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Description
"Bet the local girls thought you were quite the charmer
And I'll bet the ladies love a man in armor
You can guess what we have missed the most
since we went off to war
What do we want?
A girl worth fighting for" - Mulan

[f/n]’s humor hasn’t been the best possible over those last few hours. She had faced a muddy forest, a bunch of smelly men, severe abstinence of a proper shower, a furious cloud of mosquitos, worse than any army she could face on a battlefield and…

And nothing else. Her mind cut her off harshly and she winced unintentionally. She had spent the rest of her day gathering the less soaked pieces of wood she could find under that pouring rain and trying to keep her thoughts away from a certain German she knew. That and the mental images he invariably triggered through her brain about him and another girl, both seeming so happy and adorable together that [f/n] could feel her stomach contort with an irrational jealousy. What wasn’t right at all, since the girl knew that she wasn’t anything of the General, so she shouldn’t have those feelings. Hell, even if he showed any interest, as unlikely as it was, she should just give up the idea of being with him at all, because that would mean he was interested in a gender that she didn’t belong. Not that he knew that, though.

Because, at the current moment, she was disguised as a man. Her own brother, actually, since he was too sick to be on the army. So there she was, [b/n] [l/n], a young soldier with an awful ability to hold a pistol and an even more terrible aim, carrying a bunch of wood in the middle of a inimical forest, wet until her very bones and trying to shake off her ridiculously infatuation for the General of her squad.

There is nothing of such and…

Oh, who was she kidding?

She was in love with General Beilschmidt and there was nothing she could do about it, even if she solely attempted to deny it.

And those feelings were useless, since they were unrequired. Worse, it seemed that he had another woman waiting for him when the war was over. Plus, even if she overlooked her rival (What rival? She screamed at herself internally. You’re not even a competitor on the first place.) and considered the impossibly absurd possibility of him actually paying attention to her as something more than a mere soldier wouldn’t help her case at all. Because that would imply that he liked boys and she lacked… Hm… proper equipment to fulfill that requirement.

And that meant that there simply wasn’t a way to win on that ludicrous situation. Because she was that lucky. No one but her would find the man of her dreams at the exact moment that she needed to be a guy. And he had a girl. Christ, why everything was just so damn complicated?

Still, she wouldn’t gain anything with that desolate thinking. The cramps she was feeling weren’t helping too, she should add. [f/n] sighed, finally reaching the clearing where they were camping. The General wasn’t anywhere to be seen, but Braginsky was. As soon as he saw her he inspected her from the first [h/n] curl of hair in her head to the last mud stain in her boots. The girl felt uncomfortable to be under such close examination, but she didn’t say a word since she didn’t trust on how her voice would sound if she did. That man always made her nervous. Nikolai came closer to her, silently taking the wood away from her tired arms quite easily. She gave him a confused look, not understanding why he did that. Up close, Braginsky was strangely fair and delicate, nearly androgynous under the blond bangs of his short hair. It was almost as if…

“Go rest. The day will be over soon and the exercise will begin. You’ll need energy. Tell Beilschmidt that I’ll patrol the woods after I light the fire.” He told her in a quiet, yet commanding voice. The girl tried to protest, but he stopped her with a glare that set chills down her spine.

“Go rest.” He repeated and she was forced to obey.

(Time skip)

The fire crackled and sizzled happily, warming up what they were supposed to have for dinner. The girl was craving some [f/f] lately, but the non-familiar smell that whatever that was inside that pan was giving off was nothing like it. She also desired some sugar, especially some chocolate. But the cacao product was something naturally very rare in the army and over the last few months that only worsened.

She was lost in thoughts, remembering the cake her mother had baked her for her anniversary, a chocolate filled, marvelous pastry, when General Beilschmidt approached the scene, sitting next to her with an unusual rigidness.

[f/n] straightened her back immediately, ready to receive a last hour command and run around the forest.

He dispensed it with a hand gesture.

“At ease.”

