A/N: Sorry this took too long. I'm helping work on a play at school and I meet with my writing partner every other weekend. Feel free to tell me if you're dying for an update and it's been too long.

Snow and Marian were walking through the forest in happy spirits. There was a picnic basket between them and they were twittering away with songs of merriment and good tides. They had leaves sticking out of their hair and bright smiles on their faces.

"This is the best day ever!" Snow giggled happily.

Then she ran in front of the older woman and started twirling around. She was giggling and having the best day of her life.

"Alright you," Marian laughed at the girl, "Hurry up and find some place for us to eat this wonderful meal. I'm starving."

"Okay Aunt Marian!" Snow giggled, "I have an aunt! Oh this is just amazing!"

"Slow down Snow," Marian called, "We don't want you to get hurt!"

"I'll be fine," Snow laughed.

To show just how fine she was the young girl started twirling and jumping. She continued to giggle and laugh at everything she was doing. She just kept spinning around in circles and dancing around in merriment. She never felt so free before. Then a low growl suddenly came from somewhere close behind her.

The young girl slowly turned around to see what was growling her way. She was face to face with a very hungry wolf. The men behind her didn't look too friendly either. They were carrying very big sticks and swords. There was an evil gleam in each of their eyes and they looked ready to pounce. Their shiny uniforms of armor suggested that they were guards though so she could be wrong.

"Hi," Snow grinned towards them, "Who are you?"

"Snow!" Marian cried.

She was at the child's side in an instant and blocking her from view the next. She pushed the child away from the evil men and kept a stern gaze on them. Her black eyes refused to leave them while they circled around the pair. Her gaze turned steely the moment she realized they were looking upon her with a hint of lust. Then she threw the picnic basket at them.

"That's everything we have!" She yelled, "Take what you want and leave us alone!"

"Ooh," the leader of the group giggled, "Aren't you a feisty one. Prince John would find you very interesting, wouldn't he boys?"

The other members of the group just chuckled at their leader's statement. Their dark eyes danced in joy and their wolf even smiled in merriment. They each stood at different heights and were different figures. One had long blonde hair that blocked away his eyes and an axe that glimmered and glistened in the sunlight. Another had short dark hair and bright green eyes. He was fat man who kept thumping his bludgeon against his hand. The tallest of the crew was also the skinniest. He was the one holding the dog on a rope and carrying a sword of his own. His black eyes continued to shift towards the leader with a look of lust. His leader was the handsome one of the bunch. He was the perfect height, the perfect build and his red hair definitely didn't hurt his appearance. He was the only one with his weapons sheathed. His blue eyes just kept traveling up and down Marian's figure. He seemed to like what he saw too.

"Your clothes seem to suggest you're worth more than this little basket," the leader continued, "But I'm sure we could find some other form of payment."

"Just let the girl go," Marian begged politely, "You can have me if you let her go."

"Ooh, easy payment boys," the leader joked.

"Exactly what payment?" Snow demanded softly, "Why do we have to pay you just to eat in the woods? This is my father's land."

"Hush Snow!" Marian ordered the girl, pulling her behind her yet again to keep her safe.

She knew full well what kind of danger they were in. She could tell simply by the way they were looking at her. They weren't just thieves. They were dangerous villains.

"You don't need the girl," Marian explained simply, "Just let her go. She means you no harm."

"Ordinarily we would believe you," the leader replied, "but she's King Leopold's daughter. We all know she won't hold her tongue."

Then he nodded his head towards the other men. They immediately went into action. Snow was ripped from Marian's arms and the little girl screamed with all of her might. Marian fought the men off as much as she could but the leader caught her by the waist. Snow kicked and punched and struggled until she was free. Then she ran as fast as her little feet would allow. The leader just rolled his eyes at the action and pushed Marian into his men's arms. He picked up a rock from the ground and chucked it towards the little girl. Snow fell at the impact and rolled down the hill. Her tiny body hit a small stump and laid there motionless.

