A/N: Wooohooo! I'm so glad all you guys like the story so much. It makes me happy!

Anyway…you know I own nothing.

Enjoy!

Four days had passed since her last run in with The Bear Jew and Klara hadn't dared to go near the clearing since. She hoped she had proven to him that it wasn't her plan to turn him or any of the Basterds over, especially since she'd informed them of Landa's impending arrival, but Klara didn't want to press her luck with him in any way, nor did she want to get too caught up in anything that they were doing. There was enough danger in her life as it was without getting caught him in whatever the Basterds were doing.

It was the end of March now and only a few more days remained before Klara would have to return to the old, dingy bar to meet with the new group she would be helping. She also had not dared to go back to the bar to see if Remy had received her message (or left another one for her) but she had decided to pay a short visit to the place that night in order to make sure everything was still copasetic. Currently, Klara raised the glass of wine up to her lips as she sat on her porch and watched people bustle around on the streets. She loved to people watch and seeing as today was an unexpectedly gorgeous day, there was ample opportunity to spy and watch as people went along with their business completely unawares.

A couple who appeared to be in their mid-forties caught her eye as they strode past. They were walking their dogs together and were arm in arm while a small girl bounced around in between them and their pets, happily occupying herself with a toy. Klara had to assume she was a grandchild. Another couple, this time around her age, walked by and she tilted her head curiously as they made their way past her porch. The girl was blonde and pretty while her male companion was a large-framed, dark haired man. They nodded to her respectfully when they saw her gaze but continued on, more interested in each other then the German sitting alone on her porch.

Klara couldn't help it – the sight of them conjured up images of her and the Bear Jew together.

It was silly and it made her want to scoff in complete annoyance, but thinking about the American had become a common, albeit reluctant, occurrence since meeting him. There was interest, yes, and attraction in abundance, but the fact remained that Klara didn't know him (or even his name) and it was not only foolish but also childish to think on him so frequently. After all, what was the point? She wasn't naïve – Klara knew that one day she would be caught because as long as there were people in need, she was always going to help. And whenever the time came to face the repercussions for her actions, she knew very well that it would be the end for her. As for The Bear Jew? He was undoubtedly sneaking around killing Nazis every chance he got and constantly putting his neck on the line – his future looked even dimmer then hers.

She smiled to herself when she spotted a group of children began playing excitedly a good way down the street, happy to tear her thoughts away from the Basterd. Klara had always wanted to fall in love, get married, and have children but of course she'd also planned her future around a stable life in Germany. Now everything had changed – the world was different, her life was different, and Klara was no longer convinced that bringing a child into such an unstable world would be the right thing to do.

Klara frowned at her train of thought and finished off her wine, letting the alcohol warm her belly as she glanced over at the many bouquets of roses sitting on her porch. Emmerich had been pestering her non-stop to get her to go on another date with him, sending every assortment of flower you could think of, but Klara had been doing her best to avoid him. She knew she'd have to give in to him again at some point, though – excused were more difficult to come across the more she rejected him.

"My, what lovely flowers!" Two women gushed as they stopped in front of her porch. "The fragrance is positively delightful!"

Klara smiled at the two French women and stood up quickly, grabbing two vases. "You may have some if you would like. As you can see, I am overrun." Klara offered to them, walking down her steps to greet them on the sidewalk.

They tried to protest for a moment but after Klara insisted they happily walked away with new vases full of flowers in their arms. Klara was glad to get rid of them, but not nearly as glad as she would be to get rid of Emmerich. He was driving her insane already and his continued presence in her life would only cause problems, that much was for certain. The brief thought that she could enlist The Bear Jew to take out Emmerich entered her mind but she quickly brushed it away with a quick laugh. Perhaps Emmerich's time would come some day, but for now Klara could only hope that the day he lost interest in her would come sooner rather then later.


The rest of the day was spent lounging around her house and doing absolutely nothing of substance, so Klara finally decided to go and enjoy a dinner by herself at a café not far from where she lived once the sun started going down. She stayed long enough to have a drink or two while chatting with the owners, happy to catch up with the couple that ran the café. She didn't get to talk to them often since the café was usually very busy, but on slow nights like these, when everyone else would rather be at a bar, she couldn't think of a better place to be. It was quiet, it was comfortable, and currently there were no Nazis dampening the friendly environment.

