This is the LONGEST chapter/oneshot/whatever I have ever written. It took me like, seven hours to write.
XxX
Meg hated men. It wouldn't be so bad if her stupid father would stop finding suitors for her. She'd even bribed one of them to leave (he did). After that, her father had taken her to Nottingham for a trial. She'd been surprised to see a woman acting as Sheriff rather than Vaisey.
The woman's name had been Isabella. Isabella had freed Meg and sent her father away. Meg had been happy about this, but then her happiness had been shattered.
Isabella's stupid, ruthless husband had come. In an attempt to save Isabella, Meg had given up the location of a hoard of gold. She didn't think it helped much. All it did was send her to the dungeons.
In her time in the dungeons, she'd met Guy of Gisbourne. A man. Surprisingly, after feeling sorry for himself, he'd helped her. She'd felt herself fall into his trap.
When Isabella had come back and freed her, she knew that she could free him. Free him and they could run away. Run away and live in a nice little cottage, maybe by the sea. Yes, the sea would be nice. They could live by the sea and raise a family.
That's what she was going to do now. She was going to watch where Isabella set the keys and go free Guy.
Isabella finally set down the keys. Meg inched her hand toward the keys and grabbed them as Isabella turned away.
Meg walked calmly out of the room, then ran the entire way to the dungeons. Once she saw Guy, she squealed with joy and raced over, first unlocking the door, then Guy's shackles.
They were about to embrace, but Isabella's voice interrupted them. She was apparently angry that Meg had freed her brother. Well, of course she was angry.
She was so angry, in fact, that both Meg and Guy were going to die. Tomorrow.
Meg saw silent tears run down Guy's face. This caused her to be sad, and, as a result, she began to sob.
Isabella had locked them in the same cell. In her anger, she'd forgotten to put them in shackles. Meg immediately jumped up and began to hit the bars, trying to get out in vain. Guy was absolutely no help with this, as he was back to his 'I'm going to die, no hope left, I don't care' state.
"It's no use." Guy's (currently) motionless voice said. He was gazing at the ceiling, staring at it as if he was trying to find something.
Meg's vision blurred with tears once more. "This is it, then." Guy nodded, his eyes still on the ceiling. "This is where we die."
"Remember happy times. A friend once told me something his Saracen friend told him about." Guy paused. "He said he called it 'Kalila and Dimna Night.' He said she had only told him about it." He paused again.
"Well, what is it?" Meg asked, unable to stand the silence.
Guy smirked. "He said that it was a night you remember all your life. You don't keep anything a secret. You ask all your questions and share all your dreams."
"That sounds fun." Meg said. "Or, it would be fun if I had something to share."
"I'll talk then." Guy suddenly sat up. There was more enthusiasm in his voice now than she'd ever heard before.
"I've always wondered how you felt about Allan A'Dale."Meg said, looking at Guy, trying to figure out what he was going to say.
Guy sighed. "Allan…." He said. Meg could see him start to think. "Allan is an….interesting person."
"I thought he made the Council of Nobles less boring. " Meg said.
Guy laughed, a rich, full sound that Meg could tell was rarely used. "He did do that, didn't he? Brought in a peasant's view things."
"It was interesting!" Meg protested. Guy laughed again. "I have a question, though. Were him and Lady Marian…more than friends?"
Guy looked started. "No, I don't think so….why do you ask?"
"It just seemed that way. They seemed so….at ease with each other."
"They did?" Guy asked.
"I did only see them one day a week, of course." Meg added.
"I'm pretty sure they weren't more than friends. Positive, actually."
Meg nodded. "Okay. Tell me about Lady Mari, then."
Guy didn't look like he wanted to talk about this, but he began anyway. "I had always found Marian beautiful. Always. I was foolish, though. I assumed…..I assumed she was like most women." Guy's voice faltered. "Weak and unable to do anything."
"Women aren't like that!" Meg said angrily. This is why she hated men. They thought women were good for nothing more than….than producing children!
"I thought so back then. Like I said, I was foolish. A better way to explain it would be that I thought she was simply a pretty face and nothing more." Guy paused. "I was completely wrong. Not only was she brilliant, but she was also the Nightwatchman."
"She was?" Meg said, shocked. She, like many nobles, assumed that the Nightwatchman had been a man. "
Guy nodded. "I killed her twice. Once without knowing it."
Guy shrugged. "After I found out she was the Nightwatchman, I was ready to hang her. Allan persuaded me not to (maybe he had feelings for her, but if he did, he never acted on them), and he pretended to be the Nightwatchman to distract the guards and the old Sheriff-"
"Isabella's actually the new Sheriff? I thought she was a temporary one."
"She's permanent. Anyway, afterwards Allan had told me I had temporarily killed her once, but the Saracen in Hood's gang had saved her life." Guy finished.
"Now tell me about Isabella." Meg said, thoroughly enjoying herself.
