Wood's Eternal

Chapter 5

"Have you told Robin about your plan yet?" Scarlet asked as she walked around the market with Marion.

"Not yet," Marion sighed, "I haven't really gotten much of a chance to talk about it."

They stopped at one of the stalls, the shopkeeper delightfully showing them pieces of fabrics and clothing.

"What do you mean not gotten a chance yet you guys are together all the time." Scarlet complained making Marion frown a bit. "No, we don't," she defended, "Besides he can't come over at the castle without risking getting caught considering Richard isn't here and I have had my lessons which have been keeping me busy."

Scarlet shook her head lightly, it was true that Marion has been quite busy. As they were growing older so were Marion's royal duties as a princess, she knew of that, but she was also aware that that Marion had been avoiding taking anyone's help for a while now, it's time for me to start taking responsibility myself  the princess had said, but Scarlet hoped that her friend knew that it was okay to rely on her friends.

"Speaking of my lessons," Marion added as she saw Lady Rohesia walking towards them, "I think it is time for me to get back to castle."

Scarlet gave her a faint smile, "I'll accompany you back, it is not like I have that much free time of my own you know," the lack haired girl said gesturing towards the small basket of ingredients she carried.

---

It was quite in the kitchen. Most of the guards had gone out into the town for their scheduled patrol and the summer sun had caused the others to retire for a while and get some slumber.

Scarlet walked around, Matilda wasn't present in the kitchen at the time yet the girl wanted to help her mother. Soon she started assorting all the ingredients she had brought, hoping to prepare some small snack for herself and Marion, who's voice could be heard from the garden along with Lady Rohesia, going about whatever royal lesson they had. Sometimes, Scarlet wondered what these lessons were like but then again, she didn't have that much royal background nor idea to grasp the reason for much of the etiquettes and rules the princess had to follow. 

Taking out the vegetables her eyes landed on a bag with the embroidery resembling an owl's face, "Oh," Scarlet picked it up, hanging it at a small nail nearby the kitchen walls, "Marion must have dropped it in the basket."

Ever since they had switched up the boxes, the girls had become quite lenient with how much they safe guarded the key and therefore the bag, mostly because there was no harm to be caused if it was found.

Engrossed in her work, Scarlet didn't hear or seemed to notice when someone entered the kitchen. "Well hello Scarlet," Little John said with a smile.

"Little John!" Scarlet said as she looked around to make sure nobody was there, still pulling him aside and behind the kitchen as a precaution, "What are you doing here?"

"I actuallly came to-"

"Did Robin send you? We told you guys Marion and I have everything handeled."

Little John chuckled slightly, finding Scarlet's defensiveness amusing, "No ofcourse not. I actually came to see you."

"Me?" Scarlet blinked, taken aback by his response.

"Yeah, you. You know how they do this little festival every summer in the town with dancing and music and everything?"

"The May Day festival?" 

"Yeah that, I heard chatter that it is going to come around soon and was hoping if you would like to go with me?" Little John looked at his feet shyly trying to avoid her eyes, "Some of the performers are also putting up a few shows tonight to attract more audience maybe we can go today too." he looked, "If you want to that is." He added quickly.