"Klara, what is this I hear about you being seen around town with a young German soldier?" Lynette, one of the owners, asked her when she stopped at her table. Klara shook her head adamantly, making Lynette laugh. "Nothing to be concerned about?"

"Precisely – it is absolutely nothing to get concerned or excited about. I simply need to learn how to say no." Klara joked with her as she finished her sandwich.

Lynette tsked and reached down for her now empty plate. "But you are so pretty! When will you finally settle down?"

Klara smiled up at her and shrugged. Whenever we live in a world where the Bear Jew is not repulsed by Germans, she thought to herself with a smirk. Then she pulled a face and took a long drink of her wine. Klara really needed to get a better handle on herself – she'd only met him twice and she certainly didn't recall him professing his undying love for her either time. How lonely was she to be having such thoughts about someone she hardly knew?

After leaving her money for her dinner and hugging the two owners goodbye, Klara made her way back to her house. The sun was gone from the sky but there was still a pleasant purplish-blue-ish tint lingering in its wake and she smiled as she kept her eyes on it the whole way home. It was times like these when she wished she had someone to enjoy these little moments with and times like these that reminded her just how alone she was. She walked up her porch steps slowly once she arrived at her home, pulling her key out of her pocket, and had just reached for the doorknob when she noticed that a small slip of paper was sticking out from underneath her doorstep. She frowned, looking around to see if anyone was nearby, then bent over to grab it. Her first thought was that it was a late note from Emmerich, but when she unfolded it and glanced at the words, she didn't recognize the slightly messy scrawl.

Edge of the woods. Where we went the first night. ASAP. – BJ.

Klara felt her heart begin to race and stuffed the note into the pocket of her dress, looking around quickly again before hurriedly unlocking her door and heading straight for the bathroom as the door slammed behind her. Before she realized what she was doing she had fluffed her hair and touched up on some of her makeup. Klara rolled her eyes, laughing at herself in amusement because of her own vanity, then headed back for the door without bothering to change. She hesitated when she spotted the picture of her with Landa and Kurt on her coffee table then walked over to quickly snatch it up and shove it back into the cabinet by her kitchen. Just in case, Klara reasoned in her own head.

Once she was back outside, she welcomed the chilled air against her suddenly warm skin. Why was the Bear Jew summoning her? Would he be alone or would he have others with him? What could he possibly want to talk about? Her mind was racing as she wound her way through the streets but she couldn't help but to feel a bit excited at the prospect of seeing him again. Was this going to become a common occurrence?

"Well, hellooooo."

A male voice interrupted her thoughts and she looked up in surprise at the sound of the German language. She had unknowingly passed by a large group of men and it only took a second to ascertain that they were also SS soldiers. They had obviously been celebrating something and were leaning heavily on each other as they stumbled between bars. Currently the majority of them had perverse leers trained on her.

"And what, may I ask, is a lovely woman like you doing wandering the dangerous streets of Paris this fine night?" The man that had addressed her slurred out, taking a few steps closer to her.

Klara wished she hadn't stopped to begin with and had just ignored them, as she usually did. "Headed to my grandparents house. They need help taking care of themselves." She lied smoothly as she started to continue on.

The soldier followed her at the jibing of his comrades, coming close enough so that she could smell the alcohol on his breath. It almost made her gag. "How sweet of you." He said with a smirk. Then he leaned even closer, immediately making her feel highly uncomfortable. "I must say, I never thought I would be jealous of a few old Germans." He said in a low voice. When she looked at him sharply, he winked.

"I must go." Klara said, quickening her pace. "Goodnight, soldier."

"Wait, wait, wait – " He started to say, grabbing for her hand. Klara was thankful to see the garden that she could cut through to get the woods looming ahead and she shook him off quickly before whipping around to face him.

"You misunderstand me, soldier – I have no interest in your company." Klara clarified. "Please leave me be. You would not like what my lover has to say should he find out what you are up to just now." She spat at him quite rudely.

