"Because my brother died because of you." The screaming male voice and the smell of burnt leaves had helped Robin in finally finding her. He had been following his gut, trying to track her from where she had left his horse, following the buzz inside his chest that seemed to guide him like a beacon of light. He had been tracking with care not to be heard until he heard the male voice scream, he turned towards the voice and was able to see a small fire.
He ran.
When he reached her, he stopped in his tracks before either her or the man saw him, they were standing toe to toe, the man strangely much taller than her, a broken lantern laid on the floor and burned the gooey leaves at their feet.
"William?" she asked the man, her voice was strange, "You're Daniel's brother."
"Yes!" The man breathed out, "Now I'm going to avenge my brother's death!" He showed her something Robin could not see from where he stood, but if his words were true, it was bound to be a weapon.
Robin was not really very concerned, he knew what she was capable of, knew she could snap his neck at any moment if she wanted to, if she hadn't so far, it was because she wanted something from him, information no doubt. Robin wondered if this Daniel person had been one of the men in her army she had killed in one of her rages of anger, he tried to remember if there had been one with that name under his command, but nothing came.
Her reply, however, took him by complete surprise.
"I did not kill your brother William! I loved him more than anything on this earth, I would have never hurt him-" her voice was odd.
"But you did! It's because of you he's rotting six feet under!" the man bellowed.
"It was not my fault, it was Snow White!" her tone was desperate "She told our secret to my mother and then-" Robin could feel his chest tighten as she spoke but could not understand why.
"Snow White was but a child, she did not understand." the man cut her, "You are the real villain Regina, you poisoned my brother's heart with promises of true love and happiness. He wrote to me often telling me how he was in love with you, how he would marry you, run away from your witch mother-"
Robin could not hold back a frown, this situation was getting weirder by the second. Promises of true love and happiness? In love with her? MARRY her? Run away? Robin had to wonder if the man had gotten the right person...
Robin felt another pang in his chest when she uttered "I did love him! I still do love him."
Now Robin was more than curious to find out who this Daniel fellow was.
She loved him?
Was he jealous?
The man was clearly dead, otherwise his brother would not be speaking to her in that manner, and yet, a coldness rushed up his spine when he remembered her saying 'I still do love him' and he could tell he felt jealous.
Robin was drawn from his thoughts when the man suddenly screamed and held something to her throat. "He died because of you!"
He got his bow on instinct asking himself for the hundredth time why she hadn't done anything to defend herself yet.
"I never wanted him to die, believe me-" her voice sounded choked and Robin reached for an arrow.
"If you really loved my brother, you would not have filled his head with impossible fantasies! You both were stupid and naive to believe you could outwit a heartless sorceress. But your stupidity cost my brother's life! While you went on to become a Queen!"
Robin could hardly register the new information, as his chest clenched. He could tell he was feeling angry and jealous, but alien feelings also invaded his senses, sadness, shame, regret, loneliness, pain...
"A fate worse than death, I can assure you!" She managed to find her voice.
"My brother's corpse hadn't even chilled and you were engaged to the King." the man bit back.
"I did not want to marry the King!" she tried to explain, her voice was croaky and watery. Was she crying? She sounded so much like the younger version of herself Robin had seen in his dream. Calling out for help, his help. "She made me!"
"She made you, now did she? They say she ripped my brother's heart out and crushed it into dust." The man retorted and Robin felt a pang on his chest remembering how the Queen herself had ripped out his heart. His eyes focused on the man's arm, he had been holding something to her throat and now was making his way down. "Well, I don't have that magic, but this dagger most certainly can carve out your heart, your majesty."
"Please, don't do this." she pleaded and Robin pulled the string on his bow, aiming "I do not want to hurt you."
"But you can't now, can you? You left in such a hurry for the young princess' head that none of your men were able to follow you." the man laughed, grabbed a fistfull of her hair and pulled back, revealing to Robin's eyes the sharp dagger he held against her chest, right on the spot her heart laid "I will avenge my brother's death-"
Robin exhaled and released.
When he was able to take another breath, she was pushing the man's lifeless body from hers. He had shot that arrow with so much anger that he was sure the tip would stick out of the man's mouth.
It took another breath for his feet to start moving on their own, he ran towards her. The moment he reached her, he could see she was relieved to see him, she tumbled towards him and he held her weight.
Her name escaped his lips "Regina" as one of his arms held her firmly against him and his other hand caressed the top of her head, "Come away from here." he urged her with gentleness he did not know he still had.
