The Lady Katherine Chronicles Number 1

Lady Katherine And The Stone Of Gaia

By Sazzy

Disclaimer: This is a work of fan fiction but uses characters that bear a striking resemblance to those that are copyright of Paramount Pictures.  No infringement on their copyright is intended by the author in anyway, shape or form - this is just a bit of fun. This story includes an all female relationship so if you don’t like that then look away now.

Codes: uber J/7

Rating: NC-17

Time Period: This story is set in 12^th Century England (though no claims are made about the historical accuracy of this story!)

Thanks: to Trek for beta reading this for me :)

Lady Katherine shut the heavy oak door behind her and collapsed against the solid bulk. Pinching the bridge of her nose she let out a sigh. She had not expected the negotiations with the Sheriff to be easy, but he really was turning out to be a most stubborn man. She disregard the nagging thought that she herself was not lacking in that department.

She knew that there were those in her manor who thought it wasn’t right for a woman to be involved in such matters, traipsing round the country making alliances and battering agreements with the other lords and noblemen in order to maintain their power base. What had they expected of her though? Her husband may be lost, presumed dead, on those foolish crusades with King Richard, but she was not going to lie down and let the wolves tear into their lands. She was Lady Katherine and she was made of sterner stuff!

She smiled to herself as she realised she was making her usual self-rousing speech in her head, the one she always repeated to herself when things threatened to get on top of her. It had been a long day and the four poster bed in the centre of the room was looking increasingly inviting, if lonely. Images of her husband, Mark, flashed briefly through her mind but she pushed them away. They were of no use to her now, he was gone and she needed to face up to that reality. She had to remain strong for the people of their lands and all those thoughts did was bring her pain and sorrow if she let them linger too long.

She reached up and undid the fastenings in her hair to let the auburn locks fall loose about her shoulders as she sat at the small table set against the thick stone walls of the castle.

Suddenly she heard a small sound from somewhere behind her and whirled round on her seat, her long dress swishing round her ankles.

“Who’s there?” she called out into the semi-darkness of the candlelit room, “Beatrice, is that you?”

There was no reply forthcoming, so she surmised that it was not her maid that had made the noise. She slowly turned back to the table and quietly drew the dagger that Tobias had given to her from its sheath. She was glad the captain of her guard had insisted on giving her instruction in its use, as well as other defensive techniques. He knew as well as she that the Sheriff was currently having some troubles with a band of outlaws, and had warned all nobles travelling through his territories to be on their guard.

A movement near the wardrobe on the far side of the room caught her eye and she rose from her seat, the dagger clutched tightly in her right hand as she held it before her. Whoever was in here was going to have to get past her as the door was the only entrance and exit from the room, it having typically small slit-like windows.

“Surrender yourself, and I will see that the sheriff treats you with mercy,” she suggested to the unknown intruder, taking a couple of steps forward.

She thought she heard what sounded like a small laugh at her statement. Momentarily perplexed, she didn’t react quickly enough as the assailant sprung from their hiding place and grabbed her right wrist. She tried to retain her grip on the blade as they banged her arm against the upright of the bed, but they were stronger and much taller than her and she watched forlornly as the dagger clattered to the ground at her feet. As her eyes came up she took in the form of her attacker. They were clothed head to foot in thick black garments, including their face and head. The only visible part of them was a pair of ice blue eyes that now stared intently into her own blue-grey ones. She stood transfixed as the rest of the room seemed to fade away in the presence of the piercing gaze. Neither moved for what seemed like an eternity, until suddenly the attacker dropped her wrist, snatched up the dagger from the floor and darted from the room.

Katherine remained rooted to the spot for a moment, her breath coming in heaving gasps. She wasn’t sure if it was from the exertion of the struggle or the frisson of the moment that had passed between her and the shadowy figure, but she mentally shook herself and realised she should be summoning the guards. As she wrenched the door open she almost received a fist in her face from a hand about to knock.

“Katherine? Is there something amiss?”

“Charles,” said Katherine, identifying her visitor beyond the hovering hand, “Did you see anyone in the corridor?”

She stepped out the door past him and glanced down the long stone passage, which was flanked by burning torches.

“No,” replied the man following her gaze, “Did you hear something?”

“I…,” began Katherine, but something stopped her elaborating further. “No, I thought I had, but it must have been nothing.”

Coming back into the room, she turned her full attention to the tall, burly man who had taken the liberty of stepping inside her chamber.

Charles Kirby was one of the knights who governed part of Lady Katherine’s estate. In return for the power of controlling his own particular section of land, he had pledged his service to Katherine’s husband, the lord of the manor. Mark in turn had sworn his allegience to the King, which is what had taken him to Jerusalem.

Mark and Charles had been great friends, but there was something about Kirby that had always unsettled Katherine, and since Mark had left that unease had only grown. She had always thought that the strange tattoo above his left eye made him look slightly sinister. She was also pretty sure that Kirby had designs on making her his wife, despite the fact that Mark’s body was hardly cold in the ground, in fact was not even in the ground since it had not been returned from the Holy Land.

“What are you doing here, anyway, I thought you were back at the manor?” she asked.

“I had some business in Nottingham,” he explained, “But since I knew you were here at the castle, I thought I would pay a visit. How have things been going with the good sheriff?”

Katherine really wasn’t in the mood for a long discussion with Kirby right now, and let this be known to him in the tone of her reply.

“Fine, but I really am rather tired and was about to retire for the night.”

“Really?” said Kirby, his eyebrow quirking under the tattoo, as if assessing the possibility that he may be invited to join her.

“Yes, so if you wouldn’t mind,” she said, gesturing to the door.

Kirby stared at her for a moment, maybe contemplating pushing things further but Katherine returned his scrutiny with her own steely gaze that brooked no argument.

“Of course, m’lady,” he said, dipping his head, reaching out and taking her hand so he could bring it to his lips and kiss it.

He made to go but halted in the doorway to turn to her once more.

“I am always here if you change your mind and would like some…..company,” he said, the last word said with added suggestiveness.

Before she could reply that hell would most likely freeze over before she wished for his company at night, he had closed the door behind him and departed.

She sighed to herself as she wandered over to the large bed, wondering how much longer Kirby would persist in the face of her continued antipathy. She knew she had to be careful as she couldn’t afford to offend him too much, he being one of the most powerful men in her manor. The last thing she needed was any kind power struggle. As a woman, her position as head of the estate was a tenuous one, only accorded to her due to Mark’s absence. It had already taken a great deal of her diplomatic skills to keep things peaceful between the various knights and lords who ran the manor for her. She would be glad when these latest negotiations with the sheriff were over and she could get back to her home at Markham Manor and make sure no one had made any moves to usurp her while she was away.

As she removed her dress and put on the long night gown, her thoughts wandered from the business of the estate to what had happened in her room earlier. She was not sure why she had not mentioned the intruder to Kirby, though maybe she had still been unnerved from the encounter. Those eyes had certainly affected her, the gaze had been so intense, even in the dull light of the room, that she had found herself unable to look away. It also crossed her mind that the intruder must have had some purpose in her room, that maybe she had disturbed his search for something. In which case it was likely that he may be paying her a visit again at some point. She resolved to discuss it with Tobias in the morning as she slipped between the sheets. The last images that crossed her mind as she drifted off were a pair of ice blue eyes shining in the dark.

--------------------------------

The week following the bedroom encounter with the mysterious stranger passed without incident for Lady Katherine. That was probably due partly to Tobias’ increased vigilance when it came to her personal security. She knew he was a good and loyal man, but she really didn’t feel it was necessary to be accompanied everywhere she went round the castle. Luckily she had finally managed to conclude negotiations with the Sheriff, which meant they would soon be departing for Markham where hopefully things could return to normal.

