Hey guys! Here's chapter 2! I hope you all enjoy! Feel free to drop a comment and let me know what you think! I love hearing from all of you!

With nightfall approaching quickly, the group started making their way towards Sherwood Forest.

"Seems like old times, doesn't it?" Red said to Snow. "Except not running from Regina, but with her."

"She's changed. I have to believe for the better," Snow replied.

"I hope it sticks. But regardless, she doesn't look too good." Snow looked over at Regina. She could tell that she wasn't present. She was sure that her mind was somewhere far away. She could see the pain on Regina's face. Yes, she had lost Emma, but she still had David. Snow knew that Regina felt completely alone without Henry. "If she hadn't tried to hurt us so many times, I might be worried about her," Red commented.

"I'll talk to her," Snow replied before walking back down the path towards Regina. "You ready to make camp soon, Regina?" she asked. The woman didn't reply. "You thinking about Henry?"

"I'm always thinking about Henry…" Regina replied. "but I was also thinking, there are tunnels that run under the castle. They may run beneath the spell."

"Which means we can sneak an army inside," David interjected.

"An army would be detected," Regina told him.

"So, how do the tunnels help us?" Snow asked.

"Because it can get me inside," she clarified. "And, if I can get inside, then I can lower the shield. Then, you can send in your army."

David was about to reply when loud screeches were heard overhead. The flying beast from before was back.

"Incoming!" Neal yelled as the beast flew quickly, trying to attack anything that got in its way. Watching the beast fly, Regina realized that it was headed straight for the thief's son.

"Papa!" The little boy screamed in fear.

"Roland!" Regina heard Robin yell as he tried frantically to reach his son in time. She knew that there was no chance of Robin reaching the little boy. Without even thinking about it, her motherly instincts took over and Regina felt herself running forward, scooping the little boy into her arms and pulling him to safety before the monkey could sink his talons into him. Regina set the little boy off to the side and then turned her attention back to the creature. She had had enough of the winged beast.

"Not so fast," She growled as she held her hand up and transformed the beast into a stuffed monkey. It wouldn't be able to hurt anyone now. Meanwhile, Robin ran past her and pulled his son into his arms. He held the little boy tightly to his chest, savoring every moment and thanking God that he wasn't hurt.

"See. Not so scary," Regina began as she walked over to the father and son. "Now you have a new toy," she added as she handed the stuffed monkey over to the little boy. Roland graciously took the toy and cuddled it tightly to his chest before nestling his head into his father's shoulder.

"Thank you," Robin said to Regina. The Queen gave the thief a soft smile and then turned her back to him. Though the thief hadn't done anything to her, Regina couldn't bear to look at father and son…together and happy. It felt like a knife through her heart.

"What the hell was that thing?" David asked, breaking the silence.

"The same kind of monster that attacked us on our journey here," Snow told him.

"If I didn't know better, I'd say it looked an awful lot like a monkey," Grumpy observed.

"A monkey with wings?" David questioned.

"Yes, that's exactly what it was," Regina replied, the realization finally hitting her. She only knew of one place that had creatures like these. She'd never encountered them before today, but she had surely heard of them.

"Okay, you're acting like that's normal," Neal replied dryly.

"Actually, it is," Belle interjected. "But not here. There's only one land that has creatures like that. I've read about it. Oz."

"Oz?" Snow questioned. "That's a real place?"

"The bookworm's right. It's quite real. And if our simian friend is any indication, then I think we know exactly who's taking up residence in our castle…The Wicked Witch," Regina said.

"We talkin East or West?" Grumpy asked.

"Does it matter? Neither one sounds good," Snow told him.

"One you drop a house on. The other you toss a bucket of water at," Grumpy added, still trying to make his point.

"So Regina, what are we up against here?" David asked. "Besides green skin and a pointy hat, what did you do to her?"

"This time nothing," Regina replied. "Never met her."

"This isn't a personal vendetta," David said. "Shocking. Okay then, Oz aside, we stick to the original plan. Arm up, then attack. Assuming you can get the shield down."

