As darkness fell, Ivy's mind whirled with a plan. She knew it was risky, but she could not just sit and wait helplessly, not knowing what fate had befallen Robin. She grabbed her black cloak and went to find Renee. The maid was in the kitchen, washing the dishes from dinner.

"Renee, I have a favor to ask you. It's something a little daring. I hope you're up to it." The maid peered at her with wide eyes.

"What is it, miss?"

"Ivy," Ivy reminded the maid.

"What is it, Ivy?"

"I need you to put on this cloak and pretend to be me tonight. It will be dark, so no one will be able to tell the difference from afar. You'll take my horse and ride toward Nottingham. If anyone stops you, say that I sent you find out when my parents will be arriving for their trial." She handed the cloak to Renee who nodded, taking in her words.

"What will you be doing, miss?"

"I'm not going to tell you that because then if you get caught, you won't know anything. I'll be here in bed for all you know." She smiled at her maid. "Keep the hood up and ride as fast as you can. If anyone questions the hour, just say I ordered you there."

"Will someone try to stop me?" Renee asked.

"Possibly Sir Guy. He won't keep you though once he sees you're not me." Renee nodded slowly. "Alright, are you ready?" Ivy led her into the stables, saddling her white horse and helping the girl mount. "Good, I'll see you in a few hours."

She watched as the girl rode away on the white horse. The night swallowed them up, and Ivy turned back to the manor, donning another dark colored cloak and leaving by the back door of the manor. She skirted around the field that surrounded her manor, keeping to the shadows of the trees. Sherwood Forest loomed ahead, and she darted into the dark depths, looking behind her to make sure she hadn't been seen. No one emerged, and she assumed her scheme had worked. She turned and began running through the forest, her soft boots making no noise on the ground. She wound her way to where Robin's camp was but when she reached it, it was empty. Cursing under her breath, she ran on, making her way toward where the trap had been set. The woods were so cold and empty at night. She felt goose bumps run up her arms. She slowed her pace as she came closer to the part of the woods where Guy had set the trap. Her eyes darted around, trying to catch any glimpse of one of the soldiers set on guard. Keeping her body pressed to the trunk of a tree, she looked around it. She could see firelight in the distance. That must be where the chest was.

Ivy took a step back, wondering how she could get closer without being noticed. Suddenly a hand pressed over her mouth, pulling her backward. Ivy wretched free, turning to confront her attacker. Her eyes widened when she saw that it was Robin. He put a finger to his lips and took her hand, pulling her further into the woods.

"What are you doing here?" he asked as soon as they were far enough away from the camp.

"Seeing what you were up to. You'll get caught! Didn't you get Marian's warning?" Ivy asked. She crouched down next to Robin behind a set of bushes.

"Yes, I did. We've got it all planned out, don't worry." Robin smiled.

"How? It's a fool-hardy idea," Ivy retorted.

"Do I detect a hint of concern?" His blue eyes sparkled. Ivy shook her head.

"If Guy catches you-"

"Ah, you've left off the formalities. On a first name basis, are you?"

Though she could see the humor in his eyes, Ivy punched his arm lightly. "I'm just trying to be nice. Just like you asked me to."

"You weren't followed, were you?" he asked.

"No, I wasn't. I was very careful about that. I had a plan of my own."

"Clever. Well, now you can go back home."

"I'm not going anywhere," Ivy said stubbornly. "I want to make sure you aren't captured."

"I won't be-"

"You could be. Just let me stay. I can help."

"No, I don't want you getting caught either. It wouldn't help you or your parents. In fact, it would probably condemn both of you. Is that really what you want? To throw away your parents' chance at a fair trial?"

Ivy bowed her head shamefully. "No. I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking."

"No, you weren't. You can stay right here. Don't follow us, and don't make a sound." Robin eyed her seriously.

"Alright, I won't move," Ivy promised.

"Good." Robin bent forward and kissed her on the head before disappearing into the forest without a sound. Ivy sat down, pulling her cloak around her, her heart beating tensely as she waited for something to happen. The minutes ticked by like hours, and Ivy's eyes began to hurt from staring so intently at the little speck of orange firelight. Then, lifetimes later, there came a disturbance from around the camp. There were shouts and rustlings from the trees. Ivy saw figures leaping down and pursing something into the forest. They were drawing the guards away from the camp, she realized. She heard the clank of metal on metal and shouts coming from where the trunk was. She stood, pressing herself against a tree, trying to see what was happening. There was a sudden blinding light and a roar. Ivy jumped. What on earth had Robin and his gang planned? There was more shouting, and Ivy saw the guards running from the clearing, their legs carrying them as quickly as possible. Ivy watched, astonished. After a moment, the sounds died down, and a group of people could be seen, heaving a heavy looking trunk. Ivy recognized Robin at once. He led the group, and ran forward to greet her.

"Told you we would get it," he said triumphantly. The others peered curiously at Ivy.

"What are you doing here?" Much asked.

"I wanted to make sure you weren't all going to get caught and thrown in jail tonight," she responded. "Clearly I underestimated Robin's gang." She smiled.

"Come on, we need to get this back to camp." Robin took Ivy's hand and led her through the dark forest, Little John, Allan, Much, and Will carrying the trunk between them. Djaq followed behind, watching their backs.

"What on earth did you do to scare them so much?" Ivy asked.

"Just a little fire and fear. We rigged a timber dragon up. Will built it. We covered it in leaves to make it look more realistic and at the right moment, it spit fire out. Genius," he said to Will. The boy ducked his head modestly.

"Went screaming like babies, they did," Allan said gleefully.

"I thought it was risky," Much cut in. "We were walking straight into a trap after all."

"Don't be a spoil-sport, Much," Robin said, looking back.

"Just saying," Much muttered.

When they reached the camp, the treasure was stowed carefully away. Robin took Ivy aside. "Thank you for staying put, and thank you for finding a way to warn us. What was your plan that you came up with?" he asked. "So that you weren't followed here."

"Oh, that. I sent my maid out on my horse to go to Nottingham castle. She was a decoy. It worked." She smiled.

"Clever, clever," Robin said, leaning up against a tree and gazing at her.

"I should get back, I suppose," Ivy said, not really wanting to.

"Stay here tonight," Robin suggested softly. "You can go back before the sun rises tomorrow morning."

"Alright." Ivy followed him back to the camp where the others were celebrating their victory. She accepted a mug of wine from Much and listened as the others talked about what they would do with the money. Her eyes began to grow drowsy, and the warmth from the fire and from Robin sitting close next to her began to put her to sleep. Her head fell against Robin's shoulder as she lost the battle to stay awake.