Suddenly she was smiling. After her tears had been used up and after her body had stopped shaking she was smiling. Robin was still holding her tightly, clutching her to him and though crying until her eyes were dried was not a strange occasion to Regina, being held after was as foreign as the forest she inhabited. As a faint salty taste reached her mouth, she glanced up to him again, only to find a small smile gracing his own mouth. He combed his fingers through her hair as he often did and the action had become a calming action over the course of the past few days.
"Thank you." She told him with a smile and Robin slightly cocked his head in questioning, only pulling back slightly to behold her face. "For listening." Regina explained, softly pulling him back towards her and burying her face in his neck, breathing in the scent of forest.
"Always, milady." The told her solemnly and Regina smiled into his neck. She could hardly believe that she was clenching tightly to his thief, this savage lord and yet nothing had felt more natural in a long time. So she smiled, sad, but content as she had ever been.

"Daddy!" She only got a moment's warning before the little boy crashed against her and Robin like an arrow fired from one of the ranger's bow's. He arrived in a flurry of green and brown and clenched his arms around his father –and consecutively around her- like a tiny monkey.
"Hey little man!" Robin pulled back from her slightly to look at his son, who tried and failed to hold on to both his father and Regina at the same time. Robin untangled both of them from the boy's grasp and raised his eyebrows in a combination of question and scolding. The boy grinned happily, his eyes shining with the morning son until they were almost hazel brown.
"'G'morning!" Roland said happily, oblivious to the heartfelt moment he had just interrupted. The boy sat back on the bed on his hunches, but never ceased the happy bouncing that made the matrass slide back and forth slightly. The movements made him look oddly like an excited rabbit and Regina couldn't help but laugh at it.
"Good morning." Said Robin with a grin and a somewhat sheepish grin towards Regina. "What did I tell you about waking the lady here, young man?" He tried to full of a scowl and a serious frown towards his son, but the boy still mimicked a bunny with such startling accuracy that it was hard to remain serious in the sight of it. Roland's face, however, still sagged slightly as he set himself fall back towards sitting on the bed comically and glanced down to his hands.
"I can wake the lazy butts the man if I want to, but not the lady's ..."
"Not the lady." Robin quickly corrected the boy and Regina snorted while Roland frowned in confusion. He was a perfect imitation of his father and even more so when he turned towards Robin and his frown molded into an accusatory glance.
"You did not tell me story before bedtime yesterday." He accused and Robin and Regina's grins fell silent at the boy's words. It had been easy to forget for a few moments that Cora had nearly killed this boy's father less than a day earlier, but they needed to remember, because Cora would not stop and they could not drop their guard. Yet they told the boy anything about magic and poison and curses.
"I fell asleep." Robin simply answered and Roland's frown deepened.
"I got lost, 'Gina found me." The boy crossed his arms in front of his chest, as if he were demanding answers from his father. Robin simply chuckled softly and swung his legs over the bed, walking up to the little boy and lifting the boy to the ground with ease.
"I'm sure Regina will always find you." He promised the boy and Roland eyed him for a second as critically as a four year old could, before accepting the answer and running towards Regina's side of the bed, giving her a toothy grin.
"You wanna have breakfast?" He asked happily, already taking her hand and pulling her along before Regina could agree. Regina chuckled and accepted the boy's offer as she was already being led out of the tent by the little boy's hand.