The Sheriff had invited her party to a tournament that afternoon, before they left. Katherine really wasn’t that interested in watching a group of knights beat each other senseless with lances, swords and various other weapons, but couldn’t afford to offend her host by declining the offer.

A knock at the door disturbed her thoughts.

“Come in,” she instructed.

The door opened to reveal her maid, Beatrice, precariously carrying a pitcher of water and a host of other washing items. Beatrice was a stocky, yet pretty young woman, not much taller than Katherine herself. Her pale skin was offset by raven black hair and deep brown eyes. Katherine got to her feet to help her with her cargo.

“Thank you, m’lady,” said Beatrice, making a small curtsey as she placed the water on the table.

“Nice of you to remember me for once, Beatrice” said Katherine, a slight hint of sarcasm entering a voice, “Thomas busy, is he?”

Beatrice flushed at the mention of her sweetheart. She knew that Lady Katherine was aware of the situation with Thomas, but being reminded of it by her in quite such an obvious manner was most embarrassing. Though most masters or mistresses would not tolerate relations between their servants, Lady Katherine seemed quite accepting, which she supposed she should be grateful for.

“Tobias has assigned him extra training,” she informed the older woman.

“Ah, I see. Tobias has got rather zealous in his duties this past week, I’m surprised you two have been able to see each other at all,” mused Katherine.

Despite the fact that she had been her maid for nearly a year now, Beatrice was still always slightly confounded when Lady Katherine started talking to her in quite such an informal manner. From what other maids had told her, most of them were not treated as well as her ladyship treated her.

“There’s been no more sign of the intruder, though?” asked Beatrice nervously, concerned for her lover’s safety.

“No, no more unwanted late night visitors, unless you count Mr Kirby,” laughed Katherine.

Beatrice couldn’t help herself smiling at that, though she knew that if Kirby himself found her laughing at his expense he would not be happy. She had heard some rather unpleasant tales from his servants of what could happen to them if they displeased the surly knight.

“Well, I suppose we best get ready for this tournament,” continued Katherine, “Is everything packed for our departure immediately afterwards?”

“Yes, m’lady, I have just left you your blue gown and your travelling clothes out,” replied the young maid.

“Thank you, Beatrice, that will be all. I’ll let you know when we’re ready to leave.”

“Very good, m’lady,” said Beatrice as she curtseyed again on her way out the door.

Katherine surveyed the two sets of clothes that Beatrice had left her, the luxurious, dark blue dress and the considerably less formal travelling clothes. She smiled to herself as she picked up the breeches that she wore for travelling. She knew that it was considered quite scandalous that she would wear trousers, even if it was for travelling, but Katherine thought it was just practical. A full-length dress and riding a horse did not really go together, especially as she was in the habit of riding properly astride the animal, unlike most other ladies. In fact it was considered rather risqué that she would ride a horse at all, other ladies liked to be ferried about in a coach. She had only brought a small party with her, though, so had thought it more sensible and faster if she just ride with them. Accompanying her were just the captain of her troops, Tobias, a couple of his knights and Beatrice. Having a smaller party also meant they were less likely to draw attention to themselves when they had to pass through Sherwood Forest on the way back to Markham, which lay through the great forest to the north-east of Nottingham. Despite the Sheriff’s best efforts the forest was notorious as a home for outlaws and thieves.

Placing the trousers back on the bed she proceeded to wash with the water Beatrice had brought. She slipped the velvet dress over her light under tunic and smoothed it down as it cascaded down to her feet. It was striking in its colour as normally most fabrics were dull browns and greys. However, Mark had brought the luxurious deep blue cloth for this dress back from one of his trips to Europe. He had said that it matched her eyes. As was the fashion, the dress had long, form-fitting sleeves and came up over her chest to finish in a scoop neck at her throat. Round her waist she tied the matching sash so that the dress showed off her natural curves. She sat and brushed her long auburn hair and then tied it back in a loose ponytail, secured with a simple clasp. Fastening her cloak around her neck she made her way from the room.

Standing stiffly outside the door was Tobias, ready to escort her to the tournament fair, which was set up just outside the castle grounds. He was a tall, slim man, though his slightness belied his strength. He bore himself with grace and ease, but she knew that hidden underneath that was a deadly fighter when required. Tobias was intelligent enough to know when that was required, and when talking and diplomacy was a better option, unlike a lot of other knights who waded in with their sword swinging. He was Katherine’s most experienced soldier and fiercely loyal and dedicated to his mistress. He stood proudly in his light armour - a chain mail tunic covered by a royal blue tabard with the Johnson crest in gold upon it. At his side, his sword sat in its scabbard, though Katherine suspected that he most likely had some other hidden weapons about his person, perhaps somewhere in his leather boots or gloves.

“At ease, Tobias, before someone mistakes you for one of the suits of armour that line these corridors,” she joked with him.

He raised an eyebrow at her and eased his stance slightly. That was about as much emotion as she was likely to see for him. He liked to keep his feelings well hidden, nothing much was ever shown outwardly on his dark features. Katherine couldn’t help smiling, though, never being able to resist the chance to tease him about it.

“Come on, let’s get this over with,” she suggested, setting off down the corridor, Tobias falling into step behind her.

They headed out through the castle gates into the warm spring sunshine. Katherine raised her face to the sun and closed her eyes, basking in the warmth of the rays on her fair skin. It would be good to get back to Markham and take her favourite horse for a ride across the fields of the estate after the past couple of weeks of tense negotiation.

The tournament was not only an opportunity from knights to come and try and prove themselves against each other, but also for the common people to enjoy the displays and fair that accompanied it. Katherine could already smell a whole host of different cooking scents wafting up the slope as they made their way down to the tents and stalls that dotted the open ground outside the castle walls. At the centre of the fair was a kind of show ground, a long strip of grass with the makeshift fence set up down the centre of it. This would be where the knights would be jousting shortly. Around that were stalls offering a wide range of wares and foods, as well as other forms of entertainment including minstrels and jesters. The sound of music and laughter echoed across the field as she took her seat in the stand that had been erected at the centre point of the grassy strip for the nobles to watch the jousting and other competitions.

“Looking forward to getting back to Markham?” came a voice from behind her.

She groaned inwardly as Charles Kirby took up the vacant seat next to her.

“You look beautiful today, m’lady, “ he continued, “Though of course you always do.”

She turned and offered him a half-hearted smile in response. Undeterred he reached for and kissed her hand.

“And will you be returning with us, Charles?” she enquired politely, though secretly praying that his answer would be in the negative. All she needed was Kirby pestering her all the way on the ride back to the manor.

“Unfortunately not, I still have some more business to conduct here,” he replied.

She hoped the relief she was feeling wasn’t too evident on her face.

“Ah, that is a shame,” she said, trying to inject as much seriousness as possible into her tone. “Well, if you’ll excuse me, I think I will take in some of the local delights before the jousting commences.”

She rose and stepped down from the covered enclosure, Tobias having to hurry to catch her up, she had moved so quickly.

“I hope you are not trying to lose me, m’lady,” he said as he drew level with her.

She glanced at him and let a small smile quirk the side of her mouth.

“As if you would let me, I’ve hardly even been able to relieve myself this past week without you or one of your men trying to join me.”

“I am just concerned for your safety,” he said seriously.

She stopped and turned to him, looking directly into his stoic features and placing a reassuring hand on his arm.

“I know, Tobias, and it is greatly appreciated, no matter how much I may tease you about it.”

