Chapter twenty-six:

Marian's POV:

Last night's adventure had given me a thrill I hadn't felt since I was little. Running around Sherwood with Much and Robin, playing hide and seek with my father. It was that moment when you are hiding, that the seeker could be about to find you.

Your heart is racing, your blood is pumping, the goosebumps on your arms are rising and time stands still. In that moment, you can feel the pure adrenaline causing through your veins. Running around the castle last night made me feel the same excitement.

Having stepped foot outside of the castle's grounds for the first time since I had been locked in, made me realise that I have never felt so alive. I needed this rush after I had spent years cooped up in this fortress- like a bird in a cage. It was time to break free, before it was too late.

If someone was to crawl underneath my bed, they would not only see lost socks or clumps of dust, but also little markings, in the shape of small tally lines. Some days, when I first arrived at the castle, I would forget to draw another tally, with my dagger. But I would always mark two the next day.

I stopped when I turned sixteen. That day was the three hundred and sixty-fifth day and it just seemed pointless, to keep counting. My reality was, that I would never leave this place again. Which meant never seeing my father, Will, Much or Robin ever again.

"Happy Birthday, Marian!" Katy burst into my room and tackled me in a crushing hug, after putting a present on my desk.

Today was "day one thousand, four hundred and sixty". Despite how I stopped marking the days, my mind had always kept a count.

Every year is another reminder of the many things I left behind.

She was dressed in a dark red gown, with sheer gold fabric covering the skirt. Katy usually opted for colder colours, instead of warm ones. In one of her many fashion lectures, she once told me that as she was blonde, warm colours didn't suit her.

"They make me look overwhelmed," she had claimed at the time, so it was a little odd to see her in such a colour.

"Thank you, Katy!" I said, hugging her back. "How are you feeling?"

"What do you mean?" She asked, pulling away.

"Well," we both took a seat on my bed so that we were facing each other. "You didn't seem like you… enjoyed… what we did last night."

Her red-stained lips opened and closed. "Oh, umm… I just…"

"Didn't want to get caught?" Finishing for her, I tried to look her in the eyes but she was looking down. "Katy?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I was afraid of. It's just…"

"Just what, Katy?"

"You're so much bravery than me!" She exclaimed, finally looking me in the eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"Last night, you took charge. You knew what do to so we didn't get caught! The look in your eyes when we had saved Meg, it was extraordinary. You were… fearless!"

Her words took me aback slightly. Katy only really gave shallow complements. It wasn't that she didn't mean more, but Katy valued her appearance because, it was the only thing she though she had. But, these words, they were more than just the way I looked. It was the way I acted and felt.

My actions really meant something. Not only to Meg, but also to Katy. She was beginning to see that there was more to life than picking who you were going to marry. She could see how we could make a difference with the position we are in.

"Thank you, Katy, that really means a great deal to me. But I couldn't have done it without you and Avery!" Whom chirped at his name being said.

"You're just saying that to make me feel better, Marian" Katy sighed.

"No, I'm really not, Katy. When you stabbed that man with your shoe, you blew me away! It was amazing!"

She looked up suddenly, a wild grin on her face. "Really?!"

"Yes!" I laughed, "No one told you to do that- it was on your own incitive." She had really surprised me when she'd done that, it was very out of character for her. "Katy, you're just as brave as me, and, if you like to, I could teach you how to defend yourself!" Standing up, I began to roll up my sleaves in readiness.

Her grin slackened at little at that, "I don't know what good that will do, Marian… thank you though…"

"W-why not?"

"Well, it's not as if we're planning to go out again anyw-" she gave me a very unimpressed glare, like I had just spilled ink on her favourite dress and told her it wasn't me (don't ask, it's a long story, which ended in my giving her a whole lot of chocolate).

"You're thinking of going out again, aren't you?"

"Ummmm…"

"Don't make this any worse by lying to me, Marian!" Katy was really not impressed; she had her arms crossed and everything!

"Nnnnnnnn- ugh, fine! Yes, I am thinking about going out again!"

"Whatever for?"