Her body went back to the original position while she tried to discreetly observe his profile. Illuminated by the clear moonlight and the glow that came from the flames, his pale skin reflected a bronze coloration, lighting up those cerulean eyes. The vision was quite breathtaking, but his features seemed coated with fatigue and maybe a dash of sadness. It looked like more of what another day ordering around those lazy soldiers usually did to him.

“Any problems, sir?” She questioned, mustering the courage from God knows where. The German glanced towards her, slightly surprised for a moment, but the tiredness soon took over his features again.

“You could say so.” He confirmed with a nod, averting his eyes from her figure and watching the fire.

The happiness generated by that tiny bit of trust was so ridiculously big that threatened to swallow her heart as a whole. Her rational side, however, explained not all that patiently that it wasn’t all that much reason to rejoice. But it was still something and it had to agree with that.

The girl was about to question him about what could have caused that, but he spoke first.

“Tell me, [l/n], do you have a girl you like?”

[f/n] visibly choked at that, coughing several times due to the surprise. She even received a few smacks on the back from the German, but if his hands were too gentle and lingered more than necessary over her uniform, well, she interpreted that the lack of air was affecting her best judgment.

But the General was really enquiring about her love life?

Seriously?

Oh, don’t worry, I don’t have any spare time to become a lesbian since you walk around the camp shirtless way too often. Her brain responded sarcastically, bringing a new round of uncontrolled coughs.

Way to go, [f/n]. She congratulated herself.

“Hm… N- I mean, yes, I like someone.” She managed to say, only realizing later that the statement lacked a gender to that certain someone and that she had been staring at him the whole time she said that. Almost like she was in kindergarten. Dammit. Her mouth continued to function, maybe to ultimately prove that she didn’t know when to shut up. She would end up expelled from the army in no time if she kept that up. “What about you, sir?”

General Beilschmidt blushed more intensely that she ever imagined possible, stuttering so much that she couldn’t understand a single word of what he was saying, just as embarrassed it sounded. It would be cute if her heart hadn’t decided it was a good time to pump so loudly against her ears that even if he spoke clearly she didn’t think that she would hear it.

His hand brushed against hers and for a moment that single piece of skin, burning from the warmth of his palm, was all that mattered in the whole world, concentrating all the nerve endings that she had in her system on that single spot. It was nearly as if he knew that she was a girl and that he actually liked her back. That they were both like any other stupid couple of lovebirds, amazed by the presence of one another. But if he did or didn’t, that didn’t make any difference at the moment. She was just happy to be quietly at his presence.

Until she heard a quiet whimper and the dull sound of something being thrown on the ground. That startled the girl and General Beilschmidt stood up so quickly that it was frightening, holding his pistol and pointing out to the approaching form.

Nikolai came out of the shadows, entering the clearing while rolling the unconscious body of his brother.

“What?” The girl found herself questioning, not only frustrated but plain confused about what she was seeing. She barely noticed that her voice came out too acute to be seen as a man’s voice. But no one really noticed at the moment.

Nikolai seemed so happy that he was nearly dancing and not walking towards them. He also let out some giggles, nearly hysterical and frenetic.

“The mission was to not be captured. And to come up with all the team members, right? So I thought that with another soldier we had more chances to win.” Braginsky explained, nearly sang, actually, pushing the blond locks of his brother’s hair away from his forehead with the carefulness of a lover and not a sibling. Only a fool would believe his explanation, or the twisted logic behind it, but it would be just as foolish to take Ivan away from him. It was probably a risk to the live of the one who tried as well, but [f/n] would let that fact slide.

The German sighed, but approved that Ivan would stay with them until morning. Wise decision.

[f/n] was confused with all that had happened, so she decided that it was a good time to offer to take the role as the patroller to clear her head. Walking aimlessly around the woods and escaping some soldiers should help with the internal turmoil she could feel forming in her. Nikolai let her do it gleefully, hugging his brother in a tight embrace. He seemed to be singing a lullaby to Ivan, and it awfully sounded like ‘marry me, oh, marry me, brother dear’, repeated over and over. She thought that she heard Ivan let out a terrified whimper, but maybe that was only her imagination.

After she was surrounded with trees, she let her mind run freely, hammering the same question on her thoughts over and over.

And now what?

