… if he soars with his own wings." ~ William Blake

"Robin… if there is a heaven, yours is different from mine." ~ Djaq, "A Good Day to Die"

Djaq's words echoed in Will's head, sending wave after rippling wave of dread through his heart. "Yours is different from mine" she'd said. Will barely noticed Robin letting it slip out that he was engaged. He was too busy trying to calm his own racing thoughts. He hadn't really thought about heaven much. He knew it was there, that you had to be a good person to go, and that everyone was happy there… but he'd never considered the fact that there could be more than one heaven. Did Allah have his own heaven? Was it different from the heaven he knew? Would Djaq go to Allah's heaven while he went to God's? Would they really, truly never see each other again? It was one thing to not see a person until you join them in heaven… another thing entirely to lose them for good.

Robin was talking about the Holy Land now but his words were just a murmur of sound past the thumping of Will's heart. He'd just found her, just learned that she loved him as deeply and passionately as he did her. He couldn't lose her, not now!

"It doesn't matter now." Robin muttered to Much, "In a few moments, we'll be free forever." Much turned to the gang.

"Here's to freedom."

"Here's to the poor." The words came to Will almost instinctively. His mind was elsewhere… he had to talk to Djaq.

"We are Robin Hood," the group said solemnly and they began to gather their weapons. While the others prepared, Will pulled Djaq aside, into the shadows under the hayloft. She looked up at him, puzzled and he struggled to find words past the fear and tightness in his chest.

"Djaq, what… what did you mean when you said your heaven is different?" She frowned, concern flickering through her dark eyes but her face remained serene, almost resigned.

"You believe in your God, Will Scarlett… I believe in mine. Yet we both believe that there is only one God…" She brought a hand up to his face, stroking his cheek gently in a way that made his heart ache. "We cannot both be right." He could feel the tears growing in his heart and tried to push them back, taking her hand in his.

"Why not? Why can't there be two Gods?" He knew he sounded desperate but being away from her for a day made his heart sink, if she were gone forever…. Djaq's musical laugh drew his mind back to the present.

"If there were two, I think the Prophet would have said something." Her smile faded quickly and Will felt her thumb brush a tear from his cheek.

"I can't lose you, Djaq…."

"Will…" He could see tears shining in her eyes now. "Heaven is not a place for sorrow. We will be happy-" He cuts her off with a shake of his head.

"I can't be happy! Not without you!" John shifted the barrier behind Will and he felt his heart jump with terror. It was almost time. "Can't you come with me? Isn't there some way you can…" His vision blurred with tears and he felt her arms wrap around his neck, pulling him close.

"I would have followed you anywhere, Will Scarlett." Her voice was nothing more than a whisper but it seemed to simultaneously break his heart and melt it. Pain and love mingled in his chest as his hands slipped around her waist. She'd compared their love to the birds her uncle raised, a love that would guide a heart two thousand miles, through storms, just to be with its mate. Something fell into place in his chest and a strange feeling was making its way through his heart. A strange, powerful determination. Pulling back, he looked her in the eye, his own face grim and resolute.

"I will find you," he said softly, stroking her cheek with the back of one hand and committing her perfect, round face to his memory.

"What?"

"If a bird can follow its heart thousands of miles over land it's never seen before… then why can't a man follow his heart across the heavens?" She stared up at him, seemingly unsure whether she should laugh or cry. Smiling softly, he pressed his forehead to hers, breathing in the scent of herbs and spices that drifted around her like the sweetest perfume. "Go to your heaven. I swear on my soul, I will find you there."

"It's time!" Djaq glanced toward the door where Much had called from. Her eyes flicked back to Will's face, bright with tears and hope. "Come on!" Will turned, cursing Much's insistence. They made their way to the door, Will on the right, Djaq on the left with the gang gathered in the middle.

"What do you think, John? A good day?" Will looked to the big man as he unbarred the door.

"Oh, yes. A good day!" They took their places and Will looked across at Djaq, seeing his own fear and longing mirrored in her eyes. Then she came toward him, reaching up and pulling him close. She kissed him and he felt the world drop away. No barn, no warriors, no threat of death, only her… her touch, her scent, her taste filling him and making his heart pound harder than it ever had before. She pulled away, whispering, "Godspeed", her breath brushing his cheek. For a moment, he was frozen. His first and last kiss in this life and he was sure there could be nothing more wonderful in the world.

"How did it happen that their lips came together? How does it happen that birds sing, that snow melts, that the rose unfolds, that dawn whitens behind the stark shapes of trees on the quivering summit of the hill? A kiss, and all was said." ~ Victor Hugo

"May your love soar on the wings of a dove in flight."