Chapter 7
"You slept with Regina?"
Little John had finally gotten Robin to himself one afternoon while the two friends sat in Robin's back yard. They had just finished chopping wood all afternoon, enough for the rest of winter hopefully and were taking a well-deserved break. Little John knew Robin had a thing for the former Evil Queen and even though he was a bit hesitant to accept his friend's new flame, he trusted Robin completely. Robin was usually an excellent judge of character and if he was starting something with Regina… well, John would just have to accept her.
Robin just grinned. "She's amazing." He said as he thought about his queen. He couldn't keep this mind off her. All he could think about since the weekend they spent together was the way she smelled like apples and vanilla at all times of the day, her smirk he just loved to kiss… her thousand watt smile could bring him to his knees from across the room.
John silent shook his head as he watched Robin zone out. "Dude."
"What?" Robin came out of his trance to see Little John smirking at him. "You're so whipped." He laughed.
Robin just shook his head but laughed in agreement. Maybe he was. How could he not be?
"So, are you two serious?" John took a sip of his beer, staring at Robin.
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure we are. Oh man, John. She's just… different! She's sarcastic and smart and insanely sexy… I know we just met a couple weeks ago, but I swear it's like we've known each other all our lives! We can talk about anything and nothing at all. I can't explain it. It's like we were just meant to be. John, I'm falling in love with her…" he confided to his friend, who just smiled. It's been a while since Robin talked like this about a woman.
"Make sure you know what you're getting yourself into." John said quietly. Robin looked at him sharply.
"What's that supposed to mean?" He had a feeling his Merry Men would be a bit judgmental, specifically of Regina's past. But John wasn't intimidated by Robin's tone of voice.
"I mean, she was once the Evil Queen… she has a past…" he explained.
Robin's nostril flared. "So? Don't we all?" He was ready to defend his love from anyone who dared try to talk bad about his Regina.
"Rob, you're taking it wrong. I'm not judging her past. We all know she's reformed herself. She's not the same woman. But at the same time, she's still the same woman who had nothing but heartbreak for the majority of her life. The same woman who was constantly bullied and manipulated by her mother and then by Rumpelstiltskin. The woman who watched her first love get his heart ripped out and killed right in front of her, in her arms. Hell, even her own son denied her and pushed her away the second Emma Swan came into town. She's not untouched by rejection, abandonment, grief and trauma. Just don't add to that. She doesn't need that."
Robin fell silent as she considered John's wise words. He had no intention of ever breaking Regina's heart. He hoped he could be the one to mend it. To show her that not all those she loves will leave or die. He wanted to show her she was worthy of love and happiness. She was his happy ending.
"I love her." He said simply. "I could never hurt her."
"So, when are you going to tell us what you and Robin were up to this weekend? Henry said dinner on Saturday night was fun and he enjoyed meeting him and Roland." Emma said as she poured herself another glass of wine. The women were all cozied up in Regina's mansion. Tink and Belle were busy preparing a meat and cheese platter for all of them to share. Mary-Margaret smirked at Regina.
"Oh, we all know what they were up to. We all saw the way he got all jealous when Nottingham tried to feel you up." The school teacher giggled and wiggled her eyebrows at her step-mom.
"It was so hot how he defended you." Tink said as she set the platter down in the middle of the other women.
"It's a school night, don't you have a bed time?" Regina playfully snapped at Mary-Margaret who stuck her tongue out childishly. The last thing she needed was to discuss her sex life with her gossip hungry friends. Everyone had seen her hickey, it wasn't a secret what Robin and Regina had been up to over the weekend.
"Just tell us: was he good….?" Tink asked as she stuffed her mouth with a salami and cheese roll up. "He has very big hands and big feet, you know what that means." She joked, enjoying the way Regina flushed.
"And he's very strong." Belle added with a twinkle in her eye.
"Lots of stamina." Emma winked at Regina.
Regina put her head in her hands. This was not happening to her. She didn't mind that everyone knew she and Robin were together now, but she wasn't prepared for the inappropriate jokes from her friends. But she knew it was all in jest. They were happy she was finally opening herself up to love and the idea of happiness. She decided to indulge her friends.
"He was… pretty amazing." She smirked, making them all grin like little girls on Christmas. "The best I've ever had." She confessed. "I'm not sure what it is about him. It's like we've known each other forever, even though it's only been a couple weeks. He just knows me and… he gets me. He doesn't judge my past or he never uses it against me or throws it in my face." The women were all silent, listening to Regina. They knew her journey hadn't been an easy one. Robin was perfect for her.
"And his little boy…?" Emma asked.
Regina smiled fondly at the thought of Roland. "He's such a sweetheart. He's always happy to see me. It's a nice change for once, to actually be the cause of joy for someone. I love him."
"And Robin…? Do you love him…?" Belle asked quietly. Regina bit her lip. She knew deep down she did, but wasn't it too soon? What if her friend's didn't understand?
"I don't know… maybe? I feel… complete with him. I feel safe with him. But we also just met so how do I know? I'm not the best at… well, love. I don't have much experience." She said, slightly ashamed.
