Chapter Five
After that first raid, Andy couldn't get enough. It gave her such a feeling of joy to see the poor of England laugh and have something to fill their bellies with. Will relationship as a brother grew each day. Before they knew it, they had known each other for almost three months. Will often told stories of their mother, in return she told him stories of their father and Robin.
"I was about four, when Robin tried to pull a prank on father. He gathered all the feathers from around the castle and put them in a bucket filled with water. He then tied it to father's door, so when he awoke and opened the door, it would pour out onto him" said Andy.
They were sitting in Andy's spot over the river, Will listening with rapt attention. "So did it actually work?"
Andy smiled, "sadly it did. Father was furious, all wet and covered from head to toe in feathers. Robin was in my room, since it was across from fathers, laughing his head off. Which wasn't smart on his part, father heard him, and Robin got the whipping of his life. Couldn't sit for almost a week afterwards."
Will was laughing by this time. "Why did he do it in the first place?"
"He was mad at father for not allowing him to go join the Crusade. King Richard had just announced his intentions and that he would be leading it. Robin begged my father to allow him to go then, naturally father refused. He managed to refuse for the next two years, but Robin won in the end." Andy said quietly remembering when Robin did finally get his wish.
Will hesitantly reached out and hugged her. "Its okay" as he rocked her back and forth, as the emotions from long ago surfaced. Andy clung to him, every once in a while, a sob escaping her. They sat there, like that for a while. Andy had never expressed the emotions that she felt of Robin's leaving or her father's death to anyone. It felt nice to have a shoulder to cry on. Will was surprised, Andy acted so much like an adult, it was scary when she acted exactly like the age she was. Much like Will, grief had made them both grow older than there years to make do with their situations.
Gradually she calmed down, only slightly embarrassed. Will tried to make her feel better. "Hey did you hear that the Sheriff canceled Christmas?"
Andy couldn't help but chuckle, like the Sheriff had the power to do that.
"Come on, lets go back to back," said Will, hauling her to her feet. "Now how do I get down from this tree?"
Andy laughed and threw down the rope that was tied to the branch. "Like this," and she slid down the rope. Will just looked at her with a shocked expression.
"You want me to slide down this rope?"
"Yes, its easy, all you need to do is wrap your hands with a piece of cloth and just slide."
Will did as he was instructed and carefully grasped the rope, scared to let go of the tree.
"Come on Will, Robin has done it a ton of times." Andy knew that the mention of Robin doing something that Will was afraid to do, would prompt Will to do it.
Will narrowed his eyes at what Andy said and he flung himself down the rope. When he got to the bottom he was surprised to see Andy smiling at him.
"What?" he demanded.
"Nothing, but I knew that would work," she said, smiling wickedly.
Will then knew that he had been had. "Why you little liar, I'll show you" he yelled and made a grab at her. Andy knew that this would happen, jumped away, spending Will sprawling.
"Ha, you have to catch me first," she yelled as she dashed away.
Will picked himself off the ground, wiping off the leaves that clung to him, and gave Andy chase. But he never could catch her. "Alright, I give up."
Andy stopped running and smiled at him. Suddenly Wulf was there. "Andy, Will, I big procession of soldiers entered Sherwood, Robin asked me to find you to."
Andy ran towards where she had left Rowan, Will behind her. Andy felt a shiver of excitement run threw her, as she turned Rowan toward the village.
Over the past couple of months, the clearing in the forest had begun to look like a town. More houses were built in the tree line every day. Robin had even made a few houses in the trees, with rope bridges connecting rooms. There treasury was in one of the houses in the trees. Everything that was stolen was put in it, to be given back to the poor later. The people, who lived there, were happy. There they had refuge, and enough to eat every day.
Soon the village came into sight; Andy gently pulled Rowan down into a trot. She could already see the group of men waiting to leave. She quickly dismounted and gave the reins to a boy that helped take care of the horses. Will and Wulf did the same thing.
"Now that we have everyone here, lets get going" said Robin.
