Here we go!
Regina despairs, has a hard time not opening her mouth to scream in terror as the freezing depths close in on her from every angle, the water so cold that it feels like thousands of knives are stabbing repeatedly all over her body as darkness envelopes her. There is nothing anchoring her to this world except the feel of Robin's hand, solid in hers despite the current and suction produced by the ship as it founders.
In her panic, she feels his fingers slipping from her grasp, and even though she can't see where she's going, she grips tighter, moving her head desperately every which way, sliding her other hand up his forearm to secure herself to him, nails clawing at his tattooed wrist, and then she's kicking and kicking, dragging his weight until he seems to understand what she's doing and kicks right along with her, both of them propelling themselves upwards for long, torturous seconds until finally she breaches the surface and is able to breathe, gulping as much icy air as her body will allow, Robin doing the same next to her.
They cough and splash, their hands letting go of each other as they catch their breath. They're not the only ones in the water, and everywhere she turns, Regina sees people slapping their arms against the surface, shouting for help. She panics when Robin is no longer there, and she frantically loops around two screaming men nearby, yelling out his name. He answers, swimming her way, his body having been carried away by the current.
"Are you alright?!" he asks urgently as he pulls her to him, the action not as comforting as it should be due to the cold and the bulkiness of Regina's life vest preventing proper contact, but he's there and that's all she needs, the rapid thumping of his heart a welcome relief as she presses her ear to his chest.
"We have to get out of the water before it freezes us," he says, his voice a mere whisper in the cold night.
"We're in the m-m-m-middle of the At-t-tlantic," is all Regina utters in reply.
"Yes, that will pose a problem," Robin replies, and how he's able to be humorous in a situation like this, she'll never know, but she realizes that she loves it. That she loves him.
Debris is floating all over the place, and Robin looks around for a moment before he starts to swim towards a cluster of it a little ways away from the splashing crowd, asking her to follow. Regina tries, she does, but it's like the cold is seeping into her bones, rendering her useless. Robin returns, grasps her vest and pulls her along.
"Come on, my love, just a little further," he rasps, helping her swim until they reach the small mountain of floating bits and pieces, all that's left of the grandest ship in the world.
There are wooden panels, broken remnants from the staircase, and there's a door floating there as well. Robin helps her climb onto it, making sure she's situated safely before he tries to find something he can use for himself. Her arm feels like lead, and it takes great effort for her to move it from where she lies on the door, but she manages, pointing to a large enough piece of wood a couple meters away.
"There," she breathes, and Robin kisses her forehead before moving to the object -a closet door, she realizes upon closer inspection-, dragging it back with him to where she is and hoisting his body onto it. He takes her hands then and pulls them close, bringing both makeshift rafts together quite brusquely, droplets of water landing on their faces, but she doesn't care, all she cares about is that they've survived, that they're together.
"I d-d-don't know about you," he says then, his voice low and stuttering in the cold, "but I int-t-end to sue."
She chuckles (or at the very least tries, but it's cold, too cold), and then she looks up at him, into those very blue eyes of his that enamored her from the second she first looked into them, and she thinks back on the last few days, though it feels like a lifetime ago, when she'd sought him out and he'd made her soar as they shared their first kiss on the bow of Titanic. Regina smiles, and even though she can't feel her mouth move, the pull of her lips must still show on her face, because he grins back at her as he huddles closer, lands a kiss on the tip of her nose as they face each other, resting on their stomachs in their respective floating devices, hands clasped tightly together.
"It's sp-pring in New York," she tells him, and why is her voice so soft? She's yelling, her throat burning with the effort, and yet what comes out of her mouth is merely a whisper.
"I've heard it's beautiful. Flowers eh-everywhere, w-w-warm sunshine, children blowing b-b-bubbles in the park," he plays along, even though his teeth are chattering as badly as her own, and the way his eyes close prompts Regina to drift her own shut as they speak.
"We can ta-t-take Roland to the playground, or walk around Central Park," she continues.
"Yes, and then we'll have th-those apple desserts you and Em-Emma t-talked about, warm from the oven… and tea."
"And w-w-we can spend our nights c-c-cozying up by the fire," he tightens his grip on her hand infinitesimally as he lets his face fall to their joint fingers, his forehead landing on her knuckles, and a sob breaks through her, shaking her violently in the cold night air. She sniffles, and it hurts, every bit of her hurts. It hurts to breathe, to talk, to move, but it seems she can't stop crying now that she's started, and Robin looks up at her with tears reflected in his eyes as well.
