It happened just after Djaq had joined herself to the Robin's gang. Djaq, John and Allan were out hunting for that evening dinner. They hadn't seen much all day.

"Did you hear that?" asked Djaq suddenly, standing up. John pulled her down.

"We are hunting, we're meant to."

"No- nothing like that. Sounded like a horse."

"Coming this way?"

"No! Like a sort of whiny, like it's in pain."

"Forget it- we can hardly heal a horse."

Djaq stood. "I'm going to see." She took off. The two men looked at each other and followed her. Not a moment later they practically tripped over her. Sure enough there was a horse, lying on the ground, it almost looked miserable. But it wasn't the horse that Djaq was attending to.

On the ground, surrounded by a small pool of red lay a young woman, early to mid twenties. She battered quite badly. Her dress was ripped where a knife or a sword had cut through it, blood was congealing in it slowly. Her would be quite pretty face was was bruised and bleeding at her lip and just above her eye. Her cheeks were turning purple and there was a nasty gash just below her collar bone. She was just breathing.

"How long has she been here?" breathed Allan, dropping to his knee beside Djaq.

"About two hours."

"She's alive?" asked John.

"Just. We'll take her back to the camp."

"Camp! But-"

"Allan, she's passed out," Djaq told him, "even she she wakes up on the way she's going to be very disorientated. She's lost too much blood to be any danger."

"And the horse?"

"We'll take her too, she doesn't seem to have left her side."

It didn't take long, they were soon back at their camp for that week. They placed her in the nearest bed. Allan and John went back out for food, and the herbs that Djaq asked for. Djaq stayed behind to care for the mysterious girl. Alone she was able to see the extent of her wounds. Even the scars from old wounds.

Djaq sighed, pressing water to the girl's head, have stopped the bleeding entirely from her open wounds.

"Where have you come from," she murmured in her own language.

*

Evening came, and the rest of the gang arrived. Allan and John had taken to preparing the rabbits, three of them that day, for Much to took. Robin, Much and Will had been making their deliveries.

"Who's horse?" asked Robin as he entered their clearing, spotting the horse grazing on a patch of grass.

"Hers," Allan jabbed his thumb over his shoulder at the girl.

"Djaq's?" Much was surprised.

"No! The girl's."

"Djaq is a girl…"

Allan sighed and Djaq chuckled moving aside so that her comrades could see the girl they were caring for.

The three of them winced, Robin joined Djaq.

"What happened?"

"She was attacked. We found her a few hours ago."

"Has she woken up?"

Djaq shook her head. "Her body is responding well to the herbs so she should be up in a couple of days. So far I've been able to get her to drink treated water so her energy doesn't go entirely. "

"A couple of days?"

"She lost a lot of blood."

Robin nodded, then looked down at her. He frowned. She looked somewhat familiar. Like someone he knew, or he'd seen her somewhere before. He simply could not place her.

"Much!"

"Yes?" he walked over, then frowned. He had the same feeling.

"Have we seen her before?"

"I'm… I… I dunno… she's familiar."

Robin nodded frowning. He shook his head. "She can tell us when she wakes up."

Over the next two days, they took it in turns to watch over their accidental guest. In case she woke up, or something happened.

It was afternoon, the sun high over head. Will, Allan and Djaq were back at camp. Djaq had predicted that she would wake that day, so wanted to be near her in case.

Will was nearest, apparently trying to make something clever out of wood, as usual. He heard a small moan. He frowned, then continued. It came again. He turned around. The young woman was stirring, her hand was at her head, her eyes were blinking awake.

Will was at her side in a moment. He wanted to call to the others, but he did not dare scare her. Slowly she looked at him. He smiled at her.

"Morning," he said pleasantly, "you've been out for a while you thir-"

There was a blade at his throat. He looked at the young woman. She had stormy blue eyes, just then they appeared almost grey. They seemed heavily hooded as she glared at him.

Slowly he put down the cup and gourd, then raised his hands.

"It's all right, miss," he said calmly. He was half unsurprised by her reaction. She had been beaten up, unlikely by any females, and here was a strange man at her bed side. "I'm not here to hurt you."

