Hello everyone. As promised, I decided to post my new story. For those of you who are following Light in the Midst of Darkness I have no clue when I will update it. I have lost the motivation to write for it for the time being, but I think I know what I might do, even if it is just to finish it. But for right now, a new story that I am absolutely in love with. I decided to go all out with this one and am adding so many twists and turns that it is so exciting and I hope everyone enjoys it too. So, without further ado... Moving Forward.
Chapter 1 (Six Weeks)
The walk home from Granny's
Six weeks? They were in Camelot for six weeks? Not another curse! Regina thinks as she, Robin, Roland, and Henry make their way down Main Street to the Mayoral Mansion.
"Another curse with another memory wipe. At least it was only six weeks and not a year this time," Robin says as they approach the house.
"It feels weird to lose time like this. Even if it is only six weeks. I can't imagine what it was like to lose a whole year," Henry says as they all walk up the pathway to the front door.
"Papa, I'm hungry. And tired," Roland says as he turns to his father with a sleepy and pleading look in his eyes.
"I know my boy. Come on, let's go make something to eat real quick and then get you into bed. Regina, love, do you want something to eat? Regina?" Robin says, but notices Regina is a bit distracted by something on her hand. "Are you alright, milady?"
Regina doesn't say anything. She just looks up at Robin with a bewildered expression and then holds up her hand to show him what had captured her attention. He looked at her hand, not quite understanding what she was trying to point out, until he realized the shiny silver bands and the sapphire and diamonds attached to said bands. The rings on her hand that she was showing him. Her left hand, he realizes. Robin then looks down at his own left hand to discover a silver band on his ring finger.
When he looks back up at Regina, it is with a huge smile on his face, but one that is quickly replaced to one of confusion as he looks at Regina. She has a solemn look on her face and a lone tear sliding down her cheek.
"Regina, what's wrong? Why are you crying?" Robin asks, worry evident in his tone.
At Robin's mention of his mother crying, Henry turns from making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to see what's wrong.
"Mom? What's wrong? Is everything alright?" Henry asks as he hands Roland a plate with half a sandwich on it.
"Huh? Oh, no, yes. Everything is fine, sweetie," Regina says reassuringly to Henry. He doesn't quite believe her, but his stomach growls right then so he takes a sandwich and sits down next to Roland and eats.
"Is everything okay, love?" Robin asks worriedly.
"Yes, everything is fine. It's great actually," Regina says.
"Then why are you sad?" Robin wants to know.
"Because I don't remember," Regina admits.
"Don't remember what, love?" Robin asks.
Regina motions to his and hers wedding bands before looking Robin in the eye.
"I don't remember, and I wish I did. The only memories I have of a day like that are pretty blurry and miserable. I wish I could remember ours, but I don't," Regina admits.
"Oh, Regina. Thank goodness. We will get our memories back. We will figure out a way to save the town," Robin says as he envelops Regina into his arms and holds her close as he kisses her temple.
"Yes, but how? How are we going to do that?" Regina questions.
"The way we will always do things. Together. And even though you are disappointed you don't remember, I am just glad that you're happy about it," Robin says as they pull away and walk into the kitchen and grab a sandwich each.
"Why wouldn't I be happy about it? What gave you- Oh. Robin, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to alarm you. Of course I'm happy about it, I just wish I could remember it, that's all," Regina says as she and Robin sit down at the table with the boys.
"Remember what?" Henry asks, looking between the two adults and then settling his eyes on his mother for answers.
Regina looks at Robin for conformation, and receiving a shrug and a nod, Regina turns back to her son. No, her sons.
"Well it appears Robin and I, we, uh, we," Regina starts, but is nervous to continue. Thankfully, to Regina's relief, Robin finishes.
"We got married in Camelot, it seems. Your mother was just upset she can't remember it, which is why she was crying," Robin explains.
"Woah, wait. You guys got married?" Henry asks, and gets a nod from Robin and a yes from his mother. "So, not only did I lose six weeks' worth of memories, but I also lost the memory of my mom getting married, and I gained a brother and father?"
"Listen, Henry. I in no way wish to replace your dad. I just hope that you can come to me with any questions you have, and maybe someday, see me as a father figure. But I don't want it to ever seem like I am replacing Neal," Robin says, reaching his hands forward to Henry and holding his in his own.
