Scarlet Rose

Goodnight Rose

Chapter 7

In the coming days, Robin had been teaching many to shoot and use and bow and arrow. Others, were spending their times making the bows and arrows, along with the quivers. Then you had a few that were making swords and arrowheads. They were all working in unison.

Rose wasn't exactly in that great of shape though, waking up the last few nights with nightmares. They weren't your average nightmares though. No, they were of her life with the Baron, her Master. Lately, she'd been dreaming of the torture that the man had put her through, sometimes waking up in the middle of the night. There were a couple of times were it had woken up Will, ,leaving him to sit in confusion as he stared at her scared form. She couldn't lie to him though, slowly coming to tell him part of the truth, but only telling him that it had to do with her past.

As time went by though, people noticed little things with Will and Rose that the two young ones did not. They were growing closer and closer without really even realizing it. In fact, Rose no longer bothered trying to find material to help with her own hut, even as a few of the men were in the process of building her one up in the trees. She knew that they were doing this, but didn't say anything about it.

The two of them were always trying to help each other out with things. Whether it be Will helping Rose to fetch water or catch fish, or Rose keep Will company while on watch duty. It was always something with those two. The two that noticed it the most though were John and Fanny, having been together so long, they knew the signs.

T

As the month ended, Rose was finally left with her own hut, spending the nights alone by herself. She was surprised that it bothered her so much, leaving her with less sleep. She just couldn't seem to get passed the thought of not sharing a hut with Will. She had been doing it for so long that she had grown accustomed to it, and now she was left without that luxury. She missed the feeling of comfort and safety that she felt when sharing a hut with Will. She had been without that feeling of security for years and cherished it when she had found it. Now that she was missing it she was at a loss.

Once again, she had woken up in the middle of the night, heart pounding in her chest. She had no clue why she was being plagued with nightmares, but she knew that she needed to do something, perhaps get some fresh air to clear her head. It was the only thing that she could think of to calm herself. So with that in mind, she left her hut in the trees, quietly walking and sitting down on one of the rope bridges.

Rose had no clue what to do as she sat on the bridge looking down at everything around her. Her mind was in shambles upon replaying the dream in her head. The mere reminder of whips colliding with the skin of her back nearly made her cry out, leaving her to bite her tongue so as not to wake anyone. Rose merely wished to be rid of those dreadful memories.

"What am I going to do," she whispered quietly, looking down at the ground below her.

From where she sat, she could see the other huts, a few with fires still burning just outside of them. She could even see Will's hut off to the edge of the camp, still set away from most. He even had a small fire lit, the flames glowing gently, warmth the cold night air. Rose would have thought that Will would be asleep like so many others, but as she took a closer look, she found that there was a figure sitting by the fire.

T

Will sat outside his hut by the fire, warming his hands as he tried to think. Again, he had been unable to sleep, his mind far too restless for his liking. To him, the hut felt empty and cold. He couldn't seem to understand it. The hut was the same as it always was, nothing had changed since the day he built it. It was still the same small hut, made up of the same walls and roof, even the same dirt floor that he walked on every day. Everything was perfectly fine, that is until a little over a week ago.

Will no longer shared his hut with Rose, seeing how she had her own now, and up in the trees no less. Will no longer woke up to find her near him or went to sleep with her at his side. He was merely left with an emptiness, a particular loneliness that seemed to follow him around.

He remembered how things used to be before Rose came around. Will had felt that same loneliness, merely trying to make up for it with his jokes and goofy antics. He had spent each and every night alone by himself, the cold night air of England biting at his skin. He had merely been content in making trouble for any rich man whom thought to cross through Sherwood Forest.

With a sigh he looked down into the fire, numbly rubbing his hands together as he pictured Rose's face. How he truly missed her company at night. Thinking on that a moment longer, he turned his head upward to the trees where her hut resided. He found himself surprised though when he spotted her sitting outside on the bridge looking in his direction.

"Rose?" Will whispered, standing up and staring at her.

She seemed to be looking right at him as he stood there, his hands hanging by his sides, a knowing gleam in his blue green eyes.

"Rose," he whispered her name once more, shaking his head slightly as he let out a soft chuckle.

He could have sworn that she smiled at him before he walked into his hut, grabbing up a blanket in his arms and walking back out. When he exited though, his brows furrowed in confusion and disappointed as he found no sign of her where she once was.

"Rose…" he groaned quietly, going and sitting back down by the fire, simply tossing the blanket to the ground in frustration.

He ran a hand through his hair as he sat there staring into the fire, the flames warmth trying to coax him forward. He couldn't help, but to let out a sigh as he sat there, his eyes never leaving the brightly glowing fire.

