Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon a Time or any of the characters. I'm new to this particular fandom – CuriousArcher, MadArcher, whatever you want to call it. I mean, how hard was it to not love Robin and Alice? They're totally adorable! Thanks, OUaT!

Chapter 13

"So," Robin began as she and Alice settled themselves in a pool of warm mud. It had taken some convincing from the adventurer, but her persistence won out over Robin's trepidation. "How did you meet Shrek and Fiona?"

After being properly introduced to the Ogres, Fergus had excused himself to finish his guard rounds and to collect his brother and sister. Shrek went with him, so Fiona had invited the two young women into their home. Robin was surprised at the house. It wasn't the shack in the middle of the swamp that she'd seen in the movies. It was a proper home - two stories, well built, and painted to blend in with the surroundings. Inside was clean and well cared for.

Robin had been very careful to keep her mouth shut. She just wasn't sure what to say. Besides, Alice's nigh constant chatter gave her a reason to be quiet. Fiona listened to Alice with a smile, responding to her questions and commenting where necessary. There was a lightness to the girl from the Tower that hadn't been there before. It made her smile to see it.

While she listened, Fiona continued doing what she'd been doing when Alice's knock had interrupted her. She was cooking breakfast for her family. Eggs, a large quantity of bacon, slices of a fruit that Robin had never seen before, and some pastries that smelled divine. She moved around her kitchen with an ease that reminded Robin of her own mother and made her a little homesick for the farm.

After breakfast, and watching Alice hug the other two Ogre children with enthusiasm, Robin had started to feel a little bit disconnected. She had no idea what to say to them at all, and it wasn't like they talked to her. Everyone seemed excited to see Alice and wanted to hear all about what she'd been up to. From what Robin had been able to gather, they hadn't seen her for about a year.

"I came to the Swamp looking for my mother," Alice replied with a contented sigh. The mud was dark, sticky, and comfortably warm. Robin had to admit that it felt great. "I fell asleep and when I woke up, Shrek was there. He made me come home with him when he found out who I was. Turns out, my mother had come to the Swamp, looking for my father. She told them all about me and how I was trapped in the Tower. They were surprised when I showed up, but pleased to meet me." Alice grinned. She dipped her hand in the mud and started to rub it on her face.

Robin looked at her askance. "Seriously?"

"Trust me. Hair, too." Alice reassured her. "In the end, it'll be worth it. Promise."

Robin suppressed a groan, stuck her hands in the mud, and started coating her hair and face. It felt utterly disgusting and didn't smell great, but she followed Alice's example to the letter. Once Fiona had been left alone in the house again, she'd told Alice that the bath was open and that "the pools were finished", something that made the adventurer clap her hands with evident glee.

"Why don't you girls go try it out - I bet a good bath will make you feel brand new." Fiona had encouraged. "When you come back, we'll talk about what you're wearing to the party."

Alice enthusiastically agreed, but only if Fiona would allow her and Robin to wash the breakfast dishes while she rested. It was evident to anyone with eyes that the Ogress was heavily pregnant. Fiona had grumbled something about not being an invalid, but sat at the kitchen table and put her feet up.

"Well, that was lucky," Robin commented, "Them knowing your mom and all."

"Yeah. They told me that even though it had been a long time, she looked well and hadn't stopped searching for my father or a way to get me out of the Tower. Robin?"

"Hmm?" The heat was seeping into the archer's muscles and bones, relaxing her.

"You're okay with this, aren't you? Being here, I mean. They don't… scare you?"

Robin opened her eyes, not sure when she'd closed them. "Scare me? The only thing that scared me was being threatened earlier. They're protective of their home, but I can understand that. Alice… Where I'm from - no, not me, my Aunt - long before she was born, there was a war between the humans and the Ogres and the Ogres were destroyed. Was it different here?"

Alice contemplated the question. "No." She said, finally. "I mean to say - there was a war. The Ogres were sick of being hunted by humans, so they formed armies and attacked. They're bigger than we are - obviously - so they had the advantage." She explained. "A lot of people died - on both sides. It was terrible."

"How did it end?" Robin asked, intrigued.

"Magic. Someone powerful, with a lot of magic stepped in. They gave the humans and the Ogres a choice - lay down arms or be destroyed. Those who didn't listen were killed. Whole armies. In the end, the Ogres that were left went as far away as they could - away from humans. Some say they even went to their own realm."

"Wow, really?" Robin thought about what her Aunt had told her - about how the Dark One had killed all of the Ogres to save his son, Baelfire. "So, you don't know who had the magic?"

Alice shook her head, splattering mud all over. "Whoever it was either didn't say or it wasn't written down."

"Wow. Mysterious. So then if all the Ogres left, how are Shrek and Fiona here?"

"Oh, that." Alice's mouth turned down. "Shrek doesn't like to fight. He'll do it to protect his family, but he's really just a big sweetie. When the war started, he wasn't very old, but he saw a lot of his relatives go off to fight and they didn't come back. He decided that he didn't want to fight." Alice paused. "So, here's the thing about Ogres - they're naturally aggressive. Or, they're supposed to be, at any rate. Shrek just… he isn't. Sure, he can have a temper and he's prickly sometimes, but…"

Robin started nodding. "I think I see where this is going. He refused to join the war, didn't he?"