He nodded in acknowledgment and they continued walking side by side amongst the peasants and serfs who were enjoying their day out. Several turned to look at them, perhaps not used to seeing a noble down with the common people. Or maybe it was because they made quite a striking couple, the radiant blue of her dress and his tabard standing out from the drab colours around them, her red hair also shining in the sunlight.

Katherine could see that a crowd was gathering around a patch of open ground ahead of them. She accosted one of the passing men.

“What is going on over there?” she asked.

The man looked shocked when he saw who it was that had asked him the question, and took a moment to find his voice.

“Tis an archery contest, m’lady,” he finally answered bowing his head as he spoke.

“Hmm, shall we?” she said, addressing Tobias. Though she was not fond of watching men fight in the jousting arena, she could appreciate the skill involved in a pursuit such as archery.

As she turned to go she clattered straight into someone also heading in the direction of the contest.

“Pardon me…“ she began, turning to the person she had bumped.

Any further words died on her lips as her gaze was met by the face of perhaps the most beautiful young woman she had ever seen. She was a good few inches taller than Katherine and had long golden hair that floated around almost noble features, with fair skin and high cheekbones. But the thing that really held Katherine’s attention were the pair of ice blue eyes in the centre of the alluring face. Katherine blinked uncertainly as she was reminded of another pair of eyes that she had glimpsed briefly in her chamber almost a week ago. She knew she was staring, but couldn’t seem to look away or speak, the young woman seemingly equally confounded.

Their mutual appraisal was disturbed by a shout from the archery arena to their right.

“Robin Hood! It’s Robin Hood!”

Katherine subconsciously turned briefly to glance in the direction of the shout. As she looked back to where the young woman had stood she was greeted by an empty space. Frantically she looked all around her but there was no sign of the young woman, she had somehow melted away into the crowd. It was unlikely she would spot her now as pandemonium had broken out amongst the peasants at the shout, with most of them dashing in the direction of the archery contest. She could hear whoops and cheering rising from the people around the arena.

Tobias hovered close next to her, obviously not appreciating that they had got caught up in the excitement, his hand moving to rest on the hilt of his sword. She strained to see what was happening through the bodies, since she was far too short to see over them. She could just make out a man in a woody green tunic and carrying a bow sprinting across the open space of the archery ground, along with several of the Sheriff’s men in hot pursuit. The rest of the action remained obscured to her as the crowd closed in tighter and completely blocked her view.

“I think now would be a good time to return to our seats,” suggested Tobias.

“I think you’re right, if we can get through this crowd. Who is this Robin Hood that has them all so excited?” she asked.

“He is an outlaw, m’lady,” he replied, distaste colouring his tone.

“An outlaw? Then why are the people so pleased to see him?” she asked, confused.

“There are some tales that he supposedly robs from the rich to give to the poor,” explained Tobias, indicating that he did not really believe this in the way he said it, before continuing his explanation.

“This Robin Hood is the leader of the group of outlaws that are known to prowl Sherwood Forest, preying on the travellers that pass that way.”

“In which case, we need to be careful on our way home,” she mused.

“Indeed,” he agreed.

Taking one last glance around the crowd to see if she could spot a golden head moving amongst it, Katherine allowed Tobias to guide her back to the safety of the noble’s stand.

---------------------------

Having finally made her excuses and successfully extricated herself from the Sheriff’s hospitality, Lady Katherine and her party set off for the journey back to Markham. It was over a days ride back to the manor; so they would make camp part of the way there. During the journey they had to ride through the notorious Sherwood Forest, known to be the home of thieves and outlaws. Unfortunately the forest lay on the road from Nottingham to Markham so they had no option but to pass that way.

Katherine’s group consisted of her maid, Beatrice; the Captain of her guard, Tobias; and two of his officers, Thomas and Richard. They were all on horseback, including the two ladies. Katherine was now wearing her riding breeches and tunic so she could fully straddle the animal, rather than sit side-saddle as was normally the custom for ladies.

They made good time through the forest in the afternoon sunshine, without any signs of trouble. Just as Katherine’s mind was beginning to wander to thoughts of black-outfitted strangers in her bedroom and mesmerising young women at archery contests, she noticed that Tobias was looking anxiously around. She pulled her horse up alongside him, as they continued to trot along the dirt track.

“Is something wrong?” she asked.

“I’m not sure,” he said, his eyes continuing to sweep the forest either side of them as he spoke, searching for anything out of the ordinary. The trees were fairly openly spaced in this section of the wood, but there were pockets of denser foliage. “I think I caught a glimpse of some movement in the trees to our right.”

“Maybe it was just an animal?” suggested Thomas who was riding just behind them at the rear of the party.

As Tobias opened his mouth to reply he was cut off by the sound of something whistling through the air, followed by a dull thud. At the front of the group, Richard slid from his horse and plunged to the ground, an arrow firmly lodged between his shoulder blades.

Suddenly everything around Katherine erupted in a flurry of activity. Trees crashed to the ground, blocking the road in front of and behind her, as men leapt from the cover of the forest and bushes either side of them, whooping as they did. Spooked by the noise, Katherine’s horse reared up on its hind legs, flinging her from its back and onto the dusty ground below. Sprawling on the ground, she glanced up in time to see one of the outlaws advancing towards her menacingly before Tobias interposed himself between her and the would-be attacker.

Tobias drew his sword in order to parry the blows from the other man, before glancing back at Katherine on the floor behind him.

“Run, m’lady, quick!”

“But…” began Katherine, not wanting to desert her people.

“Now, before they overwhelm us!” instructed the guard.

Katherine knew it was wise to acquiesce to Tobias’s wishes in matters of personal security, but it didn’t mean she was happy about it. Casting one last look at him, she scrambled to her feet and darted towards the trees. About thirty feet along the road she could see Thomas and Beatrice also valiantly battling their attackers, one of whom was dressed all in black…

Katherine froze for a moment at the edge of the wood, staring at the figure. It was the same one she had encountered in her bedroom at Nottingham Castle a week ago. Her reverie was broken by one of the other outlaws crying out on spotting Katherine’s attempted escape.

“Seven! The lady!” cried the man pointing in Katherine’s direction.

Katherine found the stranger-in-black was now staring at her, those intense blue eyes pinning her to the spot again through the gap between their hood and the scarf that covered the rest of their face. Realising that “Seven” must be the stranger-in-black and that they were being directed to stop her, Katherine quickly plunged into the forest, cursing herself for hesitating in the first place.

She sprinted as best she could through the forest, batting away and ducking under and over branches as she went. Many snagged at her hair, face and clothes, but she ignored the accumulation of small scrapes and scratches as she urgently pressed on. She was glad of her habit of wearing breeches for riding now, as a skirt would have made it impossible to make rapid progress through the trees. She was also glad that she managed to keep in quite good shape for a woman her age, even though she was starting to breath heavily from the exertion of battling her way through the undergrowth. She suspected that most other 38-year-olds, especially those in the nobility, would have given up long ago.

She scrambled down a small incline, her feet slipping and sliding in the earth and general detritus that littered the forest floor in her attempt to stay upright. As she came to the foot of the slope she used a tree trunk to break her descent, coming to a halt briefly. She took the opportunity to catch her breath and glance behind her for the first time to see if there was any sign of the one called Seven still following her. She strained to hear any sound of pursuit, but all she could make out were her own ragged breaths and the sound of the wind through the leaves above her. She prayed that she had managed to lose Seven as she turned to continue on her way.

Suddenly a form came flying out of the trees and careened into her, sending her tumbling to the ground. Katherine used the momentum of her fall to roll and spring back to her feet and face her attacker. It was Seven, who’d somehow caught her without her hearing the approach. She guessed she shouldn’t be surprised; Seven was obviously accustomed to operating stealthily if the black garb was anything to go by.