"Wha- what?" she looked confused.

"We found you, this is our camp."

Her eyes clouded. Her grip on the sword loosened, it started to wobble. "Where…?"

"Just a little way from here. You had a horse with you, a big mare. Chestnut, white socks and star."

"Yeah… th-that's Vanora…"

The sword dropped to the ground with a clatter, the girl had her hands to her head, covering her eyes. She was thoroughly confused.

Will's companions heard the sword clatter and came running. By then Will had managed to get her to sit up, needing his support as she drank water slowly from the cup he had handed her.

Djaq smiled as she saw her. She came forewords. The young woman looked unsure, involuntarily backing away.

"They're friends," Will said, "we work together." He hesitated. Allan filled him in.

"We're outlaws."

The girl snorted. "No shit." Her voice was a little rough from lack of use, but fairly feminine. Her attitude was a somewhat rougher version of Marian's. It was strange to see that so soon. "Feel safer out here than in a damn house any day."

"Out lawed?" asked Djaq, taking Will's place in supporting her.

"Round here? Yeah. But I wouldn't be surprised if they've forgotten about it now you know. Petty crime- ran away," she shrugged, "Gisborne's an ass though."

The three comrades laughed. They liked this girl already.

"So… who are you? What are you doing in this part of the woods?" asked Allan.

"You mean your part?"

"Sort of," agreed Will.

She looked between them then shrugged, trying to sit up on her own, failing miserably. "Fair enough." She paused. "To be honest… I was returning from Scotland. I was looking for help from our Scottish brothers as it were. Didn't work. The ones who wanted to help were out strengthen by those in power who didn't. Fuckin' frustrating." She shrugged. "I've been making my way home ever since. Not much fun as it was. I hadn't realised Nottingham's Sheriff had become so powerful or our… illustrious prince." She leaned over and spat on the floor purposefully. "So I reach the boarders of Nottingham's reach and I get faced with Nottingham castle guards. For a moment I thought they were some sort of boarder control- which made no sense. England's a free country- we can go where we please. So I thought."

"Things have changed," nodded Will.

"Too much, kid, way too much. Then these morons, three of them, ugly bastards-"

"They work in three now," supplied Allan, "too scared of outlaws."

The young woman's grin was positively evil. "Don't blame 'em really. Now shush- I en't finished. They demanded road tax off me. Now normally I'd be happy to pay, I thought it would be a little amount. They ask for three damn shillings! I don't have that much money to my name damnit! So i refuse to pay this… this tax, claiming I was new in town and therefore they have no right to demand tax off me. They start pushing me round, I get pissy, so I…" she paused, "," she said quickly. She shook her head ashamed of herself. "It'll be fine- he's just following his master's orders. I was just pissed off. So of coarse they chase after me, that includes the injured fucker, beat the crap out of me. Unfortunately they didn't really rely on Nora being so… violent."

"Me neither," muttered Allan, rubbing his arm. He had only wanted to lead the poor horse, and still she had nipped his arm and followed her master faithfully.

"She bit into one of their legs. They scarpered, I collapsed. I think Nora kept look out. She's good at that."

Djaq nodded. "England must have changed a lot since you were away."

"I've only been away a few years- and this happens. This is ridiculous! I'm fuckin' glad people are doing something about it."

The three of them exchanged grins. "So what's your name?" asked Djaq.

"Josephine, but you can call me Jo," she replied, almost sleepily, she was still recovering, "and you guys?"

"I'm Djaq."

"Will."

"Allan A'dale. We're Robin Hood's men."

Jo sat up straight. "You're who?"

"Robin Hood's men."

"And woman," sighed Will.

Jo's eyes were wide. "Robin Hood… you mean Robin of Locksley- rightful lord of Locksley."

"One and the same- you have heard some stuff about England then," beamed Allan.

"I have to go." She pushed herself to her feet practically collapsing again. She was still dressed in her tattered dress, Djaq had cleaned it and dressed her in it once again, not sure of what else to do.

