Author's note: This is my first multi fic so bear with me :'D Send feedback as I Will want it. I don't know how often it will get updated because I have to manage a lot of other stuff along with this. But I'll try to! If any of you what to suggest anything for this story or anything, feel free and I'll try to include it if I like the idea. This chapter, btw, us a bit slow. But hopefully I'll pick it up in the later ones :) I kept Robin's funeral the same instead of changing it because I like how it was so :p Anyways, I hope you like this and, if not, tell me why so I'd know how to improve :) All mistakes are mine
Regina's eyes gaze over her phone when she hears it buzz from beside her. Irritated from being interrupted from her work, she picks it up. "Mayor Mills." She says rather un-enthusiastically..
"Miss Mills, we're very sorry to inform you, Robin Hood had been in a nasty car crash and is in severe condition." Her heart stopped. She definitely hadn't expected to hear that. That her soulmate is in the hospital from a car accident. But as she started to think more, she remembered around 15 minutes ago. There was a loud noise of a car breaking too fast or the sound of it swerving, just outside her window. From curiosity she had looked out, and was mortified.
Another car crashed into the side of another and sent the car flying sideways. All she could think was of all the glass she saw being sprayed into the air. The one who hit the other car seemed fine. Just with a smashed bumper and shattered windshield form the pressure. But when she saw the other car be pushed sideways, she hadn't noticed it was Charmings truck. The one Robin was borrowing that day.
Regina could feel her words catch in her throat as she stared wide eyed at the wall across from her. Robin hadn't texted her when he got to the sheriff's office like he normally did, which initially worried her, but she eventually thought nothing of it, maybe he just forgot. But, unfortunately, she was very wrong.
This news wasn't something she expected nor wanted in that case. She closed her eyes and open them again, slowly. Still in shock, tears didn't come. The doctors voice had reminded her that she was on the phone, "Miss Mills?"
Snapping out of her thoughts, she replies, "Yeah, sorry, is there anything else?" Her voice started to crack at the last word, hoping to God that there wasn't more and she could just go to the hospital already.
"Not at the moment, no. If you'd like to come down, please do so but you're not allowed to see him yet." Well that just wasn't true. There's no way in hell she's going there to just sit on a chair outside his room and feel useless. She has magic, she could help, right? It's either that or she's getting desperate.
Normally, she'd try to argue, but she didn't want to wait any longer "Ok, I'll be down." Regina hung up the phone right after she said those words. Her hand was shaking as she still held it to her ear with the phone in her hand. Just starring.
That crash. Regina was right, no one would survive that. Unless they had help, magic. Magic could save him.
Regina slammed the phone down on her desk as she began to stand. Her knees felt weak but she fought to stay up. She needed to stay up, no more wasting time right now.
She ran down to her car, almost tripping down the stairs, and got in. Hands still shaking, she put the key in and twisted it. She didn't bother with checking her mirrors. Her hand pulled the gear stick and put the car in reverse.
Now the shock part of all this was over. She could tell when she felt hot tears about to fall from her eyes when she turned to look behind her to start backing up. Her teeth sunk into her lower lip as she tried to subside that feeling while backing up her car. She hit the gas much too hard for being in reverse, but right then, Regina couldn't care less about how to drive safely.
She finally got her truck to the main road and she slammed down on the gas. "Regina, you're going to be in the hospital too and not because you're just visiting, if you don't slow down." She thought in her head. But she silenced that thought. Didn't really care, she just needed to get there.
Her hands began shaking even more and it causes her to swerve a bit from moving the wheel too much.
Realization of what was happening in that moment hit her. She had just gotten him back from being obliterated and now he was about to be taken away again.
Tears formed in her eyes again, starting to blur her vision but she forced them down. She wouldn't ever get there if she couldn't see.
When she saw the hospital, she floored it into the parking lot. Once in there, she stopped, didn't bother parking in a place between the two yellow lines, and pulled the key out of the keyhole near the steering wheel.
Regina jumped out of her truck, keys still in her hand, and slammed the door shut behind her as she continued to run towards the entrance of the place with her dieing soulmate inside of it.
She already knows where'd he'd be so Regina didn't even look over at the receptionist, just ran right past her. Not having the patients for an elevator, she ran up the stairs, taking more energy from her, but that was the least of her concerns at the moment.
When she got to Robin's floor, she saw Dr. Whale come up to her, and slow her down. He stood right in front of her, not letting her pass. Not saying one word either. "What the hell are you doing." She asked, genuinely wondering why he was stopping her.