Luckily for Kathryn she had actually risen before the outlaw, who was still attempting to disentangle a bramble wrapped around their leg. Remembering what Tobias had taught her about defence and seizing any advantage she could, even if it meant “fighting dirty”, Katherine moved in as the outlaw finally got to their feet and swiftly kneed them in the groin.

She only had a brief moment to wonder why they weren’t doubled over in pain, as any man should be, before her feet were swept from beneath her, sending her falling backwards. Desperately she grabbed at the black-robed outlaw as she fell, managing to get a handful of tunic thus dragging the stranger down on top of her.

Katherine let out a small “oof” as she landed on her back, the full weight of the outlaw pressing down on her. As she attempted to fend off the hands that were grasping for her own she was surprised at how light the stranger was. The outlaw managed to pin her left hand to the ground, palm up, at the side of her head. Frantically she clawed away with her free hand, trying to strike the outlaw in some way while at the same time wiggling her body to try and shift it from the underneath the legs which straddled her. All her hand found was the cloth of the face-scarf, which came away, just as Seven’s head jerked back at the sudden loss of face covering, allowing the hood to fall also.

“You?!” Katherine exclaimed with surprise.

Sitting astride her, golden hair tumbling about her fine features as she gazed down at Katherine, was the beautiful young woman from the tournament. Their faces could not have been more than a foot apart and Katherine was suddenly very aware of the other woman’s breathing along with her own pounding heart and heaving breaths. As before, in the bedroom, neither of them made any immediate moves, as if frozen in this moment in time.

Too late Katherine realised she had lost any advantage she might have had at the young woman’s momentary hesitation. Seven leapt off her, grabbed the hand that still held the scarf and quickly flipped Katherine over onto her front, bringing both her arms behind her back as she used a knee in the back to keep Katherine in place. Katherine sputtered dirt from her mouth as Seven trussed her hands together. She yanked Katherine roughly to her feet and shoved her in the direction of the road, making Katherine stumble slightly.

“All right! All right! I’m moving,” said Katherine indignantly. She knew she was at a distinct disadvantage at the moment, and that it was probably best to bide her time and wait for some sort of opening. In the mean time she would follow the young woman’s instructions, especially since she wasn’t sure how volatile she might be.

As they made their way back through the forest, Seven remained behind her, periodically poking or pushing Katherine in the back if she slowed at all. As they walked, Katherine tried to assimilate all that had happened - the “man in black” wasn’t a man at all, but a beautiful young woman, a woman who seemed to have a strange mesmerising affect on Katherine whenever she saw her. Katherine found herself captivated by those eyes every time.

Getting closer to the road, the young woman still hadn’t spoken, and Katherine realised if she wanted to do something before they got to the other outlaws she had better do it soon. She wondered if a little talk and diplomacy might extricate her from this situation.

“Seven?” Katherine said, turning to look at the young woman and offering her a warm smile, “ I presume that’s a nickname. I'm curious; what is your real name?"

Seven just stared back at her, her eyes now icy pools that Katherine felt were examining and assessing her. Katherine was beginning to wonder if the woman was actually mute when, finally, she spoke.

"Do not engage me in irrelevant discourse," she said coldly.

Katherine was taken aback. Well, so much for diplomacy, she mused, as Seven shoved her again to get her moving towards the road.

Eventually they came back to the dirt track and Katherine was dismayed to see that the remaining members of her party had been subdued, though at least they were still alive, unlike poor Richard who still lay where he had fallen. They were all in a circle, sitting on the ground surrounded by the outlaws. The outlaws were a ragged bunch, all men of various ages, wearing shabby green and grey tunics and breeches. They also had a fairly motley collection of weapons between them; some carried swords while others had bows and arrows slung over their shoulders. Katherine counted eight of them still standing, with four also lying lifelessly on the ground.

“M’lady, are you all right?” began Tobias, starting to rise to come towards her.

He was stopped abruptly by one of the outlaws cuffing him round the back of the head with the hilt of his sword, causing him to fall back to the ground, unconscious.

“Tobias!” cried Katherine, trying to get to her fallen guard, but being held back forcibly by Seven, who gripped the rope that bound her wrists.

Katherine turned her head to glare at the other woman.

“There was no need for that! What are you, barbarians?”

Seven just stared coldly at her, before pushing her to the ground with the rest of her party. She then turned her attention to one of the other outlaws.

“Did you find it?” Seven asked a dark-haired young man who could hardly have been more than twenty years of age. Katherine thought he didn’t really seem to fit in with the rest of the men, he had such an innocent, boyish look to him. Seven also stood out from the rest of the outlaws, not only because she was a woman, but also because of the way she held herself and moved with such grace. It also seemed that she was in charge, since they all seemed to be watching her and waiting for her instruction.

“No,” he replied, “We looked through all their things, but there’s no sign of it.”

“Damn!” hissed Seven.

Katherine had no idea what it was they were looking for, but they obviously weren’t pleased not to have found it. She didn’t think that boded well for her and her people, if the dark look crossing Seven’s features was anything to go by.

Suddenly the noise of an owl hooting caught the blond-haired woman’s attention.

“Great! And now there’s someone coming,” she cursed, before stopping to listen for further signals. Duly there were three more hoots of differing pitches and lengths. “And just our luck, it’s one of the sheriff’s patrols.”

“What are we going to do?” asked the young outlaw.

Seven pondered for a minute, her gaze drifting to take in Katherine, lingering on the auburn-haired woman for a few seconds. Katherine in turn lifted her chin and met the perusal with her own frosty glare, in what was almost a battle of wills. Seven was the first to turn away.

“This one must know where it is,” she said, indicating Katherine, “We’ll have to take them back to camp for now.”

The young man looked like he was about to disagree but a quick glance from Seven and any words he may have been about to speak remained unsaid. Instead he just nodded his acceptance and set about gathering together the horses and clearing away any signs of a struggle with the help of some of the other men.

Seven grabbed the front of Katherine’s tunic and pulled her to her feet.

“After you, m’lady,” she offered sarcastically, gesturing towards the trees.

“Where are you taking us?” asked Katherine.

“Not that you’re in any position to be asking questions, but we’re going to see a very good friend of mine – Robin Hood.”

---------------------------

As they made their way into the depths of Sherwood Forest, flanked by the outlaw band, Katherine couldn’t seem to stop her gaze wandering to the young woman dressed all in black. Seven’s long blonde hair was now drawn back into a ponytail, revealing more of her fine features – the high cheekbones, the startlingly blue eyes, the full red lips…

Katherine suddenly realised the deep blue eyes had turned her way and she averted her gaze, blushing slightly at the embarrassment of being caught staring. Why had she been staring? She wondered. Despite being caught, she still surreptitiously stole a few more glances Seven’s way as they continued on. She noted that if you looked carefully in the right places the female form was actually obvious, and wondered how she ever thought the beautiful woman was a man.

Katherine mentally shook herself. Here they were held captive by a group of outlaws and being taken goodness knows where and she was busy studying the body of the lead captor! She knew she should be trying to think of ways out of the predicament, rather than getting distracted. She didn’t even know why the young woman distracted her so; there was just something about her…

To try and re-focus her thoughts Katherine turned to take in the rest of her group. Tobias was still unconscious and being dragged unceremoniously along by one of the outlaws. Katherine hoped that the wound on his head wasn’t serious; Tobias was her most trusted guard and confidant. At least Thomas and Beatrice were capable of walking, though Thomas had some sort of knife or sword wound in his stomach. The fair-haired young man was holding what had once been the sleeve of Beatrice’s tunic tightly against the injury, but Katherine could still see some blood creeping through and dripping from his fingers. Beatrice’s dark eyes met hers and Katherine tried to give her a re-assuring smile, though she was feeling far from confident of their prospects herself. At least Seven had removed the tight bindings from her wrists, obviously confident that Katherine wouldn’t get far if she tried to make a break for it again.