"You shouldn't move," Djaq tried to catch her arm, "you could do yourself damage."

"I have to go, now," insisted Jo. She stumbled towards Vanora, who was on the standing beside a tree looking tranquil.

"Jo you-"

Jo stopped in her tracks. She looked down. A nasty cut in her stomach had reopened, as had the one at her collar bone. She took a clumsy step foreword then fell.

"Whoops!"

She collapsed straight into the leader's arms.

"Careful there, you're still not better."

She looked up at him. He had hardly changed since she had seen him. He might have aged a little with experience, but he still refused to shave properly, his eyes were still that forest green and he was just as muscular, if not more so then before. He was the same as she had remembered him. Which was bad.

"I have to go," she pushed herself away from him. Or attempted to. It didn't work.

Robin sighed. "You're just as bad as a few others I know." He picked up, arm behind her back the other beneath her knees, carrying her back to the makeshift bed. "If you leave now, you'll die," he told her, "I'm no doctor and I can tell you that."

She blinked up at him blearily. All of a sudden his image before her eyes clouded. She felt sick, nauseous.

Djaq was by her side. "Drink this- it will help you sleep."

"No sleep."

"It will help you get better," she promised.

Grudgingly, Jo drank the mixture, smiled a little at the taste, then fell asleep again almost immediately. Djaq shooed the boys away so she could attend to the girl in private.

In that time, Will and Allan took it in turns to relay what Jo had told them of her story and who she was. They lapped it in, understanding.

Jo woke the next day. Her head was clouded, she was disoriented. She felt around for her sword, she needed it near her.

Hearing footsteps coming towards her, she found it, and held it up against her enemy, intending to get to her feet. Only to have the weight of her weapon over power her, causing her to drop it. Above her, Djaq laughed.

"You don't understand what it means to be injured do you, Jo?"

Jo shook her head, recognising the voice from the day before. She felt safe again. She lay on her back. "No… I don't like being sick or being injured. So it doesn't happen often."

Djaq handed her a small cup of water. Jo forced herself to sit up and drank from it slowly, hydrating her parched mouth and throat. "Thanks for looking after me."

"It's what we do," Djaq shrugged, she took back the cup, then looked at Jo, "you know… you move like a man."

Jo turned her head to look up at Djaq. "You know… you look like a man."

For a moment, the two women eyed each other up, sizing the other up, judging what the other had said and why. It took a second, then the two grinned. An understanding passed between them. Something men would never comprehend. The two felt immediately, though the other did not know it, that they could become very good friends. There was certainly a kinship between them.

From a distance, in the shadows, Robin watched the interaction between them. He had seen it before, he could have sworn he had seen it before. Something was not right, if his déja vu was so strong, and for so long, it wasn't right.

SIlently, Robin left. He made his way to Marian's house at Kingsgate. There was no one around and he was certain he could have walked through the front door without any trouble, but he wanted to see Marian alone. Creeping round the back of the house, Robin jumped caught the bar and swung himself up to her window. He tapped on the window sill, sitting down, as she brushed her hair.

"Morning Robin," she said calmly.

"What? No shock? No gasps! That's no fun."

Robin swung his legs into her room.

"I could see you in the mirror."

Robin frowned, then caught a glimpse of himself in her eye line in the mirror. He muttered darkly then got off the to join her in her room.

"I could call for someone you know. You'd be in trouble with father."

"Hardly- how do I know there isn't some official here? Then where would we be?"

"I'd be in the Sheriff's good books, you'd be in the gallows."

Robin laughed. This is what he loved about Marian. Her spirit, her guts and her irritating habit of knocking him down a few notches. Before he had gotten closer to Marian, that had been Joe's job. Now he was missing…

"You wanted to tell me something?" asked Marian casually.

Robin looked up, then shook his head. He sat heavily on the corner of her sear, putting them back to back. "Ask you something?"

"Which was…?"

"Have you ever had a feeling of… deja vu?"

"Yes- of coarse. Everyone has."

"But… has it lasted days? And only about one person?"

