This story was originally posted on an Instagram account that I shared with a friend. I've since tweaked it a little. I think that even if Regina had met Robin in the tavern, Rumple would have found some way to keep Regina on the coarse he had set for her. That's just how he is. This takes place during the third episode of the third season: "Quite a Common Fairy." Please enjoy and leave a review!

Regina stared into the tavern, her eyes following the green light that led to a dashing man with a lion tattoo. If only she had the courage to speak to him, her life would change in the best way imaginable. All she needed was to introduce herself and destiny would do the rest. However, her mind insisted on fretting over Daniel. Her mother had killed him. What was stopping this man from being killed also?

What would Leopold do if he returned to the castle and found her gone? "You're over thinking things." Regina whispered to herself. She didn't have to run away with this man. Meeting him would surely sustain her enough for the long years ahead as an unloved queen. She knew it was dangerous to dream. Yet, Tinkerbell seemed positive this man was Regina's true love.

Regina took a deep breathe and yanked open the door to the tavern. It didn't smell very pleasant, though she didn't have anything to compare the smell to besides Leopold's castle and her mother's estate. Slowly, she crept in. A citizen wasn't likely to recognise her, but perhaps a guard would. She paused, glancing around. It was obvious that no one in a place like this would be enough in their right mind to remember her as the queen. She edged her way to the front, taking a seat next to her supposed true love. It was a few minutes before the bartender noticed her.

"What will you have, Miss?" He asked in a rough voice as he leaned in close to her. Regina was revolted by the grin on his dirty face and found herself taken off-guard.

"Do you really have to fancy every maiden that walks in here?" An accented voice spoke. "That's bad for business, my good man." Regina turned and caught the first glimpse of her mysterious true love. He was handsome for a man that she found in the bar. He had an adventurous gleam in his eye, but gave off the air of someone wise and respectful. This man was very different than the loaf behind the counter who was undressing Regina with his eyes.

"Maiden?" Regina raised an eyebrow at him, surprised at how easy talking to him came. He smirked at her, making the skin around his eyes crinkle.

"How very rude of me. Are you, indeed, married?" He asked.

"No," Regina lied as she smiled back at him.

"I can't ask a lady what she wants to drink without it being considered flirting, but you can ask if she's married? Blimey." The bartender grumbled.

"Butch, get my lovely friend here a glass of what I'm having." The man with the lion tattoo swished his mug to indicate his drink. "And be on your way." Chuckling heartily, he turned back to face Regina while Butch stomped away. "What is your name, unmarried maiden?"

"Regina," She spoke, a soft blush forming on her cheeks. He grinned.

"How beautiful. I go by Robin, Robin Hood." He gave a slight bow in his seat and flashed Regina a smile. "It's a pleasure to meet such a lovely maiden as yourself."

"Likewise, though you are not a maiden." Regina answered back.

"Indeed not," Robin chuckled. "What brings you to such a foul place?" He gestured to their surroundings.

"I like to explore." She said shly. That was sort of the truth. "I've never been in a tavern before and I figured I should see what I was missing."

"Not much, I'm afraid." Robin answered, taking a sip from his mug. "Although, you do get to see an excellent bar fight every now and then." Butch interrupted their conversation by coming back with a tall mug for Regina and slamming it on the counter.

"Watch it, Butch. You'll get rum on Regina's lovely dress." Robin scolded.

"I hope she enjoys her lovely glass. I wiped it clean myself." Butch said with sass as he glared at Robin. Regina eyed the stained handkerchief in Butch's shirt pocket. Robin smiled and Butch left to tend to the other customers.

"Thankyou." Regina smiled as she took a delicate sip from her glass. It tasted vile, but she tried to hide it. "Do you live around here?" Regina asked conversationally.

"For the past few weeks, yes." Robin said, looking at Regina.

"What ever do you mean?" Regina cocked her head in confusion.

"Staying in one place too long gets boring. I love the freedom of traveling."

"I don't know much about freedom, but it sounds wonderful." Regina said, looking off to the side.

"Freedom is lonely at times. I would have been long gone from this place if something curious hadn't been making me stay."

"What's that?" Regina asked, lost in Robin's tale.

"I feel drawn to this place. As if something wants me to be here. I've been waiting for a sign." Regina blushed deeply, and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. Ofcourse, he was waiting for her. Tinkerbell had been right.

"A sign could be anything." She said.

