Date: Wed, 2 Nov 1994 00:53:50 EST Reply-To: Highlander TV show stories Sender: Highlander TV show stories From: Jacquie Groom <100045.3717@COMPUSERVE.COM> Subject: Name of the Sword pt 3 of 5 "Richie ? Is that you ?" Not Robert, but Duncan. "Mac !" Richie yelled. Then, to his relief, the bushes parted, and MacLeod stood in front of him. Richie ran up to him. "Boy, am I glad to see you !" he panted. "This place is really creepy!" MacLeod glanced around. "I rather like it," he said. "But I thought you were going to wait in the car ?" Richie shuffled his feet around in the drying leaves. "Got lost," he said eventually. "Then the mist came down, and I suppose I panicked." He was quiet for a moment, then looked up at MacLeod. "Mac ? Do you believe in ghosts ?" The dark-haired immortal turned and walked down the overgrown path. "In Sherwood, I do," he said eventually. "Why ? Who have you seen ?" "Robert said it was his men. But when I tried to ask some more, he disappeared again." "Did he mention Loxley ? Or Marion ?" Richie nodded. "Where are we going ?" "To the cave." "Who is this Loxley guy, anyway? Why's Robert so touchy about him?" Richie asked, quickening his pace to try and keep up with MacLeod. The dark-haired immortal stopped, and leant against an old oak- tree, staring into the distance. "Robin of Loxley was Herne's first son, the first Robin i' the Hood. Marion was his wife. When Loxley died, Robert took over, and fell in love with Marion." "So ? What happened ?" But MacLeod just shook his head. "Not my story," he said bluntly. He looked at the curly-haired youngster, who looked as if he could ask questions all afternoon. "Look, Richie - follow the path to the right, and you'll get straight back to the car. Wait for us there, OK ?" Richie nodded, and left. But, after a moment, he turned back. "Take care, Mac, won't you ? I don't like this place. And Tessa'd kill me if I let anything happen to you." The immortal gave him a lop-sided smile, and carried on towards Herne's cave. Richie, still feeling uneasy, wandered uneventfully back to the hired car. Elenore sat by the stream, her arms wrapped round her knees, and waited for Robert. She was sure he'd turn up sooner or later; he always returned to this particular spot when he was troubled. She could picture him, sitting on the long, flat stone he'd worn smooth by centuries of thinking. Ever since the first day she'd sat by him. The day she'd told him about being immortal. "Marion ? What's wrong ?" Elenore ran over to where Marion stood, her face in her hands, her shoulders heaving with dry sobs. Tentatively, she put a hand on her friend's shoulder. "What is it ?" With a sob, Marion turned, and buried her face in Elenore's shoulder. "Robin," she whispered. "Robin's dead." "No !" Elenore gasped. "What happened ?" "I'm not sure," Marion said between sobs. "Tuck just came to tell me. He was shot. An arrow ... the others tried to take him to Kirklees, but he bled to death. Oh, Elenore," she whispered, lifting her eyes to look at her friend. "If only I'd seen him. Just once more. I did love him, you know. It was just too -" Her voice trailed off, and she took a deep breath. "Come, let's walk in the garden," Elenore said. "We can talk easier there." As they walked out into the sunshine, the colour returned to Marion's face. "He was a good man," she said, with a shaky smile. "He deserved better than me, better than this. I was never able to forget ..." "He loved you," Elenore said quietly. "Nothing's forgotten." "Nothing's ever forgotten," Marion echoed. She was quiet for a while. "I just wish I could be with the others. They'll be at the lake, shooting flaming arrows for him. I should be there." "You could slip out," Elenore suggested. "I'll cover for you. If it would help you to say goodbye." Marion bit her lip. Then, slowly, she looked up at her friend. "Come with me," she urged. "I daren't go alone. But with you there -" Slowly, the Immortal woman nodded. "I felt like a walk, anyway," she said, slipping her arm through Marion's. It was a sad little group that met by the lakeside. The sun was setting; a huge, red ball, hanging low in the dusky sky. "Glad you came," Will Scarlet said with a sniff. "Little flower," Tuck said with a sympathetic smile. "It's good to see you, back where you belong. I just wish Robin could have seen -" Marion hung her head. "Was he very sad ?" she asked in a broken voice. "E were never the same, after you left, lass," Little John said, putting a large hand on her shoulder. "But it weren't that what killed him." "I know," Marion said, putting an arm round Much, whose large, brown eyes looked sadly down at her. "But it doesn't help much." Nasir, standing stock-still by the lake, said nothing. "What are you going to do ?" Marion asked, as she watched the others prepare their bows. "Stay in Sherwood ?" Little John shook his head. "We've all lost heart, lass. I'm heading back to Derbyshire. If I'm going to lose my head, I'd prefere to do it where I belong. Much is coming too." Scarlet nodded. "I'm back off to Lichfield. An' Tuck's goin' to try and persuade them to take him back at the Abbey." Scanning their sad faces, Marion felt as if she was truly witnessing the end of an era. The end of Robin Hood and his Men. Even more so than when Loxley had been killed. This time, it was over. She picked up her bow, and took an arrow. Aiming out over the water, she pulled the string taut. "Goodbye, Robert of Huntingdon," she said quietly. "Herne protect you." Elenore stood in the shadows, strangely moved by the ceremony. But as she watched the flaming arrows