The bread was still hard enough to break her teeth and the soup was still so thick that it required more effort to eat than most of the food she used to get at the palace. Yet it all seemed to taste better than it ever had, because she felt content with Roland sitting on her left and Robin on her right. The latter ate the breakfast effortless, chewing the nutty, tough bread as easily as the airy buns that Regina used to love. The former, however, seemed to struggle with the bread in the same manner that Regina did, but as she observed him she noticed that little Roland had found a way around the bread: the boy would throw the bread into his bowl of soup until it would become completely sappy, after which he could use his spoon to eat bread and broth altogether. It was with a note of curiosity that she also noted that Roland would peel and scratch the nuts from the bread with startling expertise, after which he would hide them in his pockets. As the little boy caught Regina looking at him, he leaned towards her conspiratorially and told her in a hushed voice:
"T'is for the squirrels."
Regina snickered at the boy. She had overheard Robin venting to her about the vermin in camp to one of his men. The squirrels –tree rats he had called them- were apparently especially hard to wipe out. She doubted that Robin would be happy with the idea of his son feeding the same vermin that he had been trying fervently to wipe out. Roland gave her a toothy smile, apparently happy that his story had gotten a laugh out of Regina, although he was oblivious to the exact reason.
She had nearly finished her breakfast when a loud shout made her startle and drop the remainder of her bread into her bowl of soup. She had been vigorously taught not to swear by her mother, so she made a grumbling-slash-yelping noise instead. She heard a loud whistle and then another shout in a language she could not comprehend. When she looked up she saw two of Robin's men standing near a dozen feet away from them. They laughed and eyed her with a look that made shivers run down her back. Robin was on his feet and marching towards them within seconds, angrily talking to them in the same language. It was a language that Regina had not heard before as such, but the sound of it was vaguely familiar to the accent Robin and his men spoke with. While the accent was melodious and rolled around the vowels, deepened and heightened sounds, this language seemed crafted solely from these sounds. Like the accent; the language sounded raspy, dangerous but also melodious and soft, it sounded ancient. Now, however, Robin spat it angrily at his man and there was little melody in it, the language seemed to form itself to the angry words and consisted out of many guttural sounds that resembled the sound of some animals. The two men quickly mumbled an apology before darting off and Robin stalked back towards their place, angrily sitting down and biting his lip for a second before turning to her. "Apologies. Idiots think because they speak three words in Ancient Sylvan they can prance around and insult everybody who does not." He turned towards his wife and rolls his eyes. "They speak it badly too. I swear, the Sylvan lords would be appalled."

Regina cocked her head and raised her eyebrows in question. Robin's tales about the Sherwood forest had interested her and she had found herself desiring to hear more about the history of this obviously centuries old story. She felt Roland huddle towards her and suspected that the boy had heard the story before, but was eager to hear it again. Robin caught her gaze and smiled, nodding slowly as he understood; "The Sylvans were the first to inhabit these forests. We do not actually know if they had a name for themselves and what they called themselves if they did; the term Sylvans was actually created by the city dwellers who wiped out the last of them a long time ago. The sylvan did not write and oral traditions have gone lost with their demise, so most things we know about them comes from the same conquerors that drove them out until they eventually went extinct." There was an undeniable tone of bitterness in his voice and he shook his head. "Like I said, we have little sources from the Sylvans themselves, so we don't know if there's truth in the stories we do have; but according to the old texts they were intertwined with the forest in every aspect of their being: some conquerors described them as resembling trees when they stood still, while others claim that they were powerful sorcerers who could bring trees to life. It is possible, of course, that the former explains the latter. Anyway; the exact motive the humans had for driving out the Sylvans is also not exactly known, but all stories define it as having something to do with the human fear of the unknown." He sighed. "And that's how an centuries old tribe got driven to extinction, taking nearly everything of their culture with them."

