Author's Notes: I'm totally disappointed that there aren't many fics about these two of my favourite characters out there. However, I was inspired with the few that I have read and so, I decided to spin a little story about the romance between Archie and Stiglitz.

They met for the first time two days before the meeting in the tavern. Liutenant Archie Hicox had just been assigned to a group of American Secret Service stationed in France. They were to make contact with the British spy – none other than the great German movie star herself, Bridget von Hammersmark, to gain further information on the current state of their mission which is christened Operation Kino. The whole operation revolved around the joyous Germanic occasion (a movie premiere about Germanic war exploits starring a young and brave war hero; the whole occasion was Goebbel's brainchild) which would be attended by all the high-ranking officials of the Gestapo, SS and if their information was correct, the whole High Command, too. Basically, they would have all of their rotten eggs in one basket. The objective of their mission: blow up the basket.

In truth, whenever he had found the time to dwell on it, Archie had found it all too convenient that the outcome of the war which had plagued a great part of Europe and almost turned the whole world upside down would inexplicably come down to the success of their current mission. Though he might have a hard time believing it, Archie wouldn't have looked a gift horse in the mouth. He welcomed the miracle as probably God's small mercy on humankind to prevent German from enslaving all of Europe. It was a strangely fortuitous turn of events but Archie was undoubtedly grateful for it all the same. If he was being honest, he yearned to go back to England, where he missed his old life as a film critic and doing whatever he loved to do whenever he wanted to. The war had taken all of those things from him; the freedom of one's mind was painfully taken away and replaced by all the images of disaster happening all around him, his soul burdened by the grief and heart gripped by fear, all traces of love gone, scattered to the winds. He despised the war for stealing his own individual from himself, his body now a mechanical machine with only one goal: winning the war for his country and his fellow men. Archie would take comfort in that, for he had been taught that dying for one's country was the ultimate sacrifice and there would be no higher honour, even though he didn't choose to be where he was right now. Sometimes, he also enjoyed the brief companionship of his fellow comrades; despite life's fair share of problems and its vicissitudes, these moments were like random rays of sunshine shining brightly enough even if it was just for a moment, ensuring that there would always be comfort in the midst of trouble. For Archie, that was enough. Archie had long taught himself to be stronger but that didn't mean that given a choice, he wouldn't escape the war. However, what was important was the here and now and right now, Archie just wanted to ensure that the current mission which had just been handed over to him would go on smoothly and without a glitch. He was mainly a paper pusher up to this point but this mission had ignited a new kind of emotion inside him. He was entrusted with this mission, a responsibility no less and with it came a sense of pride. He would see to it that this mission becomes a success. After this, maybe he could retire with far more self-satisfaction, having aided the Allies win the war against Germany – a conscience that not many people would be opportune enough to have had the experience of.

At the moment, he was standing in front of six members of the Basterds. Having heard nothing about them before, Archie had completely no idea about any of them. While he was being introduced by the leader of the group, Liutenant Aldo Raine (whose language and attitude somehow managed to annoy Archie very much) to each one of the members, he carefully observed them one by one. He noticed the first one, Sergeant Donny Donowitz looked just as disinterested with him and the whole pleasantries much as Aldo; the next two: PFC. Omar Ulmer and PFC. Smithson Utivich were a tad more friendly and welcoming until at last, they came to the only two German-born members of the Basterds. CPL. Wilhelm Wicki was the first to be introduced between the two. He was a bit dark with a lean figure but muscular and Archie was a bit taller than him. He smiled good-naturedly at him and Archie couldn't help but smiled back. He also was the first amongst the others to extend his hand to shake Archie's which the younger man took gratefully. So, they are not all tough and mean Basterds, Archie thought to himself and smiled inwardly. Next, he was introduced to the second German amongst the Basterds. Like the others, Archie was observing this man meticulously. However, unlike the others, he found him to be far more interesting. He could see that he had a straight figure, powerfully built and although he looked more intimidating than the others, there was some looseness about him that in a way fascinated Archie. His eyes were taking in the German's strong jaw, straight nose and his eyes when they caught his, suddenly made Archie's heart fluttering and he was immediately lost. Archie held the gaze and at first, the German's brown eyes were blank but quite suddenly, curiously, he felt like he saw a glint of a smile in them though his other features remained expressionless.