"Okay. But did you just get the sense of déjà vu there? Like that has happened before?" Henry asks.
"Kind of, yes. It did seem awfully familiar," Robin says.
"Henry is my brudder?" Roland asks sleepily from Regina's lap. While Robin and Henry were talking, he had made his way over to, and crawled onto, Regina's lap.
"I guess so, kid," Henry answers.
"Is Gina my momma?" Roland asks as he lifts his head up from Regina's chest and looks at her.
Robin looks at his son and then at Regina with a somewhat confused look on his face.
"Do you want me to be your momma, Roland?" Regina asks the young boy, looking back at him, curled up on her lap. She could see his face contorted into a look of confusion and concentration as he tried to figure something out. "I know your momma is with the angels, and she will always be in your heart, but what if I was your momma here, on earth."
"I would have two mommas?" Roland asks. When he receives a nod from Regina, the look of confusion turns to one of excitement. "I will be just like Henry!"
"Yeah, kid. Having two moms is great, because if one isn't around, the other most likely is," Henry says.
"But my other momma is with the angels," Roland says, confusion and sadness coloring his features.
"Yes, but that doesn't mean you can't talk to her, and that doesn't mean she won't listen," Henry explains to the young boy.
"Okay," Roland says, as he sighs sleepily and rests his head on Regina's chest once again.
"How about we finish this discussion tomorrow, and we all get to bed, hm?" Regina asks, suddenly very tired from the most recent events, and whatever else must've happened earlier that day.
"That sounds like a great idea. Here, I'll take Roland up to his room and get him changed and into bed," Robin suggests as he lifts Roland off of Regina's lap, allowing her to stand up in her red dress.
"Alright. Henry and I will clean up in here. I will be up in a couple minutes," Regina says, giving Roland a kiss on the top of his head amongst his brown curls, and then giving Robin a quick peck on the lips before turning to help Henry.
"You alright, Henry?" Regina asks as she notices him slumped over in his seat, investigating his clothing, but disinterestedly.
"I'm fine," Henry says as he stands up and gathers the plates from the table.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Regina asks.
"Not really. I'm just really tired right now. And I wish I could remember what happened in Camelot. I was finally in your world, and I don't remember a single moment of it, and we were there for six weeks. A lot can happen in six weeks. Obviously," Henry says as he gestures to Regina's left hand.
"Henry, are you okay with Robin and I being married?" Regina asks, worried.
"Are you kidding? My step dad is Robin Hood. That is probably the coolest thing ever. And my mom is finally happy. At least one of them is. The other one is just taken over by darkness," Henry says in explanation.
"Henry, I'm sorry we failed Emma in Camelot, but we will find a way to save her here. I promise," Regina says as she wraps Henry into a big hug.
"I know you will, mom. I believe in you. You can do this, and you won't be doing it alone," Henry says brightly as he looks at Regina.
"Thank you, Henry. But I think it will take a bit more convincing for everyone else to feel the same way," Regina says as she pulls away from Henry and starts walking to the stairs.
"Don't worry, mom. For right now you have me, Robin, Roland, grandma, and gramps. And if we all believe in you, then everyone else soon will, too," Henry says as they both stop outside his door.
"I love you, Henry," Regina says as she kisses him on the forehead.
"I love you, too, mom," Henry says as he opens his door, walks in his room, and closes the door behind him.
Regina walks quietly down the hallway to hers and Robin's bedroom, stopping to check on Roland on her way down the hall. When she sees him passed out, she continues on down the hall. When she reaches her bedroom door and steps inside, she sees Robin sprawled out on the bed in nothing but a t-shirt and boxers with his arm draped across his eyes to block out the light coming from the bedside lamps. She quietly walks around the bed and to her walk-in closet where she takes of the red dress and hangs it up on a hanger before walking out of the closet in her silk pajama top and matching silk pajama bottoms.
When she turns towards the bed, she sees Robin turned towards her and looking at her with the biggest grin she has ever seen.
"What?" Regina asks, somewhat self-consciously.
