A hotdog with marshmallows melted on top would sound revolting to any rational person, but not to Felicity. No, Felicity was pregnant and her cravings could not be denied, which was why she was in the kitchen at two A.M. making a sickening campfire crossbreed as she mumble-sang "Campfire Song Song" from Spongbob.

Her creation was finished in thirty seconds, and she licked her lips as she removed it from the microwave. Ah, Dr. Frankenstein would be proud. But it needed something… chocolate syrup! And a graham cracker crumbled on top. Yes. Yeees.

The ridiculous pregnant woman set her beloved mallowdog on the island and liberated the chocolate syrup from the fridge. Then she found the graham crackers, and soon her hideous masterpiece was complete.

As she closed her eyes to take a savory bite, she heard a disgusted groan. For a split second she thought it was the s'moredog, but then she turned towards the sound and saw Roy entering the kitchen.

"You're not really going to eat that, are you?"

Keeping her eyes on his, she chomped into the dreadful delicacy, watching his face screw up in repulsion.

"Ew, you are so weird." he said, shaking his head as he took a seat at the island.

She smiled at him as she chewed. "Now that I've ruined your appetite, aren't you going to go back to bed?"

His demeanor changed immediately. "Can't."

"Why not?" Felicity asked after swallowing.

Roy shrugged. "Why are you up at two A.M. eating that unholy hotdog?"

"I got up to pee, but then I got hungry before I could fall back asleep. Also, I'm pregnant." She took another bite, Roy's eye twitching at the sight. "And you didn't answer my question."

"Why should I tell you?" he replied defensively.

"Why should I tell you anything about the vigilante?" she countered around another bite of s'moredog.

Roy blinked, suddenly eager. "Would you really tell me about the Hood?"

"Did I say that?" Felicity took the seat next to him. "And between you and me, he's not very fond of that name. Not that he's found one he likes. I call him by a few silly ones, but never to his face. My favorites so far are Killer Lime and the Avocado Raccoon—"

"Do you know where I can find him?"

"Slow your roll, fanboy," she said. "You first. Why are you up?"

He scratches the back of his neck. "It doesn't matter."

Felicity narrowed her eyes at him. "Are you… are you trying to be tough? Are trying to keep from exposing some weakness? Because I'm the last person you should feel the need to be tough around." Felicity munched on her gross hotdog. "Seriously, I'm an awkward nerd and my maternal instinct is cranked to eleven. You don't need to impress me with machismo."

Roy only glanced at her. "I had a nightmare, okay?"

"Yeah, I figured. So was it about the Undertaking?"

He shrugged again, much to her annoyance. "Kinda."

"Come on, Roy! It's okay to be squishy!" Felicity shoved the s'moredog in his face, and he jerked back. "Be soft like these melted marshmallows!"
"Get that thing away from me,"

"Smushy gushy mushy!"
"Fine!" he exclaimed, and she put the dog on its plate. "I had another dream about Thea being in danger and not being able to save her. This time it was when all the buildings where collapsing around us and I thought I wasn't going to reach her in time."

Felicity was quiet as she processed his confession. "I'm sorry," she finally said. "I know the feeling."

"You do?"

She patted her stomach.

"Oh," he eyed her curiously. "How often have you been in danger since getting pregnant?"

"Why do you want to find the Hood so badly?"

Roy looked like his heart was in his throat, like this was the moment of truth. "So he can teach me to be like him."

"Because you feel helpless?"

The question startled him. "Helpless?"

"You don't think you can protect the person you care about, so you want the Hood to show you how. It sounds like you feel helpless."

It seemed he's never thought about it that way before. A tough guy like him would just say he wasn't a good enough fighter. But to use such a weak word…

"Maybe," he answered, his voice small. He looked more orphan boy than gangbanger as he wrestled with the assessment.

"Hey," she put her hand on his. "Wanna hear about a time I felt helpless?"

He nodded, running a hand through his hair.

"Remember hearing about the Huntress?"

His eyes grew wide. "You met the Huntress?"

"I wish I hadn't. She'd come back to force the Hood to help her kill her father, and she found out about me and what I could do. Found me in his phone, I think. I hadn't been involved in her vendetta until the Hood tried to persuade her to skip town after he broke her out of the police station. Know what she did instead of leaving? She came to me at my office and held a crossbow to my head as I hacked the FBI database. As I searched for the address where her father was being kept, she kept going on about how surprised she was that the Hood trusted me. I'm so weak, I'm so pathetic, blah, blah, blah. And she kept poking me in the head with that damn crossbow, like she was itching to use it. And it got even worse, because she'd seen me hanging out with Oliver. Did you know that Helena Bertinelli used to date Oliver? It was before he and I became better friends, so I'd only heard about her. Man, did she hate that. She really hated that someone like me could be friends with both of them, that they cared about me but thought she was a psychopath. I don't even want to think about what she would've done if she'd known I'd slept with Oliver by that time—"

"You were pregnant then?!"
"Yes, and I had no idea. Anyway, the Hood found me tied up on my office floor a while later. The Huntress said she wanted to see how much the vigilante cared about me, whether I was a real ally or just a pawn. Oh, and guess what I found out the morning after? The night before was when Oliver and McKenna had had sex for the first time. A night filled with terror followed by nauseating news the next morning. It was wonderful."