Description
"Bet the local girls thought you were quite the charmer
And I'll bet the ladies love a man in armor
You can guess what we have missed the most
since we went off to war
What do we want?
A girl worth fighting for" - Mulan

[f/n]’s humor hasn’t been the best possible over those last few hours. She had faced a muddy forest, a bunch of smelly men, severe abstinence of a proper shower, a furious cloud of mosquitos, worse than any army she could face on a battlefield and…

And nothing else. Her mind cut her off harshly and she winced unintentionally. She had spent the rest of her day gathering the less soaked pieces of wood she could find under that pouring rain and trying to keep her thoughts away from a certain German she knew. That and the mental images he invariably triggered through her brain about him and another girl, both seeming so happy and adorable together that [f/n] could feel her stomach contort with an irrational jealousy. What wasn’t right at all, since the girl knew that she wasn’t anything of the General, so she shouldn’t have those feelings. Hell, even if he showed any interest, as unlikely as it was, she should just give up the idea of being with him at all, because that would mean he was interested in a gender that she didn’t belong. Not that he knew that, though.

Because, at the current moment, she was disguised as a man. Her own brother, actually, since he was too sick to be on the army. So there she was, [b/n] [l/n], a young soldier with an awful ability to hold a pistol and an even more terrible aim, carrying a bunch of wood in the middle of a inimical forest, wet until her very bones and trying to shake off her ridiculously infatuation for the General of her squad.

There is nothing of such and…

Oh, who was she kidding?

She was in love with General Beilschmidt and there was nothing she could do about it, even if she solely attempted to deny it.

And those feelings were useless, since they were unrequired. Worse, it seemed that he had another woman waiting for him when the war was over. Plus, even if she overlooked her rival (What rival? She screamed at herself internally. You’re not even a competitor on the first place.) and considered the impossibly absurd possibility of him actually paying attention to her as something more than a mere soldier wouldn’t help her case at all. Because that would imply that he liked boys and she lacked… Hm… proper equipment to fulfill that requirement.

And that meant that there simply wasn’t a way to win on that ludicrous situation. Because she was that lucky. No one but her would find the man of her dreams at the exact moment that she needed to be a guy. And he had a girl. Christ, why everything was just so damn complicated?

Still, she wouldn’t gain anything with that desolate thinking. The cramps she was feeling weren’t helping too, she should add. [f/n] sighed, finally reaching the clearing where they were camping. The General wasn’t anywhere to be seen, but Braginsky was. As soon as he saw her he inspected her from the first [h/n] curl of hair in her head to the last mud stain in her boots. The girl felt uncomfortable to be under such close examination, but she didn’t say a word since she didn’t trust on how her voice would sound if she did. That man always made her nervous. Nikolai came closer to her, silently taking the wood away from her tired arms quite easily. She gave him a confused look, not understanding why he did that. Up close, Braginsky was strangely fair and delicate, nearly androgynous under the blond bangs of his short hair. It was almost as if…

“Go rest. The day will be over soon and the exercise will begin. You’ll need energy. Tell Beilschmidt that I’ll patrol the woods after I light the fire.” He told her in a quiet, yet commanding voice. The girl tried to protest, but he stopped her with a glare that set chills down her spine.

“Go rest.” He repeated and she was forced to obey.

(Time skip)

The fire crackled and sizzled happily, warming up what they were supposed to have for dinner. The girl was craving some [f/f] lately, but the non-familiar smell that whatever that was inside that pan was giving off was nothing like it. She also desired some sugar, especially some chocolate. But the cacao product was something naturally very rare in the army and over the last few months that only worsened.

She was lost in thoughts, remembering the cake her mother had baked her for her anniversary, a chocolate filled, marvelous pastry, when General Beilschmidt approached the scene, sitting next to her with an unusual rigidness.

[f/n] straightened her back immediately, ready to receive a last hour command and run around the forest.

He dispensed it with a hand gesture.

“At ease.”