Somewhere behind him, his voice seemed somehow distant, he heard Aldo introducing them both to each other. "Lt. Archie Hicox. So, this is Sgt. Hugo Stiglitz, I reckon you gotta have heard of him." A few sniggers from the other Basterds which thankfully, made Archie regain his control and he quickly spoke. "Hello." He hated how his voice sounded a little cracked even though he only uttered one word. "Hello, sir." The German's voice was slow but strong and he spoke with a careful measure. "Sgt. Hugo Stiglitz killed 13 Gestapo men single-handedly before we all paid him a little visit and invited him in, asking if he wanted to go pro," Aldo further talked. Archie was caught off-guard with the revelation, he was shocked all right but he immediately resumed his cool demeanour. "That was a marvelous feat to be achieved solely by the work of one man." Archie didn't know what else he was going to say without letting the others know how terrifying he thought the feat actually was. Stiglitz however, remained silent. "Yeah, that was and he ain't much of a talker either," Aldo instead responded. After continuously staring at each other for a while, Archie dropped his eyes and right then, Aldo asked him to follow him to another room to go over their plan for the rendezvous.

"What the hell just happened?" Aldo's voice rang around the walls of the tavern as he was going down the stairs after the sound of gunshots had died down. The room was in absolute mess, its occupants were dead save for the three people who had miraculously survived the chaotic shooting. Archie was one of the three who had survived along with Hugo Stiglitz and the Fraulein. While the two were relatively okay, Archie had suffered a bullet to his leg which consequently made him unable to stand well. Presently, he supported himself with the table, trying to shift his body weight to his other good leg. Aldo was helping Bridget to get back on her feet and then, he shouted for all of them to clear off the tavern. Archie made to move but suddenly, he felt a warm hand on the left side of his waist.

"You're hurt," Stiglitz's voice was close by his ear. "Yes, Hugo, I'm goddamned hurt." Gritting his teeth in pain, Archie hardly managed not to roll his eyes at the obvious fact. "Let me have some of your weight." Stiglitz immediately wound Archie's right arm around his head to rest on his broad shoulders without waiting for his reply. With more care than Archie thought it was possible with the man's usual harsh attitude, Stiglitz proceeded to half-walk him through the tavern and up the stairs. Archie didn't exactly know what to say at first but after a while, he carefully leaned into Stiglitz's side and mouthed his thanks in the Sergeant's ears.

Archie was resting on his bed at a house already secured by the Basterds when his mind dwelled back over the exciting events of the evening.

They were in one of the rooms at the local vet's house. When Aldo Raine had ordered the vet to attend to Archie, Stiglitz had offered to oversee the vet's administration. Aldo and the other members of the Basterds had then left the small room along with their contact, Bridget von Hammersmark and went to another room. Archie knew, they would be interrogating her for whatever had happened down in the tavern. The looks on Donny, Omar and Utivich's faces were clear to indicate how greatly pissed off they were with the woman for costing the life of one of their comrades. Archie just hoped that in their anger, they would not finish her off personally themselves. Aldo's reaction was quite unreadable but Archie had learned during their revisions of the plan that he hated the woman even though she was on their side. "A person who betrayed their own country is not to be trusted. She's a venomous snake and I bet y'all won't be happy having got anything to do with a venomous snake." Archie had once heard him saying. Well, that depends on her belief in what's right, Archie had quietly reasoned to himself, If she's doing it in the name of good, to stop Hitler from causing any more horrors, she ought to be acknowledged for that.

