Robin Hood and the Dragon’s Mate

The tour guide’s voice droned on and on, “Richard, the first, was known as Cœur de Lion, or Richard the Lionheart, even before his ascension to the throne because of his reputation as a great military leader and warrior.”

“Ashlyn, I’m bored!” Athyn whined. “I want to go see the Robin Hood exhibit. Now he was a real hero.”

Ashlyn rolled her eyes and shook her head, “Robin Hood was a fictional character,” she chided her ten year old little brother.

“Was not,” Athyn argued folding his skinny arms across his chest. A look of stubborn defiance stuck on his face.

“I brought you here to learn about the real history of England.” She explained patiently.

“I don’t want to learn about boring old kings. I want you to tell me a story about Robin Hood.”

She sighed and let him drag her to the Robin Hood exhibit. He stared exultantly at the bow and arrow that sat posed beneath the glass. There were tapestries of Robin and his band of thieves. Ashlyn took on the stern face of a tour guide.

“Here’s where Robin and Little John battled with quarter staves.” She explained, pointing to a lifelike rendering that was hanging on the wall.

“Did Robin Hood die?” Athyn asked a worried expression on his face.

“No, of course not, but they were equally matched and the battle went on for a long time. Finally they both got so tired they fell off the bridge and into the water.

“Did they know how to swim?” Athyn asked innocently, even though he had heard this story a hundred times, it seemed that his questions had become part of the telling.

“I don’t know, but the water wasn’t very deep so they didn’t drown.” She smiled up at the small figures, wishing her life could be so simple.

Athyn sighed, relief evident on his face. “I want to be Robin Hood when I grow up.” He declared, pantomiming drawing back a bow string and loosing an invisible arrow.

“Okay kiddo.” She agreed with a grin. He hadn’t had much to be excited about since their mother had died the year before, so she wouldn’t take this dream away. Ashlyn had done her best to care for her little brother, but she was only seventeen and they’d had to run away to keep Child Services from taking Athyn away from her. Luckily the family had been on vacation in London when her mother had died, so they had slipped through the cracks of the system pretty easily.

They came to the museum twice a week, when admission was free. It was the only education that Athyn was getting for now, so she was determined to show him some culture and teach him as much as she could. They lived in an apartment over a bar where Ashlyn had gotten a job as a waitress by lying about her age. She scraped out a meager living for the two of them, but once she turned eighteen, she would be able to draw on the college funds her mother had left for her. They just had to survive until then.

“I think that guy likes you,” Athyn said in a loud stage whisper. Ashlyn followed his stare to two men in expensive suits who were talking to the museum curator.

They looked so much alike that they must be brothers. The taller of the two glanced her way and smiled when he saw her looking at him. Flushing, she looked away quickly. The shorter man glanced over at her and then grinned brightly. He tugged on the taller man’s sleeve and gestured towards her, the curator forgotten.

The taller man shook his head, a sad expression in his eyes even as he faked a smile. Athyn tugged on her hand, “Come on Ash. Let’s go talk to them. They look rich, maybe you could marry one of them.”

Ashlyn laughed, and shook her head. “I need to use the rest room.” She led him to the little alcove outside of the bathrooms and pointed to a small bench. “Sit, and don’t move.”

He rolled his eyes and plopped down on the wooden bench, pulling out his PSP immediately. Confident that nothing short of a hurricane could get him to put down his game, she stepped into the ladies room.

After using the facilities, she stared into the mirror. Her long brown hair was a bit tangled, she’d been in a hurry this morning and didn’t bother to work all of the knots out. Not that it would have mattered. Even if she’d wanted to flirt with the good looking men in tailored suits, she didn’t dare. Wealth brought scrutiny, and that was something she couldn’t afford. At least not until she was old enough to be legally named Athyn’s guardian.

Giving up on her tangled mess, she stepped out of the bathroom and had an instant of panic. Athyn was gone. She scanned the lobby, calling out for him. Just as she was about to scream for him, she caught a glimpse of his denim jacket. To her chagrin, he was standing next to the two wealthy men, talking animatedly to them.

