Carter of the Hood:
Disclaimer:
The usual, I do not own any of these characters. They were borrowed alas from Warner brothers and the various creators of the shows and movie. Not going to make any money off this as it is for private use only and is intended only as a creative outlet for my imagination.Author's Note
:This story was inspired after watching Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves for the 100TH time. What Can I say I'm a sucker for men in tight pants.
With out any further ado, here is Carter of the Hood.
Carter sat snuggled on the couch next to Abby. They had settled in for the evening to watch Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. Abby had been in the mood for something romantic and Carter wanted some good action. Their compromise was Robin Hood, the romance of Robin and Marian, and some good sword fights for the action.
They were lying on the couch Abby's head resting on Carter's chest. Snuggled happily as the movie unfolded. Carter was having a hard time keeping his eyes open. It had been a long day at the hospital and sleep was starting to overtake him. Carter closed his eyes and let himself drift off to sleep. Rather, he thought he was going to sleep.
Carter blinked his eyes, rubbing his hand across them. Something was not right. The softness of the couch was no longer under him. He did not hear the television any longer and Abby's weight was not upon his body. As he slowly opened his eyes, he realized that he was no longer in Chicago tucked safely in Abby's apartment.
Carter sat up. The clothes that he was wearing were no longer on him. Instead he found a pair of tight fitting leggings and a large loose tunic that hung just below his waist. The tunic was tied around him with a leather belt. Upon his feet, now instead of his loafers, were leather shoes that went up almost to his knees. Lying on the ground near him was a bow and sling of arrows. Around his neck was a gold medallion. Lying behind him there was an old man sleeping soundly.
Carter watched as the old man sat up and looked his direction. The old man's eyes appeared to have been sewn shut. Carter fought hard not to gasp at the sight.
"Master Robin, I'm so sorry that I overslept." The old man looked in his direction.
Carter was not sure how to respond to this. Robin, that was not his name. He thought for a minute. Somehow in going to sleep he had gone back to the time of Robin Hood. Carter had to be dreaming he closed his eyes and pinched himself. Hoping that he would wake up and be home on the couch with Abby. This had to have been a dream. When he opened his eyes, everything was the same, nothing had changed. Carter was still sitting in the middle of the forest with an old man behind him.
"It's okay Duncan." He said back to the old man, who Carter could have sworn was Alger. "You need your rest." The voice that came from Carter's lips startled him for it was no longer his own. He had a thick English accent now upon his tongue.
The old man had had lain back down. Carter now found himself, not in the role of a doctor, but now Robin Hood prince of thieves. He felt himself drawn outside. He got up and walked out of his crude sleeping quarters. He was definitely now in medieval England. He must have been in the legendary Sherwood Forest, for woods surrounded him every where he looked. Tall old trees surrounding the clearing that he was standing in. The beauty was breath taking. There were men scattered around the camp doing various chores. These were going to be his men for leading. Damn and he did not know a thing about bows, arrows or swords, other than what fencing he had done as a child and the fencing with Luka.
Carter, now Robin, felt drawn to go into the city Nottingham. He threw the cloak that was laying there on him and walked out of the woods. Not that he had any idea of where he was exactly going. He did not know his way around England, but he managed to find his way out of Sherwood Forest. He walked along a dirt road keeping his face hidden from those whom he passed on the road. He did not want anyone to realize that he did not fit in here.
He entered the city walls and made his way to a large old church, where mass was ending. He walked down a dimly lit hallway to where his eyes fell upon a most beautiful woman. There standing next to a candle lit alter stood a woman that possessed such a great beauty that a man would be willing to die for her. He walked up next to her. Standing mere inches from her.
She turned to see his face. Carter/Robin pulled the cloak even tighter around him. "Robin, what are you doing here?" She whispered.
"Searching my soul, praying that I would see you." He said back to her. The woman was a stranger to him, yet so familiar. The dark hair flowing down her back, the deep dark brown eyes that looked at him so lovingly. He stood there, lost in her eyes he stood there doing nothing but taking in her beauty.
"You should not be here Robin. 'Tis to dangerous." She said there was a tone of concern hidden in her voice.
A man dressed in black was standing not that far from them. He was short and bald and had piercing black eyes that sent shivers down Carter's back. Something told him that he needed to be far away from that man, he was evil to the core.