"R-Regina, reg-g-gardless of what happens tonight, I w-want you t-t-to know that… that I d-d-don't regret getting on that ship. Not f-f-or one second."
"N-n-neither do I," she croaks, and then she says it, because if she doesn't say it now, she may not get to say it at all. "I love you."
Robin lets out a breath, chokes on his tears as he untangles a hand from hers and cups her cheek with it, wincing a little at the pain of the movement, but then he smiles, beams at her as he moves closer and pecks her lips.
"I love you, too," he replies, using his thumb to wipe away the tears now freezing solid on her cheek. "God, I love you so m-m-much."
His words only make her cry harder, and he shushes her, kisses her again and touches his forehead to hers when they part, fervently kissing her knuckles where he holds her hand in his.
They stay like that, slipping in and out of consciousness, murmuring reassurances, making plans for the future in an attempt to keep each other awake while they wait for a boat to pass by.
It's been about an hour since Titanic went under. The screams and frantic movements of the people that fell into the sea with them have been gone for a while now, and Regina knows what that means. They're dead, all of them. Hundreds of fathers and mothers and sons and daughters, frozen to death in the icy waves of the Atlantic while waiting for a rescue, and as much as she wants to remain positive, the crushing reality of the situation has her losing all hope of making it out of this alive.
"Meeting you is the b-b-best thing that's ever happened to me," she says to Robin then, "you s-saved me, in every way that a person c-c-can be saved."
"Stop. Don't you dare say g-g-goodbye to me, Regina," he admonishes, his eyes blazing a fire despite the crippling cold that engulfs them.
"I'm s-s-sso sorry," she breathes, her body already shutting down as she succumbs to the welcoming blackness creeping behind her eyelids, "I l-love you."
He's about to say something, probably to stop her from saying goodbye again, but then something glints in the distance. A lantern, she realizes, which can only mean that a boat is coming their way, and hope flickers back into her heart despite the tearful farewell she'd been about to utter.
Sure enough, when she pulls on Robin's hand and juts her chin out to where the tiny bead of light is drawing closer, he turns his head to the side and gasps, confirming that she's not hallucinating.
A lifeboat is indeed near, she sees it better now, slowly drifting through what's left of the wreckage as the stewards aboard check for signs of life among the floating bodies.
"Regina, can you move your arms?" Robin asks.
"I t-th-think so."
"Okay, slap th-them against the water as m-much as you can, alright? We n-need them t-t-to see us."
She nods, extending her arm towards the water and letting out a tiny scream at the pain that courses through her when she does. Regina lifts her heavy limb with all the strength she can muster, and crashes it back into the sea as hard as she can, but it doesn't have the desired effect, her body too spent to apply enough force to create a splash or even a noise. She tries again, with Robin this time, and they both hit the water together.
"Kick your feet… against the water, too… my love," he rasps between harsh breaths, "y-y-you can do it, come on."
She does, and it seems her legs have more strength in them than her arms, because her feet cause a small splash where they hang from the door she's floating on, have drops of freezing saltwater landing on her legs. It's not much, but combined with Robin's kicks and lazily flailing arms, it's enough, and a whistle sounds off in the distance as the crewmen in the lifeboat spot them, turning back from where they were headed and rowing the vessel straight towards them instead.
"We're going to live. Don't give up now," Robin tells her, his hand slowly caressing her cheek. "Don't let go."
"Never," Regina replies, even as her eyes grow heavy and the need to sleep overwhelms her.
It feels like it's been hours (though she will later find out it had only been seconds) since the boat started moving their way when something -someone- pulls her from the floating door and onto solid, dry wood, draping a thick, fluffy blanket over her and rubbing hands over her arms and her back while a flashlight is pointed straight to her face. Regina's brow furrows on instinct, and she closes her eyes to shield herself from the bright glare of the object, but then Robin is being deposited next to her, and she drags her body closer, cuddles into him and lands a kiss on his cheek.
"It's okay, lovebirds, you're safe, you can sleep now," someone says, a woman, her voice vaguely familiar, and Regina doesn't need to be told twice, lets herself succumb to her exhaustion when another blanket is thrown over both of them.
She wakes a few minutes later to the feeling of nails being run through her hair, scratching at her scalp.
"Sorry, I'm trying to get the ice out of your hair," it's the woman again, her tone gentle as she moves over her, and Regina's blurry gaze catches sight of her hair, a flash of red amongst shiny black tresses. Ruby, it's Ruby.