Embarrassed she hissed at him, “Athyn, get over here.” He said something to the shorter guy and the man laughed, then he hurried over to her. “What are you doing? I told you to sit right here, and you know better than to talk to strangers.”

“They’re nice. They believe in Robin Hood too, so you’re outnumbered.”

She glared down at him and he scuffed the toe of his shoe against the floor. “I’m sorry. But they told me about this great room with a bunch of cool dragon stuff. Come on, I’ll show you!”

Athyn ran off once more and she hurried after him with a tired sigh. He came to a small room they hadn’t explored before. The sign on the door said Closed for Renovation, but that didn’t stop Athyn from barging right in. Ashlyn followed, whispering to Athyn to stop. Once inside, they both stopped short in awe of what they saw.

There were beautiful tapestries woven with scenes of dragons flying over lush green forests and colorful villages. In some of the scenes the dragons were guarding piles of golden treasure. In others blood red, ice blue, and forest green dragons appeared to be turning into men, then Ashlyn had to cover Athyn’s eyes because some of the scenes showed the men laying with women and the women giving birth and she wasn’t ready to have the “where do babies come from?” conversation with her curious little brother. She wasn’t sure she would ever be ready for that conversation.

There were glass displays of vases with more dragon related scenes painted on them. And there was dragon shaped jewelry. One case looked like the glass cover had been removed as if for cleaning and there was a velvet pillow lying on the pedestal. Athyn approached it almost reverently. On the center of the velvet purple pillow laid a golden bracelet with intricate carvings like the scales of a dragon. One end of the bracelet narrowed to an arrow-like point, while the other end looked like the head of a small golden dragon. Athyn reached for the bracelet and Ashlyn slapped his hand away.

“No touching,” She started, but was cut short because as she slapped his hand away her fingers brushed the cool golden bracelet. The little golden dragon head perked up. It studied her for a moment and then uncurled itself and slithered up her hand which was frozen in shock along with the rest of her. It wrapped itself around her wrist and the head continued to slither forward and wrap itself around her ring finger. It stopped moving once the head rested on her knuckle.

Surprised, she started to pull at the bracelet. She needed to get it off before the curator found her touching their valuable treasure. Athyn reached out and petted the dragon bracelet’s still head. “It’s warm,” he said and she realized that he was right. Instead of the cool metal she had felt when her fingertips had brushed the golden bracelet, it was now warm, almost as if it were alive. The eyes on the head of the dragon flashed a brilliant blue and Ashlyn started to feel very dizzy as if the room was spinning. Athyn reached out and tried to catch her as darkness clouded her vision and she felt herself falling.

She fell for much longer than she had expected before she hit the ground. When she hit, it wasn’t the cold marble of the museum floor. The ground beneath her was soft and grassy. Opening her eyes for a moment, she saw huge leafy trees towering over her. Athyn was holding her hand and squeezing it tightly and then the darkness consumed her completely and she slept.

* * *

Athyn lay beside his sister for a long while, but as the sky began to darken, his stomach growled and he realized that he hadn’t eaten since breakfast. As he stepped behind a tree to relieve himself he thought about what had happened at the museum. He could have sworn that little bracelet had moved around like it was alive. He nearly fainted himself when it’s little eyes flashed. Trying to think of what exactly had happened, he remembered that Ashlyn had looked as if she were going to faint and he had tried to catch her, even though he was small for his age he didn’t want her to get hurt. She had sunk down to the floor, but it felt as if the floor disappeared and they fell through it. He had a moment to consider screaming as darkness swirled around them. Then the dark turned green and they landed in a heap on cool grass.

Ashlyn had opened her eyes for a moment and he had thought she was going to wake up, but then her eyes rolled up in her head and she was out cold again. Though he would never admit it to her, Athyn was terrified that something bad would happen to his sister. She was the only person he had left in the world. He didn’t think that he would do well all alone. His thoughts had made him worry about Ashlyn again and so he went back to the small clearing to check on her. She was still asleep, but she didn’t seem to be hurt in any way.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Athyn caught a whiff of something that smelled really good. His stomach rumbled at the possibility of food and he started toward the smell, telling himself that he would keep the clearing in sight so that he could get back without trouble. He just needed to find out what that yummy smell was.