"I can't. My feet-" she gestured towards her feet.
He looked down and could not hold back a hiss at the sight. Some manner of magical vine was wrapped around her feet and legs, it had ripped through the leather of her pants and drawn blood.
"Gods-" whispered in concern as he kneeled in front of her to inspect her feet, his heart sank at the sight before his eyes. "What manner of magic is this?" He asked touching the injured skin ever so gently as to not make her feel more pain. "This-" he knocked on the dried vines, "-thing is hard as rock-"
Robin had to admit he felt helpless at that moment, he did not know what to do, the vines were viciously hard and were digging into her skin. He placed a hand on her vine covered foot praying he could help her somehow, ease her pain away, keep her safe from any kind of harm, warm her heart with lo-
He heard her take a deep breath and as if on cue his hand started to heat up, he quickly removed it from the vine and was stunned to see that there was a glowly green handprint just where his hand had just been.
"Wait!" He let escape, his eyes glued to the new color that had invaded the canvas of his life. Before his eyes, the handprint turned to different shades of green but sooner rather than later the stony trap crumbled away and turned to sparkly dust.
Robin looked up to meet her gaze, puzzled just as his own, when he saw it. The tree tops had gained their color back, his sight was a sea of green and Robin was overwhelmed by the sight, so familiar to him, and yet-
He looked about. His eyes roamed quickly through their surroundings, greens, reds, yellows and oranges all around him and Robin felt his empty chest clench missing his heart for the very first time. He did not register the tear that trailed down his cheek until he heard her voice.
"Robin, are you-" Her voice came out in a whisper but halted as he looked up at her.
She was hurt. She needed him.
After a beat, Robin was at work trying to free one of her feet. At his touch the rest of the vines simply crumbled and she was free of her trappings. Her cry warned him, he was able to catch her and bring her to his embrace, feeling something warm emanating from her.
He sat on the forest floor and she cradled in his arms, her face turned to his chest. They were silent for a while, but inside Robin's head a million questions arose.
What had her mother done? Crushed the man's heart? Daniel's heart? Snow White had been responsible for that? Then later, she went on to become Queen, she married Snow White's father.
It did not make any sense.
He remembered her words from that fateful night when the color blue had come back to his life.
-it was never my ambition to be anything other than myself let alone Queen.
I did not have a say in the matter of my marriage-
Her voice woke him from his thoughts "Robin-"
He turned to face her frowning as all those questions burned to be asked. She sat up and looked deep inside his blue eyes.
"What's-" but he cut her before she could finish.
"Who's Daniel?"
The question was out of his mouth before he could think it over. He could see her expression morph to something he had never seen before, deep pain and guilt emanated from her, he could feel the waves hit him.
She did not, however, give him an answer apart from the pained expression on her face, Robin felt as if he should explain his sudden question.
"That man who was trying to kill you-" he tried "He said something about his brother Daniel. Who is he?"
There was grave silence before she spoke again, her eyes on the ground as she asked, "Did Marian accept your marriage proposal? When you offered her my earrings?" Her eyes met his then and he could tell she was hiding behind the look of curiosity she gave him.
Robin was a little taken aback by her question and took a beat to respond to her, "Uhm-" he swallowed remembering that day, "No, actually- She didn't." he tried to read her again but couldn't so he continued, "But she did take the earrings and sold them. She used the money to feed her entire village."
"That sounds very righteous." she commented, but her words lacked irony.
"She was the reason why I started stealing from the rich to give to the poor, instead of stealing from the rich to make myself richer." he confessed to her not knowing how they had gotten to this subject.
"I bet that won her over." She gave him.
"It did." he replied, looking up at the sky, remembering the last time he had seen the color green in trees, it had been at Marian's final moments.
"Were you there?" She asked all of a sudden.
"Was I-? Where?" He was confused.
"Were you there when she died?" She asked again.
"I-" Robin started, remembering the worst day of his life. "I was there. I held her in my arms as she uttered her last words."
A grave silence fell upon them, both their gazes down at their hands. She took a deep breath and spoke quietly, "I'm sorry for your wife."
"It was my fault." It came out before he could hold it back, her eyes met his again. "She died because of me."
"How?"
