A/N: As usual I am very late for this, but then deadlines and I have never really gotten along. This is a submission for several prompts for the Spooky OQ week, namely Blood, Bones, Cemetery, Full Moon & Monster. Set in the Missing Year, pre ship but with lots of tension. Trigger warning for some gruesome visuals. Big thanks to my darling beta Manon/ Lolymoon. Let me know what you think!
Embrace your beast
There was no warning, but then there rarely was anymore. Zelena's beasts swooped in unexpectedly while Robin and Little John were watching Roland play with a few other children in the courtyard. They barely had time to react, and it was clear that the monkeys were targeting the youths. Their only two options were to either grab their weapons, or attempt to save the children. Robin didn't stop to think, he ran towards his son, who was desperately calling for him, his little legs unable to outrun the flying monstrosities heading straight towards him and the girl he was dragging along.
Robin reached them right before a sharp claw could close around their thin arms. He enfolded them in his embrace, turning around, and the talon teared through the leather of his quiver instead of soft flesh. John had managed to get to a couple others kids, but the oldest of the group, a boy of thirteen years, had tripped and fallen, and was skidding backwards to escape.
A scream, the like of which Robin had never heard before, erupted from what seemed to be the castle itself. The beasts froze in the air, looking around to locate the source, and it was their ultimate mistake. A plume of purple smoke appeared suddenly, and Regina emerged from it. Only she didn't look at all like the aloof and distant Queen she liked to use as a facade, nor the softer, sadder woman, she let so very few see. No, for the first time Robin recognized the Evil Queen herself, the warrior sorceress who had led armies to battle, and he could understand the terror she had induced in the heart of the bravest men in the land.
It was dusk, they had let the children play, hoping that they would tire themselves enough to not object to bedtime, and Regina had obviously been about to turn in herself, but in spite of her flimsy attire -the black, satiny nightgown had featured in many of Robin's fantasies-, her appearance was no less terrifying. An unnatural wind was causing her long, ebony curls to wildly fly around her head, her eyes were wide, pupils blown and shimmering with a purple glow, her hands were clawed and filled with fire.
She grabbed the monkey that had been about to hurt the boy, and it let out a wail of agony as her hands scorched its skin to the bone. She threw it towards the others with a roar, smoke surrounding them as she gave the same treatment to the remaining beasts. Their pathetic yowls resounded and then died away, the smoke settling around Regina.
Robin pressed the children tighter against him to spare them the gruesome sight: Regina was drenched in blood, pieces of fur and intestines filling her hands, the monkeys' bones at her feet. She caught his eyes and his horrified expression, her own eyes widened and she disappeared, leaving no trace of what had just happened behind.
"Regina, no!" He called her back, and sighed when he realised it was in vain.
It took him a while to settle the children, and even longer to find Regina afterwards. Night had fallen, the incandescent sun leaving way to a bright, full moon, and he felt like he had exhausted all his options. He had looked everywhere he could think of, but it seemed that the Queen had vanished from the castle's grounds. He was doing one last round, just in case, when he found a path, partially obscured by thick bushes, that he had never noticed before. He followed it cautiously, and soon found himself on the south side of the grounds, on a small hill, in what he guessed was the Palace's cemetery.
A huge, ivy covered mausoleum dominated it -the Royal crypt no doubt- and smaller tombs were scattered around, but they were unkempt, the grass had grown to the point of hiding some of them. Everything was still, no sound apart from the distant howling of wolves, no one had been there in years. Robin was about to leave when a slight movement attracted his attention. Here she was, at the edge of the cemetery, and, as he approached, Robin suddenly felt nauseous when he realised she was standing on a pile of bones, not all, but some, of them humans.
Looking more closely, he could see Regina was shaking, breathing heavily, and staring down at her hands with a vacant gaze. He had no way to understand that she hadn't experienced such a fit of blind rage in years, before she casted the Curse. He couldn't possibly know that she had destroyed whole armies of various creatures, almost single handedly, in such a state, and that it took hours to calm herself down, and even begin to remember what she had done, but her distress was palpable, and he needed to find a way to bring her back.
"What is this place?" He asked softly, the first thing on his mind rolling off his tongue and out of his mouth, before he could determine if it was a good idea.
His presence must have registered somehow because she didn't startle. She turned her head towards him slowly, her dark, clouded eyes clearing a little.
"Snow's ancestors weren't all benevolent rulers. They liked to bring back trophies from their campaigns, make a public spectacle of bringing enemies to their knees, and then they would throw them away without a decent burial. Rumple brought me here when he started teaching me, he wanted me to know what the King would do if he ever found out what I really was. He didn't understand that there were moments when I would have preferred that fate," she concluded on a murmur but he still heard her loud and clear.
