Based on Prompt #46: They are rival vigilantes both trying to fight the villain of the town.
Night meant different things to the residents of Hyperion Heights, depending on who you were. Night owls found a bustling nightlife in the center of town, where different restaurants, bars and clubs were packed each night with patrons. Couples flocked there for date nights and friends met up to hang out, getting a reprieve from the stresses of their lives at least for a few hours. Aspiring musicians and comics found captive audiences as they honed their crafts as people ate and drank the night away as people in upscale apartments and penthouses watched from above before turning in for the night.
Only a few blocks away was the business district, which was still active though not as busy as it could get during the day. Janitors and maintenance workers kept the various office buildings clean and running, ready for employees to return in the morning and continue their work. Some people worked throughout the night for various reasons, their office lights illuminating the skyline as they went about their usual routines.
In the residential area surrounding the main part of the city, families went about their nightly customs. They ate dinner, watched TV, did homework, or pursued their hobbies. Spouses talked with each other as well as their children, spending time together before sleep called out to them. Dog owners walked their canines one last time, each nodding to each other as they passed on the streets. Showers or baths were taken, teeth were brushed, bedtime stories read, doors locked and curtains drawn as everyone climbed into bed and fell asleep.
Then there was the neighborhood at the very southern part of the town—Sherwood, another residential area. Yet it wasn't filled with the houses that lay only a few miles away and the apartment buildings in the area were far cries from the ones in the middle of the city. These were made of crumbling brick facades and had bars on the windows. Streetlights flickered and sometimes plunged streets completely into darkness. People hurriedly walked their dogs or from the train station, eager to get home as quickly as possible. Night was dangerous here and they didn't want to become another statistic.
Sherwood was controlled by a shady organization called only the Coven. No one knew who really ran it—just that there were possibly eight shadowy masters who oversaw the network of goons who terrorized the streets. Drug deals, illegal firearm sales, stealing or stripping cars, and muggers made money and left the residents living in fear. Anyone who resisted or didn't give the goons what they would wanted ended up dead in the middle of the street, a warning about the dangers of rising against the Coven.
It didn't deter Robin, though. He called this neighborhood home as he saved up to try to move into one of the better neighborhoods, to get his young son away from the violence that had claimed his mother. Marian had been returning from her job as a housekeeper at a hotel and her phone had died so she couldn't call Robin to come escort her from the train station to their apartment. She had decided to chance getting home by herself but ended up caught in a drive-by shooting, an innocent sacrificed as the Coven took out a goon who had tried to go straight. Robin had heard the gun shots and when he saw the time, his heart had jumped into his throat. He raced outside and his worst nightmare lay in front of him—his wife bleeding on the pavement. Robin had tried to staunch the bleeding but the bullet had done too much damage. Marian had died en route to the hospital. They had let him say goodbye and he promised her that he would get Roland away from that horrible place if it was the last thing he did.
Yet while he and his sister Belle worked hard to save money to get Roland out, Robin wasn't going to let the Coven continue to run unchecked. It was long clear to the people of Sherwood that the rest of Hyperion Heights didn't care about them, preferring to pretend that they weren't part of the city at all—except to collect taxes. As long as the violence and lawlessness stayed in Sherwood, the police looked the other way as did the city government. Pleas from the people living in fear fell on deaf ears and crimes were barely investigated. A bored detective had spoken to Robin at the hospital after Marian's death and after collecting notes, he pretty much had told Robin that the killer would never be found.
He was right.
There had been a brief moment of hope when he had met Assistant District Attorney Regina Mills at his wife's funeral. She still had idealistic expectations for her job and wanted to put Marian's killer behind bars. Robin had tried to tell her how things worked in Sherwood but there had been a glint in her eye that almost made him think she could actually do it. But only a few months ago, she had called him to apologize that she hadn't brought Marian's killer to justice. She vowed to keep searching when she could but he could hear the defeat in her voice. ADA Mills knew the case would never be closed.
