Will and Scarlett (undergoing rewrites)

For King and Glory

I was the first out the first morning that Robin Hood joined our gang. I untangled myself from WIll gently and pulled my other set of clothes on. My gloves went on second and then I headed out to start a fire. Wll and I were the only ones to have a hut. I suppose the menfolk decided it wasn't decent for me to sleep under the stars with nothing. I would have told them to bugger off, but I liked the hut. They did a great job with it, with no rain getting in. It wasn't much, just some sturdy wood and straw, but it meant a lot to me. 

The boys might think that Will and I have been together in the most intimate way, but they would be wrong. We've been Will and Scarlett for a long time, but I was a nobleman's daughter, and it was understood that I would be a maiden until I said the words "I do," and I hadn't yet. 

I blew on my fingertips as I piled wood on the pit. The sun was barely over the horizon, and I really did need a fire. I reached for the flint when a hand came out of nowhere to give it to me. I jumped and turned to glare at whoever startled me. 

"You're up early." Robin drawled as I took the flint and set to starting the fire. I could still feel his eyes on me, but decided to stay quiet. It was too early for conversation. I might have been up early, but that didn't mean I was a morning person, or that I wanted to talk to someone who could bring my whole world crashing down around my ears. I knew he would never even remember that he had met me, but a small piece of me would fear that forever, or until he left. 

"How did you know?" he asked softly. I could hear the emotion in his voice. 

"You made it sound like it was all fun and games. It wasn't, was it? It was horrible," I responded, leaning back on my heels as smoke started to rise. I heard him let out a breath but didn't turn to look. I didn't know if it was a sigh, or if he was taking his time to answer. It didn't really matter to me, I knew the answer. How could war ever be fun and games? 

"It was horrible... but then it wasn't." When he spoke this time, I finally looked at him. He was telling the truth, but I didn't understand.

"How?" I asked, sitting next to him.

"I was ready when I went. I wanted to defend England, for king and glory. I was a man, but I was an idiot. I thought I would go, kill some Turks, and then come home a hero." I watched him silently. "But it wasn't like that. They weren't Turks. They were just people, doing the same thing we were. Defending their home. We were the invaders. The Holy Land wasn't just ours. It was theirs. Theirs, and ours, and the Jews."

"So what was good about it?" I asked, confused. 

"I saved the kings life. The leader of the Turks sent assassins to kill him. And I saved him. That's why I'm home. I saved him, but I got injured, and he sent me back to heal."

I had to think about that for a minute. He saved the king. My uncle. I'd only met the man once. I remember only that he seemed huge to me. A lion. I knew then, at four years old, that that was why they called him Lionheart. He had a laugh that boomed in our house, and made everyone else laugh. Not because he was king, but because he made people love him. That was why Robin would have willingly given his life to save him. Now I understood. 

I heard laughter from several young boys. I was nine now, and held my bow tight. It was smaller than all of theirs, but I knew I could beat them all. Maybe not Will, but he wasn't competing. It was the summer solstice, and for once, the whole village was celebrating. The men had just had their competition, with John as their winner. It was no big surprise, but the losers were good natured. They had mead for the first time in a long time, and weren't too upset. Now it was time for the lads to shoot.