"And what excuse did you offer him this time, before you ventured out?" Marian questioned, offering her companion a knowing smile, before standing back from the open doorway and allowing her friend inside her home. Though the two of them had been close since they were both small girls, recent times had made it far more difficult for the two of them to meet than they would have liked. But even in spite of those unwanted constraints on their time together, Marian took just the smallest hint of pride from the reality of her dear friend's presence in her home now, her blue eyes meeting those of her friend while she awaited an almost immediately forthcoming reply.

"I made quite the woeful tale of lacking the proper amount of meat for this evening's supper."

"Did he take you at your word?"

"Would I be here if he had not?" Elia returned, one brow lifting in response to her friend's inquiry, as she moved toward the fireplace and extended her hands to ward off some of the evening's chill by holding them above the flames, "He seemed to believe it readily enough."

"Why am I not surprised?"

"Because you know I am capable of spinning a tale when I must. Particularly when it allows me to visit a dear friend."

"Then I suppose I ought to send you back with some meat. I can hardly risk jeopardizing your lie," Marian stated, coming to stand beside her friend, and bumping her shoulder against Elia's in a gesture of good-natured camaraderie before going on, "How long do you have?"

"As long as it may take a woman to find a decent pick of meat."

"So short?"

"If I am to make an appearance at the market as well, in case questions are asked, then yes."

"Elia, if you need somewhere safe to stay—"

"Locksley Manor is my home, Marian. I cannot leave," Elia interrupted, her brow furrowing as she considered the implications behind her words, and forced herself to continue, despite the lingering sense of apprehension she felt over the duty she owed not only her family home, but the people they had looked after for years, as well, "With Robin gone, I—I am all they have."

"That does not mean you need to put yourself at so great a risk."

"Says the woman who does the exact same thing."

"That is—"

"Different?"

"In a way, yes, it is," Marian finished, aware of her friend's rather skeptical expression, and yet choosing to press her case, regardless, "I am not living under the thumb of a tyrant, at the present moment."

"Which is precisely why I have not done as you have, already."

"I can think of several individuals who would prefer that you never did."

"The majority of those individuals are dead, or likely so," Elia remarked, another frown passing over her features as she did her best to avoid lingering for too long on the reality that her own brother would likely never return home. In fact, his absence was the precise reason behind her current situation, dwelling in her home only by the supposed good graces of a man who never failed to remind her of his mercy. But no matter how fiercely she might have wished to hate her brother for abandoning her, Elia was not prepared to give in to that emotion completely, her determination to keep some small measure of hope for Robin's safe return giving her far more courage to do what needed to be done than any measure of resentment could.

"That does not mean they would wish you to risk your safety for a cause that is all but lost."

"If you truly believe all is lost, Marian, why do you still fight, yourself?"

"That is hardly a fair question," Marian protested, unable to entirely suppress the faint tug of a grin that she felt at one corner of her mouth, knowing that her dear friend had her, whether she wanted to fully admit that fact or not, "You may stop looking so pleased with yourself, Elia. I am not going to persist in my refusal to acknowledge defeat."

"Good. I should hate to think you had grown too stubborn since I last saw you."

"Perhaps if you managed to visit more often, you would not have to wonder at any changes in my personality."

"Believe me, Marian, I wish that I could," Elia assured, turning to face her friend, and exhaling a gentle sigh at the obvious regret that was apparent upon her companion's features, before reaching out to take her friend's hand before Marian could begin to pull away, "Perhaps in time, I will be able to come up with a better excuse for leaving home."

"Perhaps in time you will not need one at all."

"Perhaps."

Her one-worded reply seemed to satisfy Marian inasmuch as such a feat was truly possible, the easing of the unanticipated darkness that had come over their mood rather quickly abating as Elia watched her friend turn from the fireplace and head towards the doorway leading from the room they currently occupied, to the home's sizable kitchen. In no time at all, she had issued instruction for one of the servants to prepare a basket for Elia to carry home, only turning to move towards the woman in question once she was certain her directive would be followed to the letter. And inasmuch as Elia disliked putting Marian in such a position to start with, she was abundantly grateful for the assistance, her lips curving into a faint smile as she took the seat her friend offered beside the fire, and stifled a small laugh in response to her next words.

"I instructed the servants to prepare a basket of meat, bread, and a few vegetables, as well," Marian began, aware of her companion's inquisitive expression, and choosing to ignore it in favor of explaining her reasons before Elia could question them herself.

"After all, if you claim to have gone to market, it may as well look as though you came back with quite the catch."

Elia supposed she would have been a fool to expect anything less from her friend, when Marian had made it known time and time again that she would defy the Sheriff himself if it meant keeping her dear friend out of harm's way…

Hello, darlings! And welcome (once again, it seems) to a brand new tale! I have to say, when I first watched 'Robin Hood' I had no idea what fanfiction was, but of course the muses were eating away at my brain even then, with ideas for a story. And now, several years after I have discovered this site, and rediscovered this show…well…I guess you could say it was bound to happen eventually. Oops?

As always, my heartfelt thanks go out to each and every one of you that have decided to take the time out of your busy lives so far, to give this brief exposition chapter a chance. I truly do appreciate your time, and I can only hope that at least some of you found it to be a worthwhile read! I cannot wait to hear your thoughts!

Until next time, my loves?

MOMM