"You don't need to worry about me," Regina assured him harshly.

"I'm coming with you," Snow added.

"No, this is a one-woman job."

"Well, it's the Wicked Witch. She has flying monkeys…who knows what else."

"I don't care if the lollipop guild is protecting her. I can lower the shield on my own," Regina snapped. Seeing that she wasn't going to be able to change Regina's mind, Snow stopped trying to join her stepmother.

"Then, we'll be waiting for you on the other side," Snow told her. "In the meantime, we should get everyone to Sherwood Forest so that they're safe."

"I couldn't agree more," David said. "Robin, can you lead the way?"

"Of course," the thief replied. "Our camp is just a few miles this way. Once we're there, I'll have Little John cook up some of the best food you've ever had."

"That's a pretty big claim," Grumpy mumbled quietly. "Nothing beats Granny's breakfast casserole and bacon."

Ignoring the dwarf's comment, the group followed Robin through the forest and the camp came into view. It wasn't much: just a few tents, supplies for cooking and plenty of weapons, but it would definitely do for the night.

"Please, make yourselves at home. We don't have enough tents for everyone, but we've got plenty of blankets and it's not supposed to be that cold tonight," Robin told them.

After that, everyone fell into their roles naturally. Granny and Red assisted Little John in cooking dinner while Grumpy and his brothers started to set up beds for everyone and Belle and Neal went in search of firewood. Regina sat off to the side.

She felt like she should be helping, but she just didn't have it in her to move from her seated position on a log. As the day went on, Regina felt herself missing Henry more and more. Dealing with that much grief was exhausting. She was just so tired. Suddenly, it hit her. A sleeping curse. That was the answer. She had been working on the spell for some time now and had finally managed to make one of her own…one that only Henry would be able to break.

If she were asleep, then she wouldn't have to feel this pain. She'd be able to find peace until hopefully one day, Henry would wake her and they could be together once more. There was only one problem. All of the necessary ingredients for the spell were in her castle. Now, more than ever, she needed to get inside and bring down the protection spell.

"Your Majesty…" she heard, which pulled her from her thoughts. It was the thief.

"What is it?" she snapped.

"I was just hoping to take a look at that arm. That's a nasty cut you've got."

"As I told you before, it's fine." Robin didn't seem to want to take no for an answer. He sat down next to her on the log and pulled up her sleeve to reveal the angry, red cut. "It's fine," Regina growled, trying to pull her arm from his grasp.

"Are you always this stubborn?" Robin asked, frustration written across his face.

"Only when men don't do as they're told."

"Well, I've never been one for rules," Robin told her. "Now, your arm," he commanded. Regina sighed. The thief was persistent, she had to give him that. She extended her arm towards him and let Robin take a look.

"This may sting a little," Robin warned her as he poured some alcohol on a rag and applied it to her cut. Instantly, Regina hissed in pain as the alcohol sank into her cut, burning her. "There. All done," Robin said. "Now, I'm just going to wrap it up."

"Make a habit of patching up women in need?" Regina asked.

"Not really, mostly large burly men who either hurt themselves during a heist or make poor decisions after having their fair share of whiskey. I've also bandaged my fair share of scraped knees," he added with a smile as he looked over at Roland playing Neal.

"He's cute. How old is he?" she asked.

"He'll be four in April," Robin replied. "Do you have children?"

Just like that, Regina felt her protective walls go up. "You know I'm feeling pretty tired. I think I'll turn in for the night," Regina replied softly. "Thanks for the bandage."

Robin watched the woman walk away. Clearly, he had struck a nerve with her. Despite her harsh and demeaning exterior, Robin could see a woman who was hurting, a woman who was trying her hardest to guard her vulnerabilities. He just had a bad feeling when he looked at her and he intended to keep an eye on her.

After nightfall, everyone turned in but Robin stayed up to keep watch. Around midnight, he heard rustling and instantly woke up to ward off any threats coming their way.

However, he didn't hear anything coming towards them. If anything, the rustling sounded like it was getting further and further away. He looked around the camp and not surprisingly, the Queen was missing.

