AN: This was written for the saythewordsthen ficathon over at LJ, and the prompts were pictures from the series. Good fun. This turned out much longer than I had anticipated, but it apparently wanted to be written! :)

Someday, Somewhere

"Hello," he said as she approached, his voice cheerful. Marian looked up at him, perched on a branch some feet above her head. She put her hands on her hips.

"Alright, what is it? What did you want?" A smile was trying to work its way onto her face, but she pushed it back. She should be in the castle right now, but instead here she was, walking through the dark forest - by herself - to meet Robin.

He hopped down from the branch, landing nimbly on the balls of his feet. That cheeky smile on his face made Marian want to grab him and kiss him…or slap it off his face. She hadn't decided yet.

"Robin? What did you want?" He stopped in front of her and the smile changed into something different. Something more tender and far less cocky.

"Ready to come into the forest with me?" he asked. She rolled her eyes.

"I've told you a thousand times. I can't." His smile hadn't vanished, and she wondered what he had up his sleeve. "What did you really want?"

"I wanted…to know…" He got much closer, but Marian refused to give an inch. She could almost feel his breath on her cheeks. "if you, my lady…would marry me."

Her jaw dropped. "What?"

"Marry me, Marian. I can think of nothing I want more." His hand went to her cheek, just his fingertips brushing her jaw and yet she felt herself blush.

"That's the stupidest thing I have ever heard." Her voice trembled a little and betrayed her, and she knew he knew. His answering smile confirmed that belief, and she turned her face away from him.

"No, it's by far the smartest. Smartest idea in the world, I think." His green eyes looked impossibly dark in the inky night. She took a deep breath, inhaling the crisp fall air and the smell of wood and dirt and grass. And Robin. "Marry me, Marian. My love. Marry me."

"Robin, stop it."

"No, Marian, listen to me." His voice was so hopeful.

"No, Robin. Listen to me for once." She stepped back, hands clenched at her sides, jaw determined. "Someday, maybe. Someday, if we make it there. But right now, love isn't…enough." She nearly choked on that last word and had to look away. "We have a duty. There are things we have to risk before we can risk everything on each other."

Robin was stunned speechless for a moment. "You…you're saying no, then." His face closed off, and Marian cringed inwardly. She could see the anger at her rejection bubbling beneath the surface, but with a resigned sigh she realized that there was nothing she could do about that.

She couldn't be here right now. The night was quiet around them, the occasional bird sounding a short call in the darkness, small things rustling in the bushes. She couldn't be here right now. She had to get back to the castle. Anywhere but here. Anywhere but across from Robin and his boiling silence.

"Robin," her voice was soft as she turned to him and raised her hand to his cheek. "I didn't – "

"No, don't worry about it." He brushed her hand aside and stood, not looking her in the eye. "You're right. There are more important things to focus our energy on." Marian almost flinched at the mildly veiled insult. She swallowed and stiffly turning to head back the way she had come.

"Right." She had to swallow again. "Right." They were very still and silent then, standing not three feet from each other and staring in opposite directions. "I have to get back."

Making a grunt of agreement, Robin picked up his bow and quiver and slung them over his shoulder. She'd seen him do that a thousand times since his return, but somehow it was heartbreakingly beautiful this time. She looked away again.

"Me too," he said after a moment. "To the camp. Much will be wondering where I've gone." His voice was flat.

"I'll…see you," she said carefully, and looked at him. He was pale in the moonlight, his hair flopped forward over his face. She swallowed again.

He glanced at her. "Goodbye, Marian."

"Goodbye," she replied in a whisper, wondering why it sounded like he was saying goodbye for good, and not just until they saw each other again. She watched him until he disappeared like magic into the dappled moonlight of the forest.

--

Marian spent the afternoon, some five days later, grooming her horse in the stable. She had escaped Guy and the Sheriff for the afternoon and gone to the quiet peace of the barn, just her and her horse. The repetitive movement of brush stroking hair lulled her into a sort of semi-awareness.

So she didn't notice it when the first servant ran by.

The second one did catch her attention, but he was gone to fast for her to ask what was going on. Two more ran past, but she stopped them. "What's going on? Why is everyone running?"

"Robin Hood," one of them gasped. "He's been caught in the castle!"

The bottom dropped out of Marian's stomach. Robin. Caught. The words swam through her mind quite sluggishly, and she barely noticed when the servants ran off again, joining the crowd that was gathering in the courtyard.

Marian hiked up her skirts and ran.

He was standing between to armed men, heavily guarded men, his hands tied tightly behind his back. His expression was blasé, his body relaxed. It was as if it was just another day with him, but he just happened to be caught by the castle guards.

For a moment, she couldn't swallow. Seeing Robin bound like this was just wrong. It went against every single fiber of her being, and it took all of her will power not to scream and launch a rescue right then at that moment, lack of weaponry be damned.

The Sheriff was grinning and clasping his hands together, staring at Robin with a sickeningly excited gleam in his eyes. Guy was right behind him, his ever-present shadow. Marian felt pain throb in her veins. How could Guy let this happen? Even if he hated Robin, surely death was too strong a punishment?

But the Sheriff had already ordered an impromptu scaffold to be set up, and it was almost ready. Just about the entire village of Nottingham had gathered around, almost all of them yelling in outrage, protesting their hero's capture and assured death.

She couldn't breathe. Adrenaline pumped through her veins and yet she couldn't breathe, couldn't move an inch.

"Robin Hood!" boomed the Sheriff. "Finally, you slip up and fall right into my hands. An unlucky day for you, boy, because it happens to be your last." His glee was evident from quite a ways away, and Marian felt as though she might be sick.