After a few minutes of pushing through thick branches, he admitted that his sense of smell did not seem to be communicating with his sense of direction. He was utterly lost. The clearing that he had intended to keep in sight was nowhere to be found and he grumbled at himself for being so stupid. The cub scouts had always told him to stay in one spot if you get lost in the woods, that way the people looking for you could find you more easily.

Sitting with his back against a tree, Athyn pulled out his PSP and he started playing to pass the time. Since the only person that would be looking for him was his sister and she was out cold, he figured it would be a while before she came looking for him.

* * *

Will watched the rabbit as it moved slowly closer to the treat he had left for it. He almost felt bad for baiting the creature only to kill it and wondered if he should let it eat the treat first before he sprung the trap. The rabbit cocked its head as if considering Will’s silent argument and then it grabbed the small carrot and bolted into the bushes.

“Argh!” Will growled, kicking the now useless snare.

He heard a low chuckle from behind him, “Let me guess,” Robin said stepping out of the shadows, “You decided to let it eat first?”

Will flushed as Robin chuckled again and gave him a friendly smile, “You have a wonderfully kind heart Will. I would never ask you to change that, but if you don’t learn to occasionally ignore its urgings we may all starve.”

Will grinned up at his friend, “Not with your hunting talent. As long as we have you Robin, we’ll never go hungry.”

Robin laughed and clapped him on the back, then displayed his own catch, three plump hares. “Luckily, tonight you are right.” They returned to camp with grins on their faces, but the somber atmosphere and the serious looks their friends threw them brought them up short. “What is it?” Robin asked.

Alan’s shoulders slumped, “According to the villagers, there have been more children reported missing. John thinks it may be that the slave traders are back.”

Robin sighed, his good mood now gone, “We need to find them and put a stop to this once and for all.”

Will shuddered, his face turning white as parchment as he remembered his own experience with slavers. He nodded in agreement. “Luckily, we have two excellent trackers with us.” He said looking pointedly at Alan and John.

John nodded, “I’ll change to wolf form and search out a trail. I will check back when I find any solid leads.”

Robin hesitated, “John, is that a good idea? Can you…can you control your temper?”

John’s already russet colored skin turned red, “I have learned a lot in my time with you, Robin. I will not lose myself to the beast.” He had feared changing ever since Robin and Will had met him, only transforming when the need became too strong to ignore.

Robin clapped him on the shoulder, “Okay my friend. Be safe.” John nodded and headed into the trees to change.

Alan turned to Robin, “I will stay closer to camp but I will remain on guard. If I notice anything out of the ordinary I will tell you immediately. This is a dangerous time for us all.”

Robin nodded to him, “Thank you.” He took the hares to the friar to be skinned and cooked for dinner.

Will planned to chop firewood, though they already had enough for the night’s fire. He liked to chop wood when he was worried, but Alan beckoned to him, “Walk with me for a bit, Will. I would like to speak with you.”

Will shrugged and joined Alan as he walked toward the perimeter of the camp about thirty feet away from the fire. He smiled at the realization that just a few weeks ago he would have been scared to walk alone with Alan for fear that the vampire had ulterior motives.

However Alan had proven to be a true friend who mostly drained animals for the blood he needed and had shown time and again that he would never hurt Robin or any of his men. Will noted John’s clothing folded neatly on the ground and made a mental note to bring something to cover them with, to keep them from getting damp. He turned to see Alan studying him and he lifted an eyebrow, wondering what his friend was thinking about.

“Tell me, Will, if it is not too painful a memory,” Alan finally said. “Why are you so afraid of slave traders?”

Will froze, swallowing back the bile burning his throat. He took long calming breaths, reminding himself that he was among friends and then he lifted his shirt and turned to show Alan his back. The vampire gasped and Will knew that he was surprised at the ugly raised welts that criss-crossed his back from his shoulders down to the line of his waist. ones on the backs of his thighs remained hidden.

