This is my input for MiraandAllan's fairytale challenge.
Once upon a time in a far away country lived a Sacaren princess called Saffiya. Saffiya was a beautiful petite woman with long black curls and large dark eyes, so beautiful that many men asked for her hand in marriage. However Saffiya's father had other ideas, the Holy War as dragged on, and sooner or later he'll have to surrender, so instead he chose to give Saffiya to the English prince as a truce.
"I do not wish to go" she whispered to her brother Djaq when he escorted her onto the ship that was taking her to her prison.
"Saffy, you have to do this. It's a duty to your country" Djaq said softly
Saffiya nodded and gave her brother a brief hug before boarding the ship.
Prince John was not amused. The marriage between him and the Sacaren Princess meant his brother will come home and he (John) will no longer rule England. It was bad enough Robert, Robin whatever his name was, was interfering with his dealings in Nottingham but now he's brother is coming home…..
John knew that if his bride died suddenly…. If she was murdered….. Her father would cause another war and his brother will have to go back leaving him as the rightful ruler.
Saffiya hated it in England, not only was she striped from her culture's clothes but she was not allowed to study medicine and science like her father allowed her to. She was forced to learn sewing and being an English lady. She had begged for medical texts but her future groom just tutted.
"Now, now Saffy a proper lady does not study medicine, she looks after the husband and bears heirs" he would say in a patronising tone.
She hated the fact he called her Saffy, only her brother and father called her that. She couldn't remember her mother, her mother died when she was born; nothing her father could do saved her mother.
Another thing she hated was the corsets on these English dresses; she swears her maid puts them on too tight. Little did Saffiya know Prince John had paid the maid to tie the corsets too tight in hope the woman would die of lack of oxygen. She almost did once, fainted in the dining chamber, her lips turning blue with the lack of oxygen.
But a Lord had cut the corset and saved her. So that plan went out of the window.
Prince John then came up with another idea, he gave her a gift of a beautiful comb, and it had large gold roses on the top and would look outstanding in her hair. However the beautiful comb's grips were laced with a deadly poison and slowly it soaked into her scalp. She almost died if it wasn't for that dratted doctor.
At that point in time, Saffiya knew what the Prince was doing and decided she had enough. She would run away to Nottingham to find this 'blasted Robert, Robin whatever his name is Hood' Prince John kept going on about and ask him to help her. But to travel unnoticed meant she had to find a disguise.
With the help of the stable boy Saffiya ran away disguised as a boy. Her long black curls chopped off, she wore simple breeches and a shirt. She hitched a various rides until she ended up in Locksley. From there she went to the forest to start her search for Robin Hood.
She wandered around aimlessly for hours until she was suddenly thrown in the air and was hanging upside down. She sighed, great, just great. She thought.
Suddenly she was surrounded by five men and a woman. One was a large man with a beard, one was a man of mid-height with blonde hair and bright blue eyes, another man had longish blonde hair that was under a cap, another man had light brown hair and twinkling eyes and the final man….. Well he was handsome, he had dark brown hair, soul shattering eyes and he held his ground wonderfully.
"We give you a choice" the woman said "either you give us your money for the poor or we will leave you here"
"Please" Saffiya said "I am here to beg the help of Robin Hood. Prince John is trying to kill me"
"Who are you?" the man with light brown hair asked
Saffiya couldn't tell them her real name, they might accidentally tell one of Prince John's spies.
"Djaq, I was sent to make a truce with England, King Richard was supposed to meet me, but Prince John has been attempting to kill me" Saffiya said "I need your help"
"I heard that the King was supposed to come back soon" the large man grumbled
The light brown haired man nodded "if I let you go. Would you join us and help us look after the poor"
"Yes – I am very good with medicine I can help you" Saffiya said happily
"Very well Djaq, my name is Robin" the light brown haired man shook her hand and helped her down from her trap. "The lady is my fiancée Marian, the giant man is John Little, this is Allan A Dale" robin said pointing the blonde man that didn't wear a cap "this is Much" the blonde man with the cap "and finally but not last Will Scarlet"
Djaq shook each one's hand and gave them a small smile; she could not help but blush when Will shook hers.