"I was expected to return from my journeys before our baby was born, but chose to stay in King Midas' kingdom for a few more days in order to collect more for our cause." He spoke of this for the first time in his entire life and was once again grateful his heart was not attached to his chest. "She, Marian, she became ill, out of the blue." His chest started to clench. "Had I returned when expected, I could have done something to aid in curing her." his voice broke, "Broken into the Dark One's castle or even Maleficent's to look for a cure, I don't know-"
"But I was too late-" he felt anger rise in his chest "I was too stupid, too greedy, too damn merry! Robbing, laughing, drinking, joking around while her life was hanging by a thread." His voice rose at the end and he punched the floor beneath him.
"I lost her, I lost my child, all because of gold! Because of that ridiculous cause! A cause that took from the rich to give to the poor and yet it robbed me of my family." He continued, looking at the ground, his feelings getting the best of him. His eyes snapped back at her "What does that matter anyway?" He was angry at her for making him remember, making him feel again all those agonizing emotions that burned in his heart. "What does it have to do with this Daniel chap?"
"Because Daniel died because of me." she revealed, "Because he loved me."
The words carried meaning, she spoke them with certainty. There was a beat and she gasped, bringing her hand to her mouth. But before Robin could take in what her words meant or reply, she spoke again, this time weak and uncertain "Daniel is-" she stopped "He was-" swallowed. She wet her lips and tried again. "I-" she took a deep breath and finally said. "I can't talk about it. I never talked about him like this-" her unshed tears now ran down her cheeks.
Before Robin could protest, after all he had told her about Marian, it was only fair she would tell him about this Daniel, she was waving her hands in front of her in circular motions. Right before his eyes some manner of silver water basin appeared, it hovered above ground, held undoubtedly by magic. She had a concentrated frown on her features as she finished her spell.
"But-" she was hesitant, there was a beat before she continued, "I can show you."
"What? How?"
"This is very rare magic, it's not from this realm." She explained to him, "In it I can show you my memories." his eyes went wide at that last statement.
"All of them?" He could not help but ask.
"Not all of them. Just the ones I want you to see. But-" she frowned at the silver basin.
"But-?"
"This magic is supposed to be performed with a wand, which I don't have." She took a deep breath and continued, "I should draw the memories out with a wand-" She paused and studied the basin for a beat, "But I think I can-" she got to her knees directly in front of the basin and closed her eyes, concentrated, and took several deep breaths.
She then placed both her hands to the side of the basin, and spoke, not moving from her position "Look inside."
At first the sight was a mixture of colors, shapeless and odd, but then he was able to register the landscape, blue sky on a sunny day, green freshly trimmed grass.
"Do you trust me?" she asked in the earnest.
"Yes." The word was out before he could think the question over.
"You are going to put your head inside." She said, looking him in the eye.
"Right" Robin was not so sure anymore, but his curiosity won over and he leaned forward to do as he was told. It was as if he had sunk his head on the water but could still breathe. At one moment he was registering the new sensation and in the next he was falling, and he cursed himself for the thousandth time for being such a fool.
Just as he thought his life was over, his feet hit the floor with very little impact. He looked around to take in his surroundings. The scene seemed pretty simple and very real but there was something off about this place, the colors looked just a little bit duller than they were supposed to be. He was just outside what looked to be a rather large stable, the day was sunny, the green color on the trees, the blue skies painted a beautiful picture but it did not feel real.
He was inside one of her memories and felt anticipation on the pit of his stomach, eager to find out what she was willing to show him. As if on cue a horse rushed past him and he could register sweet laughter as a young woman dismounted the animal patting it on the side, she did not use a saddle.
"That was incredible Rocinante!" She beamed at the horse and that voice!
Robin blinked a few times, his feet taking him to a spot where he could see the young woman's face.
"Dear God." it came out as a mere whisper.
It was indeed her, the Queen, Regina, but younger, with her long dark hair braided, figure a little fuller, healthy looking, rosy cheeks, face deprived of any paint and wearing simple riding clothes, no corsets, no leather pants, no high heels. She looked just like the younger Regina from his dreams, only, here she was happy, her eyes sparkled.
"Regina." an older voice sounded just behind them.
She smiled a simple yet sincere smile and Robin felt his chest fill up with a type of warmth he had not felt in a long time.
"Daddy!" She responded, the man came into his line of vision as she embraced her father, who Robin had met before at the castle. But in the memory he looked much more relaxed, with more hair and younger.
"I have good news." her father told her. "I have found a new stablehand to care for our horses. But-"
"But-?" She was eager to hear more.