"That's horrible." Regina agreed with Robin's silent statement. She felt Roland cling towards her tightly as he still listened intently to the adults next to him talking. Regina frowned as she let the information she had received sink in, before she asked: "But If there is no writing in Sylvan language, how is it you speak it then?"
Robin nodded slowly, as if agreeing with the premise of her question. "The language was also recorded by these same conquerors; you see they desired to trade with the forest-dwellers at first and many wise men studied the language of the forest. And wise men do what they do: they write books. Centuries after the Sylvans had gone extinct the library were the books on Sylvan culture were kept, got raided by a party of outlaws. After this the group of escaped prisoners, religious outcasts and overall unwanted human beings massed to the Sherwood forests, because it was near impossible for the King's justice to reach there. They found the explanations of Sylvan language in the texts and started to use it as a secret language." He chuckled. "And that, milady, is our ancestry. A bunch of outlaws and a stolen language. And yet my dad was surprised I took to thieving." He chuckled, but there was an unmistakable bitterness in his voice over the fate that had befallen the previous inhabitants of his home. "Eventually the Sylvan language eroded and only the accent remained, our ancestors taking on the common tongue. Traditionally only the Lord of the Sherwood forests has to learn to speak ancient Sylvan, so I do, but some of my men also desired to learn it, probably to nag those who do not speak it." He rolled his eyes and turned towards her, his face morphed in an expression of grave seriousness.
"I pains me that many of my men think they can show such disrespect towards you, milady. They should respect you as their queen, for that is what you are. They are pigheaded idiots and I make my apologies for them." He shook his head. "If only they knew I owed my life to you."
Regina gave a wry smile. Robin had named her the queen of the Sherwood forest, but the title still rang as hollow as the day it first got pinned upon her. Some of the men had come to respect her slightly, like Devin, who had led her to Robin that one fateful night that felt long ago, but was only last night in reality. Cora had told her that being Robin's queen would come with wealth and respect, but if Regina was honest, she still had neither. In reality all she really had was Robin and she was not even sure to the extent of the relationship that was forming between them.
"What did they say?" Regina asked and Robin pursed his lips into a thin line, a streak of anger shining in his eyes for a split second before he shook his head.
"It matters not." He told her, but his tone told her that he wished not to repeat the words his men had said. The idea that she had been insulted and had no idea what they had said made her stomach churn. Cora had taught her that it mattered more than anything what other people thought of her, because it was other people that formed the ladder towards greatness. She wondered briefly if Roland could understand ancient Sylvan and coincidentally hoped that he did not.

"Milady I'm afraid I have to take my leave." Robin stood up and walked towards her, kissing her hand before turning to Roland and kissing his boy on the head. "Mhairi will see that you receive whatever you desire." He gave her a soft smile and dropped to his hunches in front of his son. "Roland, make sure not to bother the lady overmuch. Little John has promised to teach you tracking today has he not?" Roland pouted when Robin ordered him not to bother Regina, but his face lit up at the mention of little John. Regina had seen little John around camp plenty in the course of the past two weeks. He was hard to miss, after all. With his sizeable posture the guy was hardly suitable to hunt from the treetops like Robin's rangers were accustomed to, but the man was surprisingly talented at tracking and would often accompany hunter's groups as they went out in search of prey. It was odd to see the rather large figure accompanying the slim, shadowy rangers, but they joked and laughed like the best of friends. Robin stood up and gave her a final smile before leaving them, venturing into the woods on his own. Regina knew that the Sherwood Forests held no surprise for robin, but the idea of him venturing into them on his own still unnerved her.

"Your majesty." Her ears peered up at the still unusual title that was rarely used to address her. She couldn't help but smile as she took in the face of the timid yet somehow courageous fifteen-year-old brunette. Mhairi smiled back at her timidly and gave a larger smile to Roland afterwards, who Regina could just see waving at her in the corner of her eye. "Would you permit me to ask you how you are doing?" Mhairi asked, weighing her words carefully in an display of respect that Regina had not come to know from most of the members of the tribe.
"I permit you." Regina answered simply and she couldn't help but chuckle a bit at Mhairi's slight blush. "I'm fine." She added to her statement. It was not exactly the truth, but it also was not near as much of a lie as it had once been.
"I'm too!" Roland chimed from behind her and Mhairi laughed, dropping towards Roland's level and whispering to him: "How are the squirrels today?" Roland happily drew his hand from his pocket and showed a handful of nuts he had peeled from the bread towards her. Mhairi chuckled much like Regina had. "I bet they're going to love that." She said, ruffling his brown hair before turning back to Regina. "Milady, I have been so free to clear the river for you, if you desire to bathe." She said and Regina felt her spirits lift at the idea of a bath. Sure, the water would be cold and the knife would feel rough upon her skin, but the events of the previous night seemed to have left a layer of sweat and magic upon her skin that she could not wish to be rid of. She nodded thankfully at Mhairi, who had been the first one to be kind to her when she'd arrived, even before Robin. "Thank you Mhairi." She told the girl and it was filled with gratitude for far more than just her attentive service.

As she reached the river she was pleased to find it indeed empty and unused. Mhairi would always try to clean out the river before she wished to bathe, but Regina had had to order Robin's men to leave the river many times over anyway during the last few weeks. When she had, they would obey, but it always came with the necessary annoyance, tardiness and overall lack of respect towards her. Frankly it was quite disheartening to find her status as a queen respected so little every other morning, so it was a pleasant surprise when it was actually abandoned.

