. It's been half written for months, and I just want to say thank you to the review I got this week! It's really what motivated me to finally finish the chapter and get it posted.
"'Brina," Sabrina woke to the sounds of Puck's voice gently saying her name.
"Mmm," she said, not opening her eyes, and snuggling into the warm, solid thing behind her. Wait, that wasn't a pillow! She jerked her eyes open, and realized that she was curled into Puck's chest, his arms wrapped tightly around her.
"Good morning, beautiful," he said as he kissed her cheek. Her eyes trailed to the window, where she could see a dark sky filled with the pinpricks of stars.
"S'not morning yet…" She muttered, getting ready to go back to sleep. She could feel the vibrations in Puck's chest as chuckled.
"We have to go to the treasury, remember?" Oh. The treasury. The ring. The plan. Right.
"How long was I asleep for?" She asked.
"Since about ten thirty." she glanced at the clock. It was one fifteen.
"You should have woken me up earlier!" She protested, climbing out of bed to go find the trousers and shirt she had worn the night before.
"You needed the sleep," Puck said simply, as if there was no room for argument.
"Yeah, but… What about you?" he shrugged.
"I'm fine. I can sleep when we get home, yeah?" She sent him a glare.
"You still need sleep!"
"I'll sleep after we do this!"
"Fine!" Sabrina marched off to the bathroom to quickly change out of her nightgown. Again, the trousers and button up shirt weren't even close to fitting, but were still better than wearing a dress. When she emerged from the bathroom, Puck had already changed into darker colored clothes, and was grabbing the satchel full of supplies. He silently held out a knife to her, and she hesitated.
"That's not part of the plan. We aren't going to hurt anyone." She said.
"I'd feel better if you had it," Puck replied. "Just in case. You don't have to use it."
"Fine." She carefully grabbed the knife. "Where do I put it? Can I put a knife in my pocket?" He passed her a belt, and showed her how to safely secure the knife to one of the loops. Sabrina still disliked the feeling of it, but she knew that he was right. It was going to be more dangerous sneaking into the treasury than the ballroom, and there was no telling exactly what the guards might do if things don't go according to plan.
Soon enough, they had snuck out of Sabrina's room and down the staircase to the treasury. It was on the ground floor, hidden deep within the winding halls of the palace.
"It's around this corner," Puck finally whispered as they crept down a windowless hallway. "Remember the plan." Sabrina nodded. They had spent hours going over the plan. Of course she remembered it!
This time, they were taking a different approach. Breaking into the throne room had been different because it was in the middle of the palace, and there were a lot more people around. Their strategy had basically been to prank the guards and distract them so that they could quickly look around and get out.
The treasury, on the other hand, was hidden deep within the palace, and had much tighter security. This time would be much harder, and there was a lot more at stake if they got caught. They probably could have explained away breaking into the throne room. The royal treasury? Not so much.
Puck reached down and gave Sabrina a quick kiss before he slunk around the corner. He was going around so that they could corner the guards from both ends of the hallway. She took a deep breath, fingering the hilt of the knife tied at her belt as she began to count down the seconds.
One Mississippi. Two Mississippi. Three Mississippi.
She was ready.
Four Mississippi. Five Mississippi. Six Mississippi.
They could do this.
Eight Mississippi. Nine Mississippi. Ten Mississippi.
It was time. She heard a yell, and dashed around the corner.
~A few hours earlier~
Mustardseed grabbed his brother's shoulders, surveying the glamour that was put in place to make him seem older. He looked almost identical to the other Puck… The imposter. That girl, Sabrina, wouldn't be able to tell the difference.
"Remember," Said Mustardseed. "Don't let her know who you are. And try to get her to tell you everything." Puck rolled his eyes, and Mustardseed ground his teeth together. At least his imposter brother was easier to deal with than his real brother!
"I don't see why we have to do this! Why can't we just tell father and have them thrown into the dungeons?" Puck complained. Mustardseed let out an exasperated sigh. They had already gone over this.
