Episode 6 is finally here! Hope you enjoy! Love those reviews *hint hint* ;)

Robin Hood

series 4, episode 6

Spark of Life

Swords clashed together loudly, occasionally swishing through the air and thumping against a shield. There was a pause as the two men faced each other, both breathing heavily as they waited for the other to move.

In the blink of an eye, the battle began again, one man charging forward with a fierce swing of his blade while the other raised his own sword to parry.

With a cry, the advancing man shoved his opponent's sword away with his shield and stopped his dull blade inches away from the fighter's throat.

The pair froze for a moment before the loser broke into a grin. "Well done, Much."

Much lowered his sword and tried to act humble, but the childish smile gave him away. "Thank you, Robin. Though, I must say I'm certainly glad we waited to practice until these swords were dull. You nearly killed me in that first match."

Robin clicked his tongue. "Killed you? The blade was miles away from you."

"It was so close I could feel the metal on my neck."

"That was a breeze." Archer, who was watching their mock fight, added.

Much opened his mouth to reply, but a whistle interrupted him. Both Robin and Much turned their heads to see Marian walk up to them.

"I fight the loser." She smiled at Robin with a teasing glint in her eye.

"I let him win, you know."

"Of course you did." She said offhandedly as she turned toward Much. "May I borrow that for a moment?"

Much handed the sword to her with a glare towards Robin, who just chuckled and shook his head. Marian tightened her grip on the sword and faced her husband.

"Hold on, Marian. I can't fight you." Robin raised his hands at his sides.

"And why not?"

"Because when I beat you, you'll be so bitter that you'll never want to give me another kiss again." He grinned cheekily.

Marian shook her head. "Fine. Then if you are too scared to fight me, how about you, Archer? I could use the practice."

Archer, always eager for action, grinned while Robin handed him his sword.

As Robin passed by Marian, he spoke in her ear. "If you do win…save your kiss for me." He smirked as she raised her hand to shoo him away, rolling her eyes.

Marian lifted her sword, wary and prepared, and in no hurry to make the first move. Archer stood in front of her, a lazy grin on his face as his sword stayed steadily in front of him.

Unexpectedly, Archer broke through the relaxed feeling, his blade crashing down on Marian's sword as she dodged aside, using the force of his weight to throw him off balance. He recovered instantly, whirling around and parrying a thrust she sent his way.

"Marian, his left! He's wide open!" Robin suggested.

Marian thrust her sword in a feint before ducking to the side and swinging the blade in a full arc, lightly grazing Archer's clothing.

"No fair! Robin, you could give advice to both sides!" Archer protested as he and Marian stood still, waiting for an opening to appear.

"What? She's my wife, I have to help her or I get in trouble!" Robin called out jokingly.

"Yeah, yeah, because brothers obviously don't mean anything to you." Archer lifted his blade again, holding it in a defensive position as Marian lifted her own once more.

Marian sidestepped and swung her sword, expecting the ring of metal that Archer's blade made when it collided with hers. While his focus was on the fight in front of him, Marian swung her foot out and caught him around his ankle, pulling him to the ground.

She straightened her arms, moving the sword down at an angle to point the blade at his throat, but he rolled aside, coming to his feet before she had before she had completely recovered and twisted his blade against hers. The sword slipped from her fingers, landing a few feet away in the grass. Marian, knowing she would be unable to get to it without being touched by Archer's sword, took a defensive position, weaponless.

"Hey, now! If we go hand to hand someone will get hurt!" Archer protested.

"I've got to side with Archer this time, Marian. You can't fight without weapons in practice because there's no way to punch someone and 'kill' them." Robin agreed.

Marian sighed, but dropped her shoulders in a sign of defeat. After this display, however, her foot flew through the air in a kick, landing precisely on the hilt of the sword in Archer's hand. The blade fell from his grip, but before she could pull away, his hand had grabbed her foot, twisted her around, and grasped her wrist. She attempted to pull away, but his hold was too tight, pulling her around so her arm was in a defenseless position across her chest.

