The Nightwatchman (English)(From Ashes Vol.2)

Chapter 37 - And So It Begins

Allan glanced at Gisborne, worried for him.
Guy had not explained in detail what had happened during the night, but, judging from what Allan could see, he and Robin had been defeated by the new aide of the sheriff in a rather humiliating way.
Gisborne had come home late at night, with his hair still wet, and quite battered. He had thrown himself on the bed without undressing, and he had collapsed into an exhausted sleep almost immediately, stopping in mid-sentence as he answered Allan's questions.
The young man had taken off Guy's coat and boots, and Gisborne didn't wake up, merely complaining in his sleep, then Allan had thrown a blanket on him, and had let him to sleep without disturbing him anymore.
In the morning they had gone to Nottingham to accompany Marian and her father to the market, but Allan didn't feel comfortable: Guy's expression was grim and he strangely hadn't slowed the horse to ride alongside the wagon driven by Marian, but he had gone on without waiting for her.
Allan had followed him.
"Hey, Giz, it's all right?"
Guy looked at him for a few seconds before answering.
"I'm tired, and I don't want to talk about it, Allan."
"What should I say to Marian? I believe she was upset when she saw that you went on without her..."
Gisborne sighed and he briefly glanced back.
"My back hurts, I'm afraid I wouldn't be good company today."
"Last night was so terrible?"
"Worse. But I told you, I'm not going to talk about it. Leave me alone, please."
Guy spurred the horse and left Allan behind.
His wounds were actually hurting a little, but that wasn't the real reason for his somber mood. He was afraid.
He was terrified at the thought of approaching the man who was probably his brother in order to spy on his moves, and he didn't know if he was more frightened by the possibility of being discovered by the sheriff, or to find out that Archer wouldn't be willing to switch to their side.
In that case Robin had been very clear about what they should do, but Guy wasn't sure he would be able to kill his brother.
But he couldn't disappoint Robin, either.
If he didn't support him, Guy would put Robin in danger: to face a formidable opponent like Archer they had to remain united.
If Archer should reveal himself as an enemy, Guy would have to choose to betray one of his brothers, and he didn't want to do it; he had already abandoned Isabella and he still couldn't forgive himself.
Anyway, to get closer to Archer, Guy would have to lie, and to live in deceitfulness both with him and with all the people he loved.
Guy wondered if Marian found so difficult to stay with him when she was secretly betrothed to Robin Hood.

Marian looked up, hopeful, when she saw one of the horses coming back to the wagon, but Allan was alone and the girl sighed, disappointed.
She wondered if she had done something wrong.
That morning Guy got up in a bad mood, and at breakfast, he didn't even pretend to appreciate her pancakes.
Marian knew that her attempts to cook didn't have at all the flavor and the appearance that they should have, but she continued to try, hoping to improve. So far Guy looked happy with her commitment, even if the girl suspected that he had not the courage to really eat the food she prepared for him.
She didn't blame him for that, she had also tasted the results of her efforts, but she was glad that Guy was so attentive to her that he didn't want to hurt her with the hard truth.
A few days earlier she had sent a message to Adeline to ask the precise recipe for the pancakes that Guy loved so much when he was little, and the woman had been kind enough to answer in a simple, but extremely detailed letter.
Marian had followed the instructions carefully, trying not to miss a step, and when she finally tasted the result, she started jumping for joy: perhaps they were not the most delicious pancakes in the world, but compared to her previous attempts, they were at least edible .
She put them on the table, proud and happy, but Guy didn't even try to taste them, and he only sat at breakfast without touching food, not even looking at it.
"Allan?"
The young man moved the horse to ride beside the wagon, and Marian looked at him, sad.
"Is Guy mad at me?"
"Does he have any reason to be?"
Marian shook her head.
"No. I no longer used the Nightwatchman's costume after the last time, and, apart from that, I can't think of anything else that could make Guy angry."
"Hey, I was kidding. Giz is just in a bad mood, that's all. His wounds hurt tonight and he couldn't sleep well. I know him, Marian, when he's in this mood it's better to leave him alone until he calms down."
Marian nodded, a little relieved, and Allan smiled, but he felt uneasy. What he didn't tell to Marian was that the last time he had seen Gisborne in that state of mind was when he was still working for Vaisey.