"Because I want to know what they're planning! I think they're trying to steal something, and I want to know what it is!" Puck was still skeptical, but did as Mustardseed had instructed him and talked with Sabrina as she was leaving dinner.
When Puck burst back into Mustardseed's room, white-faced and panicking, Mustardseed jumped up.
"What happened?" he asked urgently. "Are you hurt?" But then he noticed the disgusted look on Puck's face.
"She kissed me!" He shrieked. "You didn't say I had to kiss her!" Mustardseed stared at his immortally twelve year old brother.
"What did you do?" He asked quietly, dangerously. If Puck had revealed everything just because Sabrina kissed him… He was going to be pissed.
"I told her I had to go and ran away! And don't worry, I didn't reveal your precious secret!" Puck spit out sarcastically. Mustardseed let out a breath. Good. She still didn't know the real Puck was back
"Did you learn anything?" He asked, instead of yelling at Puck more. Yelling at him wouldn't change anything that had happened, and they needed to figure out what to do next.
"Uh… Just that they were meeting at nine tonight," he said, sounding positively revolted. "In her room." He shuddered, but Mustardseed started pacing.
"I wonder what they're planning…" He muttered as he crossed the room to his desk.
"There's only one thing they're planning, brother," Puck said with a pointed look.
"No, they're planning something else. Maybe to steal…" Mustardseed trailed off, a contemplative look coming over his features.
A few hours later, Mustardseed, dragging a reluctant Puck behind him, was waiting just around the corner from Sabrina's bedroom door. Around nine thirty, he watched the imposter slip in, looking harried and upset. After checking that the coast was clear, Mustardseed and Puck crept up to the door, trying to listen to what was going on inside. They heard the murmur of voices for several minutes before it quieted, and Puck raised an eyebrow at Mustardseed.
"I told you so," He whispered. "They're not planning to steal anything!" But Mustardseed shushed him, and they sat waiting.
At almost one thirty, Mustardseed had just about decided to give up when he heard movement in the room. Quickly, he shook Puck awake and herded him around the corner. Just in time too, because not a second after they had ducked into an empty room they heard the bedroom door open, and two pairs of quiet footsteps make their way out.
Mustardseed tilted his head their way, and Puck nodded. They crept out of the closet, and followed the shadowed figures of Sabrina and Puck as silently as possible. To Mustardseed's immense surprise, Sabrina was wearing pants and a shirt, some of Puck's old clothes. But that surprise quickly turned to apprehension when he noticed the glint of a knife at her belt.
Who were these people, these imposters?
It wasn't until he saw the figures stop, and one lean over to kiss the other, before he realized where they were. Just outside the treasury.
"Puck," he whispered urgently. "Go wake father and mother, and retrieve the guards. Bring everyone down here, and tell them that there is a break in at the treasury." Wordlessly, Puck nodded and hurried off. At least his brother understood the gravity of the situation.
Mustardseed heard a yell, and saw Sabrina rush forward. It was time for him to step in.
Sabrina dashed around the corner. Puck was grappling with three guards, and seemed to be losing. One was already on the floor, but the other two were closing in on him, making the reach of his sword useless. So Sabina snuck up behind them, ramming the hilt of her knife into one guard's temple. He crumpled to the ground. The other guard looked over to her in surprise, and the temporary distraction was enough of an opportunity for Puck to slam him into the wall. Breathing hard, the two of them surveyed the three prone bodies lying on the floor.
"Well… You did need my help." Sabrina stated. Puck snorted a little.
"No I didn't. I had it handled." Sabrina sent him a glare.
"You did not. But we can talk about it later. Hurry up and get in there!" She said, pointing at the doors behind them.
It was a simple pair of double doors, just like any others in the palace save for the placement of guard outside of them. It was probably so that people didn't know where the treasury was, Sabrina reasoned.
Puck grabbed one of the handles, pulling the door wide open, and slipped inside. Sabrina gripped the door frame, looking after him. The room was small, much smaller than Sabrina had pictured. Rather than golden walls and glittering piles of coins and jewelry, the room was full of simple wooden chests and the walls were lined with drawers. She even spotted what looked like an old bookcase in one corner.
