Fifty Moments

Summary: Fifty one-sentence ficlets, all Will/Djaq.
Timeline: Crosses seasons 1 and 2 and beyond.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything
Author's Note: Written three years ago (before season 2 had finished airing in Australia!) for a challenge.

#01 – Motion

No matter how fierce and confusing the battles are, Will is always aware of Djaq's fluid movements somewhere nearby.

#02 – Cool

As Djaq's cool fingers tenderly explored the gash on his arm, Will struggled not to shiver.

#03 – Young

She is aware that Will is the youngest of the outlaws, yet his steadiness and quiet strength impress upon her the image of a man beyond his years.

#04 – Last

Though he reminded himself almost nightly that the next day could be his (or her) last, he still could not summon the courage to tell Djaq he loved her.

#05 – Wrong

"I thought…you and Allan…" he stammered; she cut him off with a simple "You were wrong."

#06 – Gentle

A wistful smile curves Will's lips as he tenderly lays an extra blanket over Djaq's curled, sleeping form.

#07 – One

They believe in different gods, come from two different lands, have lived through vastly different experiences – but the English carpenter and the Saracen physician know they are of one spirit and one heart.

#08 – Thousand

She would travel two thousand miles to be with him; he would fight two thousand soldiers to protect her.

#09 – King

When the King returns, Will decided as he watched Djaq shred some leaves into a bowl, I'll tell her then.

#10 – Learn

She quickly learnt to recognize the young carpenter's presence by the shape of his shadow, his muted footfalls, his quiet voice, and the steady, unruffled air about him.

#11 – Blur

"…And the way you will always, always be a woman," he says passionately, and his smile gleams in the firelight through her happy, tear-blurred eyes.

#12 – Wait

As soon as the three words fall from her lips, he wonders why he ever thought waiting to tell her the same was a good idea.

#13 – Change

Though the dress she wears enhances and highlights her beauty, Will can't help thinking that it makes her look very unlike the Djaq he shares his days with.

#14 – Command

The way she says his name is not so much a warning as a command, far more effective than Little John's restraining arm across his body or Robin's hand at his shoulder.

#15 – Hold

She sits beside him as he pours out his grief and remorse in silent tears, holding one of his hands in both of hers, soothingly tracing the map of calluses on his palm with her fingertips.

#16 – Need

"What they need," Little John declares to the gang as Will and Djaq disappear into the trees, "is for someone to knock their heads together."

#17 – Vision

Will refused to entertain visions or dreams of a future with her, because he did not dare to hope that Djaq returned his feelings.

#18 – Attention

At first she was slightly unnerved by the way the young carpenter quietly observed her, but now she finds she likes the attention.

#19 – Soul

Djaq imagines Will's soul is like a tree – a young, strong oak, steady and still growing, firmly rooted in a belief in justice.

#20 – Picture

She wheeled around when the snowball hit her shoulder, eyes immediately falling to Will (who was the very picture of innocence: eyes wide, palms upturned, head shaking) as the others shook with barely-suppressed laughter.

#21 – Fool

"I know you liked him," Will heard Robin say to Djaq; he felt his chest tighten as he turned away, abashed at his own foolish dreams.

#22 – Mad

"Will! Have you gone mad? Put me down!" Djaq demanded, laughing, as her husband – now a father-to-be – joyfully picked her up and swung her around.

#23 – Child

Djaq examined the wooden figurine the boy handed to her with a smile – her son certainly had his father's craftsmanship.

#24 – Now

Will and Djaq speak very little about their separate pasts, preferring instead to live fully in the present they have created together.

#25 – Shadow

She goes straight to him and caresses his bruised cheek, and in that moment he is assured that she never accepted even the shadow of the idea that he was capable of betrayal.

#26 – Goodbye

The first time they kiss, it is bittersweet and tastes of goodbyes; the second time is unhurried and filled with new possibilities.

#27 – Hide

Much observes Will and Djaq grow closer each day, and wonders why they bother trying to hide their blossoming – and very obvious – feelings for one another.

#28 – Fortune

Sometimes, Will daydreamed about making his fortune (the death of a wealthy and previously unknown relative, gifts for saving a nobleman's life, knighthood for loyalty to the king) – not simply because he was poor, but because he wanted to offer Djaq more than just himself.

#29 – Safe

As she settled down to sleep in a dark forest in an unfamiliar land beside an outlawed carpenter, the only woman in a gang of potentially dangerous men, she realized that she'd never felt safer.

#30 – Ghost

He compared himself to cheeky, witty Allan (who stood nearby, laughing with Djaq) and resignedly concluded that he didn't stand a ghost of a chance.

#31 – Book

As Djaq pointed out the unfamiliar symbols and characters, Will couldn't help focusing on the way their knees lightly touched underneath the open book.

#32 – Eye

Will rolls his eyes at Allan's lewd comment, and is secretly elated when he spies Djaq doing the same.

#33 – Never

Now when they sleep, he holds her as if he'll never let go, making up for all the nights he wanted to shift over on the forest floor and catch her up in his arms.

#34 – Sing

He waited until the lullaby was over before cheekily telling his wife, "Your silly voice sounds much better when you sing."

#35 – Sudden

Will's laughter bubbles forth, soft and all-of-a-sudden, and Djaq cannot help smiling at the sound of it.

#36 – Stop

Her hand on his chest and her voice speaking his name brought him to a halt, and for a brief moment the cruelness of reality melted and the world stopped moving.

#37 – Time

"Now is not the time," a voice ordered in her head; "Now is the only time," another responded – and Djaq moved forward and pressed her lips to Will's.

#38 – Wash

As Will gingerly peels his shirt from his side to allow her to wash and bind the wound, Djaq has to consciously stop her mind from wandering with his hemline.

#39 – Torn

Bound back-to-back to the woman he loves, Will is torn between fears for the outlaws' safety, fury at Carter for fooling them, and an irrational thrill at his proximity to Djaq.

#40 – History

He blushes when she brings up how he discovered her true gender, but points out that if he hadn't interrupted her bathing that day, they would not be married.

#41 – Power

"Grief is a powerful emotion," she tells him, slipping an arm around his shaking shoulders, "Feel it, but do not let it consume you."

#42 – Bother

"You don't have to go;" he said before she could quietly back away, "You're never a bother to me."

#43 – God

As Djaq's lips meet his and their bodies meld, Will reaffirms the existence of a benevolent God.

#44 – Wall

As she stared at the blanket and the young man holding it out to her, Djaq felt her walls crack, just a little.

#45 – Naked

She sometimes felt naked under his incisive gaze (and it had nothing to do with the fact that he had seen her unclothed).

#46 – Drive

Will wonders aloud at her motivation in fighting with them, and she explains with sad eyes that she is tired of witnessing pain – he suddenly remembers what she has suffered and ducks his head, embarrassed by his oversight.

#47 – Harm

He knows that Djaq is stoic and strong, so when he hears her cry out in pain, he cannot stop himself from rushing to her side, blindly and furiously swinging his axe at anything in his way.

#48 – Precious

She found the wooden box by her blanket when she awoke, most of her vials and bottles already inside – and though Will protested that it was nothing, his simple gift touched her heart.

#49 – Hunger

Will listens closely whenever Djaq mentions her past, hungry to know all he can about the mysterious Saracen woman he loves.

#50 – Believe

Djaq believes in Allah, but more than that she believes in the scent of damp leaves on a forest floor, the strength of wood-roughened hands, and the soft smiles of a young man named Will.

Fin