Before they set out for the hideout Alan had to be spun around a number of times and Scarlet waved the point of a knife around close to the cloth and to the minstrel's chin and nose to check the blindfold was really blocking the minstrel's vision. Once satisfied they lead him on a circuitous route that broadly headed back towards the hideout.

They made good time and were back at the clearing by just after noon, Robin was not present but Brother Tuck was tending to the first flames of the fire. There were a few others about but most were working in the cave tunnels carving out more comfortable living space.

"What's this you've brought out?" Tuck asked looking up from the fire. "A pro-John minstrel captured for singing controversial ballads?"

"He's not a prisoner," Yughi said. "He's also not yet earned sufficient trust to learn where we meet."

Yughi untied the blindfold and Alan a Dale rubbed his eyes.

"I've come seeking counsel with Robin Hood," Alan announced. "I have information about the activities of Thomas de Say in the Cathedral at Derby."

"Well, welcome to the home of the Hood, minstrel," Tuck said. "Come, sit by the fire and tell us what you have to say."

"My words are for Robin Hood and him alone, monk," Alan replied.

"But didn't you hear, my friend," Tuck said. "Robin Hood is a falsehood, a name we made up to scare the forces of the sheriff."

"That's not true!" Alan exploded. Yughi was careful not to react to Tuck's bluff, he looked across at Will Scarlet but the outlaw was inscrutable as well. He must have been used to Tuck's deceptions.

"What? Because you heard that soppy ballad about Robin's guest?" Tuck asked. "Don't be soft in the head lad. It's all a story, woven to give hope to the faithful and fear to the enemy. The closest thing we have to an actual Robin Hood is the fellow who brought you here and he isn't leading anyone, now, is he?"

Alan looked back at Yughi, who returned eye contact careful to remain impassive.

"That man there," Tuck said, approaching Alan and sliding a companionable arm around the minstrel's shoulders, "is one of the most formidable killers in this county or any surrounding it. As you can see, though, he has something of a foreign aspect, pale skin like the surface of a muddy stream near a clay deposit, dark eyes, that Mediterranean tweak and shelf to his cheeks and nose. He's a foreigner, and no true-born Englishman would follow him, not with his charisma."

Tuck smirked at Yughi: "Sorry," he said, "you have the personable temperament of a slab of Nottinghamshire lime. You know it's the truth."

Tuck slid his eyes back to Alan's face.

"On the other hand," he said. "All the boys know me, they trust me, I keep them safe here in the depths of the forest. Can I jump around in combat or slip through the shadows? Am I convincing as a knife in the dark? Look at me, pudding belly, shiny pate, and way, way too talkative. No, people trust me to steer them on the correct spiritual path, but I am not a leader of fighting men.

"So, what did we do, John Little, Will Scarlet, Yughi and I?" Tuck asked. "Of course we came together and we pooled our resources. John, Will and Yughi are all commanders in battle, I work on strategy and we all take our orders from the Hood, who, of course, is just all of us working as a team."

"I don't believe you," Alan a Dale said, but there was a crack in the note of his voice that said he did.

"Well, then, we'd better put you back on the path, as you won't be able to help us and we won't be able to help you," Tuck said.

Taking his cue Yughi stepped forward with the blindfold, offering it to Alan. The minstrel took one last look around the clearing but no one present was giving away Tuck's bluff.

"Very well," the minstrel said. "But I am not happy about this."

"Those who turn to outlaws for help are rarely happy with much," Tuck responded. "Still, life is what it is, my advice is to get yourself a flagon of mead and a soft tit for the hand that isn't holding the flagon. They aren't the solution for any problems long term but they help put things in perspective at least."

"Strange advice from a man of the cloth," Alan said.

"Strange church in which I preach," Tuck responded. "Are we going to take a wander into this philosophical thicket or are you actually going to get to the point?"

"My sweetheart, Bess," Alan said. "She is to be married to a strange man, David Asheby, a new member of the ranks of the Knights Templar. I hear that Asheby is from Lincoln. He has little interest in Bess herself, more interest in having a possible claim to lands in Derbyshire.

"The priest who is to perform the ceremony is the Dean of Derby Cathedral, Thomas de Say. When I heard of this I talked to my friends, looking for some way to prevent the match. This is all I could think of."

"Why do we care?" Tuck asked. "I mean the thwarting of true love, the growing power of the Knights Templar, both are facts of life in this day and age. Why should we take up arms Alan?"

"Because you hate the sheriff of Nottingham, as I hear it," Alan replied. "He and de Say are close friends and partners in dark business, the halting of which could well help your cause a great deal."

"Now, you have my interest," Tuck said, sitting forward.

"De Say gathers taxes on behalf of the sheriff, demanding heavy tithes in the name of God and then giving them over to fund the sheriff's private army," Alan explained. "He also diverts those who come to the local hospitals and almshouses to similar establishments inside Nottingham where many end up in the army's employ. If the link to de Say was broken then the sheriff would not have ready access to a source of replenishment for his forces, nor such deep coffers to pay for the services of mercenaries like Guy of Gisbourne."

"Yes, I think that is all very interesting," Tuck said. "It looks as if your heart may sing again minstrel. But first, we shall have to run your information past the Hood."

"But I thought you said..." Alan said, sitting up straight.

"You have a lot to learn about keeping the company of outlaws," Tuck said, grinning from ear to ear. "And, as the spiritual advisor to the outlaws of Sherwood Forest, I feel that I must always be the teacher of the first lesson."