"Snow!" Marian screamed struggling against their attackers even more.

They just laughed at the prone body at the bottom of the small hill. Then they each turned towards the maiden. They each had a smile on their face. Their leader picked up the picnic basket and through it to the wolf. The men watched in avid fascination at the way the wolf tore open the basket. It was taking great pride in wrecking everything. Then the leader pulled Marian so she had a front row seat to the show. The men were so busy laughing that they failed to notice the red sparkle in their captive's eyes.

"Next we'll have him go after the girl," the leader promised, "Just to see what happens."

Snick!

The men immediately jumped at the arrow in their leader's back. Heads turned to find the source but they were sitting ducks, rushing around in search of an invisible enemy. Snick! Another arrow landed in the aggressive wolf that had started to make its way towards the princess during the confusion. The sound of galloping horse hooves soon followed a third arrow that barely missed the blonde's head. Marian ignored them. She rushed towards the fallen girl and prayed to the gods that she was alright.

The men screamed at the rider-less horse that was now chasing them around. They used their weapons however they could but they continued to fail. The horse was just too fast and the arrows too many for them to get a real feel on their situation. Of course, one of them decided to make the mistake of going after their intended prey.

The fat oaf grabbed the maiden and pulled her towards her feet. He took hold of her waist and attempted to lift her over her shoulder. Instead he flew back a good thirty paces. His head slammed into a nearby rock and a trickle of blood slid down his cheek. The other men looked towards the maiden with vengeance in their eyes. She just smiled and beckoned them forward.

The man with the axe came forward slowly. He was cautious in his evaluation of what a threat the woman was before him. He grinned and started running towards her. He was met with a green flash of leaves. The man's axe was lost and the others watched their comrade in interest. He was fighting another man who was dressed in nothing but greenery. Both men were struggling to have the upper hand and punching with all of their might. They turned towards the maiden with matching evil grins.

Marian rolled her eyes and pushed her hands forward. They looked at her curiously before they felt themselves fall backwards. Then they were soaring in the air. Tree limbs and branches were wrapping themselves around their torsos and cutting off air supply. Thorns and roses were attacking their faces and all plant related things were now viciously protective. They soared too far in the air and were immediately dropped.

Their screams on the way down told the scrapping pair on the ground something was up. The man in green screamed in pain as he was kicked to the side. The blonde had danger in his eyes and raced towards the maiden at top speed. He slammed into the woman, pinning her hands the moment they landed on the ground. Marian struggled against him, trying to kick him off. The blonde smiled and grabbed at a knife. He raised it towards the woman's throat. He was smiling all the while. Then a flash of green had him off of her in an instant.

"Move!" Marian ordered of the green mass on top of her enemy.

The man obliged and quickly jumped off of the man. With just a wave of the maiden's hand the blonde was in the air. His whole body was frozen above their heads, a blue hazing crushing his body. He screamed and begged for relief but he received none.

"Who do you work for?" The man in green demanded.

The man fell to the ground immediately. He hurriedly scuffled away while Marian was distracted. She knew the man in green. She should have recognized him sooner.

"Robin?" She asked.

Robin just took off his hood and winked at the woman. Then he picked up his bow and arrow and fired off. The shot hit his target in the left leg. The man fell and groaned in agony. The Marian remembered what she was doing. He flew towards them, surrounded by the blue haze again. His screams filled the air again until Marian lightened her magical hold.

"Answer the man's question," she demanded.

"I don't know!" The man replied. Then he yelped in pain because Marian had increased the pressure on his lungs.

"I suggest you tell us the truth," Robin replied, "Or the lady will only keep doing that."

"I don-" the man screamed again, "Alright, I'll tell you. Please stop."

"That's better," Robin grinned, "Who do you work for?"

"A prince," the man replied.

There was a pause while Robin waited for the rest of the statement. It never came so he waved towards his partner in crime. Marian grinned as she closed her hand into a fist. The man screamed again.