Worried about what she might do, Robin decided to follow her. He stood a safe distance away, watching as Regina made her way through the forest. He watched as she stopped suddenly and held her hands up to a huge boulder. He was surprised when the boulder began to float into the air. He hadn't realized that Queen's magic was so powerful.

For the first time since they had met, Robin saw a smile come across her face. He couldn't help but smile as he watched her. Something was intriguing about her, despite what he knew about her past. Wanting to get a bit closer, Robin took a few steps forward and winced as his foot stepped on a branch and the crack echoed through the forest.

Hearing the noise, Regina jumped and the boulder came crashing down towards the ground. She turned around and Robin could see her cheeks grow red when she saw him.

"No," she said bluntly.

"No what?" Robin replied coyly.

"You're not."

"Not coming along, I do believe I am. I can help," he replied.

"I didn't ask for help."

Robin rolled his eyes. It was very clear that Regina didn't ever ask for help.

"Well, that doesn't mean you won't need it. That flying monkey wasn't after my son. It was coming after you," he told her. After enduring two attacks from that beast, Robin had made an observation and it was that Regina was the intended target for both.

Regina scoffed. "What makes you think that?"

"The woods are my home," he began. "I've seen many a hunter stalk its prey and that beast was coming for you. Roland just happened to be standing in between."

"Your point?"

"That's the second time you've been attacked," he reminded her. "The Wicked Witch wants you dead."

"And what? You think you can stop her if she tries to hurt me?"

"Maybe. Maybe not…but I have to try. You see, despite the fact that neither of us likes it, I owe you a debt."

"And why is that?" she questioned.

"Even though that winged beast wasn't after Roland, he still could have hurt my son. You saved him."

"Hmm, who knew a thief had honor?"

"Who knew an Evil Queen had a soft spot for children?" he shot back.

She sighed. "Don't get in my way."

"Oh, I wouldn't dream of it," he retorted with a smirk, adding a curtsey for good measure. Regina rolled her eyes and continued through the forest. After walking for a while, they came to a cave hidden amongst a grove of trees. Regina pulled back a few branches and walked inside, Robin trailing behind her. She conjured a torch and lit it with one of her fireballs before handing it to Robin.

"Here. Make yourself useful."

"So where are we headed?" Robin asked, taking the torch from her.

"There's a fire in the courtyard that powers her spell. As long as it burns, the shield will stay up," she explained.

"Then, we simply need to put it out."

"I simply need to put it out. you need to stay out of my way," Regina clarified.

Suddenly, Robin noticed that the normal cave floor looked different and Regina placed her arm in front of him. "Step in between," she ordered.

"Nice little surprise."

"For keeping people like you out."

"People like me?" he questioned.

"Thieves."

Robin chuckled lightly. "Ah yes, true. But we aren't all bad, you know."

"Not when you tell yourself you're stealing from the rich to give to the poor. I may have done bad things in my life, but at least I own it," she shot back.

"I own my mistakes too," he replied firmly. He was getting a bit frustrated with her attitude. "I hope you didn't let me come with you just so you could walk me into one of these traps. Roland's already lost his mother. I would hate for him to lose his father, too."

Robin watched Regina's eyes soften but he knew she wouldn't let too many of those walls come down.

"Well you should have stayed with the others," she told him with a smirk. "Roland's mother…" she began softly. "What happened to her?"

"After our boy was born, I inadvertently put her in harm's way. It was my fault. Like I said, I own my mistakes."

Before Regina could reply, she noticed that the door that led to her mother's crypt was open.

"That's not possible."

"What wrong?" Robin asked.

"The door! It's open."

"Perhaps you left it unlocked," he suggested

"I sealed it with blood magic," she snapped. "I'm the only one who can open it."

"Clearly not. It appears the Wicked Witch is a formidable foe." Regina walked through the door and Robin followed close behind. He examined the room around him. The walls were plated with gold and appeared to be full of drawers of some sort. In the center of it, was a large stone coffin. "What exactly was this place? Must have been important for you to seal it by blood."