Robin had already taken matters into his own hands. He had rounded up several neighbors who he trusted, who he knew weren't part of the Coven, and made a proposal. "This is going to be dangerous, but I think it's time we fight back against the Coven. It's time we patrolled the streets and gave them a taste of their own medicine," he told them.
His friend Little John frowned. "Are you saying what I think you're saying? Robin, what happened to Marian was a tragedy but she wouldn't want you to become just like them. She wouldn't you to kill anyone for her."
"I know," Robin said softly, "but desperate times call for desperate measures. We're going to let them know that they aren't welcome on our streets anymore and that we're fighting back. Ruin every drug deal, every firearm sale, stop every car thief, protect everyone who might get shot. I would rather we round them up and deliver them to authorities in hopes of getting justice but if we need to kill, we kill."
Everyone looked at each other before John stood up, nodding. "Agreed. But how exactly are you planning on fighting them? With guns?"
"If you want to use a gun, be my guest. I'm going to use this." Robin placed his bow on the table. "We will stick to the shadows, wear masks and hoods so they can't see us. We will be mysterious as the Coven's leaders. And we will not back down. Are you in?"
One by one, they all stood as well and nodded. Robin smiled. "Good. We begin tomorrow. Dress appropriately."
Word spread quickly through Sherwood—there was a new gang on the street, but this one was a force for good. They were putting an end to the criminals and their activities, trying to make the streets safer again for all of them. No one knew who they were—they kept to the shadows and wore hoods to hide their identities. They would attack the Coven's goons and overpower them, tying them up and delivering them to the local precinct like Christmas presents. The residents of Sherwood watched as the cops were forced to do their jobs for the first time in a long time—arresting bad guys and locking them up. It bolstered the morale of the people and they soon gave a name to the mysterious group, taking inspiration from their town's name. Robin and his crew were dubbed the Merry Men, a title they bore proudly if secretly.
For a while, the streets seemed safer. The goons weren't as flagrant about their activities, afraid of encountering a Merry Man and ending up in jail or the hospital with an arrow sticking from someplace non-lethal but painful. Hope began to seep into the community and people started to dream of a better life in Sherwood, one where they could walk the streets at night and have parties during the summer without fear of death.
Yet it was too good to last. While the police could lock the criminals up, it seemed the justice system was not on their side. Regina Mills seemed to be the only ADA not willing to deal with the criminals taken off Sherwood's streets and from what Robin could tell, had been taken off many cases from their part of the city. Instead, the criminals were either released back onto the streets due to plea deals or because judges threw out their cases completely. Whoever ran the Coven, it soon became clear to Robin that they had several officials in their pockets. The whole city was corrupt but no one really cared, as long as the troubles stayed in Sherwood and didn't affect them.
With the criminals flooding the streets again and eager for revenge, Robin had to do what he had been hesitant to do at first. He ordered his Merry Men to go into full vigilante mode. "They kill, we kill," he told them in a gruff tone. "No more prisoners."
His Merry Men complied and soon the police were dealing with more bodies than usual. For every innocent bystander killed by the Coven, two of their goons lay dead beside them. Sherwood was a literal war zone and Robin could only hope good would emerge victorious once the fighting finally ended.
The death toll in Sherwood was starting to become something the city officials couldn't ignore anymore.
It didn't help that the violence was starting to spill outside the neighborhood's borders into the more "respectable" and "safe" parts of Hyperion Heights. There was a string of high profiled murders—all judges who had overseen and ultimately thrown out cases against the Coven. All had been killed by gunshots to the heart though no one ever reported gunshots, the crimes only discovered when someone went looking for the victims. It had helped the police and city officials cover up the murders so as not to cause alarm in the beginning. The first three or four judges were all said to have died from "natural" causes, which the public seemed to accept for the most part.
Until the Hyperion Heights Times received an anonymous packet that revealed all four deaths—and a fifth not announced by the police yet—had in fact been murders. The paper ran the story and public outcry was swift, with people appalled that they had been lied to about a possible serial killer in the city. City Hall, police headquarters and the District Attorney's office all had serious damage control to do and answers that needed to be given to a demanding public about the killer on the loose.