"Roland is fine, he's on the rescue ship with Henry and Granny. We're on our way there now."
Regina nods, unable to speak. She realizes then that the feeling is starting to come back in the rest of her body, her arms and legs tingling as they begin to warm up under the blankets. Robin's arm is heavily wrapped around her middle as he sleeps, his breaths deep and calm as they wash over her cheek.
"It'll all be over soon, hun, just get some rest, okay?" Ruby says, squeezing her shoulder before she spots something in the distance and orders the stewards to go towards it.
"It's too late for her!" Regina thinks she hears them say, but Ruby is adamant, forcefully grabbing one of them by the shirt and telling him to take this damn boat there now!
"Miss, it's no use!" They try to explain, "she won't make it."
"Listen to me, you whiny little idiot! That is my friend out there, and she's alive! I am not going to leave her!" she barks back, and it seems the men finally decide to heed her order, and the lifeboat begins to move faster, until they stop and pull someone else from the water. Regina is too tired to turn and see who it is, allows herself to give into her exhaustion once more, a few strands of wet, blonde hair visible from the corner of her eye before she falls asleep again.
She wakes a second time a while later, her eyes finding a familiar face lying next to her as soon as they open. She doesn't understand, Emma was supposed to be on a boat, why is she here?
"Regina," she chokes, having difficulty breathing as her body shakes and shakes despite the many blankets thrown over her. "I need you to promise me something."
"You're okay, you're safe," she whispers back, glad to see that her teeth no longer chatter in the cold, but Emma pays her no mind, continues her speech as if she'd never been interrupted, her eyes unfocused as she starts to drift off.
"Promise me that you'll look after Henry. We don't have anyone left. He can't be alone." She sounds so weak, so defeated, her body rigid and pale, her lashes and hair crusted with ice. She hears Ruby crying, sees her running a hand up and down the blonde's arm.
"Emma, it'll be fine," Regina assures her, but Ruby's shaking her head, trying and failing to hold back her sobs.
"Promise me!" Emma mutters urgently, and for a moment she looks scared, terrified of leaving her young son alone in the world. It's that look on her face that gets Regina to agree, nodding her head minutely.
"I promise," she sighs.
"Ruby," Emma gasps out then, "you'll be there, too, right?"
"Of course," Ruby tearfully replies, "always."
"Good. Tell my kid I'm sorry, and that I love him. You tell him I love him every single day, don't ever let him doubt it." Emma's words drift into the wind as she closes her eyes with a relieved breath, a last breath. Ruby's broken wail pierces through Regina's heart as she watches her slump over her friend's figure and call out her name desperately, knowing she'll get no answer.
Her face still feels stiff in the icy, biting wind that is making her eyes itch, and if there are tears leaking from them as she stares at Emma's cold form, she doesn't feel them, but she does feel the crippling sadness, mourns this friend who is no longer with them, her spunky spirit now gone from this world.
Her sobs must be loud, because Robin wakes at the sound of them. It takes him a few moments to realize what's happened but when he does, he cradles her closer, kissing her shoulder, and his breathy I love you is the last thing she hears before she passes out.
She feels cozy, heat seeping into her from every direction. The plush blanket covering her is soft against her cheek, as are the warm, rhythmic breaths being released against her neck. Her chin is nestled in thick brown curls that smell like the sea mixed with something sweet. Opening her eyes, she looks down to find herself in a small bed, Roland nestled against her, his little hand clutching at the linen shirt she doesn't remember changing into. Ruby or Robin must have done that for her.
And speaking of Robin, she sees him now, sitting in a comfy armchair by the bed, fast asleep, head lolling forward, chin digging into his chest, his hands clasped together in his lap. Her dress, life vest, and Leopold's coat are laid out over a wooden room screen in the corner, the fabric now dry, thanks to the warmth coming from the nearby heater.
Regina tries to sit up, grunting slightly at the pain in her limbs and then tramping her mouth shut so as not to disturb Roland's peaceful slumber, but her tiny display of discomfort is audible enough to startle Robin awake, and he flies to her, kneeling on the floor by the bed as he holds her face, brushing his fingers over her cheeks and asking if she's alright.
"How long have I been out?" she asks curiously.
"Almost four days." His reply has her widening her eyes in astonishment, but he goes on before she can say anything. "It was dawn after the sinking when they fished us out of the water. You were unconscious, barely breathing, and you were so cold," his voice shakes as he remembers, and she reaches her hand up to hold his where it rests against her face, lovingly bumping her nose into his in reassurance. He sighs in relief, continues his tale.
