The crowd that had cheered her before hushed, astonished at the reveal. Then, outbursts of ridicule peppered throughout by the other archers who hadn't won the contest, the King's courtiers, and concerned townspeople. Rob O' the Hedge, for his part, was more astonished than the rest, walking quickly towards her as fast as he could once his bonds had been taken off. The Sheriff took the King aside.

"We can't just give Rob O' to her, sire! What should we do? He may not even be her real father, you know," he whispered confidentially.

Shooting the Sheriff a disapproving glare, the King considered this for a moment, then beckoned his trusted scribe with a finger.

"You summoned me, sire?" the ram rasped, clearing his throat.

"Lambert, my most trusted one. Tell me, friend, what should I do with her?"

"The young lady who won the contest, sire?"

"Yes, the idiot who waltzed into this contest and won it by a single arrow! I cannot let Rob O' get off scot-free! It'll ruin me as a ruler, much like my own brother King Johnathan, God bless his soul."

King Thomas looked back at Eleanor, who was being hugged and congratulated by her friends. Lambert thought for a moment, then a malicious grin grew across his face as he whispered the plan into Thomas' ear. The grin spread to Thomas' face as he nodded, pleased.

"Excellent work, my companion, see to it that our, ahem, esteemed guest receives a formal invitation."

Meanwhile, Eleanor was surrounded by her friends and the freed Merry Men, along with the rest of the crowd, not being able to hear very much above the din of voices. She had to field the comments, most of which were rude and belittling her, although some would begrudgingly praise her skills. Blushing madly, Eleanor was surprised just as much as anyone else by the results. I didn't even think I would win, especially with so little training from Rob O' and the Merry Men, she thought to herself. I'm happy he's safe now, even if he won't claim me as his descendant.

Her musings were interrupted by Rob O' approaching her himself, looking stern. Eleanor hung her head lowly, her ears folded back, until she was suddenly swept into a hug by him.

"You really are my flesh and blood," he whispered into her ear before letting her go and looking at her fully. "You saved my life, and you are a wonderful, crazy woman!"

Lambert, who had been watching this touching reunion, cleared his throat. Eleanor turned to look at him with a puzzled expression, as Rob O' grunted, annoyed.

"Sorry to interrupt this, er, wonderful moment, but could I have a moment of your time alone, my dear?"

Eleanor looked over to Rob O', not sure whether to trust Lambert.

"I'll be right behind you if he tries anything," Rob O' whispered to her, walking a safe distance away and joining Pine, South, Gill and the other Merry Men.

Eleanor watched him go before turning to Lambert. "What is it you want from me?"

Lambert pulled out an official-looking invitation and handed it over to Eleanor with a grin.

Reading the invitation over, Eleanor frowned at what it said. "The King is inviting me to a dinner party?"

"Well, there is also the matter of your other rewards and some minor issues to discuss, but the most important part is that you attend," Lambert clarified.

Eleanor handed the invitation back to him, the frown not moving from her face. "I am terribly sorry, but I will be unable to attend. There are far more important things for me to be doing than going to some fancy dinner. My father and I would like to spend some more time together-"

"Oh, please, I insist you come! His Majesty would be quite cross with me if you did not attend, madam," Lambert pressed, holding the invitation out again.

"I really don't know much about him or trust him for that matter. He ordered the Sheriff to harm my father in the first place, and anyone who harms my family immediately earns my displeasure. There is no possible reason for me to want to trust him, let alone eat with him."

Lambert was displeased at this and tried again to convince her.

The two of them went back and forth, with one spouting threat and the other refusals, until Lambert resorted to begging on his knees in front of her. The Merry Men noticed this, and soon moved forward to help Eleanor get rid of Lambert. By the pained look on Eleanor's face, she wanted him as far away from her as possible. Pine was the first to act, grabbing Lambert by the back of his woolly neck and punching him directly in the face. As he fell, Pine went to check on Eleanor.

"Are you alright? He didn't hurt you, did he?"

"Just my pride, and my hand," Eleanor replied, shaking her right hand back into feeling. "He didn't hurt anything else, thank goodness."

Pine nodded, letting Eleanor get ahead of him in case Lambert awoke in a rage. Fortunately, Pine's well-timed punch had left Lambert unconscious.

Returning to her father and the other Merry Men, South cleaned and bandaged Eleanor's hand, then they started the trek back to Sherwood Forest. After arriving in Rob O's camp, the Merry Men set about preparing a feast in Eleanor's honor, leaving her to dance with them and tell stories. It had been an awfully long time since a woman had been in their camp, so there were many stories to be told, about both Rob O' and Mari-An. As they were finishing with the meal, Rob O' took Eleanor aside.

"That Lambert character didn't seem trustworthy. What exactly did he want from you that would make him beg on his knees after you saved my life?"

Eleanor cringed. "He wanted me to attend a dinner party hosted by King Thomas. He scared me, father. I'm scared that he and His Majesty want to hurt me, or you, or worse. I don't want to go, for my safety and yours."

"Well, I can't tell you what you should do, since you're your own person, but I wouldn't go by yourself. You'll certainly need some companionship."

Eleanor looked over at her friends, who were busy having a great time, and nodded. "Definitely need some backup."