"But I think it's wise that you speak to him first. See if he's really right for the job." He explained, "After all, you are the expert, my little girl." He touched her nose with the tip of his finger and young Regina made a funny face.
"Daddy! I'm not a little girl anymore! I just turned 17!" She spoke in true adolescent annoyance. "But you are right, I am the expert." She gave with pride as she led her horse into the stables and guided it to it's bay.
"Shall we go meet him? He's just outside the gates waiting." Her father extended an arm.
She eyed her father's arm and grinned as she closed the bay's door. "Meeting a man just outside the gates? What would mother say?" She spoke in false concern as she took his arm.
He gave her a hearty laugh "Well, your mother isn't here, is she?"
They both laughed and Robin could not help but smile at their exchange. He followed the pair in silence as they made their way towards the estate's gates. They reached the estate's entrance and he was able to spot a young man leaning against the fence. He had his back to them, was tall, had broad shoulders, dirty blonde hair and wore simple clothes.
"Daniel?" Her father spoke and the man turned around to meet their gaze, with a sincere smile on his lips. He had a light aura about him that Robin envied, his eyes blue like his own but free of all the darkness and despair Robin's carried.
"My lord," he bowed his head slightly at the sight of the older man. When he lifted it again his eyes met young Regina's and his smile broadened. "My lady." before he bowed his head again.
"This is my daughter, Regina." her father spoke again, "She's the one you need to impress in order to get this job."
He looked a little confused "Really?"
"Do you think I am incapable of judging?" She shot his way and Robin had to suppress a snort. Some things never changed, apparently she had always had a short fuze.
The man, Daniel, blushed and bowed his head again, "Yes, I-" e stuttered. "I mean, no! I'm sure you are very capable my lady, forgive me."
She took the lead and stepped to face the young, now slightly helpless man, "Let's start this over. Look at me." his head shot up. "Please, don't bow your head to me. I'm not the queen, nor do I wish to be." she raised a quizzical eyebrow at him.
"Of course, my lady." he spoke simply, blinking a few times.
"What I want to hear from you is the following. If you had to choose in between feeding a mare with apples or sugar cubes. Which would you choose?" She squinted her eyes a little, challenging him.
But before he could answer, the world around Robin started to shift, colors danced around them as the scenery changed completely. It was nighttime, he was transported to the stables. Just as he was taking in the scenery, a woman rushed by him, she was wearing a cream colored ball gown that sparkled with movement, but there was something terribly wrong with this scene.
She was crying, the sound of her sobs could be heard but he could not see her face. She stopped just as she reached a specific bay and Robin could register that it was her, Regina. One of her hands was over her mouth, fingers red with blood. Robin's eyes widened at the sight, the front of her dress sprinkled with crimson, he took a stupid step towards her, forgeting about the fact that this was simply a memory.
"My lady?" A male voice sounded from behind them, it was Daniel, the now stablehand.
"Go away Daniel! I wish to be alone" the young woman ordered, her hand still over her mouth.
The man's eyes went wide at the sight of the blood, he did not go away "But you are hurt." he took a few steps towards her, "Who did this to you?"
"You have to ask?" she narrowed her eyes. "Who do you think it was?"
"Let me help you." he extended his hand to her.
"I don't need help." she spoke coldly.
"You're bleeding, you're hurt, I think you do." he spoke in all earnest.
She huffed out a cynical laugh, "Do you really think she would leave her goods spoiled?" She then brought her hand from her mouth and it was not a pretty sight. Her mouth and chin were red with blood, it had dripped down her neck, but the skin was not hurt in any way.
"What happened?" Daniel asked.
She took a deep breath before he spoke, "What always happens. I don't use the correct fork, I get punished. I eat more than it's lady-like, I get punished. I express my opinion, I get punished." she looked down for a beat and continued, "Today I thought I could voice my opinion on arranged marriages over dinner." she took a deep breath, "That was very stupid of me. She hit me across the face," her voice was getting smaller by the second, "the ring she was wearing-" she stopped, placing her fingers just above her lips, "-cut me. Here." her voice was a mere whisper when she finished, "I had never seen so much blood in my whole life."
"My lady," Daniel tooks steps and closed the distance between them, taking her blood stained, trembling hands into his own.
