"I don't like pets."
That was a phrase Robin heard from Regina at least a hundred times when Roland or Henry would ask them to reconsider the no pets at the mansion policy. It was easier for Henry to accept the no, because he talked both Snow and Emma into getting pets that he visited often.
But Roland, Roland did not understand why they couldn't get a pet, and specifically a cat. Roland had loved cats since the minute he saw one for the first time in Storybrooke. And he doted on "Max," the feral cat that took to hanging around the Merry Men's camp, searching for scraps. Max quickly became the most well fed feral cat in history.
Roland's clas had taken trip to the animal shelter and he came back chock full of knowledge about the feral cat problem and how it was very important to trap the cats so they could get fixed. And so, after several attempts, a decidedly unhappy Max was caught and brought to the vet to get snipped, then returned to the Merry men's camp.
Because of his skills, Roland was allowed to keep the trap and, to Regina's consternation, was encouraged by the vet to keep trying to trap feral cats.
And that's how they ended up with Lady, a very pregnant white cat, who strolled into the trap just looking for a meal. And because she was pregnant, Roland snuck her into the house and kept her in his room, enlisting Henry to take him to the shelter to find out what he should do next, without Regina knowing. Except Roland didn't count on the fact that Lady could give herself away, and did when she started yowling after he left, alerting Robin and Regina to her presence.
And so Robin had a talk with his son about not sneaking animals into the house, and together they convinced a reluctant Regina to let them foster the mom and soon to be born kittens until they were old enough to be adopted.
Lady gave birth to five adorable kittens, two that were all white like her, one with brown stripes on its head and down its back, a calico with white paws and a black and white one.
Regina warned Roland not to get too attached because they were only temporary. Yet it seemed Regina needed to take her own advice, as Robin had caught her smiling at, talking to, playing with, and feeding the kittens more than once.
Still she insisted she didn't like pets, which only made it all the more amusing when Robin came into the living room and found all the kittens around her chair and heard her whispering softly to Marie, one of the all white kittens, "Oh that's a nice girl. Do you like getting pet on your head? I think you do."
She didn't hear him approach, too wrapped up in her snuggle with Marie, so he stares over her shoulder for a moment, taking in the image of Regina "I'm not a pet person" Mills snuggling a kitten, before he makes his presence known.
"Having fun, are you?" he asks.
She jumps in her seat and Marie lets out an offended meow but doesn't move off her lap. "God, Robin, you scared me," she hisses at him.
"I thought you weren't a pet person?"
"Well, I guess they aren't so bad."