A few minutes later, the sound of softly padded footsteps met his ears with the crackling of dried leaves. Turning around toward the noise, he found Rose standing there awkwardly, a hopeful look in her eyes as she looked toward him. There was also a look of longing accompanying her eyes, her need for the company of her friend.

"Rose," he nearly stuttered as he quickly stood from his spot, eyes slightly widened in surprise.

"Hello Will," she whispered, a small smile gracing her face as she stepped closer.

She had her arms wrapped around herself, shivering slightly from the cold as she came to stand a few feet in front of him. He could even hear the faint chattering of her teeth as she stood there in her night clothes.

"Oh, um, here," Will said quickly, offering her blanket that he been warming by the fire.

She took it graciously, wrapping it around herself and sighing contently at the warmth.

"Come sit," Will said softly, gesturing to the spot beside him as he sat on the ground this time to be closer to the fire, knowing full well that she needed the extra warmth.

She smiled at him as she sat down beside him on the ground, letting out a faint moan of bliss from the heat. It felt so good against her cold skin.

"What are you still doing up?" Will asked curiously, fairly certain that he already knew the answer to his question.

"I…I couldn't sleep," she whispered, hanging her head slightly as she looked down at the fire.

"Another nightmare?" Will asked slowly, turning in his spot a bit to look at her fully.

He watched as her hand shook a bit, though this time it wasn't from the cold.

"Rose?" he called her name quietly, carefully reaching his hand out and placing it on her cheek.

He gently pulled her head up a bit, only to find silent tears falling from her eyes, slowly sliding down her cool pale cheeks.

"What happened?" he asked quietly, bringing his hand back down to rest on her shoulder.

For a moment she seemed to hesitate in her actions before she finally decided to speak.

"I…I can't. Y-you'd never look at me the same way," she whispered, choking slightly on her tears.

"Rose, I'd never think any less of you," Will assured her, pulling her forward slightly to get his point across.

"Promise?" she hesitated.

"I promise Rose…otherwise, you can smack me," he said lightly, the corner of his lip pulling lightly as he tried to make a joke to lighten the mood.

With that she nodded her head slowly, dropping the blanket from her shoulders and turning around. Will was about to say something when she started to take her shirt off, causing his face to go slightly red. She pulled it in front of her to cover her chest, remaining silent. It was then that Will noticed her back, his mouth hanging open slightly as he gazed at her skin.

"Rose…" he breathed, his fingertips coming to brush the back of her skin making her flinch.

He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Her entire back was covered with scars. Some were discolored, others long, some slightly bumpy. He looked at one in particular that was creamy white, slightly raised above the skin from past infection. It had been cut deep in the skin, leaving a terrible scar behind.

"Is this…" he couldn't manage to finish as he stared at her.

"That's what he did to me," she whispered, her body shaking from the cold that gnawed at her delicate skin.

He could hear the faint sniffle that escaped her lips as she tried to prevent herself from crying again. Her body still shaking as she watched the faint shadows of the fire move out of the corner of her eye. It was obvious that this was tearing at her heart, allowing Will to see something so horrific. She'd been told so many things before, she really didn't know what to believe in anymore. Although, she knew that if there was one person that she could trust above all else, then it was Will. She didn't know why, but she believed him when he promised not to think any less of her, she believed his words and clung to them.

"Rose, put your shirt back on," Will said gently, watching as she obeyed.

After that, he pulled her into his arms, her back against his chest.

"Will?" she whispered in question, confused by his actions as she tried to dry her wet eye.

"Hush," he said quietly, merely keeping her close as they sat there. "Close your eyes for me?" he whispered, pulling the blanket around the to keep her warm.

"I'm afraid," she whimpered, remembering the vivid dream that she had had.

"Just trust me," he told her, pulling her head against his chest, her ear resting over his heart.

He heard her let out a short noise as she sat there resting against him, her muscles relaxing and her mind slowly being put at ease.

"Will…" she whispered quietly, her mind becoming slightly foggy as she sat there with him.

"What is it?" he asked, his eyes turning to look down at her.

He found a faint smile gracing her lips as he looked at her.

"Thank you…for not turning me away," she whispered.

"I'm not as cold hearted and insensitive as some might think Rose," he told her quietly, but found that she was already asleep. "Goodnight…Rose."

Okay, that was chapter 7 everyone. I hope that everyone enjoyed it. Please remember to REVIEW and MESSAGE me with your thoughts on this story. I always love hearing from people about what they think. And don't forget to check out my PROFILE for my other stories. Thanks everyone. :)