"I-" I began.

"And," she cut me straight off, "don't even think about giving me some completely fake response, you know full well that I can tell when you're lying!"

Turning away from her, I cursed under my breath- she knew me far too well! Maybe I could play the pity card…

"It's just…" facing her, fake tears came into my eyes when I willed them too. "After I've been trapped in here for so long…"

"Marian, cut the crap. What's this really about? Because I think I might already know." She really did know me too well.

"Oh, really?"

"Yes, so don't even try it." She really wasn't giving up, was she?

"I…" wow, this was going to be harder than I thought. I sat down next to her, and stared into my lap and willed the, now very real, tears to go away. "Ever since my mother died and I left my brother and father, I've felt… sort of… unsafe, unprotected almost."

"It's okay sweetheart, take as long as you need," Katy rubbed my back in soothing motions.

"It felt like I'd been put in a different universe, with no one I knew and everyone was just out to get me. Until you came along, of course, and helped me to see everything. But still, I hide everything I care about losing, I have weapons everywhere in this room, just in case I need to defend myself."

"Oh, Marian, I'm so sorry you feel that way!" She hugged me close and let me cry onto her dress. Clearly, she didn't care for it, otherwise she would've given me a tissue by now.

"Katy?" Pulling back, I looked her in the eyes.

"Yes?" She studied me.

"I never told you who murdered my mother, did I?"

"No, you only told me some bad men came into your house and…"

"I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to feel scared or anything, but I think it's time you know." She didn't exactly like the Sheriff, or Guy's father for that matter, but no one did.

"Do I know them?"

"Unfortunately, yes, you did. If I tell you this, I want you to know that I will protect you, should I ever need to. The people who murdered my mother took me here, on my birthday, exactly four years ago now, in a deal."

"A deal?"

"Yes, I told them that they could take me, if they allowed my father and brother to live."

Katherine's face was soaking with tears, she didn't even know who it was yet. "But you were so young!"

"I couldn't just stand there and let my father die! They took me here that night and I haven't seen or spoken to my father or brother since."

"Oh, my god, that's awful! And you never told anyone who it was?!"

"Who was I going to tell? Everyone knows the terrible things he did."

"It was Gregory of Gisborne, wasn't it?" Katy looked me straight in the eyes, a mist of anger covering her whole face. I had never seen her like this before.

"H-how did you know?"

"The day we found out he had passed, you had a certain look of relief on your face, like you'd finally got something you'd wanted for a long time. Plus, Guy is starting to look a lot like him, and although you're polite and nice to him, I can tell how uncomfortable you are around him and his advances."

"Then why did you sit me with him at his birthday dinner?"

Guilt flashed across her face, "I always thought you were just nervous around men, I had no idea it was because of what his father did! I am so sorry, Marian. I was your best friend and I let you down. I was completely childish, Marian, in the way I acted and I sincerely hope you will accept my apology."

"Come here," a little too forcefully, I dragged her into a hug, "it wasn't your fault, we both know that."

"Thank you, Marian," she was really crying now, but so was I.

"Will you promise me something for today?"

"Anything at all" she said in a heartbeat, even though she looked a little queasy.

"Don't look like that, it's not illegal!"

"Oh, thank the Lord!" She pressed a hand to her chest, in relief.

"Please, just, take my mind off of… that, today?"

"Of course! First things first, dry your eyes…" she passed me the box she was carrying when she came in.

"Why?" I opened it and pulled out an absolutely stunning gown.

"Because I am not letting you spoil this dress!" She really wouldn't let that ink situation go!

The gown was deep cobalt blue, with white patterning detailing it. The bodice was sinched with a decorative belt atop it, but I would still be able to breath in it. On the sleeves and the border of the neck was pure, white lace. The skirts were not massive, so I would easily be able to move in it, running may be a stretch though. The colour would make my eyes show and compliment my hair too, this must have cost her a fortune.

"Katy, it's too much!"

"I don't want to hear it! It's nineteenth birthday, and I fully intend to spoil you thoroughly! Now go and change, I'll be in my room waiting," she gently pushed me towards my wardrobe and left, humming as she did.