Eventually, Katherine noticed a thinning of the trees ahead of them and they entered a clearing in the forest. Dotted around the clearing were various makeshift structures, constructed of wood and other natural materials. Several small fires were lit with groups of men around them chatting, eating or drinking. All of the men were clothed similarly to their current captors – in dark green/grey tunics and breeches, which allowed them to blend into the forest. Katherine realised that, apart from Seven, there didn’t appear to be any women amongst them.

One of the men broke off from the nearest grouping and approached them. He was clothed slightly differently, having a deep red sash tied around his middle, the splash of colour seeming most out of place in the forest.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing, Seven, bringing those people here?” he said crossly.

“We were disturbed during our search, we had no option,” Seven replied.

The man was now standing toe to toe with her with barely concealed rage. Seven had a height advantage over him, standing a couple of inches taller, and stared coldly down at the man.

“You could have just killed them!” he spat. “Oh, I forgot, you don’t like to do that,” he continued sarcastically.

“I do when it is necessary,” she said, indicating with her tone that it was the angry young man that she may find it necessary to kill.

For a moment the pair just stood staring at each other. Katherine could practically feel the animosity radiating from them and she was secretly glad that it was Seven who had led the party to capture them and not the other man.

“Will! Seven!” came another commanding voice to the side of them.

They all turned to the speaker.

“Robin, have you seen what she’s done now?!” cried the angry man, the one called Will.

So this was Robin Hood, mused Katherine. He was a handsome dark-haired man, clean-shaven unlike most of the others around the camp. He exuded a different air from the rest of the outlaws, save perhaps Seven. He had an aura of confidence about him; obvious in the way he walked towards them.

“Yes, Will, but it doesn’t do to be fighting amongst ourselves,” Robin said calmly, “Why don’t you go and help Nicholas.”

Will shot him a baleful glance, but obviously decided against saying anything and stalked off. Robin turned to Seven.

“Will you two ever stop fighting?” he asked.

“I cannot help it if Will feels threatened by me. I was trying to explain that we got disturbed by one of the sheriff’s patrols. It took longer than we expected since I had to take a bit of a detour to retrieve one of the captives,” Seven replied.

“But was it really necessary to bring them back to the camp?” asked Robin.

“You would rather I had killed them as Will suggested?”

“No,” sighed Robin, “We’re not all as blood-thirsty as Will.”

“Anyway, we need them alive if we want to find the stone, it is difficult to get information from a corpse,” reasoned Seven.

“True,” agreed Robin. He moved in closer, putting a hand gently on Seven’s arm.

“And you are all right, you were not injured in any way?” he said with concern in his voice.

“I am fine, Robin,” replied Seven, giving him a small smile.

Well, thought Katherine, this was interesting. It appeared that Seven and the head outlaw were fairly close, maybe…lovers? Katherine wondered why she found that thought disturbing.

“John!” Robin was calling to one of his men.

Perhaps the tallest man Katherine had ever seen got up from where he was sitting by one of the fires and strode over. He must have been nearly a foot taller than Robin who addressed him now.

“Could you take our ‘guests’ to the pen and keep an eye on them?”

“Of course, Robin,” replied the giant man, his voice a deep rumble.

“Come on you lot,” he said, placing a massive hand on Thomas’ shoulder to guide him away, “Alan, Henry, you come with me too.”

As Katherine made to follow them, Robin shot out a hand to stop her.

“Not you, m’lady, I want to have a word with you.”

“What are you going to do with my people?” she asked, concern edging her voice.

“Don’t worry, they won’t be harmed,” replied Robin.

“Pardon me if I don’t find that comforting, especially after one of my guards was killed on the road,” she said, trying to keep the anger out of her voice.

Robin swivelled his head in Seven’s direction, raising his eyebrows in a mute question.

“Alan got rather over-excited and fired an arrow into the guard,” she explained coldly, “a most unfortunate mishap.”

“A mishap!” cried Katherine, shooting a fierce look Seven’s way, “that man had a family!”

“Ha! As if you are concerned about the families of your subordinates,” scoffed Seven, “All your kind is concerned with is money and power and how to get more of it while keeping the rest of us firmly under your control, scrabbling around just to put food on the table.”

Katherine was slightly taken aback by Seven’s venomous diatribe. To say that she didn’t like the gentry was obviously putting it mildly. Before Katherine could respond, Robin continued.

“I’m sorry for your loss, it is not our policy to randomly kill people if at all possible.”

“And your guards killed 4 of our men too,” interjected Seven bitterly.

Katherine bit back her reply that they were only defending themselves. It would do no good to get into a protracted argument with the young woman. She needed to remain calm if she was going to somehow get them out of this alive.

“Perhaps we should get on to why you are here,” suggested Robin, obviously also wanting to try and relieve some of the tension that was growing between the two women, “You have something in your possession that we require.”

“That much I gathered,” answered Katherine, “maybe if you had just asked for it.”

Seven snorted a laugh, but Robin shot her a warning look before the young woman could say anything.

“It is quite a precious object, I do not believe you would be amenable to relinquishing it willingly,” he explained to Katherine.

Katherine then realised what the other thing was that really made Robin, and Seven, stand out from the rest of the outlaws – the way they spoke. Their speech was clear and precise and contained a much greater vocabulary than was common among peasants. As she was wondering as to how that might have come to be, Robin proceeded to elaborate further.

“We are looking for a precious gemstone, known as the ‘Stone Of Gaia’. It is roughly 2 inches in width and a dark green colour.”

Katherine thought for a moment, but she didn’t think she had any gemstones in her possession, let alone one matching the outlaw’s description. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed that the one called Will had returned and was hovering, watching intently as Robin questioned her.

“I do not believe I possess such a stone,” she told Robin.

“We have good reason to believe that it came into your husband’s possession at some point in the past and that you brought it with you to Nottingham,” insisted Robin.

Katherine looked at him quizzically. She had brought it to Nottingham? She really had no idea what he was talking about and also wondered how he knew what he did. Did she have someone in her employ that was feeding them information?

“I’m sorry, I really don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said, shrugging her shoulders.

“This is ridiculous, she’s obviously lying!”

Katherine caught a movement off to her side, before she was suddenly struck across the temple, sending her crashing to the ground. She glanced up in time to see Seven punching Will firmly in the face, sending him sprawling with blood spurting from his nose. He leaped back up and lunged towards Seven, but she smartly sidestepped and used his own momentum to push him to the ground again. Again he scrabbled to his feet, but this time Robin stepped in between the two fighting outlaws.

“That’s enough!” he said angrily, “Will, I thought I told you to go and help Nicholas?”

“But she’s lying, like they always do!” he fumed, “And what are you doing?” he continued glaring at Seven over Robin’s shoulder, “why are you protecting that ‘noble’ scum?!”

“We aren’t going to find out anything if you batter her into unconsciousness,” explained Seven.

“Yeah? Or maybe she’d tell us something a bit quicker! You just don’t want me messing up that pretty face,” ranted Will.

At that Seven suddenly went for Will again, though Robin managed to hold the enraged woman back, though it looked like it was taking all his strength to do so.

“Will, get out of here, now!” commanded Robin.

Will gave Katherine one final sneer as she lay on the ground before turning on his heel and traipsing off. She felt a trickle of something warm and wet down the side of her right eye and reached up to touch her eyebrow. As she drew her fingers away she found they had blood on them. Glancing up again, she found that Seven had calmed down enough to be offering her a hand in order for her to get up. Katherine wondered what it was about Will’s comments that had angered Seven so as she took the proffered hand. The young woman’s skin was surprisingly soft, Katherine noted, and she found she had to resist the strong urge to run her thumb across the back of the slender, yet strong hand.