Mhairi had supplied her with the mixture of salt and oil and a rough towel, while Regina herself had brought Robin's bone-crafted knife and her dress of choice. She had chosen her favorite light dress last night, but after hearing the disrespect in the voices of Robin's men, had chosen another dress. Her eyed had lingered upon the beautiful, imposing black dress that Mhairi had laid out for her earlier. Her eyes had lingered upon the dress for a second, contemplating if she should pick the dress that would grant her increased authority over Robin's men. She knew it would make her look like the queen she was, but black had never been her color, so she had decided against it. She had, however, also decided that the time for lithe princess dresses was full and well over and had instead picked a dress that felt like a nice compromise between the two: it was a velvet red dress with elaborate black embroidery, tailored to hug around the gentle curves of her forming woman's body. It was stunningly beautiful and would certainly make her look like a queen, whilst not being as dark or intimidating as the black one. She gently laid down the dress on one of the large, black rocks and let her gown and sleepwear glide from her shoulders towards the golden grass surrounding the riverbed. She toyed with Robin's knife for a second, before putting it down on the rock next to the mixture. She would not need it yet. She had grown accustomed to bathing alone and as she stepped into the water, the cold did not seem to hit her that hard anymore. Robin had some baths with her, as was his duty, but had refused to take of the last layer of clothing that covered Regina's body, even after Regina had assured him that she did not mind. It was curious, that in such a tribe were nudity and communal bathing did not seem to be a prudence, her own husband did not wish to bear his wife to him. Yet she accepted his wishes and he remained as gentle with her as he had been the first time as he taught her to bathe herself and him both. Often, however, she would still bathe alone and at a rare occasion with Mhairi to assist her, especially when her hair needed to be washed. Regina did not mind those times alone as much; in those times the river had become a recluse from the crowded encampment.

She sighed as she felt the water flow over her skin, taking away the burning sting that had been left after the events the day before had branded her. It was still cold, chilling her to the bone, but the cold did not bother her that much anymore. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to feel the stream of the river around her, not hard enough to take her with it, but strong enough to pull at her, ask her by the hand to follow its path. The river touched her both like a gentle lover and a reprimanding mother, caressing in some places while stinging in others. It had no name, Robin had told her, or they had not named it. Robin had said, however, that it was the most precious gold in all the forest. He told her that no animal was to be killed drinking from the river, no matter how easy prey it would be, because the river was what granted them all life and connected them all. Killing anything for the sole reason of being alive was against the philosophy is the forest and thus not acceptable. In that way the river was literally a refuge, Regina mused, a place where no harm would befall any living creature. It was a reassuring thought, she mused, as she opened her hands to let the water flow through her fingers.

"Well well, look, if it isn't the miracle sorceress." She startled at the familiar voice and panic rose so quickly in her throat like bile that she would actually have gagged If her insides had not felt filled with ice. She felt a strong surge of magic kick through her body her heart reared in both terror and anger. When her eyes opened themselves of their own accord she saw the imp sitting on the rock where her dress had been laid, the velvet peeking out from under his crossed legs. Rumplestiltskin giggled manically and eyed her with abandon, letting his eyes roam over her bared body with almost feral interest. Regina immediately lifted her hands to cover her breasts from his sight, only to find purple magic springing from her fingertips like sparks from blades crashed together. She shook her hands instinctively as if they were on fire, but the sparks did not subside and flared just like the fear in her heart did. Rumplestiltskin's giggling only increased at her futile attempts and the imp did not quit his staring, his eyes growing wider and more eager as he took in the magic that demanded to be let out from the young queen's fingers.
"Oh dear that looks like a problem. You could hurt someone with that if you're not careful." Rumplestiltskin told her with feigned shock that sounded more mocking than anything else. He stood up from the rock and prowled towards her like a predator towards his prey. Then he was gone in a haze of smoke, before appearing right in front of her. He stood so close to her that she could nearly feel his breath against her and the proximity of him made a chill ran through her bones that was a thousand times colder than the river of magic could ever be. His gaze travelled down her body, lingering a second too long upon her breasts and waist before landing upon her hands, where sparks were increasingly flying from her fingertips as Regina fought her fear and anger towards the imp. Rumplestiltskin took her lithe, gentle hands in his own scaled, monstrous ones and caressed her fingertips in a perverted sense of admiration.
"Oh this will do just fine." He murmured more to himself than to her, giving her a grin of hideous yellowed, dull golden teeth. The urge to gag manifested itself inside Regina again, but she forced herself to remain upright, to not bow to the wiles of this horrid creature. The forest would protect her, she told herself, the forest and the river and Robin, they would protect her against whatever this imp would do to her.
The magic whispered it was a lie.