soar through the darkening sky, her mind searched out through the forest. For she was sure she had not been mistaken. Robert of Huntingdon was an immortal, and he was out there somewhere. The buzz, when it finally came, was unmistakeable. She whirled round, sending her heavy habit swirling round her ankles. A sound strangely like a sob, and a flash of golden hair. She hadn't been wrong. She took a deep breath. She could imagine what he was going through - the confusion, the pain. She had to talk to him, help him if she could. At least she could explain the rules of the strange game they were caught up in. Robin's companions had finished their ceremony. Elenore moved silently to Marion's side, and touched her on the sleeve. "Marion ?" she asked in a low voice. "Would one of your friends see you safely back to Halstead. There's - something- I have to do." Marion smile d. "Of course. Won't you ?" she said with a smile at Will and John. "Not that I really need protection in Sherwood. It was my home for so many happy years." "Good years," Scarlet agreed. "The best." She waited until they had left, then slipped through the trees, to where the small stream ran into the lake. She closed her eyes as the familiar buzz ran through her mind. A figure sat there, golden head bowed low over bent knees. A picture of misery. He lifted his head as she approached, his eyes narrowing as he, too, felt the strange whispering in his mind. "Robert ?" Elenore asked, her heart going out to the young man. He jumped up. "Keep away from me," he muttered. "I'm cursed. A ghost..." But Elenore just shook her head. "Not a ghost. Just immortal." And, taking his cold hands between hers, she'd begun to tell him all he needed to know. "What's the point ?" he said after a while. "So I'm going to live forever, unless someone chops off my head. My friends think I'm dead. Marion has left me. If I reappear..." His voice trailed off. Elenore thought for a moment. She'd heard Marion talk of Herne. "You could just say Herne brought you back," she suggested. For a moment his face brightened, but then it clouded over once more. "No." he said bluntly. "Why not ? You say he's a god -" "He is a God." "Then -" "If he could bring his sons back from the dead," Robert explained quietly, as if he was talking to a child, "He would have saved Robin. If anyone deserved to live, it was him. Not me." "Then leave," Elenore said. "Travel. Take your mind off things. There's a whole world out there. " "Would you come too ?" he asked, turning his intense, blue-grey eyes on her. Sadly, she shook her head. "Not now. There are ... things I have to avoid for a while." "I will go !" The strange voice made them both jump. Elenore turned round, scanning the tree-line. A dark-haired man, clad in black, stood there. "Nasir !" Robin exclaimed, getting up to embrace his friend. Then he remembered. "Nasir ? Did you overhear ..." The Saracen nodded. "I heard." "And - and you don't mind ?" He shook his head. "Among my people - there are legends of such people. I would stay with you, if you wish it." "Of course I do," Robert said, taking Nasir's hand and squeezing it. "Oh, it's good to see you again, my friend." He turned to Elenore. "I will go," he said, his face taking on a determined look. "But there is something I have to do first." The cave was surrounded by water; a torch burned beyond the opening. Mists hung low around the entrance. Elenore felt as if her heart was beating faster than usual; it seemed to echo around in the eerie silence. "Herne !" Robert called out, unattaching the rough boat moored there. A figure appeared in the mists; Elenore gasped. Robert turned to her. "Did you feel it ?" he asked. She nodded. "He's one of us." "So, my son. It's finally happened." Robert looked up at him. "You knew ?" he asked. "All the time ?" "I am Herne," the old man replied. "It is my duty to know such things." "Then why couldn't you tell me ?" But Herne just shook his head. "And now you are leaving." Robin nodded. "But I will return." "You will, my son. You will." "But what about you ?" Robert asked, kneeling down before the Horned One. Herne opened his arms wide. "But this is all Holy Ground, my son. I am in my own domain. What harm can come to me ?" Elenore sighed. It was still so clear to her; she could picture Herne standing there, arms outstretched, surveying his Kingdom. She'd never seen the Forest God again. Never seen him alive. She'd arrived, with Robert, just a bit too late ... Richie sat in the car, his coat wrapped around him. It was cold. Chin on his knees, he stared out into the trees. Trees, trees and more trees. "Come on, Mac," he muttered to himself. Suddenly the passenger door opened, and a slender, fair-haired figured slipped in. "D'you fancy a drink," Robert of Huntingdon said casually. "There's an inn near here - the Blue Boar." Richie turned to look at his passenger. "You sure ?" he asked. "Duncan and Elenore are both out looking for you." "I know. That's why I need a drink. Coming ?" Richie shrugged, then turned the ignition, and backed out of the parking space. "What is all this about ?" Richie asked as he followed Robert's directions. "You've got those two really worked up." "I know," Robert groaned. "They worry so. " Richie thought for a while. "It's not like Duncan to worry without reason," he said eventually. "Or Elenore, come to that." He glanced at the fair-haired young man. He barely looked older than Richie, and he had a hounded look on his face which Richie seemed to recognises. A 'they're all out to get me' look. He thought for a moment, then, as they pulled