Her body went back to the original position while she tried to discreetly observe his profile. Illuminated by the clear moonlight and the glow that came from the flames, his pale skin reflected a bronze coloration, lighting up those cerulean eyes. The vision was quite breathtaking, but his features seemed coated with fatigue and maybe a dash of sadness. It looked like more of what another day ordering around those lazy soldiers usually did to him.

“Any problems, sir?” She questioned, mustering the courage from God knows where. The German glanced towards her, slightly surprised for a moment, but the tiredness soon took over his features again.

“You could say so.” He confirmed with a nod, averting his eyes from her figure and watching the fire.

The happiness generated by that tiny bit of trust was so ridiculously big that threatened to swallow her heart as a whole. Her rational side, however, explained not all that patiently that it wasn’t all that much reason to rejoice. But it was still something and it had to agree with that.

The girl was about to question him about what could have caused that, but he spoke first.

“Tell me, [l/n], do you have a girl you like?”

[f/n] visibly choked at that, coughing several times due to the surprise. She even received a few smacks on the back from the German, but if his hands were too gentle and lingered more than necessary over her uniform, well, she interpreted that the lack of air was affecting her best judgment.

But the General was really enquiring about her love life?

Seriously?

Oh, don’t worry, I don’t have any spare time to become a lesbian since you walk around the camp shirtless way too often. Her brain responded sarcastically, bringing a new round of uncontrolled coughs.

Way to go, [f/n]. She congratulated herself.

“Hm… N- I mean, yes, I like someone.” She managed to say, only realizing later that the statement lacked a gender to that certain someone and that she had been staring at him the whole time she said that. Almost like she was in kindergarten. Dammit. Her mouth continued to function, maybe to ultimately prove that she didn’t know when to shut up. She would end up expelled from the army in no time if she kept that up. “What about you, sir?”

General Beilschmidt blushed more intensely that she ever imagined possible, stuttering so much that she couldn’t understand a single word of what he was saying, just as embarrassed it sounded. It would be cute if her heart hadn’t decided it was a good time to pump so loudly against her ears that even if he spoke clearly she didn’t think that she would hear it.

His hand brushed against hers and for a moment that single piece of skin, burning from the warmth of his palm, was all that mattered in the whole world, concentrating all the nerve endings that she had in her system on that single spot. It was nearly as if he knew that she was a girl and that he actually liked her back. That they were both like any other stupid couple of lovebirds, amazed by the presence of one another. But if he did or didn’t, that didn’t make any difference at the moment. She was just happy to be quietly at his presence.

Until she heard a quiet whimper and the dull sound of something being thrown on the ground. That startled the girl and General Beilschmidt stood up so quickly that it was frightening, holding his pistol and pointing out to the approaching form.

Nikolai came out of the shadows, entering the clearing while rolling the unconscious body of his brother.

“What?” The girl found herself questioning, not only frustrated but plain confused about what she was seeing. She barely noticed that her voice came out too acute to be seen as a man’s voice. But no one really noticed at the moment.

Nikolai seemed so happy that he was nearly dancing and not walking towards them. He also let out some giggles, nearly hysterical and frenetic.

“The mission was to not be captured. And to come up with all the team members, right? So I thought that with another soldier we had more chances to win.” Braginsky explained, nearly sang, actually, pushing the blond locks of his brother’s hair away from his forehead with the carefulness of a lover and not a sibling. Only a fool would believe his explanation, or the twisted logic behind it, but it would be just as foolish to take Ivan away from him. It was probably a risk to the live of the one who tried as well, but [f/n] would let that fact slide.

The German sighed, but approved that Ivan would stay with them until morning. Wise decision.

[f/n] was confused with all that had happened, so she decided that it was a good time to offer to take the role as the patroller to clear her head. Walking aimlessly around the woods and escaping some soldiers should help with the internal turmoil she could feel forming in her. Nikolai let her do it gleefully, hugging his brother in a tight embrace. He seemed to be singing a lullaby to Ivan, and it awfully sounded like ‘marry me, oh, marry me, brother dear’, repeated over and over. She thought that she heard Ivan let out a terrified whimper, but maybe that was only her imagination.

After she was surrounded with trees, she let her mind run freely, hammering the same question on her thoughts over and over.

And now what?