The Force of Destiny, Chapter 26
Original Post
Rating: PG-13
Pairings/characters: Carter/Sakina (OC), Little Little John, Atiya (OC)
Word count: 2186
Spoilers: While this alters the end of S2, there are still minor spoilers for the whole run of the show, including S3.
Summary: Carter retrieves Sakina and the children.
Disclaimer: No rights, no moneys, plz not to sue me. :)
previous chapter
-26-
Carter ducked to enter the low-hanging entrance to the caves, wondering as he had done the whole way from Nottingham if they wouldd return to news of Robin’s death, praying that would not be the case. Sakina and the children did not hear him approaching, and he paused as he entered the great room. She, Little Little John and Atiya were laying on their bellies in front of the hearth, drawing pictures in the ash with sticks and laughing at one another’s illustrations. His breath caught and it felt like his heart smiled; and just like that, he realized he had fallen in love with her.
Talk about bad timing.
He had just had that epiphany when she noticed him standing there. At first, she was still laughing, but at the expression on his face, quickly sobered. She got to her feet, gently told John and Atiya to keep drawing, and came over. When the children wouldn’t hear, she asked quietly, “What is it?”
Shoving aside his inconvenient realization, he answered in an equally low tone, “The sheriff shot Robin.”
Sakina paled. “Is he...?”
“No. At least, he was not when I left. But we are all staying at the castle for now, so I came to bring the three of you back.”
Nodding, she said, “Let me gather a few things.”
In the meantime, John and Atiya had noticed that something was wrong, and were standing side by side, watching the exchange. When Sakina moved off, John met Carter’s gaze. “Something’s happened, hasn’t it?”
The soldier had no idea how to respond to that, not wanting to scare the boy but knowing that he could not lie to him, and paused while choosing his words. “We’re going to the castle to meet up with everyone. Your parents will tell you the rest when we arrive.”
John’s face fell. “Do we have to go to the castle?”
Carter gave him a sympathetic half-smile. “Believe me, I would rather not go there, either. But, the others are waiting for us.”
Atiya looked up at John as he sighed. She studied his face, then without a word, slipped her hand into his. He seemed surprised, but pleased. Then, he glanced back at Carter. “Are you sure she should come? That’s no place for a little girl.”
“If you are going, I am going,” she piped up, affronted.
Sakina came back in, slinging a bag onto her shoulder. “That is a lovely thought, John, but we all must go.”
“See?” Atiya added.
A pained expression flitted across John’s face, and Carter stifled a grin.
At the sight of the carriage he had appropriated from the castle’s stables, Sakina’s eyebrows went up.
“I didn’t think the sheriff would be needing it,” he pointed out. “And nobody argued with me, not even the driver.” He nodded at the man who’d been napping in his seat while Carter collected the others. Stretching his neck out, the driver got ready to go.
“I will not argue with you, either, if it means a comfortable ride.”
They exchanged a smile, and Carter mentally kicked himself for noting how beautiful hers was. He handed her up into the coach, lifted Atiya in after her, and then gave John a boost. Climbing in last, he pulled up the steps and shut the door, rapping on the roof to indicate that they were ready. With a jerk, they set off for Nottingham.
After a brief silence, John asked, “Is everyone all right?”
The adults glanced at one another.
“That means they’re not, doesn’t it?” said John quietly.
“I really think it’s better if your parents explain this to you,” Carter responded hesitantly, looking down at the boy seated next to him.
“I understand that it must be frustrating, but please be patient?” Sakina glanced at Atiya beside her, and then back to John; he got the message. But that did not mean he was happy about it.
“This, I do not like,” he muttered, leaning back in his seat.
Atiya fell asleep only a short while later, and even Little Little John dozed off a bit after that. When both children were sleeping, Sakina murmured, “Obviously it is bad, but what exactly happened?”
He met her worried gaze. “The sheriff tried to shoot the king, but Robin jumped in front of him. The arrow pierced his lung.”
She stifled a gasp, not wanting to wake the children, but having seen that sort of injury in her homeland. “His chances of recovering are not good, are they?”
“We do not know. He’s survived so many brushes with death before; part of me expects him to pull through this because of it. Part of me fears that he has run out of luck.”