I knew the game she was playing. Katy expressed herself through her clothes and jewellery, and she has specifically picked out a dress that, while still made her look lovely, wasn't her usual style. She had given me this stunning dress so I would outshine her on my birthday. No doubt she would be waiting in her room with a new piece of jewellery too! As different as we could me, I loved Katy like I would a sister. She always wanted to make me feel special, even if it meant that she was in the shadows for a day or two.

The dress fit like a glove; perfectly sculpted to fit my body. It hugged my curves but didn't sinch my wait so hard I couldn't breathe. Katy outdid herself, year after year- with a horse, gorgeous earnings (which turned into the daggers), and not to mention countless stunning dresses. My wardrobe had definitely expanded over the years of knowing Katy. I didn't think I could have loved a dress more than the one I wore on Guy's birthday, but this garment was undeniably close to the number one spot.

A few minutes later and Sarah was standing behind me doing my hair. We'd chosen a style which included all of my hair being collected into one side plait- which was then pulled around the top of my head, reminiscent of a crown.

"You look lovely, Marian." Sarah rested her warm hands on my shoulders and smiled at me. "I know this day can me very hard for you," she walked towards my chest of drawers and came back with a small box. She must have put it there when she came in- I didn't even notice! "But I hope this helps to dull the pain a little." Sarah handed me the box- I knew that, much like Katy, she wouldn't be taking "No" for an answer.

"Thank you, Sarah. But you really don't need to get me anything!"

"Oh hush, you know you want to open it!"

With both of us laughing, I lifted the lid off and pulled out a bottle of purple liquid.

"Go on, smell it," Sarah urged me.

Inhaling the scent of the perfume, a wave of nostalgia hit me. The homely smell of vanilla and cinnamon wafting into my nose.

It smelled just like my mother!

Cold, winter nights, by the fire; I snuggled up to my mother while she read to me. The aroma made me feel safe- secured, like no one could hurt me.

My eyes glistened in memory.

"Your mother was a very kind, warm women. You remind me of her a lot, you know. She shared the same fearless look in your eyes. That woman was a wild one, but you'd never meet anyone as generous."

At a loss of words, I had never really been compared to my mother much before (people always said I was more like my father), I chose to ask a question instead. "My mother was… wild?"

Sarah chuckled, "The wildest. When we were about your age, she was so determined to change the world that she used to tell me "You'll never see me tied down with a husband!" but then she met for father and fell head over heels." I'd known that mother and Sarah grew up together, but I had never heard this story before!

"What about the world did she want to change?"

"Anything that which was harming people. She hated seeing people suffering. You know, she was as good a shot as your father once upon a time."

"You jest!"

"Not at all, my girl! She could shoot a straight shot with her eyes closed after being spun around until she was dizzy! We tried it, trust me," Sarah was beaming.

"Why on earth did she stop?" All of those times she shook her head when I had asked to practice my archery, when she used to love it as much as me!

"She had you, which pretty much rocked her whole world."

"She stopped because of me?" A pit formed in my stomach.

I was the reason she quit archery?

"Motherhood changes people, dear. She just saw more important things in life I suppose."

Looking down into my lap, I couldn't help but feel a little guilty. She loved archery and quit because of me!

"Don't look so glum, sweetheart. She was so immensely proud of you, Marian, and the fine woman you are becoming." Sarah gave me a sweet smile, and a hug before she left to perform her other duties.

Picking up the perfume, I sprayed a little over my neck and on my wrists. Now I would carry my mother with me everywhere I went.

Standing up, I wiped the little tear that had escaped from my eye and began to walk towards the door. Katy would be waiting for me to come and see my next surprise. My hand stopped just before I touched the doorknob though.

Avery began to chirp loudly- she only really sung; she didn't tend to chirp like this. Turing around, I noticed my window was wide open. With a quizzical brow, I went and closed it. I don't remember opening that, maybe Katy or Sarah did?

Avery was jumping up and down quickly, almost like she was trying to warn me of something.