Marian chuckled. "That isn't déja vu, that's you recognising someone. There is a difference."

"Yeah- but I dunno where from. It's beginning to worry me…" he explained to Marian of how Djaq found the girl and brought her back to the camp to look after her. How she tried to leave then when she woke this morning trying to attack or defend herself, Robin wasn't sure.

"There's just something about her. I know I've seen her somewhere but I don't know where. What if she's a spy? What if I've seen her in the court and she's just pretending to be woman in distress."

"The wounds were real weren't they? She genuinely didn't move for two days? People have been watching her every moment?"

"Well… yeah… I guess but-"

"You're too suspicious. What if she just reminds you of someone?"

"If she does I can't think who."

"What's her name?"

"Josephine. Jo for short. Strange that really."

Marian froze. Josephine. Jo. That was… it had to be… and Robin did recognise her from somewhere. She could not let on she had any idea of why she was, if it was the Josephine she was thinking of, then her secret could not come out yet.

"Josephine doesn't sound like a name from the court and most ladies would not let their name be shortened." She paused. She needed confirmation it was the Jo she remembered. "What does she look like?"

Robin shrugged. "Tall for a girl, long brown hair, bit bleached, darkish skin. She's got kinda big hands, long fingers, but almost weirdly long. She'd be pretty, but she's kinda battered at the moment." He turned in his seat, "and I've you to compare her to."

Marian hit him with her brush. "Now now Robin- play nice." She sighed then stood up. "I want to meet her."

"What? Why?"

"If she is a lady of the court I'll recognise won't I?"

Robin shrugged, then nodded. "Yeah, I guess. Now?"

"Of coarse. I'll meet you down stairs."

Robin left the house quickly, climbing out the window and saddled her horse and waited for her. She met him outside quite quickly and climbed on behind him. With her arms around his waist, Robin smiled to himself, kicked the horse and set off.

Not too long later they were back at camp. Robin could not have been away more than three hours but already there were noticeable changes. Mostly the fact that Allan was being beaten at cards.

Jo had gotten changed. She was dressed in breeches, a loose shirt and a warm cloak, probably a mixture of the men's, nothing of Djaq's would have fitted her.

She was still beat up quite badly, but she was moving more freely. Her nastier wounds had closed, but she still had to be careful. The bruises on her face were healing slowly.

Strangely, she still appeared almost feminine. Which was strange for Marian to see. Through the bruises and of the few years gone by, Marian recognised Jo immediately. There was Jo, the friend she had missed for nearly three years.

"I told ya," grinned Jo, taking his money, grinning, "anything a man can do- a woman can do better."

"I've never heard anyone else say that aloud before," Marian said, stepping foreword, behind her Robin, tried o pull her back. To no avail. He was surrounded by wilful women.

For a moment he wandered what had happened to those docile females he had heard about, even seen, in the courts. Apparently they were a dying breed. Not that he minded of coarse.

Jo turned around. For a split second her eyes widened, she had the desperate urge to run and her friend and tackle her to the ground, hugging her desperately. Rationality intervened, and Jo realised that it would be a grave mistake on her part. She did not need Robin or Much knowing who she was just yet. As much as she missed them, wanting to embrace them both, explain why she had lied to them for so long. But it was just not the time.

"More women should be saying it," shrugged Jo, getting up, crossing her arms, then grinned, "a lady- out here in this neck of the woods? I am surprised." Snapped her heels together, straightening her back, she put her left arm behind her back, bowed at the waist with her right arm arms her abdomen. She was teasing Marian, and both women knew it.

"She's one of us," sighed Djaq, beckoning Marian over to have a little something to eat, "she just works the system inside rather than out."

"Oh," Jo frowned then sat down, somewhat painfully, "so… she's a female more sensible version of hero Robin Hood."

"Hey," Allan knocked the top of her head as he passed her to get some lunch, "Robin might find it hard to work without Marian- but what good would Marian's snooping be if she didn't have Robin?"

Jo just grinned to herself. She could think of a few things, only voicing them then seemed like a bad idea. Instead she busied herself with getting some lunch for herself.

