Stephew Oneshots.

The Clearing

Fantasy AU – Both Matt and Steph are assassins for hire, sent after the same target.

The clearing was empty. The forest surrounding it was silent. Leaves rustled gently in the wind, the branches creaking slowly from side to side. Yet no signs of life could be heard – the small animals and rodents that normally roamed the forest staying hidden. The birds remained silent, as if fearful that their song would light a hidden fuse and start a terrible chain of events.

This ominous silence was the result of a woman. She sat on the thickest branch of a tree, staring across the clearing. Not that she was looking for anything in particular; she knew that what she sought wouldn't arrive for a short while. A crossbow sat comfortably on her lap, the bolt already loaded and several more strapped to her belt along with a simple dagger. There was no class in heavy weaponry; it was far too bulky and not swift enough for her personal taste.

Stephanie was her name. Though she hadn't been called by that in a long time. People who sought out her services tended not to ask any personal questions. All they cared about was that the job was completed and that the blood wasn't on their hands. Her clients would leave their meeting place with less money in their pockets and a burden taken off of their shoulders.

For some reason, they never seemed ashamed of hiring her to do their dirty work. In the earlier days, she had wondered why anyone would hire a hitman but nowadays she didn't bother questioning it, it was her source of income after all.

If she spent too much time pondering the morals of her profession, then her whole life would fall apart. So she merely sat in her tree, occasionally pushing a few strands of hair out of her face as she waited for her target to show up. The bushes at the edge of the forest rustled and Stephanie jolted in surprise, managing to keep her balance and not tumble to the hard earth below.

A figure stepped into the clearing, causing her to pull her bandana from around her neck to under her nose – disguising half of her face from any prying eyes. Nobody really knew who she was and that was the way she liked it.

Leaning forward, she realized that the stranger was not her target. The man stood for a moment, bouncing on the balls of his feet as he appraised the situation. He was scanning his surroundings, hunting for something out of place – clearly, this was a man who knew what he was doing. A platinum broadsword was hanging from a scabbard around his waist and a small dagger was tucked into his belt.

He was definitely not a knight. Who was he then? The man brushed some of his brown locks out of his eyes, taking a final look around the clearing before scrambling up a tree. As he moved out of sight, Stephanie pushed him out of her mind. She had to focus on the mission.

Today's targets were a group of knights that had been breaking their code of conduct. Normally rule breakers would be dealt with by that unit's commander but this lot was different. They were ruthless and cruel, picking on civilians and torturing innocents in the search for "information". Despite being disciplined and relieved of active duty, they had continued to cause trouble for the nearby village – so the commander had called in her to help.

"This looks like a good place to camp, what do you think boys?"

Three knights walked into the clearing, carrying firewood and what looked like a couple of dead rabbits. They started to set up for the night, creating a fire and cooking their food. Stephanie frowned; she had been told that there would be four knights. Where was the other one?

Shrugging, she grabbed her crossbow off of her lap and set her sights on the knight furthest away from her. He was the only one not sitting around the fire and therefore was the only one who could really cause her any trouble. She stared through the sights on her crossbow and set it on her target – exhaling as she took the shot to avoid her hands from shaking.