A/N: Only one or two chapters left, and I'm sorry for taking so long to write this. I'll try to get the next chapter up sooner. BTW, I can't get any other way of spacing in, so this is my new way of writing in seperations.
Emissary to Sherwood Emissary to Sherwood Emissary to Sherwood
Robin walked silently back to the camp, mulling over what he had just overheard. He had been watching over the two newcomers just in case, and it seemed that in this case, there was good reason for his feelings concerning Jaq. He had always felt that the 'man' was hiding something from all of them, and that Iris was helping, but he could never put his finger on what it was.
The 'King' of Sherwood was so lost in his thoughts that he bumped into the person in front of him, knocking the smaller person to the ground. He shook his head to clear it and blindly reached out to help the person up. He knew it had to be one of his men because of the color of the tunic. He finally snapped back to reality when he realized that he was still gripping Jaq's upper arms. He stared at her for a long minute before releasing her.
"Is something wrong?" Jaq asked, adopting the slightly deeper voice she used when talking to or around the men of the camp.
"What's your real name?" Robin asked suddenly.
"Excuse me, what?" Jaq asked, exchanging a look with Iris.
"I overheard your conversation at the creek- "
"You were spying on us?" Jaq demanded, dropping the fake voice and staring up at the man in outrage.
"I was keeping an eye on you."
"So you think we can't protect ourselves? Is that it?"
"Well you did get captured by the sheriff's men not too long ago," Robin pointed out, beginning to lose control of his own temper.
"So of course we won't learn from that and be more careful! I thought the men in this time were supposed to be nicer than that!"
"It's not a matter of whether or not you'll be more careful! It is my duty to watch out for all of the members of this camp!" By that point, Robin was too angry to notice Jaq's slip of tongue. Iris, however, took the next moment Jaq looked her way and mouthed 'time' at her. Jaq cringed and realized that the others still thought they were only a long distance away from home, not a few centuries as well.
"Then watch over your wife and sister! I can take care of myself! I always have!" Jaq screamed. By that point, the two had attracted the attention of the rest of the camp.
"Not until I know exactly what you've been hiding from us!" Robin shouted back.
"Fine! You want to know the truth? The whole truth? I'll tell you. But I'll tell you in my own way. No interruptions from anyone," Jaq snarled, looking around at the gathered men and women. "Iris and I are from Springfield, Massachusetts in 2004. Yeah, that's right, we went back through time as well! Most of the people in our time are jerks, and most of the ones we know treat me like another guy anyway. Then when John called me a boy, I just… went with it. Iris knows me well enough be now to just go along with whatever I plan up, cause she usually has just as much fun." Jaq glared at Robin. He just looked back at her and asked again what her real name was.
"I told you the truth! I wasn't lying about that! My name is Jaq Foster! I know you heard some stuff by the creek, but I am still telling you the truth. Jaq is a nickname for Jaqueline."
"And you've been lying to all of us all this time?" Robin demanded, not bothering to conceal the anger in his voice.
"Nope." All eyes turned to Kittie and Marian. "She told us when we all got captured, but asked us not to say anything."
"Why would you prefer being thought of as a man?" Little John asked.
"I hate wearing skirts, and I can't stand people treating me like some defect just because I'm missing a particular body part." Iris laughed, Marian and Elenna giggled softly, and all of the men turned red when they realized what she had said. "So, are you going to kick me out of the camp, oh fearless leader?"
Robin seemed to struggle within himself for a few long minutes before shaking his head no. "Just please don't keep any secrets from us any longer."
"None at all?"
"None."
"Okay… Then I guess I'd better tell you that I have got to pee." Jaq turned and walked away, leaving most of the camp shocked. Will shook himself out of it first and turned to Robin.
"You might want to think about that no secrets policy." That said, the group dispersed and went back to what they had been doing before the fight.
Emissary to Sherwood Emissary to Sherwood Emissary to Sherwood
"So, what are you going to do about it?"
"Nothing."
"Why not?"
"You can't just walk up to someone and announce that you like them!"
"Why not? You're a big, strong man! Just tell her!"
"No!"
"If you tell Jaq that you like her, I'll tell John that I like him."
"You can't just do something like that!"
"Again, why not?"
"Because that puts you in a position that is not comfortable."
"So you'll just continue to go through life without her knowing?"
"That's the plan."
"Just because you don't have the balls to tell her you like her?"
"Yep… I mean, that's not why!"
Iris laughed at Will's flustered reaction. She looked up and saw Jaq heading toward them, looking determined. She stopped about a foot in front of Will and stared up at him for a moment or two.
"I like you, Will. Just wanted to let you know." That said, she turned on her heal and headed back to her practice with Little John, who was looking on in shock. Iris looked up at Will from the corner of her eye.
"I thought people couldn't do things like that," she told him sweetly. He continued staring at the redhead with his mouth hanging open in shock. She shook her head, patted his arm, and followed after Jaq. When she reached the practice area, Jaq nodded and left the clearing, leaving Iris and Little John some privacy while they told each other their feelings.
At about that same time, Much and Kittie walked into a clearing holding hands. Robin jumped up when he saw them, hit his head on a low tree branch, and fell to the ground, unconscious. Jaq looked from the couple to Robin, and then grinned.
"At least this way you get some time to prepare yourself for the yelling."
Emissary to Sherwood Emissary to Sherwood Emissary to Sherwood
AN: That's it for now. Like I said, there are still one or two chapters left, but I need your help. How should I end this? Happy ending, sad ending, girls stay in Sherwood, some kind of reincarnation thing, what? Please review and let me know your thoughts.
Thank yous:
cowgirlnm-1 - I am SO SORRY that I took so long to get this out to you! Please don't deprive me of your wonderful reviews! cries I meant to get this out sooner, but I just went 'meh' on all of my writing for weeks and weeks! I hope this chapter was up to par, but I was writing it at, like, midnight last night, and my eyes were beginning to blur. Please help with the ending, 'cause I'm willing to take suggestions. I hope you liked it and thanks for the last review. Please feel free to email me with annoyances if you feel like I'm taking too long to update again. It might go faster if I have someone kicking at me the whole way... And this response is getting longer than the chapter itself... Hope to hear from you in a review soon...
Heather - Thanks for the review, and for the compliment (?) on the cliffhanger. Sorry for taking so long with another short chapter, but I am trying...
SenaMarie - My friend (the one Iris is loosely based off) and I were talking about that, and I just had to put it in. It's kinda somehting I would do... I annoy my little brother and step-father with those things all of the time...
stevie - Even if it means an early death for me, I will complete this story. I promise. With someone acually asking me not to quit on it, how could I? I've only ever stopped in the middle of one story, but that was due to a mixture of losing interest in the genre and getting a grand total of two reviews for three chapters. Kinda upsetting. Yeah, I love messing with the sheriff.
infamous rabbit - Thanks, and care to explain? What would you find qualifies as more description? Just a question. At this point, anything that will make the next chapter or two go smoothly would help! Thanks!
Liz Jafferties - Thanks! I will do my best to look it up some time. Please don't hate me if it takes awhile! And thanks for the review.
xoxdarkrebelxox - Thanks, and sorry it took so long. Sadly, the next one probably will, too. I'll be moving across the country within a month, so that'll take alot of energy... Someday I'll even get started on packing up my room... grins