"I think I'll know when it happens." Robin was about to say more, but a trio of stinky men came in and made a big show of stealing some weaker mens' seats. Regina was staring at them with disdain. "You don't enjoy it here, do you, Regina?" Robin asked with a knowing look.

"Not really." She said and Robin grinned again. "How about I take you to a wonderful place called Firefly Hill. Have you ever been?"

"Never." Regina said in wonder, though it was very much a lie. She had been there with Daniel.

"It's not far from here. I'll show you."

"I'd love to see it." Regina smiled, and stood up with him. As they were walking towards the door, the biggest of the awful trio grabbed Regina's hand and pulled her back.

"The name's Cyrus. Why are you leaving with that runt?" He grinned, showing Regina his rotten teeth.

"Leave the lady alone." Robin spoke. Cyrus looked Robin up and down, then passed Regina on to his goons.

"Make me, shrimp." He stood, towering over Robin.

"I don't think you want to get involved with me." Said Robin nonchalantly.

"I think I do."

Regina watched with wide eyes as Robin swung his arm back to punched Cryus in the jaw. The other two goons were holding her back so she couldn't do anything to stop the fight that ensued. If she used her magic Robin would surely never speak to her again. He would think she was some kind of freak. She let the two peasants hold her back and simply watched as Cyrus swung a bottle at Robin's head. Robin was quick, she noticed. He had Cyrus on the floor in a matter of minutes and he only had to hop over a few tables.

"Get him!" Cryus yelled from the floor and his two goons let go of Regina to run after Robin. Robin threw a few bottles at them and continued maneuvering through the crowd. The entire tavern was cheering him on and many pushed chairs in the way of the two goons. Apparently, Cryus's group had many enemies. Robin made his way back to Regina. He grabbed her hand and ran out of the tavern. They didn't stop running until they made it to Firefly Hill. By then, it was dark and no one was around.

"You're hurt." Regina whispered with her eyes fixed on the gushing cut on Robin's cheek.

"It's nothing." Robin smiled at her.

"No, no. Let me help." Regina wished she could use magic to heal him, but not being able to, she dabbed at it with her handkerchief. "Thank you for saving me. No one has ever fought for me before."

"Cyrus is always harassing beautiful women."

"You think I'm beautiful?" Regina's hand stopped as he stared into his eyes. Her mind asked her over and over what she was doing, but her heart shushed it.

"I think you're very beautiful." Robin stared into her eyes too, his hand gently caressing Regina's cheek. They stared at each other for a moment, the light from the fireflies reflecting in each others eyes, then they both leaned in. Their kiss made Regina feel alive again. Daniel, Leopold, and Snow were pushed from her mind. All she could think of was how amazing it felt to be loved again. Just as Regina's mind wandered to Rumplestiltskin, Robin pulled away.

"I believe fate caused us to meet." He whispered, rubbing his thumb across Regina's cheek. She leaned into his touch.

"Or pixie dust." She said, then immediately regretted it. To her relief, though, Robin only laughed.

"Are you saying that our kiss was like magic?" He asked.

"It was magic."

The next morning, Regina woke up with her head on Robin's chest. She smiled at how beautiful he looked when he slept. His soft breathe made his chest rise up and fall back down. His face was serene, without worry or distress. He was beautiful.

Robin's eyes fluttered open. "We must have fallen asleep whilst watching the fireflys."

"I believe we did." Regina said, letting Robin sit up.

"It must be nearly noon." Robin yawned. Regina jumped with realization.

"I-I have to go." She said, standing up.

"Whatever for?" Robin looked up at her like a lost puppy.

"I...I have matters...to attend to." Regina began brushing her fingers through her tangled hair. "Can we meet soon?"

Robin smiled. "There's a neat little cafe right across from the tavern. Would you like to meet tonight?"

"Oh, yes, that would be delightful." Regina smiled at him one last time then rushed away. As soon as she was a good distance away, she used magic to poof herself to Rumple's castle.

Regina magicked open the doors to Rumple's main room and ran in. Rumple was sitting at his wheel, as usual. "Didn't think you'd make it." He said, not looking at her.

"You said to come, didn't you?" She skipped over to his table and began making herself some tea. "I'm ready to learn."

"No...you're not." Regina sat her cup down and looked at Rumple, who was staring at her knowingly. Rumple suddenly appeared in front of her and made Regina jump. "You look terrible. Almost as if you slept on the...ground."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Regina raised her head. She wouldn't let the imp intimidate her. Not again.

