It's been a while, I know. I've had a lot of work since my last update, after which I had some family issues that needed my attention (and energy). I can't promise the next update will come before the month is up, but I can promise that I am not abandoning this story. I will try my best to find time to write.

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who has shown interest in this story. You make the bad parts of my days a little bit brighter.

Guest: Guy and Ajsa are your new OTP? My goodness, I'm flattered, thank you!

GoodGuest: Hahaha, bless you. I love your username. ;)

partygirl/partygirl98: Thank you! I'm so glad you started watching the show! Who's your favorite? Mine was always Allan (shh...don't tell Guy), which I think this chapter shows. :D

CarrieLaadan: There's more mischievous A'Dale comin' up. But Guy will return in the next chapter, I promise!

williewildcat: Oh God, Vaisey... He should not be so fun to write!

fiamma71: Hah, Game of Trolls, I like that. You're not the only one who has trouble reading/writing the English slang the soldiers use; I've been living in America for nearly 20 years and I struggle to write and read it! But that's how the guards talk in the show, so I tried to mimic it. As for Ajsa, I'm still figuring her out. She's a complicated woman, that's for sure.

greenveilbride: Well, Ajsa is sort of a damsel in distress. Robin Hood's gang may have done the grunt work, but she orchestrated her escape. With Gisborne gone (for now), she can't openly disobey the sheriff.

Hel Opacare: I'm so glad you also started watching the show! And thank you for your kind words. :)

Savage Kill: I've already replied to you in a PM, but now that this chapter is written, I can reply here, as well. Yes, if Ajsa were to return under Vaisey's conditions, it would be tantamount to a death sentence. I drop hints, in this chapter and in previous chapters.

Chapter Summary: More of Ajsa's past is revealed, but what is truth and what is a lie? Still no Gisborne, but he will return in the next chapter. (I had wanted him in this chapter, but while I was planning it, I'd forgotten about Isabella, and then I couldn't find a place for her yet.)

Enjoy!

Chapter 13: Tête-à-tête

The carriage lumbered along the road, jostling its occupants over bumps and dips. Traveling on horseback would have been more comfortable, but Vaisey had likely realized that it also made it easier for Ajsa to escape. She glanced at her two guards, Matthew and Tom, sitting opposite her inside the carriage. They'd be accompanying her to Hungary, or so they believed.

It had been about an hour since they had left the castle, and Ajsa was already growing impatient. Where was Robin Hood's gang? She wondered if Allan had forgotten to tell Robin, or if Robin had decided not to help her. She was Gisborne's maidservant, after all, and for all he knew, she could also be his spy. Although if Gisborne was dead, a spy would be useless to him. Nevertheless, Hood had no reason to help her beyond foiling the Sheriff's plans. She just hoped that would be reason enough.

Ajsa was in the middle of a yawn, when the carriage jerked to a halt and the men guarding it began shouting curses. Matthew and Tom immediately drew their swords.

"Stay inside, m'lady," instructed Matthew, before rushing to help his colleagues.

She ignored the directive. Peeking out the window, she saw Robin Hood's gang fighting three of the Sheriff's men, while two laid dead or unconscious on the forest floor. Another was swiftly incapacitated by Robin, and Ajsa watched a large man deal a powerful blow to Tom's skull. She stepped out of the carriage as he crumpled to the ground.

Kneeling by his side, she examined him. A bruise was already forming on his forehead from where the big man had hit him with his staff, but there was nothing to indicate a bleed in his brain. Tom would be fine, if a bit sore in the head.

Matthew, on the other hand, might not be quite as fortunate. He was holding his own against Hood, but only just. Before she could think about her actions, Ajsa was on her feet.

"Stop," she demanded, and all gazes, including Matthew's, turned to her. "Do not kill him."

Matching looks of confusion crossed Matthew's and Robin's faces. Ajsa didn't blame them; even she was unsure why she had spoken on her guard's behalf.

"Pardon?" questioned the outlaw.

"Do not kill him," she repeated. "Ransack the carriage, but let him live."

In Robin's distraction, Matthew attempted to strike at him. But the big man was quicker. After ensuring that all the guards were indeed out of commission, Robin rounded on Ajsa.

"Let him live, you say?"

"He was kind to me," she answered.

"How do I know you're not one of the Sheriff's spies?"

Allan moved to stand beside Ajsa. "Robin..."