"She didn't even move." Regina started again. "She did not let my father help. She froze him with her magic." She looked down at their joined hands. "She said-" she let out a cry that seemed to have been lodged on her throat for a long time. Daniel took her into his arms in a friendly embrace, giving her a shoulder to cry on. Her face found his chest and she spoke against it, "She said I deserved it. To bleed out my ungrateful words." She brought her face from his chest and finished, "When she was satisfied, when she felt I had suffered enough, she healed the cut with her magic and sent me away to clean up."
There was a grave silence while they looked into each other's eyes.
"Were you going to run away?" he asked her in all earnest.
"Yes." she confessed. "I just want to disappear-"
"If you disappeared, the world would be a sadder place. Colorless." he spoke tender words.
"You don't have to say that." her voice defeated.
"But I mean it, you are lively, intelligent, audacious-" he lifted her chin with his fingers, "-beautiful."
She smiled sadly, "I must be quite a sight." her tone turned ironic, "A vision in red."
He gave her a tight but sincere smile, "I don't have any magic, but I think I can help you with your red problem." He extended his hand and she took it without hesitation.
Robin followed the pair as he led her outside, towards the well. It was a full moon night but the sky was starless. Daniel brought some water up from the well and offered to help her with a cloth. She nodded and he ever so carefully started assisting her in cleaning away the evidence of her mother's violence.
The scene unfolding in front of him was simple enough, but Robin could feel the moment carried great meaning. Daniel had decided to start cleaning her hands, asking her with soft words to dip her hands inside the bucket as he used the cloth to scrub off the dried blood from them. She simply watched with eyes that looked both tired and soothed, she had stopped crying, was taking long breaths as his fingers made contact with her own.
When her hands were clean, he disposed of the water and reached for another bucket full of clean water and another piece of cloth.
"My lady-" his voice was quiet, as if telling a secret. "May I?" He asked for permission. She looked down and realizing then her chest had tracks of blood that had dripped from her neck.
"Yes-" her words were short but her eyes were so full of feeling.
Daniel continued to clean her, this time placing the wet cloth to her chest, trying his best not to touch her inappropriately. Robin could see he was holding his breath as he worked, worried that she might think he was after something else. A man of honor, just like Robin had once been.
Regina looked much more relaxed, she closed her eyes as he cleaned her neck finally reaching her face, dabbing the cloth ever so gently over her lips, cleaning away not just the blood but the whole bitter and horrible sentiment her mother's actions had created.
When he was finished he dropped the cloth to the bucket filled with bloody water and made to step away from her. Her eyes were still closed but she whispered "Don't go," he lingered as she opened her eyes.
There was something new in those brilliant eyes Robin had grown to adore.
Gratitude
Hope
She took his hands in hers "Thank you," she spoke simply, bringing her eyes to his.
"It was nothing-" he spoke, looking down at their joined hands.
"No" she shook her head slightly, brought her fingers to his chin, bringing his gaze back to hers, "It was everything."
His eyes lit up at her words. He brought one of his hands up and ran his thumb over her upper lip where a reddish scar stood out now that all the blood was gone.
"That's where the ring cut." She spoke simply, leaning into his touch.
"You have a small scar now." He spoke in a daze more focussed on her face, her lips.
"Everytime I look upon it I shall feel-" young Regina started.
"-horrified?" He guessed.
"No." She breathed out. "I shall feel this" she tilted her head to the side so his palm was cupping her cheek. "Warm and safe." She breathed into his scent bringing one of her hands to his face, tracing the pads of her fingers down his cheek.
"My lady-" he stuttered but his eyes betrayed him as they looked down at her mouth.
"Regina" she whispered as if it was a secret. "My name's Regina." With those last words she closed the distance between their lips in a kiss. It was a closed mouthed, tentative kiss, both of them so young, so incredibly naive. But still, Robin could sense that kiss, that moment carried a lot of meaning, it had been, from what he gathered, their first kiss.
Robin could not help but feel a pang inside his empty chest, he was surprised that it was not of a jealous disposition but because he felt for them, because he knew this would not end well, after all, she had said he had died because of her. The new love he saw blooming before his very eyes whilst the young couple kissed, full of hope and anticipation, was doomed.
As if on cue, the world around him spun again and this time, instead of seeing a full scene like the two before, flashes of scenes danced before his eyes, he was able to catch moments of each of them before they disappeared giving place to a new one.
Young Regina, her hair down, her eyes so bright and full of life, cheeks flushed as she laughed, the man, Daniel, was on the floor, he had fallen on his behind and shared that good laugh with her.