in to the pub car-park, looked Robert straight in the eyes. "Would talking help ? To me, I mean. I've not got the years experience the others have, but I know ..." His voice trailed off. He swung round. "Hey - don't go disappearing on me again !" he called as Robert got out of the car. But Robert bent down and smiled. "OK," he said. "I'll talk. Perhaps it would help" "Ever been in love, Richie ?" Robert asked, a faraway look in his eyes. Richie shrugged. "Who hasn't ? I generally go from one disaster to the next." Robert laughed. "Who doesn't, at your age ?" "You loved Marion, right ?" Richie asked. Robert nodded. "She was my life. When she left me - I had nothing left to live for. Imagine the irony - a man with eternal life, and nothing to live for ! But I found things to do - there were still the people to help, here and elsewhere." "Elsewhere ? I thought Duncan said you'd always stayed in Sherwood." "I did, after all those who knew me had died. When there was no more danger. And since Herne was killed, I've not left the area." "Why do they feel responsible for you ?" Richie asked, taking a sip of his beer. "You seem pretty capable of looking after yourself." "I am !" Robert said, looking frustrated. But then his face softened. "I suppose I brought it on myself. A couple of hundred years ago, I - I suppose I went through some sort of crisis. I wanted to end it all. Kept asking them to take my head. Even tried to take it myself, a couple of times. The three of them - Duncan, Elenore and Connor - sorted me out. And even now - they still get worried." "So ? What are they worried about this time ?" Robert sighed, then picked up the glasses and went to the bar. "I fell in love again," he said. "The first time in -" He broke off suddenly, his eyes narrowing. "What is it ?" Richie asked, recognising the look in Robert's eyes. "An immortal ?" Robert nodded, reaching automatically for his sword. But there was nothing there. "I think this is what you were looking for," Elenore said, appearing behind him and putting a long package in his hand. "Albion !" Robert exclaimed, running his hand lovingly down the brown paper. Strangely, it almost seemed to glow. But then he put the package down. "You must have paid a fortune for this," he said sternly to Elenore. Duncan put brimming glasses on the small table. "Correction. I paid a fortune for it," he said, sitting down with a grin. "And I would appreciate knowing just why I did." Robert looked round at his companions. "I'm sorry," he said. "You're right. You deserve an explanation." He took a deep breath. "Some years ago, I met a young girl. She was about 10 or 11 at the time. Her name was Claire." He leant back in his chair, a strange, wistful look on his face. "She loved the forest. Some days she'd run from tree to tree, hugging them all. Other times, she'd just sit and stare up at the tree tops. I met her parents, and became a friend of the family. I was like her big brother. It was - nice. I'd never really had a little sister before." He sighed. "After a few years, her parents moved away. I really missed her for a while, but - well, you know what it's like." Elenore bit her lip; Duncan nodded sadly. An old, old story. Robert nodded sympathetically. "About six years ago, I was wandering through the Forest, when I met a girl. She was leaning against a tree, staring up at the sky. She took my breath away. " He smiled a little, remembering. "Her hair was long and auburn, her eyes huge in her pale face. It was like stepping back in time." "Marion ?" Richie enquired in a whisper of Elenore. She nodded back, her face unreadable. "It wasn't Marion, of course," Robert said, glancing at Richie. "It was Claire, my little sister, all grown up. But there was a strange resemblance. Anyway, Claire ran up to me, and fell into my arms. Before I really knew what was happening, she was kissing me." He took a long drink. "Later, she told me that she'd always loved me, and that for years she'd dreamt of coming back to Sherwood to find me again. We were so very happy; it never even occurred to her that I looked just the same as I had when she'd first known me. She just accepted it as the normal way that age differences seem to disappear as you get older." "What happened then ?" Elenore asked quietly, after Robert fell silent. He shook his head. "It was just wonderful for a while. She was studying at Nottingham University, but she moved straight out of the student accommodation, and into my house. We were blissfully happy. Until - until just over a year ago. She was doing post-grad work, studying Forest management, and particularly ancient woodlands. One day she felt tired; the next day she could barely get out of bed. It grew worse and worse; some horrible, muscle-wasting disease. The doctors knew of no cure. But then we heard of a possible treatment in America. The NHS had already written her off; I sold everything, chasing one miracle after another. But it was all in vain; Claire died three months ago. But the bills still kept coming in. In the end, I even had to sell Albion. But it didn't seem to matter, anyway. I'd have almost welcomed someone taking my head. It would have solved a lot of problems." "Robert, why didn't you tell us ?" Elenore admonished him gently. "We could have helped, raised funds, anything !" The blond-haired immortal just shrugged. "It was something I had to deal with myself. But I'll be all right. You don't need to worry about me." But Elenore and Duncan, exchanging glances, did not look convinced. =========================================================================