Looking down at the small girl whose head was resting on her lap, Sakina whispered, “He must live. She cannot lose him so soon.” She lightly smoothed Atiya’s hair, the tender gesture mesmerizing Carter.
“You should probably discuss with Marian what will happen with Atiya if he does not survive,” he suggested with reluctance.
She nodded slowly. “We can still begin the shop if she comes to live with me; she’s used to helping.”
“And I can help you watch her.”
The night before, they had discussed what they would do after everyone was pardoned. She was a mattress-maker with no shop or money. He was a soldier who, truth be told, could no longer fight, but who had some money set aside. Neither had a real home, but they had a few contacts in the area. So, they had decided to go into business together; he would purchase all the supplies needed to get started, and a house with workspace. She would teach him her craft, and they could work together. The nearest mattress-maker was in Lincoln, so Carter expected that they would do well.
He had intended that the plan be a business venture, based on friendship at the most. No matter that, if he let himself admit it, he had been attracted to her from the start; she did not need a wounded tagalong of the outlaw gang making passes at her. And she had not indicated that she felt anything for him beyond friendship, which put a further rein on anything he thought he felt for her.
Now, he would simply have to remind himself that just because his feelings had intensified, did not mean that the plan had changed at all.
But, that was difficult to remember when she glanced up at him and mused, “What a strange family we would make.” Her expression held an odd combination of humor at the thought, and sadness at the potential cause of that situation.
“Family?” he repeated softly, feeling as if she had punched him in the gut.
Her deep brown eyes widened slightly, then dropped back down to Atiya as her cheeks colored. “Not really a family,” she murmured so quietly that he barely heard her.
“We could be.” The words were out of his mouth before he realized it, and he wanted to kick himself as she stared at him in surprise, her lips parting as her jaw dropped. With a great force of will, he looked away. “I’m sorry; I should not have said that.”
Finally gathering her wits, Sakina replied, “We could be.”
It was Carter’s turn to be taken aback. “What?”
She gave him a shy smile and a small shrug. “It would make sense. If Robin...” She had difficulty finishing the sentence, and skipped to the next. “And if it would be easier for Atiya to be with me, why should we be three separate people in the same house?”
His heart sank, but he ignored it. “So, if Atiya comes to live with us, we will marry? Is that the idea?”
“Unless... that is not acceptable to you?”
He owed himself another kick for the uncertainty that had now come over her. “It’s perfectly acceptable,” he assured her.
Stirring beside him, Little Little John asked sleepily, “What’s perfectly acceptable?”
Sakina smiled, and Carter winked at her. “If you asked your dad that, what would he say?”
“He would say to mind my own business,” John grumbled.
“And what do you think I’m going to say?”
“To mind my own business.”
“There it is.” But, he ruffled John’s hair, and chatted with him about things he could do to stay entertained at the castle, now that the sheriff was unseated.
When they arrived, they saw nobody outside other than a handful of guards. “I hope that's a good sign,” Sakina remarked. Carter nodded in agreement.
As he was handing her down from the carriage, however, Allan, Little John and Tuck came down the corridor toward the sickroom. The four went to meet them by the stone steps on the side of the courtyard.
After a short greeting, and Little Little John had gone over to his father, Carter asked, “Anything new?”
Tuck glanced at the children, and answered, “Matilda, an excellent healer from near Locksley, has come to help Djaq. She is with him now.”
Atiya, still half-asleep on Sakina’s shoulder, mumbled, “Where are my daddy and mummy?”
Nobody wanted to answer that, and paused a moment too long.
“What’s going on?” Little Little John demanded.
“We thought it would be best if you or Alice told him,” Sakina told Little John. He nodded and squeezed his son’s shoulder, then led him out of earshot of Atiya, who was waking up and taking in her surroundings.
“This place is too dark,” she said disapprovingly.
“I agree,” Carter said, giving her a little smile.
Sakina knew she had to tell Atiya something, but was stuck as to what. Living in a war-torn country, the girl had seen wounded men. Her mother had done her best to shield her from it, as had Sakina when she came to live with them, but there was only so much they could do. Yet, she also did not want to claim that he was ill, as the memory of Nadira’s lingering death was still fresh. Finally, she seated herself in one of the open window spaces of the corridor’s outer wall, and held Atiya close.
“You are going to stay with me for a little while,” she said softly. “Your daddy is hurt, and your mummy is helping take care of him.”