"Yup. He refused and his father tried to have him killed. So, he ran away. When he found the Swamp, he realised that nobody ever came here and that it would be the perfect place for him. He built a little house and he protected his territory." Alice replied. "Then he met Fiona and started a family."

"You know a lot about them," Robin commented.

"They told me." Alice shrugged. "They didn't want me to be afraid of them."

Robin continued to relax in the mud until she was nearly asleep. Alice roused her with a grin and a giggle. "Come on, we gotta wash, now."

Waking, Robin followed her explorer as she led them up a hill away from the pool of mud. It wasn't a long climb and when it levelled out, Robin swore she could hear the sound of running water. Coming around a bend in the trail, she finally saw the origin of the sound.

Someone had created a waterfall.

Well, not really a falls. It looked like someone had maybe built up an overhang with rocks and then re-routed a stream to pour over it. When they got closer, though, Robin saw just what a masterful piece of craftsmanship it was.

What she hadn't seen until she was nearly right next to it was the deep pool that the spout flowed into - obviously built by hand, not by nature. That pool fed into a second one via a wide rock slide, and that one into another. Each pool was large enough for at least three Ogres to fit comfortably inside, with room to spare. And it was done at such an angle that water was kept steadily flowing, therefore keeping the pools naturally clean.

As both women stood under the falls, letting the water sluice away the mud, Alice said, "Fiona told me that Shrek worked on this place for years. He wouldn't let her or the kids come to this area until it was nearly done.

"The water is so warm," Robin commented, delightedly. It wasn't hot, but it wasn't freezing, either. It was the closest thing to a shower that she'd found in the Forest.

Alice laughed again. "It comes from a natural spring." Robin watched her from the corner of her eye, happy to see her love so carefree and happy. When they had managed to get most of the mud off of themselves, they ran, laughing, and jumped into the first pool. They swam around for a few minutes before trying out the slide to the next level. It was so much fun that they got out and tried it again a few more times before splashing down to the final pool.

The lower pool was surrounded by large, flat, sun-heated rocks. On one rock, Robin saw that two towels had been laid out, while on another, there were lumps of homemade soap. Both women washed their bodies and their hair with the soap that smelled of lavender and sandalwood. Thus, being clean and having skin that felt as soft as silk, they wrapped up in the huge towels and Alice led them back to the house.

Inside again, Fiona loaned them some of the clothes that her children no longer fit into because she'd insisted on washing their other clothes. She then surprised them both by commandeering first Alice and then Robin and closeting them in a room with her. Robin had waited for her turn as patiently as she could, so when Alice emerged all smiles and told her that Fiona wanted to see her, she was almost eager.

In the little room, Fiona had first stared at her, walking around her and eyeing her like someone would a prize dog or a horse. "Favourite colour?" The Ogress asked.

Robin bit her lip. How could she say that her favourite colour was the blue of Alice's eyes when she was truly happy? Finally, she replied, "Anything but red or pink, really."

For some reason that made Fiona smile. "I can work with that," she told the baffled young woman.

"Uh…" Robin began, "what exactly are you working with?"

"Your outfit for the party, of course!" Came the muffled reply as the Ogress opened several big trunks and began to search through them.

"That's the second time someone mentioned a party. What party is this exactly?" The archer asked, suddenly nervous. She wasn't big on large groups of people.

"Alice's birthday party!" Fiona told her. She straightened, holding up one arm with what appeared to be several different dresses hanging over it. "Don't worry, it'll only be us. Shrek, myself, Fergus, Felicia, and Farkle. We just like to dress up for her. She's spent so many of her birthdays alone, so we try to make it fun for her."

Robin smiled at the thoughtfulness of that. She also remembered the birthdays she'd spent with her Alice. Since the first one on the night of the Troll, Robin had made sure that Alice was never alone on her birthday. "I'm not really a dress kind of girl," she told Fiona, eyeing the cloth.

Fiona rolled her eyes. "Not even for a night? Not even if it would make Alice happy?"

Robin knew that she would do very nearly anything to make Alice happy. With a sigh, she nodded, allowing herself to be fitted with a pretty gown.

When Fiona was finally happy, she let Robin go back into the main part of the house. The archer found Alice in the kitchen putting together the ingredients for a cake. She remembered those times she had used her mother's kitchen to bake a cake to surprise Alice with on her birthday and assisted the blonde in mixing the batter for this one. Fiona emerged just as they finished and helped them pour it into a pan and put it in her oven. They cleaned up and then Fiona shooed them both away while she got lunch ready for everyone.

Alice and Robin retired to the room they'd been given to share and fell asleep together lying in the warm sun of the afternoon.

Author's Note: So, this was just a little fun. Hope you like it! Welcome to Elenaofavalorxd, Sarleshail, and SilverWolf765. Thanks for the follows and favourites! As well as a big hug and thanks for everyone who keeps coming back and saying such wonderful things to me. You are all amazing and you keep me at this. Cheers!