Robin Hood: War 33

Robin looked over and saw that John was being kicked even though he was passed out. Unbeknownst to Gerard, he was the last of the demons standing. He was furious at the turn the night had taken and he wanted to make sure “Little John” never forgot it. A few more kicks give or take a dozen aught to finish him. A shadow passed over him He looked up just in time to see all the remaining outlaws of Sherwood converge on him.
It turned out to have been a much less fatal night than Chaucer had dared hope for. Every one of the demons that did live was a long way from consciousness. Gerard might never wake up. They were summarily loaded onto carts and carried out of town, like rubbish. It was hours before first light, and Robin had a few of the lads take the carts to Nottingham where they could be unloaded in front of the sheriff’s office. Robin wanted to send the sheriff a message. He wanted the sheriff to know that despite his carefully hidden plans, Robin Hood knew what he was up to and was more than up for it.
Chaucer had Robin’s men convalesce at the inn. Although it would take some time for these men to recover, only about six of them had been seriously wounded, including John. There were close to 200 men in the forest, ready to take the fight to the sheriff. The problem was, that number would soon be dwarfed by the sheriff’s mercenary army. Robin needed to rally the entire shire to his side, or act before the bulk of the enemy horde arrived, or both. The mercenaries might be doing Robin’s recruiting for him if what happened in Worksop was any indication.
As the year ripened and the days got warmer, families wandered in to Sherwood from all over the shire. People’s homes were being destroyed. The sheriff had been shaken by the pile of giant wounded at his doorstep and decided not to wait to put his plan into action. He wanted to show the people of the shire the price of lawlessness. He wanted them to beg him to make the attacks stop. His plan was that Robin’s outlaws would be blamed for the acts of the mercenaries who were instructed to pretend like they were themselves the outlaws of Sherwood. The sheriff felt that this would rally the people to the lawful representative of the shire. It would also enrage Robin Hood who it had been demonstrated would try to interject himself into every outbreak of pandemonium, the exhausting his forces and rendering him permanently on defense.
Although everyone knew that the mercenaries weren’t part of Robin’s band of outlaws, the news that it was the sheriff’s men was hard for people to swallow. Rumors began to circulate that Lincoln was gathering an army to take over Nottinghamshire. Other rumors claimed that there was treasure hidden in the shire, probably Robin Hood’s, and that the riff raff converging on the shire were treasure hunters in search of the gold.
The "Merry Men", as the outlaws were referred to by the people of Nottinghamshire, would help people rebuild. They began an extensive underground network, connecting the various towns with Sherwood. They had to be careful as in addition to the mercenaries, there were deputies in every town reporting directly to the sheriff and anyone or any town caught co-operating with Robin Hood was putting his life in jeopardy. Tuck's homing pigeons were distributed throughout the shire. Men from Sherwood were assigned to watch over towns where they wouldn't be recognized. They would watch out for signs of invasion. Sometimes a scout would come and pretend to be a wandering soldier. He would get drunk at the tavern, and try to get a feel for the town's defenses. If that were the case, and Robin's man found out in time, he could make haste for Sherwood and bring a band of men to defend the town. Most times, though the mercenaries would just come riding in from where they had been hiding in a neighboring shire and attack a village, raping and pillaging, and then go back to where ever they came from.
In cases like this, the village could only rebuild, and hope it didn't happen again. In some cases, the deputy of the village would be ignorant of the sheriff's plan and help Robin fight the invaders. In others, The deputy's loyalty would lay with the town they served and they would turn against the sheriff. Most deputies, however, had a fear of the sheriff that outweighed their desire to do the right thing. The same was true of many townspeople. Even after their town was attacked, they would stay loyal to the sheriff.
Sherwood itself began to swell with people who would rather live in the woods than in a town that was ruled by a sheriff that would exploit it as soon a destroy it. For the first time, Sherwood village had voluntary citizens.
The sheriff was sick of this game of cat and mouse. He had been trying to get Robin hood to leave himself open to attack by drawing him out to the various villages and towns of the shire. It was obvious to the sheriff, that the peasants of the shire were in cahoots with Robin Hood and so he cared not a fig if the mercenaries burned them all too the ground. Some of the gentry and nobility were beginning to suspect the sheriff was mad, but they dared not oppose him when he was so hell bent on catching Robin Hood. To do so might put even them in jeopardy. For his own part, the sheriff was convinced if he could just get rid of Robin Hood, life would return to normal, and no one need worry about any of this nastiness anymore. He felt he was right on the verge of capturing or killing Robin Hood. Nothing worked, however, and so the sheriff needed to change tactics once again. Instead of a raid on a town or village, the army would assemble en masse, and attack them in Sherwood. The forest lands were protected by the crown, and so the sheriff couldn't just burn them down, or he would have done so long ago. But he now had enough of an army that he could surround the forest, and they could work their way towards the center, thus ensuring that there was no escape for Robin Hood.

