Aedric...
Wild Aedric, as he was known...
was a Saxon thane...
like a lord or a king to his people.
Aedric didn't believe England had been conquered,
even when a Norman king came and stole the English crown.
He rebelled.
And he retreated into the woods
and became an outlaw.
For many summers,
Aedric defied the king's soldiers,
and he and his men feasted on the king's deer...
What about Godda, Father?
I'm coming to Godda.
One day, when the cold crept in,
and the mists came forth...
Aedric was hunting alone deep in the forest,
and he came upon a dwelling,
and he saw something that no man was meant to see.
- Fairies. - Dancing.
Naked.
And the most beautiful of them all
was Godda.
Bewitched by her beauty,
Aedric stole her away into the forest.
On their wedding night, after Aedric laid with Godda,
she turned him into a magnificent stag
and immediately he darted off
deep into the forest.
Godda's spell
made Aedric eternal...
and he became the protector of the forest,
and to this day he watches over all of us.
Have you ever seen the stag?
I know many who have,
and they all say when you see it,
you know Wild Aedric is gazing back at you.
You still going tomorrow?
I must.
I have to try one more time.
Where's Father?
He's gone to Nottingham, my love.
Why is Huntingdon coming, Father?
I'm not certain,
but he is a Norman lord,
and it is my duty as sheriff to grant him an audience.
I don't like him.
It is wiser, Priscilla, to understand a man
than to dislike him.
Many are driven by greed and violence.
From such men...
comes only evil and ruin.
Sheriff.
Huntingdon.
You have over a thousand acres.
A fine manor.
- What did you expect? - More.
Then perhaps you should consider another crusade.
The last one seemed to benefit you well.
Others got more. You have Nottingham.
Nottingham is not mine.
It is the king's.
I sit in his governance only.
We provide taxes and loyalty.
In return, we enjoy the benefits of the king's generosity.
His lands are ours to prosper.
Where are you going?
To the garderobe, Father.
No, sit. You must learn.
Your Eminence.
We're grateful.
Which one is he?
I'm Hugh of Locksley.
He'll hear your cause but be quick with it.
I've waited months to see him.
Then be grateful he's showing you compassion.
Locksley Manor is my ancestral home.
Its lands were granted to my father's father
- by King Harold himself. - A Saxon king
who lost your lands when he lost England
to my father's uncle, William the Conqueror.
Your lands have not been yours since that day.
Just as your gods have not been yours
since Christ followed the Normans here.
Other Saxon lands have been returned.
I know one who wrote to the Pope.
You're free to write to the Pope.
But I cannot do as you ask.
I am a fair man, Locksley.
Try to be.
I shall grant you the position of a royal forester.
You will have coin and duties to the King.
This is a good life, one most men in my position
would not offer.
He accepts, My Lord.
Gratefully.
I wish to hear it from his tongue.
Come on, Hugh.
Do it for Joan. For Robert.
You have a son.
Then consider his future.
An heir is everything to a man,
as is Priscilla to me.
You may rise.
Hugh of Locksley, do you accept what is offered to you?
I do.
Excellent. The matter is settled.
Are you going to stand there watching the rest of your life?
Are you going to be angry the rest of yours?
Better to take it out on a wooden block, I suppose.
Or a Norman head.
What about me?
What about Robert?
Those were our lands.
That was our house.
- Yes. - And now that bastard Huntingdon
- sleeps in my bed. - And they took them,
but what can you do about that now?
Are you going to spend the rest of your life fighting this?
What is to become of you?
What is to become of Robert?
Keep teaching him like you always do.
Yes, I can teach him to read and write.
He might even have a life at court,
- but he needs a father. - Life in court, Joan?
They'd make us take their religion.
No, I'm never doing that, ever.
You need to release a little quicker. Here.
It's not about your eye or your arms.
You-- when you grow, this'll take care of itself.
It's in here.
This is the secret to the longbow.
It's your chest,
and you listen to the bow.
For it breathes, too.
So do it again.
This time, close your eyes.