"we'll show you to the camp then, a genius idea of Will's"
She watched Will turn a faint pink, the silent man grinned at Robin "John and Allan helped" he muttered
The weeks went past and Djaq assisted the outlaws to stop the sheriff and Gisbourne from doing many things that would hurt either the king or the poor. Each moment she spent with Will she fell for him even more, and she enjoyed every second of her new life as Djaq the Sacaren boy. What she didn't know was that the Sheriff had written to Prince john telling him about her. Prince John has told the Sheriff to kill her.
Saffiya was bathing in the stream, she rarely bathed these days, and she didn't want the outlaws to find out that she was not a boy, who knows what they might do. She was drying herself when she heard a gasp. She looked up to see Will staring at her.
She immediately threw her shirt on; Will was still standing there staring at her.
"please don't tell the others" she whispered
"Djaq, why didn't you tell us you were a woman?"
She shrugged
"Djaq we wouldn't have thought of anything different, whether you were a man or a woman"
She stared at her feet
"where you really here to make a treaty?" Will asked curiously
"no I was the treaty, my father and King Richard would stop the war if I married Prince John"
Will gently caressed her cheek and forced her to look into his eyes "who are a brave woman and I am honoured to work beside you. Don't worry your secret is safe with me" he then walked away not looking at her at all.
Damn Saffiya thought, pressing a hand against her chest, her heart was still beating fast.
"sister" Vaysey said nodding at the blonde woman
"brother" Davina said "long times no see"
"ah, Davina tell me how was your travels. Last I heard you were studying under an alchemist"
Davina smiled "yes I've been learning about interesting poisons… ones that work like a fairy tale"
"do tell sister dear, do tell"
Davina leaned forward "have you ever heard the tale of Snow White?"
Saffiya sat beside Will enjoying his presence, he rarely spoke to her but he would sit beside her during peaceful moments like this, carving bits of wood into something useful or creative. Much was cleaning their camp, Allan was drinking ale, John was in bed snoring loudly and Robin and Marian have taken a walk to 'gather some honey'.
There was a crunching sound and the four jumped.
"robin? Marian?" Much whispered
There was no answer until a woman appeared. She was old and hunched over and walked slowly. Much jumped up and helped the woman to a seat by the fire.
"are you all right ma'am" Much asked
"oh yes dear" the old lady croaked "I come bearing gifts to the Sacaren, I have looked into the future with my inner eye and the young Sacaren was doomed unless he takes the bite of this lucky apple"
The woman held out a shiny red apple to Saffiya. Saffiya hesitated before accepting it.
"I advise you to eat it tomorrow" the woman said "goodnight dearies" she began to cackle as she threw something that formed a dark green gas.
Will grabbed hold of Saffiya and covered her mouth and nose, protecting her. When the gas cleared up the old woman disappeared.
They very next day Saffiya woke up to find the shiny red apple beside her; she picked it up and headed to the stream where she washed. She began to take a huge bite out of it when she reached the stream; she began to chew it slowly before swallowing. By the time she got to the bank of the stream the lights were beginning to swirl before her eyes…… SPALSH!
Saffiya fainted into the stream.
Will heard the loud splashing sound and ran off towards the stream, Allan and John shortly behind him.
"DJAQ!" Will shouted when he saw her lying face first in the stream, the apple bobbing up and down in the stream. Will rushed to her side and held her in his arms "wake up Djaq, wake up" he begged
"Is he…?" Allan asked in a hushed voice
Will checked her pulse and found nothing, he grimly shook his head. John moved forward and took Saffiya out of Will's grasp.
"Let me carry the lad back to camp" he said solemnly
Three days Saffiya's body laid on a large stone, no daring to touch it. Will was making a coffin, didn't want to bury her without something to lay on, with a help of a blacksmith he made a glass coffin lined with linen.
He moved her into the coffin and grazed his fingers on her cheek
"Not being funny" Allan said "but is Will molesting a dead body of a guy?"
"Shh!" Much hissed "Will cared for Djaq, they were best mates"
"We were more than best mates" Will whispered "I fell in love with her"
"…."
"HER!?" Allan shouted looking like he was going to faint "to think I striped in front of her"
"No wonder he closed his eyes" John muttered "he was a she"
Will ignored the mutterings of his friends as he leaned down and gently pecked Saffiya's lips.
And to everyone's shock she opened her eyes. She stared intently at Will before smiling "hello" she whispered
Will smiled "hello" he whispered back