Although the journals were a bit outdated for Robin, he enjoyed seeing the old man's excitement as they discussed their contents. Doctor Don's joy over medicine was contagious, rekindling a spark in Robin's heart for the profession.

However, their time was cut short when a man ran into the tavern asking for Doctor Don. A farmer had gotten his foot caught under a plow in the next town over. Doctor Don stood up quickly, ready to rush out, but not without offering Robin a chance to join him.

"No, I best not, in this case," Robin said, sensing the situation's urgency. "But I would like to discuss working as an assistant to you while I'm in town, should you ever need it."

"Oh! Yes, my boy, I would love that!" the doctor said, his smile growing in excitement. "Some of the older men in town and I meet on Thursdays here at the Deadwood. You are free to join us, and we can discuss it then!"

Doctor Don hurried out of the bar, following the panicked young farmer. He tipped his hat to Miss Jackie as he left.

"Anything else I can get you today, Mr. Robin?" Miss Jackie asked, coming by to grab the half-empty glass of beer the doctor had left behind. "Will Holly be joining you later?"

"I don't believe so. I'm actually headed back to the jewelry shop after this."

"Well, drag her back here with you, if you can. It's been ages since she came to see me. She use to come here every day after closing up her shop, you know. Get herself a little cocktail and peanuts. Just sit in that corner over there alone and listen to the music," Miss Jackie said, as she pointed to an abandoned table on the opposite side of the room. The table sat tucked away in the darkened corner, with just a single chair facing the piano.

"Then Jo came around, and she started coming in less. But now that you're here, I barely see her at all," Miss Jackie lamented, nudging Robin's arm. "I'm happy for her, but I gotta admit I miss that sweet girl."

Robin hadn't realized that Holly was going out of her way to spend time with him. Looking back, she did always have an excuse to come by the house, even when she should be at the store, but Robin had grown rather fond of her company. He often found himself looking forward to her arrivals, so he hadn't given it much thought.

Robin took a deep breath, and looked up at Miss Jackie.

"Is it true? What Doctor Don said...that Holly is a criminal?"

"Well... if you want the full story, you must ask Holly yourself..." Miss Jackie said, smirking at him with a knowing look. "Because if you are looking for reasons to dismiss your feelings for Holly—"

"I don't-" Robin blurted, heat rising to his ears.

"Then," Miss Jackie interrupted, her sunny smile beaming at him, "you should get them from her and not from what others have to say about her."

Robin looked down at the cooling coffee in his hands. Miss Jackie walked off with a small chuckle. Leaving him alone at the table.

Robin sighed deeply before he quickly drank the rest of his coffee. Putting some coins on the table, he thanked Miss Jackie, and hurried out of the Deadwood's swing doors.

He stopped right outside the saloon's door, blinking against the sun as he looked up at the loose cotton clouds.

Robin wasn't ready to head to the jewelry shop just yet; he needed time to consider what had been said at Deadwood.

Miss Jackie was right. Robin did have feelings for Holly. He was just looking for reasons why he shouldn't.

Robin ran his hands through his hair and started down the alley to the jewelry shop.

Was it just his imagination, or did it seem like Doctor Don and Miss Jackie implied that Holly had feelings for him, too? But he—

BANG!

Robin was thrown against the alley wall by a sudden force, being dragged behind the Deadwood, and into an even tighter alley out of view from any passerby.

Robin's heart pounded in his chest, his back aching from the impact against the wooden wall behind him. He slowly fell to his knees as the pain consumed him, his head dizzy from the hit.

Two dark figures stood against the bright sun in front of him. Robin tried to stand as he squinted against the sun to get a better look at them.

His stomach dropped.

The two men before him were strikingly tall, and dressed in freshly pressed black suits. Their hair was seemingly shaved off, causing their snow-white skin to glow in the sunlight. Horrifyingly, these men had mouths that had been curved across the entirety of their faces, almost like a frogs. Their eye a bright red, with slitted pupils that bore into Robin. Their faces held no emotion, except muted curiosity.

