“I need you,” she said again, quieter. It was harder to say, and she honestly did not know if that was because it was a total lie, or the total truth.

He reacted to that hesitation, and for a tender moment he was hers, desperate to impress her and make up for the shortcomings of their past. But that potential shifted away, imperceptibly, when neither of them said anything more. The silence that had so long connected them was—finally—damning.

“I’ve spent my time,” Robin closed his eyes, “leading battles, pretending to be a leader I’m not. If I’m going to run around as a figurehead for people to shoot at, I’d much rather be a king than an outlaw.”

He turned and left.

She didn’t move. “You’re just going to walk away?”

It stopped him, but only long enough for him to sling a few final insults. “I have a few days left before I go back to your cousin, who, by the way, is a better man than I’ll ever be. Until then, I’m sure I can find better company than that of thieves…” he targeted the men with that name, then aimed his final words directly at her, “… and liars.”

Perhaps the worst part was that he was right.

“I think I’ll take you up on your previous offer,” he added, marching toward the horses. “The fastest fucking one.”

From behind, Will hollered “Good riddance!”

A movement by her legs alerted Marion to Much, who pressed his body into her hip. “Where’s he going?”

“He’s going away,” she said, wiping her eyes. “It’s what he does.”

Marion took Much’s hand and pulled him back to the fire with the others. The sky was pitch black, and she had things far more important than regret. Will remained by the fire, the others huddled around him. They awaited her command.

The answer had already formed itself. She couldn’t let them slide backward, to a place of fear. If they allowed themselves to be victims again, then the sense of progress, the rise of agency that had been building, it would be taken back tenfold.

“We can’t sit back on these raids,” she said, as much as she hated it. “We have to stop it.”

They collectively exhaled.

Elena spoke first, walking behind the circle the others had formed. “She’s right. We don’t need Robin, we never did. And this was never his fight.” Arthur nodded, and John breathed in deeply. “These are our people. Our friends that need us. If Robin is willing to turn his back on people in need, then so be it. That’s his choice. We have to make our own.”