Turning back to his friend, and lowering the shirt gingerly at the memory of the pain, he explained, “My father couldn’t afford the sheriff’s taxes so his guards took me and sold me as a slave to pay what we owed. I was taken to the city and sold in the town square. It was…humiliating.” He admitted, shuddering again as the awful memories assaulted him. “I was sixteen at the time and strong, so I was bought as a laborer.”

He stared off into the distance, lost in his memories. “We were harvesting the northern edge of Sherwood Forest for lumber to be made into fancy furniture for the sheriff. I chopped down trees and split logs from dawn until dusk for nearly nine months.”

Alan stared at him in shock, “But you always volunteer to chop firewood and cut down trees. If I had known it held such painful memories, I would have offered to do it for you.”

Will shook his head, “No. Chopping wood comforts me, all that time when I was laboring as a slave, I was chopping trees and splitting logs at the command of someone else. Now I do it because I choose to, no one is standing over me with a whip in case I decide to take a break.”

Alan was the one who shuddered this time. He laid a hand on his friend’s shoulder, “I still don’t understand how you can find comfort in doing what you were forced to do for so long.”

Will swallowed and looked off into the forest once more, seeing the boy that he had been years ago. “Because when I was chopping with that big axe, it was the one time that I didn’t have to fear the sting of the whip.” He whispered, “As long as I was doing my job they left me alone. Besides,” he added with a shrug. “I think maybe they were afraid I would lose my cool and decide to chop them instead of the wood.”

Alan laughed at Will’s attempt at lightheartedness. He draped his arm over his shoulders, “I am glad that you have found some peace after your troubled past. Tell me, how is it that you are no longer a slave.”

Will grinned up at him, “Robin came home.” At Alan’s confused look, Will explained. “Robin was the Lord of Loxley, the small township that my father and I lived in. When Robin joined King Richard on his holy crusades, the sheriff put one of his own men in charge of the township. Almost immediately taxes were raised and people started going hungry. Robin had always been a kind lord, but with the sheriff’s henchman we feared his temper. He had many men hanged just for annoying him.”

Alan looked aghast and Will nodded, “Loxley had been driven into the dust by the time I was sold. When Robin came home, he was appalled at the state of his township, but even worse at how tormented his people were. He threw the sheriff’s man out of Loxley and then my father went to him, pleading for Robin to find me.”

“After tracking me down, Robin paid my ‘owner’ twice what the man had paid for me, then he took me home and set me free.” Will lifted the sleeve of his arm, revealing the brand that had marked him for three years. It looked like a sideways ‘S’ with a line through it and a circle around the whole thing. “I may be free now, but I will always wear the mark and the scars of a slave.”

Alan shook his head, amazed by the strength his new friend had demonstrated. Though he had lived as a piece of property and been beaten repeatedly, he did not use it as an excuse for bitterness nor had he allowed his spirit to be broken.

Looking at Will with a newfound respect, Alan asked, “So what made you go with Robin instead of staying home with your father?”

Will tried to hide the pain that the question caused within him, but he could see from the softening expression on Alan’s face that his friend had seen enough. Clearing his throat Will answered, “The sheriff decided that Robin had defied him one too many times…He had refused to turn over three boys, the youngest of which was only twelve, to be hanged for thievery. The sheriff sent his men to arrest Robin, but the whole township stood to defend him. My father was foremost in the ranks of men willing to fight for Robin, the man who had brought his son back to him. The guards showed no mercy. They killed many men, women and children.”

“We had to lock Robin in a room in his manor to keep him from giving himself up to the sheriff just to prevent more bloodshed. My father was among the first to fall in Robin’s defense.” Though there was terrible pain in the memory, his eyes glittered with pride for his father’s loyalty and bravery.

Wiping a tear from his eye, he shrugged, “When there was a lull in the battle, my best friend, Andrus, and I released Robin from the room and dragged him into the woods. The plan was that once we were gone, the townsfolk could let the guards through to search the house, and their search would be fruitless. We later discovered that the sheriff’s men burned the manor and many of the homes in Loxley to the ground.” Alan stared, disturbed by the images as Will continued his tale.

