The bottom line was that Marian and Morgan weren't as close as they'd once been. They'd been casual acquaintances before, knowing of each other through various mutual friends. The first time that Robin and Marian had started dating, they were perfectly civil, but that had all changed when Robin and Marian split up the first time. No one was quite sure how it had happened. One minute, they were talking about a possible engagement, the next minute Robin had signed up for a study abroad program, disappearing off to America for a several weeks.
When he'd come back, Marian expressed less than no interest in taking him back. Frankly put, Robin had been crushed. The afternoon after the break-up, Morgan had found him in the park, sitting on the merry-go-round. She'd sat down next to him, not mentioning that they'd been looking for him for hours, that there were other fish in the sea, or that every cloud had a silver lining.
"Not being funny, but there are some pretty impatient looking children waiting to use the merry go round," she had said. The comment had led to a smile. The smile had led to a kiss. The kiss had led to a date. The date had led to a short-lived relationship between the two. If you were to ask Robin about it, Morgan had simply helped him recover from a state of emotional chaos. If you asked Morgan, it was just a fun, little fling that wouldn't happen again. If you asked Much or Carter, it was an act of denial by both parties, designed to try and hide from the world that they were head-over-heels in love with other people.
Though the relationship hadn't really meant anything to either Robin or Morgan, it put an unforeseen strain on the budding friendship of Marian and Morgan. Carter understood the unspoken tension between the two young women, and he therefore understood that it wouldn't do to have them sharing a room. Robin, however, seemed to miss out completely, a bad habit of his, especially when the moods of women were concerned.
"Robin," Morgan muttered as they walked back to the house. "Not being funny, but where am I meant to sleep?"
"In your room," Robin answered, failing to see the problem.
"I can't stay in my room if Marian and Djaq are moving into it," she said flatly. Carter glanced over his shoulder, unable to stop himself from smirking at Morgan's attempt at subtlety.
"Why not?" Robin asked. Morgan seriously doubted that "because your girlfriend hates me" was the correct way to handle the situation, so she tried a different approach.
"Because the room isn't big enough for three people," she blurted out the first excuse that came to mind. "Let alone three girls." At this, Carter could contain his laughter no more and burst into a fit of sniggering. He didn't know which was more amusing: Morgan's lame excuse, or the fact that Robin bought it.
"Alright, we'll move you into another room," he shrugged. Morgan gave a skywards glance, the look on her face triumphant. She supposed that living in the same house, she'd have to work out her problems with Marian eventually, but she also believed that it would be wiser to take things slowly.
---
"Come on! I'm going to be late!" Carter groaned, allowing his forehead to thunk against the bathroom door. There was steam pouring out from underneath the door, which told him that there was little to no chance of him getting a hot shower. "Who's even in there?" Marian and Djaq had already gotten their showers. Robin was using the master bathroom. Much and Will had had the foresight to shower the night before.
Carter glanced back into his bedroom. He paused and amended the thought. The bedroom that he now shared with Morgan, which was Robin's brilliant idea. Carter shook his head. Sometimes he was sure that Robin, for all of his charm, didn't know square one about women. Glancing back at the bedroom once more, Carter noted that Morgan was pulling herself out of bed, staggering sleepily out of the room.
"Morning, Carter," she yawned, rubbing at her eyes. Carter frowned.
"Well, if you're out here, than who's in there?" he asked, confused. The door swung inwards, and Allan stepped out amongst a cloud of steam, a towel around his waist, another around his head like a turban.
"Sorry, mate. It takes time to look this good," he apologized, clapping Carter on the shoulder and winking at Morgan before strutting down to what had become his and Will's room. Carter chuckled, both at Allan's swagger and the bright red color that had crept into Morgan's face.
"Morgan, do us a favor and be more obvious, please," he joked, ruffling her hair. Morgan rolled her eyes, too tired to come up with a retort as she slipped into the bathroom. It took Carter a moment to realize what his teasing had just resulted in.
"I was only joking, Morgan! Be fair!" he apologized, pounding on the door.
---
In the end, Carter gave up on his shower, sprayed on a liberal amount of cologne, and dashed out the door. Will, who didn't have a class until later in the morning, tossed the panicked blond a piece of toast as he went. Will, unlike half of the people he was now living with, hated sleeping in. It was barely eight o'clock, and he'd been up for several hours. So had Much, and Will had the sneaking suspicion that the house wouldn't function without the guidance of Robin's best friend.
