To Go Beyond
Author: Emmithar
Rating: K+
Summary: Questions of trust and loyalty arise when there is a difference seen between the group, forcing them apart, and a friend on the inside can make all the difference between a victory and a defeat. With the stakes rising, can Robin pull his gang back together before lives are lost?
Disclaimer: I do not own Robin Hood BBC and I am making no money what-so-ever off of this. It is purely for enjoyment.
A/N: Sequel to Breaking Point, heading more towards the second season (at least camp-wise). The story will make a lot more sense if you read the first story first. Any questions or comment feel free to send a message or review. Other than that, enjoy!
Chapter One: Change of Pace
The spring began with the blossoming of the first buds, signaling an end to a harsh and long winter. With each passing day the rays of sun were cast over the land, slowly warming the ground and all those who lived upon it. It was a refreshing start, a reminder that life still continued to spin an everlasting web, holding strong till the next day after. For some, the warmth of spring brought more than comfort, it brought hope as well.
Game was slowly returning to the Sherwood Forest, bringing in more food for the market, for those who could afford it was a blessing. For those who could not, they didn't dwell in despair, but instead turned their effort to work in the gardens, hoping for a good crop that year. They knew in the meantime, their trust would have to rely on certain band of outlaws. In truth, there were very few who would have ever considered criminals a good thing.
But Robin was a good man; they all knew that; and they trusted the men that followed him. For many years, villages such as Locksley and Nettlestone had suffered quietly; but fate had started to change since the man's return. When food could not be given, then it was money, clothing, or even valuable goods that could be bartered for some. And in rare cases, words of hope, with promises that things would better in due time.
The winter, however, had left many hungry and Robin short on appearances. There were some who worried, but many more who seemed to understand that times were rough. With the days getting longer though, everyone grew more hopeful.
In the midst of the forest, the sunlight peeked through the branches that were beginning to adorn their leaves once more, casting a shaded effect upon the ground. The steady footfalls of the hoofed animal echoed easily, the purse of money swaying against the horse's flank. The path was worn, signaling it had been traveled many times, and if the rider knew of any danger lurking, he didn't show it.
Instead he continued on, not even slowing at the slight rustle in the bushes, nor did he even turn as it grew louder. It was as he was approaching the bend that the figure darted out, clear into the path of the horse. The animal reared, acting on instinct as the man used all his power to calm the frightened creature. All around him now were more men, arrows notched and weapons drawn.
"Robin!" he cursed, holding onto the reigns tightly, stilling the creature beneath him. He let out a breath, patting the animal gently as he did so.
The outlaw smiled, coming up alongside him. "I hardly recognized you, all dressed up. Important meeting at the castle?"
"Robin, I come this way twice a month, four if you actually count coming and leaving…"
"And yet you still haven't found a way to avoid me? It almost seems like you want to get caught."
"This is the shortest path," Collin told him, "I am not going to travel days out of my way just to run into you in the end."
"Ah," Robin nodded thoughtfully, stroking the horse tenderly. "So you do want to be caught," his hand lingered on the purse. "More taxes?"
"Robin…"
But the man had already unhooked it, spilling the contents into his hand. "This could feed every family in a single village for a week."
"I've already given you my collection last month; the Sheriff will know something is not right."
"The Sheriff," Will cut in, coming up alongside Robin, "will not know unless you tell him. He knows the winter was hard; many do not have the money to pay their taxes."
"But the craftsman does; the Sheriff knows that is where the money went, he will be expecting it."
"Then we will halve it, just like last time," Robin told him, sliding some of the money back into the bag.
"We will?" Will asked him skeptically. "What happened to take all and leave nothing behind?"
"We will start that with our next visitor," Robin clapped him on the back, "Right now, I believe Much was getting breakfast ready."
"Eggs, bacon," Much nodded eagerly, "a glorious breakfast."
"Will you be joining us Collin?" Robin wondered.
"It is stolen food Robin," the man protested quietly.
"Food that Sheriff stole in the first place."
"Does this mean that two thefts make a right then?" Much asked.
"That's two wrongs make a right," Allan told him, shaking his head.
"Two wrongs don't make a right," Djaq cut him off, "Three lefts make a right."
"That doesn't even make sense," Allan protested.
"Really," Much agreed, "who would go left three times when you can go right the first time?"
"Exactly," Allan nodded, only to frown as he turned to Much. "What?"
"It's true, try it if you don't believe me," she challenged them.
"I'm not going to try it," Allan huffed.
"That's because you don't believe it's true," Much pointed at him.
"Then you try it."
"I'm not going to try it, she told you to try it first."