He looked taken aback by her tone but didn't move to follow her this time when she turned on her heel to continue on. Klara did glance at him over her shoulder, just to make sure he was truly leaving her alone, and sighed in relief when she saw him staggering back to join his comrades. The encounter only proved how dangerous getting involved with the Basterd would be – on a normal day she would not have been caught off guard. But since she'd been day-dreaming about The Bear Jew she'd gotten onto the German soldier's radar. Now she just hoped the drunkard would be gone whenever she was making her way back home.

Klara reached the garden fence in no time and managed over it with a bit more difficulty considering she was in a dress. She walked up to the second fence quietly and peered over it first at the vacant area in front of the woods, frowning when she didn't spot The Bear Jew anywhere. Klara climbed over the second fence slowly, wondering if he was simply hiding at the moment, then smoothed out her dress once she was over and making her way across the ditch.

Klara came to a quick stop when the Bear Jew walked out of the trees accompanied by two men that she assumed to be part of the Basterds. She had to remind herself to breathe when the Bear Jew gave her a once over and instead turned her gaze to inspect his comrades. One was slightly shorter then the Bear Jew and looked very much European to her. She studied him for a moment before turning her eyes to the other – then her heart dropped right into her stomach.

Hugo Stiglitz.

She recognized him at once and gulped audibly. She remembered him from long before he went on his Gestapo killing spree, when he had been stationed in the same military base as her brother. The soldiers had been given a night off, they'd gone out for a drink, and Kurt had insisted that she meet with them. Hugo had been rather drunk by the time she'd (reluctantly) arrived but she distinctly remembered that he had not only been speaking to her brother for a good portion of the night but had even briefly spoken to her after her brother had introduced them.

Her hands began to shake and she had to clasp them together to hide it. It was over – Hugo would recognize her at any moment and reveal just who she was related to. The Bear Jew's trust in her would be shattered and then so would her skull.

Klara stood there waiting for the recognition to come, watching as Hugo looked her up and down with a mildly curious expression on his face. But then he returned his attention to The Bear Jew and motioned for him to get on with the meeting. He said nothing of knowing who she or her brother was and Klara firmly pried her eyes away from Hugo to look at The Bear Jew as he spoke up.

"Ya came awfully fast." The Bear Jew commented.

"Yes, well, you did say as soon as possible." She said, glancing at Hugo warily. When he turned his bored gaze on her and even leaned up against a tree in a relaxed pose, she slowly began to realize that he didn't remember her and that he wasn't about to give her away. She might still be in the clear. "Too afraid to come by yourself?" She asked with a motion to his friends, trying to hide her anxiety at seeing Hugo there behind a mask of confidence.

The Bear Jew smirked and shook his head. "We never move alone." He said. She quirked an eyebrow and was about to make a comment about the first night she'd met him but he must have read her mind because he quickly spoke up before she could say anything. "That was one time and I got separated by accident." He clarified hastily. "Anyway, I figured since you're German and all, it'd be more comfortable for ya if I brought along a few of your kind over the other guys."

Klara nodded slowly. "So what do you need?"

The Bear Jew studied her for a long moment before speaking up again. "What I need is for you to tell me what the hell you're all about, lady."

"What do you mean?" She asked, feigning ignorance. This caused The Bear Jew to roll his eyes dramatically.

"First ya hide me from the Nazis, then ya have some fool-proof way out of the city." He started reminding her. "Last night we find ya sneakin' around in the woods leaving some ridiculous fuckin' note for only God knows who and then ya tell us about that fuck Landa?" He listed off, holding up a new finger with each occurrence he named for extra emphasis. "It makes no sense that a German would do all that for a Jew, a Basterd Jew at that."

"I told you that I was different from all the other Germans, did I not?" Klara countered back. When he didn't say anything, merely stood there waiting for an explanation, Klara knew she'd have to open up to him a bit. "Listen, I am not a spy, I am not a double agent – I am just a woman that left Germany because I did not agree with the way the Jews are being treated." She told him. "I felt that by helping you, I was helping the cause." She finished. It wasn't the complete truth but the excuse would do for the time being.

The Basterds looked surprised, Hugo included. They shared looks with each other before they all turned their eyes back to her. "And how did you know about Landa?" The man to the Bear Jew's left said. She could detect a hint of an accent and wondered briefly just where he had come from.

