Strolling with Shafiq

[Djaq]

Djaq walked slowly through the paths of Sherwood Forest. She breathed in the fresh English air and her heart filled with joy. She saw England as her home, and was glad to be back. Cradled in her arms was her baby son Shafiq, wrapped up tightly with cloth. He giggled as Djaq tickled his nose, and Djaq couldn't help but let out a small laugh of her own. Suddenly, she heard a crunch of leaves and a crack of twigs. Adrenaline gushed through her, but she new she had to hide away, in-case the stranger was one of the Sheriffs men, or even the Sheriff himself. She slid behind a tree and waited for the crunching of leaves to subside.

[cassidy]

Cassidy took her time as she wandered aimlessly through the trees, enjoying the free afternoon she could spend with her own children.
The two children in her arms, a boy and a girl, babbled softly, taking in everything around them..

[Djaq]

Djaq poked her head around the tree she was hiding behind, and saw a women and two children. She exhaled. At least it wasn't one of the Sheriffs men. But she still couldn't risk coming out of her hiding place, they still could have been the Sheriffs guests or friends, or even a trap. She started to tip-toe away, but then Shafiq let out a large sneeze, and then started wailing uncontrolable. Djaq cursed and stood completely still, trying to decide which way to run.

[cassidy]

"Who's there?"
She snapped to attention at the sudden, unnatural noise, searching around for the source..

[Djaq]

Djaq groaned softly as Shafiqs face started to turn red from the screaming. She could not run fast enough with Shafiq in her arms, but could not stay around here unless this woman was trouble. Slowly and making sure she knew the exact whereabouts of her sword, she stepped out from behind the tree and smiled meekly.

[Ash Wolfe]

The sound of crying, though distant had alerted Ash's attention. An undeniably strange sound to hear so far out in the forest. Slowly, but ever cautiously, he moved in the direction the sound was coming from. In actual fact, it was a welcome distraction. There was nothing else he had been doing, apart from dwelling on how bored he had become.

[cassidy]

The sudden appearance of the woman startled her, and she took a short step backward, taking in her general appearance...

[Djaq]

Djaq tryed to get Shafiq to quiet down, and slowly he started to calm down. After a short while, he nestled down and fell asleep. Djaq breathed a huge sigh of relief. Being a mother was still a relatively new thing for her, but she was starting to get the hang of things.

After Shafiq was settled down, she looked back at the woman before her. She looked like a peasant, so Djaq quickly came to the solution that she meant no harm. She smiled and nodded her head at the woman. "Hello." she said.

[Ash Wolfe]

He quickened his pace slightly, keeping his footfalls as quiet as possible. It probably seemed odd to be cautious, with the noises he had heard. But you could never be too careful.
Stopping next to a fairly large tree, he made sure he had enough cover from the shadows before he looked round. A frown of curiosity crossing his face, as his gaze fell on the two women.

[cassidy]

"Hello.."
Her reply was nervous and quiet, almost in awe of the woman standing before her. Naturally she recognised her as one of Robin Hood's gang, but found herself too shy to say a word more...

[Djaq]

Djaq shuffled her feet. She was not quite sure whether the woman recognised her or not, because of her large absense from England, but she tried to carry out a normal conversation. "These are beautiful children," she said with a smile, "are they yours?"

[cassidy]

"Thank you... yes, they are mine..."
She was almost mumbling, finding herself taking a seaky glance at the child in the other woman's arms..
"Your child is sweet..."

[Ash Wolfe]

Maybe he should make himself known, instead of skulking in the shade..
He stepped around the tree and leant against it, folding his arms. His blue eyes narrowed slightly, thoughtfully. Around another half a minute passed before he cleared his throat noisily to alert them to his presence.

[cassidy]

The noise caught her attention and she turned, looking at the man with shock...

[Djaq]

Without a second thought, Djaq unsheathed her sword at the speed of light, balancing Shafiq on one arm, and pointed her blade towards the stranger. A scowl spread across her face as she eyed the man before her, with a look of anger she often portrayed in battle, but also the look of curiosity. Who was this man?