"There's no point, it's like…walking around in circles."
"Should be easy for you then."
"Alright, both of you," Robin broke in, shaking his head. "On second thought Collin, I might just travel to the castle with you."
"You would be hanged," Collin reminded him.
"Far worse punishment to stay here and listen to them," Robin muttered to him quietly. "Will you be joining us then?"
Collin nodded after a sigh, dismounting as he did so. "Breakfast, does sound nice."
"Come then, we will be glad for the company."
He shouldered his bow, following the others as the left the trail, heading back to the woods. Collin was behind him, leading his horse, allowing Will to catch up with Robin.
"What are we doing?"
"I believe, Will, that we are going to have some breakfast. After months of dried bread, and whatever that was Much had us eat, some real food, would be nice."
"I meant about him," Will nodded over his shoulder. "Robin, he's working for the Sheriff."
"He is working for King Richard; aside from that, he is a friend. Why should he be treated any differently?"
"He is collecting taxes for the Sheriff, carrying out orders for the Sheriff; he is working for the Sheriff. And friend or not; if he was anyone else you would have cleaned out his entire purse. Now, not only are we allowing him to take half the money back, but we are feeding him as well."
"Have you forgotten what he's done for us?" Robin asked him quietly, meeting his gaze.
"No," Will shook his head, turning away. "But one good deed does not allow him to continue to switch sides. Either he is on our side, or the Sheriff's. He can't be both."
"At the moment, Collin is our way inside the castle. I do not want to break that trust. He is a good man."
"So are you," Will reminded him, "but you are forgetting why we are here. That money should be going to the poor; so should the food. Not to soldiers who will easily sup later at the castle. They eat more like Kings than King Richard himself, I'll promise you."
Robin came to a stop, turning to face him. "I will keep that in mind then. Until then, you will do as I say, and right now, I say we are going to enjoy a good meal. We will worry about our food stores, and where they go, afterwards. You are too tense my friend, you must relax."
They all ate heartily, having naught such a meal for a long time. A small fire, licking at fresh cut wood served as the center of the group, several light conversations floating around it. They too could feel the change in seasons, and they as well could feel the joy and hope flowing back into a frozen forest, promising a better future in turn.
The last few weeks had been the hardest; there was no mistake in that. Robin had spent most of his time recovering from the recent events, all the while fighting the urge to do more. Will and the others meanwhile had attended to building a new camp. It was Will's idea for the design, and a rather good one, he would have to admit.
The latest bit had come to Robin after breaking free of the Sheriff's and Gisborne's hold. They needed somewhere safe, somewhere secret to stay. Moving the camp continually was too straining on the group. With Will's knowledge in carpentry and construction, he soon had the idea for a camp that could be easily concealed with the turn of a hand. Even Collin was quite impressed by the display, not having seen the camp until he was nearly upon it.
No more would one have to remain awake at night to keep watch. They could all sleep soundly without fear of being discovered, and keeping extra stock and store of clothing, medical supplies and weaponry would come easy now. They would no longer have to carry it around, or attempt to find a place to store it.
Their food store places, however, still existed. Several holds and areas hidden by rocks, or traps that had been dug underground. It was safer that way, and could hold quite a bit more food than their camp, however impressive it was. It also made travel easier; several holds were set up near the towns and villages. No longer did they have the need to travel clear across the forest lugging heavy loads around. Best of all…if one store happened to be found, they still had backups in other places. And the time to move their store to a new location if necessary.
For the moment though, most of their stores were empty. The food they were savoring now had been collected earlier from the castle store room. Though they couldn't take all of it, they were able to help themselves to a bountiful feast. What they didn't eat this morning would go to the villages later, and was waiting in a storeroom near Nettlestone to be distributed.
Robin had finished what food he had taken, leaning back on his elbows as he watched the rest of his men. Their spirits had lifted with the coming of spring, and even now it was easy to see that this small feast was doing them well. For a long while, they had been hovering over him, not that the man could blame them. It had been difficult for a short time to keep up to par with his strength and agility, but all of that was returning now that his wounded body was nearly healed.
The wounds to his back had healed the quickest, but it had been the injury to his side that slowed him down the most. Twice now Djaq had to put the stitching back in due to his carelessness; moving about the forest wasn't first rate recommendation for healing a stab wound. But having the stitching put back in a second time with no wine to dull the senses had served as a faithful reminder to take it easy. There were, of course, different perspectives of what that word meant exactly.
For what little bit Robin did now often struck an argument within the group. Robin had been patient, but as always it wasn't something that lasted forever. He wanted to be doing more, with less hassle from the group, however well they meant. It was difficult for him to concentrate with them hovering so; Much and Will being the most famous culprits of that lately.