For himself, Robin needed no conjurer to tell him of the coming carnage. It came to him in his dreams. The people of the forest, having built a home for themselves & redeemed themselves from their fall from grace and banishment from civilization, would be chased even into the wilderness by the madman who had placed them there in the first place, and finding them, would slay them all.
In the fever of sleep, Robin loosed every arrow, never missing his mark, and still they came, the invaders; choking the woods in the blood of his countrymen. And they did not stop with the outlaws, no. Onward they came. Punishing the whole of the shire, every man, woman and child. The children, with tomorrow's bright promise of hope in their eyes, reaped like wheat, their dolls and toys falling to the dust, forgotten: a stuffed bear, a wooden deer, a toy archer.
Robin would awaken screaming silently, bathed in sweat. This coming war would destroy Nottinghamshire, and the sheriff would suffer not a scratch. Robin Hood would go down in history as the rat that caused the death of a generation. Heaven and eternal rest would be barred to him. In the eternal pit he would forever be tormented by the deaths he had facilitated by his rebellion. Robin could not allow it. He would take the fight to the sheriff. But how? The sheriff, now playing the role of general, was always surrounded by an entourage of lackeys waiting to be dispatched. Yet Robin determined to find a way.

Robin Hood: Back at the Inn 31

She had been careful to avoid drinking excessively at the dinner. She had been glad of the company, but unprepared to answer so many questions. She basically modeled herself after the saint she had named herself for, leaving out the majority of her namesake's accomplishments. She told them she came from Bingen and was schooled in a convent there. She feared Cedric would recognize her ruse, but he seemed to have little interest in the accomplishments of women. The others were happy to talk about themselves, and everyone was interested when Hilde questioned Whitehand about the sheriff’s pressing plans. Everyone had some gossip to add to the story which was that the sheriff had been shocked at the army of outlaws attending Robin Hood (whom they seemed to admire and fear simultaneously), and was making preparations for “rooting him out of his nest in the woods”. This involved gathering an army. since none seemed to be rallying around the sheriff out of local patriotism, he was hiring brigands and riff raff from all over England and even abroad. They were presently trickling into the shire, with the sheriff carefully keeping them spread out in various townships throughout the shire. This presumably would keep Robin Hood from finding out about them. The sheriff was going to great lengths to keep his plans secret from the general population for the same reason. The select few at the table tonight, it was thought could be trusted.
Soon, they would be flooding in and it would be a problem for the sheriff to keep the shirefolk from noticing. There had already been some incidents of drunken brawling and thievery attributed to these mercenaries, but it couldn’t be helped and would only get worse. Nottinghamshire was to become a warzone but first it would have to endure the ravages of its “protectors”. The nobles felt secure that the sheriff could keep the army from accosting the wealthy and merely harass the poor, which seemed acceptable to all at table.
After the dinner, Cedric had one of the monks escort Hilde to her room at the inn. Hilde was tired and had dropped her fake German accent earlier, but most of the guests were drunk and didn't notice. She thanked the old friar and sent him back to St. Mary's.  Her plan was to collapse on the bed and fall to sleep before her head touched her pillow. There was a movement in the shadows, and with a start she realized that she wasn't alone in the room! She was prepared to flee into the night, when Robin stepped into the light of the window. She was relieved but furious at him for putting such a fright into her. She flew at him in a rage as her resentment for being in this whole mess came to the surface. On some level she blamed Robin for her troubles. After all, it had been in pursuit of Robin Hood that she had been arrested in the first place! It had been his actions that had caused the sheriff to come after St. Anne's coffers. She knew she had to keep silent or they would be found out, so she released her pent up anger at him by pummeling his chest with her balled up fists. Marian was no shrinking wallflower, she had stabbed two guards and had practiced armed and unarmed combat in secret since she was a child. Robin could only take it for the space of a few seconds before he grabbed her by the wrists to stop her. They stared at each other in the dark, in that strange room on that awful night in their silly costumes, chests heaving, blood pumping.
Suddenly, they were kissing. Nearly as violently as the interaction a moment before. After a moment they stepped back and looked at each other again. Marian burst into tears, and Robin pulled her close and kissed her forehead, her cheeks, her nose. He kissed her lips again, tenderly and briefly this time. She lay her head against his chest and he stroked her hair and kissed the top of her head. He smelled her hair, and felt her body against his. He felt her breathing. She looked up at him and they kissed again, and didn't stop.
Afterwards, when they had discarded all disguises, they lay entangled on her bed. She told him about the dinner, and the gossip of the sheriff's plans. Moonlight streamed in through the window, bathing the room in a blue glow. Marian starred out through the window into the night and watched the moon make its lonely journey across the sky amid the innumerable stars.
Robin melted back into the forest well before dawn, silent as a ghost. He reached his home and his fellows just as the sun crested the horizon, painting the sky watery yellow and pink. A few were up starting fires for breakfast or getting water. They nodded to Robin as they went about their morning chores.

