Pen and Ink week day 5: Devious

In which Penelope works for the Hood.

When Penelope had first been given this assignment, she hadn't thought of it more than just another challenge to get through before she could get everything she wanted.

Sure, she had never been given a mission quite as big or with so much riding on it, but she knew she was up to the task. Her boss wouldn't have given the job to her if he didn't believe she was the best one for it.

The assignment was to get close to one of the Tracy brothers. Very close. She had pulled up all the information they had gathered on them and selected the most appropriate one.

The swimmer was naive and had too big of a heart to turn her away, not when she'd flash him a smile and flutter her eyelashes in all the best ways. She wormed her way into that big heart quickly, and it wasn't long until she had him wrapped around her finger.

It was all going according to her plan. He would tell her all about the secrets of his secret organisation that he thought she wanted to be a part of, but rather she was relaying all the information back to her boss. She really didn't think it could ever go wrong.

However, in all the ways she prepared for this to go downhill, she never counted on falling in love with the boy.

She really tried to ignore her feelings. She kept telling herself that all she had to do was stick it out for a little longer and then she would never have to see his face again. But it was hard to deny the flutter she felt in her chest every time he looked her way, or the smile that stretched across her face every time he said something that made her laugh.

Penelope knew she had made a mistake, but she soon found herself not caring. It didn't matter what her boss thought of her being with the enemy, not when she cared about him so much.

She should have realised that her boss wouldn't take her defiance so lightly.

"Shoot him, Penelope."

The weapon in her hand almost fell to the floor from the amount of sweat in her palm. She flinched under the words her boss yelled at her, but her eyes never left the man in front of her.

Gordon was sitting on the floor, clutching at his side where the Hood had already shoot at him before handing the gun over to Penelope to finish the job. He was looking at her in confusion and pain, but there was a firm determination in his gaze.

"Pen, you don't have to do this."

Her grip on the gun wavered. She really didn't want to do this, but she knew it was her job. This had all just been a job.

"Shoot him!" The Hood yelled again, growing impatient.

Penelope knew that if she didn't do it, the Hood would shoot Gordon for her, and then he'd shoot Penelope for not complying.

"You don't have to do what he says, Penelope. Please," Gordon pleaded. He really knew how to tug at her heartstrings.

Penelope tightened her grip on the weapon as she made a decision. She lifted the gun, and fired it.

The Hood went down as the bullet hit him. Penelope didn't even look to see what the damage was done to him and instead hurried over to Gordon's side.

Gordon was looking over at her in shock, like he couldn't believe she was actually on his side still, even after all they'd been through.

"Pen-"

"You're hurt." Penelope directed the conversation away from her and the questions she knew she would be getting. She knew she couldn't escape them forever, but for now she would rather make sure Gordon was safe.

She leant in closer to Gordon's side, where blood was seeping through his fingers. She gently pried his hand away to get a closer look, but when she touched the wound, Gordon cried out in pain, and then promptly collapsed in her arms.

Penelope watched as Gordon's eyes finally opened after several, excruciatingly long hours of wondering if he'll ever wake up.

He blinked up at the ceiling several times, before his gaze finally moved over to her, where she sat next to his bed.

"Pen? Where...?" He trailed off, and Penelope reached over to grab the cup of ice chips nearby in case his mouth was dry.

"We're back at the island's infirmary," Penelope said as she lifted some chips to his mouth and he slowly took them from her. "I called your brothers straight away, after it all happened."

Gordon was quiet for a moment as he sucked on the ice chips, but soon his mouth opened as he realised something else.

"Why...how are you here?" His voice was a little clearer now he'd had some moisture back.

"I didn't quite explain to your brothers what happened. All they know is that the Hood shot you." Penelope dropped her gaze to the ground as she admitted her inability to be honest with them, even now. "I knew they wouldn't let me come here if they found out, but I needed to make sure you were alright. I will tell you all everything, and I will understand if you never want to see me again."

"Pen." Penelope felt a hand grasp onto hers that was rested on the bed, and Penelope looked back up at Gordon. "I won't ever not want to see you again."

Penelope felt the guilt inside her rise as she realised just how badly she'd tied Gordon up in this and manipulated him to her will.

"Why? I betrayed you and got you hurt." Penelope could feel tears brim in her eyes. "How could you ever forgive me?"

"I love you Penelope." A small, crooked smile appeared on Gordon's face. "And you didn't kill me, which is good enough for me."

"I don't know if you will still feel that way once I've explained everything." Penelope didn't like to think about how she wouldn't have hesitated to shoot him just a few months ago.

"Well, then that's a problem for the future. For now, can I just pretend that you never worked for the Hood, even if just for a night?"

Penelope didn't think that it would be all that easy to forget, but she could agree to one more night where everything could be normal, before the storm would hit tomorrow.

She eventually nodded.

"Just for a night."