"There, Gisbourne...see? Oh, look, look...the look!" The Sheriff of Nottingham began mocking what he believed must be Robin's thoughts. " 'Oh! Oh! My people! My people no longer love me! What shall I do? How can I go on?' " Vaisey laughed maliciously. "Worth every penny I'm paying them to taunt him!"

"Indeed, my lord."

"Surely there must be more of the great unwashed willing to douse Locksley with buckets of slime, isn't that right, Gisbourne, hmm?"

"Several from Nettlestone, my lord."

"Good! Good! Very good!" The sheriff raised his voice to carry above the crowd. "Bring forth the good folk from Nettlestone!"

Twelve villagers from Nettlestone shuffled forward. Their faces wore looks of shame, but the sheriff's promise of money was just too good to pass.

Much was outraged. "Unbelievable! We feed them! We risk our lives to clothe them! We steal their taxes back for them! What are they doing?"

Djaq laid a steadying hand on his arm. Her eyes implored him to be still.

"Much, you cannot help Robin if you give yourself away."

He gulped, then looked about him anxiously. "Oh. Right. Right. It's just...look at his eyes!"

"We will help him, Much. Robin will guess they must have been forced to do this."

Marian, too, was stung by the look of defeat in Robin's eyes, and the slump of his shoulders. She wished he wouldn't care so much, yet was strangely moved that he did. When his eyes met hers, she couldn't resist an encouraging smile, and was rewarded when she saw him take heart and gather strength. But she immediately turned her expression to one of scorn, for she noticed Gisbourne eyeing her suspiciously.

"Look how he suffers," she said mockingly to Gisbourne. "Maybe now he'll think twice before trying to steal my horse."

Thankfully, Gisbourne appeared satisfied the reason for Marian's smile was due to Robin's misery. "He won't be given the opportunity, milady. As soon as the sheriff tires of this sport, he will hang him."

No! Not if she could get to Little John first! Even so, she had her doubts about her plan. There were just too many "ifs" to satisfy her. As she watched Robin bearing up under being slapped in the face by the traitors from Nettlestone, she prayed one of the outlaws would come up with a better plan.

Allan was clever, but his plans were far from wise. Will was smart, but he hadn't learned to be bold yet, though he was changing. And as for Much and Little John...well, their strengths did not lie in thinking.

Marian did not even consider Djaq, not knowing anything about her yet, still being under the impression she was a boy. Marian had no idea what a blessing it had been for Robin's gang when the Saracen joined them, but she was about to find out.

...

The day turned into night, and the crowd dispersed and went home. Vaisey stationed a string of guards around his "bird cage," lowered a cloth over it to prevent his "Little Robin Red Breast" from warbling through the night, and went off to celebrate the day's satisfying events with goblet after goblet of fine Burgundy wine.

Gisbourne went home to Locksley after travelling out of his way to escort Marian home to Knighton. What he didn't know was, upon her return home she immediately dressed herself as the Nightwatchman, "borrowed" another horse, and rode straight back to Nottingham.

By now, she knew how to climb over the town walls to get inside undetected. After doing so, she crept in shadows to get close to Robin. Even from a distance, her nose took offense at the stench coming from the "bird cage."

Robin barely smelled it any more, his nose having become accustomed to the stench. The taste was far worse.

The trouble with being gagged was he could not stop tasting the filth that soaked into the cloth gagging his mouth, nor spit it out. Vaisey had been extremely pleased that his new "bird" had been forced to eat human excrement before he would die. Indeed, the sheriff had gone to sleep dreaming very pleasant dreams about it.

But Vaisey had no clue that Robin wasn't tasting it any longer. Thanks to the cover over his "cage," he was able to use Marian's dagger to cut his bonds and remove the gag from his mouth. He was trying to think up a plan to escape, but he needed his gang's help. He had every faith they would not fail him.

While Marian kept her eyes on the covered cage, trying to decide what to do, she was alarmed to hear Much singing! She stared in disbelief as she saw Much and Allan staggering down the street from the direction of the Trip, supporting a drunken Will between them.

"Shut up yer caterwaulin'!" Allan's voice cried, slurring the words in a thick drunken accent.

Much only sang louder, and Marian was appalled to realize that he, too, was drunk. "How could they?" she thought. But then she realized...they couldn't. Of course it was part of their plan! She waited in the shadows, ready to jump in if needed.

"Go home to bed," one of the guards ordered.

"Phew, gents!" Allan cried. "This is what I call above and beyond the call of duty! Sheriff's got all of you stationed here, while the ale and the girls at the Trip are half price tonight?"

"What?" another guard asked.

"Half price. Till midnight. Better hurry. A line's formin' out the door."

Will lifted his head. "Better hurry," he agreed, and hiccuped.

Much's voice broke back into a sour love song.

"Shut up!" Allan shouted.

The guards shifted on their feet uncomfortably. "Oi, come on," one wheedled, "we don't all have to stay here smelling this s*#t, now, do we?"

"Hood's not goin' anywhere," another agreed.

"You lot go first," their leader suggested, sending half their number away. "But come back in plenty of time to let us have a go."

The first group moved happily off. No sooner had they disappeared, than the remaining guards were surprised to see the "drunken" men instantly become sober and fall upon them, hammering weapons down upon their heads. Little John appeared from nowhere, wielding his powerful staff to his advantage.

Robin's men were so successful, Marian had no need to assist them. She watched, amazed to see the small Saracen youth weave through the battle and empty the contents of a case she wore around her neck on the iron bars of the cage. Instantly, smoke billowed through the air, and Marian gasped when Robin, still covered and dripping with thick brown goo, appeared through the smoke and led his men away from the fight and over the town walls, to safety.

No guards had been killed, only knocked senseless to the ground.

Marian's heart was beating for joy, and she found it easier than ever to scale the wall, retrieve the horse she had borrowed, and head towards home.

Back in the safety of her room, in the home she adored, she looked out her window and blew a kiss in the direction of the forest, before saying her prayers and going to bed.