"From what I hear around the newsroom, it's not a serial killer but a vigilante, like us," Mulan said at one of their Merry Men meetings. She worked security for the newspaper and often heard a lot of useful information there.
Alan raised his eyebrow. "Really? What makes them so sure he is?"
"Well, for starters, law enforcement is convinced it's a she," Mulan replied, stressing the gender of the vigilante. "And she's been leaving calling cards with her victims. They're purple business cards with a black crown on them. She's dubbed herself the Queen and she words them like royal decrees, according to a reporter who saw one of her cards. Apparently, she's trying to get rid of the corruption so the Coven could actually face justice."
That caught Robin's attention and he looked up from where he was sharpening his arrows. "The Queen wants to take down the Coven? Why?"
She shook her head. "I don't know. If she's left a reason, the police aren't sharing with the media."
"Do you think she's an ally?" Tuck asked, leaning back in his chair. "Are we fighting the same fight?"
"Sounds like it," Will Scarlet replied. "Don't they say that the enemy of our enemy is our friend?"
All the Merry Men looked at Robin, waiting for his response. His mind was a jumble, trying to answer the same questions they were. This Queen appeared to be working for the same cause as them—getting rid of the Coven. Yet she was targeting high profile people and it made him wonder if she was from Sherwood or did she live elsewhere. If she did live elsewhere, why would she care about their plight? No one else in Hyperion Heights did. So did she have another motive for getting rid of the Coven? Would this Queen step in once they were gone and try to run the city? Was that why she really called herself the Queen?
"Robin?" John prompted softly.
Sighing, Robin decided he needed more information and there was only one way to get it. "Mulan, is there anyway to get in touch with this Queen? I would like to meet her myself."
Mulan looked thoughtful. "I can see what I can do. There's a reporter who's intrigued by us Merry Men—though he doesn't know I'm a member—and he's covering the Queen murders. I think he might be able to send a message to her in one of his articles. Write a note and I can slip it into his mailbox anonymously."
"I'd type it if I were you, Robin," Tuck warned. "Don't want anyone tracking your handwriting."
Robin nodded. "I'll write the note and hopefully, we can meet the Queen and find out what her goal is."
Mulan's plan worked. She left Robin's unsigned, typed note for reporter August Booth, who managed to word one of the paragraphs of one of his stories about the Queen in such a way that it was clear the Merry Men wanted to meet her. Within two days, they had their response when August printed the card found with the Queen's latest victim—this time, the former District Attorney—and it contained a veiled agreement to meet with the leader of the Merry Men.
Robin waited in an alley in Sherwood, one far enough away from his apartment building as well as the abandoned warehouse where he and the Merry Men met. They couldn't chance that the police had figured out that the Queen's message was a coded agreement to meet with him nor could he trust her just yet. He didn't her anywhere important to him, so a random alley was their best bet. Other Merry Men were hiding, ready to step in if the meeting went south.
The sound of heels clicking on concrete echoed around the alley and Robin tensed up, his grip tightening on his bow. He doublechecked the green mask he had covering the upper part of his face in hopes of obscuring his identity more than his hood did. Robin watched as a shadow emerged in the pale yellow streetlight, a tall human shape that grew shorter as the clicking heels grew louder.
A woman appeared before him, dressed in a tight black coat and tight black leather pants. Her dark hair was pulled into a bun on top of her head and she wore a black mask over her face as well. All he could see were her brown eyes and bright red lips—which were curled into a smirk. "Well, I see we had the same idea. I take it you are the leader of the Merry Men?"
"I am," he said, deepening his voice and trying his best to affect an American accent. "Are you the Queen?"
She bobbed her head. "That's what they call me, yes."
"Thank you for coming," he said. "I've been quite intrigued to meet you."
"Clearly. Though the question is…why?" She took a few steps closer, her hands now in the pockets of her coat. "What do you want with me?"
"I want to know why you're doing what you're doing," he said, trying not to wince at how awkward his wording was. Smooth, Locksley, smooth.
