Storybrooke - Present Day
She sat by the fire pit, staring at the bright flames. Small sparks popped, flew out of the pit and landed on the ground, instantly burning out in the dirt. Her eyes averted from the fire when he approached her. She then stared up at him and that generous smile on his lips as he squatted to the ground to meet her gaze.
"Here," Robin said as he began to unfold a thick, heavy wool blanket. He moved a bit closer to the shivering pregnant woman and wrapped it around her shoulders and over the front of her body. He smiled up at her. "That should help to remove the chill." Robin then reached down, picked up a cup filled with fresh water and handed it to her.
Regina managed a meek smile. "Thank you," she said softly in her still somewhat hoarse and raspy voice. She watched him sit down close beside her, pick up a stick and begin tending the fire. Regina noticed the way the light hit his face; illuminating half of it while the other half was masked by the darkness of the forest. "Robin," she asked, "may I ask you a question?"
"Of course." He smiled at her. "You may ask me anything you like."
"Why do you always feel the need to help people?" she asked simply, looking back to the bright flames of the fire before gazing back at him.
"Well," he laughed, "it's not so much a need to help them, rather I want to help them. It's always been a part of my nature since I was boy. You see, my father was very generous man. He would always be willing to give his last penny to a lonely old beggar or an orphaned child living on the streets. He taught me that something as simple as giving a beggar or an orphan a few pennies can produce a ripple effect; it can produce more generosity out of others, and it can even change someone's life."
Regina shook her head, another question lurking in her mind. "But isn't that an impossible feat? You can't help everyone."
"No I cannot. But who's to say that even the small things I do to help one person won't result in a larger change? The small acts of kindness is where it all begins," he explained with confidence.
"What about me?" Regina asked curiously. "What do you think helping me will accomplish?"
"Something, perhaps. Maybe even nothing," he replied looking into her curious and confused brown eyes. "But I do hope something." He noticed her grin pleasantly. "I've come to find that the people who usually say that they don't need or want help are the ones who need it the most." Regina laughed, knowing that he was referring to when they first met earlier that week. The way the light from the fire and natural light of the moon and stars shined upon her face was beautiful to him. Her lips were a luscious dark pink, as were her cheeks; her lashes were long and full and her eyes held a gentle gleam within them. "How are you feeling?" he asked.
"Better," she answered with another smile.
"I'm glad." Another moment of silence passed between them before he continued, "Milady-"
"You can just call me Regina," she interrupted him.
He grinned before correcting himself, "Regina, would you be so kind as to answer a question for me?"
"Sure." She nodded, taking a small sip of water.
He looked to her sincerely, as if to ask her something of importance and then asked, "Why on Earth were you wandering around town in the middle of the night?"
Regina let out a soft chuckle and began to explain, "I, uh, had a pretty terrifying nightmare in the middle of the night. It just startled me a bit and I felt the need to go out and get some air for a little while. I don't know what it was about it, but it just felt very real. I just wanted to get it out of my head by distracting myself somehow." She shook her head and sighed, "I suppose it wasn't the best idea to leave the apartment though." She watched as Robin let out a laugh while nodding his head in agreement. Staring at him for a short while, she then said, "Maybe I should head back there before they wake up and realize that I'm gone."
As she set down the cup of water, Robin then looked to her with some disappointment in his eyes. He asked, "Why?" It seemed to provoke a very awkward response from her. He then corrected himself, "I mean… maybe you should stay the night. Walking back at such a late hour seems rather foolish with Zelena and her minions now after you."
Regina stared at him awkwardly; the only sounds heard were of the crackling fire and few night owls up high in the trees. She thought for a short moment, before managing a small smile. "Alright," she replied very softly and calmly.
"I shall bring you back first thing in the morning," Robin promised her and then watched as she nodded her head in agreement.
0-0-0
The Enchanted Forest - One Year and Eight Months Earlier
She stormed through the castle, rage filling up inside of her. She could not believe he had done that. The ass! Inches away from her head; he could have killed her with that damn arrow. She continued walking quickly and furiously through the halls, unable to stand another minute with any of those fools.
"What the bloody hell is your problem?" She heard his irritating voice following her from behind.
"Take a wild guess," she replied viciously, not stopping or slowing her pace.
Robin sped passed her and stood directly in front of her, blocking her from going any further. "Milady, if I had wanted to hit you, I wouldn't have missed."
Regina's eyes widened with insult. She stared at the intolerable man. "Is that supposed to make me feel better or something?" She scoffed before stepping passed him and continuing on to her bedchamber.
"Well, yes, actually," he replied, still following her every step. "I was only trying to help you. That bloody door would have taken your arm off if I didn't!" He stepped in front of her again, only invoking more of her anger.
"What is it with your constant obsession with feeling the need to help me when I don't want it?" She yelled, accenting those last few words to make sure he finally understood what she had been trying to tell him for months. Before he could refute, she ducked into her bedchamber, shutting the door in his face. However, the thief remained persistent as he swung the door open and marched into the Queen's chambers. "Get out of my room!" Regina yelled furiously.