Much had made coffee, cooked breakfast, and even arranged everyone's books by the door. Will grinned. If that man wasn't meant to be a primary school teacher, he didn't know who was. He helped himself to eggs and bacon, wondering if anyone else was even going to make it down for breakfast. His answer came in the form of Marian, who was pulling her hair into a ponytail as she rounded the corner.
"Morning, Will," she greeted cheerfully, though he could tell that she was still embarrassed about forgetting his name. She pulled up a seat across the table and slid some fried tomatoes onto her plate. "Did you do all of this?" Will quickly shook his head.
"Much took care of it," he explained. "If I'd cooked, everything would be distinctly burned." Marian smiled at the joke. Her smile only widened as Robin stumbled into the kitchen, followed closely by Much.
"Hurry up and eat your breakfast. It'll get cold," Much said, pointing at the plates of food that dotted the tabletop. "Morning, Marian. Morning, Will."
"Morning, Much," they replied simultaneously, watching as Much busied himself with the pans he'd used to cook breakfast.
"Why is there an extra plate?" Marian asked, recounting the plates set around the table. There were definitely nine of them. Robin frowned at the extra plate.
"That's for Stupid Smarmy Git. Good job that Carter's already left. I don't want to deal with a row this early," he muttered. His tone signified that he himself would start a row with this Stupid Smarmy Git. As if on cue, the gang heard the front door open, and Troy soon appeared in the kitchen, sitting down without waiting for invitation.
"Where's Morgan?" he asked, his mouth already full of egg. Robin pointed at the ceiling, indicating that she was still upstairs. Troy looked along the table, raising an eyebrow at Will and Marian and Djaq, as she entered the kitchen.
"You have a party last night?" he asked.
"No. Will, Marian, Djaq, this is Stu--- Troy. He's Morgan's boyfriend," Robin introduced. "Troy, this is Will, Marian, and Djaq. They've moved in with us."
"Oh," Troy replied, smiling at Marian and Djaq, but eyeing Will with suspicion. Will noticed, but said nothing, too focused on the fact that Djaq had elected to sit next to him to be bothered. "Did anyone else move in?" He was really asking if there were more men in the house, which Robin automatically picked up on.
"As a matter of fact, Allan A Dale moved in too. You know Allan, don't you Troy?" Robin's tone was innocent enough, but Much knew better. He shot his best friend a sharp warning look. Robin was fully aware that Troy knew Allan. He was also aware that Troy hated Allan. Then again, Troy hated anything with testosterone that dared to approach Morgan. A simple creature, Robin mused.
"He's not staying near Morgan is he?" Troy demanded, not bothering to hide his jealousy. Despite the almost-terrifying glare that he got from Much, Robin grinned casually, spearing a piece of bacon with his fork.
"Don't be silly, Troy. Will and Allan are roommates," he calmly reassured, pausing a moment before commenting, "Morgan's moved in with Carter." The reaction pleased Robin. Troy sputtered incoherently for a moment, standing up and heading towards the door. He paused and turned on heel, fumbling with the zipper of his track jacket.
"Tell Morgan that we'll talk about this later," he finally managed, storming out of the house, slamming the door behind him.
"Stupid, smarmy git," Robin grinned under his breath, poking at his eggs. Much rolled his eyes, but Robin didn't miss the smile that quickly passed over his lips.
"I'll go check on Morgan and Allan," he muttered, glancing at his watch as he went up the stairs.
---
Carter practically flew across the well-manicured lawn that led up to the library, juggling his books as he took the steps in twos, banking to the right and entering the AV room. The room was dark, and the movie that the class had been studying, Casablanca, was projected onto the wall. The professor tended to lock the doors after he'd started class, and Carter was relieved to find that a girl sitting in the back row was propping the door open for him. He slid into his desk and grinned at the girl.
"Thanks, Rigby," he whispered.
"No sweat," she replied. "I got your text. We told him you were in the bathroom."
"Miss Rigby, I'm not sure how they do things across the pond, but I'd like it very much if you'd pay attention," the professor drawled from the front of the room.
"Sorry, sir," she apologized, her American accent more noticeable when she talked out loud. "I was helping Carter." The professor squinted through the dark room, taking in the newly filled desk.