"That wasn't very nice." Archer announced as he released his hold.

Marian laughed. "See, Robin? No one got hurt."

"Yeah, well, this time." Robin's face was serious, but she could hear in his voice an amusement that discredited his expression.

"I could give you a few pointers." Archer started. "Your technique depends on no one touching you, which I can understand. You're a woman and don't have the strength of a man, so you compensate by using your opponent's strength against him. Still, once someone has a hold of you, you're defenseless. You might try to work on your footwork a little more, and try to anticipate your opponent's next move before you make your own."

Although Marian frowned at being called weaker, she readily took any advice that was given. She continued battling with Archer for a while more before Robin suggested that she fight Much to see their different fighting styles.

Marian took Much down after three swings, reason being he just hid behind his shield because he didn't want to hurt her.

She groaned as she helped Much up off the ground. "Come on, Much! Fight me! You won't harm me."

Much licked his lips as he looked nervously over to Robin, who jerked his head in Marian's direction, encouraging him.

Much looked back at Marian, shifting his shield to ready himself. He muttered an apology as he swung his sword toward her, cringing.

She easily blocked it and threw in her own series of attacks, applying Archer's suggestions.

Seeing that he was about to lounge with his sword to her left, Marian stepped to the right and brought her blade across his, swinging it in a tight circle before twisting it out of his hand and disarming him.

For show, Marian held the tip of her blade to his chest for a moment before lowering it again. "Now," she turned to look at Robin, tilting her head. "It's your turn."

Robin looked at her for a moment, taking in her flushed cheeks and shining eyes. He smiled and pushed off of the tree he was leaning against, moving forward to take Much's sword and face her.

Marian braced herself, tensing her muscles and regripping her sword. She was determined not to be distracted by his cocky grin or by the long hair that swept across his forehead and almost fell into his vivid blue eyes.

He suddenly swung his sword as she quickly brought hers up to parry, creating an X. They stared at each other through the crossed blades, Marian testing him to see what he would do.

Robin smirked and extended his arm, forcing their swords to point to the ground. Marian pushed away his blade and they both pulled back, going into a defensive position.

Marian made the next move, driving Robin back a few steps before he, in turn, forced her to retreat. She dodged his next attack, planning to accomplish what she had with Much, but Robin had been watching too closely. He blocked her and moved around, forcing her to circle to keep facing him.

She was about to advance again when Tuck, John, and Will came into view, having returned from a short trip to Nottingham to gather a few things for Djaq's medicine supply.

"Time to sharpen the swords again, I see?" Will said, knowing that they only practiced with real swords instead of sticks when the blades were dull.

"How is Kate doing?" Tuck asked.

"About the same. Coughing and slightly warm. She got sick again before I left camp." Marian said, sympathy in her voice.

"I'd better get these to Djaq then." Tuck switched the small bag of herbs to the other hand as he started toward the hidden camp.

"We better get back, too. I'm getting hungry." said Much, watching John and Will follow after Tuck.

"Yes." Marian said. "Just one thing first."

She brought her sword up from her side and swung it towards her husband, hoping to catch him off guard. Robin, his honed reflexes from the Crusades surfacing, flashed his sword up against hers, creating another X.

Marian scowled at him, but before she could drop back, Robin grabbed her wrist and pulled her close, their blades still crossed between them.

He smiled. "A draw?" At her nod, he leaned between the two swords and kissed her.

"Alright, alright. If you keep this up, Kate won't be the only one who's sick." Archer said, making Marian turn her gaze to the ground and bite her lip to keep from smiling.

Robin laughed softly as he released of Marian's wrist and dropped his sword to his side. He turned and began walking the same path towards camp where Will, John, and Tuck had gone. "So what are we having today, Much?"

"Oh, you know, something simple. Don't want make Kate sick again." Much walked forward with his hand resting on the hilt of his sword, squinting up at the sky as he tried to decide. "Soup would be good, I think. But what kind…" He continued this monologue as he followed Tuck, who led the group. John and Will were whispering their own conversation while Robin and Marian strolled behind, loosely holding each others' hand and only half listening to Much's rambles.