Robin Hood: Trouble comes knocking 30

Marian was right about one thing: Robin did love disguises. While Marian was taking a short nap before her dinner with Father Cedric, Robin was meeting Tuck at the Lying Hart tavern. The name was a play on the name of King Richard the Lion Heart, King John's deceased brother and predecessor. It was also a pun as a “hart” is a male deer, as well as a homonym for the internal organ considered the house of human courage. Nearby Sherwood Forest was famous for its plentiful venison, which was the private property of King John. Robin was dressed as a traveling monk, wearing a black monk’s robe with the hood up to hide his infamous features. Tuck (who, as you will recall was actually a monk) was dressed in his disguise as a bearded merchant. He was posing as his own estranged brother who had come to visit only to find his brother, Brother Tuck, on the lam and took up his position. He told everyone to call him James. He had also lost weight while away from the regular meals and desk work of St. Anne’s. Everyone he met said that they could see the resemblance.
When Robin heard of Marian’s dinner date, he became agitated. He wanted to intervene, but could see no way of doing so with giving themselves away. Though he couldn’t storm the rectory, Robin felt he would be remiss in his part as a traveling monk not to pay a visit to St. Mary’s to pray to the statue of the Virgin for guidance. This way, he would be close at hand if anything were to go awry and he could spring to Marian’s aid. Of course he would have to be doubly careful not to be found out, or he would be putting Marian in more jeopardy just by being there.
Robin made his way to St Mary's at dusk. The sun had just set, and the sky began to take on a rich, luminous, deep blue towards the East and fades to an almost colorless white on the opposite horizon. The old Norman structure of the church dominating the skyline with a stark silhouette. A cool breeze played across Robin’s face as he looked up at the facade of the church he had known since his childhood. How much longer would he have to be a fugitive in his hometown? It was with genuine humility Robin entered the church through the Narthex. He chose a pew at the back of the nave and knelt to pray. The church was empty except for Robin himself. He felt the silence as a physical presence. It filled his ears with an otherworldly sense of calling. He remembered his dream of Mary in the hermit’s cave. The dream had metamorphosed from being Mary to Marian; the name itself a derivation of Mary. The Virgin Mary was now the Maid Marian. Had that been the case all along? It was impossible. He had not even met Marian when he’d had the dream. What had been the rest of it? He had been chased by the sheriff. The crowd had simultaneously tried to help him even as it held him back. Why did the sheriff relentlessly try to destroy the orphanage and even the people of the shire? Robin had thought it was just bald greed. He had thought the sheriff was the embodiment of evil, but then there had been that encounter with the Earl of Lincoln. He had seemed more the devil than any man Robin had ever met: amiable yet exuding a malice which he seemed to relish. That the sheriff had chosen to side with Robin over the Earl was a mystery that Robin could not fathom. Were they rivals?
What was Robin to do? He was not content to spend the rest of his life in the forest. The people were rallying to Robin, but how could he utilize them? He couldn’t just declare war on the sheriff and march on Nottingham. He needed a plan, some way to bring the fight to the sheriff before the sheriff brought an army to burn him out of Sherwood.
The old vicarage of St. Mary’s was located behind a small grove of oak trees that stood between it and the back of the church. Cedric had the monks to keep the place clean and in good repair and could call on them to act as servants whenever there were guests, though when he ate alone he usually prepared his own meals, and cleaned up after himself on a day to day basis. This afternoon, he had had a goose prepared and gone quite out of his way to see that a sumptuous feast consisting of a salad with fresh greens, boiled quail eggs,  and steamed vegetables, followed by eel and fish soup, sausages with fennel and rosemary, then the goose, with a dessert of