“A small group of patrolling guards saw us but rather than raising the alarm they chased us alone into the woods. When they caught up to us, we fought hard and defeated them. Andrus was mortally wounded and without a doctor’s help…he died later, after three days of fever. Then it was just Robin and me. My father was dead; our township was no longer safe, so Robin was kind enough to let me stay with him.”

Alan shook his head, once again amazed at all his young friend had endured. “I am sorry for your loss,” He said sincerely. Will nodded his thanks and continued, “That was two years ago, Robin and I have been scraping out a living, traveling from town to town, trying to find some way to stop the sheriff's cruelty. Last year Robin came up with the idea to stop the tax wagons from getting through. We knew this would get the sheriff in trouble with the prince and he may be replaced, but it hasn’t happened yet. Not long after we decided on that course of action, we met John.”

They had made a complete circuit of the perimeter. Will noticed John’s clothes again and once more reminded himself to get a tarp to cover them.

“Thank you for sharing your story with me, Will.” Alan said, “It is good to have friends again to share thoughts and experiences with.”

“What about you?” Will asked, “You said you’re ninety-three. What have you seen in your long life?”

Alan gave him a sad smile, “I don’t think we have time for me to tell that story. It is getting late. But one thing I can tell you is that in your twenty years you have seen nearly as much pain and loss as I have in my long, long life. Being your friend, this saddens me. I pray that your life will be long and happy from this point forward.”

Will smiled his thanks, wondering about the story his friend was keeping to himself, but he felt closer to Alan now that he had shared his own story. He felt confident that in time Alan would be ready to share as well. He headed into the camp and found a tightly woven canvas tarp that the friar had used to cover his barrels of ale. He went back to John’s clothes and laid them on the tarp, draping it over the top of the clothes so that if it rained they would not get wet.

With this task done, he headed back to the camp and grabbed his axe. After reliving his past with Alan, he needed to feel the calm that came when he was swinging the axe in the comfortingly repetitive motion. He had explained it as best he could, but he wondered how anyone that had not lived with the terror of a whip poised to strike at the slightest hesitation, would ever be able to understand what it felt like.

As he chopped wood, Will watched Robin whittling new arrows for his quiver. He thought about all the pain his friend had endured, first coming home to find his home taken over by the sheriff’s man, and then watching his people starve. He teased Will about his kind heart, but Robin’s own kindness had led to a lot of pain, including losing his home and the lives of many friends, in his efforts to do the right thing. Will looked up to Robin who had become like a big brother, a role model for him. He wondered if he would ever be as good a man as the one the sheriff referred to as ‘Robin Hood.’

* * *

Athyn was cold and hungry. He had expected Ashlyn to find him by now and though he wouldn’t admit it, he was scared. Standing, he brushed the dirt and dead leaves from his pants and looked around. It was still a little bit light out and he thought that maybe he could find his way back to the clearing that he had left Ashlyn in. Beginning to worry that some wild animal might have found her while she was unconscious, he felt a wave of guilt at having left her all alone.

Making a guess as to the right direction, he tried to walk in a straight line, a task that was much easier said than done in the woods. After a few moments without any sign of the clearing, he was just about to come to the conclusion that he had gone in the wrong direction when he heard voices. Excited, he decided that he must have finally found civilization and now he could get help finding his sister.

He stepped out of the trees into another clearing with a small campfire in the center. There was something roasting over the fire. Suddenly he realized that this was the delicious scent he had smelled earlier. Three large men looked up at him as he stepped tentatively into their camp.

Immediately he was struck by the feeling that coming here had been a bad idea. Then one of the men grinned at him. “Hey boy, are you hungry?” Athyn’s stomach rumbled in response and the men laughed. They beckoned to a log near the fire. “Have a seat,” the man said. “We were just about to eat.”

