Author's Note: Some of you might know, but for those of you that don't... I love reviews. :)

Chapter Twenty-Five: Acceptance

The night was quiet yet somehow alive. The festival's campers were all soundly sleeping in their tents, resting in preparation for the next day's celebrations. Guy could already feel the May dew gathering around him as he lay out on a blanket, staring up at the stars and trying to sort through the day's events in his head. It was hard to believe that it had only been that morning that he had been a normal man, waking to just another day of taking orders from the Sheriff. He'd had no idea that when he would be laying down to sleep later that night that this would be where he'd end up. He couldn't even sleep with the knowledge of what had happened. He'd danced with a beautiful woman. He'd protected her from mortal danger. He had finally professed his burning affections for her. But the best of all of it was that on top of all of this, he'd finally willed himself to get what he had wanted for so long; a kiss from the soft lips of an angel.

Recalling that memory was like he was reliving the very moment. He could still taste her on his mouth, the memory of the flavor as fresh and exhilarating as the actual action. The damp cold of the May night was quickly left behind as his temperature rose from a quickly beating heart. He was elated at the very thought of her kiss, her touch, her smell, even the sound of her voice, her laugh, her funny little accent. He wasn't alone in this clearing with the thought of her in his head. He knew that when he returned to the castle the next morning, he would return to the castle to collect her for festivities that would resume that day.

This anticipation would keep him up all night. However, the prediction of the upcoming sleepless night could not stop him from enjoying every last cherished thought of her, no matter the consequences of the feelings she inspired within him. He was grateful to have them at all. All of the sleepless nights in the world were well worth each and every moment he could have feeling like this. He was grateful to have her. Even so, he knew he needed sleep. The best he could do now was close his eyes and hope that he would exchange thoughts of Mariella for dreams of her.

Night had already fallen and Guy was still not back. Now it was dark. The castle was quiet as were the structures beyond the courtyard walls. The village of Nottingham was sleeping, but not Mariella. A restless mind would not allow her to. Having given up on the idea of sleep long ago, she sat on the edge of her bed, her body weak from exhaustion and her mind toeing the border of unconsciousness. Desperate for rest, Mariella sorted through the day's events in her head, trying to resolve all of the regrets that had formed because of them. She cursed herself for her girlish stupidity. All that had happened had only been her emotions getting the best of her. Her loneliness was feeding off of the situation, giving her the hunger to make herself want Guy just so that the awful feeling would go away. She could find no other reason for it. She didn't want Guy. She just wanted someone… anyone. It was a common cause of love affairs and she had fallen for it.

With that thought in mind, Mariella tried to configure the reasons in her head as to why she could possibly want to enter into this affair at all. She had to figure out what it was about Guy that made this time different than the other times a man came courting.

First of all, the most appealing factor of the temptation was that Guy seemed sincere. Men before him had asked her to dance, had asked for a kiss, had asked for many more things that she was not willing to give outside of wedlock. She did not see any of those impure desires in Guy's intentions. When she closed her eyes and thought about him, the first images that came to mind were of him him smiling at her, reaching for her, gazing at her, but never any undesirable, sinful expressions.

His intentions were pure, she decided, but that didn't explain how she truly felt about him. When she thought about him, she felt… her heart start to race. She felt her temperature start to rise. She felt the urge to be closer to him. It was a reaction like non she had ever experienced. However, the one thing that was out of place and set everything off-balance was the contradicting desire to stay away from him. And so she was faced with a dilemma. She was afraid of being near a man that could be very good for her. There was no reason for it. No reason at all… Her fear was baseless. Guy made her feel so safe. Yet when he was near her her heart quivered with fright, words failed her. Mariella lifted her hands from her lap to find them shaking in midair, but whether it was from weariness or emotion she did not know. Finally she slowly slipped into the depths of slumber...

Their clearing looked beautiful even at night. The stars sparkled overhead. The moon cast a blue effect over the usually green foliage. The cold was trying to soak its way under her skin, but something was keeping it out. Something wrapped around her kept her body heat from escaping. It was like an invisible force, snuggly wrapped around her like a blanket. After a slight shift the force solidified into two strong arms, encircling her in such a fond way that she had no doubt in her mind as to who it was. Then suddenly a slight breeze blew over her, carrying not a chill but a scent. It was the distinct scent of soft leather and musk, a scent which Mariella was beginning to grow evermore fond of. A slight shift in his movement reminded Mariella once again of the arms that enveloped her and they gave her a reassuring squeeze which caused a start in her heart that was slowly becoming an addiction. Softly he whispered something in her ear, but before she had time to process what he had said, she slipped back into consciousness and it was lost to her.