"Well, he's right, isn't he?" said a blonde woman. Ajsa remembered her from the skirmish at the castle. "Why else would she defend the Sheriff's men?"

"I have already told you why," said Ajsa impatiently, "because that particular man treated me with kindness when he could have just as easily been a brute."

"I don't like this, Robin. I thought this was a bad idea when Allan mentioned it, and I think it's a worse idea now."

"I know you did, Kate," said Hood. He glanced briefly at the blonde woman, before returning his attention to Ajsa. "Even if you're not Vaisey's spy, you used to work for Gisborne."

Ajsa snorted. "I assure you that was not out of choice."

"True," conceded Hood. "Allan told me of your circumstance, and I do sympathize," he said, softening somewhat. "But I also have a responsibility to my gang and to the people the Sheriff oppresses."

"I am one of those people," Ajsa reminded him.

Robin regarded her with a cautious curiosity. "He's sending you home."

"Yes," she nodded, "but under less than favorable conditions."

A black man rested a hand on the outlaw's shoulder.

"Robin, I do not believe she is a spy. Allan has vouched for her, and she did attempt to stop Gisborne from killing you during your brawl atop the cliff."

Ajsa looked at him, startled. "How could you know that?" she asked. "You were not there."

"But I was, my lady," he replied. "Your focus was understandably elsewhere. You may remember me from the night I visited Sir Guy."

"I do," she affirmed. "You are the friar whose information helped him to capture Robin Hood's gang on the day of the eclipse. Yet here you are, a member of that same gang."

"Tuck's method was unorthodox, but it worked," said Robin. "Anyway, he's spoken in your favor, so I think that deserves a bit of respect."

Ajsa eyed the friar dubiously, then inclined her head. "I apologize and thank you for your assistance." She looked at each outlaw in turn. "I thank all of you. With Sir Guy gone, I fear I am at the Sheriff's mercy."

"And that's a bad place to be," said a blond-haired man. He gave Ajsa a small bow and smiled. "Much, at your service."

Allan rolled his eyes. "He'll be tryin' to woo ya in a minute, if ya let 'im," he quipped, earning an indignant huff from Much. "The big man o'er there is Li'le John, and the rest of us ya know."

"I am pleased to make your acquaintances, though I feel as if I already know you. Between the villagers and Gisborne, I have heard much about the famous Robin Hood and his men." She glanced at Kate, who was still watching her with suspicion. "And woman, of course."

"Now that we're all acquainted, let's get off the road before Vaisey's soldiers regain consciousness," said Robin. "Allan, Little John, grab the chest of money. May as well make this a double liberation." He winked at Ajsa and offered her his arm. "While we walk, I'd like to learn more about the Sheriff's plot and why he thought you could accomplish it."

Though Ajsa smiled, a sense of unease filled her at the prospect of lying again. Yet with a friar amongst his gang, she had even more reason to hide the truth about her past.

"I do not know the details of his plot, nor why he believed I would succeed in it," she answered truthfully. "He only told me that I was to secure funding from King Béla III of Hungary."

"Which would likely be used against King Richard," Tuck deduced.

Robin nodded. "Vaisey chose well. Your king is very wealthy, my lady."

"Yes, so I have been informed," said Ajsa dryly. "Do you know my king, then?"

"Not as such," replied Robin. "But his soldiers in the Holy Land wore the highest quality armor. Some of them even spoke English, so I learned a few things about him." He regarded Ajsa with a curious expression. "None of them, however, spoke English as fluently as you."

"I, too, was in the Holy Land," she confessed, "where I helped to care for wounded soldiers, some of whom were English."

"You traveled to the Holy Land?" exclaimed Much, his blue eyes wide with surprise. "Why would you go somewhere so dangerous?"

She shrugged. "My father went."

"Was he a soldier?" asked Allan.

"No, he was a blacksmith. The king liked his work and sent him to the Holy Land to repair the soldiers' armor and weapons."

"But that still doesn't explain why you went with him," Tuck remarked. "Could you not have stayed with family?"

"I am sure I could have," Ajsa replied. "I chose to accompany my father because I wanted to see beyond the borders of the kingdom. I wanted to meet new people and learn new languages."

Allan grinned. "A woman with a taste for adventure. Don't come across that very of'en."

"So you attended to the wounded, then returned to Hungary?" asked Much.

"Yes, when my king withdrew his troops, my father and I resumed our lives back home."

"But it's not that simple, is it," argued Kate. "The Sheriff thinks you can persuade your king to give him money. There must be a reason for that."