"Nothing, milady. Just that I can't believe you are my wife, that's all," Robin says, scooting across the bed and indicating for Regina to lay next to him.
"Oh? Is that all, thief?" Regina asks, with a hint of playfulness in her tone.
"Mm-hm. That and my wife just happens to be the most beautiful creature in all the realms," Robin says as he wraps his arm around Regina's waist and pulls her closer to him.
"Flattery doesn't get you very far with me, thief. Remember?" Regina says, turning to face Robin and then planting a quick peck to his lips before resting her head against his chest, the rhythmic sound of his heart lulling her to sleep.
"I wasn't aiming to flatter, my queen. I was just speaking the truth," Robin says as he kisses the top of Regina's head and then smiles as he rests his head down on the pillows; adjusting slightly on his back, causing Regina to lay half on top of Robin's chest.
Regina only gives a small noise of acknowledgment, but Robin can tell she is falling asleep fast, or is already asleep. When she waves her hand to turn off the lights in the room, he knows that she was awake enough to hear him, but tired enough to not give a full response. He doesn't care though. He has everything that he could have ever of hoped for in this moment. He does wonder when he had finally asked Regina to marry him, since he had been planning it ever since he got back from New York with Roland, leaving Zelena behind in the city. He knows he must have asked sometime during the missing six weeks given he can't remember asking, he just wonders how long they have been married for.
Camelot –Four Weeks ago
"Hey, Mom. You ready?" Henry asks as he approaches Regina who looks apprehensive and excited all at once.
Regina takes a minute to collect her breathing as she prepares herself for what lies ahead. Then she nods her head as Henry takes her arm and the two of them walk out of the tent that she had magicked there earlier that day in preparation. Henry holds open the flap for his mother as she ducks underneath it and then they are walking through the trees and forest just outside the walls of the kingdom of Camelot. The trees start to grow thicker the more they walk and then they turn a corner and suddenly all the trees have thinned out, creating an open area that is the perfect size for what they needed it for.
Chairs were set up on two sides, leaving an aisle down the middle that had a light blue carpet all the way down it with white and red rose petals thrown about it. Regina lifts her eyes from the forest floor and the blue carpet to the man standing at the end of the aisle, with blue eyes that were nearly the same color as the carpet on the ground. In that moment, all she saw was him. Her thief. Her soon-to-be husband. Her Soulmate.
He looks for her, straining his neck to look around the trees to catch a glimpse of her, but he doesn't see her until she rounds the corner and stands at the opposite end of the aisle. She looks absolutely stunning. Not that she doesn't always look stunning, but today, she is especially so. She had opted to not wear a traditional white wedding dress, since her first wedding had been this grand affair and nothing like she had wanted. This wedding, he let her imagination run wild with whatever she wanted, and surprisingly, it wasn't that much. She wanted to keep things small and simple, with only their closest friends in attendance, and had Robin brought the Merry Men along with them to Camelot, they would have been there too. Little John and Will were going to kill him when they found out about this.
He watched as she made her way towards him in that beautiful light blue-ish gray dress that was reminiscent of her days before the Evil Queen. She had told him it was her favorite color and he had remarked that it suited her quite well. He hadn't seen the dress before the wedding, but she had worn a night shirt in the same color as a sneak peek for him. The dress was gorgeous, but simple. It was sleeveless and had a corseted top that had a sweetheart neckline and the corset portion stopped at her hips, with pearls and diamonds covering it. Then it poofed out a bit like a ball gown, but a bit more understated, in the same light blue color with various pearls and diamonds sewn into the fabric here and there to give the illusion of stars in the early morning sky.
Only a few people are in attendance. Snow, David, Neal, Emma, Killian, Granny, Ruby, Grumpy, Happy, and of course Henry who is at her side and Robin and Roland who were both at the altar, waiting for her. When she finally reached him, she handed her flowers over to Snow and she took his hands. She was still staring into his blue eyes, not quite believing that this was actually happening, tuning every noise out, until he started his vows. They had decided to keep things simple. Not many people in attendance. Not a huge ordeal. No big wedding dress, but an elegant dress nonetheless. And simple vows that they had written themselves. Robin and her had argued for many hours a couple days ago about who would go first, when she finally relented and let him. Now it was time for the vows and she was hoping that she had made the right decision.