"Nottingham is planning something." She said softly with her hands folded as if lost in prayer. "He has blacksmiths hold up in the castle making armor and swords." She stopped as the man started to towards them. "Now go, please."
Carter started to back away from her, "thank you milady."
"Robin." She whispered as he was walking away.
"What?" He responded.
"Do something for me." She said softly making her request.
"What is it that milady requests of me?" He asked.
"Take a bath." She said whispered softly to him.
Carter bowed the best that he could with out tripped over his cape giving himself away. "Yes milady." He said as he slipped out of the castle as easily as he had slipped in.
There standing mere feet away from him was a magnificent white steed. Carter ran towards the horse easily landing upon the animals back. He spurred the horse on ward making his escape from the castle upon the sheriff's horse. As he rode into his new encampment, Carter looked at the men that he saw standing there in the clearing. Standing at the entrance to the camp was to Carter's shocked eyes Benton. As Benton took the horse from Carter, he stood there almost shocked. He had just stolen the Sheriff of Nottingham's horse. He was now an outlaw with a price on his head.
A very large man walked beside him. "Bloody hell you've stolen the sheriff's horse."
Carter tilted his head to the side. "Are you afraid of what I have done, little Jerry."
"A little." He said continue to walk along side Carter.
A tall man walked up, "Robin, you've started a bloody war now." Carter did a double take at the man standing there. He had a striking resemblance to Doug.
"Don't tell me that you are afraid of the mighty Sheriff of Nottingham."
"And if I am rich boy."
Carter jumped up on the log. He was not going to take being forced to live among the trees lightly. "I'm not going to spend the rest of my life in hiding. I gave the Sheriff a sting today that he is not going to soon forget." Carter said as he sat down on the log and started to polish his bow. Not that he had a bloody clue as to how to use the damn thing.
As the day went on and morning turned into afternoon a string of people started to flow into the clearing. Something had happened and he was sure that he had to do with stealing the great sheriff's horse. He watched as the woodsman and their families were reunited there before him. Many were complaining about their homes being burnt to the ground and forced into the forest by the sheriff's cousin.
He watched as Will talked with the people and then pointed at him. A man was holding a small child who had been hit by something or someone. He watched as the crowd of angry people crept closer and closer to him.
"Look at what you have caused." Will spat at him, "you've started a war."
"I have done no such thing. We were already at war." Carter said back to him, turning his back to the young lad.
"I'm not as blind as that old man over there, Lord Locksley." He said anger boiling in his dark eyes. "You are still trying to be lord of the manor."
With Carter's back to him, Will raised his dagger to throw at his back.
"Look out." He heard a voice cry out. With out a second thought Carter raised the bow and arrow. It took him less than 2 seconds to have the hand in his sights as he pulled the bow back and fired the arrow. Carter was more than surprised when he actually hit what he intended to. As Will dropped the dagger that was in his hand, the arrow right through the middle of his hand. An expression of shock crossed over Carter's face. He had just struck a man with a bow causing him harm. He dropped the bow and started to cross over to him. As he watched the other's now in awe begin the drop the simple weapons that they were holding up to the ground.
The doctor inside of him wanted to help, repair that damage that he had inflicted upon young Will. Before he could get over to where Will was standing, he had slunk off into the woods. Carter looked at the faces that were all around him. He looked at the faces that were now looking at him as if for some sort of guidance. "Do you wish to end this?" He asked them.
"Yes, Yes," Came a chorus from those standing all around him.
"Then I suggest that we stop fighting amongst ourselves and fight those who would keep us here." Carter said leaping upon the log that he had only moments before been sitting on.
"They have armor." A voice chirped.
"Even a young boy can be taught to find the jinks in a suit of armor." Carter said feeling more bold and brave.
"We have no food or shelter."
Carter looked up at the trees that surrounded him. They were in a forest. It could easily support them. "What do we need that the forest can not provide for us. We have food and water. We will find safety in her trees."
"The Sheriff has taken everything from our kin as well Robin." Another voice piped up at him.
Carter had never felt such determination in his life. "Then we will just have to take it back."
The crowd let out a cheer as people started busying them with things that needed to be done for them to live safely and comfortably tucked deep inside Sherwood Forest.