"You're trying to see if we're on the same side," the Queen said, smirking as she stopped only inches from him.
He didn't move or flinch, holding his own. After all, she was on his turf. "Well, are you?"
"For now," she replied, shrugging. "I suppose. After all, we both want the same thing—the destruction of the Coven."
"Why? Judging from the fine materials and how well made this jacket is, I would safely say you're not from Sherwood," he said, using his bow to lift up part of her jacket. "So why care about our plight? It doesn't affect the rest of the city."
Her eyes—brown, he now realized—darkened. "Anyone who thinks that the Coven is contained here in Sherwood and content to stay here is a fool. The Coven is already reaching out from here, trying to expand its hold—it's just not as overt as it is here in Sherwood. They will control our city if our leaders keep putting their heads in the sand and refusing to do anything about it. Or worse, facilitating it for monetary gain.
"Besides, there shouldn't be this Hyperion Heights—Sherwood distinction," she continued, conviction in her voice. "Everyone here shouldn't be sacrificed for everyone else just because they don't make the same amount of money or have fancy degrees or perhaps don't speak English as a first language. That's not right and it's time for things to change. No more blind eyes to the horrors faced here. No more deaths, no more terror, no more children growing up before their time. You all deserve the same things every other citizen of Hyperion Heights has—a chance to live, work and raise a family in a peaceful, safe and clean neighborhood."
She stopped, her chest rising and falling as her breaths came out in shorts puffs. Redness appeared where the mask gave way to her bare skin and a fire burned in her eyes. It was clear that she knew something about life in Sherwood and cared deeply about the people here. She was outraged and trying to save the entire city.
Robin's admiration for her began in that moment and a low heat pooled deep inside him. Yet there were still some questions he needed answered and he couldn't focus on his growing attraction to her.
"Why are you targeting such high-profile people?" he asked. "Are you trying to get caught?"
The Queen composed herself, taking a deep breath. "I'm trying to catch someone's eye. The city can't keep it quiet for much longer. Soon, the county, the state, maybe even the federal government will catch wind of what we're doing. And then there will be hell to pay for the Coven. Until then, we're crippling them in our own ways. You take out their muscle, I take out their protectors."
While it still seemed too risky to him and he worried it would backfire on her, he knew he had to trust that she knew what she was doing. So he held out his hand to her. "It sounds like a plan. Partners?"
"I work alone," she said, gently pushing his hand away. "But I'm not your enemy. Just don't get in my way."
He gave her a little bow. "Wouldn't dream of it."
The Queen nodded, backing away. "Good luck…Do I call you Merry Man? Do you have your own name? Or should I just call you Robin Hood?"
Robin hadn't really thought about it before but he knew that Robin Hood was too close to his own name. So he replied: "You can call me the Outlaw, if you must."
"Fair enough," she said, smiling rather than smirking this time. "Then good luck, Outlaw."
"And good luck to you," he replied. He watched her leave, feeling a bit better about the other vigilante in town. Even more, he was intrigued by the passionate yet ruthless Queen. He hoped to see her again and perhaps able to get to know her better.
The Queen laid low for a couple weeks after her meeting with Robin for there wasn't another high profile killing. Mulan confirmed that city officials weren't trying to cover anything up. "Everyone is baffled," she said. "They don't know what the Queen is waiting for."
"She's luring her next victim into a false sense of security. Make whoever it is think that she's been scared off by the investigation, make them think they are closing in on her…and then she'll strike," Robin replied.
John raised his eyebrow. "One meeting in the alleyway and you know her entire plan? Can read her mind?"
He shrugged. "It just makes the most sense to me."
"Are you saying we should do the same?" Will asked, crossing his arms. "Take a break and lure the Coven and its goons into a false sense of security?"
"Fuck no," Robin replied with a laugh. "We're not giving those fuckers a moment of peace."
His crew let out cheers and whoops, grabbing their weapons and pulling up their hoods as they headed out into the night to patrol Sherwood and take out even more of the people who terrorize their streets.