"Okay, his name is Prince John!" The man screamed, "Please stop doing that."

"This Prince John wouldn't happen to be the son of King James," Robin questioned with a smile, "Would he?"

"He is indeed, sir," the man replied. His eyes were glued on the brunette woman with the magic powers. He was sweating buckets and fearful of what she would do next.

"Thank you," Robin cried, "You may go!"

He then bowed his head towards the woman. He didn't even bother to see if his orders were carried out. He went towards the unconscious princess and checked her pulse. He sighed in relief. She was alive. Then he heard a squeal of horror.

Robin jumped to his feet, bow and arrow ready to strike. Marian was blocking his way with her hand in the guy's chest. She removed her hand and held his heart there. She squeezed the heart and the man screamed in pain.

"No!" Robin yelled, placing his hand over the heart. "What are you doing?"

"He killed Snow!" Marian replied, "He doesn't deserve to live!"

"You can't just kill people for no reason!"

"If I don't kill him he's going to get away with murder!"

"No," the man cried, "Please don't kill me!"

"Shut up!" Marian ordered.

The man quickly obeyed her command. Robin wasn't certain if it was because he was afraid of her or his heart just made it that way. He also didn't really care. The objective was to get the lady to return the heart to its proper place.

"Marian, Snow's alive," Robin replied, "We just need to get her back to the castle as soon as possible."

"If I don't kill him he'll finish the job," Marian argued. The pressure she was putting on the heart was too much. Robin could hear it cracking. It was highly disturbing that anyone so charming cold be so evil.

"He won't," Robin said, "I promise. I'll make certain he never comes after Snow again. Please, put the heart back."

Marian rolled her eyes at the offer. She quickly stuffed the heart back into the man and pushed him away from her. The man took the hint. He gathered up his weapons and started running away. Marian just waved her hand and the weapons disappeared from his hands. The man went to gather them again but stopped when a blue ball almost took off his hand. He looked towards the maiden with wide eyes and ran for the hills. His screams of fear were the very last thing they heard from him.

"Aren't you going to say something?" Robin demanded of the woman before him.

Marian ignored him and raced towards the girl. She checked the girl's pulse, nearly bursting in tears of relief. She waved her hands over the child's face and a blue haze began to develop. Blood started to disappear from the little girl's body. Her pale skin looked normal and she was breathing steadier.

"What are you doing?" Robin asked, alarm in his voice.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Marian shot back, "I'm healing her."

"With magic?"

"No, with medicine I conveniently have on my person at all times," Marian rolled her eyes, "Of course with magic. Don't you know anything?"

Robin ignored her sarcastic tone. Instead he asked, "Doesn't that always come with a price?"

"It's just a simple healing spell," Marian sputtered, "It's not a big deal."

"It's not going to rebound onto you?" Robin asked.

"Does it matter if it keeps the girl alive until we can get to the castle?" Marian replied.

Her black eyes were narrowed towards him and she looked determined. Robin just waved his hand in the air and bowed his head towards her. He knew when to quit. So instead he began tying up their captives. Then he started collecting wood.

"What are you doing?" Marian demanded.

"It will be dark soon and with the little Princess like that even on my horse we won't be able to get back to the castle before dawn," he explained, "We might as well camp here and then move when Snow's more up for it."

"It will get cold," Marian replied, "There are animals that will try to kill us in our sleep."

"Which is another reason why staying here would be safest. Besides, I'm the best hunter in town. You won't find anyone as good at arrows as me."

"Well that's reassuring," Marian replied, sarcasm evident in her every fiber.

"Hey I don't want to be in this situation any more than you do. I'm just trying to keep us alive. Unless you can use that magic of yours to create a cabin that will protect us from everything including wolves!"