"No!" Robin yelled back. "I will not leave until you tell me what your bloody problem is! Whether it is avoid my presence or snap at me whenever I wish to speak in turn, you always wish to find a way to degrade me. Why do you hate me so much? What have I ever done to you to receive such horrid treatment?" Regina stared at him as he continued. "How can someone incur so much hatred-?"
Suddenly, Robin was stopped by something so unexpected. In the heat of the moment, the Queen pulled Robin in by his shirt collar and kissed him. He felt her sigh deeply, her breath hitting his skin. He felt the grip on his collar soften as their lips began to separate from one another. He opened his eyes and stared into a set of big brown orbs no longer filled with rage rather filled with something much different.
Regina quickly released the thief's shirt and stepped back. Even she felt a bit confused at what she had just done. Without another word from either of them, the Queen turned and exited her chambers, her fingers gently touching her lips and her heart now beating fast.
0-0-0
Storybrooke - Present Day
"Robin," Regina let out after a long silence sitting by the light of the fire. "I wanted to apologize to you for very clearly trying to avoid you for most of this week."
"Why did you?" Robin asked, curious to know the answer.
The brunette let out a soft laugh and replied, "You'll think it's stupid if I tell you."
"Try me."
She glanced up at him, noticing his smile and the sincerity in his eyes. It seemed to bring some comfort to her. She took another second to look to the forest floor and think about if she really wished to tell him. Staring up at him once more, she raised her brow and finally answered, "Because I trust you."
Robin's grin grew a bit wider. "And why is that such a bad thing?" he asked.
"It scares me," Regina replied honestly. Noticing the confusion in his expression, she let out a soft sigh and explained, "People from my past, people whom I trusted before, have always let me down. Eventually I just stopped trusting others and it became part of my nature. And, now, trusting you; knowing you only a week, well, it just feels strange."
"Well," Robin looked at her with complete sincerity and smiled, "perhaps you and I knew one another better than we think during those lost years. Maybe," he looked into the fire for a short moment before looking back to her, "maybe something inside of us is trying to remind us."
Regina laughed, "Mary Margaret said the same thing to me earlier tonight."
Robin raised his brow at her, and asked curiously, "You were discussing me?"
"A little," Regina looked to him with a kind grin.
The light-haired man tried suppressing a smile as he watched the woman place a hand to her stomach and shift her sitting position. He glanced down at where the hand was placed and then asked, "Is she moving around in there again?"
Regina nodded for second before looking to him curiously. "She?"
Robin nodded and smiled. He explained, "It's a little gift I have. I was able to predict my son was going to be a boy also."
The pregnant woman glanced down at her large stomach, peaking out through the woolen blanket wrapped around her shoulders. She grinned at the thought of having a little girl. It would surely be different compared to raising Henry. Even though Robin's word could be false, she liked to imagine it. Boy or girl, it didn't really matter. Just the thought of another baby in her life, another child, was both exciting and nerve racking. She kept smiling at the feeling moving around inside of her and let out a sweet chuckle when feeling a little foot pressed up against her hand.
She looked up at Robin who seemed to be simply admiring her reaction to the feeling. After a short pause she asked, "Would you like to feel?" She noticed the sudden nervousness in his eyes and laughed. "I won't run away this time. I promise."
Regina took a hold of Robin's hand and slowly brought it towards her belly. She placed his palm exactly where she could feel the kick and watched as his face lit up. The nervousness disappeared from his expression and only excitement remained. As he looked up, their eyes suddenly met only inches away. His features softened when meeting her gaze. In the silent moment, Robin suddenly leaned forward in an attempt to capture the woman's lips. But Regina was quick to place a hand to his chest and stop him.
"Robin," she spoke softly, a little embarrassed. "I can't." She watched his eyes open, a look of disappointment instantly appearing on his face as he backed away. She explained, "My life… is complicated right now. With Zelena, and this baby and not remembering the past two years… I can't handle more on my plate at the moment. I'm sorry if I made you believe otherwise."
"No," Robin shook his head. "I am sorry for misinterpreting this as anything more than what it was." He stared into her dark eyes apologetically. "Please forgive me."
Regina nodded, "Of course." She felt his hand slide off of her stomach and watched as he gazed back into the glowing fire.
The awkwardness of the moment soon passed with time as the couple continued to talk throughout the night. Hours went by until they finally dozed off to sleep, the fire slowly burning out until only the moon and stars lit the forest and the sky.
Have you guys ever realized that the show hasn't really given Robin a backstory to why he became Robin Hood? I've always wondered that. Maybe they did and I totally missed it. Idk, maybe they'll do it in season four, but I thought I'd put a little something in there. And I wanted it to be more of a positive backstory. There are a lot of sad ones in the show, so I thought this would be a nice change.
Also, just so you all know. I did make that Enchanted Forest scene much earlier in the story compared to the show. Cause they end up going to Rumple when Snow is like 8 months pregnant, which wouldn't really make any sense. Like what were they doing for the past few months? That confused me, but whatever. It makes Robin and Regina's love story make more sense here and makes it a lot less rushed.
Again, thanks for reading! Please review and let me know what you think of everything so far.