Just then, I saw in the corner of my eye, a muddy footprint just below my windowsill.

Ah, that explains it.

"Was your present to scare me to death?"

A low chuckle reached my ears. "Happy birthday, Marian," Robin said, handing me a long-gift-wrapped box.

Robin's POV:

She got more beautiful every time I laid eyes on her.

Would that be awkward to say?

My palms were sweating profusely, I was supposed I hadn't dropped her present. Before I dropped it, I handed her the box. She took it reluctantly and looked up at me.

"You remembered?" Disbelief shone in her eyes.

"You really thought I'd forget?" Laughing, I took off my hood and mask, and pointed to the bed, asking to sit down.

Marian moved to the bed and took a seat opposite me. She was wearing a dress I hadn't seen her in before; it was dark blue in colour with white patterns. It brought out the blue in her eyes.

"Do I have something on my face?" She asked, smirking.

"Just open it," I chuckled. If she didn't like these, I would ask Guy, personally, to run me over with his horse.

She carefully opened the lid of the box and gasped at the contents inside. Ten arrows lay there, inside of a patterned, leather quiver.

"Robin…" she began.

"Sorry if you don't like them- I don't even know if you still have a bow! I really wanted to get you something that would mean something to y-" she placed a warm hand on mine and smiled warmly.

"I love them, thank you" her eyes lit up as she lifted an arrow up. The fletching was painted the same blue colour as the ones her mother had given her as a child. "How on earth did you remember the colour so vividly?"

My brain wanted to say "Because it is the same shade that is in your eyes, how could I possibly forget?". Instead, I said "Lucky guess mostly, Much helped a lot." It was partly true; I had been on him for days to get the colour right.

"How did you get the paint?" She asked, absentmindedly playing with the fletching.

"It's a long story," I chuckled, sudden silence followed that.

"How did we get like this, Robin?"

Not sure what to say to that, I just waited for her to continue.

"It's like we're scared to talk to each other, in case we say the wrong thing."

"Can I tell you the truth?"

My heart faltered.

"Of course," she looked at me with a concerned smile.

"It's because I'm frightened, terrified in fact, that I'll scare you away."

"Robin, I…"

"I've lost you once, and I don't intend to do it a second time!" I couldn't look at her anymore, otherwise I would probably start crying. Tears dropped into my lap and marked the fabric on my legs.

This was a mistake; you've done it now! Congratulations, she'll shove you away and tell you she never wants to see you again! My inner thoughts creamed at me, but they quieted down when her soft hand reached for mine again.

She too had her head down, looking at her lap- tears wetting her new dress. Her mouth kept opening but closed again, she couldn't find the words.

"I…" she began, making my head shoot back up. "I am terrified to my very core…" her voice broke off. "…that I have ruined everything… by being bitter when all I really wanted was things to go back to the way they used to b-" she let go of my hand, walked to the other side of the room and sat on the floor- her head buried in her hands.

Did she really feel this way? About me, about the way things have been since I got back? I had to do something!

Slowly, I approached her shaking figure. "Marian?" Asking gently, I sat down beside her. When no answer came, I decided to just say what was on my mind.

"When my mother died, the whole world felt numb. Like the sky was full of clouds and nothing would every feel the same again."

Her crying stopped a little.

"Then the news broke that my father was sending me off to a place that people rarely came back from. The only thing that made me see that light was still in the world was you."

Marian's head lifted a little.

"That day I left you, was one of the worst days of my life. Before then, everyday had been filled with sunshine and laughter, playing with you and Much in the forest. Days were now filled with blood, unbearable heat and swords clashing. The only joy I got was sending you a letter every week."

Her head popped up fully at this. "Letters?"

"Yes- at least one, every single week."

"I was taken here four days after you and Much left- I haven't seen my father or brother since then, let alone read any letters."

Why hadn't this occurred to me before, she'd told me that she was taken here shortly after our departure, of course she hadn't got any of the letters!

"I am truly sorry that you have had to go through all of this alone, Marian. Not a day went by that I didn't think of you."

