Hey! Thanks to everyone for the great reviews! Hopefully, this next chapter has the gang acting a bit more in character. Enjoy!
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Robin stood, hands on his hips, staring at the full moon. He hadn't moved for a good five minutes, but no one moved to talk to him. He was thinking. John admired that about Robin. Where he saw things as black and white, Robin saw things as fluid and complex. Of course, sometimes it was agitating, especially when the matter really was black and white, and Robin would over-think. Those were the times when John would say something to draw the younger man back in. He couldn't help but think that this was one of those times, but the girl's admission had made him think twice about it.
It would've been perfectly easy to go to Nottingham, pretend that they intended to hurt the girl, exchange her for money, and go. But all that had changed when she started rambling on about the Holy Land and Gisborne and Allan. John frowned.
Allan. John had grown to like Allan, despite the fact that the man was loud, selfish, and rude. He was a good fighter and a better pickpocket. He told funny stories and jokes, but only when it was appropriate to do so. But he had done the unthinkable. He'd turned his back on them. Even if he was more understanding of Allan's actions, John was still mad at him, and no little girl was going to change that fact, no matter how valiantly she defended him, or how obviously in love with him she was.
John didn't understand how people could miss things like that. He'd known about Will's feelings for Djaq. Love was easy enough to spot. He was, however, surprised by Allan's admission. Then again, Allan wasn't the easiest person to read, perhaps the reason that John was so floored when Robin had identified him as the traitor. John frowned again.
There he went, thinking about the traitor again, knowing that it would only make his blood boil to contemplate it further. John tapped his staff against the ground, waiting patiently for Robin to say something.
"We have to give Morgan a chance to talk to Allan," Robin finally muttered. "That way, Allan will know that Morgan is making the choice to run away. She can explain to him why she can't stay there, and if she's right about Allan, he won't lead Gisborne to the camp." John did not like to frown so much, but he found himself doing so as he listened to Robin's plan. He wasn't exactly sure that he wanted to voice his opinion, but he couldn't see Will or Djaq saying what he was thinking. Will and Allan were best friends, he'd be looking for anything to cling to that could prove Allan wasn't a turncoat. Djaq had already said that she believed Allan could've changed. John sighed, his frown directed not only at the flaw in Robin's plan, but with his ability to see the black and white.
"Robin, there is a problem," he finally said. Robin looked over his shoulder, completely ready to hear the older man's advice. John scratched the back of his head. "What if she's wrong about Allan?" As expected, Djaq's gaze flew from John to Robin, almost begging the leader for a rebuttal to John's question. Will's gaze fell to the forest floor. Robin folded his arms across his chest and took a deep breath.
"Then we'll have to have a back-up plan. For now, though, we should trust Morgan. She's known Allan the longest. Djaq, John, go to Morgan's house and bring her mother to the camp. Will, I want you to go to Nottingham. Allan's one of Gisborne's men now. He's bound to have patrol duty. Find out when. That'll be out best shot to have him talk to Morgan." At the level-headed presentation of what appeared to be phase one of Robin's plan, the gang scattered. Robin gave one more glance to the moon before heading back to the camp, ready to explain the plan to Morgan.
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She remembered it was snowing; she was about five years old. Before the new sheriff. Before the taxes. Before the starving. Her mother bundled her up tight before allowing her to leave their cottage. Michael was off playing with Guy and wouldn't be back until nightfall. Morgan padded through the cold snow, enjoying the crunching sounds beneath her feet as she walked. Her father was in Nottingham today, selling baskets and so forth in the market. She was going to walk about the town, seeing if any of the little girls wanted to play with her. They never did.
She was so preoccupied with her self-assigned "mission" that she tripped over a tree root, falling flat on her face. She heard someone laughing and turned. It was a boy, just a tad older than she was. He was with another boy, who seemed to be just a tad younger than she was. Morgan scrambled to her feet and put her hands on her hips.
"What's so funny, then?" she asked, thoroughly embarrassed by his laughter. The little boy laughed again.
"Not being funny, but you fell flat on your face. It was like watching a tree fall!" The younger boy nodded, but was shivering too much to laugh.
"I am not a tree, I'll have you know. Me name's Morgan, and I am a girl," she corrected. "What's your name?" The boy tilted his head to the side. Apparently, not many people cared to ask him his name.
"Allan A Dale, and this is my brother, Tom," he said cautiously.
"Hallo, then. Do you want to play with me?" Morgan asked.
"No. Now why don't you scarper off? We're busy." Morgan didn't take to that at all. None of the stupid girls wanted to play with her, and she was fine with that. But this boy had laughed at her, and he was going to make it up to her whether he liked it or not.
"Busy doing what? Freezing your arses off? Besides, I live here. If anyone's going to rabbit off, it'd be you, now wouldn't it?" She pointed out, as if it was obvious. Allan glared at her.
"I don't have to listen to you. Not being funny, but you're a girl." Morgan put her hands on her hips, the way her mother would when she scolded her.
"Not being funny," she replied, copying his phrase, "but if you're going to be mean to me, I may go home and get me brother." To her surprise, Allan smiled.
"That is a fine idea," he agreed.
"What?" Morgan was confused. Most of the children in the village knew that Michael was the best in a fight, and that his little sister was not to be picked on.
"You going back home," he shot, sticking his tongue out. Tom reached up and tugged on Allan's shirt.
"Allan, I'm hungry," he whispered hoarsely, his teeth chattering. Morgan's anger dropped off, prompting her to walk over to the shaking boys.