A frown creased Atiya’s head. “Is Daddy okay?”
Sakina hesitated. “Everyone is doing everything they can to help him get better.”
After pondering this for a minute, Atiya seemed to find the answer satisfactory. “Can I see him?”
“Not yet, my sweet. I am sure that he would love to see you, but we need to let him get better first.”
The small girl obviously did not like that, but accepted it. “When can we go home?”
“We are staying here for awhile. Would you like to take a look around?”
Atiya glanced over to where the Johns were talking. “John doesn’t like it here.”
Sakina was not fully aware of the history there, but had heard enough of it to make an educated guess. “This used to be a bad place to come. But now that King Richard is here, he is making it safe again. Perhaps we can show John that?”
Nodding emphatically, Atiya slid off of her aunt’s lap.
“Wait. Wait until his father is finished talking with him,” Sakina said, but even as she did, Little Little John looked over and noticed Atiya waiting for him. Atiya glanced up to see if she could go over to him, and Sakina nodded.
“That was very well done,” Carter remarked, from where he stood just a bit away, but closely enough that he’d heard the conversation. “I like that you didn’t lie to her.”
Sakina sighed. “To be honest, if I could have thought of a good lie, I would have. But there are no good lies, especially with so many people around who know the truth.”
The children came over to her, and from behind them, Little John caught her eye. “I’m sure Alice would be glad to watch her, if you’d like. Give you a chance to rest.”
“Thank you; perhaps after we have looked around,” she replied.
“May I accompany you? I know parts of the castle,” Carter offered. She might not mind being the one to look after the youngest members of the gang, but she did not have to do it alone. Besides, there was nothing he could do for Robin at the moment except worry; he thought of the group gathered in the sheriff’s quarters when he left, and hoped they had been able to relax a bit, even though he doubted it.
She smiled. “That would be lovely.” Atiya was already clinging to Little Little John with one hand, so Sakina took her free hand. Carter stepped up beside her and offered his elbow, which she took, and the four of them set off toward the Great Hall. Until Carter remembered hearing that the sheriff’s body was there, when he veered them toward the kitchens, instead.
next chapter
*
Rating: PG-13
Pairings/characters: Carter/Sakina (OC), Little Little John, Atiya (OC)
Word count: 2186
Spoilers: While this alters the end of S2, there are still minor spoilers for the whole run of the show, including S3.
Summary: Carter retrieves Sakina and the children.
Disclaimer: No rights, no moneys, plz not to sue me. :)
previous chapter
-26-
Carter ducked to enter the low-hanging entrance to the caves, wondering as he had done the whole way from Nottingham if they wouldd return to news of Robin’s death, praying that would not be the case. Sakina and the children did not hear him approaching, and he paused as he entered the great room. She, Little Little John and Atiya were laying on their bellies in front of the hearth, drawing pictures in the ash with sticks and laughing at one another’s illustrations. His breath caught and it felt like his heart smiled; and just like that, he realized he had fallen in love with her.
Talk about bad timing.
He had just had that epiphany when she noticed him standing there. At first, she was still laughing, but at the expression on his face, quickly sobered. She got to her feet, gently told John and Atiya to keep drawing, and came over. When the children wouldn’t hear, she asked quietly, “What is it?”
Shoving aside his inconvenient realization, he answered in an equally low tone, “The sheriff shot Robin.”
Sakina paled. “Is he...?”
“No. At least, he was not when I left. But we are all staying at the castle for now, so I came to bring the three of you back.”
Nodding, she said, “Let me gather a few things.”
In the meantime, John and Atiya had noticed that something was wrong, and were standing side by side, watching the exchange. When Sakina moved off, John met Carter’s gaze. “Something’s happened, hasn’t it?”
The soldier had no idea how to respond to that, not wanting to scare the boy but knowing that he could not lie to him, and paused while choosing his words. “We’re going to the castle to meet up with everyone. Your parents will tell you the rest when we arrive.”
John’s face fell. “Do we have to go to the castle?”
Carter gave him a sympathetic half-smile. “Believe me, I would rather not go there, either. But, the others are waiting for us.”
Atiya looked up at John as he sighed. She studied his face, then without a word, slipped her hand into his. He seemed surprised, but pleased. Then, he glanced back at Carter. “Are you sure she should come? That’s no place for a little girl.”