"A crypt. Isn't that obvious?"

"Yes. What I meant was, who was it built for?" Robin clarified.

"My mother. Like you, I've lost people I care about…more than I'd like to admit."

"Including a child?" Robin questioned, instantly regretting his words as he watched the Queen's face fall.

"What do you know about that?" she asked, her voice laced with pain.

"I saw the way you grabbed Roland back there. Clearly, you have the touch of a mother."

"I do," Regina replied sadly.

"He's not with us on this trek. What happened to him?"

"He's not dead if that's what you think. He's just lost to me forever," she replied.

"If the Wicked Witch is powerful enough to break blood magic, perhaps we should reconsider this plan," Robin suggested, trying to change the subject.

"I don't care how powerful this witch is. I have to go through with this plan," Regina said. She led the two of them from her mother's crypt upstairs where all of the bedrooms were. They entered a large room, which Robin figured must have been Regina's chambers.

"Make yourself useful. Keep watch," she ordered as she grabbed a box from her armoire and slipped off her gloves. She set it down on her dresser and began looking through it.

Robin didn't have a great feeling. If they were meant to be in the courtyard, why were they upstairs looking through vials? If Robin had learned anything from his past, nothing good came inside a little vial.

"What is that?" he questioned.

"Nothing that concerns you." Feeling a bit nervous, Robin drew his bow and pointed it at the Queen.

"I won't ask you again," he replied forcefully.

"How dare you threaten me in my own castle!" She yelled as she turned around hastily, put her hand in the air and began to choke him.

"Even if you choke the life out of me, this arrow will still leave my bow. Trust me, I never miss," he choked out. "Now, what manner of dark potion are you making?" Regina simply rolled her eyes and released Robin's throat.

"A sleeping curse," she said before turning her back towards him and once again going through the vials.

"The kind you used on Snow White?" he replied hoarsely.

"That spell came from Maleficent. I finally learned how to make one of my own," she explained, continuing to mix the contents of the vials.

"This spell…this was why you wanted to come to the castle?"

"Ingredients like this are hard to come by, especially when you have Snow White breathing down your neck every second of the day."

"That was your plan? To use it on the witch?" Robin asked, still not seeing what Regina planned to use the sleeping curse for.

"The witch?" she scoffed. "I don't care about her."

"Then, who do you plan to use it on?"

"Don't worry. No one you'll miss…No one anyone will miss." She pulled out one of her hairs and placed it in the vial before making it glow with a wave of her hand. Suddenly, everything made sense. He should have known all along. A woman with as much pain as Regina wouldn't think of hurting others when she, herself, was hurting so much.

"This is about your son, isn't it? I can't let you do this," Robin said as he moved closer to Regina.

"It's a good thing you don't have a say in the matter," Regina said before using her magic to plant Robin's feet to the ground.

"I know how you feel, Regina," He said, still struggling to move his feet.

"I doubt that."

"When I lost my wife, I felt that there was no reason to go on. But then I found one…my son."

"That's where you and I are different. I already lost Henry. I already lost the one thing I care about," she answered sadly.

"That doesn't mean you won't find a new reason. We all get second chances, Regina. You just have to open your eyes to see it."

"It's too bad mine will be closed."

"So that's it! You just want to give up!" he shouted. It made him angry that a woman as beautiful, with so much promise as Regina, would just throw her life away.

"This isn't an end," she told him. "It's an eternal middle. This curse can be broken…by the only true love in my life. And the only reason I would even want to wake." She sniffled, tears coming to her eyes. "My son."

"Regina, listen to me," Robin tried. "This is a mistake."

"Don't worry. I'll keep my word," she informed him. "I'll lower the protection spell so Snow and Charming can be victorious…but then, then I go to sleep," she added before walking away, leaving Robin still trapped to the floor.

He continued to fight as he watched the woman walk away. That was it. He had failed. He had set out tonight hoping to protect the Queen from others. However, Robin realized that he had completely missed the one person who could do some real damage to Regina…herself.