A few days later, his sister called out to him as she watched the morning news and he got ready for another day at his garage. The panic in her voice made him run out with his jumpsuit still only partially on, his heart racing as he found her staring wide-eyed at the TV. "Belle, what is it?" he asked.
She pointed to the TV. "Someone's killed the police commissioner."
"What?" he asked, surprised. He moved to see their tiny TV better and saw the news was reporting that the police commissioner had been found dead in his office with a single gun shot wound to his heart. It meant one thing.
The Queen had struck again.
"You can't go out and patrol tonight," Belle told him, the first time she ever gave an indication she knew about what he was doing at night. He tried to keep it from her so she would have plausible deniability should anything go south, but Belle was a smart woman. No doubt she would've figured out what he was doing and probably got her boyfriend, Will, to confirm it.
He frowned. "Why?"
"Because the police are going to be out for blood," she said. "They're not going to care if you're the Queen or not. They'll put you in jail or worse, just shoot you dead. Roland's lost his mother—he can't lose his father too."
Robin sighed, knowing she had a point. He took her hands in his. "I know. But the way I see it, every cop is going to try to find the Queen, so they won't even be patrolling Sherwood. We're going to have to really step it. Our patrols must continue.
"But," he continued, holding up a finger to silence her as she opened her mouth, "if we see that they have increased their presence on the streets for the time being, we'll retreat. How does that sound?"
She scowled but sighed. "Fine, I guess. Just come home to me and Roland, okay? I don't know what I would do if I lost my big brother."
He pulled her in for a hug. "Don't worry. I plan on being around to tease you and Will for a long time."
"Robin!" She pushed him away and rolled her eyes as he laughed. He then returned to the bedroom to finish getting ready.
That night, Robin's prediction that there would be almost no cops on the street proved correct. Mulan confirmed that they were all out searching for the Queen. "She's got a lot of angry people with guns after her," she said.
"Ooh, I'm so scared," a familiar voice said from behind them. "Of course, they're first going to have to catch me."
Robin smirked as he pulled out his green mask, putting it into place before turning to face her. She stood in the alleyway, one hand tucked in a pocket of the same black jacket she wore at their first meeting as she held a manila envelope in the other. The Queen approached them, her heels once again clicking against the concrete.
"You took a big risk coming here," Mulan said.
The Queen shrugged. "I figured they wouldn't look for me here. From what I can tell, there's no police here. This might be the safest place for me. Now, do you mind if I speak to Outlaw?"
Mulan gave him a look and Robin nodded. She walked away but he knew she would hover nearby, just in case. He didn't mind as he turned back to the Queen. She looked impressed. "I didn't realize you had a woman in your crew," she said.
"There's a couple women in the group," he told her. "The people gave us the name Merry Men for reasons other than the sex of our members."
He waved his bow and she nodded, looking like she was resisting the urge to smile. "Bows and arrows are a bit unusual..."
"But we're all very deadly with them," he said.
She nodded. "That you are."
"So, as much I love bantering with you," he replied, "I can't help but wonder why you are really here."
"Right." She held out the envelope toward him. "I think this will help you in your mission. It's data I took off the police commissioner, full of information about the Coven's goons and where they keep their weapons as well as their drugs. Looks like they were paying the commissioner to make sure his people never followed through on this information."
Robin took the envelope from her, surprised. "Thank you. But I thought you weren't our partner?"
She shrugged. "I'm not. But I guess I thought you would be able to do more with this than I would."
"Well, if you want to spend some time with us while the police are looking elsewhere, you are more than welcome," he said, holding the envelope close.
The Queen chuckled, brown eyes sparkling. "Thank you for the offer but I'm not going to lie low this time. There's an ADA who is next on my list."
Another pair of brown eyes—very similar to the ones before him—flashed in Robin's mind, a pair filled with the same fire he had seen in the Queen at their first meeting. Concern for their owner coursed through him as he grabbed the vigilante's arm. "Not Regina Mills."
She seemed surprised as her lips parted before she asked: "What?"
