Summary: Sequel to (and set immediately after) Till Death Do Us Part. Centred on Marian, with whole gang featuring, as well as the Sheriff and Gisbourne.

SPOILERS: Spoilers for Series 1 and 2. There shouldn't be any Series 3 spoilers or references, unless I had already had the idea before seeing this series, in which case any similarities are coincidental. However, from this point on there are likely to be spoilers for Series 3 in my author's notes, so BE WARNED!!

Pairings: Robin & Marian, Will & Djaq, Guy & 'Rose'

DISCLAIMER: Don't own Robin Hood, except for the 3 series box sets and a poster. I do however own Nicholas (plus some other OCs) and, as far as I know, this plot, so please do not steal. Otherwise I'll let the bloodthirsty poodles go…

***

Chapter 12 – He Wanted To Weep

"My name is not Marian," she breathed shakily. "It's Rose."

***

"What?!" exclaimed Guy in utter confusion. "What do you mean, you're not… Marian!" He grasped her by the arms and shook her hard, as if that would change her mind, but as she fell limp in his arms it was clear even to him that she was in no state to explain. She shouldn't even be alive – she couldn't be! But perhaps if she didn't know who she was, or he was, then she would not know who Hood was either… No, Hood must surely be the one who brought her back to England; although, had he done so he would never have let Marian within an arrow's distance of him ever again. Guy had to assume that Hood knew nothing of Marian's survival, and that he-

"Sir?" Nicholas stood at Gisbourne's shoulder hesitantly. "What should I do with…" He indicated the knocked out sergeant with a jerk of his head, not knowing the man's man, and thinking it unwise to show any form of deference to the man (even if his role as a guard was only a pretence) after what had happened.

Guy shook himself from his trance and glanced at the unconscious man in repulsion. "Tie him up," he ordered. "I'll deal with him later". He looked back to the clearly injured Marian, or Rose, or whatever she chose to call herself. Still not entirely trusting himself not to have made the entire situation all up, Guy had to do something to make completely sure. He withdrew a short knife from a hidden sheath strapped to his left calf. Nicholas drew and involuntary breath of horror. Was he really going to…?

"My lord?" he approached Gisbourne cautiously, prepared to strike the dagger from his hand and whistle for help at any moment, but when Gisbourne grasped a fold of Marian's dress with the other hand he hesitated. This would not be the action of someone about to stab someone else. Unaware either of Nicholas' words, or his tense stance, Guy slid his knife along the material, tearing a slash in the dress across Marian's abdomen. He traced his finger along first the scar she had obtained as the Nightwatchman, then second along the gash acquired as herself, both inflicted by him. Though his finger hovered just a fraction from her skin, Guy could not bring himself to touch the wounds, though whether that was repulsion at what he had done, restraint for the sake of her dignity, or pure astoundment that she had survived not only one, but two stabbings, was impossible to tell, even for him.

"My lord?" repeated Nicholas. This time he was heard, and Guy pulled his hand back, jostling some sort of parchment tucked into Marian's belt in his retreat. Since Marian appeared to be only sleeping now, he allowed his curiosity to get the better of him, and slid the letter from its resting place, broke the seal, and started reading.

To my brother Andrew,

I pray that this message is delivered to you safely, and with it, Rose. Since I first joined the Abbey as a girl and became a professed nun I have had little contact outside the walls, so I do not know if you are even still alive, but if you are reading this then I must ask a favour of you. This girl came to our Abbey a little over a month ago, suddenly left at our door, ill and severely wounded, having no recollection of her past. We named her Rose because of the locket she was found wearing, but apart from that nothing is known of her. We took her in, and she remained with us for several weeks.

It became apparent however, that she was not suited to a monastic lifestyle, so after speaking with her on the matter, I decided to send her to live with a friend of the convent and her daughter in the village. After only a few days, both mother and daughter fell victim to a fever that killed half of the village - may they rest in peace. Rose survived, but now she has nowhere to go. We would have her back at the Abbey, but she is clearly not suited to life here.

So I have turned to you, my brother, for help. Perhaps you can give her a home, and help her to find employment in Nottingham? She is intelligent, and apparently educated - though she cannot recall her past, she can read and write as well as any scribe - and she is an able cook too. If it is possible, please do all you can to help her - she is a good girl and deserves a chance and a choice in life. If you cannot help, then we will of course, take her back into the Abbey and find another home for her, but if you can help then I ask that you take her in and look after her. Please treat her as though she was family - indeed, we are all children of God, and this child has no one else.

