Chapter One
Runaway
I pulled my cloak closely around me as I slid across the cold stone wall. It was a black, moonless night. I felt my way along the stiff wall until I reached the stables. I opened the door, praying for it not to creak. I began to tack my horse, Bluemoon, muffling the jingle of the bridle as much as I could. I saddled Bluemoon and placed my haversack across his back, securing it tightly.
I silently walked out of the stables , Bluemoon trailing close behind. Leading him, I headed silently to a gate in the east wall, my horse's hoofs clanking slightly against stone.
THUMP!!!
"You stupid horse! The gates are CLOSED!" I hissed to Blue.
"Duh...Why?" Blue wondered.
"Because it's 3 hours after midnight, Blue!" I said, getting off Blue and opening the gate. I yanked Blue through the gate and shut it softly. I climbed onto Blue and the black night enveloped us quickly, and we disappeared into the grey of the rising fog.
* * *
The sun had risen and was hitting Blue and I rather hard. We slowed down to a slow walk. I decided, after a lot of thinking, that it was time to follow my plan and precede to ride deep into Sherwood and try to find Robert of Loxely, an old friend of mine. Thinking about him brought back childhood memories, mostly of me beating him up, and him pushing me off a tree, and breaking my arm in the process. Oh those childhood times... It was a risque plan, considering the fact that I haven't seen Robin in 10 years, but I might be able to find him, I had heard that he had insulted the prince, and been outlawed, so I figured he was hiding out with the rest of the "merry" outlaws somewhere in the 1,000 acres of Sherwood.
Fat chance finding him, I thought to myself.
I scanned the foliage on the side of the road. Finally I found a break in the bushes, into which looked like a small woodland path. We followed along the path, the sound of nature putting me more at ease than I had been on the road.
Blue
Blue on the other hand was definitely any thing but at ease. All of the stumps and roots sticking up in the path were making him very nervous. He decided that he should only keep his eyes on his feet, so he wouldn't trip. Blue of course, didn't think about the fact that there were overhanging branches on the path. He ran straight into a branch, hitting his head hard. I was knocked off, considering the fact that I was too stupid to duck. Then Blue lost all sense of direction and ran headlong into another tree.
Rae
I could not believe how stupid my horse was, what kind of horse runs into trees? I thought to myself.
Duh...me?
"Well, yeah Blue, good thinkin'." I said aloud.
For as long as I can remember, I've always been able to talk to horses, it was some gift or something, horse magic I guess. I could talk to horses in my head also. I'm not crazy, I swear.
Duh....Why are you on the ground? Blue wanted to know.
"Because you knocked me off, you stupid.." I then continued to shout off a long, rather vile list of curses at Blue.
* * *
Will
Will was walking along, patrolling Sherwood for intruders when he heard the weirdest thing. It sound like a person shouting curses at the top of their lungs. He followed the sound of the voice until he reached a very strange sight. There was a tall blond girl with curly hair screaming at a black horse. He looked past the horse and saw his leader Robin. Robin grinned and gave him thumbs up. Achoo nodded at him, grinning widely. Usually thumbs up means that the intruder isn't bad. Will stepped out from hiding.
"Excuse me."
(a little help here, Rae doesn't know it's Robin, I just said there names so I don't have to say hot- brown-haired-dude or hot-blond-crystal blue eyes with hair in them-dude every single time....we're back to Rae's point of view also...for any stupid people like me...yeah...)
I stopped talking... no, screaming abruptly and turned around.
"Oh, great."
"Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you."
"Never said you were." I said, "Who's the guy in the bushes behind me?"
The guy who was hidden laughed and walked into the open, followed by another man.
I examined the three men. The first one I had encountered had dark brown, almost black hair that was above his ears, but it was kind of flippy. He had amber eyes that sparkled. I could tell he had a sense of humor from his stance and his expression. He was very tall and lanky, but muscular.
The other man had blond hair that got into his eyes, and throughout the conversation he constantly flicked his head to get hair out of his crystal blue eyes. He was also tall and muscular. He reminded me of someone I had known a long time ago.
The last man was African, he was tall and muscular also. He had a nice twinkle in his eye, and I immediatly liked him.
"You're a smooth one, huh?" Robin asked/stated.
I twitched my wrist and two daggers appeared in my hands, I tried to act like I knew what I was doing. It didn't work.
"Yeah, I am."
"You're holding the daggers wrong, they're upside down." Achoo commented dryly, hidding a smile.
"Well....um...yeah...whatever." I said blushing, "Well...Dang.."
"Okay...." Robin said, I could tell he was trying to hide a grin.
"So... what are you three doing in Sherwood?" I asked.
"Just hangin', what are YOU doing in OUR hangout...place?" Achoo asked.
"Well...um looking for someone..." I replied, trying to act subtle, but once again, I failed.
"Exactly who may I ask you are looking for?" he asked.
" I was looking for some guy named Robin of Loxely."