Listen as it stretches. It will tell you its reach.
Hear that? A bit further.
Now breathe and release.
You've got talent, my boy.
When the Normans came, why didn't they all
run in the forest like Wild Aedric?
Well, they stayed to protect their king.
But the woods would've protected them.
Why did they stay and die?
Pride, I suppose.
The Normans can put their castles
all over this land. These woods...
these are as old as the Earth.
No man will ever own them.
Here, look at this.
My forefathers made this,
long before the Normans came.
That stone, it's from a sacred place.
The heart of the forest.
It's a great cave that few men have ever seen.
Will you take me there?
Godda will lead you.
One day. When you're ready.
Welcome back, sire.
He's mine! Don't hurt him.
Why would I hurt him?
His name's Henry.
He has a name?
What are you doing here?
That used to be our home.
Our house?
My family lived there before,
until I was five.
But my father made that house.
He didn't make it. He took it.
I don't believe you.
There's a hall with glass windows and wooden panels.
In the corner behind one of the wooden panels,
there's a secret room. It was used as a hiding place
if ever the castle was attacked.
Marian!
What were you doing?
- There was a boy, Father. - Boy?
He said he used to live here.
Go in the house.
I know who you are, Locksley!
Rob!
You don't come 'round here!
I'll take your eyes out!
- What were you doing there? - Where was he?
At the house. What were you doing there?
- Nothing! - No, Hugh--
- Tell me why you went there. - To see!
To see what? Huh? To see what?
Huh?
- To see what? - Don't, Hugh!
- Answer me, Rob! - How dare you.
How dare you bring this into my life!
Our son went there, I didn't go there--
Because of you! Because you wouldn't
let it be! I have told you to let it be!
How can I let it be?!
They've taken everything, Joan.
Joan, this was my land.
This was my home, this was my life.
I am your life! Rob is your life.
Caught three poachers today, down by the brook.
Spragart among them.
They actually caught something?
Mm.
Five pheasants, no less.
On their way to Nottingham to sell them.
Right under the Sheriff's nose.
And they'll pay dearly for that.
No, I let them go.
I wasn't about to cut the hand off a lad,
and Alwin wouldn't. I gave him the axe,
said, "You do it," and he crapped his britches.
Thank you.
Good.
Did you decide yet?
Why can't I come on the hunt? I'm old enough.
Uh...
...yeah, let me talk to your mother.
Then I already know the answer.
Why do you persist in teaching him that?
Because it is the language of the court.
He's never going, Joan.
He's not the son of an earl.
- I know what he is. - Then why don't you accept him?
I have, and I've never blamed you for it.
Least, not as you have blamed yourself.
I accepted it a very long time ago.
Really...
I must have missed that year.
Mm.
Take him on the hunt.
Maybe he'll find Godda, and she can decide
what's to become of him.
Oh... oh...
You're dangerous.
Yes.
I am.
Back to your post, Captain.
Father, perfect day for it.
Yah!
Hyah! Yah! Yah!
Godda, protect him.
May the old gods look upon us.
Welcome to Sherwood, My Lord.
Locksley.
- How is the King's forest? - Flourishing, My Lord.
And the game is plentiful?
There are herds on the Eastern Ridge.
Some this side of the river...
You know Huntingdon.
And his daughter Marian.
Aren't you going to comment on my dress?
- It's fetching. - But a little short.
Ugh, nonsense. Why do you look so drab?
Dress up for hunting? I detest it.
Really, Marian, no wonder your father's angry at you.
He made me come here,
but he can't force me to enjoy it.
Don't be boring. There's plenty to enjoy.
Like all the young foresters there.
Like that one.
Eyes on the trees, Robert.
It'll take more than an arrow to pierce their hides, Rob.
Locksley... I thought he'd be dead by now.
He probably feels the same way about you.
To Wild Aedric, and to the great hunt.
- Aedric. - Aedric.
Offer the Sheriff some wine, Rob.
Go on, be all right.
Come straight back.
Oh, let him through.
