Chapter Four: Opinions?

Guy walked down the hallway, wishing that his feet were taking him to a different destination than they were. He was headed towards the Sheriff's office, which would normally not be a problem had he had any good news for the Sheriff. So, when he came to that heavy wooden door, he took a second to mentally prepare himself for any teasing, scolding, or ridiculing that he might receive, even though it never really affected him beside the slight irritation that the Sheriff's impatience caused him. After all, if that lazy, power-hungry, manipulative jerk thought that it was so easy then why did he not go look for Robin Hood himself?

But it had been three days since Guy's last report, which also happened to be the day that the castle received a new resident in the form of the Sheriff's long lost ward. He had to tell the Sheriff something. So, Guy walked into the office, prepared to answer the question that came almost immediately after his entrance. Vasey was standing idly by the window and only gave Guy a quick turn to see who was coming into his office. "Gisborne!" he stated very low and neutrally, as if he had just had just been told some very somber news, "What have you heard?"

"Very little to report, my lord," he answered, waiting for the thrashing to come… When it didn't and neither did any other response, Guy went on, "Robin Hood has kept a very low profile as of late. It's highly suspicious..."

When the Sheriff didn't react any further, Guy's curiosity was very piqued. Guy joined the Sheriff over by the window only to see him staring out at a group gathered in the gardens. One man who held a violin in his hand, and two women, one that he thought he could recognize as the Sheriff's ward. Since this distance was the only one he had ever seen her from, it was fairly easy to recognize her. He knew her no other way.

"Gisborne?" the Sheriff sighed when he finally decided to speak.

"Yes, my lord?"

"What do you think of my ward?"

"What?" Guy asked, looking away from the garden scene to scrutinize his superior's face as if he would find an explicable meaning to the question rather than the obvious one, "What do you mean?"

"My ward…" Vasey repeated, turning his head slightly, "What do you think of her? I need the opinion of someone who could actually have an opinion of her. Is she desirable?"

"I… don't think I'm in a position to answer that," Guy answered, brows narrowed in mistrust so that he could hide his utter surprise.

"Why not?"

"I've never even met her, and if I had I wouldn't have been able to understand anything she said."

"Well, that's all very well and good, but what about her appearance?" Vasey urged, starting to lose patience for want of an answer, "Do you find her appearance agreeable?"

This was perhaps one of the most uncalled for questions that Guy had ever been asked. He could hardly believe that the Sheriff was asking a devoted underling if he found his ward attractive. "I wouldn't know, my lord," Guy dodged, "I haven't seen her but from a distance."

"Then let's change that," Vasey suggested before he leaned out the window and called out to Mariella in Italian. They exchanged a few words briefly before Mariella headed out of the garden, one of her party, the man, accompanying her.

"What did you just say?" Guy inquired as he watched the two go out of sight.

"I just asked them to come up here," he replied, "I want to talk to Mariella."

"What is this all about?" Guy questioned, wanting some answers of his own.

"As… dear as Mariella is to me, you could understand how I can't keep her here forever," Vasey began, stepping away from the window to sit at his desk, "So, what I would like to do is get someone to take her off my hands, preferably someone who's alliance I could benefit from. Besides… as her guardian it is my duty to see her married off as quickly as possible and with her language barrier I was trying to get creative and find a trait of hers other than her personality to depend on. I wonder how other father's do it… God knows that they don't depend on their little lepers' personalities to marry them off… and yet they still somehow do it."

"I suppose you could try to depend on her beauty," Guy sighed whilst rolling his steely blue eyes, "but then again there are other ladies of the court who are also beautiful…"

"You haven't seen my Mariella," the Sheriff boasted, raised eyebrows combined with a proud grin, "I wager a shilling that any man would think her just as beautiful dressed in peasant garb as the finest dressed lady of the court."

"We'll see, my lord," Guy told him, turning back to the window to roll his eyes at the idea that any girl could be so fine, "It will be an easy shilling made."

"What's that tone, Gisborne?" Vasey questioned, "Don't believe me?"

"Such girls belong in story books."

"Well, all stories have their inspiration."

"Still, you can't rely on a girl's looks to encourage a man to marry her," Guy told him, turning around to face him.

"Why not? Some men would give their entire fortunes if they could marry a beautiful woman that they never had to hear nag at them day and night."

Guys didn't even feel the need to dignify that statement with a response. He simply let it drop as he went to stare out the window again.

This Sheriff did not take kindly to this reaction. "Well, since you know everything on the matter what do you suggest, Gisborne?"

"Instead of trying work your way around the obstacle, why not eliminate it altogether?"

"Excuse me?"

"Teach her English."

The Sheriff paused a moment, staring at Guy. "Gisborne…" he started in a low tone that was never good. What had he said wrong this time? "That is a wonderful idea!"

"What?" Guy asked. Had the Sheriff just…?

"Oh! There's just one thing…" Vasey growled… and there it was. Here came the scolding remark… "Who is it that is going to teach her?"

"Surely there must be tutors-"

"Surely there must be," Vasey agreed, "But if they knew who was requesting the tutelage and for what reason don't you think that they would ask an appropriate price of me?"

"Then maybe you could teach her?"

"I hardly have the time or the patience," Vasey sighed, massaging his temples, "It would be easier to 'go around the obstacle' as you would say."

"It was just a suggestion," Guy puffed as he turned his attention back to the garden which was now empty.

"Also, there is one last thing concerning her that I want to talk to you about…" Vasey added as he began rummaging through a few papers on his desk, "If any man does take an interest in her, wait for my approval of his eligibility before you let any courtship form. I don't want just anyone to catch her interest."

"Excuse me?" Guy asked, his jaw becoming slack with bemusement at the request.

"Make sure that no man so much as stands near her alone unless I have given them the official seal of approval."

"So you want me to play chaperone?"

"Exactly," the Sheriff pointed out, "My, Gisborne, you do catch on quickly."

"That is not exactly part of my job description," Guy objected, approaching the desk and apprehensively placing his hands on it, leaning forward.

"La dee da dee da!" Vasey chimed, "Your job is to do whatever I say and since your previous duties have diminished dramatically, I find it necessary to give you others to keep you busy. We can't have you reaping benefits without having done the work, can we? A clue: No."

Slowly he backed away and then through a clenched jaw Guy was able to answer, "Yes, my lord." He then retreated to the window to lean against its frame.

"Good," the Sheriff said as he began to return to his reading and shuffling when suddenly there was a knock at the door. "Come in!"