"Why were you looking for him?" Will asked slyly.
"I used to know him, along time ago," I said.
Will grinned, "Well you might find him here, I warn you though, he's hideous." he said, pointing at the second man.
The second man glared at him, "I'll deal with you later, Will. I could know Robin. Who's looking for him?"
"Oh, sorry! My name's Marian, but just call me Rae."
"Marian." the guy whose name I didn't know screeched, taken by surprise, "It's me, Robin!"
"ROBIN!!" I screeched, leaping up and hugging Robin.
Will and Achoo were beginning to get rather bored during their little happy Happy reunion,
considering the fact that the attention wasn't on them. Will leaned against Rae's black horse.
Blue was also bored, and very, very confused.
"Duh..."
Will and Achoo jumped in surprise.
"What?"
"Duh!"
"Dude! Say it again!" Achoo said.
"DUH!"
"That's sweet man!" Will said.
"Sorry to interrupt your little reunion, but.. I think that you're horse just said 'Duh'," Will said, confused.
I broke apart from Robin.
"Oh, that's just Blue, he doesn't neigh, he just says duh, and runs into things." I said.
"Oh...okay...right...Sure.." Will said sarcastically.
"So, where do you live Rob? Do you have a camp?"
"Yeah, of course we have a camp, would you like to come stay with us at our camp, Marian?" Robin asked politely.
"Why of course, thank you soo much Robin! I'd be simply delighted!" I said back, sounding absolutely like an idiot.
"Well! Isn't that just dandy?" Will said flipping his hand in a downward motion, then brushing his hair back he began walking ahead swaying his hips and giggling. Achoo followed mimicking Will.
"See you two lovebirds back at camp." he said.
Robin and I both punched Achoo in the arm at the same time.
"Loser." I said.
Achoo looked hurt, but then got over it quickly.
"Great, God created two of them and put them right in my lap."
Achoo was answered by more punches. Will looked like he felt rejected.
I looked behind me,
Come on Blue, let's go!
Blue looked around, drooled a bit and then sprang forward happily, like a rabbit, right into a tree. He fell backwards on his tail, then sprang up again, galloping after me.
"DUH!" He "neighed" loudly.
Robin and Will both gave me curious glances.
"I think you've rubbed off on him Rae." Robin said to me, grinning.
By then Blue had caught up, and slowed to a walk, walking behind me.
"Dumb horse." I stated.
"Duh..." Blue "said".
Robin and Will just glanced at me again, I shrugged. Achoo shook his head.
***
Runaway
I pulled my cloak closely around me as I slid across the cold stone wall. It was a black, moonless night. I felt my way along the stiff wall until I reached the stables. I opened the door, praying for it not to creak. I began to tack my horse, Bluemoon, muffling the jingle of the bridle as much as I could. I saddled Bluemoon and placed my haversack across his back, securing it tightly.
I silently walked out of the stables , Bluemoon trailing close behind. Leading him, I headed silently to a gate in the east wall, my horse's hoofs clanking slightly against stone.
THUMP!!!
"You stupid horse! The gates are CLOSED!" I hissed to Blue.
"Duh...Why?" Blue wondered.
"Because it's 3 hours after midnight, Blue!" I said, getting off Blue and opening the gate. I yanked Blue through the gate and shut it softly. I climbed onto Blue and the black night enveloped us quickly, and we disappeared into the grey of the rising fog.
* * *
The sun had risen and was hitting Blue and I rather hard. We slowed down to a slow walk. I decided, after a lot of thinking, that it was time to follow my plan and precede to ride deep into Sherwood and try to find Robert of Loxely, an old friend of mine. Thinking about him brought back childhood memories, mostly of me beating him up, and him pushing me off a tree, and breaking my arm in the process. Oh those childhood times... It was a risque plan, considering the fact that I haven't seen Robin in 10 years, but I might be able to find him, I had heard that he had insulted the prince, and been outlawed, so I figured he was hiding out with the rest of the "merry" outlaws somewhere in the 1,000 acres of Sherwood.
Fat chance finding him, I thought to myself.
I scanned the foliage on the side of the road. Finally I found a break in the bushes, into which looked like a small woodland path. We followed along the path, the sound of nature putting me more at ease than I had been on the road.
Blue
Blue on the other hand was definitely any thing but at ease. All of the stumps and roots sticking up in the path were making him very nervous. He decided that he should only keep his eyes on his feet, so he wouldn't trip. Blue of course, didn't think about the fact that there were overhanging branches on the path. He ran straight into a branch, hitting his head hard. I was knocked off, considering the fact that I was too stupid to duck. Then Blue lost all sense of direction and ran headlong into another tree.
Rae
I could not believe how stupid my horse was, what kind of horse runs into trees? I thought to myself.
Duh...me?
"Well, yeah Blue, good thinkin'." I said aloud.
For as long as I can remember, I've always been able to talk to horses, it was some gift or something, horse magic I guess. I could talk to horses in my head also. I'm not crazy, I swear.