He felt the urge to run away; the hairs on the back of his neck bristled. He knew that he was not safe here, but he was so hungry. It had been a very long time since breakfast. He had a feeling his stomach was about to start digesting itself if he didn’t eat something soon. He stepped tentatively over to the log and sat, taking the strip of meat that the man held toward him. Eating in silence he marveled at how good something roasted over a campfire could taste. One of the men stood and stepped over to a nearby tree.

Athyn eyed him warily but the man who had spoken to him asked if he wanted more meat, and he turned his attention back to the food being offered. As he reached for the strip of meat, he heard the sound of footsteps behind him. He turned in time to see a large branch swinging towards his head. He didn’t have time to cry out before he felt a sharp pain. Darkness quickly clouded his vision. He gave into the darkness, eager to escape the pain in his head.

* * *

When Ashlyn woke, she noticed two things rather quickly. First she was definitely not in the museum anymore. She was surrounded by towering green trees with thick pointed leaves, the chirping of crickets, the buzz of insects and other sounds of a forest in the evening filled her ears. The sun was setting. She couldn’t hear a single human sound. There were no car engines or stereos or mothers yelling at their children, anywhere. Looking around she noticed the second thing, she was entirely alone. Athyn was nowhere to be seen. Jumping to her feet she fought the surge of panic that shot through her making her stomach clench. Forcing herself to think calmly, she started searching for him and calling out, “Athyn! Athyn where are you?”

She fought an inner battle between being angry that he had wandered off and being frightened for his safety. She called for him, struggling not to give into fear. After a few moments with no response, her panic won out and she began running through the darkening forest. “Athyn! This is no time for hide and seek, Kiddo! Come on out so we can figure out how to get home.” She yelled until her voice was hoarse still she ran. Her heart was sinking lower and lower, and she felt like she might cry, be sick and scream all at once. What kind of big sister was she? She had lost her little brother in the middle of the woods, at night. He could be eaten by wild animals. He could be all alone, scared and bleeding to death somewhere. Every horrifying possibility made her run faster and farther, in spite of her inability to call out any longer and the fact that she couldn’t see past her nose.

Tears streamed down her face. Sobbing as she rounded a huge tree, she came face to face with a giant animal with glowing amber eyes and dripping fangs. The animal was black as the night and stood as high as her shoulder. She almost plowed into it but managed to turn aside at the last moment. Her heart nearly stopped as the animal growled at her, and she heard twigs snapping as it started toward her. Turning around as quickly as she could, she plunged back into the trees running even faster than before, praying for the darkness to swallow her up and protect her from the beast behind her. Suddenly a branch seemed to appear out of nowhere. She saw a flash of light and felt a sharp pain on her head before her vision faded and the darkness consumed her. Her last thought was of her brother, all alone in the dark woods and how sad he would be when he found out that she’d been eaten by wild animals.

* * *

John had been just about to turn and head back to camp when the girl appeared. He automatically called to her before realizing that he was in wolf form so his call sounded dangerous and threatening. As she ran from him, he instinctively started toward her and cringed when he heard the sharp crack as she ran headfirst into a low hanging branch. He was horrified by having caused her injury. He shifted back quickly, not worried about his lack of clothing since the only other human around was unconscious. Kneeling beside the girl he saw that she was utterly unconscious. She had a pretty big knot on her forehead and he imagined she would be out cold for quite a while.

Sighing, he lifted her into his arms effortlessly and carried her for the eighteen kilometers back to camp, running as quickly as he could with the awkward burden in his arms. Stopping at the spot where he had left his clothing, he saw that someone had covered his clothes with a tarp to keep them dry. He smiled, knowing that this was obviously an act of Will’s kindness. Will was always the first to think of others, and John knew that he at least would understand why he had brought the girl back to camp. Laying her carefully on the damp grass, John quickly pulled on his clothes and lifted her once more into his arms, using the tarp to protect the girl from the light mist that permeated the air.

When he reached the camp he was met with the reception he had expected. Robin looked the girl over thoughtfully, Will was immediately concerned for her well being, the friar retreated to the campfire to work on dinner while throwing worried glances over his shoulder, and Alan went ballistic.