Kate's barking cough was heard before they saw the camp. Entering the door, they saw her lean over the side of her bunk until her coughing fit ended. She eased herself back into a reclined position with a miserable expression on her face. When she spotted the rest of the gang, she gave them a half smile.

"Pretty pathetic, aren't I?" Her voice was rough. Djaq gave a sympathetic smile before going over to Tuck to accept what he had brought her.

"Thank you," she murmured as the dark man handed her the supplies and seated himself next to John.

Djaq started to organize the medicines, but as she passed by Will, he cleared his throat and looked at her. She smiled at him.

"Thank you, too, Will." She leaned up and gave him a quick kiss. He kept the slight smile on his face as he sat down beside Archer, grabbing one of the swords to sharpen.

Djaq turned to see John watching her. She gave him a teasing look. "Would you like a kiss, too?"

"I'd like one." Archer raised his hand. Will quickly smacked his arm before returning to his work.

"Hey, I was only joking!" Archer rubbed his shoulder and Will tried to smother a grin.

Marian sidestepped the their antics and sat down beside Kate. "How are you feeling?"

"How would you feel after coughing and throwing up all day?"

"Not very good."

"There's your answer then." She managed a small smile before closing her eyes. Marian rubbed Kate's arm sympathetically before moving over to the other side of the camp to give her some peace.

Tuck assisted Djaq with concocting something to help Kate's symptoms as Much cooked in his kitchen, moving with the rhythm of Will and Robin sharpening blades. Archer supplied conversation, gaining comments from everybody.

It wasn't long before Much declared the soup to be ready. He dished some out for the whole gang and handed it around, but when a bowl passed under Kate's nose, she pushed it away, clamping a shaky hand to her mouth. Unable to run out in time, she turned to the conveniently placed bucket beside her bed.

A few minutes later, Kate lay back in her bunk, her face pale. After some coaxing, Djaq was able to get her to swallow some of her remedy and keep it down. Kate closed her eyes, relishing in the feel of the cool cloth that had been gently placed on her forehead.

"I don't think you picked the right soup, Much." Robin said as Kate quickly fell into an exhausted sleep. Much shot him a look.

Careful to move far enough away so Kate wouldn't smell it, the rest of the gang all turned to their own supper, except for Much, who, after Kate's reaction to the food, had quietly pushed aside his own bowl with a hard swallow.

Marian noticed his subtle movement and, realizing that his unending appetite was gone, hid her smile behind her spoon. But as she took a sip, her smile vanished.

Her stomach started to churn. She lowered the bowl and tried to breathe normally but the soup suddenly smelled awful, causing her to raise her hand to cover her nose and mouth in an attempt to block the scent.

Glancing around, Marian saw everyone else casually eating their supper, even Much gaining back his hunger and grabbing a spoon. The sight only enhanced the smell.

Marian jumped up, her stomach turning. She dropped her bowl and rushed out of the camp, hand still over her mouth.

"Marian?" Robin jerked his head up, surprised at her hasty exit. With concern showing in his expression, he stood and followed after her, leaving the rest of the gang in bewilderment.

"What did you do to the soup, Much!" Will asked, teasing despite his worry for Marian.

"Nothing!"

Much's defense faded away as Robin approached Marian, who was bent over with one hand leaning against a tree and her other arm curled around her stomach as it heaved and rejected the little amount of food she had eaten.

"Are you alright, Marian?" Robin questioned gently as she straightened, pulling her hair away from her face.

Marian wiped the corners of her mouth. "I am now."

Robin gathered her into his arms and moved to kiss her, but she turned away. "Don't... I just threw up, Robin."

He laughed softly and settled for kissing her hair. "Are you sure you'll be alright?"

"Yes, I'm sure. Don't worry about me, Robin, I'm fine."

He smiled softly at her, brushing her hair back from her face before taking her hand and leading her back to camp.