My Lord, would you care to...
What do you have there?
Forester's wine, sire.
Come here. What are we toasting to, lad?
To the forest.
For the gifts of a good hunt.
You want me to drink to old Saxon beliefs?
You're bold, young man, what's your name?
Locksley, sire.
Robert of Locksley.
That's the son of the man
your family's estate used to belong to.
I see you haven't lost your enjoyment
for other people's misfortune.
Heh... oh, there's far more
to enjoy about him than his misfortune.
Hey-hey-hey-hey...
Aah!
It's a man.
No!
It's a man there!
You touch me again and I'll kill you.
Fetch those men.
What happened?
Poachers, I bet.
Caught them with this, My Lord.
- Do you know where you are? - Sherwood.
Sherwood Forest,
which belongs to the King,
as does all that lives within it.
Do you know what happens when you steal from the King?
You lose your hand.
No, please.
Please, I beg you, sir, please!
Please.
Just stop-- stop!
My Lord, we know this man.
- Aah! - He's wronged you,
but he's just a fool trying to feed his family.
Who deserves Norman justice.
Please, My Lord.
He deserves a trial, doesn't he?
Isn't that Norman law?
Very well, bring them to Nottingham,
where they'll be tried.
If found guilty, they will hang.
By your decision, Locksley.
- Get your hands off me! - I didn't touch you!
Lower your sword, Huntingdon, damn you!
Put down your sword, all of you.
Locksley has offended me on this day.
It shall not be forgotten.
Bring me that arrow.
Rob's arrow.
Hit the deer and the poacher, My Lord.
Huntingdon, your daughter shall mark the victor.
Come forward, my dear.
No... no, by his blood.
It's them who should be blooded.
Hm.
Now you're marked by a man's blood.
Next time you toast the forest, young Locksley,
be careful what you wish for.
Bring them to Nottingham.
- Hah! - Hah!
Hanged for killing a deer.
What did you do, Locksley?
You'd've lost your hand.
At least now you have a chance.
Let us go.
You'll never see me again, I swear.
I can't do that.
Take them to Nottingham!
You bitch of a whore! I curse you forever!
Locksley!
You'll catch a fairy gazing like that.
It's been a week since the hunt.
And you haven't been outside.
You should've gone with Rob this morning.
No, my stomach's bothersome.
You told me the Sheriff singled Rob out at the hunt,
and he regarded you warmly.
He's kept you as head forester all these years.
Why would he take that away now?
I won't pretend to understand the Norman mind.
Oh...
neither would I, the Saxon mind is...
quite enough.
Does it really matter that Huntingdon was there?
It matters that I was there.
I should never have taken Rob.
Come on.
There's someone there.
What is it?
Aleppo thinks he saw someone in the trees.
There, I see him.
Stay here.
Hello?
Is it you? From the hunt?
I thought I recognized you.
- But perhaps not. - I'm here.
Where are you?
- You're the frog girl. - Frog girl?
You used to collect them in the forest, as a child.
I would take them to the moat, yes.
So it is you.
Why are you hiding?
I'm not.
Oh.
That's better.
I'm not used to being spoken to by a tree.
Why, they have much to say,
and you cannot lie to a tree.
Lie?
I see your Saxon manners lack for nothing.
Who taught you to be so bold?
My mother taught me to read and write,
my father taught me of the forest and its secrets.
So he is to blame.
What are you doing here?
At the hunt...
why did you say it's them who should be blooded?
My father's men! Go!
Never with the likes of her, boy!
Understand?
This is Norman land!
A good thing your father isn't here.
Yah!
The forester Locksley has been harboring poachers.
The deeds to your land and title
are in your name, signed by the King.
This king-- the next could undo it.
A Norman king grant lands back to Saxons?
- I doubt it. - There are other Saxons
whose lands have been restored.
Only those who have taken Christ.
If Locksley is harboring poachers,
doesn't sound like a man ready to kneel before the cross.
He is a traitor to Normandy and a criminal.
And you have proof of this?
I do.