Marian shook her head and continued to fix all of Snow's injuries. She waited until she absolutely couldn't take it anymore. Finally, she rose to her feet and clumped towards the wood. Robin was working on trying to get the fire going. He was failing but he wouldn't admit it with the brunette woman so closely monitoring him. So, Marian just waved her hand and started the fire.

"I was getting it," Robin replied.

"Well I'm cold and want to be warm now instead of by dawn," Marian quipped back right on cue.

She rubbed her hands over the flames and tried to ignore his situation. Then she pointed towards the prone body of the little girl. She whispered a few words and the child started floating towards the fire.

"Don't do that!" Robin hollered, picking up the girl before the magic could drop her. He quickly tucked her by the fire and made her as comfortable as possible with his own hood. Then he sent an angry glare the woman's way.

"Are you trying to kill her?" He asked.

"I had it perfectly under control," she said.

"You have an addiction!" Robin sneered.

"Oh please," Marian bounced back right on cue, "This is the first time I've performed magic in months. Usually it's something far more complicated than a healing spell."

"Right. I'm sure you can stop anytime. Or you know, remove somebody else's heart right on out of their chest. Whichever you prefer."

"You think I enjoyed that?" She asked, "You honestly think I enjoyed the fear in his eyes."

"You certainly didn't look detested."

"Well I didn't okay," Marian screamed, "I hated it! I hate that I can make people do that, that I've always been able to do that! Okay, I don't need you to tell me how awful I am!"

At that moment Snow whimpered in her slumber. She twitched and started fighting against the covering on her. Marian immediately rushed to the child's side and quickly went to work quieting her fears. She swept away the stray hairs from the girl's forehead and waited until the child stopped twitching again. She placed a kiss on Snow's brow and returned to her spot as if nothing had happened. Robin watched all of this and felt even more confused by the minute.

"I'll take the first shift," he said, "You should get some sleep."

"You came to our rescue too quickly," Marian replied, "For all I know you could be one of them."

Robin laughed at that. It was full bellied and almost too loud. He fed the fire with a little more wood and tried to contain his joy. He was very awful about it. Marian was glaring at him with her big black eyes.

"You're not very trusting, are you?" He chuckled.

"Trust is something that should be earned," she replied.

"It will be," Robin winked.

%

Nate was pacing up and down the bedroom. Sophie was politely watching his every move, her arms crossed against her chest and ready for a fight. The mastermind was just fuming really. His silence was just another sign of how angry he was. He hadn't touched a single drop of liquor yet either. This was going to be big and loud.

"Why didn't you tell me?" He asked.

Sophie rolled her eyes at the simplicity of the statement. Of course he would start with the easy question first. He never had the guts to ask the one he actually wanted answered.

"I thought it was irrelevant," she said.

"Don't lie to me! Not now! Not after everything!" Nate hollered, moving into her personal space in seconds. She stood up to meet him for their battle.

"It wasn't any of your business," she replied, voice as cool as ever.

His arms were on her shoulders in seconds practically shaking her. His eyes looked wild and the emotion there… was not one of pure anger. His blue eyes were sad. He took a deep breath and finally spoke, "You know them!"

"Why does it matter?" Sophie asked, feeling a pit of guilt in her stomach.

"Because we're taking down your sister and you shouldn't have to do that," he said.

"You took down your own father."

"That's different," Nate snarled, "I knew what I was doing as did everybody else. You didn't even bother to mention it. Your sister, Sophie!"

"I am aware of the fact that our mark is my sister and our client is my nephew," Sophie rolled her eyes, "Thank you ever so much for reminding me of why we are here."

"Except he's not the one who asked for us," Nate cried.

He resumed his erratic pacing. This time his steps were long and slow. He was recoiling, choosing his next point in the argument very carefully. Sophie was fine with that. She could beat him easily when it came to words. She was the queen of them.

"Do you think she's the one who sent for us?" He asked.

"I wouldn't put it past her," Sophie replied, moving to his side without even thinking about it. "Of course, she's the one who sent me away so the question would be why. Why send for the one thing in this world she hates most?"

