Robin Hood by Courtney Garner (the beginning after the end novel read .txt) 📖

Eventually I closed my eyes and let the feelings seep in. I'd almost died. Worse, I'd almost been raped. But I hadn't been. I was alive and presumably safe against Will's chest which was warm and bare and nice. It was a really good place to be.

When he finally stopped moving I could hear the trickling of water and I wanted to turn my head but couldn't. It would hurt too much. He sat down with me in his lap which was... nice. It was just so wierd to have someone rescuing me.

"Are you okay?" He leaned down like he wanted to bring his face close to mine but he didn't. His right hand hovered over my face where I was sure a bruise was blooming.

"I'll be fine." My voice was raspy and tired. The adrenaline was starting to wear off and my eyelids drooped.

"Do you mind if I..." He gestured toward my body. He wanted to check my wounds and it probably wasn't a bad idea so I nodded. Will probed delicately at the back of my head. Satisfied there he moved onto my jaw, running cool fingers along my skin. It felt wonderful. He frowned when he got to the deep slash on my arm. Taking my cloak he wet it in the small stream we were sitting beside and wiped away as much blood as he could. When Will was satisfied with that he grabbed my wrist where I had pressed my balled up fist against my stomach in an unconcious effort to stop the ache.

Moving my hand aside he placed his own hand right on the exposed flesh underneath my vest. He looked at me questioningly. I didn't breathe.

"Is this okay?" What was he doing? I nodded yes because I wanted him to touch me. I needed someone to touch me right now. Pushing my vest up, he laid his palm on my skin. I tensed, not expecting his touch to be gentle enough to not hurt. But it was. His thumb rubbed small circles above my belly button. He didn't try to push any further, just rubbed reasuringly. I wanted to weep with joy.

"You can rest now if you want." I was already leaning my head against his chest before he was done speaking. I'm not really sure if I fell asleep or passed out but either way the blackness rushed up to meet me.

I woke up in fits. At first when my eyes opened I would see leaves overhead as Will moved quietly through the trees with me in his arms. Then the pain would overcome my conciousness in a black, blurry haze and I would be plunged back into darkness. I don't know how many times this happened, but it was enough for me to realize that we were traveling for a very long time as darkness turned into daylight and then dimmed again.

Finally I woke as Will's arms unwrapped themselves from my body and laid me gently back onto a soft surface. My groggy eyes registered his blurry face in the dim firelight. He wasn't alone. There was another beautiful woman leanding over me. Just as I was about to open my mouth another wave of agony caused my muscles to spasm. I breathed in sharply and my eyes fluttered closed. I passed out again. 

I lost all sense of time after that. The pain induced unconciousess felt different now, more like it was drug induced. I didn't wake up again but it felt like there was always someone there with me. Words cannot even describe how much I hated being so helpless.

When my body's pain had dulled and the drugs wore off, I woke for the last time to dim morning sun streaming through a flap in the tent where I laid. There were people talking nearby.

"You shouldn't have brought her here." A male voice. One that I didn't know.

"What was he suppose to do? Let her die?" This came from a frantic female.

And then came the voice that I wanted to hear. "She saved me. We can trust her."It was Will. Boy, was I glad to hear him. It made my hand itch for a weapon a little less. Still, I wanted my bow back.

"The hell we can! You don't even know who she is!" The angry male spoke again. He was practically shouting. It took a while for Will to speak again and when he did his words were quiet.

"Her name is Robin. I think she's Robin Hood." No! No, Will! Oh, God this was bad. These people could turn me in and I wasn't in really great fighting condition. I had to get out of here fast.

There was a moment of stunned silence and then the man laughed. "You expect me to belive that this human girl is the same person that we have been hearing about for the past  year?" He asked between laughs. "Look at her!" I was planning my escape route as he spoke so I didn't really have time to be offended. First I had to figure out if I could move. Well, wiggling my toes didn't seem to cause too much discomfort.