"Ancestors?" He let out, and then cursed himself for being unable to control his treacherous trap. The look she gave him was an awful mix of hurt and betrayal that caused his stomach to twist painfully.
"You thought this was my ossuary?" She hissed, straightening to her full height when he took a step closer to her, hands raised and shaking his head. "Maybe you should think twice before coming near such a monster."
"Ever since I met you, I have never thought you to be a monster, Milady, nor am I afraid of you," he said boldly, staring straight in her eyes.
She gave a short, humourless laugh. "Oh, but you really, really should be. Haven't you seen what I have just done?"
Robin shrugged. "You mean, did I see you save those children from enraged beasts? Yes, I did, and I want to thank you for once more saving my son's life. It is a great debt I owe you."
Regina seemed shocked by his reply. "You don't care about how I did it? You would still let your son be around me after this?"
"I have been to war, Your Majesty," he used her full title for once, hoping to drive his point home more convincingly. "I have maimed and killed, and tried to convince myself that it was for the greater good. Even if those winged animals are controlled by the Wicked Witch, they still could have injured or killed the little ones had you not intervened, it doesn't matter how you stopped them."
She huffed and rolled her eyes. "Not everyone think like you. I am already blamed for the Witch's attacks, and now I am traumatizing innocent children."
"Pardon my language, but screw them," he said passionately. "They would blame you if you hadn't been able to stop the beasts, they would have called you weak if you had done it differently. Ever since you all came back, they've only been too happy to scapegoat you for any and every thing that is wrong in their lives. Their opinions don't matter, the fact that the Green Witch's army is three monkeys short, and that several children are sleeping safely in their beds tonight, is what matters."
Rarely did anyone defend her actions so strongly, especially not as she stood on a mound of remains, dried blood on her usually smooth and pristine skin, torn fur still visible under her nails. Regina wondered, and not for the first time, who this man really was, what he had seen and done that gave him such a rare perspective on life. It was refreshing, though she would probably never tell him that. For once, someone understood that their world was far from being black and white. To her, it had always appeared to be a greyish fog, with a few rays of sun filtering through here and there; it tasted of ash, and reeked an acrid smell, with a rare presence only able to clear it long enough to give the illusion that it could get better. It never lasted though, and Robin seemed to get that.
"Let's get you cleaned up," he said, pulling her out of her contemplation, gently wiping off a stain from her cheek with his handkerchief, after waiting for her nod of consent. "You're going to get sick standing in this draft."
She gave him a strange look. "After what you've seen you really think a bit of breeze would worry me. Us monsters are tougher than that," she sounded haughty but he could hear the self-deprecation quite clearly.
"As I said, I don't believe you are one, but if you insist, let me tell you that you are the most stunning monster I have ever seen," he smirked at her quirked eyebrow.
"Flattery will get you nowhere," she stated flatly, unsure how to feel about such a declaration.
He shrugged. "It's not flattery, only the truth. Will you let me accompany you back to the castle?"
She wavered for a moment, thinking about the kind of welcome she would receive if anyone saw her like this. Her fit had depleted her energy so much she feared that even using magic to clean herself up would do her in, and she looked down at her feet, skulls and skeletons mingling together beneath her in a rather ghastly sight that few had the stomach to handle, but this was something she was only too familiar with, she felt safer here than she did amongst Snow's loyal subjects.
"You should get back to Roland. I will be fine," she told him, not revealing why she was hesitating.
Robin seemed to know exactly what her dilemma was anyway. "You might be surprised, Regina," his gentle tone, the way he pronounced her name almost reverently would usually annoy her, but not this time.
She let him drap his cape on her shoulders and lead her back. She gripped his arm, nails sinking in his biceps, when a small group of women approached them as soon as they entered the hall. She was two seconds away from taking the risk to disappear when she noticed Granny carrying a tray full of food. Another woman, older and bolder than the others it seemed, for she was able to meet Regina's inquiring gaze, settled a heavy, soft blanket around her.
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for saving our children," the woman's eyes were brimming with tears, and her hands were twitching as if she was stopping herself from reaching out and hug her.
Regina found the notion both ridiculous, and strangely endearing. She could acknowledge how brave those women were for waiting for her return though. If it had been her, if something like that had happened to Henry, Regina wouldn't have been able to take her eyes off her son for more than the time it took to blink. Actually, she remembered quite well what happened when Henry was in a similar situation and she looked away for too long.
Regina nodded to the other woman, not knowing what she could possibly say, and it seemed to be enough. The others relaxed and gave her cautious smiles, gathering around her and steering her towards her rooms, with promises of a warm bath, clean clothes, and food. She threw one last look towards Robin over her shoulder, a mix of confusion and gratefulness which he found utterly charming, not that he would ever tell her that.
She may see a monster when she looked in the mirror, but he would always see a fierce she-wolf, claws out, ready to protect the cubs, and really what was wrong with that?