"You're telling me you believed it was her kid?" Nate demanded bitterly.

"Of course I believe it was Henry!" Sophie scowled, "Dammit Nate! Why can't you just trust me at my word?"

Nate moved towards her with such adoring blue eyes. The anger he had before was completely gone. He was just looking at her as if she was the most beautiful thing in the world. Then he grabbed her by the cheeks and rubbed his thumbs against them. With a soft smile he spoke, "I do trust you."

He kissed her on the forehead and held her close for a few minutes. Then he released her and started heading towards the door. He touched the handle and froze. He turned towards her with another sad smile.

"You don't trust me."

%

Snow was riding on the horse, happily chattering away while Marian and Robin were on foot. They had finally made it to the castle after hours of travel. Snow had awakened shortly after breakfast was over. She had little to no appetite but the child was slowly growing more and more aware of her surroundings as time went by. Their welcome was almost as loud.

"Snow!" Leopold cried, racing towards the child at top speed. Regina wasn't too far behind. Her hands gave a gentle squeeze to her sister's shoulders before she enveloped the tiny child in a hug. Cora and the butler were also looking cheerful in the doorway.

"Hi father," Snow chimed giggling at the attention, "Robin saved me!"

"Robin saved you?" Regina gasped tears of joy in her eyes.

"What happened?" Leopold questioned softly.

"We were attacked by a group of highway robbers," Marian explained, "Snow had managed to get away and their leader hit her in the head. I tried to fight them off but I failed. Robin came to our rescue moments after Snow was knocked out."

"Did you figure out who was behind the attack?" Cora asked staring at Marian with blank eyes.

Robin stepped forward. "I'm going to take care of that as soon as I leave here, my lady," he said, "I just came to make certain Marian and Snow returned home safely. Plus my horse and I need some nourishment before we hunt the beggars down."

"I don't understand," Leopold hollered, "Marian you say Snow was injured but I see no such marks. Why there's barely even a bump!"

"That's because Marian healed her," Robin explained, "Her magic is quite powerful."

"Magic?" Leopold frowned, "You can cast magic, Marian."

"Only good magic, your majesty," Marian replied, "but I'm trying to stop using it. I've become too dependent. Healing is pretty much all that I can do."

"Marian, you promised," Regina scowled, "You said you wouldn't do anything to endanger her!"

"Don't yell at Marian," Snow begged, "We were having such a wonderful time until the evil beggars came. She was teaching me so much about flowers and trees. It wasn't her fault that Robin was the only one who could really save us from them. She fought hard to protect me and I feel so much better than I did yesterday."

"We'll discuss this later, my dear," Leopold proposed, "but from now on you and Marian must not leave the castle without a proper escort. I couldn't stand anything happening to you or my future sister-in-law."

"Three days," Regina grinned mechanically.

"Well, I will just take care of my horse in your stables and then be on my way," Robin replied.

"Nonsense," Snow grinned, "You will join us for dinner and stay the night."

"Snow's right," Marian agreed, "You were up all night trying to protect us."

"So were you," Robin pointed out.

"That's it," Leopold interrupted the pair, "To bed with all of you. No arguments, you have all been through enough. I will hear none of it, Robin."

Robin bowed. "As you wish your majesty," he said.

"Marian," Cora smiled towards her youngest daughter, "I will help you on your way to bed."

"Yes mother," Marian nodded.

Robin watched the odd interaction of the small family. They were all tickled pink that the princess had made it home safely. Nobody seemed so ecstatic that her baby-sitter had as well. In fact, her mother seemed downright angry with the result. It was just so distracting that the hoodlum decided to make a quick detour after his trip to the stables. He climbed his way into a nearby window and watched the two women.

"Did you destroy the crooks?" Cora demanded of her daughter harshly.

"I tried to," Marian replied, "but only of them actually escaped. The rest lived if that's what you're asking."