blackberry pie and clotted cream. Cedric only served visiting officials from Rome or Canterbury meals like this. Though he never dined this way himself, he wanted to give his guest the impression that he could provide any luxury. The monks had given him odd looks, but knew better than to question the expense. Cedric had always demanded to obeyed in his orders, but had grown especially self important since the sheriff had deputized him. Evensong had barely finished (Cedric had given the task of officiating to yet another monk as he wanted to oversee the preparations) When there was a knock on the door. Cedric, dressed in his finest frock, answered the door himself and was quite surprised to see Sir Guy of Gisborne, Mayor of Nottingham and his wife, Greta.
“Are we late?” Greta said ridiculously, as the bells of evensong had only just finished peeling. “Where is this new teacher everyone is talking about?” Sir Guy handed Cedric his coat as if Cedric were a common servant and the two strode in and held out their hands until one of the monks placed goblets of wine in them. Cedric was about to demand who on Earth had invited the Gisbornes, but he never got the chance to, because there came a knocking on the door again. Having no doubt that this time it had to be Hilde. He opened the door with a big smile which was returned by Richard Whitehand and his wife Margaret. The Whitehands were part of the gentry of Nottingham and traveled in the company of the Gisbornes and the sheriff. They traipsed in, adding their coats to the growing stack in Cedric’s arms, and joined the Gisbornes, picking up a conversation that had been ongoing. Quite angry now, Cedric said to no one in particullar, “What in the devil is the meaning of this?” His guests looked at him, and then at each other, and then back at him. Richard’s face brightened and he said, “Ah, the sheriff! Sorry old chap, I’m afraid the sheriff couldn’t come tonight, he is in the midst of planning something quite important and rather large scale, I must say. He sends his regards though; says carry on without him and all that.” Cedric did not like being called “old chap” as he felt it was some kind of slang for “chaplain”. There was another knock at the door, and completely at his wit’s end, and barely able to open the door for all the coats he was holding, he swung the door open, screaming as he did so; “What is it now for God’s sake?” only to find that it was, of course Hilde, looking a bit flushed and taken aback for being yelled at. “Hilde!” Cedric cried, dropping the coats summarily on the floor to the side of the door so he could greet Hilde with open arms. “Come in! Come in! Welcome! I am so glad you could make it!”
“Ja, well you said you wouldn’t take no for the answer.” she said, wishing she had said no.

Robin Hood: Cedric & Hilde 28

All of Sherwood Village was glad to see Martha return safely home. She arrived with her mother to a celebration filled with joy and feasting. Everyone had to hug her and tell her how glad she was safe. Robin's reputation grew as the story of his lone venture into the Manor house, the rescue of the girl and his near capture was told and retold. None among them saw that Robin himself kept a reserved humour to himself. Robin knew the early relatively care free days of Sherwood village were over. The sheriff had seen what he was up against and would act quickly and decisively. There was a chance that the Earl would also seek revenge to assuage his wounded pride.
As the sun set on the forest revelers, their song carried on the evening breeze, and was taken up by the birds of Spring as they whirled among the treetops. The scent of roast mutton and venison wafted into the forest as well. The shadows stretched out to greet the coming night and a single man walked carefully and silently to where he had tied his horse, well away from the outlaws, lest it be found. He mounted heedless of his own hunger. He was a vagrant huntsman who had been arrested two night ago in Nottingham for drunk in public and failing to pay his considerable bar tab. The sheriff had shown uncharacteristic leniency toward the itinerant huntsman. The sheriff had even offered the man a job. Now, having followed the girl and her mother to their destination, he had found and monitored his quarry, and thus returned to Nottingham to deliver his findings.