"It means whatever you want it to mean, dearie." Rumple leaned in close to her and whispered in her ear. "Lemme give you a bit of advice, free of charge. Men don't like women who are tainted by darkness." Outraged, Regina raised her hand to slap him, but Rumple caught her wrist. "Ah, ah, ah, dearie. You wouldn't strike your teacher."

"What do you know about Robin?" Regina asked, trying to wrench her arm out of Rumple's grasp.

"I know that he'll run away with his tail between his legs if he knew what you really are."

"Robin doesn't care if I'm the queen. Status means nothing to him." Rumple threw Regina's arm away.

"Nyaha!" He laughed. "I don't mean if he knew you were the queen. I meant if he knew you were a monster."

"You're terrible." Regina glared at him, tears prickling her eyes.

"Not terrible, dearie, knowledgeable. I've already explained that you can't have love and darkness."

"I choose love." Regina said, surprising herself. "I want love." She said again, smiling.

"You don't get a choice. The darkness will finish devouring you, and you can't do anything to stop it."

"You're wrong. Darkness won't make me happy. Love will." Rumple paused for a moment, then turned his back.

"Fine, dearie. If you believe that your so called love will save you, then I have no more use for you." Regina was taken aback by his statement. She had expected him to fight back, to push her until she relented and forgot about Robin. Regina turned her back on him too and made her way to the door. Her hand was outstretched towards the doorknob, when Rumple's voice made her look back. "When Robin abandons you, I won't be here to console you. You'll never see me again."

Regina wasn't too concerned about him not being there for her. Rumple constantly got on her nerves and brought out the worst in her. As long as she didn't think about it, she wouldn't be upset.

"So be it." She said to him, then opened the door to leave his castle.

Later that night, Robin was on his way to meet Regina, when the forest disappeared and he suddenly appeared in a castle. "What the-" He began, but a high-pitched voice cut him off.

"You're Robin Hood, I presume?" Robin turned around and saw a man walking out of the shadows.

"You have magic?"

"I'll be the one asking the questions." Rumplestiltskin walked even closer, a deadly look in his eye. Robin eyed him cautiously.

"Fine. Ask away." Rumple giggled.

"Good. I'm glad you see things my way. You were on your way to meet a woman named Regina, correct?"

"Yes." Robin stared at Rumple whilst grabbing a knife out of his pocket. Rumple only rolled his eyes and flicked his wrist to make the knife disappear.

"Won't work on me, dearie. Now, you don't know who this Regina really is, do you?"

"I only met her yesterday." Robin said.

"And you're in...love?" Rumple looked disgusted.

"Yes."

"You don't think she looks familiar?" Rumple asked.

"What is the purpose of these foolish questions?" "Answer the question, dearie! Tic toc!" Rumple shouted, getting impatient. Robin Hood rolled his eyes.

"No."

"Are you sure?" Rumple grinned.

"Positive."

"She doesn't look like a certain witch who killed your parents many years ago?"

Robin thought about this for a moment, then stared at Rumple in shock. "No..." He said and Rumple laughed his high pitch signature laugh again.

"Yes, yes, dearie! Your true love is Regina, the daughter of Cora."

"Does she have...magic?" Robin asked tentatively.

"But of course. She is more powerful than her mother could ever imagine to be."

"You're lying." Robin said in denial.

"See for yourself." Rumple smirked to himself and held up a mirror. A scene of Regina ripping out a gypsy woman's heart appeared and was followed by many of Regina's other terrible deeds. Rumple giggled again. "Just look at what you've gotten yourself into."

"That can't be the same woman." Robin said.

"We both know it is. There's no use denying the truth."

"The woman I met was kind and caring and most certainly did not have magic."

"Sometimes evil can be looking us straight in the face and we don't even realize it." Rumple placed his arm around Robin's shoulder and began walking him towards the door.

"The question you must ponder now...is what you're going to do with this piece of knowledge."

"I have to...I have to..." Robin struggled with the words. "Think about it..." Rumple said, then made Robin reappear in the forest.

Regina waited eagerly at the cafe. She had already been offered food and drink, but had refused, not wanting to eat until Robin got there. To pass the time, Regina hummed to herself, and played with the flowers sitting in a vase at her table. She was so excited for the future, not a worry crossed her mind. That is, until she had been there half an hour without a sign from her true love. Trying to keep a positive attitude, she figured he had gotten sidetracked and was rushing to meet her. Still, she wanted to make sure, so she left the cafe and began strolling down a path that led to the forest.