"You're not allowed to pass." Was all that came out of his mouth. Seriously, that's how he said it. It just made her think of "You shall not pass!" From the movie Henry loves watching.
"Why? I'm the mayor, I should be able to. I'm the Queen, I should be able to. He is my soulmate. I'm not just going to sit here and do nothing. I have magic anyways and that might help. Just let me through." The last sentence came out a bit desperate and she cursed herself for it.
"No." The frustration was beginning to get to her and it was getting harder to keep her tears at bay. Whale still stood there, a blank expression and she was getting more desperate by the second.
"Please. Just- please." Regina looked down, closed her eyes and swallowed thickly before looking up at him again. "Either you let me go to him or I let myself through, and I don't think you'd want that." She looked at him, giving him as good a scowl as she could at that moment, waiting for an answer. She was getting in there no matter what.
"Fine." Stay here while I go get the other doctors out, they're not operating anymore anyways. Regina wondered how they were so fast at operating, the crash was only 20 minutes ago and they're already done? Instead of being optimistic about it though, she thought it to be caused from there being no hope left, and they just gave up.
He came back with two other doctors and motioned her to walk in. Regina nodded and started to slowly walk towards the door into her Robin's room.
Her eyes fell onto his body and she felt her heart twist. He was looking up, not aware she was standing there, blood seeping through the blankets. Her tears fell as she now saw what was happening. There was no way she'd be able to keep anything in at this moment right now. When everything seemed to move in slow motion.
She gulped and walked up just a bit more.
"I'm gonna die." His voice surprised her and she jumped slightly, not expecting him to talk just then. His voice sounded... Different too. Adding an extra twist of the knife.
"What?" She asked gently, and when he heard her, he turned his head. Her voice had cracked and he saw her, he saw her red, puffy eyes, dry tears staining her face, and just the stance she had was much different than what it was normally. Not the usual "regal" pose she always strived for. He hated seeing her like this, but this time he can't do anything about it. Not able to move. And this time he's the cause of it.
"I'm gonna die. They said I would." The second he said that, he saw fear cross her expression for just a second before she walked closer.
"But- but I could use my magic, Robin. You won't die. You can't." All he did was shake his head. "Magic can't bring back the dead, Regina."
"You're not dead. And yes it can." He shook his head again. He knew how much she hated getting false hope for anything, and telling her this broke his heart, but he didn't want her to think there was still a way.
"Not by a single person. And I'm already so far gone, I basically am dead. There's no stopping it now." This time it was Regina's turn to shake her head, but much more desperately than he had. She walked even closer and kneeled next to his bed. Regina had been right. About the doctors giving up. She wanted to blame them, but that wouldn't do anything other than give her an enemy that couldn't fight back. It wouldn't save Robin.
"Robin, I can't lose you again." Her lower lip quivered and a tear fell down the the side of her face. He reaches up with all the strength he has, grunting and squeezing his eyes shut from the pain. His actions cause her to lift he hand to him, telling him to stop. But he shoos that away. He eventually gets his hand up to her head and he wipes away the tear with his thumb.
He can feel the weight of her head shift into his hand and he offers a gentle smile. But she doesn't smile back, sadly.
All that's occupying Regina's mind is the thought of how she wouldn't feel this again. Wouldn't see him again. Wouldn't hear him again. She stared at him as she listened to the beeping monitor. Listening to the beep... beep... beep... beep. The more she focused on it, the more frightened she got. All she didn't want to hear was a long, drawn out sound. Meaning whoever was hooked up to it, their heart stopped.
He could tell what she was thinking and he wiggled the hand on her cheek a little to get her attention away from the thing that would signal his death.
She met his eyes and another tear came from her eye. He smiled again and she knew he was trying to tell her everything would be alright. She tried to believe him, but she failed and shook her head. Letting another tear fall, quickly wiped away by his thumb.
The beeping caught her attention again as she heard it get slower. She didn't notice Dr. Whale standing in the doorway behind her. The doctor looked at Robin sympathetically and Robin knew he wasn't staying for much longer.
It seemed as though Regina knew too. She looked back towards him, away from the monitor. "Please."
"I'm sorry." This time it was Robin who let a tear escape its prison and fall down his cheek and hit the mattress his head was lying on.
The beeping started to get more distant in each "beep", getting slower and slower.
"I- I love you." Regina managed to say, it was getting harder to talk. All she could think to say was those three words she hadn't before now.
"I love you too, I always have." Robin smiled and his eyes started to droop closed.
Regina started to panic a little as she felt him starting to slip away from her. "No no no, Robin." More and more tears fell. She shook him a little, not enough to hurt him if he was still there, but it was no use. He was gone. Again.