The daily task of running the orphanage and seeing to the children in its care had suffered since Marian had been arrested and Tuck had taken it on the lam. Despite the danger, the two felt the needs of the children were more important than hiding in the woods. Robin could not argue with bravery, so in typical Sherwoodian fashion, he helped them devise disguises. The women of the greenwood helped Marian bleach her hair and cut and fashion it to look more like a Dane. They also lent her Danish clothes. Marian’s dark hair worn either down and loose or up and under a wimple was now blonde and braided into the famous Valkyrie style under a white linen scarf.

Tuck had grown a beard and his tonsure had also grown in. Though he didn’t look drastically different, just putting on layman’s clothes was enough to throw anyone who didn’t know Tuck well, off the scent. They were snuck back into St. Anne’s in the middle of the night, and in the morning, everyone was so glad to see them, especially the children, that a celebration broke out.

It seemed that in their absence, Father Cedric had come snooping around and been cajoled by the nuns into helping out around Saint Anne's. He was currently teaching a class about the politics of the Church. It was a subject to which he warmed. Never mind that the class had previously been a math class taught by Marian. Marian had chosen the name of Hilde as her Valkyrie disguise name. She was a great admirer of Saint  Hildegard of Germany, who had been a great herbalist, doctor, poet, composer, artist and seer who had lived during Marian's parent's lifetime.

Marian returned to her classroom expecting to see the children learning math from one of the nuns, and was caught completely off guard to find Father Cedric teaching her class. Since the priest was responsible for getting her arrested, she had fostered a deep and growing hated of the man, whom she  viewed as a toady and a coward. Father Cedric was also surprised to see Marian, though he failed to recognise the woman he had callously had imprisoned; so convincing was her disguise.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, and then, remembering to add a thick Scandinavian accent, she added; "My pardon, Vader, Ich had nein idea dat you vere teaching dis class!"

"Your apology is unnecessary, my young, blonde beauty!" Cedric said, lighting up in a way that Marian had never seen in a priest and certainly not in Vader, uh Father Cedric before. "Come in, come in!" he said. "My name is Father Cedric, and I am just selflessly filling in since the poor children's previous teacher has become a most base outlaw and a fugitive. It is for those of us working for the greater good of these pitiful urchins to give of ourselves, when wayward souls shirk their duties to become wanton criminals."

"Ach, well, pity you had not seen fit to give of yourself until your hand was forced by da fates, ja?" she managed to say in a flirtatious voice despite the stinging content of her words.

"Yes, well, my duties are many and varied as I oversee St Mary's and have lately become a deputy of the sheriff. I hardly have time for these young scalawags, yet I am ever answering the good Lord's call for more it seems." Cedric seemed to be trying to impress the lovely young blonde lady before him with his important offices and tireless good deeds, but his self importance and disdain for the children is what shone through. "And who might you be?"

"Ja, I am Hilde the math teacher. I am from, uh, Derby. Ja Derby is vere I am from, und I have come to be a substitution teacher for the children." Cedric mistook Marian's blushing for shyness. She wished she were better at dissembling.