"It's not as impressive as I thought it would be," she commented as she watched Puck walk in. He whirled around to face her.
"It doesn't have to be impressive!" he defended. "And anyway, aren't you supposed to be the lookout?"
"Yeah, sorry," She admitted. "I just wanted to see inside." She turned around, glancing down the hallway, but not a second after she heard a grunt of pain.
"Puck!" She yelled, whirling around just in time to see him collapse to the ground. "Puck!" she screamed again, darting forward to the opened door. But a pair of strong arms wrapped around her middle before her foot could pass the threshold.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Came Mustardseed's voice.
"Get off!" She yelled, trying to jerk her arm out of his grip. "Puck, Puck can you hear me?" she called desperately. There was no response, his body lying prone on the floor.
"Let me help him!" She aimed her foot to kick up between his legs, but Mustardseed grabbed her other arm and expertly maneuvered them so that she was pressed up against the wall next to the door, barely able to move.
"If you go in there, the same thing will happen to you." He glared at her, and his eyes glinted dangerously. "Only members of the royal family can go in there and not trigger the curse. And I will only help him if you tell me who you really are." Sabrina strained against his grip, but he only gripped her arm even more tightly. She knew it would leave a bruise, but at that moment didn't give a shit.
"I'm Sabrina Grimm, and that's your fucking brother! And he's probably dying right now because you won't let me help him!" Her voice had moved up an octave and now she was shrieking. She could feel wetness on her cheeks, and realized desperate tears were streaming down her cheeks. But Mustardseed didn't move a muscle.
"I know that he's not my brother. My brother looks like a twelve year old and was just sent to retrieve guards, who will be here any minute," he snapped. "So tell me who you really are." Sabrina's face whitened. Past Puck was here!
"We're from the future," She yelled. "That is your brother, but from almost two hundred years from now in the future. I'm his girlfriend!" Mustardseed had relaxed his grip a little in surprise at her bizarre story, and she was finally able to break free. But he tackled her legs as she lunged for the treasury and Puck. They fell to the floor, again, and this time Sbarina banged her head on the ground. Stars floated in her vision, but she willed herself not to pass out. She had to save Puck!
"Please believe me!" she begged. "I promise, if you help him, we'll tell you everything, just don't let him-," her voice cracked. "Don't let him die!" Mustardseed stared down at her, before he made a quick decision he was pretty sure he would later regret.
"Fine," he said simply. He pushed himself up off Sabrina, and jogged into the treasury to Puck's prone body. Sabrina watched form the doorway, feeling horribly helpless as Mustardseed gathered his brother's body in his arms. He strode out of the room, brushing past Sabrina and quickly making his way down the hallway. He had started talking, but all Sabrina could hear was the pounding in her head. She tried to shake it off, and focused on Puck.
He was unconscious, his head lolling around as Mustardseed walked. His face was incredibly pale, but what worried her the most was the red stain spreading across the front of his shirt.
Mustardseed ducked into a room, and Sabrina followed him. He carefully laid Puck down on the bed, and Sabrina ran to his side, pulling his shirt up as the metallic stench of blood invaded the room. Stretching from his left shoulder down to his right hip was a deep, smooth slice. She could tell that the flesh around the edges was slightly green. Poison.
"Clean it. We have to clean it!" Sabrina fairly yelled. She knew nothing about medical stuff. She hardly knew how to use band aids! But she had to help Puck. He was not going to die on her!
Mustardseed nodded, passing her a cloth and a small bowl of water.
"Clean it, and I'll go get the other supplies we need from the medical wing. I'll be back in a minute." Sabrina nodded, and wet the cloth before crouching down next to Puck. But the sudden movement made her head throb, and her vision started to go black.
No! She couldn't pass out! She had to take care of Puck! She had to save him! The last thing she was aware of as she slipped into unconsciousness was the bowl of water falling out of her hand, and shattering on the floor as she reached for it.
Was the fight scene bad? Please review!