"I am a young German woman living amongst tons of hormone driven Nazi soldiers. They will name drop anybody to try to impress me." She lied quickly. Judging by the mixed looks of disgust and amusement, the three Basterds in front of her bought it. The men nodded and then the Bear Jew stepped forward a bit.

"Alright then…" He said, regarding her a for a moment. "What else do ya know?"

Klara looked between the three of them and then began to shake her head vigorously. "No. I am not going to be an informant for you. It's much too dangerous!" She said, waving her hands and shaking her head. "No."

"If you did not want to be an informant, you shouldn't have told us anything in the first place." Hugo piped up in German quickly. He had a hard expression on his face and was tapping his gun against his shoulder, now looking impatient with her. The other man scoffed a bit and nodded his head in agreement but The Bear Jew looked absolutely confused.

"Alright, I know I'm the only non-German speaking person here, but let's not let majority rule, ok? Speak English, for fuck's sake." He said irritably.

"He believes that I should not have told you anything in the first place if I didn't want to be an informant." Klara told the Bear Jew, glaring just slightly at Hugo. "Which I suppose is true." She conceded, making Hugo nod his head. She turned her eyes back to look at the Bear Jew and sighed. "I do not know anything else right now." She admitted, leaving out the part about Landa's right hand man, her brother, also coming with him. "But, anything that I ever find out that I feel is of significance, I leave in a note in that tree for my friend. You may feel free to read anything I leave there."

The three men shared another look before they each nodded once in agreement.

"That is the extent of my arrangement with your troop, though." Klara added firmly. "I will not be gallivanting around or acting as your female accomplice to get you into places. This is it. I will tell you things I feel you need to know and we leave it at that." She said, pointing at each one of them. "I have enough on my plate without adding the trouble that comes with you in as well."

"Fine." The Bear Jew agreed. "That works for us. We don't need to be worrying about some skirt, anyway."

She glared at him for a moment in mock irritation before crossing her arms. He stared right back with a smirk that probably would have been annoying to anybody else, but Klara found it to almost be endearing. "Now what?" Klara finally asked.

"Now…" The Bear Jew started to say, tapping his baseball bat against his boot. "…ya go home." Klara nodded while the Bear Jew glanced around them. "And try not to draw attention to yourself, alright? You getting kidnapped or arrested for suspicious behavior would sure put a damper on our arrangement."

Klara resisted the urge to scoff at him for his dismissal. "Fine. Goodnight, boys." She said. She received grunts and mumbled parting words in response and nodded at them in parting before turning to leave.

Klara couldn't believe herself. It was their number one rule – do not get involved with the Basterds. Yet here she was giving into their demands and agreeing to pass along information to them when she knew she shouldn't be doing anything to jeopardize her safety. There were way too many people that depended on her and her comrades to be doing anything that put their operation in danger. If anyone found out she was working with the Basterds or if they ever decided to sell her out, everything would fall apart and she would be the one responsible for it.

Klara huffed to herself as she cleared the last fence, straightening out her dress again before setting off. Everything will be fine, Klara tried to convince herself. You are not really involved with the Basterds…

She briefly considered just returning to her house before the hour grew too late but then remembered her previous decision to visit the abandoned bar to check for any signs that Remy had come back. She glanced around in indecision, hearing The Bear Jew's request for her to head directly home echoing in her head, then firmly pushed him from her thoughts to head for the bar.

Her thoughts returned to the meeting with the Basterds and despite her trepidations at being in cahoots with them, Klara had to admit that a part of her was at least a tiny bit excited to be passing along information to the Americans. Aldo the Apache, who she knew to lead the Basterds, had obviously recognized that she and The Bear Jew were able to tolerate each other enough to hold conversation, maybe even work together, and it was clear that if she was needed then The Bear Jew would be the one coming to collect her. And that, Klara reluctantly confessed, was something that she didn't particularly mind…at all.

She walked for a long way, her mind a distracted and jumbled mess of thoughts centering around the Jewish man that had been plaguing her mind, so much so that she didn't notice anyone following her. Even when Klara was turning down the alleyway to head to the old rotted door to the secret meeting spot she remained unaware of her pursuer, and it wasn't until her hand was on the doorknob that she realized a man had been on her tail – unexpectedly a hand closed over her mouth an arm locked around her waist, effectively restraining her. Klara kicked and struggled, wondering if this was a test from the very man she'd been thinking about the entire time, but when her captor kicked the door open and threw her roughly inside, Klara turned to face the same soldier that had been pestering her in the street on her way to meet the Basterds.

