Nobody Left

Will watched the sun go down, and as the last light died, his father's face began to fade. He'd see it again tomorrow and the day after, as he had every day since his father's death. But one day, an errant wind or even a careless traveler would knock over the stones and that would be the end of Will's small tribute.

He sighed and felt sadness creep from his heart and settle into his bones, just the way it had when his mother had died. He closed his eyes and tried to picture his parents, but his mother was only a wisp of memory and soon, his father would be the same.

The sound of leaves rustling under a booted foot drew Will out, but he didn't turn around. Luke dropped down next to him and for a long while, they sat in silence and tried to take measure of their grief.

"I never noticed before." Luke's voice cut through the silence. "You look just like Da."

Will pondered this. "Do I? Never thought about it before." He scratched his chin and gave his brother a long look. "I guess you do too. A bit."

"That's good, right? If we want to remember him, we'll just need a looking glass."

"Yeah. Don't have one here. But I'm sure you have a mirror in Scarborough."

Will heard the sharp intake of breath from Luke long before he heard the words his brother spoke.

"Scarborough? No, Will, I'm not going. I'm going to stay here. With you and Robin. I'm-"

"No, you're not. You're going...home."

Luke crossed his arms and glared, an expression Will was certain he'd seen on a much younger face not a year before. "It's not your choice. I'm staying. You can't stop me."

"Yes, I can." Will wished he had a weapon handy. He'd never hurt Luke, but sometimes the threat was enough to get his little brother in line. He balled a fist instead, making sure Luke saw the action.

Luke backed away a little, but his expression remained defiant. "Are you really going to fight me now?"

Will shrugged. "If I have to. I can't let you stay."

"You don't have to protect me. That was Da's job, not yours."

Will recoiled as if he'd been slapped. Was that the impulse that had led him to send Luke back? That he needed to be both brother and father now? He ran tired hands through his hair and tried to reason with Luke.

"Listen, will you? Life here is...hard. It's dangerous. There's always someone after us. We never get a good night's rest, we're always hungry."

"So? If you can do it, I can. I've been hungry before, remember?"

To this, Will didn't have a handy reply. The outlaw life was difficult, but it was no worse than the life he and Luke had led before. In some ways, life in Sherwood Forest was better, and Robin gave his men a bit of power, a chance to be free men. It would be wrong to deny Luke the experience. And yet, and yet...

Will decided to change tack, a final attempt to sway Luke. "You're right. I don't want you to stay, but I can't tell you not to. I'll speak to Robin." He stood up and dusted the mud off his legs. "But I need you to know something.

"If we die, and I promise you that day is coming, there'll be nobody left. Nobody left to remember Mum. Nobody left who looks like Da." He turned and walked off towards the camp, letting Luke absorb the blow.

If anyone was surprised when Luke set off for Scarborough the next morning, they chose not to tell Will about it.

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