"The ADA you're going to kill," he clarified, "it's not Regina Mills, is it? Because she's not corrupt. I've seen ADAs give lip service to victim's families around here before not doing anything. She, though, has been trying to find who killed my wife and is just as frustrated with the system as we are. Do not hurt her."
The Queen's eyes softened and she stepped closer, giving him a genuine smile. "I know Regina Mills is one of the good guys. She's not the ADA I'm aiming to kill nor will she ever be on my list."
Relief swept through him as he released her arm. "Good, thank you."
"You're welcome." She bit her lip before closing the gap between them, kissing him. It was quick but enough to waken feelings that had laid dormant inside Robin since the death of Marian. He wanted more but knew they couldn't risk it. Not yet.
She broke the kiss and winked at him. "I'll see you soon, Outlaw."
"I look forward to it, Your Majesty," he replied, watching as she once again walked away.
For the rest of his patrol, Robin had a goofy grin on his face.
"This is a lot of good information," Merida said, looking over the papers the Queen had brought them the next night. She looked impressed. "We could do a lot of damage in just one night with coordinated attacks against their warehouses."
"Are you suggesting what I think you're suggesting?" Much asked, leaning forward and flicking open his lighter. The flame danced in the dim lighting of Robin's garage.
Robin leaned forward. "Put that out. We want to destroy the warehouses, not my place of employment."
Much closed his lighter, looking sheepish. "Sorry, Robin. Got a little carried away there."
"Do you think we can coordinate an arson attack?" Tuck asked. "Hunting is one thing, this is another."
"I think we can. We won't be able to do it right away but if we plan and get everything just right, we can pull this off," Robin said, tapping the papers with his fingers. "We can definitely send a message to the Coven this way."
The door opened and Alan ran in, looking panicked. "Something's going down, Robin. There are more goons than usual on the streets and they're all lurking around one spot. I don't know what's going on but I doubt it's good."
Robin frowned, nodding. He grabbed his bow as he looked at his crew. "Grab your weapons, raise your hoods and grab your masks for extra security. Let's go see what's going on."
They filed out of Robin's garage and he locked it up before they slipped into the network of alleys that crisscrossed Sherwood. Several muscled men patrolled on the streets and each Merry Man followed one to their ultimate meeting spot, which was a corner deep in the heart of the neighborhood.
Climbing a nearby fire escape, Robin watched from overhead with John, Will and Mulan on the landings closest to him. A sleek black car pulled in front of the building, looking out of place in Sherwood. They watched as a dark-haired man of average height and build emerged from the front seat, looking around nervously.
One goon approached him. "Do you have the information?"
"Uh, no," the man said. "It…It was stolen from the Commissioner's office. The Queen probably took it."
Another goon frowned. "Our bosses aren't going to be happy you let that information go for a walk."
The man's face grew red. "It's not my fault! The damn fool wouldn't let me hold onto it in my safe. He thought it was safer in his office."
"Well, you're lucky," the first goon said. "We're going to give you a chance to get that information back. Find it and we won't have to break your legs. Got it, ADA Pendragon?"
"I got it," the man said and something clicked in Robin's mind. This man was probably the Queen's next target. He didn't know it, but he didn't have to fear the goons after all.
The goons nodded, backing off. "You best be getting out of here," the second goon said. "We can't guarantee your car will look like that if you stay any longer."
ADA Pendragon stuttered out his thanks and headed for the driver side door as the goons headed out to terrorize some poor innocent soul. Robin watched as Will slipped after them, ready to take them out when possible. He, meanwhile, continued to watch ADA Pendragon along with John and Mulan.
The attorney paused, tilting his head as if he heard something. He looked toward the alley nearest Robin before smirking. "Looking for some company, sweetheart?"
A woman emerged from the shadows and Robin recognized her immediately—the Queen was going to take down her next target in his neighborhood. He grew angry with her, wondering why she would bring her mess into Sherwood and bring the police back down upon them. Was she setting him and his Merry Men up? Had he misread her all along?
