Continued from the last chapter. Based off the dialogue prompt: "It looks like we'll be trapped for a while..."

Their trip was only meant to be a few hours. Robin's legs were finally healed and Roland was truly excited to have his father well again. When Robin had asked his son what he'd like to do for his first day without crutches the young boy had quickly said horseback riding. Due to his young age Roland was quite often left out of adventures of the adults. He'd always be forced to stay behind in the camp or the castle as he'd watched them ride off to glory on their great steeds. He always thought that once he learned to ride he'd be able to have adventures of his own. Upon moving into the castle he'd quickly become obsessed with a young chestnut mare named Cluster, for the group of white spots on her back. She'd been born just a few weeks after they'd arrived and Roland was truly in love. Every day he'd make a trip just to feed her apples he'd steal from the kitchen.

To be honest Roland's bond with the young mare made Robin wary. He'd never been one to trust young horses. Not since his over eagerness had got him thrown off when he was ten. He'd much prefer it if Roland bonded with one of the older, more reliable horses. Still he agreed when Roland asked to visit with Cluster on her first day out of the stables. When Snow learned of his apprehensiveness she'd suggested he ask Regina to come along. The queen was reluctant but as soon as he mentioned of Roland's name he knew she wouldn't say no.

And so the three of them headed to the stables around lunch time to visit Cluster. Upon seeing Roland's excitement Regina immediately began to teach him the guiding principles of horse training. She was quick to remind him that Cluster was an animal just like any other and as such required a certain amount of caution. As he watched her ride with his son and observe the foal's progress he began to see a change in her. She seemed more relaxed than she'd been in days. Youthful even. They'd only been riding for a few hours when Cluster began to behave erratically.

"There's a storm coming," said Regina noticing the dark clouds in the sky. "It'll be her first. She won't take it well."

She quickly passed Roland off to him and began to lead the young horse to the 'd barely made it inside before the storm hit in full force. Regina riding clothes were soaked through by the time she got Cluster back into her stall. Like she'd predicted the horse wasn't handling the storm well at all. She nervously moved around her stall unable to stay still, desperately wanting to escape. Roland watched her with wide eyes, clearly concerned for his four-legged friend.

"Is she going to be okay?"

Regina gave Roland a reassuring look as she conjured up a warm blanket to place over his shoulders. "She's going to be fine dear. She's just a little worried about the storm."

She turned her attention to Robin. "I'm going to stay with her until the storm passes but you and Roland should go back to the castle. I'll poof you back."

"No!" cried Roland. "I want to stay with Cluster! She's scared."

"Roland it's storming like mad outside. We need to get into the castle," said Robin gently. "It's not safe for us to be outside."

"Then how's it safe for Cluster?" he asked with tears welling up in his eyes. "She needs me to stay Papa, please?"

Robin shut his eyes and let out a frustrated sigh. There was no way he was going to be able to get his son to abandon the horse. Not while the storm was raging. He gave Regina a conflicted look. He supposed if she could survive out here so could they. "Looks like we'll be trapped for a while…"

—

Regina had agreed to let them stay but only if Roland remained far from Cluster's stall. The father and son watched as the queen worked to get the young horse through her first storm. Robin had always known Regina was a good rider but he'd never realized that she had such a way with horses. He watched as she implored Cluster to focus on her instead of the storm. She patted her neck and spoke to her in gentle tones. She even conjured up a few treats to help her calm down.

After an hour or so Cluster had finally found some peace and Roland had fallen asleep by Robin's side. It was unsurprising. Roland had spent nearly all his life outdoors so storms rarely bothered him. Regina tiredly sat down next to them and tucked Roland's blanket tighter around his shoulders.

"You know it's ridiculous that you allowed him to stay out here in this storm."

Robin shrugged his shoulders. "What can I say? He's bonded with this horse. If I took him inside he'd just run back out to see her."

He gave her a curious look. "You must understand that given the way you act when you're around them."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "How I act?"

"Like you've been around them your whole life."

She sighed as she leaned her head against the stall. " I have been around them my whole life. I was only a few years older than Roland when I got my first horse. A beautiful brown and white steed. I named him Rocinante."

"Sounds majestic," commented Robin.

"He was," said Regina wistfully. "I would spend whole days riding him. Sometimes I would even come out at night to sleep beside his stall. My mother hated him but he was probably the best friend I ever had."

"He's not here," said Robin, looking around the stalls for such a horse. "What happened to him?"

"I killed him," Regina answered flatly.

Robin felt his blood run cold. It made no sense. The woman he'd seen today appeared incapable of harming a horse in such a way. Then he remembered who he was sitting next to. She hadn't been called the Evil Queen for no reason. He'd heard the stories of her dark deeds. The crimes she'd committed. It always shocked how easily he could forget those things when she was near.

"Why would you do such a thing?"

"I was trying to cast the dark curse," she explained without looking at him. "It requires the heart of the thing you love the most. I thought because of how I loved Rocinante that I would be able to use him instead of using my father. I was wrong."

Robin didn't know what to say to that. So he didn't say anything all. How could he? There were no words that he could find that would be able give her comfort he wished he could provide. Instead he just stayed. He didn't turn from her or clutch Roland closer. He just stayed.

They sat in silence until the storm passed. Regina left as soon as the sky cleared while Robin woke his son to assure him that the horse he cared so deeply for was alright. The next time they asked her to come riding she refused.

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