However, at that time, Archie couldn't bring himself to worry over the fate of a movie star who he himself had just met a few hours ago in light of his own predicament. After they were left alone, Stiglitz proceeded to put Archie on the operating table in the middle of the room. He did it with so much care and delicateness which Archie couldn't believe that the big German actually possessed. He smiled to himself and uttered his thanks. When he looked up to see the man's face, he was caught surprised by what he found there. Hugo Stiglitz looked pale with worry and though he tried to remain calm, his eyes looked troubled like the sea ravaged by the storm. Archie tried to contemplate this new discovery but his thoughts were soon jarred by the man's next words. "Don't worry now. I've got you." Those words made Archie flush with a warm happiness inside. He could clearly discern the obvious concern in the bigger man's voice and Archie had to do his best to stop himself from reaching forward and burying himself in the man's shoulders. The fact that Stiglitz was bending over him, face inches from him when he spoke those words did not help anything at all. In the end, Archie just smiled gratefully but he never lost eye contact with Stiglitz. After a while, Stiglitz pulled away but not before he brushed a few stray hairs from Archie's forehead and then brushed the top of his head. Archie just continued smiling although a bit sheepishly now – he was aware that the vet was watching the exchange between the both of them grown men but for the life of him, he seemed to be afraid of Stiglitz tremendously to even make any indication if he did notice anything queer about it. Ignoring the vet completely, Stiglitz took Archie's left hand into his own and pressed it softly. Along the time it took for the vet to extract the bullet from Archie's leg and tend to the wound, Stiglitz never moved his hand from Archie's own. He gripped it tighter when Archie gasped and at some points, yelled loudly all through the process of extracting the bullet. Finally, the whole thing was finished and Archie was extremely grateful. Right after he finished bandaging Archie's leg, Stiglitz sent the vet a glare which made the old man scuttle backwards clumsily and kept to the side of the room. His face was ashen and Archie himself felt sorry for the poor man.

Suddenly, Archie heard footsteps coming towards the room. Stiglitz's hand let go of his but he smiled once again to Archie before moving a few inches back from the table. Just then, Aldo and the other Basterds plus Bridget von Hammersmark walked through the door and entered the room. After asking Archie if his leg was feeling better and spared a glance at Stiglitz – he looked rather impassive and he wasn't looking at Archie now – Aldo turned to the small vet. He inquired about Archie's leg and the small man stumbled upon his words when he tried to answer the group leader's question. Archie was beginning to feel dizzy because of the toll that the recent events had had on him including the mental exhaustion he felt as the result of battling the pain during the operation so, he was beginning to close his eyes when Aldo suddenly touched his arm and spoke to him.

"The doc says you can't be moving about in at least a few days. Well, if that's the case, you wouldn't be able to don a tuxedo and attend that movie premiere with the woman and others. Ain't that a shit? Our whole plan's scuppered, thanks to your lady friend here." Archie was looking at Aldo and then, he turned to look at Bridget whose face had put on a defensive mask. "Let's just get on with the plan. My leg is not that badly injured and I still have the full use of my other leg," Archie said through his gritted teeth. He was feeling very exhausted and he just wanted to finish everything and retire to his room. "The doctor said you can't move about in a few days, least of all tomorrow. Besides, you need a good rest." Stiglitz was speaking now. "And Liutenant, I'd be happy to volunteer my services in exchange with Lt. Archie's." Archie was taken aback by this and he was about to protest when Aldo Raine beat him to it. "I'd be gladly accepting your services, Sergeant except I don't think that all the fucking German soldiers and officers weren't gonna recognise you from the old days." This was followed by sniggering laughters from all around the room. "Now that old Wicki is pushing up daisies and Hicox here is injured, the previous plan ain't good. We need to come up with something new." The room fell silent for a moment before suddenly Bridget von Hammersmark spoke up. "How many of you can speak Italian?"

Archie's musing was interrupted by the sound of the door opening and then closing. He turned to look at the door and his heart had almost stopped beating. "Hugo?" Archie tasted the sweet sound of the name flowing through his lips and in a few seconds, Hugo Stiglitz was at his side. The man just looked down at him and after a while, he spoke. "How're you feeling?" Archie was silent for a moment. He was just remembering the incidents in the tavern and the vet's house and he wondered about the way Hugo reacted to him whether the man really meant it or not. "I'm feeling much better, thank you." They continued to stare at each other for a while and both didn't quite know what to say. Hugo looked like he was hesitating to do something. Archie finally made a decision for him. "Would you sit down beside me?" After he said that, Archie moved his body to lean on the headboard and made enough room for the German to sit down on the bed at his side. Hugo did as he was asked. A few seconds passed before Archie spoke again. "Hugo, we need to talk."

