Secrets of the sherwood forest

8.

The rest of the day goes similarly; Happy greetings, people about to cry from joy, too many thank you's and you're welcomes to count.

After we're done and the rain has stopped it must be like one o'clock. And I'm getting hungry.

So, naturally, we go to the crowded marketplace. I keep my hood on and stay in the back, on a small allay near the bakery where Edith goes to get something to eat. Aminat is on the allay with me.

While we're waiting on Edith, I see a tall, brunette man in a red uniform. The serif.

I quickly pull my hood even tighter over my face and back away deeper to the ally. Aminat looks at me confused but follows me.

"What are you doing Ru- "

"Don't call me that right now, please." I interrupt her.

"Why? What's going on" Aminat asks me, all valid questions I'd ask if I was her as well.

"You see that tall man, red uniform, brown hair, right?" I ask her.

She nods.

"That's the serif of Nottingham. I don't really get along with him." I tell her in the most subtle way I can. The actual answer includes a reward for a clue that leads to finding me and bringing me to jail. It's a long story.

"What did you do?" She questions me, now understandably worried.

"On that wall, left from us, is a poster. How about you go and check out what's in it?"

On that very wall is the first wanted poster of myself I ever saw. It was only two months after I was kicked out from my parents' house, and I had ended up in Nottingham.

You might wonder what the hell had I, a back then 14-year-old, starving child had done to get wanted. I had stolen a handful of coins straight from the serif's pocket.

I don't even think he saw me, just did the math and somehow this orphan girl that was barely living in the cooling autumn weather was the thief. And he was pissed, so he put me as wanted – later on I did more illegal stuff and he raised the price he wants from me. 

Before I even realise, Aminat is already reading the poster and keeps glancing at me, more and more concerned every time.

Then she walks back to me, and asks the question I thought the poster had already answered: "Are you a criminal?"

"How do you think me, and Edith got all that money we've been giving out today, unemployed, living in the woods?"

"I don't know, inheritance or something, anything but STEALING!" She almost screams.

"I'm surprised if people in London didn't hear that!" I tell her, on the border of getting mad, as I sush her and glance behind her if anyone heard.

"Hey, I didn't want to do it at first eighter, alright. I had barely eaten in a week, and I was about to starve. Then I saw him walk by and put some money in his pocket. And then I just kind of did it and here we are." I explain to her as I see the serif walk away from the marketplace and Edith coming back with a brown, warm looking bag that smells amazing all the way here.

She comes closer and slows down when she sees Aminat's expression, confused and scared.

"Is everything alright in here?" She asks once she gets to a hearing range, looking back and forth at me and Aminat.

"She" I point at Aminat "figured out how we can afford to do the thing." I explain.

"Oh,that explains a lot" Edith answers me. 

We stay quiet for a while, and the awkward silence just goes on and on for minutes.

Until my stomach decides that's over and starts making the noises it makes when I get hungry.

We all start laughing and I look at my stomach, angry that it had to embarrass me in front of... God, I don't even know what to call them.

Edith is more like a family member to me rather than just a friend, meanwhile I don't even know if Aminat wants to acknowledge my existence after this.

Why are relationships so hard?

"Okay, uhm, if I have to decide what I think about this whole stealing thing, I have to know one more thing; How often do you do this stuff?" Aminat finally starts talking about the elephant in the room. Or the allay to be exact, but oh well.

I make eye contact. She nods. Tell her the truth.

"Not often, this was our I think fourth or fifth time so far, first after the snow melted in Nottingham."

"Okay, I think I'll stay." She answers after thinking for a few seconds.

I'm extremely relived, and I can't stop a small laugh coming out of my mouth.

"Thank god, I was already worried"

"I was as well. Now, Edith, that thing you're holding smells incredible and I'm hungry." She laughs and changes the subject to the much more important things.

Edith laughs as well and takes out the beautiful loaf of bread and barely few seconds later all of the three of us are pulling small pieces off it.

When we're eating I look to the marketplace when my eye catches a bunch of red hair walking around. Kendra.

It's difficult to see her from so far away, but she's wearing a white dress, and on top of it there is another dress made of burgundy fabric, tied on from the front with matching strings.

 She's God damn gorgeous even if I can't clearly see her.

And then I remember the deal I made with her. I only see one royal guard and Eden with her, so I don't think the proposal has happened yet.

But that only means it's happening soon.

"Rue, what are you looking at?" Aminat asks and gets me to zone back in.

"Nothing" I replay a bit too quickly and force my eyes off Kendra.

Edith and Aminat look at each other and smirk.

"Yeah, I totally believe that" Edith says sarcastically.

"Yes, very believable and totally not an obvious lie." Aminat joins in.

"When did you two start getting along?" I change the subject.

"I don't know" Aminat answers and looks at Edith.

"But would you rather have me threaten her with this loaf instead of eating it in peace?" Edith adds.

"Why would you threaten her with that loaf anyway, not a very good weapon of choice if you ask me."

"Good point, but I'm also like double her size, I think I could make it work" She argues.

"You guys know you're arguing about weather or not Edith could physically injure me with a loaf of bread, right?" Aminat joins the conversation, pretending to be concerned but she's smiling.

"Yes" Edith and I say at the same time.

Then we keep on arguing about this very serious thing we should totally be focusing on.