Week 13 Story: A Case of Mistaken Identity

Robin Hood simply could not believe that he had been beaten by some masked guy named Bart in an archer competition. As a result, the strange man had won the hand of the Maid Marian who had declined to attend the event, presumably unhappy to be given away like a prize. Robin Hood did not care if she was treated like a prize to be won so long as he was the one winning her. He vowed to himself that he would get revenge for the humiliation and to marry Maid Marian. 

While on his quest, he came across another fellow. Robin raised his bow, ready to shoot, but decided that the man was hardly a threat. After the two talked for a bit, Robin discovered that the other man had a grudge against the strange archer, as well, believing him to have stolen his girl, as well! Apparently, the strange archer was a scoundrel who went around stealing people's honor and women.

The two men decided to search for the archer together and, after asking around, were directed to a large building on the edge of a wood. The two went inside, only to be set upon by the masked archer himself! The archer took several shots at the two men, who shot arrows back. When they had all run out of arrows, they resorted to hand-to-hand combat. The strange archer proved to be a formidable foe, even against two opponents.

After several minutes of intense fighting, Robin managed to grab the hand of the archer and hold it over a light candle nearby, resulting in the strange archer giving an unusually high-pitched yelp. Robin thought this a strange noise for a man and ripped the archer's mask off to reveal the Maid Marian herself. In shock, Robin reeled backwards while his friend started laughing, proclaiming that Robin had lost to a girl in the archer competition (never mind that both men had struggled against her in hand-to-hand combat). 

Robin fell even deeper in love with Marian while the other man was simply glad that he had no competition for the girl he loved. Robin professed his feelings to Marian and asked to marry her, proclaiming that they were destined to be man and wife. Marian said she would think about it.

Poster of Robin Hood and Maid Marian by unknown artist (ca. 1880). Source: Wiki Commons

Author's Note:

I took the story of Two Knights, in which two knights fight another knight, thinking her to be a man. The one knight, Artegall (Robin), thinks Britomart (Marian) has stolen his honor and pride by defeating him in a tournament, thinking her to be a man. The other knight, Scudamour (the other guy), believes Britomart has stolen his girl, also thinking she is a man. The two knock off Britomart's visor, revealing her identity. Artegall, destined to marry Britomart, falls in love with her and she with him while Scudamour is happy that Britomart did not steal his girl. I simply took this story and turned it into a Robin Hood story, just to see what it would be like to combine two different folktales. I also changed the ending so that Marian has to think about whether she will marry Robin.

Bibliography: 

Two Knights in Stories of the Faerie Queene by Mary Macleod.