"We got you out of the boat and into dry clothes, and then I collapsed. When I came to the next day, Ruby told me the medical officer on board had given you something to help you rest, so your body could recover. You've been asleep ever since."
She tries to get up again, but her limbs still won't cooperate, and she feels a little dizzy, loses her already precarious balance where she sits on the bed as her arms shake under her weight.
"Easy," Robin says, arms darting out quickly to steady her and help her lie back down, putting a hand on her arm and rubbing up and down, "take your time, my love. Do you need anything?"
Regina goes to shake her head no, but stops when pain shoots through her temples, taking deep breaths as she waits for it to subside. She's still bleary-eyed, still in pain and still so, so tired, the cold echoing inside her, the despair of losing John and Emma still fresh in her mind. When Robin asks again, she changes her answer.
"Just you," she tells him, her tone barely above a whisper. Robin grins, brings his lips to hers, warm and soft now instead of cold and wet. He hums into the kiss, threads a hand in her hair and breathes her in when they part, foreheads touching and lips planting small pecks on cheeks and noses.
Roland stirs then, enveloping Regina in a slow huggle when he realizes she's awake, and not ten seconds later there are tears falling down her cheeks as she feels Robin's arms wrap around them both, Roland's head tucked into the crook of her neck again as Robin lands kiss after kiss to her brow.
A knock on the door startles them, and after Regina mutters a low "come in," and Robin picks Roland up from the bed, they are met with a kindly, handsome man on the other side of the door.
"Good evening, Captain," Robin greets pleasantly before turning to her. "Regina, this is Captain August Booth of the RMS Carpathia."
"Oh. Hi," she squeaks, a little startled by the fact that the Captain himself is seeing to them.
"Welcome aboard, it's nice to see you up and about at last."
It's only when he lets himself in and pulls a jacket out of the closet that she realizes these must be his quarters, and that he's gallantly given them up for her and Robin and Roland to recover.
"Thank you so much for coming for us, and for your hospitality," she rasps from where she lies on the bed, her voice still affected by her emotional wake-up and the time spent in the freezing waters.
"It's the least we could do. I wish we could've arrived sooner, but even at full steam we weren't fast enough to get there on time. What we found when we arrived… I'll never forget such a sight."
"Neither will we," Regina says, thinking of Emma, of John, of poor Henry, who will never see his mother again.
"I do hope you are all able to overcome this, you deserve some peace of mind after that ordeal," Captain Booth tells her.
"No offense, Captain, but I'll only get peace of mind when we're finally on dry land," Robin interrupts.
"None taken," the man replies good-naturedly. "That's actually what I came in here to tell you. We'll be docking in New York in a couple of hours. Your friends are having some soup before it's time to disembark. I thought you might like to join them, if you're feeling well enough."
"Thank you," Robin says.
"Roland, you still have to teach me that magic card trick you told me about yesterday. What do you say we go get some soup and then you can show me?" the Captain asks, and the boy nods with a small smile, waits for his father to put him back on the floor, and then shuffles his little feet towards the man.
They thank him again as they watch them leave, Robin promising Roland they'll be right there, and when they're out the door, Regina turns to him with watery eyes.
"How's Roland?"
"Hasn't left our side since we got here, that boy," Robin chuckles affectionately, "he was scared, wanted to make sure we wouldn't leave him again. He alternates between sleeping in the chair with me and sleeping on the bed with you, only ever leaves the room for meals. He likes the Captain, though, they always play together before dinner."
"Did you tell him about John?"
"I told him his uncle had to go live in heaven with his Mama, he's too young to understand, but he seems to be doing alright. I can tell he misses him, though."
"And Henry?" she asks.
"Heartbroken, as is to be expected. Ruby and Granny are with him."
"I told him I'd bring his mom back. I should have made sure Emma really was on a boat, I should've done more, I…" she stops when Robin holds her face in his hands, wordlessly asking her to calm down.
"There's a family here she helped rescue, they told us she refused to get on the lifeboat until she got as many people out as possible. Henry wasn't surprised, said she'd always been somewhat of a savior. He's very proud of her."
"That poor child," she gasps brokenly, closing her eyes and shaking her head in the cradle of his hands.
"He's not alone. And he won't ever know what it's like to feel unloved, he'll grow up knowing how much of a hero his mom was and how much we all care for him. We'll look after him together." Robin's tone is fervent, certain, reassuring her that it will all be alright in the end.
