The Golden Arrow [ONC 2022]

Ten

The stars shined brightly overhead, visible within the light of the full moon, as Robin sat on a tree stump secluded within a circle of pines. His fingers gripped a still-full mug of ale. He'd hardly even taken a sip from the damned thing.

Wanted to but...It felt like the night for a clear head.  One required for reflection instead of inebriation.

They'd already sent the gold from their highway robbery back to the townsfolk it'd been taken from.  being escorted by a few trusted Merry Men on horses they'd stolen from the king's guards. It would take at least a day for the men who'd carried it out of the forest to return to Sherwood, time the remaining group would use to pack the camp and prepare to move it. By tomorrow evening, they'd already be halfway to their new campsite.

It was a precaution to relocate after every robbery just in case anyone tried to track them back to the camp. So they'd move and set up again until they found another carriage to rob and the cycle would start all over.

The only reason they weren't on the move already was that it had been early evening by the time they'd returned from the robbery. No king's guard had ever been stupid enough to try and find them in the middle of the night in Sherwood Forest. Not when the woods were a strange and unsafe place at the best of times. At night, it was dangerous to walk through unless you were one of the forest-dwelling creatures that roamed it.

The Merry Men had long since considered themselves to be forest-dwelling creatures and so the packing would wait until the morning. For tonight, a celebration awaited. The jubilations were mostly comprised of ale, drunken bad jokes, and horrible off-key singing.

But the singing wasn't what kept Robin from the festivities.  Rather, he couldn't seem to clear his mind from what had nearly happened on the road earlier.  He'd returned to camp shaken and only hugging his daughter tightly had eased some of the turmoil in his soul. Six months away from her and only one day after his return, he'd nearly gotten himself stabbed in the back.

Stupid.  He'd been so stupid, not minding his surroundings at all—

"Need another drink?"

Robin ripped his gaze from the stars above to glance over a shoulder. Standing between two pines, half-concealed in shadows, was Karim. He'd ditched the red vest he'd been wearing since emerging from the lamp, leaving him in a loose white shirt that seemed starkly bright against the brown of his skin. His shirtsleeves were rolled up to the elbows, exposing well-toned arms, and the neckline scooped low enough that Robin could see a hint of the muscled chest beneath.

"I'm good," Robin said, dragging his gaze up to Karim's face, as he indicated the mug his fingers gripped. "Still full."

Karim took a cautious step forward. One. Then another. And another until he was standing next to Robin. "Lynn is sleeping. I don't know how since your friend Jon is singing at the top of his lungs over there. It's quite horrid. You were smart to find a spot to hide."

"She takes after her mother in that way.  Marian could sleep through anything, though she once claimed that my snoring almost bested her."

The genie's mouth twitched as he sank to the ground, folding his legs neatly beneath him.  "Well, it's impressive. I've never seen anything like it." He brushed his hair back and tilted his face up to gaze at twinkling stars.  "It's a beautiful night. I think the sky is what I miss most when I'm inside...It's so wide. So open. It would feel less like a prison if I could see the sky."

Something in Robin's chest clenched painfully but he didn't know what to say in response to that so he only murmured, "Thank you for today."

Karim's lips twitched faintly.  He seemed to know what Robin meant. "All I did was what you told me. Keep an eye out for who needs help and...you did. You don't need to thank me. Really, I should be thanking you."