"Regina Victoria Mills. When we first met, my first thought was how could someone who was supposed to be so evil and beautiful, be so annoying and frustrating. There were times when I wished that you would literally tear my head off instead of with your words about how infuriating and intolerable I was. Then, I got to see more of you. I realized that the words you threw at me, were only you putting up walls to prevent yourself from being hurt again. So, I threw them right back at you. And that day, before the curse sent us all to Storybrooke, and we were having another one of our sparing matches and I kissed you, I knew I had fallen in love with you. I had slowly pulled that wall around you down, and made you see that you could indeed live a life of happiness, regardless of whether you had your son with you or not. Then when we met in Storybrooke, I had the wonderful chance to meet you yet again for the first time, just minus a flying monkey pulling you off the ground by your arm. And even though I did shoot an arrow at your head and you caught it, and I lived to tell the tale, I knew that you weren't the great and terrible Evil Queen that I had heard stories about. You were a woman who was struggling to change for the better, and that is what made me fall in love with you a second time. That even though you have faced incredible odds, letting the darkness in when you were filled with nothing but light, and then fighting to get back that light, you are continually trying to do better and be better. And not for yourself, but for your son, and that is the most beautiful and selfless thing I have ever seen, milady. So, Regina, my Queen, I will promise, until the day I die, I will continue to love you, through good times and bad, because, with you I have found that the good far outweighs the bad. I promise to never leave your side again, because there is no one in this entire world, or in any realm for that matter, that could ever keep you from me. I love you, Regina Mills, and I will continue to love you for the rest of eternity," Robin finishes, grasping Regina's hands in his own.
Regina tries to fight back the tears in her eyes, but can feel a few running down her cheeks at the words Robin has just said to her. She stares at him for a moment, trying to gather her thoughts while also marveling at how lucky she got to have this man in her life.
"Robin," Regina starts. "From the moment I first met you, both in the Enchanted Forest and in Storybrooke, I thought you were the most stubborn, annoying, infuriating person I had ever met. You constantly pushed my limits, and I constantly wondered what was keeping me from roasting you alive. But then I realized that no one had ever really dared to question me or stand up to me, and I found that quite admirable, even though I didn't fully acknowledge that until about a week before we returned to Storybrooke. I hadn't realized that I wanted someone to be able to throw back words at me with as much force as I threw them at you. But you knew when to be harsh and when to be understanding, and that, inevitably, made me more infuriated at you, but then again I was dealing with so many things and all these new emotions that I acted the only way I knew how. You showed me patience when no one else would. You saw past my carefully constructed walls to the person I am underneath all the layers of evil I have. You are the one person who kept me sane during that year without my son and living with the two idiots." Everyone chuckles at that, including Henry and the bride and groom. "You are my other half. You make me whole, and I hope I do the same for you. When Daniel died, he told me to love again and I didn't think that were possible. But, thief, you have taught me time and time again, that anything is possible, as long as you are willing to accept it. Or not, and if it is meant to be, then they will be thrown in your face no matter how hard you try to avoid it. Robin of Locksley, I promise to always love you, and to always believe in you because I know that you are right and this is right. I promise to keep trying to be a better person, as long as you are willing to keep pushing me no matter how hard I may fight against it. I promise to love you, Robin, for the rest of eternity."
When Regina finishes, both she and Robin, and pretty much everyone in attendance, has tears in their eyes and smiles on their faces. The priest declares them husband and wife after they placed each other's rings on one another's fingers, and then Robin grabs Regina into a dip and kisses her until they need air. He rights her and then they face the audience who stands and claps and cheers and congratulates them.
Storybrooke –Present Day
Robin doesn't dwell on it for too long though, as he is tired, and he knows they will get some answers eventually. So he closes his eyes and holds on to Regina tighter, happily content with how things are, and falls asleep dreaming of the kind of life they will have in the future.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask them. I gotta tell you though that Reviews really motivate me to continue writing. If you have nothing huge to say, even a "good job" or a simple "keep going" motivates me to keep writing. But do let me know if I should post the other chapters I have written. These chapters are a lot longer than my other story, so bear with me. As always, Fav/Follow/Review! :)