Ajsa stifled her irritation and hid it behind a coolly composed front.

"Perhaps he is aware of my father's favor with the king," she suggested. "King Béla commissioned many items from my father and subsequently rewarded him with a position of favor."

"With status, you mean," said Robin.

"Of a sort."

"So you're a noble," Kate stated. "That's why the Sheriff thinks your king will listen to you."

"I am not privy to the Sheriff's private thoughts," said Ajsa mildly. "As you can imagine, he was not keen to share the sordid details of his plan."

A look of annoyance flashed across Kate's face, and Robin, seeing it, intervened before an argument could erupt between the two women.

"Are you a noble?" he asked.

Ajsa scanned his features, searching for any signs of distrust. But she found none.

"I am not."

Allan closed his eyes, then opened them, and Ajsa noticed he appeared to be relieved. She furrowed her eyebrows. He caught her gaze and smiled sheepishly, but she still did not understand his reaction.

"But you must be someone important, or else Vaisey wouldn't send you on this mission," Kate insisted.

Ajsa sighed, her patience for the blonde woman wearing thin.

"I am merely the only Hungarian the Sheriff knows," she explained. "He commented on my hands, that they are not rough like those of the lower classes. From that observation, he evidently supposed I must therefore be someone of rank. And while I was more privileged than most of my sex, I regrettably did not command the king."

Kate opened her mouth, ready to dispute Ajsa's words, but Robin again stepped in.

"That's enough, Kate," he chided gently. Turning to Tuck, he said, "Whether or not Ajsa would have succeeded is only one side of the issue. We need to know what that money is for."

"We will figure something out, Robin," the friar assured him.

#

The turf crunched underfoot as Allan and Ajsa gathered firewood. Robin, liking but not yet trusting Ajsa, had opted not to bring the gang back to their camp. He did not truly believe she would betray them to the Sheriff-or to Gisborne, if he still lived-, but he hadn't survived this long without exercising a bit of caution.

"Kate does not like me," remarked Ajsa.

"She doesn't really like anyone," Allan replied. "I wouldn't take it personally."

"Oh, I do not," she said, bending down to pick up a few twigs. "But if we are going to quarrel the entire time, I think I would rather attempt to return home. I nearly escaped once, you know. I would have had I not encountered Gisborne at the docks."

"Comin' back from the Holy Land?"

Ajsa nodded. "With the Sheriff."

"That's shite luck, love," said Allan, grimacing in sympathy, "sharin' a carriage with Vaisey for days. He didn't hurt ya, did he?"

"No, he did not. I think he is not the sort to dirty his hands with that."

"Nah, he's got Giz for that."

Her face fell, but Allan, walking behind her, did not see it. When she'd first met Sir Guy, she'd hated him, for he had mocked her and had mercilessly reminded her of her misfortune. But gradually, she began to soften towards him-and he towards her-, and now she actually found herself missing him. A part of her even grieved for him.

"But you worked for him," Ajsa reminded Allan. "And you are back with Robin Hood."

"Aye, I worked for Giz, and I don't really regret it either. He's not as evil as people think, and I was at least able to still help the gang." Allan sighed. "But it wasn't easy gettin' back in with Robin. I don't think Much has forgiven me yet."

She laughed. "Yes, Much's loyalty to Robin is well-talked about in the village. How did you start working for Gisborne anyway?"

"Long story, love, but suffice it to say that at the time, I thought Giz could offer me more."

"And did he?" asked Ajsa, turning to face him. She shifted the bundle of firewood in her arms and watched Allan closely.

"Well, he paid me, so yeah, he did," Allan replied. "Then I remembered why I'd joined Robin in the first place. I guess I liked helpin' people."

Ajsa smiled. "And now you have helped me," she said. Walking over to him, she rose onto her tiptoes and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "The second half of the thank-you that I promised."

"It's a shame not all the women are as grateful as you," teased Allan, with a cheeky grin. "It's gettin' dark. We should head back to camp."

Ajsa followed him, a small smile on her lips. She liked Allan. She had liked him immediately upon making his acquaintance, which was saying something for her. He reminded her of someone she knew long ago, someone who had been dear to her.

Her heart gave a slight twinge at the memory. In her twenty-eight years, she had lost much, but she had also gained much. Loss and gain-one did not come without the other. There was balance; the universe demanded it. And now that she had lost Gisborne, perhaps she could regain her freedom.