“Thank you,” she said as she rose.

Seven didn’t reply, in fact she was deliberately avoiding making eye contact with Katherine. The older woman thought this was strange compared to what she had seen of Seven so far.

“Maybe we should give you a chance to have a good think about where that stone may be,” said Robin to her, “Seven, why don’t you take her over to join the rest of her people for the time being.”

Seven merely nodded and motioned for Katherine to move. As they went to go, Robin called after them.

“But know that we must have the stone, even if that means I have to let Will question you next time.”

------------------------------------------

Seven led Katherine through the outlaws’ camp. Darkness had fallen and the fires lit up the battered and worn faces of the men gathered round them. Katherine glanced at the young woman beside her, the firelight playing off her golden hair, her delicate profile highlighted against the gloom.

“Thank you again for helping me out back there,” she said huskily.

Seven did not turn to face her, but kept walking staring straight ahead, replying in a cool voice:

“It was not for you. You have information that we need. If you are damaged we may not get it, simple as that.”

Katherine found that she was a bit disappointed at the statement, so coldly put. Had she hoped that Seven had leapt to her defence for some more noble reason?

They came to a small enclosure, which consisted of sharpened logs positioned close together and standing upright in the ground to create a fence. At the entrance to the enclosure stood two outlaws; one the dark-haired young man who had been in the party that had originally captured them and another Katherine did not recognise, but who sneered at her as they approached.

“Keep an eye on her as well,” instructed Seven before turning and going to sit at one of the nearby fires where Robin had positioned himself.

“Looks like you’re staying the night with us then, m’lady,” grunted the older man moving menacingly close to her.

Katherine recoiled at his foul breath.

“I don’t think Robin will be happy if she’s harmed in any way,” said the younger man, sensing the potential danger.

The older one looked at him with contempt but he met the glare and held it. Katherine was beginning to realise that not all of the outlaws seemed to have the same views on certain aspects of their job.

“Fine!” spat the older man giving Katherine a shove towards the enclosure so she tripped and fell on the ground, “I’ve had enough of guard duty anyway. I’m going to get some food, Alan can help you guard them.”

He stomped off, briefly stopping at the fire to send one of the other men over. Katherine clambered to her feet and was ushered into the fenced area.

“M’lady!” Tobias sprang up and came over to her, concern etched on his dark features. Katherine knew they were in trouble if he was showing this much emotion. “Are you all right?”

“I’m fine, Tobias, and what of you and the others?” she asked, glancing round the small enclosure.

“My head wound was only superficial. Thomas has a deep gash to his stomach, though Miss Beatrice has done the best she can to stem the flow of blood,” summarised Tobias.

Katherine went over to her maid and the fair-haired guard who were sitting on the ground next to each other leaning against the fence. She crouched down beside them and put a comforting hand on Thomas’ arm.

“How are you holding up, Thomas?” she asked.

“It’s only a small wound, m’lady, you don’t need to worry about me,” he replied stoically, though she could see he was gritting his teeth against the pain.

“You’d say that if your blooming leg had been chopped off!” cried Beatrice with exasperation.

Katherine glanced at the young maid, knowing Beatrice was concerned for her lover Thomas.

“It’s all right, Beatrice,” she said gazing intently at the woman with her soft blue-grey eyes, emphasising that what she was saying was important, “I will get us out of this.”

“I know you will, m’lady,” nodded Beatrice quietly.

Katherine rose and left the young couple, moving to stand by Tobias who was studying the guards, no doubt trying to formulate some plan of escape. Beyond the guards she could see Seven sitting side by side with Robin at the fire. They sat close and seemed to be sharing an intimate conversation, their faces breaking into the occasional warm, knowing smile. Katherine found herself wishing that she were the one on the receiving end of that smile, sharing that conversation. She shook her head and was just about to speak to Tobias when another of the outlaws appeared in the entrance, carrying a steaming plate of food.

“I thought you might like something to eat,” said the man proffering the plate. He was a short, stocky man, with gingery-blond hair and matching beard.

“Thank you,” said Katherine taking the plate and handing it to Tobias, indicating that he take it over to the others.

“You’re welcome,” replied the man, genially, “We ain’t all ruffians here you know. In fact it’s nice to see another woman’s face around the camp for once, brightens up the place.”

“I was wondering,” began Katherine, deciding that this outlaw seemed friendlier than some of the others, “Do you have any clean water and some cloths? One of my men is injured and it would be good if we could clean the wound.”

“I’m sure I can rustle something up,” he replied, giving her a small conspiratorial wink.

“Thank you…” began Katherine, leaving a pause for the man to answer with his name.

“Nicholas,” he filled in for her obligingly.

“Well, thank you, Nicholas,” she continued, smiling at him. It wouldn’t hurt to try and make some allies amongst the outlaws, she thought. Since she seemed to have his ear for the moment, she decided to try and make some more conversation. She put her hand on his shoulder, turning him slightly from the guards on the entrance and leaned in to speak to him in more hushed tones.

“So, you don’t have any other women here then, apart from Seven?”

“Oh no, Seven’s the only one. It’s far too rough for ladies to be living out here,” he explained.

“And Seven?” probed Katherine.

He let out a small laugh, “Oh, she can take care of herself! And of course, Robin always has a special eye out for her too, though he tries to pretend he don’t because he knows that Seven hates him mollycoddling her.”

“Is Seven her real name?” asked Katherine. She reasoned to herself that the information she was finding out from the outlaw would be helpful to them in the event of an escape attempt. She ignored the fact that she seemed to be diverting from any really useful line of questioning.

“Ha, ha, oh no! That’s just her nickname.”

“How did she come by it?”

“Well, funny thing is, no one seems to know for sure,” he explained. He really seemed to be enjoying sharing the camp gossip with Katherine; she guessed he didn’t get much stimulating conversation from the other outlaws. He leaned in even closer as if sharing some great secret with her, glancing round at the two men guarding the entrance as he did. “There are lots of rumours, though, some say it’s the number of men she’s killed.”

“Really? Though then she would need to change it if she ever killed anyone else,” reasoned Katherine.

He looked momentarily stumped.

“True, true, I’d never thought of that. Not that I believed it anyway. Though Seven can take care of herself, she don’t like to be violent unless needs be. I’ve never seen her kill anyone, me’self. I reckon it’s more likely the number of hearts she’s killed,” he laughed.

Katherine looked at him quizzically.

“Oh come on, you must have noticed what a beautiful woman she is!”

Katherine didn’t respond and was glad that it was dark enough that Nicholas wouldn’t be able to see the blush creeping up her face.

“There’s many a man that’s tried to woo that young woman,” he continued anyway, taking her silence to mean she wanted to know more.

“Young Henry over there has a huge crush on her,” he added indicating the dark-haired young man at the entrance.

“But she always turns ‘em down. They calls her the ice maiden, some of ‘em, like they’re such great catches she shouldn’t be turning them away!” he laughed.

Katherine was just about to ask about the relationship between Seven and Robin when they were interrupted.

“Come on, Nicholas, stop rabbiting to the prisoners,” said Henry from the entrance, “I don’t know, you’re like an old woman sometimes!”

“Yeah, come on, old woman,” the other guard added, joining in the friendly banter, “Back to your cooking pot!”

“Ha ha!” said Nicholas sarcastically to the pair of them, “All right, all right, I’m going.”

“I’ll see what I can do about that water and cloths,” he added to Katherine before he left.

