Robin Hood - A Tale Untold

Chapter Three

Gingerly, she wiped the sticky blood away from under her nose and blinked to regain her vision. The room around her came into focus and she groaned as she stumbled over to the washbasin. Grimacing at her reflection, she began to wash out the blood and dirt, which had become stuck and partially matted into her long hair. Whether or not it was her own blood, she did not know. She did know, however, that she needed to scrub it all out before her father came home.
   Her long slender fingers worked quickly to tug out the knots and she chewed on the inside of her lip. A little water would clear her of any suspicion.
   After lifting an arm to get a whiff of what she smelled like, a nice, hot bath was considered, but she quickly concluded that thought. Running a bath meant asking a maid. The maid would be suspicious as to why she was all dirty and, most likely, tell her father. She couldn't have that happening.
   She glimpsed outside and frowned. It was roughly noon. She would be summoned to the foyer of the house and expected to wear a fine gown in about half an hour.

Hurriedly, she cleaned herself up and replaced the shirt and trousers for the white chemise, which had already been laid out on her bed. Once she had the chemise on, she took the shirt and trousers and stored them behind the cupboard, where no one would dare to look. She then opened said cupboard and pondered. She wanted to look good, but she didn't want to be eye-catching. That definitely ruled out the red and gold garment. Far too attention seeking, although it was a firm favourite. Eventually, after much hard debate, she settled on a basil green bliaut, which was pretty enough, but also modest.
   "Philomena!" she called out as she removed the frock from its place, and a small, petite maid arrived within several seconds.
   "Yes, my lady?" Philomena asked as she opened the door and the lady beckoned her over to help do up the laces. A nice leather ceinture was worn as well.
   "My lady, your hair is all wet," Philomena noticed, but she was quickly given a reply of, "Oh, don't fret, it'll dry in the sun."

Once her hair was tied into two braids in a trecheure and a mantle was thrown over her shoulders, Philomena scampered off to do other chores and she was left alone in her room. Hopefully no one would notice that she did still smell a bit. If they did, she could just blame it on the horses.
   She gathered her skirt and made her way down into the foyer of the spacious town house, where her father turned and gave a soothing smile.
   "My beautiful daughter," he grinned, holding a hand out to her as she came down the stairs, which she took graciously.
   "Father," she greeted, then turned her eyes to the luggage, "Are all these presents for my uncle?"
   "Not all," he responded, "But most. That trunk there is yours. I had Philomena pack it this morning."
   He frowned.
   "Speaking of which, you weren't at breakfast this morning. Anne said that she couldn't find you anywhere."

Crap.

"I went for a walk," she lied smoothly, with a perfectly innocent smile, "I apologise for not having told you."
   A moment passed and she feared for a split-second, but he was grinning once again.
   "Just tell me next time, yes?"
   She nodded and he leaned down to kiss her forehead.
   "The journey from York to Nottingham is tiring but I know your skill as a rider. Just be careful. I've heard stories of savage outlaws that dwell in Sherwood forest."
   Raising an eyebrow, she replied, unimpressed, "Outlaws? I think I'll be just fine. You need not worry, Father. I fear no man."

---

By midday, everyone was tired again.
   "Really? Do none of you have the stamina?" Robin chided, but Allan just scowled at him.
   "You don't have a right to say that!" he piped up, "You're sweating like the rest of us, you bastard!"
   "It's all that mead we had last night," John winced, clutching his side, "It's made us all go... go... Floppy!"
   "Floppy?"
   "Yes, floppy! When, y'know, all your limbs just won't cooperate with what your noggin is telling them."

Robin gave a resigned sigh and gestured for them all to sit.
   "Fine! Whatever! Everyone can rest for a moment. Much, go and find us a stream or something."
   The boy, who had dismounted John's shoulders a while back, nodded and ran off into the forest. All the Merry Men sighed and sat down, letting out huffs of relief.
   Allan looked across the circle at Friar Tuck, who had just sat down, and gave him a look.
   "Father, why are you tired? You don't even drink!"
   "Leave him alone," Robin interjected, just longing for some quiet, "If he's tired, he's tired."
   As he spoke, Will Scarlett passed by in his characteristic maroon shirt and usual stroppy mood. He didn't seem tired at all. In fact, he seemed more alert than anything, with one hand on the hilt of his sword.
   "Oi, Scarlett!" one of the men called, "Sit with the rest of us."
   Will just gave a harsh look over his shoulder and firmly stated, "I'm going to scout ahead," before disappearing into the trees.

Robin furrowed his brows at Will's sulk. Yes, he was a rather irritable person, but he seemed very on edge recently. What it was, Robin doubted he would ever know. Maybe it was something with his past. None of the men knew anything about who Will Scarlett really was and Robin didn't either. It was just something that nobody asked out of fear that Will might decapitate them with a single slice.
   Past or not, whatever it was, it was eating away at his friend and Robin was starting to miss the sarcastic comments and sardonic gags.

He was brought out of his train of thought by young-faced Allan's insistent picking at the strings off his lute and he sighed, resting his head against a thick tree trunk. He couldn't allow himself to fall asleep, but he listen to the birds, who flitted from tree to tree and sang sweet melodies.
   Robin grinned. He recognised the loud tune of a wren, then a small motif from a chaffinch, then a...
   Then it went silent, excluding the wind rustling the leaves of the tree. Robin reached for the dagger in his belt.

A man stumbled into the small circle the Merry Men had made as they sat and Robin was on his feet. It would've been instantaneous if not for the excessive amounts of alcohol from the previous night.
   He grabbed the man by the collar, but the man shrieked, "Robin! Robin, it's me! It's David!"

He stopped and processed this, then stepped back, putting the dagger away.
   "My apologies, David. We're all a bit mindless today," Robin explained, running a hand through his hair, "Too much to drink last night."
   "Yeah, I heard," David frowned, folding his arms, "You know I really appreciate how no one told me about that, because I love sitting in a rotting tavern for hours and hours to try and find information that may or may not even exist!"

Robin gulped and paused awkwardly.
   "So... Did you get any information?"
   David sighed and rolled his eyes.
   "Yes, yes, I did."
   "Let's hear it, then," John called out and was met with nods of agreement from the other men.

"I overheard something. Two men, who I presumed were off-duty officers for the Sheriff, were discussing the arrival of an important guest. Apparently, this guest will be taking the road from the north and will, at this rate, pass through Sherwood forest tomorrow. From what I heard, it sounds like they'll have security. You know, guards and stuff. We might have to put up a bit of a fight, but I'm sure that there's a treasure trove just waiting for us."

Robin looked at his men, whose eyes seemed to light up with delight.
   "Sounds like a goldmine to me, boys," he smirked and the Merry Men cheered, raising their fists into the air. Now, they just needed a plan...

A/N

This is my first Author's Note because I didn't know what to write for the others and was just more concerned with getting the story flowing. (I'm also not a big fan of A/N)

But anyway, I hope you're enjoying reading this and, as it is my first work on Wattpad, I would really appreciate a vote and comment!

Also, I just wanted to clear up: Will and Robin are not related in this. They are in a lot of legends, but not in this one.

And a question to the readers - what character are you mostly drawn to so far? This is interesting for me as an author to see.

But, yeah, I have a load more plot on the way and some totes epic fight scenes coming up. Stay tuned :)

- Patrick <3