Her mind had been wandering all during dinner. It had been unable to stay focussed on the present and kept flitting from memories to fantasies to possible future scenarios. Gisborne noticed her eyes staring into nothingness and would try and get her to focus on him. He wanted to be the focus of her attention. But every time their conversation halted, even less than a minute, her eyes glazed over again and she was far far away.

"Marian" Gisborne called her to reality again.

"Sorry" Marian apologized. "Sorry, were you saying something?"

"I would appreciate if you could at least pretend to listen to me."

"I'm sorry Gisborne. I…I just…There's a lot on my mind."

"Would you like to share that with me? Maybe I can ease your troubles." Gisborne tried while taking her hand in his. He was desperately trying to connect further with Marian as she constantly seemed to keep him at bay. Which was ridiculous, he was to be her husband.

Marian doubted he could. But though Gisborne's touch didn't create a tingle deep within herself yet, she felt obligated to at least see what he could make her feel.

She had to give him a chance, she was going to marry him.

She focussed her eyes on Gisborne's and leant in a little closer. Gisborne couldn't believe his luck, after weeks of keeping her distance and treating him somewhat coldly.

He didn't hesitate and eagerly pressed his lips on hers. His lips roamed somewhat roughly over her lips, her cheek and then back to her lips, his arm snaking around her waist, pulling her and her chair closer to him.

It felt weird, not at all like it felt with Robin. But she had to give it a chance, she had to know. She felt Gisborne's tongue demanding entry of her mouth and she granted it. His hand cupped her face and his thumb caressed her check.

Gisborne pulled her even closer gently pulling so she would have to move to sit in his lap.

But though he acted more gently than she thought he would it didn't feel right. There were no tingling sensations deep inside her and no blurry haze took over her thoughts.

So not every man could make her feel that, she realised. The thought shook her and suddenly she wanted to get out of there. She felt like she had done something wrong. She shouldn't be there. She felt guilty at the thought of Robin. It would hurt him so much if he knew she was kissing Gisborne. She had never forgotten the look on his face after she had accepted Gisborne's proposal of marriage.

Marian's stomach turned at the thought of Robin's hurt face. She had stopped responding to Gisborne and sat quite still. The image of Robin refusing to leave her mind. Gisborne noticed and looked at her worriedly.

"Marian?" he questioned.

"I have to go." She managed. She stood and looked around for her cloak, her mind distracted again, not registering what Gisborne was saying to her.

"Marian, wait." He pleaded. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have…It was too fast."

Gisborne feared he had pushed to fast and scared Marian of with his passion for her.

"I can wait. We don't have to…I know we're not married yet."

Marian didn't hear any of it. She had left the room and found her cloak. Gisborne followed her into the hall, but Marian kept moving, out the door and to the stable to get her horse.

"Marian you can't ride out alone in the dark." Gisborne ordered a stable boy to saddle his horse.

"No. I'm fine. I just need to go. And it's not that dark yet." Marian replied as she climbed in the saddle.

"It's still not safe." Gisborne argued.

"I know these woods, I'll be fine." And with that she raced off.

She didn't slow down until she was deep in the forest. She hadn't consciously steered her horse in that area but she knew where she was going. She had to see him.

Her mind slowed down and she caught up with it again. Now purposefully steering her horse deeper into the woods.

About five minutes later she halted as a hooded figure stood in her way and aimed an arrow at her.

"It's me. Marian." She announced. "I'm alone."

The man lowered his bow and pushed back his hood.

"Looking for Robin?" Alan asked her.

"Yes." She admitted.

"Follow me."

Robin hadn't exactly told the others where he had been every time he disappeared, but the gang had guessed it had something to do with Marian. They knew there was still a connection between the two and that Robin worried about her. Especially now that she was engaged to marry Gisborne. They suspected that was where he was going when he sneaked off.

She slid of her horse and Alan took the reigns from her. Together they walked the last half-mile to the camp. The gang was sitting around the fire, talking and busying themselves with small tasks.

They looked up as they heard people approaching and Robin jumped to his feet when he recognised Marian.

He made his way over to her as Alan announced "Look what I found wandering around the forest."

Robin looked from Alan to Marian for some explanation. She jerked her head slightly and turned to walk away from the fire again. Robin understood and followed her in silence.

"What do you think that's about?" Alan wondered aloud, tying the horse to a tree.

Little John just shrugged while Much replied "I'm sure they will tell us if we need to know."

"Yeah?" Alan questioned doubting Much's answer. "I think they might be, you know…"

Much looked shocked at this.

"Surely not! Marian is a noblewoman. He wouldn't…no"

Alan merely laughed at Much's response and shocked expression.

Robin followed Marian in silence for a while, wandering what was going on. She rarely visited him in the forest and when she did usually something urgent was wrong. But she didn't seem to be in a hurry to tell him about something that could be wrong.

She merely took his hand and let him further away from the camp.

"Marian?" He questioned when he felt they had distanced themselves from the camp far enough. He had stopped walking but didn't let go of her hand. She stood still but didn't make a move to turn or talk.

He tugged on her hand gently, urging her to face him. Hesitantly she let him turn her around.

"What's wrong?"

She wraps her arms around his neck and presses her lips firmly against his. Robin hesitates for a moment, wondering if he should stop her and force her to talk, but he decides against it. They will talk later. How could he resist Marian kissing him?

His arms enclose around her waist and pull her flush against him. He had missed her, missed the feel of her against him. It had been three days since they had seen each other and he had been dying to see her again. But the gang was already getting suspicious so he had planned to wait several days before seeing her again.

Her fingers roam through his hair and pull his face in as close as possible. He is ready to lose his head again.

Marian doesn't want to end the kiss. She knows that if they stop Robin will ask what's wrong again and she doesn't want to think about that. She doesn't want to think at all, because every time she does, her mind reels back to the kiss she shared with Gisborne and how wrong it had felt and how much it would hurt Robin. She would think about her situation, how she was engaged to Gisborne but how she seemed incapable of letting go of Robin. She would think about her future, her horrible future, which would make it nigh impossible for her to see Robin and to go out as the Nightwatchman. How everything was so messed up.

Robin seems to notice her desperation and presses her closely to him, one of his hands pressing between her shoulder blades and the other on her lower back.

Finally he breaks the kiss, needing air. He regains some control on his breathing while pressing kisses along her jaw line, hoping the come across as soothing and comforting.

She buries her face in his shoulder and he keeps her close to him.