Katherine went to sit with the others, picking up an item off the plate and looking at it nervously. It looked like some kind of meat, though Katherine dreaded to think what it may be, most likely a squirrel or some other woodland dweller.

“We’re not sure what it is either,” said Thomas, noticing her scrutiny, “But it seems to taste all right.”

She was too hungry to just look at it any longer, so she tentatively took a small bite. It did taste surprisingly good. As she ate, Tobias took the opportunity to ask her about the earlier questioning by Robin and Seven.

“Did you find out what prompted the attack?” he asked.

“They’re looking for a gemstone that they seem to think is in my possession,” she explained, “Though the stone they described doesn’t mean anything to me - a green jewel, about 2 inches across.”

“Why do they think you have it?”

“Well, that’s what puzzles me. They claim that they have information that the stone was in Mark’s possession and that I brought it to Nottingham with me, though I’m wondering how exactly they came by that information.”

Tobias looked disturbed by that revelation and the intimation that someone amongst Katherine’s staff was leaking information to the outlaws.

“Of course, if Mark really did have this jewel at some point, it could easily be lost in the holy lands with him now,” Katherine mused.

“Indeed, though I advise that you do not suggest that possibility to the outlaws,” said Tobias.

“Oh?” Katherine quirked an eyebrow at him.

“It is reasonable to assume that one of the main reasons we are alive at this point is that they need to find the whereabouts of this jewel. If we inform them it is in another country we may have ceased to be of any use,” he explained logically.

“Sooner or later they’re going to realise I really don’t know where it is, though,” she pointed out, “They just seem so convinced I have it…”

She trailed off, racking her brains, trying to think where the jewel might be. If she did have it with her when she came to Nottingham, it would appear she did not have it now, since the outlaws had searched their belongings and found no sign of it. Which meant she must have left it in Nottingham. What had she left…

“Oh!” she suddenly cried.

“What, m’lady? Is something the matter?” asked Tobias.

“I know where the jewel is,” she said, mentally kicking herself, “I didn’t realise before because it’s not just a jewel on its own any longer – it’s embedded in the cover of a book.”

“A book? I am assuming that you no longer have this book?”

“No, I gave it to the Sheriff!” she said, bringing her hand up to pinch the bridge of her nose and sighing. “He seemed unusually interested in it, but I paid it no heed. It made a good bargaining item, letting him have it to smooth over land and troop negotiations.”

Tobias pondered for a moment, processing what Katherine had told him.

“When they find out, they aren’t going to be happy,” mused Katherine.

“You must not tell them,” said Tobias sternly.

Katherine regarded him with surprise.

“I am sorry, m’lady, I do not presume to tell you what to do,” he said, realising that he had spoken out of turn, “I am just thinking of your welfare.”

“Go on,” said Katherine, indicating with a small wave of the hand that it was all right for him to speak freely.

“As I said before, we can assume the main reason we are unharmed thus far is that they need the information of the jewel’s whereabouts. If you reveal that the Sheriff has it they will definitely have no further need of us. Considering we have seen the location of their camp, I would not like to speculate our fate under those circumstances.”

“Suffice to say it would not be a happy one,” continued Katherine grimly.

“Indeed. I think what we must do now is try and play for time, until we can devise a means of escape. You will have to try and stall them further if they question you as to the stone’s whereabouts again.”

Katherine nodded, though she wasn’t sure how successful she might be. She didn’t think continued pleas of ignorance would go very far, especially with the unstable Will waiting in the wings chomping at the bit for his go at questioning her. As she lay down on the ground, she found that those thoughts were displaced by visions of blonde hair, blue eyes and a bewitching smile in the firelight as she drifted off into a fitful sleep.

------------------------------------------

Katherine felt the warm breeze caress her face as she gazed out over the lake. A small sound to her left made her turn from her contemplation of the rippling waters. Seven stood near her by the lakeside her deep blue eyes focused intently on Katherine. As she approached the sunlight flickered off the beautiful features of the young woman. Loose strands of her golden hair caught in the slight wind trailing them across her face. A small smile curved the corners of her luscious red lips as she reached out to Katherine…

“Wake up!”

Katherine started awake and tried to focus on where she was. As the dream faded she remembered that she was in an outlaw camp in the middle of Sherwood Forest. It dawned on her that someone was poking her with a boot in the ribs. Glancing up she met the same eyes from her dream, only now they held no warmth, just staring down icily at her.

“Get up, Robin wants to speak with you,” said Seven coolly.

Katherine clambered to her feet trying to shake the disturbing feelings the dream had left in her mind. Why had she been dreaming of this woman? Beside her Tobias also rose, wishing to go anywhere that his mistress did.

“Not you,” said Seven, shooting him a steely glare.

He made to say something but Katherine quickly put a placating hand on his chest

“It’s alright, Tobias,” she said looking into his eyes, trying to communicate silently that she knew what she had to do – stall the outlaws until they could escape. He nodded and she hoped that he was making some progress in formulating a plan – she wasn’t sure how long she could put them off for.

She turned to Seven and motioned with her head for her to lead the way. Seven spun round wordlessly and Katherine followed as the made their way through the camp. Katherine found herself studying the lithe form in front of her. She was dressed in the all black outfit still, though not bothering to cover her head or face anymore now her identity had been revealed. Since the clothes consisted of a hooded tunic and breeches Katherine could take in the full extent of Seven’s long legs. Her blonde hair hung loose down her back, looking as immaculate as it did the day before. Katherine wondered how she achieved that, as she herself no doubt looked a complete state, having spent the night sleeping on the floor. Her auburn hair was probably sticking up all over the place. She wished she had a mirror at this point but attempted to smooth down her wayward locks anyway. She wasn’t quite sure why she was so concerned with her appearance, it wasn’t like she was trying to impress anyone, was it?

They approached Robin, who was sitting on a fallen tree trunk. As he spotted the women he rose and offered Seven a small smile of acknowledgement. He still smiled as he turned to Katherine, though she thought perhaps there was a slightly sinister edge to it when focused on her.

“So, have you had any revelations as to the whereabouts of the stone?” he asked.

“I’m afraid not,” she replied, deciding to keep her answers short. It was easier to lie and remain convincing that way

“Hmmm,” he said, regarding her for a few moments. She tried to maintain an even expression, revealing nothing in her face.

“Well, in that case,” he continued, “I’d like you to join us on a little trip, see if we can jog that memory.”

“Where are we going?” asked Katherine.

“You’ll see when we get there,” he replied cryptically, “And don’t try anything tricky like trying to escape, John and Seven will be coming with us and remember we still have your people. I’d hate for anything…unfortunate…to befall them.”

……..

After traipsing through the forest for some time the small group came to a settlement on the edge of the trees. None of the outlaws had spoken to Katherine on the way, Seven not even looking at her during the walk, maintaining a position at the head of the party while the huge man called John followed behind Katherine.

They walked out into the small village, which consisted of a few ramshackle houses set along a dirt track, with various pens for animals between them. Katherine noted that though the pens existed, there didn’t actually seem to be any animals in them. They came past an old man, sitting outside his home. Robin nodded at the man and said a brief good day. The man returned his greeting before looking suspiciously at Katherine. The scrutiny made Katherine feel decidedly uncomfortable. She received a similar reaction from the other villagers they passed, some shooting her more baleful glances. She wondered what might happen to her if Robin and the others weren’t around her, she felt like the villagers would set upon her without a second thought. She noted that all the people they passed looked incredibly thin, almost malnourished and their clothing was ragged, hanging off them.

“How comes the people are so thin, do they not farm their land?” she enquired of Robin. Normally peasants would be granted their own pieces of land to farm, in return for spending part of their time farming the other lands belonging to the church and the lord of the manor – in this case the Sheriff.