What happened?
I fell.
While hunting.
Does Robert of Locksley live here?
May I help you?
I am Marian of Huntingdon.
Oh, that's not necessary.
Rob, you'd better come.
I came to apologize,
for the way my father's men treated you.
I wasn't hurt.
All the same, it was unforgivable.
- This is where you live? - Uh, yes, um...
- would you like to come in? - No, uh...
...thank you.
I'm out riding.
It's a beautiful day.
Oh... my mother made it.
We're going to a wedding.
It's... fetching,
to be sure.
I passed the chapel on my way,
but there was no sign of a wedding.
Oh, it's not a wedding in the church.
I bid you all a fine day.
Would you like to join us?
If it's not in a church, and there's no priest,
who marries them?
Usually the village elder.
A village elder?
What makes it legal in the eyes of the Lord?
Getting drunk and dancing.
Dancing at a wedding?
You'll see.
Marigolds.
You like them?
"Marigold" means "Mary's gold."
Marian, of course, another way to say "Mary."
Yes, I like them.
My favorite flower, in fact.
Something wrong?
If I'm not back soon, my father will look for me.
You don't have to go.
Will!
My cousin Will.
- Marian. - Will.
I hope you like to dance, Marian,
because we are going to do a lot
of dancing tonight. There she is!
Managed to drag him out of the lodge, then.
I didn't have much choice.
And who is this?
Brought your own bride?
This is Marian.
Come on.
Hey, isn't that...
Time for an ale, yes.
Here they come.
Who is she?
Her name is Isabel.
Her family are woodcutters
from near the Western Ridge of Sherwood.
Will is a little sore.
She was his first love.
Then we'd better get him really drunk.
Yeah!
And the groom?
Family's choice.
We are brought here together in this most sacred place
to honor the old gods
and ask for their protection.
May they grant love,
happiness, and fertility
to this young woman and man.
What are they doing?
It's called hand-fasting.
They will be bound by the spirit of the tree.
And now they kiss under the mistletoe.
Well, come on.
Come and sit with us.
Remove your hood.
I remember you. You're a forester.
Alwin.
Wine? It's from Gascony.
So, Alwin...
tell me what you know of the forester
Hugh of Locksley.
I heard about Spragart.
Ah, he's always making trouble for others.
It's not your fault.
What were you to do? You're the head forester.
I only do it for the boy.
That he'll have more one day.
Be more fortunate than me anyway.
As do I for Will.
and I pay my taxes handsomely.
Perfect Saxons, the both of us.
The Sheriff would be proud.
Perfect Saxons, the pair of us.
The best part of a wedding is the dance,
- don't you think, Marian? - I've never danced
at a wedding.
Do you dance?
Mm, like his father, two iron boots.
Well, then,
show me otherwise.
Go on, boy.
And you are a conniving squirrel.
Uh-huh.
I love you.
And I love you.
Welcome back, sire.
Where's Marian?
We looked to the edge of the estate.
I think she's gone beyond the woods.
Maybe that boy came back.
Take the horses.
Don't come back until you find her.
Will!
Aah!
You don't say much, do you...
Robert of Locksley?
Something I said?
My name, it's a place I'm no longer from.
Then choose a new name.
I prefer just Rob.
Just Rob?
Well, Rob from where?
- From here. - The forest?
That won't do.
Why not...
Rob of Sherwood?
They bring good fortune and love...
to those who kiss beneath them.
In my culture, it's rude to stare.
In mine, it's rude not to.
Then you may look, if you wish.
Goodbye...
Rob of Sherwood.
Goodbye, Marian of Huntingdon.
I...
hate my name as much as you hate yours.
Where've you been?
I was with Priscilla in Nottingham.
I'm sorry it got so late.
No, you were not with Priscilla.
Now...
where were you?
Father?
Why are you awake, dear?
I had a dream I was in the forest.
Something emerged from the ground
like the earth was giving birth.
It was hideous, unholy.
It was only a dream, Priscilla.