Guy made a face at the name. "Isabella his my sister and I hate her. That's it."
Meg was disappointed he didn't say more. She thought for a bit, then settled on another person. "Robin Hood."
"You want to know about Robin Hood? Robin Hood is a thief, a liar, an outlaw. He stole the woman I love and I will never forgive him. Never." Guy's eyes had taken on a mad glare. "I will always hate him."
Meg was scared by this outburst. She slowly inched away from Guy. "What…what about the old Sheriff? Vaisey?"
Guy thought a while. "I didn't like him."
"Well, nobody did!" Meg said. What she said was true. Nobody had liked the former Sheriff of Nottingham. "To be honest, everybody I ever talked to preferred Edward."
Guy nodded slowly. He seemed to be thinking again. "The only person that liked Vaisey was probably his sister.
"His sister?" Meg asked, shocked. "It seems like all you evil men have stupid, annoying, ignorant sisters."
Guy laughed. "Yeah. All except Allan. He had a brother."
"Well, he's not really evil, is he? Just….misinformed." Meg protested. Guy laughed once again.
"It actually was the same day Allan was….er….was 'misinformed' that Vaisey's sister was killed." Guy paused, probably for dramatic effect. "We had caught Hood. I hit him with his bow a couple of times-"
"What?" Meg said, startled.
Guy rolled his eyes and continued. Meg looked at Guy, getting lost in his light blue eyes, letting his voice wash over her.
"Are you listening to me?" Meg jumped. Guy looked rather upset. "I was telling you about torturing Allan!"
"What?" Meg jumped up. Guy smiled sheepishly.
"Never mind." He muttered. "Let's get some sleep before the execution."
"What execution?" Meg said, temporarily forgetting, eyes wide. Guy just looked at her with those deep, sad blue eyes and turned away.
"Meg." A voice whispered. "Meg, get up. It's time."
Meg blinked sleep from her eyes, only to replace it with tears as she remembered what was going to happen today.
She was going to die.
He was going to die.
She was going to die.
They both were going to die.
Today.
They were going to die today. The tears spilled over and Meg began to sob. Guy seemed completely confused on what to do.
"Um….are you okay?" Guy asked awkwardly. Meg shook her head, crying harder and the volume only increased when the jailer, a couple of guards, and Isabella herself came down to the dungeons.
Isabella laughed in her high, cold voice. "Trying to comfort the girl?" she asked, smirking. "Jailer, what was their punishment again?"
"They're to be beheaded." The jailer said in a gruff, low voice. Meg's sobs grew louder.
"Oh, yes." Isabella said. "Only the bloodiest death for my dear brother and his-"
Guy, apparently sensing what she was going to say, lunged forward. "Don't talk about her like that!" he practically growled.
"Now, now my brother. Wouldn't want me to change my mind something more….painful." Isabella lingered on the last word.
"You do realize you're acting more like Vaisey every day, right?" Guy muttered, just loud enough for Meg to hear.
"Bind their hands behind their back." Isabella ordered. The guard unlocked the cage and the smaller, bored looking one tied Meg's hands while the bigger, excited-looking one bound Guy's.
Meg and Guy were led-no, pushed to the castle courtyard. A decent sized crowd of peasants were gathered, all yelling why they were going to enjoy this execution so much because Guy of Gisbourne was being executed! Nobody seemed to notice the dark-haired girl behind him, except maybe a black-haired young woman with blue eyes that smiled at her sadly.
Guy began to beg the guards and executioners to spare Meg. Meg felt fresh tears swell up in her eyes as she kneeled in front of the block of wood she was going to lay her neck on. She noticed there was a basket in front of the block of wood. It would catch her head as if it were a pumpkin.
The bored guard pushed her head down. The tears spilled over. Her neck was on the block. She couldn't see. They brushed her hair out of the way. Her face was soaked with tears. She closed her eyes, waiting for the blade to cut through her skin, slice through her throat….but it never came.
She opened her eyes and saw an arrow embedded in an axe that had landed dangerously close to Guy's head.
Guy helped her down from the platform as Robin Hood's gang battled the guards. Guy turned around and Meg saw a guard driving a blade toward his back. "Guy!" she yelled as she stepped in the way.
The blade pierced her stomach and she let out a cry of pain. It left as quickly as it had entered, leaving her to clutch her stomach and stagger backward.
This was pain. The pain of the shackles on her wrists was nothing compared to this. She'd gladly be thrown in the dungeons thousands of times if only she could escape this agony.
She felt Guy pick her u and race away. It was oddly comforting, him holding her.
Once they got a good distance into the forest, Guy sat down. Meg saw tears run down his face.
Meg supposed this was the time for an inspiring speech or something. "I remember…you….the man in leather on his horse…" she took a ragged breath.
"Meg, save your energy." Guy begged.
But Meg knew she had to tell him how she felt. "I always…always rather liked you."
And then she died.