It was that knowing smile that finally got to Robin. Of anything about her, he knew where that smile had come from. His oldest friend, his missing friend Joe Hunter. But Hunter was a fairly common surname, and why would a family have two children, probably nearly the same age, have the same nick name? It made little sense to Robin. And still that smile was unmistakable. If that was Joe's irritatingly knowing smile, Robin would have shot himself.

So what on Earth was it doing on a girl?

An hour later, the gang took off. There had been talk of a noble taking the North road into Nottingham that day, and they planned to take most of the money. Originally there had been concerns about who would stay with Jo, with Marian there, it was no longer an issue.

Leaving Marian behind to 'look after' Jo, the gang left quickly to get their contributions from the rich.

For a moment, the two waited for the sounds of the men (Djaq was impossible to hear) to vanish. Finally the two looked at each other, the next thing they knew, they were holding each other in a clinging embrace. Silently tears fell from their eyes. It may have only been three years, but for that whole time Marian had never known of Jo was dead or alive. Jo had not been sure if Marian had been safe. For the two of them it was a reunion long over due.

When then finally broke apart, Marian filled her in on Sheriff Vaisey's hostile take over, Gisborne given Robin's lands, Robin being outlawed and why. Finally, Gisborne's unrelenting attention.

Jo snorted into her cup of water. "I'm not surprised you know," she giggled, "ol' Gizzy guts was after you long before you realised it."

"He's not that pathetic."

"He bloody is."

"How do you know?"

"I pay attention, luv, besides, I was the one handling his affairs for the first year remember? I know how many times he made it a point to come and visit. He made me buy the flowers." Marian's eyes widened. "Believe you me- you wants you in his bed."

"Don't be so crude! You're not a man any more."

It was at this point that Robin returned. He only heard the last part of Marian's sentence, "man any more." Now that could mean any number of things. The problem was if he interrupted he'd never know. The carriage was still a little while away, his gang was still setting up. He could wait for a few moment.

"So what? I can still act like a man," it was Jo speaking, "I still talk like one half the time. I blame those two you know- they were more perverted than you think."

"What- Much?"

"Nah- oh Lord and Master," Jo laughed, "I must have picked it up from him all his," and then something incredible happened. Jo changed her voice. It became deeper, rougher, huskier, and very masculine, "I'm the best I'm the lord- you must serve me- no wait Joe! Don't hit me damnit!" She sounded exactly, exactly, like Joe Hunter. "Ah those were the days… I miss them you know. I had to act like a girl when I was in Scotland, believe me, English male up there? Death wish! They're more likely to listen to a woman. Surprising amount of respect for the English women."

"How'd it go up there?"

"Not good..."

The conversation had progressed to Jo explaining to Marian the reason for her visit to Scotland. Something Robin was already aware of. Instead, he slunk off, feeling somewhat… he wasn't even sure. It could have been anger, frustration, confusion or hurt.

Was Jo... Joe? The voice was right, that smile was undeniable, and her face... her physicality, everything about her reminded him of someone. Because it was on a girl, he had no idea who, now he was certain it was- but it couldn't be. Joe was a boy, a male, one of them one of the lads. He fought with them, teased with them, pulled pranks with them, bathed- he cut himself off. That wasn't true. They never bathed together, Joe always found excuses not to, or Fred Hunter came to get him… Robin's own father would intervene if something along those lines happened.

He frowned to himself as he slunk away, not bothering to grab his dagger. He wouldn't need it. There were many things that did not add up about the idea that Jo was Joe Hunter but the same went for Joe Hunter being a boy. His head was spinning.

By the time he reached the others, the carriage was almost upon them, they were readying to spring it without him. Despite his confusion, Robin put those thoughts aside. Now he had to think about his people, the people around him, making sure they could eat.

He ran down the slope, his hood up, his bow out. He stood in the middle of the road, feet over shoulder width apart, arms crossed, smirk on his face. He forgot about Robin of Locksley and Joe Hunter- now he was focused on Robin Hood and all his attributes.