"No," she replied, strolling toward him. "It sounded like I got you in trouble with your friends there."
ADA Pendragon's face blanched as he reached for his phone. "You're the Queen! I'm going to call the cops."
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," she said. "Do you want to explain to them what you're doing in Sherwood? How you're being paid off by the Coven to look the other way and are now being threatened by their goons for information the Commissioner was keeping? Do you want that attention on you?"
He scowled at her. "What do you want with me then? I doubt there's anything I can give you that you didn't take from the Commissioner."
"True. You're going to serve a different purpose. Make the police really look at the Coven," she said, pulling out her gun.
It hit Robin then what she was going to do—kill ADA Pendragon and then frame the two goons who had been threatening him. The murder of an assistant district attorney would force any judge to convict the goons, which could also result in a deeper investigation into the Coven. He was impressed as a shot rang out.
Until he realized it was the Queen who was crumpling to the ground, clutching her side. While he was admiring her plan, Robin had failed to see that ADA Pendragon had pulled out a gun. Smoke still curled from its barrel as he kept it pointed at her, approaching her with a maniacal grin on his face. "The way I see it, Your Majesty, is that I'm going to be a hero to this city for finally bringing you down. Enjoy hell," he sneered.
Robin fired off an arrow, watching as it landed in the attorney's shoulder. He swung down from the fire escape—John and Mulan closed behind him—and made for the Queen. Blood covered her hand and he knew she needed medical attention soon. Robin crouched down next to her. "You're injured," he whispered.
"It's nothing," she shot back. "Get Pendragon."
"I'll get two vigilantes for the price of one! This is my lucky night!" he heard the attorney say. As another shot rang out, Robin pushed the Queen onto the ground and covered her with his body. Something hot and powerful tore into his own shoulder and he let out a cry of pain. One more shot rang out and blackness overtook his vision.
As his body sagged, he heard a female voice cry out: "Robin!"
When Robin came to, he was surrounded by a bright white light and the overwhelming aroma of disinfectant. His whole body was sore and he found he couldn't move his left shoulder and it hurt to breathe. As his vision cleared, he saw Belle sitting by his bedside, looking pale and worried.
Her eyes widened when she saw he was awake and she squeezed his hand. "Don't you ever scare me like that again," she hissed.
"Sorry," he replied, his voice hoarse and his throat scratchy. "Things went a bit south."
She nodded, pouring some water into a plastic cup and sticking a straw in it. Belle held it out to him, watching as he sipped the cool, refreshing liquid. "Will and John told me. Your arrow kept that ADA from getting a good shot at you. According to Whale, it ended up lodged in your rib cage without nicking any arteries. He was able to get it out but you have a couple broken ribs. You'll need to let them and your shoulder heel before you go back out chasing bad guys."
"Did…Did he report my injuries?" Robin asked, knowing hospitals were required to report gun shot victims.
"No," Belle replied, setting the cup back down. "Whale's been very discreet and so has the hospital. You're lucky you're a hero no one wants to get into trouble."
He nodded, licking his chapped lips. Images of the Queen's bloodstained hands and coat filled his mind and he frowned. "The Queen. What happened to her?"
"Major surgery, but she's going to be fine," his sister said, pulling the curtain back to reveal the other side of the room.
Robin's heart skipped a beat when he saw ADA Regina Mills lying on the other bed. Her dark hair was fanned out over her pillow and her skin was paler than usual. All her makeup had been washed off and she wore only the paper-thin hospital gown. An IV line was hooked up to her arm, delivering medicine as she slept. He guessed that once she realized that the bad guys were in the criminal justice system too, she had turned to vigilantism to bring them down.
There was no one sitting by her bed, though, and he frowned. "Did anyone call her family?" he asked.
"Yes," Belle said. "There's a blonde woman who usually comes in to sit with her. Her name's Mal and says she's Regina's lawyer. From what I can tell, she also taking care of Regina's son though she hasn't brought him around. I don't think Regina wants him to see her like this, just like we don't want Roland to see you like this."