She started to walk through the crowd, staring at Robin, her body numb with shock. Was this it? Was Robin of Locksley going to die today?

He was looking at the crowd, watching the people he had tried so hard to save. He looked too calm, too relaxed. She froze when his eyes found hers, and he stiffened a little, his relaxed look changing into something more pained, more determined.

"Marian!" The whisper came from right beside her and she jumped. Peering at the man under a large hood, she saw that it was Much.

"Much! What are you doing? Why aren't you saving him?" Suddenly the adrenaline did kick in, and Marian was nearly trembling with the desire to do something. Anything.

"We have a plan!" said Much with quite a bit of indignation.

"Well, it's not coming soon enough." With gritted teeth, Marian reached under her skirts and grabbed the knife always hidden in her boot. She started to push forward through the crowd, with Much calling after her.

"Stop!" he was saying, though she could barely hear him over the dull roar of the crowd. "Just stop! We have a plan! Don't get in the way of it!"

Finally much closer, Marian raised her arm to throw the knife at the guards, hoping that Robin would realize to take advantage of the time that brought him. She saw everything very clearly for a moment. Robin was staring at her with odd horror in his eyes, Much was yelling her name behind her, and one of the guards had begun to realize what was about to happen. She had to do it now.

"NO!" Something slammed into her from behind, and she lost her grip on the knife in her surprise. It clattered on the cobblestones, and someone screamed. She hit the ground hard, the air knocked out of her, and started coughing wildly. She couldn't even hear herself cough, however, over the sudden noise of the crowd boiling in panic.

"My lady, I'm sorry," Much said into her ear, scrambling up instantly. "I…uh – "

"You idiot!" she yelled. "How could you stop be from trying to save Robin?" They had to scream just to be heard – the gathered crowd had turned into an angry mob, roiling and turning in on itself. People were screaming, fighting, charging the guards. Before Much could reply, she turned to run towards the guards again.

"Because of this," she heard Much yell.

But, at that very moment, one of the guards took his long spear and whirled it around to knock the other guard out cold. The Sheriff was screaming something, but before Guy could react, the rebellious guard – whom Marian could now see was Little John – cut Robin's bonds and the two of them ran for it.

"Sorry," Much said as he bolted past her, and Marian could now see Will and Djaq in the crowd as well. They were sprinting through the mass of people towards a tiny exit off to the side of the courtyard.

She stood stock still, and couldn't help but feel rather ashamed of herself. "Oh," she whispered as the gang disappeared from sight, the guards rushing after them.

"GET HIM!" screamed the Sheriff, completely red in the face. Guy ran with another group of guards toward the main entrance, hoping to cut them off.

Marian knew they wouldn't get there in time.

--

Early the next morning, Marian was on the warpath. By now she knew how to get to the camp without anyone from the gang noticing she was coming. So she took them completely by surprise when she stormed into the camp during what was apparently their naptime.

"Robin of Locksley!" She yelled. The outlaws sprang to their feet at the loud and unexpected noise, but relaxed when they saw it was Marian. And then tensed again when they saw her face.

The only figure who hadn't leapt to their feet was, of course, Robin.

"Robin, that was an unbelievably stupid thing to do," she fumed. Stopping by his bunk, she paced a little, too angry to stay still. "I heard the accounts of your capture, you know, and at first I thought that you did it on purpose. But then I thought that you weren't stat stupid; that you would never endanger your gang in an idiotic pursuit of…whatever it was you were pursuing." She stopped to take a breath, trembling a little. Robin lay still, hands folded on his stomach, staring at the roof of the camp.

"What if I wanted to do something stupid?" He asked lightly.

"Then I was right in thinking that you were an idiot," she snapped. "No, beyond an idiot! A moron. A person completely lacking in a brain at all." He chuckled at that one, but continued to stare at the roof.

"Why did you do it?" She demanded. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the other outlaws slink off into the forest, giving them some privacy. She gritted her teeth.

He didn't answer for a long time. The sun was low in the sky, the air between the trees glowing a cool yellow. She watched his face – stony and quiet – and felt her heart thud in her chest.

"It was irrational." She heard the concession in his quiet words and softened a little. Apologizing was very difficult for Robin, so when he lapsed back into silence again, she softened again and sat on the edge of his bunk, facing away.

"Was it…because of what I said? The other day?" He was a few inches away from her and yet the distance felt as large as it had when he had left.

He breathed a sigh. "Yes. A little." A pause. "It was stupid, and I regret it. I went into the castle looking for a fight, and I was too reckless." She heard him swallow and looked at his over her shoulder. "I…hadn't though you'd say no."

Damn that man, she just couldn't resist him. "I didn't want to," she said quietly. He finally turned to look at her, and she saw emotion building behind the deep green.

"Then why did you?" The question wasn't accusing or angry, just honest.

She sighed and looked away for a moment, and then back again. "It's just like I said. We have too many things to do, Robin. Too many people to save. We can't get too caught up in each other, because we have to risk everything for everyone else. We have a duty, and while we have to fight that fight, we can't be distracted."

"I already am distracted. I am already too caught up in you." He was looking at her in the blasted soulful way of his, and she found her gaze couldn't break from his. Damn him.

"Someday," she whispered. "when we don't have to fight anymore." He looked sad, but he took a deep breath and nodded. A small, sad smile flickered across her lips and she leaned down, pressing a kiss against his forehead. She felt him exhale against her neck.

"Someday," he replied softly, sadly. But when she looked at him again, he was determined. She nodded and smiled and walked out of the camp.