Robin Hood: The Chase 21

The sheriff's horse was tied in the stable, but there was a farmer nearby sitting his own horse. Authority figures have probably been commandeering the transports of standersby for as long as there have been transports and authority figures; however, this is the first time the sheriff took it upon himself to do so. He pulled the poor farmer off his mount and was in the saddle before Robin's dust had settled. The horse was skittish with its new rider; however and wasn't keen for the chase or the spurs in its side. Eventually, the poor steed got the idea and took off after Robin. This was the chance the sheriff had been waiting for! He knew that Marian had nothing to do with the robberies and didn't need her whimpering protestations to convince him. He also knew as sure as day that however Marian had gotten hold of that coin, the real culprit had somehow put it there. It didn't take a genius to realize that the fool would come running as soon as he found out that Marian had been taken into custody. That didn't stop the sheriff from counting himself a genius. It had worked perfectly. Of course it would turn out to be that cheating Robin Hood! He should have known! Well he would be dead before Easter and that would be reason to celebrate. Why had he thrown the money to the crowd? If he expected them to protect him from the law he was mistaken. Those cowering dolts wouldn’t cross the sheriff to save their own mothers let alone for a few pennies from a forest thief!
The sheriff had plunged headlong into the woods heading north toward Sherwood where he knew the outlaws made their homes. but he had expected to have sighted Robin Hood by now. He was simply galloping deeper and deeper into the woods. Alone. Where were his men? Surely they had gotten their mounts by now. He reigned in the nag he was on and noticed she was quite winded. He’d have been better off getting his own horse and tracking the outlaw more methodically, but the idea that he was within the sheriff’s grasp had been too much for him to resist. So he had chased after the thief without hesitation. Now he was stuck in the woods on a strange horse and he was in fact, lost. He might have been riding into a trap. Robin Hood could have had a group of outlaws waiting in the woods to ambush whoever gave chase! That was probably why he had ridden off like such a coward! He heard hoof beats in the distance! Perhaps it was they coming for him now! What should he do? It was too late they were upon him. He drew his sword to fight it out even though he was obviously outnumbered. He would kill every last one of them there would be no doubt!
It turned out to be his own men finally catching up to him.
“Where the devil have you dolts been, for God’s sake?” He yelled, not sure if he was relieved or disappointed that it was them.
“We had to get out horses, Sheriff.” said one of the newer men. “We brought yours as well. The one you stole, uh borrowed, looks as though it wouldn’t make it far.”
“Aye and the damned beast has misled me as well!” said the sheriff dismounting. “If he’s heading for Sherwood, he’s not going this way.”
“If it were me, I wouldn’t lead us back to my hideout.” said the new man whose name was Hugh. “I would probably go to the stream to hide my tracks and through hounds off the scent.” Hugh had a mop of black hair and bushy black eyebrows and looked like he always needed to shave.
“You sound as if you have evaded the law before.” said the sheriff, but headed toward the stream, nevertheless.
Having reached the stream, they backtracked until they found where Robin had entered the stream, just as Hugh had conjectured. They followed the stream north under the assumption that he would eventually come out and make for Sherwood.  It was only because there was not room for them all to travel on the east side of the stream that Mace happened to spot fresh tracks coming out of the stream on the western bank and seem to double back toward Nottingham.
“Why would he go back to Nottingham? It’s probably someone else.” said Roland. The sheriff crossed the stream to examine the tracks. He dismounted and checked them closely.
“They’re very fresh.” he said. “And whoever it is, they are riding full out. How many men are running their horses through this stream today, I wonder. It must be him. We can catch him still, whatever his game may be. Let’s not waste anymore time!” He jumped on his horse and led the way.

Robin arrived at St. Anne’s and Adam directed him to where Tuck was working in the garden. “Tuck, I need your help!” he said. “I’m going to Derby and the sheriff is fast on my trail!”
“What on God’s green earth could I do? Just name it and I’ll do it!” said Tuck. He had known that there was going to be a day coming soon when all this would come to a head. When he heard that Marian had been taken into custody, he suspected that today might be the day.
“I don’t want to lead them to Sherwood, but I need to warn the people there that the sheriff is on the rampage. We will need your rock doves!”
“Aye! I’ll get them! Adam saddle my mare, the one with the white sock; she’s the fastest.”
“Yes, sir! Can I come with you, Robin?” said the boy.
“Not right now. We’re on the run from the sheriff.” said Robin. “Now go! We haven’t a moment to spare!”
After he  had gone, Tuck said, “How is Marian? Did you see her?”
“No, I didn’t. I demanded her release in front of the whole town. If he has any dignity, he will release her, but he is spending today chasing me.” They were making for the cages where Tuck kept the pigeons. They were behind his sleeping quarters. Tuck grabbed his bedroll and crowded two birds into a cage. Adam brought the horse and Eric was with him.
“Is there anything we can do?” said Eric.
“Make sure the shire knows that Robin is not a villain. He robbed the sheriff, but only to return what the sheriff took from us.”
“You’re the one? I knew it was you!” said Eric.
“That’s ridiculous!” said Adam. “You did not!”
“I did! Marian said she didn’t know how we were getting by, and I said I bet it’s that Robin Hood. That made her smile.” Robin wasn’t sure if the boy’s story was true, but he was glad to hear it.
“You boys, keep low and stay out of trouble.” Said Robin. “I don’t want to have to break you boys out of jail.” That made the boys laugh to think of Robin coming to get them out of the stockade.
“We had best make haste!” said Tuck. “I don’t want anyone to have to break me out of jail either.!” With that the two rode off for Derby, leaving the boys behind.
“What should we do?” asked Adam.
Eric looked around, trying to think. “Let’s erase these tracks!” he said. The boys found some nearby branches and erased the tracks all the way to the woods.