"Regina, you have the most resilient heart." Mary-Margaret said softly as she put down her wine and took her hands in hers. "Your heart is finding it's way to love and you just have to trust it and let it in. I've… we've all seen what life has thrown at you, and you fight the darkness everyday. Robin is a good man and you deserve to be happy. With him."
"We've all seen the way he looks at you, Regina. He's head over heels for you." Belle added.
"He's your soulmate." Tink added quietly. All the women looked over at the blonde in surprise.
"How do you know?" Regina asked, her brows furrowing at her friend. She watched Tink nervously pick at her nails.
"Tinkerbell!" Emma said sternly.
"Okay, okay!" She took a large sip of wine before looking over at Regina, her eyes begging for forgiveness.
"Years ago, when we were in the Enchanted Forest, well… it was no secret the Queen was unhappy. Everyone knew it but no one knew how to help her… you." She explained to Regina. "So, I stole pixie dust from Blue and tried to find a way to make the Queen happy, by finding her love. True love. And I found him at an old tavern. But I never saw his face. Blue caught me at the door before I could go in."
"But then how do you know Robin's my soulmate?" Regina was confused.
"I saw his tattoo. He has a lion tattoo on the inside of his wrist. I saw it on Robin when we all came back in the Second Curse in Granny's."
"Why didn't you ever tell me? All this time…? We've been back from the Second Curse for almost a year now!" the Queen scolded the young fairy.
"I know! But Regina, I know you! If I had told you he was your soulmate you would have gone running in the opposite direction. I had to just let it all happen naturally."
"She's right…" Emma said slowly. It was true, Regina had a habit of running from the things in her life that could bring her to her happiness. But Regina stood up and grabbed her jacket.
"Excuse me, I need a moment." She said quietly before slipping outside.
The other women looked at each other before Tink got up to follow her. "I'll go. I need to fix this."
She made her way outside and found Regina standing under the huge oak tree, staring up at the stars.
"I'm sorry, Regina."
The other woman looked around and smiled sadly at Tinkerbell. "I'm not mad at you. You and Emma are right, I do run from the things that make me happy. I'm scared… I'm scared of having happiness and then it being taken away. Look at Daniel, my father… Henry-"
"Henry wasn't taken from you!"
"He almost was though! The thought of Robin and Roland being taken away from me… I just can't stand it! If Robin is my soulmate, then loving me wasn't his choice. It was fate, it was already in the works. He never got a chance… What if he wakes up one day and realizes who I am? Realizes that I'm the Evil Queen and there's no happy future with me! Villains don't get happy endings…" she almost sobbed, a single tear slipping down her cheek.
"Regina, Robin loves you and your flaws. He knows exactly who you are! Don't you remember how you two met? You healed his sick son! You HEALED him. For one, he obviously knew who you were. And for two, villains don't have healing magic. And for god's sake Regina, stop calling yourself the Evil Queen. You're not evil and you're not a villain anymore and everyone knows that. You were a Queen. You're a hero. You and Robin were meant for each other. You're perfect, you're soulmates."
"Thanks Tink." Regina took a deep breath before making a decision. "You all are welcome to stay over if you want. But I need to go see Robin."
"Okay… We all love you and want to see you happy. Robin is your soulmate… he is your happiness, your second chance at love. Just remember that okay?" Tink smiled as she hugged her friend.
"Is that your way of telling me not to screw it up?" the mayor joked.
"Go, Regina!"
Robin had just finished putting Roland to bed when a soft knock at the door caught his attention. He glanced around his home to make sure everything was semi-clean before answering the door.
"Regina!" he had to admit, seeing the Queen on his front porch just did…. things to him. "You look stunning, if I may be so bold as to say." He grinned at her. Regina couldn't help but smirk back at him as he gently pulled her through the doorway. Robin couldn't help but tilt her head up to kiss her, sighing into her lips.
Regina felt herself melt into her soulmate's arms. Her soulmate. He was perfect to her, they fit perfectly together. She wrapped her arms around his neck and bit his lip as his hands wandered down to grab her ass.
"Robin…" she whispered. "Believe it or not, I actually did come here to talk to you… about something important." She tried to untangle herself from his arms. Robin frowned at the loss of her soft body against his.
"Is everything okay, Milady?"
"Yeah, but first where's Roland?"
"He's sleeping…"
"Can we go sit outside? I love your yard…" she grinned at him.
"Of course, Milady! I just have to leave the door open in case Roland wakes up."
Together they made their way out to the back patio. "I absolutely love it here. I've never felt at peace the way I do here." She confided to him. Regina stared up at the stars and Robin stared at her. There was something different about her tonight. There was something she needed to talk about. So, he didn't reach for her. He just waited for her to talk.
"Do you believe in soulmates?" she finally asked him, her dark brown eyes searching his. Robin was stunned. The idea of soulmates was the last thing he expected her to ask about. But he knew the answer.
"Yes, I do." He told her.
"How do you know they exist?" she wondered.