Guy went up the stairs of the castle, ignoring the curious glances of the people: they were all surprised to see him there.
"Sir Guy, are you here to see the sheriff?" One of the guards at the entrance asked.
"No. I came to get the belongings of Lady Marian, provided that they are still here at the castle."
"Now that I think about it, a few months ago her servants brought in some trunks for Lady Marian, when she was supposed to marry Roger of Barrett," the guard commented. "I helped to bring one of the crates inside. I'd show you the room where we placed them, but now I can't leave my place, and in any case to take away something from the castle you will need the permission of the sheriff or Archer, I'm sorry Sir Guy."
"It doesn't matter, thanks anyway. Where can I find this Archer?"
The soldier looked at him, genuinely surprised to be thanked by the same man who for years had done nothing but barking orders, without even deigning to look at his guards. He didn't know what happened exactly to him, but since his return from the dead, Guy of Gisborne had changed. And not for the worse.
"He should be in the great hall with the sheriff now... He's the one who flogged you a few days ago, Sir Guy," he added, after a slight hesitation.
Guy entered the castle, and he went to the great hall. He had no desire to see the sheriff, but if he wanted to make his excuse credible, he would need his permission to retrieve Marian's things.
Moreover, if he could really be able to get back her clothes and her jewelry, he would also have a way to apologize to the girl for his rudeness of that morning.
He knew that he hurt her, but he had felt too nervous to eat or to talk.
He took a deep breath and he went down the stairs of the great hall.
The sheriff looked at him, and his eyes lit up with an amused amazement.
"Oh, look. Gizzy. What do we owe the honor of this visit? I could have sworn that after the last time you'd stay away from Nottingham for a while. Tell me, Gisborne, how does it feels to be on the other side of the whip? Does it still burn?"
Guy wanted to tell him that, if he was so curious to know, he would be happy to help him to find out, but he forced himself to swallow those words, worthy of Robin Hood, and he turned to Vaisey, respectfully.
"My Lord, I ask for your permission to take back to Locksley the personal effects of Lady Marian."
The sheriff studied him, wondering what Gisborne really wanted. If he wanted to retrieve the things of his woman, he could simply have sent a servant.
"Very well, I like to see you beg, Gisborne. Go ahead and take the junk of your lover, I give you my permission."
Guy shuddered when he heard the sheriff calling Marian like that, but again he forced himself not to react.
"Thank you, my lord."
"Archer!"
The young man stood up from the chair in the shade where he had been seated until then, and he approached the sheriff.
Vaisey looked at him.
"Accompany Gisborne to take back the stuff of his woman, and make sure that he doesn't take away anything of value," he said loudly to insult Guy indirectly, then he waved Archer to get closer and spoke to him in a lower tone. "Try to understand what the hell he really wants, and then tell me."
"Yes, my lord," Archer said, then he walked over to Guy, and the two men took their leave by the sheriff, leaving the room.

They walked in silence along some corridors, then Guy turned to Archer.
"I confess that I was hoping to talk to you."
The young man glanced ironically at him, surprised.
"I thought you wouldn't want to see me, given how things went the last time."
"I wanted to talk to you exactly for this reason. I guess I should thank you."
Archer raised an eyebrow in a way that resembled Robin. Guy wondered if he was really their brother, and if, in that case, he had something in common with him too.
"I flogged you and you want to thank me? This strikes me as rather odd."
"You have seen my back, didn't you? I have some experience of floggings now, although I would have preferred to do without it, and that's why I am quite certain that you could have hurt me far more than you did, if only you wanted to. So, yes, I have a reason to be grateful to you."
Archer smiled ironically.
"Good for you." He stopped in front of a door and opened it with a key. "Here, the items that you want are here. Check that there is everything, and then I'll call a couple of servants and I'll order them to take out your trunks. Do you have a wagon?"
"Yes, I left it near the tavern. Indeed, if you have time I'd like to offer you a drink."
Archer stared at him for a moment, and Guy was afraid he had exaggerated, perhaps he should have been more cautious and less friendly, but then the other man smiled.
"Sure, why not? I bet that you're just curious to know how I fare working at your place."
Guy grinned.
"I confess. I'm curious to know if the sheriff is in trouble without me."
"Do you want your job back? Forget it, now it's mine."
"I don't, but I could give you some advice. I'd like to know if I was really useless as Vaisey said. Matter of pride, you know?"
Archer stared at him, amused. That was the ideal opportunity to understand the true intentions of Gisborne, as the sheriff ordered. He had only to play along, maybe push him to drink a little, and probably Gisborne would end talking too much.
"Let's go then. After all, you said that you're going to pay for the wine, didn't you?"