•OQOQOQOQ•
Motionless, Regina stared at the coffin in front of her. Trying not to cry, she stood with an emotionless expression, something she learned over the years. It helped her with not crying, as long as she wasn't alone. Though what's the point of holding in your tears if no one's there to see your weakness?
Snow and her "Un" Charming husband walked up to Robin's coffin with one of Robin's own arrows in each of their hands. They gently place the arrows down and turn to Little John, signaling for him to bring Roland over.
This was just like the funeral they had for him when he died to save her. When he jumped in front of her to save her from the deadly bolt of magic sent by Hades. The memory didn't help with her whole "not crying" thing though.
Roland walked to Robin. Little John walking with him. Roland looked down and lifted his arm to place the arrow.
"Roland's already lost his mother. I'd hate for him to lose his father too." Regina recalled that time in the missing year when Robin insisted on going to her castle with her. She bit her lip to stop it from quivering and continued to watch Roland. "Too late" She thought in response to what Robin had said to her all those years ago.
Roland looks down as he lets the arrow bounce onto the wood around Robin's corpse. Then as he turns, still with his head pointed down. That alone breaks her heart. Seeing him like this.
Next, it's Henry and Emma's turn to do as the others with the arrows. She watches as Henry goes up to her dead soulmate. Remembers how Robin and Henry has only just barely gotten any bonding together. Remembers how Robin went with Henry to go to her office in the underworld. And though her son hadn't spent much time with Robin, she could see how his eyes were a bit red and starting to water when Henry placed the arrow on Robin's coffin.
Henry turned around again and looked at her, then walked away again. As he did so, letting her see his eyes with tears threatning to fall because of Robin's death, Regina could feel her blank face expression to fade, and soon she felt a prickle at her eyes. But she'll be damned if she lets herself cry.
Though now, it was her turn to put Robin's last arrow on the thing he'll be buried in. She started to walk forward as she felt a small tear escape her eye. She hadn't been paying attention and it fell. She would've cursed herself but she couldn't as she got to... Him. Everything just came back. All of their memories. The good and bad. Their first kiss. And their last.
"Hopefully the same thing you see in me. A second chance."
"Maybe it's all about timing."
"I'm here for you, always."
"Regina, you are my future."
"I'm with you, always."
The time they had in the tunnels, going to Hades to get his daughter back, made her so happy. It was a feeling she hadn't felt in a while. It made her so happy. She was his future and she knew. But now... Now every time she thinks of that moment, it will be a giant slap in the face. A reminder of what could've been. But now he's gone.
She lifts her hand to place the arrow on his coffin. Feeling another tear fall down her face as she looks down and let's the arrow fall down onto the wood surrounding her soulmate. She loves him. And he's gone.
•OQOQOQOQ•
Regina had just opened the front door to her house as she got a huge wave of grief and felt tears want to spill out of her eyes. She walked into her mansion and closed the door behind her just in time before she gave up trying to keep it back. It was too much to hold in, trying to stop it at the funeral was bad enough. Trying to stop it now is idiotic. And now she was sobbing, thinking about how he was just lying there, eyes falling closed, giving that reassuring smile he always have her, trying to say "it'll be alright" she knows. But she doesn't think sobbing in front of her front door seconds after she walks into her house is alright.
Everything hurts. It's not numb like it was for half of his funeral. All she sees is Robin's lifeless body on the ground, just after his soul disappeared. Every time she closes her eyes, he's there.
It gets harder to stand and Regina leans against the door behind her, before falling to the ground. Her truelove, soulmate, the one she thought she would finally be able to be with, was gone. Forever. And it hurt like hell.
It hurt more than when she was trying to tell Roland and Henry what happened to Robin. She couldn't even do it. Little John had to tell Roland, obviously not the more gruesome parts of gushing blood and horrible cuts. Emma, once she found out, told Henry for her. And Regina was grateful she didn't have to tell either one of them because if she said the words "Robin is dead" out loud, there's no way she'd be able to stop herself from breaking down.
Hot tears continued to stream down her face as she looked down, closing her eyes and biting her lower lip. She was trying to stop, but failed. Her hand came up to her face to wipe away her tears as new ones kept falling. She was sniffing from crying causing a stuffy nose. Then the thought of trying to sleep that night came into mind. Like that'll happen. She rolled her eyes at even the thought of getting sleep.
She stayed there. Wiping her tears. Letting more fall. Nothing like a dead love to finish out the day she thought and chuckled to herself, humorlessly.