"Because there's always one person you just know you were born to gaze into their eyes forever. Your heart beats for them. Your soulmate makes you feel entirely whole, healed and intact, like no piece is missing from the puzzle. A soulmate makes you feel differently. It's from inside. Soulmate's just get each other. They fall in love with each other's flaws…" Robin started walking towards Regina slowly. He couldn't take his eyes off her.
"You can't imagine your life without them." He whispered as he took her by the hand. "They're mentally inseparable. They know what the other is thinking without even having to say anything. You feel secure and protected with them." He gently tugged her into his arms.
"Do you feel safe right now, Regina?" he asked as he gazed into her eyes.
"Yes." She answered immediately knowing she meant it. Robin protected her and made her feel secure in a way she never had. With all the pain and rejection in her life, she had become very distrustful. But she trusted Robin in a heartbeat. Without even knowing why… but the knowledge that they're soulmates made everything make sense.
"Do you believe in soulmates, Regina?" he asked, still unable to take his eyes off her.
"Yes, I do." Regina breathed, her heart beat going wildly.
"We're soulmates, aren't we?" they both asked each other. They both knew it. Right then and there. On paper, it didn't make any sense: the Queen and the thief. They shouldn't be together and yet, they couldn't be apart. Not ever. She was his Queen and he was her thief.
"I love you, Robin." She told him for the first time ever, her voice never wavering, her eyes never leaving his. She knew it in her heart, in her soul. Robin was her soulmate and she was going to spend the rest of her life with him.
"I love you too Regina. God, I am so in love with you." He murmured to her as he took her hands, wrapping them around his neck. Their lips met in a fiery kiss, one that had them both weak at the knees. Their tongues tangled and the pair moaned into each other. Robin's heart burst when she told him she loved her. He knew she felt it, the same feelings he felt. He bent his knees and grabbed her thighs, picking her up into his arms. He deposited her on the railing of the porch, careful not to let her fall. Regina groaned at his sudden display of strength.
"Robin?" she asked him shyly.
"Yes, Milady?"
"Take me to your bed…"
Robin of Locksley was not one to disobey an order from his queen.
Hours later, the two lovers found themselves in a tangled mess of sheets and each other. Robin gathered Regina's tired, limp body in his arms, laying down with her sweaty body curled into his chest. They made love that night. No hard and fast fucking. It was slow and deep and they spent time exploring every inch of each other's body. They lost themselves in each other, in each other's eyes, in each other's soul. Regina came with Robin's name on her lips, her body held tightly in his arms. Robin couldn't remember how many times he touched the sky that night. Sex with Regina, with his soulmate, was more intense, than with anyone else he had ever been with. Even Marian. He loved Marian but she wasn't Regina. She wasn't his soulmate. What he had with Marian was special and he wouldn't trade it for anything because it brought him his beautiful son, Roland.
Oh, how he longed to someday give Regina a child. He could just see her with her belly swollen, his child growing inside of her.
On impulse, he stated his thoughts out loud to her. "I want to have a child with you someday…" he whispered in her ear. He felt Regina freeze in his arms.
A sadness filled her heart as she sat up and looked down at Robin. She felt her tears stream down her face. She should have known it wouldn't be that easy. That she and Robin could have their happily ever after. She never told him about the potion she drank so many years ago to stop her mother from taking the throne through an heir, Regina's child. The potion that removed her uterus.
Regina couldn't have children.
"Robin... I can't." she whimpered, her tears falling now. The first thing Robin had wanted from her was a child and she couldn't have one. She felt like a failure as a woman, as Robin's soulmate. Her sweet Robin was quick to sit up, holding her hips tightly to him, keeping her in place.
"Regina, my love. I'm sorry, I don't mean right now-" he started but was cut off as Regina pressed her hand to his mouth.
"I want to have your child, Robin. My God, I do. But I can't! Years ago, my mother tried to trick me into falling in love. She wanted me to have a child so she can take the throne through my child. So I did the only thing I thought was logical to stop her. I drank a potion to make me barren... Robin, I can't have children of my own! I am so sorry!" she sobbed into her hands. She couldn't even look at him. She couldn't bear to see the disappointment in his face.
Robin was silent for a moment. He loved Regina with all his heart. And they had Henry and Roland. If they wanted another child, they could always adopt. He hated her mother for making her daughter think the only option was to remove a part of her to create a child. He took her hands and slowly removed them to see her beautiful face, tears streaming down her cheeks. He hated seeing her cry.
"Regina Mills, you are the strongest, most amazing woman I've ever met. I am so sorry your mother made you feel that was the only way out... I can't even imagine the pain you endured under your mother's hand. I am so sorry I wasn't there to protect you..." he said as kissed her tears away. Regina melted into him as his strong lips caressed her cheeks.
"You're not mad..." she asked tentatively.
Robin smiled gently at her. "I could never be mad at something that wasn't your fault. It's a bridge we'll cross when we get there. My love, please don't worry, okay? We'll figure something out. And if it means we adopt a child, that's what we'll do!" he smiled at her.
Regina didn't know what she didn't know what she did to deserve such a man. Robin never failed to amaze her.
