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Part 17

"Who was Alex?" asked Allan as they all sat round the fire on the bitter January afternoon, the cave being the only warm dry place to be.

"My brother," Robin replied.

"I didn't know you had a brother?" he replied with a smile of surprise.

"I had two brothers, two sisters, not all at the same time."

"You never said. What happened? Would he have been Lord of the manor?" Allan continued as the remainder of the gang listened quietly.

Robin laughed wryly and replied. "Not unless I died. He was five years younger than I was and a great play mate of Marian's."

"Were you jealous?"

"No. I was ten she was six."

"Alright you have a point, so what happened?" Allan asked with a shrug.

"I did not save him, I should have done."

"You can't beat yourself up for things that are not in your control, look at me and Tom."

"And you still feel you could have done something?" Robin said.

"Yes, so share it might make me feel less guilty about my brother."

Robin sighed, the only other person alive who really knew how he felt about Alex was Marian and perhaps to some extent Thornton and Much.

"Well," Robin began, they had nothing better to do, other than find Marian and with the current weather conditions that was not an option. "Alexander……..It was a pleasant day, a little cold I recall but……."

"Can I go too," Alexander pleaded his eyes boring into his father's with a need that was almost impossible for one so young.

"You are too small," Robin told him, nudging his younger brother as he walked past and sat at the table to eat breakfast.

"Do not tease him," Lady Locksley scolded which fell on deaf ears.

"Please father. I will be good I promise," Alexander continued to beg.

Robert looked at the boy closely, he recalled what it had been like for himself as a small child, missing out on what his elder brother and sisters were doing, he had not meant to be Lord of Huntingdon, it should have fallen to his elder brother but he had perished one winter when the now lord had been about sixteen years of age.

"Alexander," Robert began.

"Please," the small five year old asked again.

"Very well but you must stay close to Robin, do what he says, heed him."

"I will, I will," the boy replied jumping up and down with delight, while Robin scowled.

"Father," Robin protested. "He will fidget, he will not remain quiet he would be far better off looking for worms or going to Knighton to visit with Marian."

"He should not become too friendly with Marian; after all she will be your wife one day."

"One day, she is but six. I hardly think another day in each others company will harm them," Robin's mother said suddenly, feeling that the day's adventures were too advanced for her younger son.

Robin shot her a grateful look as his father replied, "Robin will take care of him. He has to know what it is to be a man a some point, and what better time than the present."

"Perhaps in a few years," his wife replied.

"No today is a fit day for such an occasion. You will take care of Alexander, will you not Robin?"

Robin inwardly sighed; this was the last thing he wanted to be saddled with his young brother who was chatty to the point of excessiveness and as impatient as any other young boy his age was. But replied as was expected of him. "Yes Father, I will take care of him."

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"But I did not and he died," Robin said returning to the present.

"But how did he die?" insisted Allan.

Robin fell back into time once more as he continued his tale……