"I promised Emma I would," she nods.
"He'll be just fine," he comforts her, and then he goes on to say something else, but stops, uncertain.
"Robin, what is it?"
"Your mother… she didn't make it."
"Are… are you sure?" she asks, confused. "I don't understand, she was on a boat."
"She was, but the cold got to her before Carpathia arrived. Same thing happened to a few others who escaped the ship before it sank... or so I'm told."
Regina is surprised at how little it hurts her to know her mother has perished. It's a nagging thing, a tiny flicker of pain at losing the woman who raised her, but she doesn't ache, doesn't miss her. In fact, she feels somewhat... free, like she can breathe easy now, despite the smidgen of guilt that rears its ugly head inside her, berating her for feeling relieved over her mother's death.
"What about Leopold?" she asks then, not sure if she wants to know.
"He's here," Robin says gravely.
Regina grows restless, suddenly suffocated by being stuck on a ship with Leopold roaming its halls, but Robin is quick to assure her they're on separate ends of the Carpathia, and that she won't ever have to set eyes on him again.
"He's holed up in the room they gave him and refuses to see anyone. Ruby told him we died. He won't be looking for us. Although, from what she told me, he seemed to be more interested in finding the coat you were wearing than he was in finding you."
"The coat? That coat?" Regina asks as she points to the garment.
"Yeah, it was his, wasn't it? Maybe he's attached to it," Robin wonders, shrugging as he grabs it and spreads it on her lap on the bed.
She nods and furrows her brow in confusion, but then starts patting the fabric, until her fingers find a hidden pocket and touch something solid inside it. She pulls out the diamond, her eyes going wide.
"Ah! So that's why," Robin chuckles.
"I guess so."
"Would you like me to have Ruby give it back to him?"
"No. This is mine, it was a gift. I'm keeping it."
"Never pegged you for the opulent jewelry type," Robin ventures, a little confused as to what she's thinking.
"I'm not," she confirms, "but this is a rare jewel, made even more special by the fact that it survived the sinking of Titanic. It'll be worth a fortune. We'll sell it."
"Regina, we don't need to do that, I can-"
"I know. But I want to. We can buy an apartment, maybe set up a college fund for Henry and Roland, we can give them everything."
For the first time since Titanic hit that iceberg, Regina fully allows herself to imagine a life with Robin, a life where they're together and happy, and while she knows money isn't what's important, she also knows they have to be practical, find a way to support themselves while they settle into whatever new rhythm they choose, and this necklace is the way to do that.
"If you're certain…" Robin says, still looking a little apprehensive about it.
"I am. We have to be realistic, Robin. We won't have incomes the second we set foot in New York, selling this thing will help us build a future."
"Yes, but it's yours, you shouldn't have to-"
"Robin. Just shut up and kiss me," she says, amused, and he shakes his head, echoing her laugh as he does as he's told, his hand holding hers above her lap on the bed.
"It's really over," she says when they part, and he nods, kisses her forehead.
"It is," he confirms as he helps her up and out of the bed, her hands holding on to his forearms as she stands before him.
"We made it," she sobs, a new wave of tears assaulting her as he wraps his arms around her shoulders and draws her into a hug, the fingers of his right hand tangling in her hair, her own arms looping around his waist, nose buried in his neck, taking in the comforting smell of him. Regina pulls back after a moment, getting lost in his bright blue eyes, and feels a proper smile break out on her face for the first time in what seems like ages.
An hour later, after a hearty bowl of soup, some teary, lingering hugs with Ruby and Granny, and a long, tight cuddle with a very sad Henry, they all step out onto the deck of the Carpathia and set eyes upon the Statue of Liberty for the very first time, raindrops beginning to fall as Regina marvels at the majestic, astounding splendor of the monument and the lights of the city as it looms closer.
"Everyone," Captain Booth says, "welcome… to New York City."
~THE END~
A/N: Did you guys REALLY think I was heartless enough to kill Robin? Come on, as if we don't get enough sadness for these two on the show.
Thank you so SO much for all the love and support you've given this story, and special thanks to the lovely Jen for making the beautiful cover image I use for it every time I post an update on Tumblr, and to those fellow writers, especially Allison (SomewhereApart) and Jess (OutlawQueenLuvr) who were always there to proof-read and help me by simply being the wonderful people that they are and talking me down from the ledge whenever this project became a little too much for me to bear.
Epilogue coming up tomorrow!