As they went to the place of where the ambush was to take place Robin explained the plan.
"Bull, Munch, I want you to be blocking Gisborne's way."
Andy missed a step, almost crashing down. Gisborne, oh how she would love to put an arrow into his black heart. She missed the rest of Robin's plan, deep in her own thoughts.
They came to the spot where the convoy would pass. The mats of leaves were put into place, quickly and quietly. Little John helped pull in a log that would block the path, and Bull and Munch waited by it. All the others waited behind the mats they put up. From the road it looked like part of the forest. Andy waited patiently with the rest of the woodsmen. They didn't have to wait long, a loud, raucous voice, singing hymns and other drinking songs came into earshot.
Whoever it was, thought Andy smiling, there drunk. Suddenly Gisborne's voice broke up the singing. "Quiet!" Andy snickered, apparently Gisborne wasn't feeling so cocky or he wouldn't have shushed the voice. It didn't take long for the group to arrive at the front of their screens.
As soon as Gisborne saw Bull, and Munch he and half of the men went after them. The rest staying with the wagon, and the man singing, which Andy could now see was a Friar (a very fat one) and he was drinking beer. Little John gave the signal, and the screens fell down, Andy shot the soldier nearest to her, in less than five minutes, the whole convoy, besides the soldiers in the tax wagon were dead. The men hid the bodies under some extra matting, making it seem like nothing happen there. Andy jumped onto the back of the beer wagon, as the men replaced the matting on the side. Making it seem like both wagons had just disappeared.
Robin was trying to get the men in the Tax Wagon to surrender, but they weren't having any of it, so Robin drove the wagon into the river. Now the river wasn't that deep, but the men in the wagon panicked and surrendered. The men collected there weapons and knocked them out, leaving them there to find their own way back.
When we were safely away, the wagon was unloaded and the treasure inside was broken into. Everyone gasped when they saw all the gold in the chests; no-one had ever seen so much treasure.
Little John slipped a huge hand into the mass of coins and stirred them slowly, feeling the solid weight of coins against his fingers. "Well bugger me sideways," he said softly. "I didn't think there was this much gold in the world."
"The treasure was gathered here for a purpose," said Robin. "It might be in our best interest to find out what that purpose was."
Suddenly a commotion distracted all of them, including Andy. The friar had awoken and now was all but buried under a mass of woodsmen. Two was already stretched out on the glass, and after a moment a third joined them, clutching between his legs. Everyone was impressed. "Alright, get off of him," yelled Robin. The remaining woodsmen quickly jumped off of him happily to have an excuse. They formed a semi-circle around the Friar, who was breathing like an angry bull. He glared dismissively at the winded woodsmen, and then nodded brusquely at Robin.
"The good Lord's blessing on you, kind sir. These sinners were attempting to steal these libations, destined for the monks of St. Catherine's." Pointing towards the barrels in the back of his wagons. Andy realized that they were full of beer.
The friar was of average height, but certainly not of girth. His face seemed to be permanently flushed, his large nose blossomed redly with broken veins, and his grubby monk's habit was practically held together with new and ancient beer stains. His great round face was dominated by a pursed mouth in a scruffy beard, and disturbingly direct eyes. Andy grinned at him, deciding to have a little fun.
"Appears to me, reverend friar, that just possibly most of your liquor might have already found its way into your fat person." Everyone laughed, including Robin, and Azeem.
The friar sputtered, then turning to Robin. "Is this how you allow children to address their elders!" as he climbed into the driving seat of his cart. Andy moved quickly and grabbed the reins, as Robin addressed him.
"A moment, my reverend friend. You travel with poor company, when traveling with Nottingham soldiers."
"Aye," said Bull. "Tax him, just like the others. His kind are never short on coin." It was true; men of the cloth used the money that was supposed to be for the poor and used it to make their own lives better. Andy gripped her bow tighter to think of the money that the Bishop received when he sold out her father. Soon the cry to tax the friar went up.