"Roland," he groaned, letting his head fall back on the pillow. "What are we going to tell him?"
"That his Papa stepped in to rescue someone and got hurt in the process but he's going to be alright," Belle said, her tone implying that she had already told her nephew that story.
He nodded, thanking her. She squeezed his hand again and kissed his forehead. "I really, really hope we don't have to do this again, Robin," she whispered.
"I know," he replied before wincing. "Did you ask them not to give me any pain medication as punishment? Because I totally understand but I think I need it."
Belle smiled at last. "While you would deserve it, no. I'll go see if I can find a nurse to get you some more painkillers."
She slipped out of his room and he turned to his roommate, sitting up with a groan. "Regina?"
"Robin?" she whispered, turning her head and her eyes blinked open. They were a bit unfocused and he figured they had her on the good painkillers. She lifted her head, her eyes widening. "Robin!"
He nodded. "So…you're the Queen?"
She smiled sheepishly. "Yeah. Play on the name. Not as cool as Outlaw, I guess."
"I like it," he replied before turning serious. "So I think I can take a guess as to why you turned to vigilantism. Got tired of seeing the bad guys win?"
"Pretty much," she replied, "but I mostly did it for you and Roland."
That surprised him and rolled onto his side, wincing at the pain but ignoring it. "What do you mean?"
She also rolled onto her side, propping herself up with her elbow. "I hated knowing that Roland would go through life not knowing what happened to his mother or getting justice for her. That is a horrible feeling."
He frowned. "You sound like you're speaking from experience."
"I am," she replied softly. "My father was killed when I was young. They never caught the killer and as I grew up, I learned that he had stood up to a criminal family and they ordered a hit on him. They were well connected, which is why no one ever paid for my father's death."
"So you went into law to try to change that?" he asked.
She nodded before letting out a wry laugh. "Pretty naïve of me, huh?"
"I think it's admirable," he replied. "What happened to this criminal family?"
"They still rule my old hometown with an iron fist. Imagine my dismay to move to Hyperion Heights to discover something similar," she said with a sigh.
The pain in his shoulder and chest soon grew too much for him to ignore and he laid back down on his back though he kept his head turned so he could continue to look at her. "You should've told me you were going to kill Pendragon in Sherwood," he said, voice low. "We could've protected you."
"I didn't expect him to have a gun," she replied, voice just as low. "And I almost did tell you. But I didn't you to get caught in the crosshairs. Which you did. Why did you jump in front of me?"
His eyebrows raised at her accusatory and almost angry tone. "I believe the phrase you're looking for is 'thank you.'"
"Robin, I'm serious," she said. "You could've been seriously wounded."
"Says the woman who was shot in the gut and was about to be shot fatally," he replied. "What about your son?"
She grew quiet and he knew he had her there. He moved closer to the railing of his bed. "We may not have been partners but we were allies. I wasn't going to let you die. Especially now that I know who you really are."
Regina grinned. "You know, I thought you might have recognized me during our first meeting. Then when you asked me not to kill…well…me, I realized you didn't."
"I feel like kicking myself for not realizing it," he said. "After all the time you spent with us…I even thought your eyes looked familiar. But I still didn't put it together. Did you realize it was me?"
She nodded. "Even with that godawful American accent. The bow mostly gave it away. Roland showed it to me when I went to your house for some follow up questions."
"Of course he did," he replied with a chuckle. He could imagine Roland proudly showing off the bow and telling Regina all about how he would learn how to use it when he was older.
Silence descended upon the room until Robin voiced the question echoing around his head. "What now?"
"I think we're both out of the game for the foreseeable future, Robin," she replied with another chuckle.
He chuckled as well. "True. But I mean…after that. Because the way I see it, Your Majesty, is even if you don't want a partner, you have one."
Regina was silent for a while but as Belle returned with Dr. Whale, she said: "I think I would like a partner."
He grinned at that and let Dr. Whale examine him without much of a fight. The Coven had no clue what would hit it once the Outlaw and the Queen were back on their feet and working together.
Its days in power were truly numbered.