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

Chapter 61 - Now You Know

The walls of the tunnel were so close that they prevented any movement, and they pressed on his chest, blocking his breath, while, above and below him, there was only an endless darkness.
Guy woke up panting and pulled away the blankets that had wrapped around his body during his fitful sleep, giving him the feeling that he was trapped.
He looked around: he wasn't in the well, but a candle on the table lightened his room at Locksley.
Gisborne turned on his back and sighed, then he stood still, staring at the ceiling as his heart slowed its beats.
He smiled at himself: the nightmare had been distressing, but he was happy to be alive, and at least the danger made Marian forget about anything she could have seen in the tavern. The girl had saved him, showed him how strong were her feelings for him and she had stayed with him until Guy had collapsed on the bed, too exhausted to be able to keep his eyes open. As he fell asleep, he heard Marian arguing with her father about decency of spending the night in the room of a man who wasn't her husband.
If it had not been for Sir Edward's intervention, Marian would most likely have insisted on watching over him and she wouldn't be parted from him, not even for a few minutes.
But the girl wasn't there, so her father probably had succeeded in making her reason.
Guy wanted to have her always at his side, but he had to admit that Sir Edward wasn't wrong.
Although he didn't have a single muscle that wasn't sore, Guy wasn't injured or in danger and there was no valid reason why Marian should spend the night taking care of him.
Guy noticed the arrow planted in the headboard of the bed and wondered when it had arrived, his sleep had been so deep that he hadn't heard it coming.
Guy struggled to move, pulled the arrow away from the wood, hid it under the bed, and went back to lie on the bed with a groan. Robin would have to wait, he felt too sore just to think of getting up, of course he didn't have the strength to ride to the forest.
He closed his eyes and went back into a deep sleep.

Robin Hood leaned on the wall with a shoulder, and looked at Gisborne. Since Robin had entered the window a few minutes earlier, Guy hadn't moved and he had kept sleeping, totally unaware of the outlaw's presence.
Robin took an arrow and used it to jab at him until Gisborne opened his eyes.
"Ah, it's you, Hood. What do you want?"
"You should be careful. You didn't even notice that I was here. What if I was someone with bad intentions?"
"Why? Do you have good intentions?"
"They could kill you while you sleep and you wouldn't even wake up."
"If the dead should wake up, I would worry. And yet being dead could be an improvement for me now," Guy moaned.
Robin looked at him, with an ironic smile on his face.
"You don't look in a very good shape, Gisborne."
Guy snorted.
"If you didn't tell, I would never have noticed it."
Robin grinned.
"Being a hero doesn't improve your mood, I would say."
Guy sat up and looked at him. He blushed, thinking how he had shown his terror in front of everyone the day before, and hoped that at least it was just Marian who saw him cry.
"A hero? More likely an idiot who risked to end up smashed at the bottom of a well. If it hadn't been for Marian, I would be there."
"It's not what people at Locksley say."
Guy stared at him, curious.
"What do they say?"
"That Sir Guy of Gisborne risked his life to save three children who fell in a pit. By the way, they will be alright. All three of them. The healer said Matt will recover with time."
Guy gave a trembling sigh.
"I thought he was dead. He was so cold and he didn't move..."
Robin looked at him, astonished to see him showing his emotions so openly.
"He would have died if you didn't keep him warm," Robin said, then he grinned and gave him a pat on his shoulder. "Very well, Gisborne, you're officially a hero!"
Guy winced in pain.
"Be careful, Hood!" He snarled, throwing an angry look at him, and Robin laughed.
"No, definitely saving children in danger isn't good for your mood. But what were you doing in that place?"
Guy became serious.
"I was with Archer. Robin, I've seen the birthmark! He is really our brother!"
Robin opened his mouth to answer, when the door suddenly opened. The outlaw threw himself to the ground to hide between the wall and the bed, but rose back to his feet when he saw that it was only Allan.
The young man saw Robin Hood kneeling on the floor and closed the door behind him.
"Ah, that's you, I heard some voices and went to check. What are you doing here?"
Robin pointed to Guy with a nod.
"I wanted to see if he was alright."
Guy glared at him, and Allan grinned, amused.
"Giz, in this regard, Thornton ordered the servants to prepare a hot bath for us. If you can get out of bed, it will make you feel better."
Robin looked at him, perplexed.
"A bath for both of you?"
"Marian is light, but Giz isn't, and together they make a big weight to support, it's already incredible that I still have my arms attached in their place. I bet that even that Archer doesn't feel so well today."
Robin looked at Guy.
"Was Archer there too?"
"Didn't the peasants tell you? If he didn't go to search for help, we would still be in that hole. And he and Allan pulled us up with the rope."
"Giz, I still don't understand how you could trust him so much. After all, he's always a sheriff's man, he could have let you die there."
"But he didn't," Guy said.
Robin didn't comment, he knew very well why Gisborne had trusted Archer, but he was worried. The fact that it was their brother didn't imply that he was reliable.
He hoped that Guy was right in judging Archer because otherwise they would find themselves in a difficult and painful situation.
"Come on, hero, hurry to get up before the water gets cold," he said to Guy, dropping the subject of Archer, and he stretched out a hand to help him. "Among other things, I would say that you really need a bath."
Gisborne nodded, smiling, a bit embarrassed. The night before he had collapsed on the bed without even having the strength to clean up from the mud and he knew that he was still dirty from head to toe.
"Wait," he said to Robin, who was already approaching the window to go away, and he handed him the arrows that he had hidden under the bed. "Take these back before Marian finds them."