"Look at her bow!" Will was less calm now. "Believe me, she knows how to use it. And I found her being beaten by the guards after she released all of the prisoners. She saved Isabelle!" Who the hell was Isabelle? Some girl in the prison, I guess. Maybe the one I got caught for.

"And that is why she's still here." The man sighed reluctantly. "This Robin has saved one of ours and she deserves sanctuary. So we will give it to her. But be careful." His footsteps retreated.

The woman spoke to Will this time. "I am going to check on Isabelle again. Robin should wake up in an hour or so." Wrong. I was awake now. The canvas door of the tent opened and she left. Will sat beside me on the bedroll. I tried to stay still as long as possible just so I could listen to his breathing, but after a few minutes the tickle in my throat became too much and I gave a weak cough. It didn't feel great but it didn't feel awful. Next I tried to stretch my legs. Once again, not that bad.

"You feel alright?" He asked, watching me. It was wierd how alike this situation was to when we met. The roles were just reversed.

"Yeah, hunky freaking dorry." My voice crackled from disuse. "How long have I been asleep?" I just needed some facts. Something solid.

"Three days. Most of the first day was spent traveling. After we got here Linota gave you something to knock you out because you kept moaning. It sounded... painful." He shuddered.

I sat up, feeling lightheaded for a moment. The blood had been washed out of my hair and I was still in my own clothes. "I feel suprisingly good." I stretched again to prove it. Everything ached with a passion but nothing felt as if a white hot poker was being applied to it. I could probably even walk.

"Yeah, my mom- Linota- is pretty good with herbal medacine." I stood and the room tilted slightly. Will popped up beside me and offered a hand so that I wouldn't fall over. Once I was sure I wasn't too tipsy I pulled away from his hands and reached for my bow. I was shocked to also see my quiver of arrows, slighly depleted from my adventure. They were a comfortable weight against my back.

Turning around, I nearly bumped into Will, who was crowding me even more than necesary in the tent. It was thankfully tall enough for me stand without stooping. I don't think I could handle stooping right now. Using my fingertips, I pushed his chest until he was at a distance I could handle. People couldn't just migrate toward me that fast.

"Listen, we need to talk." I paused and licked my lips. He looked at me expectantly. Will was acting different from how I remember. Although, I guess we had met in different circumstances. He still looked at me the same. With the same piercing eyes. "So you know I'm Robin Hood and now they know I'm Robin Hood. " I gestured toward the opening in the tent. "And I don't know what's going on but things seem to be going real bad real fast. So I'm going to leave."

"You don't have to leave yet. Actually, you probably can't. It's a long way to travel and you're not up to it. It's safe here." He smiled devilishly, revealing straght white teeth. "Even for outlaws."

"This isn't funny. I killed those men. By law I should be put to death. It would be best if I just go back to my tree, pack my stuff, and get the hell out of dodge."

He jerked his head toward the door. "Come on, let's get some food. You don't have to worry about anyone turning you in. Isabelle told us how you saved her so we owe you. We're a very... tight knit community." Now he tried to pull me out of the tent. My shoulder throbbed along with the rest of me, but I stayed put. Finally he stopped his half hearted attempt and looked at me. "You don't have to worry about us. I promise."

"I have a few questions for you." I told Will, looking at him warily. Now that I had gotten over the whole being rescued ordeal, my suspicion was growing.

His face didn't go serious all of a sudden as I had expected, but kept the slight smile. "I bet you do." Then he just turned and walked out of the tent, expecting me to follow. For a moment I thought about just staying where I was. But, I realized, that would get me exactly nowhere.

My breath caught in my throat when I stepped out into the dim morning sun. In front of me was atleast forty people milling about, in groups, and ducking in and out of more tents. Each one immediately stopped to stare at me. I stared back, openmouthed, but not for the same reasons as them. I stared because out of the men and women- and they were mixed preety evenly- there was not a single dress in sight! Every single woman wore a version of my own now-grimy tight leather pants.

The tension in the air was palpable but while some looked at me with an expression aproaching anger, others looked outright happy to see me.. Will