"That sucks," he said as Felicity crammed the s'moredog in her mouth. "So what happened with Helena?"

"The vigilante went after her," she said after chewing and swallowing the last bite. "He was going to kill her, but she got away."

"Shit, are you serious?"

"Yep," she said, realizing her hand was still on his and quickly removing it.

"What do you think she'll do when she finds out about the baby?"

It took her a moment to realize what he was saying. She blinked once, twice. Then that hotdog monstrosity began to roil in her stomach like a mighty kraken.

"Oh, no," she took his hand again and squeezed, in need of the minor comfort. "He should've killed her when he had the chance."

"He'll protect you," Roy said with certainty, a look of concern on his face. "And she wouldn't have an easy time getting in here. You're safe."

"I'm safe," Felicity breathed deeply, forcing herself to believe he was right. It wouldn't do her any good to worry; she'd done enough of that in her first trimester. I'm safe, I'm safe, I'm safe. He'll protect me.

"And I could help if you told me where to find the vigilante," His sneaky comment brought back much-needed humor to the conversation, and it made her smile.

"I don't know where he is, Roy. And even if you did find him, I'm not so sure he'd agree to teach you anything. He'd probably just kick your ass and run away."

Roy gave her his best puppy-eyed look. "But what if you talked to him?"

She pursed her lips and removed her hand from his. "Not happening."

"Couldn't he use some help, though? How come you get to be his only sidekick?"

"You think he likes needing help? Whenever he's come to me, it's been grudgingly. He's an antisocial loner with severe emotional issues. And his voice is scary, too. A guy like him doesn't want a little Mini-Hood following him around."

"Sounds like you don't like him very much."

She adjusted her glasses. "The first time he needed my help, he forced me at arrowpoint. Second and third time, too. Scared the hell out of me. But when I realized I was helping him take down bad people, I was more willing to help him. He got nicer and I got more comfortable with him. That doesn't mean he stopped being dangerous, though. It's like… Have you seen Life of Pi?"

Roy raised an eyebrow. "The one about the tiger and Indian boy lost at sea? I just know what it's about."

"Well, the Hood is the tiger. I'm pretty sure he only cares at all because he needs me."

"Does he know?"

"Know what? What I think of him?"

He shook his head. "That you're pregnant."

"Oh, right. Diggle told me what Lance said." She bit her lip. "Um… He made a convincing argument. The Hood, I mean. He said he needed me and he'd protect me. Hard to say no when the father of my child seemed uncaring. Oliver was making me feel invisible and inadequate, but the vigilante was doing to exact opposite. I didn't want to be any more alone than I already was, so I kept helping him. And when the Undertaking was over, he made sure I could leave the city."

"So you do like him."

"It's complicated."

"Oliver must've been furious with you," he said, leaning forward on his elbow and resting his chin in his hand. "When he found out Thea and I were tracking down the vigilante, he freaked out. But to know his baby mama was the guy's sidekick—"

"I made it very clear that he can't tell me what to do." she answered curtly. "After everything he put me through, he had no right to be angry. He should've been there for me instead of cowering away from his feelings for me. He broke up with me and pushed me away because he was frightened by how much he loved me. Can you believe that asshole?"

Roy suppressed a laugh. "But you are in love with him, right?"

"Of course I am." Her lips puckered in an angry pout. "Stupid asshole," she muttered, staring at the counter in front of her. Then she stood up. "Well, I'm gonna go back to bed. Night, Roy."

"Wait," he called before she could leave the room. "I've been wondering… Did you have anything to do with the Hood saving me?"

Felicity leaned against the counter. "You mean when that camera-wielding nutcase tied you up in a subway car and tried to shoot you? I was the one who figured out where he was keeping you. And I didn't appreciate you egging him on. I only had so much time to find you and you were begging him to kill you. Do you have any an idea how pissed I was? If you ever call yourself a waste again, I will slap the shit out of you. You got that, prettyboy?"

He blinked at her. "You saved me just as much as he did."

"I suppose so. Which is why I'm not okay with you throwing yourself into danger."
"I'm not giving up that easily."

Felicity sighed. "Fine. Whatever. Just keep Thea out of it. And if you do find him, the best I can do is keep him from putting an arrow in you."

"Okay," he said dismissively.

"I mean it, Roy. Whatever Oliver told you about the vigilante is right."

"Yeah, like I should take advice about the vigilante from a wimp and a pregnant woman."

Her eyebrow arched, irritated by his insolence. "Keep in mind, Roy," her voice was deadly calm and unsettlingly sweet, a tone she'd learned from her parents. "That the Hood chose me for a reason. And that was before I got pregnant. Now I'm hormonal and stressed as well as deceptively harmless." She leaned in slightly, and she could see his tough shell begin to crack. "So I suggest you march up to your room before I drag you there by your ear like the petulant child you are."

He swallowed hard but refused to break eye contact. "You don't scare me."

"Oh, but I do, Roy," Her lips curled in a small, empty smile. "And I should. Now march."

"I'm tired, anyway." Roy said in an attempt to maintain some dignity as he obediently rose from his seat and left the room.

Did you see that, Baby Hood? Looks like I have someone to practice my motherly sternness on.