“If you are going, I am going,” she piped up, affronted.
Sakina came back in, slinging a bag onto her shoulder. “That is a lovely thought, John, but we all must go.”
“See?” Atiya added.
A pained expression flitted across John’s face, and Carter stifled a grin.
At the sight of the carriage he had appropriated from the castle’s stables, Sakina’s eyebrows went up.
“I didn’t think the sheriff would be needing it,” he pointed out. “And nobody argued with me, not even the driver.” He nodded at the man who’d been napping in his seat while Carter collected the others. Stretching his neck out, the driver got ready to go.
“I will not argue with you, either, if it means a comfortable ride.”
They exchanged a smile, and Carter mentally kicked himself for noting how beautiful hers was. He handed her up into the coach, lifted Atiya in after her, and then gave John a boost. Climbing in last, he pulled up the steps and shut the door, rapping on the roof to indicate that they were ready. With a jerk, they set off for Nottingham.
After a brief silence, John asked, “Is everyone all right?”
The adults glanced at one another.
“That means they’re not, doesn’t it?” said John quietly.
“I really think it’s better if your parents explain this to you,” Carter responded hesitantly, looking down at the boy seated next to him.
“I understand that it must be frustrating, but please be patient?” Sakina glanced at Atiya beside her, and then back to John; he got the message. But that did not mean he was happy about it.
“This, I do not like,” he muttered, leaning back in his seat.
Atiya fell asleep only a short while later, and even Little Little John dozed off a bit after that. When both children were sleeping, Sakina murmured, “Obviously it is bad, but what exactly happened?”
He met her worried gaze. “The sheriff tried to shoot the king, but Robin jumped in front of him. The arrow pierced his lung.”
She stifled a gasp, not wanting to wake the children, but having seen that sort of injury in her homeland. “His chances of recovering are not good, are they?”
“We do not know. He’s survived so many brushes with death before; part of me expects him to pull through this because of it. Part of me fears that he has run out of luck.”
Looking down at the small girl whose head was resting on her lap, Sakina whispered, “He must live. She cannot lose him so soon.” She lightly smoothed Atiya’s hair, the tender gesture mesmerizing Carter.
“You should probably discuss with Marian what will happen with Atiya if he does not survive,” he suggested with reluctance.
She nodded slowly. “We can still begin the shop if she comes to live with me; she’s used to helping.”
“And I can help you watch her.”
The night before, they had discussed what they would do after everyone was pardoned. She was a mattress-maker with no shop or money. He was a soldier who, truth be told, could no longer fight, but who had some money set aside. Neither had a real home, but they had a few contacts in the area. So, they had decided to go into business together; he would purchase all the supplies needed to get started, and a house with workspace. She would teach him her craft, and they could work together. The nearest mattress-maker was in Lincoln, so Carter expected that they would do well.
He had intended that the plan be a business venture, based on friendship at the most. No matter that, if he let himself admit it, he had been attracted to her from the start; she did not need a wounded tagalong of the outlaw gang making passes at her. And she had not indicated that she felt anything for him beyond friendship, which put a further rein on anything he thought he felt for her.
Now, he would simply have to remind himself that just because his feelings had intensified, did not mean that the plan had changed at all.
But, that was difficult to remember when she glanced up at him and mused, “What a strange family we would make.” Her expression held an odd combination of humor at the thought, and sadness at the potential cause of that situation.
“Family?” he repeated softly, feeling as if she had punched him in the gut.
Her deep brown eyes widened slightly, then dropped back down to Atiya as her cheeks colored. “Not really a family,” she murmured so quietly that he barely heard her.
“We could be.” The words were out of his mouth before he realized it, and he wanted to kick himself as she stared at him in surprise, her lips parting as her jaw dropped. With a great force of will, he looked away. “I’m sorry; I should not have said that.”
Finally gathering her wits, Sakina replied, “We could be.”
It was Carter’s turn to be taken aback. “What?”
She gave him a shy smile and a small shrug. “It would make sense. If Robin...” She had difficulty finishing the sentence, and skipped to the next. “And if it would be easier for Atiya to be with me, why should we be three separate people in the same house?”
His heart sank, but he ignored it. “So, if Atiya comes to live with us, we will marry? Is that the idea?”