Mariella awoke to the slowing beat of her own heart, her previous feelings of joy fading with it. The sunlight that shone through her open window shattered the illusion of her dream, leaving Mariella with an unusual sense of isolation and confusion. It was morning. She had been dreaming the entire time. Now the loss having his arms around her made Mariella acknowledge the loss of the emotion that the dream had inspired in her bosom. However, upon contemplation of her dream, the feeling began to slowly return to her chest and, for once, stayed there. It was at that moment that she knew a change had occurred within her and there was now no desire to go back.

"Are you all right, my dear?"

The question brought Mariella soaring out of her head and back to the breakfast table where Uncle Vasey was staring at her, his brow furrowed and his eyes worried.

"Fine," she answered with a smile. She had been staring at the empty seat across from her which Guy of Gisborne would sometimes occupy. He had still not returned. Yet no matter how much the anxiety within her burned with the urge to question this, Mariella knew that she could not inquire after his whereabouts. Such questions might arouse other, unwanted questions within her guardian. It was this slight possibility that made the act a forbidden curiosity. Mariella was far from ready to let slide this new, undeveloped secret. It was not yet mature enough to be unveiled. It first had to be lived out a little so that it could fully form and be considered a secret at all.

"Good," Vasey nodded as he returned to his plate, "And are you ready for your second day of festivities? Hopefully you'll actually be able to see this one the whole way through."

"Yes, hopefully," Mariella repeated, "For the most part I enjoyed yesterday. I'm curious as to what a full day of it would be like."

"Well then," he said as he wiped his mouth with a napkin, "If you're done then we best be off. The sporting competitions are starting up today and I don't want to miss it." As he rose something quickly came to mind and he stopped in his tracks. "Mariella," he called, "Why aren't you wearing that locket I gave you the other day?"

The mention of the necklace made Mariella suddenly realize that she had almost forgotten about the gift entirely, which explained to her why she hadn't even thought of wearing it. Of course, she couldn't tell Vasey this, so she had to mold the truth into a palatable form. "I do not wear jewelry often," she explained, "Putting on jewelry is not a ritual I am accustomed to, so I don't think of putting any on, more or less such a new and important piece. I would be much too scared of losing it or it being damaged if I wore it."

"You underestimate its importance, my dear," Vasey insisted, "It is far too important to be locked away from the world. Go fetch it. Now."

This statement confused Mariella. He had not told her it had such a great value as he was implying. "Besides you gifting it to me, what makes it so important, Uncle Vasey?"

"Just go get it," he ordered as he pulled his gloves from his pocket and began slipping them on, "I'll go wait in the carriage."

The tone of authority in Vasey's voice eliminated all other urge in Mariella to question him further or delay any longer, so she gave a quick bow of her head and rushed off to her room to retrieve the bobble, put it around her neck, and hurry to the courtyard where the carriage waited for her. An attendant opened the door for her, helped her in, closed the door behind her, shutting her inside with Vasey.

"That's a girl," Vasey smiled at seeing the locket around her neck, "It suits you better than I imagined. You really should wear it more often."

"Yes, my lord," Mariella simply responded accompanied with a meek nod and followed by her redirecting her attention out the window.

The Sheriff saw this reaction as a sign of withdrawal and realized that she was reacting to his behavior. Knowing what she wanted to hear, he gave a great, exasperated sigh and announced, "It was your mother's."

Mariella's eyebrows shot up and her eyes went wide as they turned on him with awe, her hand automatically finding the locket where it laid against her chest. "My mother?" she repeated with astonishment, "But she never… I never saw her… How did you…?" She couldn't seem to finish a single sentence, her mind was whirling with surprise.

"She gave it to me long ago," he explained, "Whether you were too young to remember or unborn I don't recall, but it was certainly a long, long time ago. You look so much more like her now..."

With that said Mariella slipped back into silence, knowing not what else she could possibly say. Vasey took advantage of the period of silence as a chance to examine a change in his ward. Today she had dressed in one of her finer dresses. Green silks ran over her slim body like rainwater down a smooth hillside, an even, steady flow that swayed about her wrists and feet. An embroidered, brown belt encircled her hips, its ends trailing more than halfway down the front of her skirt. Her hair was actually styled today with a leaf-shaped clasp holding back two twisted strands of hair that formed a mortal halo around her head and showcased her facial features with confidence and grace. In addition with the locket she looked more beautiful than ever, which concerned him.

"I, uh, can't help but notice that you've dressed up, today," he began, "Any reason why?"

Before she could conjure up an answer, the carriage came to a halt and the door was opened. The driver was ready to help Mariella exit, which she accepted quickly in order to escape Vasey's inquiries. Luckily for her, the Sheriff let the matter die in the carriage, nearly forgetting about it as he looked around the grounds, festivities already beginning to pick up momentum. "Lovely day for a festival, isn't it?" he asked one of the nearby guards who had been stationed, like others, as extra security around the clearing. The guard, of course, gave no reply as it was not really expected of him. So, the Sheriff offered his arm to Mariella, which she took, and lead her into the midst of it, with a simple passing thought: "I suppose we should try to find Gisborne now, eh?"