God bless you,

Mother Superior Christine of Ransford Abbey

Andrew? Mother Superior? Ransford Abbey? Guy had never even heard of the place, let alone its Mother Superior. Even more puzzling though, was this Andrew for whom the letter was written. He was from Nottingham (or at least lived in Nottingham), that much was evident, but other than that he was a mystery. After re-reading the letter, Guy started to fold the parchment back up along its creases, intent on demanding an explanation from Marian – or Rose – when she awoke. It was then that he noticed further writing on the reverse side of the letter. It was a name – Andrew of Thornton – followed by the words 'Steward of Locksley Manor'.

Thornton? Guy's eyes flashed upwards and met the concerned gaze of his steward. The old man recoiled slightly at the intensity of his master's gaze, but did not blink, not even when Gisbourne brought himself up to his full height and towered over him.

"Do you have a sister?" he demanded, barely managing to keep his voice steady.

"My lord?" asked Thornton uneasily.

"Answer the question!" Gisbourne's bellow made the other man jump in shock.

"Yes, sir," he replied. "I do."

"Tell me about her."

"Sir?" Still feigning confusion, Thornton played his innocence well.

"Just do it," spat Gisbourne, his patience completely worn down by now.

"W-well, I haven't seen her for years, I-I don't… Christine left home when she was eighteen to join a convent and I've hardly seen her since. We were like any brother and sister before then I suppose – it seemed to be her job to find ways to annoy me and she would take every opportunity to do so. Our parents were determined to treat her just as they treated me – they didn't force her to anything just because she was female, but she liked doing things like sewing and cooking regardless of that. She became engaged when she was about seventeen but her fiancé died in a fire, and shortly afterwards she took her vows and entered the Church. The last I heard she was the Mother Superior in an abbey near Scarborough…" Thornton trailed off, unsure of what to say next.

Luckily it seemed Guy seemed satisfied with his answer and did not press the matter further. As far as he was concerned, this confirmed the validity of the letter. The elderly steward was one of the very few people whom Guy trusted absolutely. Whether he would be so trusting had he known that Thornton had owed his life to Robin's father was uncertain, but as it was he remained totally unaware of this fact, and thus had no reason to doubt his words. Especially not when to do so would insinuate that Robin knew of Marian's survival and yet was not at present storming Locksley Manor in an attempt to save her.

"My lord?" Nicholas' tone was insistent. "My lord, whether or not this woman is who you think she is, she needs a physician. She is-"

"No," snapped Guy sharply. "No one else can learn she is here."

"But sir…" began Thornton in protest.

Guy cut him off. "No one, Thornton. Is that understood?" He looked first at his steward, who nodded, and then at Nicholas. "You. Soldier. What is your name?"

"Samuel, sir." It had been collectively decided that while undercover, Nicholas would use the same alias he had adopted for the journey back from the Holy Land, albeit this time minus the heavily pregnant sister-in-law and company.

"You are to be my new sergeant." Nicholas nodded, surprised. "How did this woman get past the guards?"

"She came to the front of the house where George and I were posted. She said she had a letter for an Andrew of Thornton. We thought we remembered the steward's name was Thornton, so George went and got the sergeant, and he took her here I guess. We heard a scream and came running. I saw you run in and I followed, telling George to wait outside. The you know the rest, sir."

Guy nodded absently. "And this 'George' is still outside is he?"

"I believe so, sir."

"Get him to send two men to the front of the house, and then tie him," he jerked his thumb at his former sergeant, "up and guard him." Nicholas bowed and left. When he returned, it was with an uneasy face.

"My lord, Thornton's daughter is outside."

"Lucy," breathed Thornton in faked relief, despite having known she was fine all along.

"Bring her in."

Moments later Nicholas returned with a young woman, her hair coming loose from the end of its long plait, with which she had been toying anxiously, worried for both her father and herself.

"Where have you been?" reprimanded Thornton, his paternal worry still feigned, but nevertheless convincing.

"I fell asleep outside," she replied. "I went to try and find some quiet, away from the house and all the guards, and I-" She broke off, noticing for the first time that her master (and the cause of the guards) was also present. Immediately she bowed her head. "Sir Guy, I am sorry – I didn't-" He waved away her apology and indicated the woman on the floor.