“They try, but the land around here has been practically infertile for the past 15 years,” replied Robin.

“15 years?” said Katherine incredulously, “But why?”

“Follow me and all will become clear.”

At the end of the village they came to a rocky outcrop. Robin and Seven disappeared round the nearest large rock and Katherine looked on confused. John gave her a small nudge from behind, indicating she should follow. She rounded the boulder and found that there was the opening to a cave in front of her. Ducking her head under the low overhang at the entrance she entered the darkness ahead. She blinked for a moment trying to adjust her eyes to the gloom. There were a few candles scattered around the cave, which was a small rounded room, no more than 15 feet across. Robin and Seven were standing at the far end of the room, by a stone shape that resembled an altar.

“What is this place?” Katherine asked as she joined them, John remaining in the entrance to keep a lookout.

“It is a shrine,” replied Robin, “To the Earth Mother.”

The Earth Mother? Katherine had heard that some people still worshipped the pagan gods, but had never witnessed anything to do with it firsthand. Most people these days, including herself, were devout Christians. Were these outlaws part of this Pagan sect? Robin continued his explanation.

“The Earth Mother is responsible for the land, making sure it provides for the people on it.”

“And you believe in this Earth Mother,” asked Katherine sceptically.

“What we believe doesn’t matter!” snapped Seven suddenly, “The people believe and that’s what’s important!”

Robin glanced at Seven upon her sudden outburst and she looked fixedly back at him. Some kind of silent communication seemed to be passing between them in the look they exchanged, though what it was regarding Katherine was not sure.

“As Seven said,” continued Robin, turning back to Katherine, ”It doesn’t matter whether we believe or not, the people have faith. They believe the Earth Mother is responsible for making sure their harvest is a bountiful one which is why they now feel the Earth Mother has forsaken them.”

“And why would she have done that?” asked Katherine, playing along. She didn’t believe in any of this pagan rubbish, but this was a good way to waste some time.

“At the centre of this shrine used to sit a stone,” answered Robin, indicating a small indentation in the altar in front of him, “The Stone Of Gaia.”

“The stone you think I have?” surmised Katherine.

“Correct. The stone was guarded by a group of druids who were responsible for the worship of the Earth Mother, performing the necessary rituals and praying to her.”

“And now?” prompted Katherine.

“The druids are gone. They were slaughtered 15 years ago by a group of the Sheriff’s men who ransacked the shrine and stole the stone,” Robin said bitterly.

Katherine was shocked, she knew that pagan worship wasn’t the norm, but slaughtering those who practised it?

“Without the druids or the stone, the land became infertile. Harvest after harvest failed, the people turned from a vibrant community to the oppressed unfortunates you saw outside.”

“I still don’t understand what this has to do with me?” said Kathrine, confused.

“Recently we discovered that the stone was at your manor in Markham. How it came to be in the possession of your husband we don’t know, maybe he traded it with one of the sheriff’s knights at some point.”

Katherine’s mind was racing. Had Mark known what the stone was when he acquired it? Had he known where it had come from and how it had been so brutally stolen? She hoped not, she couldn’t believe that Mark would have accepted it if he had. Caught up in her thoughts she suddenly realised that Robin and Seven were making to leave the shrine. She followed them back out into the daylight, blinking at the sudden brightness.

“But why are you so interested in this stone?” she asked the outlaw, “What’s in it for you? I can’t see much profit for an outlaw here.”

“We don’t do what we do for ourselves!” cried Seven, turning on her suddenly, imposing herself in Katherine’s personal space, staring angrily down at her, “Unlike your kind!”

Katherine had to take a step back, such was the anger radiating off the young woman. Her eyes maintained their menacing hold on Katherine and she could see that Seven’s fists were actually balled at her side, like she had barely managed to stop herself from striking Katherine.

“Easy, Seven,” said Robin, placing a hand on her shoulder.

For a moment the young woman didn’t move, standing rigidly still focused on Katherine. Finally her shoulders sagged and she turned, walking a few paces away to stare off at the trees.

“We are not outlaws by choice, m’lady,” explained Robin, “We are fighting against the kind of oppression you see here. The Sheriff could do something about this, but he chooses not to. It suits his needs to keep the people weak and easily cowed. Just as it suits the needs of most lords…and ladies.”

He fixed her with a meaningful look at this point, making it obvious that he was bracketing her in with the Sheriff as the kind of person to treat her people with such disdain, before continuing on.

“So when we find a way to help out these kinds of people we will do everything in our power to do so. In this case it is finding their stone and returning it to them. There is no gain for us, apart from seeing these people restored to their former vibrancy.”

He paused for a moment, letting his words sink in.

“And now, we will head back. Perhaps you can have a long think on the way as to whether you really have no idea where that stone might be.”

He turned and started walking back through the village, squeezing Seven’s shoulder as he passed the young woman. She shot a look at Katherine over her shoulder before following Robin up the track. Katherine found it hard to meet the brief look, what she had heard had affected her profoundly. She never realised that some peasants lived like this. She tried to console herself with the thought that this sort of thing didn’t happen on her manor. But could she be sure? Did she really know how her knights ran their pieces of land? Would they be taking advantage of their power, especially if they thought a weak woman now ran the manor after the loss of her husband?

Those thoughts continued to play on her mind as they wandered back through the forest. So consumed with her own thoughts was she, that she didn’t notice that Seven and Robin had stopped in front of her until she walked right into them.

“S-Sorry,” she stammered, taking a step back as they looked enquiringly at her.

“What is it Robin?” asked John from behind Katherine.

“I’m not sure,” he replied uneasily, glancing round the surrounding trees. They were still in the middle of the forest. Katherine herself couldn’t see or hear anything amiss, just the normal sounds of the forest. Not that she had been paying much attention, she conceded.

“Seven, you stay here and keep an eye on the lady, John and I will go and check it out,” instructed Robin.

Katherine still didn’t know what exactly it was they were investigating, but as the two men departed into the trees she took the opportunity to rest for a moment, sitting down on an old weathered tree trunk that lay on the ground. As she resumed her thoughts, staring at the old leaves and braches scattered about the forest floor, she could sense Seven hovering nearby. Feeling the eyes boring into the top of her head she could take it no longer, turning her face upwards to regard the young woman.

“Do you really think I’m like the Sheriff?” she asked, “That I would let something like that happen to the people on my land?”

“You’re all the same aren’t you?” Seven replied in an off-hand tone, with a small shrug to accompany it.

Katherine looked down, shaking her head.

“I never realised how some of the people lived,” she said remorsefully, her voice catching as images of the ragged people in the village, malnourished women and children, sprang to mind.

“And if you had, would you have done something about it?” enquired Seven, whose voice had lost some of it’s hard edge in the face of Katherine’s obvious disquiet. It seemed like she just wanted to know the answer to her question rather than accusing Katherine of anything.

Katherine’s eyes flicked up and held Seven’s.

“Yes.” She replied, swallowing past the sudden lump in her throat. She knew that there were tears on the verge of spilling from her eyes so looked down once more to study her feet, not wanting the other woman to see.

She was surprised when out of the corner of her eye she caught Seven sitting down on the tree trunk too. She was actually sitting so close that their legs were almost touching. Katherine tried to compose herself before she spoke, turning to face the young woman to her right.

“You do believe me, don’t you?” she asked huskily, searching Seven’s face for an answer there.

Seven did not answer. Instead she gazed back at Katherine. Katherine could feel her heart hammering in her chest as they just sat there, staring at one another. Katherine looked directly into the blue depths of Seven’s eyes, which now seemed warmer than at any other time since she had met the young woman. They reminded her of how they had