"Ah, Mr. Carter. Nice of you to join us," he mused aloud while Humphrey Bogart read a note in the rain on the projector behind him. Carter sank down in his desk, taking copious notes on the movie, even though he could probably reenact the entire film, motions and all.
"Did you hear about Sherwood Heights?" Rigby asked as soon as the professor had turned back around.
"Yeah. Rob's got it in his head that he's going to stop it," Carter muttered softly. Rigby digested this piece of information, tapping her pen against her desk.
"Cool," she finally decided. "So, it's like a protest group?"
"Eleanor! Face front!" the professor repeated, clearly agitated. While Rigby cringed at the use of her first name, Carter frowned. He wasn't exactly sure what Robin's plan was, or if he even had one.
---
"You realize, Locksley, that this is more of a vague idea than a plan," The professor pointed out, setting his coffee mug down on his desk. Robin nodded, as if he'd expected the somewhat tepid response.
"Yes, but don't most causes start out as a vague idea?" he countered. "Anyway, I think that the Sovereigns of Sherwood movement would benefit from your presence." If one thing could be said about Robin Locksley, it was that he knew what to say and when to say it. The professor sighed and leaned back in his chair.
"He's bound to have lawyers, Robin. This won't be easy," he commented gruffly.
"I know some law students. I'm sure that they can help," Robin returned.
"Are you talking about Guy Gisborne?" the professor asked skeptically. "You do know that his uncle is Norman Vaysey, don't you?" Robin's expression was unreadable for a moment. Then, to the professor's surprise, he grinned crookedly.
"Trust me, the last person I would ask for help is Guy Gisborne," he promised. The professor shook his head and let out an amused chuckle.
"Alright. Draw up a mission statement, and I'll see what I can do," he muttered. Robin's face lit up.
"Thanks, Professor Little!" he called over his shoulder as he dashed out the door, supposedly to tell his friends the good news.
---
Will suddenly found that he didn't want to be in the kitchen anymore. Much and Djaq had headed off to their classes, and Robin had dashed out the door, eager to get the Sovereigns of Sherwood campaign off the ground. Allan had inhaled his breakfast and rushed out, instrument case in tow. That left Will with Marian and Morgan. It wasn't the ideal situation.
"You don't like me," Marian suddenly said, placing her plate in the sink. Morgan looked up from her food and stared for a moment. Will pretended to be very interested in the newspaper, hoping that lifting the paper in front of his face would make him invisible.
"You don't like me," Morgan finally corrected. There was silence. For a minute, Will dared to hope that they were through, but his experiences with Allan and his multitude of ex-girlfriends told him that his hope was in vain.
"You dated my boyfriend," Marian didn't scream, but the almost growling tone betrayed her anger.
"He wasn't your boyfriend at the time," Morgan pointed out quietly, tightening her grip on her coffee mug.
"That doesn't give you the green light to sleep with him!" Marian snapped. Will peeked over the top of the newspaper, wondering if he could make a break for it.
"I never slept with him!" Morgan snapped defensively.
"You didn't?" Marian asked sarcastically.
"Of course I didn't. What do you take me for, some kind of stupid tart?" Morgan asked.
"If the shoe fits!" By now, Marian was shouting, and Morgan had slammed her mug onto the table, standing up.
"It doesn't," she ground out, "and maybe if you'd get to know me instead of judging me from your high horse, you'd know that." At that, she turned to leave, but Marian stepped in front of her.
"You're a fine one to talk!" she hissed, pushing Morgan in the shoulder. "You think that I'm some sort of conceited, self-centered princess!" Morgan certainly couldn't deny that. There was a moment of awkward silence. Marian's hands were balled into fists, and she was doing her best not to haul off and hit the shorter girl around the face. Morgan had her hands on her hips, glaring, almost daring Marian to go ahead and start something. Will sat very still, though he was prepared to intervene should they actually start fighting.
"I've got class," Morgan finally said, pushing roughly past Marian and grabbing her books. She stopped and turned. For a minute, it looked like she was considering saying something, but she shook her head and stormed out of the house. Letting out a strangled yell of frustration, Marian stomped up the stairs, muttering darkly as she went.
Will relaxed and put the paper down, feeling that it was safe to be seen again. Considering how dramatic that Allan had made the ordeal out to be (then again, it was Allan, and he excelled in the dramatic), the confrontation had gone rather smoothly. Sure, the conflict wasn't resolved, but there wasn't a bloodbath, and for that, Will was grateful.