Robin Hood: The Tavern 6

"We can't take the cart through the forest, the wheels need to be on a road; And we can't take the road or we'll be seen." said Will.
"These boxes are too heavy to carry without the cart." said John.
"We'll bury the men in the woods. We'll take apart the cart and use it for firewood. We'll take some money and bury the rest, and come back for it later. We have to get to Derby to find the hermit. We will take the horses and sell them there. Let's get going." said Robin.

The journey to Derby went with no further incident. John and Will were at times animatedly regaling each other with ever more vivid and exaggerated renditions of the adventure of the day, and at times quiet. Robin was fairly grim the rest of the journey. He was not by nature moody person, but he had never killed anyone before and he was sure that nothing but trouble could come of that gold. There had to be a way to be rid of it.
Upon reaching Derby, the party visited Audrey's sister, gave her some of the money as she was as nearly destitute herself. They traded the horses for three fresh mounts. Dierdre, Audrey's sister, wasn't sure exactly where to find the hermit, but told them where the wood could be found where he was generally believed to live.
After a short time in the Derby wood, the party became lost and decided to head back to town to see if they could find better directions in the tavern. None of them had been to a tavern since they had been outlawed and they were all looking forward to a tall ale. Neither the innkeeper, nor his wife knew of the hermit and there was only one other patron there besides themselves, and he seemed surely, so they decided to enjoy a hot meal and a pint of ale and wait for more customers to arrive.
Robin enjoyed his ale as much as the next man, but didn't want to waste the afternoon drinking when they were on an errand after a sick little girl. He approached the lone patron nursing his beer. "Hello, friend." he said. "I wonder if you can help me?" The man looked up without lifting his head or otherwise moving at all. "My friends and I are looking for a man who lives in the wood...."
"Then you should be looking in the wood, no?" replied the man.
"We were hoping he might help us to heal a sick little girl." said Robin.
"Ah so you're drinking the afternoon away, eh. You must be quite concerned about your sick little girl" came the response.
"Well, we looked in the wood, but as we were unsure where about in the wood to look, we thought there would be people here who might know the man."
"Am I so fierce that you had to finish your pint to screw up the courage to talk to me, then?"
"Why are you wasting your time talking to that tattered old man?" said John from across the room.
"Least I don't smell like a bear that ate some bad eggs, anyways" grumbled the man. Robin couldn't help but chuckle at that, but John did not find it humorous in the least.
"You had best be careful who you through your insults at!" said John.
"Me? You said I was 'tattered!'"
"Well, you are tattered!"
"And you really do smell!"
"All right!" Robin said. "Calm down! The both of you! You are like children!"
There was a moment of silence, then the old man said, "What's the matter with the child?"
"It started as a cold. High fever, sneezing, coughing. But it has gone on too long. She's not sleeping through the night. Her parents are worried they might lose her." Robin said.
"'Her parents?' What do you mean? None of you is the father? Why would you come all the way from Sherwood for someone else's baby?"
"How did you know we were from Sherwood?" John asked.
"You are not the only ones who come to the tavern to hear the gossip." said the man.
"Look, do you know where to find the hermit or not?" said John, exasperated.
"Isn't it obvious?" said Will. "He is the hermit."
"That is ridiculous!" said John. "A hermit in a tavern? Hermits like to be alone!"
"Aye and I was alone, until you lot showed up." The three looked at the old man incredulously. "What? Where am I supposed to get my ale, eh? I live in a bloody forest! what would you know about it?"
"That is a story that might surprise even you, old man." said Robin. "We all live in Sherwood Forest."
"What the baby too? No wonder it's sick."
"Aye, the baby too. Though she was sick before she moved to the forest." said John.
"Will you come to have a look at her?" said Robin.
"I reckon I will."