She heard a noise coming from the stairs, and for a second, she pretended it was Robin. She thought of how he could just hold her and everything would instantly be better. But then she remembered the reason she's crying uncontrollably in the first place is because he's not here anymore.
She was returned to an even more terrifying reality when she saw Henry looking at her from the stairs. Great. She was crying on the floor in front of the entrance to her home, right in front of her son.
The thought of quickly wiping up her tears for the hundredth time, standing up, and acting as if this never happened, came to her mind. But she turned it down as soon as it came. Henry wouldn't let this go just because she acted like she was fine.
"Mom?" Regina closed her eyes for just a quick second and gulped, not too excited for whatever was going to happen next.
She opened her eyes and replied, "Yes, Henry?"
"What are you doing?" The answer was obvious, but she appreciated the fact that he didn't dive into harder questions for her to answer.
She still dodged the question though, "I thought you were staying with Emma." Regina began to stand back up, grabbing the doorknob to help her up and not letting herself wipe the dried tears all over her face, thinking it would make it look like she was still crying.
"She told me that it would probably be better if I came here instead, tonight." Of course Emma would think that. She apparently didn't think about the fact that Regina would much rather be alone and let herself cry herself to sleep, rather than try as hard as she could to not let Henry see her weak side and hold everything in like she had (had tried) at the funeral. Though Regina didn't know what was worse. Not being able to stop sobbing, or trying to hold it back. "When did you get here? I came straight here, you clearly somehow got here before me, but I didn't see you walk in."
"Back door." Was his reply. It still didn't make complete sense, she was very fast in getting here and if Emma told Henry to come over to Regina's for that night then it must've took time to explain that. And even coming through the back door, Regina would have seen him. Along with Henry seeing her crying by the door, sooner than he had now. But she went with it anyway.
"Oh." She bit the inside of her cheek as awkwardness began to fall. They both knew Regina just needed time alone, but it'd also be weird for Henry to just leave.
Wanting to say something, to stop the awkward silence, Henry says, "She thought that since you lost Robin, you'd want to be with someone else you love because that's supposed to help with grief." Clearly Emma doesn't know Regina well enough for this subject. But Regina was more concerned with how guilty Henry sounded when he said that.
"Of course." Was all Regina could come up with, trying a small smile. But once she tried, all that came was another tear. Even smiling wasn't possible anymore apparently.
Henry looked down when he saw his mother desperately trying to hide her emotions and the tear running down her cheek. It was as if it was something he thought he shouldn't see. He knows Regina doesn't like to be this vulnerable, especially in front of someone she thinks she isn't allowed to be, in order to be a good mother. The only one who had even seen her in a state like this was Robin. One of the few people she trusted enough to be like this with.
Henry wished Robin could be there just now. Just so he wouldn't have to watch his mother like this anymore. Because Henry knew Robin wouldn't just let Regina weep until she couldn't anymore, he'd help. And eventually she'd stop, and be alright again. But, unfortunately, the reason she's even like this is because that very man isn't able to do any of that anymore.
Once Henry looked up again, he saw Regina wiping at her eyes, sniffling. It was rare to see her like this, he only saw it one other time back before the first curse was broken. He'd told Regina, for the tenth time that day, that he hated her. Every time she tried to talk to him, all he saw was the Evil Queen, and that's all he could think to say. She was fine until he woke up in the middle of the night, thirsty for a drink of water when he heard someone sniffing their nose. He got out of his bed, walked to the stairs and saw his, he thought at the time, heartless, "fake" mother. Crying. At first he thought it was something on the T.V. but it was off, and realization dawned on him and gulit creeped up him.
He shook the thought away and started to walk towards her. He didn't know what to do, but just standing there wouldn't do anything. So once he got closer to her, he did what he thought, hoped would help, and he hugged her. She hugged right back, holding tightly.
He felt her crying even more but he didn't say anything, didn't want to make it worse and let her know that he knows she's being, as she would say, "weak."
It's not as though Henry didn't need a hug either though, so this was good. Robin had been a father figure for him. But he didn't even really get to spend much time with him. And it's too late now. So getting comfort he didn't know he needed as much as he did, felt good. Still not enough to be completely better, but good.
Henry pulled back and it somewhat startled Regina. She'd gotten used to just standing there and without him knowing (she thought) cry a little for that short while. She jumped back in surprise and rapidly rubbed her face to get rid of the new water pools going down her face.
"I should probably go back to my room and try to get to sleep now." Henry said. Regina looked over at the clock and saw that it was a little late. 11:48 p.m. She didn't want him to stay up too late, because to her, he was still her little prince. "Ok, don't stay up past midnight though."