"Did you even think to use your magic to save the child?" Cora demanded without pause.

"Of course I did. Robin arrived before I could even think about reacting. He saved us and made it so I had enough energy to save Snow."

Cora smacked her daughter at that. Marian didn't even make a sound of pain or anything. She just stood straighter and met her mother's eyes. Cora looked disgusted to even be near her own child. She turned away and then right back, pulling the younger woman's hair in her anger.

"Are you an idiot?" She demanded, "I'll admit that it was a good plan but you're never going to be queen! That's not your destiny! Getting rid of the daughter this early before the wedding is a foolish idea! Do you even want our plan to succeed?"

"Regina doesn't even want to marry the king," Marian groaned, "Why can't you just let her go? She didn't do anything wrong!"

Cora pulled her daughter's hair tighter. "Regina will become Queen in three days' time and you will be appointed their head sorceress when the time is right," she explained, releasing her daughter's hair and giving it a light pat. "You shouldn't have wasted the time to heal her. How many times have I told you that magic comes with a price, always? You should have wasted that energy on something useful. Now those bandits are free to strike again on the King's daughter and his wife's maiden."

"I'm sorry, Mother," Marian said, "I didn't mean to ruin your plans."

"I know you didn't," Cora said, "You just have to be more careful. Convincing Leopold that your powers are merely those of a caregiver is going to take some time but together we'll get through it. We'll try to get Snow to help us. She's starting to warm up to you. We can use that. Don't worry. Our plan isn't a total loss."

"Mother, I'm tired."

"Of course," Cora nodded, "You rest now. And remember that healing is more wasteful than killing."

"Yes, mother." Marian raced up the stairs without another moment of hesitation.

Robin waited for her wretched mother to leave. He climbed back through the window and began his climb up the wall. He used the vines and bricks to make his way higher and higher. He peered through every window on his way up until he found the right one. Then he maneuvered his way through as softly as possible.

Marian was sitting on her bed fighting against tears. She was surrounded by pillows and blankets. Her room looked big and empty. She looked tiny within it. So the man made his way further into her room. He stepped on some shattered glass and hissed. Marian immediately sat up in fright of the sound.

"It's alright," Robin said, raising his hands into the air in surrender. "I'm just here to see how you're doing. I saw what your mother did and she was wrong. You did the right thing and you shouldn't take that from her."

"Go away," Marian ordered harshly. She was rubbing at her cheeks and trying to shield herself from view. At first he thought it was because she was embarrassed by her tears. Then he noticed the slight redness on her hands.

Robin rushed to her side and immediately scooped up her hands. There was blood on them. He pushed back some of the hair on her face and found blood there too. Bruises were suddenly popping up everywhere on the beauty's body. She looked like she had been the one to be pushed down that hill during the attack.

"Magic always comes with a price," he sneered, "And this is the price. You exchanged your health for hers, didn't you?"

"Does it matter?" Marian mumbled, already suffering from the symptoms of a concussion.

"It should," he replied.

Robin quickly looked for a tub of water. He found one and grabbed the first cloth he could find. Then he dabbed the cloth into the water and started wiping away at the wounds. He was going to take care of her even if nobody else wanted to. She deserved to be treated like a hero and only came as a second fiddle. She nearly killed a man for the child everybody welcomed home so readily.

"Why are you doing this?" She asked. Her big black eyes were soft as they gazed at him with apprehension and confusion. She even looked a little scared.

"Because I want to," he said.

Marian nodded her head at his reply. She just accepted it as word and even helped him whenever he asked. Robin continued to treat each of her wounds until he was satisfied that they were well. Then he took care of the rags while she got changed. When he turned around he tucked the woman in and stayed with her until she fell asleep. It wasn't until the moon had risen high into the sky that he realized what he was doing. He had been staring at her for hours, measuring each breath as if it were his own. That was the moment Robin Hood realized he had lost his heart.