"You see how it is, friend. My men are thirsty with much to celebrate. Surely the good Lord has the charity to spare a few barrels?" said Robin, trying to sway the fat friar.
The friar grasped and crossed himself, with rather more drama than was strictly called for. "Lord bless me, sir, I had mistook you and your men for common thieves. So if you and they wish to share in the good Lord's brew…." He reached casually under his seat, pulled out a club, and hit Robin smartly round the ear with it. "… You must best me for it."
Robin staggered away from the friar, who yanked the reins from Andy's hand, and whipped up the horse. As he drove away the friar dipped his jug into an open barrel, took a good swallow of beer and toasted Robin sardonically.
"Confess Robin Hood," he called merrily over his shoulder, "that Friar Tuck is a better, holier, and braver man than thou art!"
Unfortunately for the friar, a low hanging branch caught him squarely across the forehead and he toppled backward off his seat onto the ground, smashing the jug of beer beneath him. The horse stopped immediately, to resume cropping the lush forest grass. Friar Tuck rose groaning to his feet, and then shock his head slowly as he discovered what had happened to his jug.
"Alas, the Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away. Mysterious are the ways of the Lord."
Robin staggered over to join him, and for a moment they stood there glaring at each other and rubbing their heads. Andy shook with laughter at the sight, as did many of the men.
"Do you yield?" asked Robin finally.
Tuck sniffed haughtily, "I'd rather roast in Hell."
He kicked Robin's feet out from under him and then threw himself on top of Robin like a malevolent whale. Robin rolled aside at the last moment, and Tuck crashed to the unyielding ground, knocking all the breath out of himself. All the woodsmen grabbed him, and this time he couldn't free himself.
"What should we do with this cheeky fellow?" asked Little John. Robin thought for a moment when a neigh of the cart horse called him back.
"Hook him to the cart!"
The people of the village saw a grand sight latter that day. Tuck came pulling the wagon, equipped with all of the furnishings of the horse. With Robin in the drivers seat guiding him, the rest of the men alongside of the wagon, singing a drinking song. Andy was on the shoulders of Little John, when they rolled into the village. The whole village came to where Robin stopped the good Friar, laughing at the sight of the harnessed Friar. Tuck gratefully was released of the cart. For a man of his girth, he was very strong.
"Lord, I would like to thank-you for this lesson of humility. I really must do something for you someday." Said Tuck as he gasped for air.
"Here's your chance," said Robin as he jumped off of the cart. "Gathered here are the poor and the destitute. The meek of the earth, who have known nothing but misfortune and maltreatment all their hard lives. I brought them here to give them a chance to live in peace, to rebuild their lives anew after the Sheriff's men took everything from them. We are an unusual flock, but then you are an unusual friar. What say you?"
Andy saw the Friar look around at the people. In truth Tuck had prayed more than once to God asking for his own flock. These people didn't look like the murderous savages that he heard about. Instead he saw only poverty, hunger and unmistakable signs of ill-treatment—men with missing hands and ears, women with whip marks; a young girl with crippled legs and a young man who had an eye burned out of his face. He looked around at all the hopeful faces and knew he couldn't refuse.
"The Lord moves in mysterious ways, very well I accept."
"Good, you won't regret this good friar," said Robin slapping Tuck on the back and walking away.
"Aye, but you might!" yelled Tuck. Andy laughed at the exchange, Tuck looked at her. She just smiled and waved, before walking away.
The wagons had already been unloaded of the treasure and the beer. A barrel had been opened and the men were drinking a toast for their good fortune. She made her way to Wulf, who had a glass of beer. He smiled at her, and offered her the glass. Andy had never tasted beer, but she took the glass and drank a great draught. All the men laughed afterwards when she coughed.
The whole camp was joyous, and they celebrated into the night.
Sorry for taking so long to update, I promise to be better know that summer has finally came. Hopefully I'll get this story done before the end of summer. Next chapter, Andy sees Maid Marian for the first time, since her father died. So please review, and let me know what you think.
P.S. sorry if there are a ton of grammar, and spelling mistakes.