"Mom, I'm not going to fall asleep in 10 minutes. And it's only midnight anyways, it's not that late."
"Yes it is, my little prince." Just as she said that, he looked up at her, his look more stern. "I thought that was Roland." He said, raising his eyebrow.
"He's my little knight. There's a difference." She remembered the one time Henry had said the same thing he had just then and Roland glared at him. He immediately corrected him and told him that he was Regina's knight. Not prince. Henry was her Prince. She smiled at the memory until she got to the part where Robin chuckled and nudged her hip, telling her "Now don't you forget that. You'd get a mighty fine scolding by your 'little knight'."
She missed the light-hearted memories. All of the ones she has now are messed with. All the good times. Every time they come to her mind, they now always make it feel as though a knife were being twisted into her stomach, instead of giving her butterflies like how they used to.
Henry noticed the change of mood once again and frowned. He didn't know what was happening in Regina's mind, but he was sure it was Robin related as he saw her eyes start to glisten again with un-fallen tears. "Right, I forgot. My bad." He tried bringing up the mood again, responding to the her, but it didn't work as well as he'd hoped.
"Yeah." Was all she said. Regina was more focused on putting up her mask (which was miserably failing).
"I'll go now. Goodnight!" Henry said as he started for the stairs again, heading up to his room, slowly. "Goodnight!" Regina yelled back once he was about halfway up. Her voice cracking at trying to yell.
She looked over at the clock again and decided she should probably get a very big head start on trying to sleep. There's no way she'll get any if she waits longer. It'll take her much too long to fall asleep. 11:51 p.m.
She didn't want to go to her room though, scared that Henry would hear her crying through the walls. Though that was near to impossible as their rooms are much more seperated and her room is soundproof, for other reasons.
She decided to just choose the couch. It should be fine, it's comfortable. Hopefully comfortable enough to sleep. Even though that probably won't be the biggest concern she should have about falling asleep.
Regina goes to get a blanket from the chair next to her but that blanket isn't near big enough to keep her from freezing through the night, so she goes up the stairs to get a blanket from her bed.
On her way back from her bedroom, she feels a heat right behind her eyes as she smells an all too familiar forest smell from the gray, fluffy blanket she's holding. She just had to choose that one, didn't she? How did it even still have his smell? That was before they'd even gone to the underworld. Just my luck she thought dryly.
She layed the blanket down on the sofa she decided she'd be sleeping on before she slipped between the pinecone smelling blanket and couch.
Once she was there, lying there, no noise, no light as she flicks and the lamp goes off with her magic, no nothing, everything still, thoughts pour into her mind. The memories, good, bad, his death, both times. The worst ones, strangely, were the happy ones though, it just gutted her every time she heard his laugh in her head, saw his smirk in her imagination, and just felt him there with her when she knows he's not. Their "can't wait"s turned into "too late"s.
It started again, the tears, the feeling of her heart being twisted, punched, kicked, shattered. Everything just physically and mentally hurting. She buried her nose into the blanket, hoping the smell would be comforting, but it just caused more pain. Would this ever end? The pain.
All of this continued until sleep finally pulled her under. But that wasn't any better. She hadn't thought of the dreams she would have. But dammit she should've. She could've been more prepared (though she'd never be prepared for any of this).
"I love you too, I always have."
It echoed in her head between every dream. Every dream of him. More like memories. That night they shared in her vault, and morning. The time in the library when he found page XXIII. Then the day in Camelot when he ran towards Percival, the one to pull a sword on her. And Robin ran, saved her at the cost of his own life, with no hesitation.
She was able to stay asleep until the one dream - memory of his most recent death, and she startled herself awake.
But she didn't wake up on her couch. She was lying in her bed. Confused, she turned her head and squinted at the light. Her heart stopped at the vision before her. Robin. Asleep next to her. She could hear his breathing. Was this another dream?
He moved his body to face the ceiling and she jumped. His eyes slowly started to open. Nothing made sense. He had just died, right in front of her.
"Morning, love." She heard. "Love." All she thought of were his last words. "I love you too, I always have." And it jabbed at her heart.
"What's wrong? You look as though you've seen a ghost." Not too far off she thought.
They both jumped when they heard an alarm go off. Robin turned and hit the button to stop it.
What he said next made everything click, "Have to use David's truck today I guess. I have to get to the sheriff's station somehow." He chuckled. Robin just got a job there. But he didn't have anything to drive. So he had to borrow David's truck. David's truck... He was going to borrow David's truck.
This day already happened. The day of his death, was happening all over again.