“Unless... that is not acceptable to you?”
He owed himself another kick for the uncertainty that had now come over her. “It’s perfectly acceptable,” he assured her.
Stirring beside him, Little Little John asked sleepily, “What’s perfectly acceptable?”
Sakina smiled, and Carter winked at her. “If you asked your dad that, what would he say?”
“He would say to mind my own business,” John grumbled.
“And what do you think I’m going to say?”
“To mind my own business.”
“There it is.” But, he ruffled John’s hair, and chatted with him about things he could do to stay entertained at the castle, now that the sheriff was unseated.
When they arrived, they saw nobody outside other than a handful of guards. “I hope that's a good sign,” Sakina remarked. Carter nodded in agreement.
As he was handing her down from the carriage, however, Allan, Little John and Tuck came down the corridor toward the sickroom. The four went to meet them by the stone steps on the side of the courtyard.
After a short greeting, and Little Little John had gone over to his father, Carter asked, “Anything new?”
Tuck glanced at the children, and answered, “Matilda, an excellent healer from near Locksley, has come to help Djaq. She is with him now.”
Atiya, still half-asleep on Sakina’s shoulder, mumbled, “Where are my daddy and mummy?”
Nobody wanted to answer that, and paused a moment too long.
“What’s going on?” Little Little John demanded.
“We thought it would be best if you or Alice told him,” Sakina told Little John. He nodded and squeezed his son’s shoulder, then led him out of earshot of Atiya, who was waking up and taking in her surroundings.
“This place is too dark,” she said disapprovingly.
“I agree,” Carter said, giving her a little smile.
Sakina knew she had to tell Atiya something, but was stuck as to what. Living in a war-torn country, the girl had seen wounded men. Her mother had done her best to shield her from it, as had Sakina when she came to live with them, but there was only so much they could do. Yet, she also did not want to claim that he was ill, as the memory of Nadira’s lingering death was still fresh. Finally, she seated herself in one of the open window spaces of the corridor’s outer wall, and held Atiya close.
“You are going to stay with me for a little while,” she said softly. “Your daddy is hurt, and your mummy is helping take care of him.”
A frown creased Atiya’s head. “Is Daddy okay?”
Sakina hesitated. “Everyone is doing everything they can to help him get better.”
After pondering this for a minute, Atiya seemed to find the answer satisfactory. “Can I see him?”
“Not yet, my sweet. I am sure that he would love to see you, but we need to let him get better first.”
The small girl obviously did not like that, but accepted it. “When can we go home?”
“We are staying here for awhile. Would you like to take a look around?”
Atiya glanced over to where the Johns were talking. “John doesn’t like it here.”
Sakina was not fully aware of the history there, but had heard enough of it to make an educated guess. “This used to be a bad place to come. But now that King Richard is here, he is making it safe again. Perhaps we can show John that?”
Nodding emphatically, Atiya slid off of her aunt’s lap.
“Wait. Wait until his father is finished talking with him,” Sakina said, but even as she did, Little Little John looked over and noticed Atiya waiting for him. Atiya glanced up to see if she could go over to him, and Sakina nodded.
“That was very well done,” Carter remarked, from where he stood just a bit away, but closely enough that he’d heard the conversation. “I like that you didn’t lie to her.”
Sakina sighed. “To be honest, if I could have thought of a good lie, I would have. But there are no good lies, especially with so many people around who know the truth.”
The children came over to her, and from behind them, Little John caught her eye. “I’m sure Alice would be glad to watch her, if you’d like. Give you a chance to rest.”
“Thank you; perhaps after we have looked around,” she replied.
“May I accompany you? I know parts of the castle,” Carter offered. She might not mind being the one to look after the youngest members of the gang, but she did not have to do it alone. Besides, there was nothing he could do for Robin at the moment except worry; he thought of the group gathered in the sheriff’s quarters when he left, and hoped they had been able to relax a bit, even though he doubted it.
She smiled. “That would be lovely.” Atiya was already clinging to Little Little John with one hand, so Sakina took her free hand. Carter stepped up beside her and offered his elbow, which she took, and the four of them set off toward the Great Hall. Until Carter remembered hearing that the sheriff’s body was there, when he veered them toward the kitchens, instead.
next chapter
*