Emeline: A Gisborne Tale

Chapter Four

Rose was sitting up in bed, drinking some tea. When she looked up, Emeline was standing in the doorway.

"Guid day tae ye, Emeline. Come in an' sit." she said.
Emeline threw herself down on the bed beside Rose. "Oh, Rose! I've angered the master again!"

"Ach, lass. Whit've ye done this time?" Rose was smiling, for she knew that something was going on between Guy and her new friend.

Emeline sighed before answering. "I was in the garden picking some herbs for the queen's feast when I realised I had strayed a bit too far." She described her encounter with Robin Hood and his gang and that when she had told Guy about it, he had flown into a rage and stomped upstairs.

Rose harrumphed, shaking her head from side to side. "Whit am ah going tae dae wi' him?" she cried. Then, turning to Emeline, Rose continued, "Get yerself a cup o' tea. Ah've a tale tae tell ye."

And so it was that Rose came to regale the story of how Guy had first come to Locksley as Sheriff Robert's Master at Arms and personal aid. She told Emeline the story of the death of Guy's parents and her place in Guy's life. Of how he grew up angry and ambitious. Rose knew him to be a good man, but his ambitions were stronger than his morals.

Rose went on to tell her of the true lord of Locksley.

When Robin of Locksley, Earl of Huntingdon, returned from the Crusades, he was appalled at what he found. Many of the villagers were going hungry, while others were being harassed to pay their monthly, quarterly, and yearly taxes. Taxes they could not pay at the rate Robert, on orders from Prince John, was demanding. Robin had come home to find a different England to the one he had left.

Sickened by the poverty of the once affluent farmers and vendors who made their trade in Locksley Village, Robin took up arms and fought the taxation, as well as robbing the nobles as they rode to and from Nottingham and giving these ill-gotten gains to the downtrodden poor.

In Robin's absence, Sheriff Robert had given Guy all of Locksley; the village and the manor too. Prince John had instructed him to do it. After all, thought Prince John, the lord of the village, may never return from the Holy War.

Listening intently, Emeline noted that Rose was a little sad as the faithful servant continued her story.

Rose continued her story.

Robin defied the sheriff's expectations and returned from the crusades. Upon realising he had been stripped of his title, home, and lands, Robin enjoyed flouting the sheriff's authority whenever he could.

In his self-appointed role as defender of the poor, Robin gathered a gang of men to aid him in this new crusade. Men who were only too willing to follow him and do whatever he asked of them.

Sheriff Robert, infuriated by the actions of this gang, made it Guy's responsibility to stop Robin. Guy and his soldiers tried, but Robin and his gang remained elusive. They knew every tree, leaf, and blade of grass in the forest and were able to outwit Guy and his men more often than not. Guy didn't know the forest as well as Robin, and neither did his men. It was easy for Robin to rob the nobles and then hide in the forest without being seen.

The villagers were loyal to Robin, too, eager to help him when they could to show their gratitude. Guy didn't stand a chance against such odds. He was doomed to failure.

"An' that's why Guy is a wee bit touchy when it comes to Robin of Locksley." Rose finished.

Emeline pondered this for a moment. "Well, it's not like he stole Locksley from Robin, but I think I can see why Robin might feel that way." She continued to ruminate. "I think Guy could be a little more compassionate towards the people of his village. After all, they are his bread and butter. If they prosper, doesn't it stand to reason that he would prosper, too? My father always saw it that way."