Duh....Why are you on the ground? Blue wanted to know.
"Because you knocked me off, you stupid.." I then continued to shout off a long, rather vile list of curses at Blue.
* * *
Will
Will was walking along, patrolling Sherwood for intruders when he heard the weirdest thing. It sound like a person shouting curses at the top of their lungs. He followed the sound of the voice until he reached a very strange sight. There was a tall blond girl with curly hair screaming at a black horse. He looked past the horse and saw his leader Robin. Robin grinned and gave him thumbs up. Achoo nodded at him, grinning widely. Usually thumbs up means that the intruder isn't bad. Will stepped out from hiding.
"Excuse me."
(a little help here, Rae doesn't know it's Robin, I just said there names so I don't have to say hot- brown-haired-dude or hot-blond-crystal blue eyes with hair in them-dude every single time....we're back to Rae's point of view also...for any stupid people like me...yeah...)
I stopped talking... no, screaming abruptly and turned around.
"Oh, great."
"Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you."
"Never said you were." I said, "Who's the guy in the bushes behind me?"
The guy who was hidden laughed and walked into the open, followed by another man.
I examined the three men. The first one I had encountered had dark brown, almost black hair that was above his ears, but it was kind of flippy. He had amber eyes that sparkled. I could tell he had a sense of humor from his stance and his expression. He was very tall and lanky, but muscular.
The other man had blond hair that got into his eyes, and throughout the conversation he constantly flicked his head to get hair out of his crystal blue eyes. He was also tall and muscular. He reminded me of someone I had known a long time ago.
The last man was African, he was tall and muscular also. He had a nice twinkle in his eye, and I immediatly liked him.
"You're a smooth one, huh?" Robin asked/stated.
I twitched my wrist and two daggers appeared in my hands, I tried to act like I knew what I was doing. It didn't work.
"Yeah, I am."
"You're holding the daggers wrong, they're upside down." Achoo commented dryly, hidding a smile.
"Well....um...yeah...whatever." I said blushing, "Well...Dang.."
"Okay...." Robin said, I could tell he was trying to hide a grin.
"So... what are you three doing in Sherwood?" I asked.
"Just hangin', what are YOU doing in OUR hangout...place?" Achoo asked.
"Well...um looking for someone..." I replied, trying to act subtle, but once again, I failed.
"Exactly who may I ask you are looking for?" he asked.
" I was looking for some guy named Robin of Loxely."
"Why were you looking for him?" Will asked slyly.
"I used to know him, along time ago," I said.
Will grinned, "Well you might find him here, I warn you though, he's hideous." he said, pointing at the second man.
The second man glared at him, "I'll deal with you later, Will. I could know Robin. Who's looking for him?"
"Oh, sorry! My name's Marian, but just call me Rae."
"Marian." the guy whose name I didn't know screeched, taken by surprise, "It's me, Robin!"
"ROBIN!!" I screeched, leaping up and hugging Robin.
Will and Achoo were beginning to get rather bored during their little happy Happy reunion,
considering the fact that the attention wasn't on them. Will leaned against Rae's black horse.
Blue was also bored, and very, very confused.
"Duh..."
Will and Achoo jumped in surprise.
"What?"
"Duh!"
"Dude! Say it again!" Achoo said.
"DUH!"
"That's sweet man!" Will said.
"Sorry to interrupt your little reunion, but.. I think that you're horse just said 'Duh'," Will said, confused.
I broke apart from Robin.
"Oh, that's just Blue, he doesn't neigh, he just says duh, and runs into things." I said.
"Oh...okay...right...Sure.." Will said sarcastically.
"So, where do you live Rob? Do you have a camp?"
"Yeah, of course we have a camp, would you like to come stay with us at our camp, Marian?" Robin asked politely.
"Why of course, thank you soo much Robin! I'd be simply delighted!" I said back, sounding absolutely like an idiot.
"Well! Isn't that just dandy?" Will said flipping his hand in a downward motion, then brushing his hair back he began walking ahead swaying his hips and giggling. Achoo followed mimicking Will.
"See you two lovebirds back at camp." he said.
Robin and I both punched Achoo in the arm at the same time.
"Loser." I said.
Achoo looked hurt, but then got over it quickly.
"Great, God created two of them and put them right in my lap."
Achoo was answered by more punches. Will looked like he felt rejected.
I looked behind me,
Come on Blue, let's go!
Blue looked around, drooled a bit and then sprang forward happily, like a rabbit, right into a tree. He fell backwards on his tail, then sprang up again, galloping after me.
"DUH!" He "neighed" loudly.
Robin and Will both gave me curious glances.
"I think you've rubbed off on him Rae." Robin said to me, grinning.
By then Blue had caught up, and slowed to a walk, walking behind me.
"Dumb horse." I stated.
"Duh..." Blue "said".
Robin and Will just glanced at me again, I shrugged. Achoo shook his head.
***