Suddenly, Hugo's left arm was wrapped around his shoulders and his right hand had cupped Archie's face. Without warning, his lips crushed onto Archie's with such a force that Archie felt as though the air had been literally knocked out of his lungs. It was a sloppy kiss; Hugo's lips were all over his and Archie's head was lolled back, not quite enjoying it since he was still reeling from the suddenness of the situation. At last, when Hugo's lips left his, Archie was able to think coherently again and as he looked up at Hugo's face, he saw that the man look a bit disappointed and concerned. Archie immediately felt bad about his lack of response and to prove to Hugo that he wanted this as much as the other man did, he pulled the man's head back down to him and his lips met Hugo's with an almost similar crushing force. This time, the kiss was longer and passionate. Archie opened his mouth to let Hugo in and soon, a battle of the tongues ensued. Archie knew all along that he would lose but he enjoyed it all the same. His left hand was entangled in the other man's hair, and when he tried to move his right leg over Hugo's lap, a sharp stabbing reminded him of his injury and he broke away from the kiss with a loud gasp of pain.

Hugo looked at him guiltily and pulled away from Archie but his right hand was still cupping his face. "I'm sorry. Are you alright?" Archie couldn't respond to the man while gritting his teeth in pain and his hands wrapping both of his sides in earnest. How foolish of him to let himself get so intoxicated with Hugo till he forgot his own injury. A few stray tears slid down his cheeks and he felt Hugo's hand that was cupping his face gently brought his face up so that he was now facing him. The man brushed a few tears off his cheeks with his large fingers and dropped a small kiss to his lips before using his other arm behind Archie's shoulders to pull him into an embrace. Lying on Hugo's chest, Archie couldn't help but let his tears flow more freely, breaking the dam and betraying his resolve completely. "It hurts so much, Hugo." Archie spoke to the larger man's chest, continued by fresh sobs and soon after, Archie was crying like a small child in the arms of his protector. He was crying not because he was in some immense physical pain but because he couldn't handle the trauma of what had happened in the tavern and all of the horrors that had occurred because of the war. He was taking comfort in Hugo's presence and he had needed this man, this person who could help him regain the freedom of his mind and soul and he had waited for him for so long. It was just too much for Archie. Hugo continuously rubbed small circles on his back and occasionally kissed the top of his head. They stayed like that for quite a long time and when Archie's cries finally subsided, his body was replaced with a great exhaustion. Archie had just managed to croak, "Would you stay?" before he was overcome with sheer tiredness and the last things he was aware of were the tightening of Hugo's arms around him and the feel of the man's lips on his forehead.

The next day, Archie was relieved to have woken up still in the arms of Hugo Stiglitz. Last night had not all been just a dream, he thought contentedly. Looking up, he saw that the man was asleep, head against the headboard and his legs were fully stretched along the length of the bed that they had shared. Archie tentatively brought a hand up to the German's face and softly ran his fingers along the man's jaw. When his fingers stopped to trace the outline of the man's lips, Hugo's eyes blinked open and he immediately took note of the smaller form underneath his arms. His lips curved into a smile and he said, "Good morning, princess." Archie playfully hit the German's chest but he soon replied, "Good morning to you, too." Hugo shifted him up so that Archie's face was mere inches away from the larger man's and kissed him passionately. Archie honestly couldn't complain though and he grinned into the kiss.

When they broke away, Hugo maintained his hold on Archie so that Archie's face didn't move away from his. He touched his forehead to Archie's and stared deep into his eyes. Archie stared back into the eyes of the man above him. He felt a familiar warmth and happiness inside when he looked into those bottomless orbs and suddenly he knew what he wanted and most importantly, what he needed all this time. "I love you," Archie tried to put as much emotion into those three words as he possibly could and waited for the other man to say it. "I love you, too, Lt. Archie Hicox." Hugo was grinning and Archie knew however lost he was in the throes of war, however deep the abyss he had fallen into, he would always have someone he could go back to, someone to guide him home, back to where he belonged.