Regina relaxed when she saw Robin appear from behind the trees. She smiled and rushed to him, but something was wrong. "Robin? Are you allright?" She asked, a look of concern on her face. Robin looked demented and only glared at her.

"You're a lier and a witch." He spat. Regina took a step back.

"Why would you say such a thing?"

"Because I know who you really are." Robin looked hurt and confused, and Regina had no idea what was going on. "You must be an evil soul to trick me into loving you. What spell did you cast on me?"

"None, Robin, none! I'm not evil!" Regina tried to comfort Robin by placing a hand on his shoulder, but he jerked away.

"First your mother comes after my parents, and now you're here to finish the job." Robin held out both of his arms. "Well, go on then. Rip my heart out. I want to die exactly like they did."

"Robin!" Tears flowed down Regina's cheeks. Of course her mother would ruin this relationship too! "I refuse to kill you! I'm not like that."

"No, I saw you. I saw you kill that gypsy woman. I saw every evil thing you've ever done!" Before Regina could wonder how he knew of such things, Robin pulled out a knife. "If you don't have the audacity to kill me, than I'll avenge my parents!" He ran at her with the knife, and Regina tripped trying to get away. Robin towered over her, but before he could stab her, Regina threw out her hands and made him freeze. Sobbing, she stared up at him and saw the look of hatred on his face.

"You're a monster." He growled, just before his face froze too. Regina stayed on the ground, too shocked and upset to move. Rumple had been right and now he was gone. How could Regina be so stupid? Maybe, just maybe, he was still home.

Rumplestiltskin was at his wheel, slowly turning it and feeling the string turn to gold under his fingertips. When he had first singled Regina out to be the caster of his curse, he hadn't taken into consideration how much work she would be. Of course, patience was one thing Rumplestiltskin had plenty of, so he didn't mind wasting a few days so Regina could lose any sliver of hope she had left. It wasn't as if Rumple could force her to be evil and make wrong decisions. He had to coax her into it.

Rumple was pondering all the work he still had to do on Regina, when he heard a loud clanging outside of his spinning room. He counted to three in his head, and watched as Regina came storming into the room. She looked a mess. She wasn't wearing an elaborate gown like she normally wore, but a more simple one...still beautiful in it's own right, but Rumple enjoyed her more dark attire. Her makeup was messed up too. Mascara was smeared everywhere and her eyes were red and puffy. This was the moment Rumple had been waiting for.

"You look dreadful." He told her and stood from his wheel.

"Shut up!" Regina yelled at him. Rumple noticed she was still crying. Perfect. Rumple walked towards her, but Regina came running into his arms, causing Rumple to wrap his arms around her instincively. "You're were right!" She sobbed into his shoulder. "He left me! He didn't ca-care at all!"

"Of course he didn't, my wicked one." Rumple said somewhat soothingly and Regina sobbed even louder.

"I th-thought we really h-had a chance! Things went s-so well at first! B-but he tried to kill me!"

"Regina, Regina," Rumple peeled her off of him and put his hands on both sides of her face. "People like you and me aren't meant to be loved." He told her this from his heart, staring into her stared into his eyes. He actually wanted her to understand this. He didn't know why. Rumple could see her believing him. Just like he could see all of her hope diminishing. This was necessary he told himself.

"I just...I didn't want to believe you. I promise I'll never go against you again." Regina seemed honest enough, but Rumple knew how naive she could be.

"You say that now, but I can see the future, Regina." He told her.

"I won't. You were right about this and you're right about...well, everything." Rumple smiled and wiped Regina's remaining tears.

"Why are you still here? You said I would never see you again." Regina asked, looking hurt that Rumple would ever dream of leaving her.

"I wasn't really going to leave you, Regina. I'll always be here." They smiled at each other and Regina finally stopped invading Rumple's personal bubble. Sighing, she looked around the room.

"I suppose we should get back to that lesson I keep putting off."

"Indeed, indeed, dearie."

"My anger really is all I have...and you." Regina gave Rumple a small smile.

"Very true. Remember that Daniel was the only person who could ever possibly love you. And now he's gone." Regina was surprised at Rumple's sudden reminder of her past, but she knew it was true. She could already feel her rage simmering just under the surface. It was ready to erupt like a volcano and destroy everything in its path. Rumple could see it too. "Let's begin." He giggled.