She ignored his remark, not wanting to know whatever the imp meant by his words, instead answering to his previous statement. She pulled her hands back from him and it took great effort to keep herself from hitting the imp as punishment for touching and staring at her. But Regina was not a foolish girl and knew power when she saw it. She would not win a fight with this creature, so starting one was unwise. Instead she gathered her courage and remembered the words her mother told her: 'always keep your composure dear, a woman men bed and wed, but a beast they will behead."
It was certainly a shame that Cora had never taken learning her own advice.

"I do not desire to use my magic, Imp. I will not harm anyone with it." The words 'unlike my mother' went unspoken, but she knew from the gleam in Rumplestiltskin's eyes that he had heard them nonetheless. He giggled manically and suddenly one of his hands was against her throat as she closed in on her, the fabric of his clothing just centimeters from touching her breasts.
"It's not about what you want, dearie." He repeated the words spoken earlier after Regina had refused to rip out Robin's heart and they both knew it. Knew that Rumplestiltskin had won that fight just as he was going to win this one. "It's not about you, it's about the people that are going to get hurt in your place." He tightened his hold around her neck until Regina had to gasp for breath, feeling the imp's nails piercing her skin. "I have given you a gift; a way to protect them against your mother. I can teach you to control your magic, Regina, and you will be stronger than your mother ever was." He leant towards her, pulling her closer to him by the neck until he could whisper in her ear. "Do you really think sticks and stones will bring your mother down? Robin cannot free you of your mother, but I can. If you let me teach you." He let her go abruptly and gazed into her eyes with such ferocity that it made Regina startle back so fast the almost tripped and fell backwards into the water.
"Do we have a deal?" Rumplestiltskin giggled manically again, his gaze never leaving her, trailing over her body as if she had the right to possess it, to use it as he pleased. Regina straightened her shoulders, she magic inside her screaming to eradicate him, to kill this creature and be done with it.
"Begone vile creature." She spat at him and for once, she let the magic free. She had expected practicing magic to be hard, but it came as natural as breathing to her right then. A fireball flying from her fingertips without a warning, hurtling towards the imp. Rumplestiltskin disappeared within seconds, leaving no trace but his manic giggling that continued to linger in the air for minutes after he'd disappeared.

Her hands tingled with the magic that had surged through them and her heart roared. Her body felt both frozen and set alight at the same time and tears formed in Regina's eyes at the sensation of the magic having been set free in her body.
Because she loved it.

She scraped her skin with the knife until it got red. Even after the oil had been all used up she continued to use the knife on his skin, desperately trying to wash off both the horrid sensation of the imp touching her, and something that was almost pleasure that the magic had left tingling upon it. After her skin was red, scraped and sore she dried herself off with the rough towel until it hurt and the pain drove out the pleasurable feeling of the magic. She put on the velvet dress and tightened the corset as tight as she could do herself, as if she were punishing herself for that one moment of weakness. She then sat upon the same rock that the creature had sat and watched the river, silently reproaching it, the Sherwood forest and most of all Robin for not protecting her.