She looked away again, fresh tears rolling down her face.

"I wanted to give you those arrows to remind you that your mother would be so immensely proud of you, as she always wa-" I was cut off by her body crushing into mine and her arms wrapping around me.

She was hugging me?!

"Thank you… Robin!" she sobbed into my shoulder. "You have no idea how much I've missed you, and I'm tired of pretending that I still do!"

A fifty-ton weight lifted off of my shoulders. My arms wrapped around her waist and hugged her tight- she didn't realise how long I'd been waiting to hear those words.

She cried gently into my shoulder, neither of us let go for a while. This felt right, like the universe had finally saw how much we both needed each other and brought us together again.

With Marian, I could do anything.

Marian's POV:

Robin felt warm and welcoming.

His shirt smelt just like it did when we were younger; like the forest. It was a little smoky, he had definitely been near a camp fire today, but it wasn't overbearing and still made me feel warm inside. His grip was firm but gentle, like he was scared I would disappear.

After a few more minutes, we both pulled back.

His pupils were dilated and his face was slightly rosy. His brown hair was messed up from where I had hugged him and his mouth was shaped into a smile. For the first time in forever, it wasn't in a smirk!

"Not smirking, Locksley?" My question took him off guard slightly, and he snapped out of whatever he had been thinking about.

"I only smirk when I'm either trying to get a rise out of you, or I am doing something I shouldn't be," his eyes had a mischievous twinkle to them.

"Which one would that be now?"

His lips tilted upwards on one side, "It depends really, how do you feel?"

"Fine, what has that got to do with it?"

He reached out with his hand and tucked a stray lock of my hair behind my ear. "Pure curiosity…" his fingers stayed beside my cheek. "I haven't been this happy in a long time, Marian."

Now it was my turn to blush!

"Me neither, Robin." I couldn't help but notice how his tanned completion glowed in the sunlight.

We stayed there a few more minutes, just looking into the faces we had never stopped thinking about since we left each other. I could have stayed there all day long, but then I remembered.

"Katy!"

"What? Who's Katy?" Asked a startled Robin.

"Oh no! I said I'd meet her in her room ages ago- she'll be waiting for me!"

"Again, I ask, who is she?"

"She's my friend. She was here the day I arrived and has been by my side ever since."

"Ahh, right. The high-pitched one?" Robin laughed.

"Excuse me?"

"I heard her that time you said you were being sick so she wouldn't come in a see me. Her voice is so much high!"

"It's really not!" A little giggle escaped my mouth.

"MARIANNNN!" He squealed in a shrill tone.

"Robin! She doesn't sound like that!"

"You know she does, you just won't admit it!"

We both collapsed into a fit of laughter, like a pair of children.

"I really should go, she'll be waiting." I said, after I caught my breath.

"Of course, go and enjoy the rest of you day," Robin stood up off of the floor we were still sitting on, and helped me up too.

"Thank you, Robin," I hugged him one more time. "For everything."

He let go and kissed my hand and began to walk towards the window, "Farewell, Lady Marian." He gave a mocking bow.

"Good day, Sir Locksley," I replied with a curtsy, giggling as I did so.

He made to climb out of the window but stopped when I caught his arm.

"You're forgetting something."

"And what is that, exactly?" He smirked.

"You should know what it is!"

"Ahh, of course! A birthday kiss, how on Earth could I forget?!" He closed his eyes and lent forward with his lips puckered.

I shoved his hood and mask and hood back on his face and laughed.

"Lady Marian, you offend my very honour!"

Rolling my eyes, I leant over, and pulled down his mask a bit. My heart fluttering, I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, "I do hope that makes up for it!"

I turned away before I could see the look in Robin's eye, but I walked away with the satisfaction that I'm sure I made him blush!

My hand was on the doorknob when he said one last thing.

"Oh, and Marian?"

"Yes, Robin?"

"You look gorgeous, by the way," and with that, he leapt out of the window with a bemused look in his eyes.

Heading to Katy's room, I don't think the blush faded off of cheeks the whole way.

What the hell was I going to say as an excuse?!