Do you mean to grant Huntingdon
his wishes over his lands and title?
What do you know of such things?
I know it comes at the expense of Hugh of Locksley.
An expense made convenient by his treason.
Locksley has been protecting poachers.
Shielding them to justice.
I fear arresting Locksley
will give birth to something terrible.
That's what my dream was about.
Saxon traitors must be brought to justice.
That is my duty as the King's justiciar.
It was just a dream, Priscilla, nothing more.
Go back to sleep.
Where's Hugh of Locksley?
I'm Locksley.
You're under arrest.
Father-- Father?!
In the morning I'll talk to the Sheriff.
All right? It'll all be all right.
Don't you be stubborn with him, don't be angry, do you hear me?
I do, I do.
I love you. I love both of you.
Go on, you take your mother, and you go to your uncle's.
Do you hear me? Do you hear me?
- Yes, Father, yes. - Whatever happens,
you make sure she's safe.
- It's you who must be safe! - That's enough.
No! No!
-No! - Rob, stay back, don't!
Come on, on the horse!
Let's go!
Father?
Go to bed.
Why am I here?
I demand to know what I've done.
Demands will be heard in the morning,
with the Sheriff.
Locksley...
fancy that.
The very him who put us here.
Lerch, someone wants you.
We got a job for you.
Do it,
and you and your friend go free.
I don't understand. The Sheriff jailed him?
- On what charges? - They didn't say, Uncle.
I know his Saxon blood runs deep,
but not Hugh. He's a royal forester.
I'll ride back tonight.
We can't ride out in this storm.
First light, we'll go together.
The Sheriff's a fair man, he knows me well.
I paid my share.
It's worth a life.
Rest now.
Tend to your mother.
Mother, I must go.
It's time, Locksley.
Stay back.
Aah!
Bastard!
- Bastard! - Go on, break it up!
- Help! - No!
Help...
Oh, God...
Guards!
Murderer!
What do you have to say for yourself?
I didn't kill him.
Address him as "My Lord."
I've done nothing, My Lord, nothing.
A man lies dead, and you call it nothing.
Who else was in the cell?
- Two poachers. - Lerch killed the guard.
- He's a criminal. - A criminal...
who you caught and released.
A criminal who would've already faced justice if not for you.
Do you deny it?
I showed mercy where I thought it was right.
Mercy.
You took an oath to uphold the King's law
and protect his forests,
not to extend his mercy.
That is his privilege and his alone.
We are merely the King's subjects.
Your king.
Not mine.
I have shown you tolerance,
respect, even kindness, and--
You've shown me nothing!
All you Norman dogs have done is take everything!
My land!
My home! My title!
You've destroyed
everything that is good and true!
Everything that was ours!
That was Saxon!
We conquered your lands and now we rule.
In a hundred years,
all that is Saxon will be gone.
No one will ever know you or your kind existed.
When I heard it was you...
I wanted to be lenient, to show mercy.
But all that is over now.
What must be done, you've made clear.
Take him.
In the morning, he shall be hanged by the neck until dead.
And Locksley...
I pray you find peace
in the presence of our almighty God,
and that your son will learn--
My son will learn nothing from you, ever.
Ever!
News from Nottingham.
Hugh of Locksley will be hanged this very morning.
The mercy of Christ is boundless.
But his salvation is not freely given.
Only those who kneel before his grace
may rise anew.
For those heathens
still bound to false gods,
there can be no absolution,
no salvation.
Only judgment.
No...
That's... That's...
no, he's innocent!
- He's innocent! - No, Rob...
Please stop, he's innocent!
- No, no, no, no! - Rob! Don't fight!
Silence that boy!
- Stop! Stop! - No!
No, you'll only make it worse!
- Don't fight! - Silence!
- Rob! - You will enter
the kingdom of God in silence!
Rob, stop, don't-- stop, stop, Rob!
Please, don't fight... don't fight.
My boy...
it's all right, it's all right.
Look away, Rob.
Look away.
Godda...
see him.
Protect him.
Make him your weapon.