"Welcome home, Master Robin! Welcome home, Lady Marian!"
Helping Marian while carrying his sleeping child across the threshold of Locksley Manor, Robin was moved by his loyal servants having kept vigil waiting for him and his family to return home, though the hour was fast approaching dawn.
"Good morning!" Robin greeted them brightly, though Marian was so exhausted she could barely stand. "All is well again, I promise you, and I hold a pardon to prove it! Now, isn't it time everybody was in bed?"
Noticing how tired Sarah the cook was, Robin smiled kindly, saying, "Sleep in, everyone. I don't think any of us will be up for breakfast in the morning."
"Thank you, Master Robin!" Sarah beamed, longing to sleep in.
Handing his manservant Thomas his weapons, Robin dismissed Nurse Mattie as well as Marian's maid, sending them to bed. "We'll put Ellie down," he told them, "as well as ourselves. Goodnight."
Somehow, Marian made it up the stairs guided by her husband's strong arm, and fell into bed while Robin left her to place Ellie in her cradle and tuck her in for the remainder of the night.
No sooner had Marian closed her eyes when she felt Robin gently removing her boots and stockings. When she felt his hands on her much too tight trousers, she moaned an objection.
"Love you, but no," was all she could say.
"Shh, it's alright," Robin soothed back to her, with passionate tenderness. "I'm only making you comfortable."
That was indeed his intention, and she closed her eyes again, allowing herself to be adored while her husband partially undressed her.
She felt better without the constricting trousers, and Robin found her completely adorable in his loose, billowing shirt.
The child in her womb had certainly grown these last few weeks, making Marian large and ungainly, but Robin found her beautiful in a wondrous new way.
Shedding his boots, belt, and outer doublet, he climbed into bed in shirt and trousers, then tenderly clasped Marian in his arms. She was on the verge of a deep sleep, but though drowsy, he was still wide awake.
Loving tenderness toward the woman he loved coursed through him, warming him and filling him with exquisite happiness. With the help of his friends, he'd saved her and himself as well, and he felt that nothing could threaten their happiness ever again. Kissing her hair, he felt their baby within her give a series of sturdy kicks.
With eyes still closed, Marian could only smile, as happy and content as Robin.
"Welcome home, Lady Locksley," Robin whispered into her hair. "I love you."
"And I love you," she managed to tell him, slurring the words in her tiredness.
Still holding her, Robin felt overwhelmed with joy, feeling her drift off peacefully to sleep. The passionate lover in him slept, while his protective, sheltering instincts took precedence. It was more than enough for now, filing him with tenderness.
To the soft, rhythmic snores of his well-beloved wife, he gradually let his eyes shut, as he too fell into a blissful contented sleep, just as his village began to awaken to a new day.
~FIN~