Chapter 2

"Gisbourne hit her? What on earth was she doing?"

"I don't know." A girl's voice, with a heavy accent answered. "Will found her. She'll be alright."

I slowly opened my eyes. I saw green. Leafy branches and a sunny sky were above me. My head still hurt, but not nearly as much and the salty taste had left my mouth. Four men surrounded me. Needless to say, that frightened me a bit. I sat up quickly and immediately regretted it. The battering ram came back and I felt too warm, but I didn't try to lie back down.

"Why do patients always try to move when they wake up?" The girl's voice returned and I turned and saw a dark, pretty girl with hair cropped like a boy's kneeling next to me.

My knife was gone. "Did you take my belt?"

"Yes. It was in the way." The girl started wrapping something around my head.

"Wait…" Realization hit my like a thunderbolt. "I know you! You're that girl who was with the man who bumped into me."

"Yes. My name is Djaq. Please stop moving."

"Sorry."

A man with a bow and a quiver of arrows knelt beside me. "How are you feeling?"

I struggled to stand up. Djaq let out an exasperated sigh. "Confused."I leaned on a tree. "My head is spinning and the last thing I remember is Gisbourne flinging me across the square and then that boy who keeps showing up picked me up and now I'm here. Who on earth are you?"

"I am Robin Hood. The men you see are Allan a Dale, Little John, and the one who bumped into you is Will Scarlett."

Robin Hood and his men! I had never travelled far from Nottingham with my act, and their names were famous. "You're Robin Hood? I'm from Locksley!"

His pale blue eyes searched my face. "What is your name? Your family's name?"

"Locks, Colleen Locksdaughter. I haven't been home in a while. I took my act to the surrounding villages."

He smiled sadly. "Tom the Locksmith was your father?"

"Yes."

Robin put his hand on my shoulder. "He was a good man."

I blanched. "No. Was? No, you don't mean-"

"I'm sorry, Colleen. He died bravely. He wouldn't assist the Sherriff in his dirty work."

I took a deep breath. Don't cry. Don't you dare cry in front of all these strangers. You can't let them think you're a poor little girl lost in the forest. It was so terribly selfish to be thinking of myself. Then something inside of me answered cruelly, sharpening the pain. Your father is dead. He'll never comfort you again or kiss you as though you were a little girl. Your only family is gone. You have no home to return to.

I turned around and hardly dared to breathe. The forest was a green blur. "I'll…" I whispered so that the tears wouldn't be heard in my voice. "I'll be back."

I walked until I couldn't hear their voices any longer. If I couldn't hear them, they couldn't hear my sobs. I stopped by a stream and sat on a rock. I should never have left home or left him behind. If I had known I would have had such little time with him…

The sun slid slowly over the trees and sank, turning the water pink and orange. The ends of my sleeves were wet because handkerchiefs were something I never bothered carrying. My eyes were dry now though. So dry, it hurt to blink. I heard someone walking towards me. I quickly made sure my hair would cover my face.

"Erm…" Someone cleared their throat. "Robin says you should come have some dinner."

I nodded. "Thank you."

I washed my face in the stream and retraced my footsteps to where the outlaws were. The smell of something herby rose from a pot of bubbling water with potatoes rolling in it. Djaq immediately came and removed the bandage from my head. She inspected the cut and told me I would be fine.

"Thank you." I took her hand. "You are so kind."

She looked startled and then smiled. "I'm so unused to how girls say how they feel about other girls. These men never say anything like that. You're welcome. I'm glad you are alright." She handed me my knife and belt.

I went over to the man bending over the pot of potatoes. "Are you Much?" I asked.

"Yes. Pleased to meet you." He didn't look up.

"May I help you?"

Then he looked up. "Do you like to cook? Are you good at it? I wouldn't suggest you do cook if you're not because if you're not this lot likes to kill rotten chefs."

"I'm used to making my own food. You're doing it wrong."

He seethed. "I beg your pardon?"

"If you want people to enjoy your food, you need to go about it differently. Don't boil potatoes, fry them. Who likes boiled potatoes? Do you have any cheese?"

He handed me the spoon and pack in a huff. "Let's see how you get on, if you're such a wonderful cook. We've got hardly any food."

The pack held some food, a pan and bowls. There was cheese, parsley, a loaf of bread and a head of garlic. I drained the broth (which was quite delicious), into a bowl and spooned the still hard potatoes into the pan where I took my knife and cut them into slices. I sprinkled them with garlic, parsley and a bit of the broth. When they were browned and steaming, I ripped the bread into chunks and hollowed them out to be like bowls. I spooned the potatoes into the bread bowls and topped them with cheese which melted and oozed over the sides.

I could see Much leaning on a tree next to Robin and could hear his complaints. Robin laughed and cut in, "You'd think you'd be glad to have the day off of cooking."

Little John came over and sniffed the food. "That, that looks good."

"I'm sorry there isn't any meat."

"No matter." He grunted. "We're used to meager food 'round 'ere."

I handed him a bowl with the bread in it and the extra piece beside it. "If you want you can dip the extra bread in the broth Much made."

Dinner was a success. Not to toot my own horn, but it was pretty good. Even Much grunted that he might have thirds. Will and Allan teased him excessively about how he and I would have to have a cooking competition.

"Well she can't beat my fruit bread!" He retorted.

"It's true." I cut in. "I couldn't bake to save my life."

"Let's 'ope the Sherriff don't ask ya to bake then!" Allan laughed.

Dinner was over, and everyone leaned back. Will looked at Robin. "We should be getting back to camp soon."

"About that-" Robin started just as I said "I have a-"

"You go ahead." Robin said.

Now that the time had come, I felt nervous. How could I ask them this question on the first day I met them? But I didn't know what else. And he had to pay. "I…"

"Speak up we can't hear ya!" Allan called.

I laughed. "I have a question. Well, a proposition. I can't fight. I can sing, I can cook, I can breathe fire. I can't bake." Will smacked Much who started to voice his opinion. "But… my father is dead. I have no home to go to. The Sherriff must pay for what he has done. Not just to me, but to all the people of Nottingham. I see that you help them. And I want to do that also. But, as I said, I can't fight. Will someone teach me?"

Robin came and sat beside me. He put his hands on my face and leaned in.

"What the blo-!" I yelled and grabbed his arms, twisted them away and punched him in the face. It didn't send him sprawling, but he did fall backwards. He sat up laughing and wiped blood of his lip.

I was fuming. "What on earth are you thinking? How dare you-"

"No!" He interrupted. "I'm sorry. I know that was terrible of me, but I was testing you. Yes, we'll teach you how to fight. And, if you keep cooking like this, you can join the gang."

"Colleen," Allan said. "I'm not being funny, but you can literally see the smoke coming out of your ears."