"Is that…?"

Both her father and Gisbourne nodded, and she composed her shock before kneeling beside Marian to assess the damage.

"Will she be alright?" Guy asked, all traces of his anger now gone, to be replaced by genuine concern. He paced across the small area of the stable they were in.

"I think so, sir. She looks exhausted, but apart from these old wounds uninjured. She's just sleeping."

Guy stopped his pacing and leant down to scoop up Marian in his arms. He peered through a crack in the stable wall, before indicating to Nicholas to open the door, poking his head out to check the coast was indeed clear, and then crossing the yard and re-entering the manor through the still-open side door, with Nicholas, Thornton and Lucy all following uncertainly.

***

They traipsed silently across the floor and up the stairs, Guy wincing slightly when several steps creaked loudly under their weight, but mercifully, the house was empty of guards to hear it, they having been dismissed either to various posts or their dwellings in the formerly bustling servants quarters. Guy entered one of the smaller bedchambers and laid Marian on the bed, in a fashion that would have been called tender had it nor been executed by him. Nicholas was surprised; he had heard Marian's insistence that Gisbourne was repentant, or at least remorseful, but having heard the gang's account of him, he had not believed a man like that could show any form of remorse. Of course, it didn't help that, like Robin had been, he had been led to believe that Marian did have feelings for Guy of Gisbourne, however small and well-hidden.

But here was a man who had been described a 'monster', being tender towards another human being. Though the man's face was unreadable, his actions spoke for themselves. As Guy stood back away from the bed he had to hide his hands behind his back so that the other three present would not see them shaking, he turned his face from the bed so he could not see the tear in the dress that revealed two near-fatal wounds – wounds he had inflicted in his rage – and he ground his teeth together to stop him crying out in fury at himself, at Marian, at Robin, at the Sheriff.

"Wait outside," he muttered to the three observing him in silence. Once they had gone, he sat down on the end of the bed, his head in his hands. He wanted to weep because whatever God that had forsaken him as a child seemed to have had now had mercy on him and brought Marian back. He wanted to weep because she could not remember the fateful day in the Holy Land where he had driven his sword into her belly and then left her for dead. He wanted to weep because she could not remember him burning down her home. He wanted to weep because she could not remember their disastrous wedding day, her punching him, her fleeing the church and her discarding the ring. He wanted to weep because she could not remember Robin Hood, the man she proclaimed to love. The man she helped as the Nightwatchman. The man who must not, under any circumstances, learn of her survival. Guy of Gisbourne had been granted one final chance, and he was not going to mess it up this time.

Having never actually been asleep, Marian heard him stand back up, and decided it was time to 'wake up'. As Guy turned round to look at her, he saw her stirring slowly. He knelt by her side and took her hand. This was it.

***

"Marian," he whispered. She opened her eyes, and frowned in confusion. After blinking sleepily at him for a few seconds, she snatched her hand away.

"My name is not Marian. It's-"

"Rose, I know," he butted in. "But I also know that you have only been 'Rose' for a very short while."

"How do you-?" She put her hand to her belt. "The letter." She sat up sharply, fixing her eyes on him in an accusatory glare. "You read it."

"I had every right to," he replied. She regarded him warily.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"My name," he replied, "is Sir Guy of Gisbourne." He inhaled deeply. "And your real name, 'Rose', is Lady Marian of Knighton, my fiancée."

***

What a porky pie! And just when he could have had a clean start, he has to go back to his old tricks… =/

Apologies if there are random spaces dotted throughout this chapter; my 'Shift' button has decided it wants to be promoted to a spacebar, and is protesting at my refusal to let it.

Also, sorry I didn't post this yesterday, but I went for a day out with friends to celebrate our results =)

If anyone still is confused about what the whole Marian/'Rose' thing is about, all will be explained fully next chapter.

I'm going to try to reply to reviews individually from now on, to force myself to minimise my notes at the bottom. Since I can't reply to anonymous reviews in that way, I'll still reply to them here.

Clari – Yeah sorry about the embarrassing lack of updates =/ I'll try my best to update faster, but like I said, writer's block… =/

Now, go and REVIEW. Not that I have developed some form of obsession over them…