A shiver ran down Robin's spine, his heart beat increasing in pace.

One of the men opened his mouth, and his entire jaw came undone. A forked tongue shot out, causing Robin to reel back against the wall in fear.

Robin had never seen creatures like these, not even in his worst nightmares.

"Who are you working for?" one of the creatures hissed, its voice feminine despite the creature's masculine appearance.

"I-I'm a Doctor from King-"

The snake-like creature punched Robin in the face.

His head snapped back, slamming against the wooden wall. His nose immediately started bleeding from the hit, and spots began to dance on the outskirts of his vision.

Even if he wasn't a doctor, he would have known that this was not good.

"Sorry. I shouldn't have asked that question. I know who you're working for. So tell me, how far have you gotten with your little mission?"

"I—I really don't know what you're talking about," Robin sputtered. His head reeled from the impact, making it hard to form words, and blood made its way into his mouth.

Robin tried getting up, using one hand to reach for the necklace Holly gave him, and the other to push him off the ground.

The serpent creature punched him again, this time in the stomach.

Robin fell to his knees, wheezing in pain. He tried grasping for the necklace again, though he barely had any breath left to blow the whistle.

"I see...Hah! You've already got—"

Robin mustered all the air left in his lungs and blew the whistle. The noise, like hitting a crystal, sounded louder than before. A wave of relief washed over him as soon as he heard it.

The snake-men's head tiled in confusion.

"Now, what's all this?" a familiar voice shouted.

Robin let out a painful cough, trying to catch his breath. His head was still pounding, but what was more concerning, was that he was having trouble breathing. Between painful breaths, he looked up to see Holly standing behind the two creatures.

Holly's face fell when she saw his condition, fury lighting up in her eyes. Holly's attention shifted to the beasts, who stared blankly at Robin, unfazed by Holly's presence.

"Excuse me," Holly spat. "I was talking to you two."

In an instant, the serpent men swung around, pouncing at Holly.

Holly lifted her hands as if drawing guns, then smacked them together in one quick movement, like someone playing a cymbal.

A slice went through the beasts before they could reach her, but to Robin's surprise, it did nothing. The beasts quickly fused back together, posing to attack Holly once more.

"Huh," Holly said in mild amusement. Soon, the creatures were beating at Holly, but their attacks failed. It appeared as if Holly was using some type of magic that shielded her from their assault.

After briefly watching the monsters' attempts to attack her, Holly snapped her fingers, and the beasts froze.

Slowly, the two creatures began shriveling into literal white snakes, quickly slithering into the alley behind her.

"Just what on earth is she doing now?" Holly mumbled under her breath, watching the snakes retreat.

Robin slowly sat up, checking himself for all the damage done to his face and torso, pulling up his shirt to heal the bruises already starting to show on his abdomen.

After a moment of making sure the snakes didn't reappear, Holly swung around and ran up to Robin.

She quickly bent down to put Robin's face in her hands, her face etched in worry as she carefully looked at the damage the creatures had done to him. She sucked in a long breath and ran her finger over a cut in his cheek.

"They sure did a number on you, Robin... I'm sorry I wasn't here sooner." Deep guilt and frustration were in her eyes as she touched the cut on his cheek, trying her best to use the fixing magic she had learned to heal it.

"It's going to be okay," Robin said, reaching up to feel the new scar from where her magic didn't quite work. "I can fix all of it, remember?"

Holly leaned back on her heels and shook her head.

"Just because you can fix it, doesn't change the fact you got hurt."

She let out a frustrated sigh. "Come on," she announced, standing and dusting off her trousers. She reached out her hand to help Robin to his feet.

"She better have a good reason for doing this to you."

"She?"

Holly shook her head and tightened her hold of Robin's hand, touching her right hand to her left foot, quickly and haphazardly drawing a half-circle in the air.

"The Witch of the White Snakes... and my best friend."