"Well, hello again." He said, though this time with much more menace. It was easy to tell that in the time it had taken her to meet with the Basterds and walk to the bar that he had partaken in even more drinking – he was swaying to and fro under the influence of drink but the dangerous look in his eye made genuine fear trickle down her spine. "Awfully quick trip, that was." He managed out.

Klara looked around, searching for any possible escape, and spotted the other door leading to the street. She looked at him for only a moment longer before tearing off for the door. Her captor was much quicker then she thought he would be, however, and caught up to her just as she was at the door. He hauled her up off the ground before she could dart out of the bar, her scream for help echoing off the old and dusty walls, before he slammed her down onto an old table. Her screaming cut off abruptly as the air rushed out of her lungs.

"You are a bitch." He spat her angrily, holding her wrists against the table as he towered over her. "And the only way to deal with a woman like you is to teach her a few lessons in respect."

Klara didn't think twice; she brought her knee up hard, aiming for his crotch. Instead, she connected with his stomach and his eyes bugged for only a moment before he growled angrily and released one of her wrists to bring his hand down hard across her face. Klara saw white for a moment, her cheek and bottom lip throbbing painfully under the blow to her face, and she whimpered as he began to pull at the buttons of her dress. The realization of what was about to happen sunk in and Klara finally mustered up all the strength she had start screaming her head off and thrashing at him wildly, trying to hit any part of him that she could. After she caught him in the face he hit her again, and this time she tasted blood pooling up in her mouth. He called her a few choice names and then leaned over her as he began to quickly work at his own clothes.

It happened very quickly.

Light from a source that Klara couldn't place in her disoriented state suddenly filled the bar. For a moment the German soldier glared down at her, his face easily lit up now, but in the next second his face fell as a loud and sick sounding THUNK sounded in the air. Something warm splattered on her face and chest and she could only stare in shock as the soldier crumbled on top of her, clearly no longer conscious. He was ripped off of her and thrown to the ground and it was then that Klara realized someone had come to her rescue. That someone delivered three more deadly blows to the German, each one sounding even more vicious then the last, until silence finally filled the bar.

Klara didn't know how much time passed. The taste of her own blood was invading her mouth as she lay there heaving with her eyes closed in relief. She didn't rouse until the feel of a warm hand on her cheek made her open her eyes and she was only mildly surprised to see The Bear Jew standing over her. He looked at a loss for words and after a few moments simply grabbed her hands and helped her sit up slowly. She winced, her body aching from being thrown around, and grasped his hands tighter for support as he stared down at her in concern. Much like the first night they'd met his face and clothes were splattered with the soldier's blood and the bat that was now lying on the table next to her was coated in the sticky red liquid.

"Klara…" He said with a rough voice. His eyes were still wild from the adrenaline that had driven him to kill the soldier but his concern was obvious. "Didn't I tell ya to just go home? Do ya realize what would have happened if I hadn't decided to make sure ya made it back unharmed?"

She tried to smile at him in apology but discovered that she couldn't thanks to her rapidly swelling lip. She briefly thought she should feel awkward considering her dress was gaping open, providing him a prime view of her barely clothed body and undergarments, but she didn't feel embarrassed under his gaze as he surveyed the damage that had been done. Anger flared up in his eyes when he stared at her mouth for a long moment but then he shook his head, gritted his teeth angrily, and released her hands to begin re-buttoning her dress. Klara just watched him in complete awe, her heart pounding in her chest as his fingers completed their task swiftly.

The Bear Jew had just saved her. Her. He'd actually killed somebody to keep her from being hurt.

"Think ya can walk?" He asked her. Klara nodded and he gripped her gently by the waist. "Up ya go then." He said, helping her down from the table gingerly and then wrapping an arm around her waist to support her as he snatched up his bat. "Tell me how to get to your house from here and I'll make sure ya get there safe." He instructed, leaving no room for argument.

Klara just nodded, still looking at him in wonder as he led her out of the bar and out through door into the vacant alleyway. Then they went heading towards of her house as soon as she pointed him in the right direction.

A/N: Review!