Marian went into the kitchen and filled a tray of food, then, holding it in her hands, headed for the stairs, but Sir Edward stopped her.
"Wait, Marian."
The girl looked at him, unhappy.
"I've been waiting so far and now he's awake, I heard his voice. Let me go, I have to see him."
"And you will, Sir Guy won't go anywhere, but wait for him to come to you, don't be impatient."
The girl sighed.
"Are you afraid of what people can say? Didn't you hear them? What can they say about me that they haven't already said in the past?"
"And if people gossip, do you want to give them a reason to do that? He isn't your husband, you are not even officially engaged, wait at least until he asks your hand in marriage."
Marian didn't answer, and she returned to the kitchen, irritated.
Her father could be right, but he had touched a sore point.
She and Guy loved each other, there was no doubt about it, but he hadn't yet asked her to marry him, and Marian was beginning to doubt that he would.
She sat at the table, took a piece of bread from the tray she had filled for Guy and began to eat it listlessly.
"You don't have to worry about Sir Guy, my lady."
Marian looked up and saw Thornton talking to her. The old servant smiled and reassured her.
"Did you see him this morning? How was he?" She asked.
"Rather sore, but nothing serious, I think he will recover quickly. I prepared a warm bath for him and for Allan, maybe afterwards he will feel well enough to get downstairs to have lunch."
The girl realized that she would have to wait, and sighed.
"Please tell my father that I'm going to the village, I want to see how those kids are."

"This is not bad at all, Giz, I could get used to it," Allan said with a satisfied sigh, stretching a hand to grab a piece of meat from the plate resting beside the bathtub.
Guy looked at him, amused, then he leaned his back on the side of his own tub, and closed his eyes.
"Well, don't. I doubt that the servants are willing to heat the water for you again, unless you save some other child. When Locksley was mine I think they weren't happy to do it for me as well."
"Perhaps because at that time you used to terrorize people at Sheriff's orders?"
"Maybe."
"That's why you should stay away from Archer. They're starting to accept you, to trust you, but if they see you going around with the sheriff's man, they'll think that you're back to your former self."
"Archer saved me, you saw that he did, didn't you?"
"I can admit that he has shown a minimum of conscience, but he still works for Vaisey. Why do you care for him so much? Why do you have to make friends with him at all costs? He could also be a decent person, but having to deal with him can only cause you problems."
Guy opened his eyes to look at his friend: Allan was genuinely worried about him, and Gisborne didn't know what to say to reassure him.
"Allan..."
"I understand that those races and challenges may be exciting, that you like to put yourself to test, but why with him? Challenge me if you just enjoy risking the bone of your neck, or Robin if you don't consider me a worthy adversary, but stay away from Archer, he will lead you to ruin sooner or later!"
"I can't."
"Why you can't? No, don't tell, I bet it's one of your secrets that I can't know because you don't trust me enough. But why should you? I betrayed Robin's gang to work for you, who assures you that I won't betray you too?"
Guy stared at him, shocked by that outburst, and he shook his head.
"It's not a matter of trust, Allan. I trust you, you know everything about the Nightwatchman."
"You told me about the Nightwatchman before you met that Archer. Since that man started working for the sheriff you are different, Giz. When it comes to him either you say nothing, or your words are just lies."
"He's my brother."
Allan looked at him, uncertain whether he ought to laugh or to get angry for that mockery, but Gisborne was mortally serious.
"What?"
"Archer is my brother. And Robin's too."
"Giz... Yesterday you banged your head, didn't you? Or is the water too hot?"
"I'm not crazy. Did you want the truth? Here it is."
"Your brother and Robin's too? How is it possible?"
"My mother and his father had a relationship. But neither Robin nor I knew about Archer's existence until a few months ago."
Allan looked at him, shaking his head.
"Why you didn't tell me? Why so many mysteries?"
Guy stared at him.
"Because nobody knows, only me, Robin, and Adeline's family. It is a dangerous secret, I shouldn't have revealed it to you, and neither to Marian. Not for lack of confidence, but to protect you."
"Does Archer know?"
"No. And he mustn't know until we are sure that we can trust him. If we can trust him."
Gisborne didn't say anything else, and Allan was silent for a while, then the young man smiled at his friend.
"Do you know, Giz?"
"What?"
"You and Archer aren't like each other at all."