As much as he hated to admit it, he knew they were right in a sense. He still wasn't fully recovered. Robin noticed it the most towards the end of the day, more so if they had been traveling between the villages. Worse, he noticed it each time he readied his bow. He could still shoot…it just took more effort to hold still; and even after a few rounds he had found himself having to give up and rest. If the others noticed…they hadn't said anything.
Little John had been the quietest of them all, either knowing Robin's mind of wanting to be left alone, or perhaps it was just because of his very nature. Allan would remind him from time to time, whereas Djaq would scold him if he got too carried away, having fallen into a routine of wanting to check his wound every night. For Much and Will…Robin had continually gotten an earful from the both of them near every passing day. It was in Much's nature, and something Robin was naturally used to, but the added attention of Will seemed to grind on his nerves.
Robin wasn't the type of man to draw attention to himself, at least not in this sort. He enjoyed the respect and love of the populace and people he took care of; but he needn't them worry over him. Robin could take care of himself; he had done so before and could do so again; he just needed the time.
"Where will you go after this?"
Collin had broken in his thoughts, provoking a light shrug from him. "The villagers will be hungry in due time…we will use the money you so generously gave us to barter for more food, we should be ready to make several drops by the end of the week."
"The end of this week?" Will questioned, finishing the last bit of meat on his plate. "I thought we would be going today, or tomorrow for sure."
"We don't have enough food," Robin shook his head, "When we make a drop we do it evenly, so not arouse suspicion among the guards or cause jealously between the villages."
"Jealousy? This isn't competition Robin; we should give out what we have now; the rest later when we get it."
Robin nodded, sitting up. "I know you want to help Will, but keep in mind we still need food for ourselves. Plus if we make our first drop, and have to wait a day or two to make the next drop, and if we continue on like that, the first village will need another food drop before we are even done. It is easier to do it all at once."
"So until then they just starve?"
Robin let out a sigh, arms resting on his knees. "No one is starving Will. Food is scare, but not that scare. A drop at the end of this week would do them well."
Robin kept a firm tone, not breaking eye contact with him. He knew how Will felt, and understood his feelings on the matter, but Robin had been going over it in his mind for days now. One full day of making drops was easier and safer for everyone; rather than scattered attempts. If the Sheriff or Gisborne caught word of their doings, and realized only half the villages had been done, it would be all the easier for them to set a trap. And a trap was the last thing Robin wanted to fall in to.
Will shook his head quietly, turning away from Robin's gaze with quiet murmurs that could only be heard by himself. Robin never asked anyone to agree with his plans or reasoning, but he did expect them not to question them. Letting out a breath he turned to face Collin.
"When will you be back this way again?"
"I won't be," Collin responded quietly. "I'm being moved."
"Where?"
"Locksley," Collin answered softly.
"Let me guess," Robin leaned his head back. "Guy of Gisborne?"
"The choice is not mine Robin," Collin reminded him. "My duties are to Nottingham, to the castle. I will go wherever I am told to go, and work where they wish me to work. I am an honest man, I pay my own way."
"What about the Holy Land? You said you wanted to venture there to fight along with your father."
"In due time," Collin told him quietly. "For now…someone must look after the house."
"War is not as glorious as you would think it my friend," Robin finally said. "You would do more good here."
"In the forest you mean?" Collin laughed, "Not a life I would live; being known as an outlaw."
"Yet you help unsavory criminals all the time," he chided, holding the coins up. "You know, helping criminals technically makes you a criminal yourself."
"Only if you're caught by the law," Collin reminded him. "I should be going; I'm late as it is."
"We will see you out then, and take what food you didn't finish. It would only go to waste here," Robin encouraged him, moving to his feet.
"Would not," Much muttered quietly, standing as well.
"You can't tell me you're hungry again," Robin shook his head, staring at the other man. "This is already the second time you've eaten this morning."
"I see it as making up for lost time," the man responded, "For ever…meal…I missed, now I'm hungry again."
"Robin, it is fine," Collin laughed, mounting his horse, "I am not poor, neither am I starving."
"Alright," Robin nodded, walking alongside him as he led his horse out. "You have a safe journey my friend, and I might just drop by Locksley sometime soon."
"You just be careful," Collin warned him, dropping his voice. "I would not soon see you in another situation like when we first met."
"Duly noted," Robin answered with a small smile. "Locksley is still my home; I know my way around there fairly well."
"You know that wasn't what I meant."
Robin only grinned, "Until then, my men and I have work to do."
TBC