"Me mum's making pork. D'you want some?" she asked. Allan eyed her suspiciously, but one look at Tom caused him to nod.
"Yeah, but we're only staying for food," he made sure to stress the last bit. Morgan held out a hand, which Allan slowly took.
"Whatever you say, Allan A Dale. C'mon, then. Let's go." Allan and Tom stayed for dinner. In fact, they stayed through the night. It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
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"Morgan, wake up," Much gently shook her by the shoulder, smirking when she twitched with surprise, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Robin stood on the other side of the fire.
"We need you to talk to Allan. Will's gone to find out when he has guard duty. Djaq and Little John are going to get your mother," he explained. Morgan stood, brushing herself off, nodding at her part in this mission. Talk to Allan. Nothing she hadn't done before. She was glad that her mother was being taken care of. Though they hadn't been exactly hospitable the first time they'd met, Allan's words about both Djaq and Little John put Morgan at ease.
Djaq is a healer. It seems like witchcraft sometimes, but she can fix anyone… John may look like a bit of a bear, but he's really an alright guy. Straightforward, that one. Though the thoughts caused her to grin, she caught sight of Robin and faltered. There was something else that Robin wanted to tell her.
"Morgan, you must realize that you have to get out of here. You and your mother will both have to go very far away. This will have to be your goodbye, Morgan. I'm sorry," he trailed off. Morgan stared blankly back for a moment. She never said goodbye. Goodbye was something definite. It meant that she was accepting the possibility of never seeing someone again. Goodbye was something depressing. It meant that she would have to go the rest of her life without seeing someone dear to her. The last time she had said goodbye was a crisp autumn day, when the leaves were falling from the trees and the birds were chirping. She had said goodbye to her father as he went to Nottingham.
Her father hadn't returned. That night, a man came back with Tinder, the family horse, calmly explaining to Michael that there had been an incident in Nottingham. Morgan hadn't been sure of what an "incident" was, but she knew by the way Michael was trying not to cry that she wouldn't see her father again. She blamed it on that word. Goodbye.
"Morgan?" Robin prompted, jarring her from the unpleasant memory. "Do you understand?" She nodded, feeling empty on the inside.
"Of course," she murmured. "I'll meet up with Will at Nottingham, then." Robin didn't move to stop her as she wandered into the trees. Much seemed to be debating with himself, turning to Robin, opening his mouth to talk. He quickly closed it. It wasn't his place to tell Robin, but if Morgan wasn't going to…
"Master, surely there is another way," he spoke up. Robin shook his head.
"She can't stay in England, Much. Not until the King has safely returned." Much buried his face in his hands, amazed at how oblivious Robin could be, despite his flirtatious nature.
"Where will she go?"
"I've a friend in Oxford that can grant her and her mother safe passage to Germany. I'll send a note with her. Maybe Count Friedrich will give her a place to live," Robin thought aloud.
"Master, does she even speak German?" Much asked. "Surely, you can find another way. You can't just pluck her out of her home and set her down in the middle of a place she's never been before." Much couldn't remember the last time he'd argued with Robin like this. Morgan had better be grateful.
"Much, she knows about Gisborne. She can speak against him in and see him done for treason. We have to make sure she's safe, and until the Black Knights are taken care of, England is not safe." Robin pointed out.
"She could live in the woods. With us." The suggestion came out of nowhere, and Much hadn't actually meant it when he'd blurted it out, but after the fact, it sounded like a good idea. "We can send her mother to Scarborough, and she can stay with us. It'd be less risky then getting our weapons fixed elsewhere, and she would get to stay in England. Besides, I'm sure Djaq wouldn't mind having another woman about." Robin started to say no, but a voice spoke from behind him, cutting him off.
"I like that idea." Morgan smiled, "Seeing as I don't speak German and all." She hadn't gotten that far from the camp when she decided to wait for Will in the forest. Robin shook his head.
"Absolutely not. It's too dangerous."
"Look, here. The only thing that's stopped me from leaving me work is me mum and Guy. Obviously, I can't trust Guy anymore, and if you can take care of me mum, I'd be happy to join you lot in the woods. I'm handy in a scrape, and I can pull me own weight round camp." Morgan seemed excited about the prospect of living in the woods, fighting injustice and righting wrongs.
"What will you tell Allan?" Robin asked.
"That I'll be fine, that I'm not marrying Gisborne, that I'm going to join your gang. I'll tell him the truth, what else?" she shrugged. Robin rubbed at his chin, mulling it over in his head.
"We'll have to change my plan," he sighed, giving in to the idea. "We can't sneak you out. Even if Allan knows, Gisborne will figure something's wrong when he sees you running with my gang." Morgan put her index finger to her lips, gently biting on her knuckle.
"I think I can take care of it. We can go with Little John's plan. Trust me," she smiled, a certain aura of smugness to her tone, as if she really did have it all sorted out. Will ducked through the trees.
"Allan's on guard now." Morgan looked to Robin, who jerked his head in the direction of Nottingham.
"Go on, then," he urged. "Will, Morgan is our newest member. And she has a plan. Make sure you help her." Will looked supremely confused, but led Morgan towards Nottingham. Morgan glanced over her shoulder, mouthing a quick "thank you" to Much, who bowed his head slightly, accepting it.
"Master, you aren't going to ask about her plan?" Much asked, suddenly noticing that Robin hadn't even questioned her. Robin shrugged.
"You obviously trust her, Much. That's enough for me."
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Author's note: Awww, friendship.