Robin only found her hours later. She had heard some of Robin's men coming in, but a glare in their direction had sent them scattering back. She would laugh at the absurdness of the situation because of course they'd respect her now, but it was too bitter and sore to laugh about. Robin found her still sitting on the rock by the riverside and was next to her in a few hurried paces, looking every bit the concerned husband that he seemed to aspire to be.
"Regina, are you all right?" He gazed up and down her body, evidently looking for some kind of injury. He could obviously tell something was wrong with her, but also could not point out the source of her distress. The long sleeved dress covered the raw, red skin of her arms, so Robin could not see the harm she had caused herself in the river. He turned himself to face her and dropped down towards her level, much like he did with Roland. "You're worried." He concluded and Regina could barely hold back a sarcastic laugh because worried was an understatement at this point. She was terrified of everything: Rumplestiltskin, Cora but most of all of herself.
"Milady, I will not let harm come to you or to anyone else. I promise you." He told her once again and she could tell the earnest in his voice. These were not the empty promises of a dutiful husband; Robin truly believed them. She smiled softly at him, but also remembered how the same man had not been there just hours earlier when Rumplestiltskin could have snapped her neck with ease.
"You won't always be there to protect me." She told him. Robin nodded.
"That's why you need to able to protect yourself." He said with a smile. Regina's eyes flicked down to her fingertips, surely Robin could not mean that she would take up on the imp's offer? Yet the magic had saved Robin's life and had protected her against the imp. She despised it, yet it had protected her better even than Robin himself.

Robin shook his head and with a somewhat proud smile procured a beautiful bow from behind is back. It was smaller than his bow, thinner and lighter looking. The bows of Robin and his men were carved from the stone hard, black Dragonswood and were said to be the finest in the lands, but this bow was a light, almost creamy cold color that Regina had seen in no tree in the forest before. It was elegantly crafted and adorned only with the slightest rimming of gold where the strong met the curved wood. When she looked closer, however, engravings similar to the ones on her knife were carved all through the bow around what seemed to be a grip.
"It's … beautiful." She breathed as Robin took her hands and folded it around the bow. It was light and she felt it thrumming nearly unperceivably against the palm of her hand, as if the wood itself had a pulse.
"It's carved from the wood of an ancient tree that grows in the center of the Sherwood valley. The wood it said to inhabit magical powers, there is a story about a man who carved a puppet from it and wished for it to come to life, the tree granted the man his wish and the puppet lived." He placed his hands on Regina's, caressing the curve of the bow gently with the tips of his fingers before trailing his other hand over the arm holding it. "It will protect you. Once you know how to use it, it will never miss." He promised her. Regina gazed in awe at the bow, feeling the power thrum beneath the wood that had been crafted specially for her. When she turned back towards Robin she saw him smiling at her as he gently took the bow from her hands and laid it carefully on her lap.
"One is not considered a true member of the Sherwood tribe until they learn to use a bow. Allow me to teach you, milady." He professed, taking both her hands in his, wrapping his own strong fingers around her lithe ones. "You're right; I may not always there to protect you, but allow me to teach you how to protect yourself."

Regina could not find the words to answer him as her heart surged at his words and her eyes blurred. Instead she placed her hands on either side of his face and gazed into his eyes for a split second before pulling him towards her and pressing a kiss against his mouth, smiling against his lips for only a second before she pulled back. "I will." She answered him, trailing her fingers through his hair to pull him closer to her. "Thank you." She whispered against his lips before softly pressing another kiss against his lips. Robin gasped against her lips in surprise, before allowing his hands to travel through her hair, pulling her towards him until the only thing keeping them apart was the bow in Regina's lap.
She felt the soft caress of his lips against her, the thrum of his pulse against her fingertips, the own frantic beat of her heart and the faint pulsing of the bow on her lap. She smiled against his mouth and Robin joined her, pulling back for a minute to gaze into her eyes. She gazed back and for the first time in a long time she could feel the surge of something ancient that she had banned a long time ago set free in her heart again. She had silenced it for fear of her mother taking it away, but right now even that fear could not keep out the love that Robin professed for her by touching her lips.
She allowed it in, allowed herself to feel it without fear. For just a short while she allowed herself to forget about her mother, about the imp and about the curse of magic

because she never felt safer in her life.

AN. Super long chapter, but I really wanted to include both of the choices that Regina has been offered to protect herself against Cora. I would love your speculations/opinions: did Regina make the right choice? Did she actually reject Rumplestiltskin's deal? Will she take up Rumple on his deal? Will a bow be enough to hold back Cora? Also Rumple being a creep is canon for me, the way he interacts with young Regina on the show gives me the shivers, so that is why is such a creep in this story too, haha.

I love reviews, they keep me writing. And as always: thank you for reading =)