The image changed, it was blurry as if moving, riding. He was seeing through her eyes as she was riding her horse. When she turned her head to the side he could see Daniel was riding his own horse beside her, grinning at her, challenging her to go faster.
"Regina, are you certain about this?" First he heard Daniel's voice before another scene materialized in front of him. They were at the stables, sitting on top of a pile of hay, she wasn't wearing her usual riding clothes or fancy dresses but a white slip. Daniel wore worn down pants and a simple white shirt, Regina was playing with the collar, her smile devious and her eyes bright.
"Yes," she whined as she leaned towards the man to steal a kiss.
"This is very serious Regina," the man dodged her kiss, holding her shoulders with tenderness.
"This is what I want Daniel" she twisted her body a little, managing to sneak one knee in between his legs as she got closer to him. Robin could register the man's breath caught in his throat, "I love you Daniel." she spoke as she placed her hand on his cheek. "Let me show you how much." She moved against his leg, trying to relieve what seemed to be burning in between her thighs.
Robin could see Daniel was blushing at her advances, but was very much wanting for her to do what she wanted to do. Robin recognized the internal battle swimming in the man's eyes, trying to be the noble man that would not take advantage of a young woman like that but also wanting to throw caution to the wind and giving into his desires.
"I love you too Regina," his voice came out soft and loving, his hands that had been holding her shoulders slid up to cup both her cheeks as he brought her down for a kiss that was full of promise.
Her body melted on top of his as they kissed, and his hands travelled down her back. She broke it and uttered, looking deep into his eyes, "I'm yours, take me."
"No!" he heard a voice, the sound did seem to come from the memory for the couple before him did not hear the voice, "Not this one." it was her, Regina, the one who was controlling this whole vision.
The world started to spin as Daniel replied, "You're everything to me." and kissed her again.
The scene changed again now young Regina was alone, it was night and she was tip-toeing across a vast room that held a mighty fireplace that was dimly lit. She had her skirts gathered as she walked slowly, barefoot trying to make as little sound as possible. Upon further inspection Robin could see her lips were swollen, her hair tousled, and her dress was slightly askew showing a bit more skin on the left side of her breast than on the right.
She had managed to cross the room when a noise in the fireplace drew her attention, Robin could hear it too, a thumping sound, as if something was beating there. She approached the fireplace and jumped away when she heard a voice coming from behind the fireplace.
"Are you certain this will work?" It was a woman's voice, commanding and impatient.
"You doubt my work? I'm wounded!" an impish voice replied.
"It needs to work quickly! How quick will it be?" the woman demanded answers.
"It will work as you wish." the other voice replied, followed by a laugh Robin recognized only too well.
Rumpelstiltskin.
"I need her gone on the girl's birthday!" The woman spoke again.
"What's happening?" he heard Regina's voice again and the world around him started to tremble. Something was not right, something might have gone wrong and she was out there all alone and Robin could do nothing-
"It's very important that she should be gone on the girl's birthday!" the woman's demanding voice continued.
"And she will be." the imp replied, this time, dead serious.
The scene shifted and Robin was met by the perspective of young Regina's horse, but this time, she was not with Daniel, she was riding towards another horse. A child was mounted on the moving horse, but the horse ran too fast, the child clad in light pink was holding on to her dear life and screaming for help.
Young Regina reached the horse and managed to grab the young girl and move her to her own horse. Soon they were on firm soil and the girl's green eyes grew impossibly large, her cheeks flushed, her skin white as-
"I'm Snow."
"Regina."
"You saved me!" the young Snow White hugged young Regina, who smiled and patted the girl's head.
That scene was truly strange to him, for Robin knew she hated Snow White with every fiber of her being-
Before he could think any further on the subject the scene changed, they were changing fast now, it was difficult for Robin to take everything in and analyse what she was trying to tell him through all these memories. The possibility that something was wrong made him uneasy.
An older, bald man wearing a crown was kneeling before a young and petrified looking Regina. He held an impossibly large ring, offering it to her.
"Will you marry me, Regina?" he asked.
"Yes!" But it was not Regina's voice that spoke, it was another woman's voice. The same voice that sounded from behind the fireplace. Upon looking at the woman now, Robin could tell who she was, he could see the resemblance.
It was her mother. The one who had cut her lip.
The heartless witch.
The scene changed, they were once again in the stables, young Regina crashed against Daniel's embrace, she was crying. Suddenly she brought her head up and spoke with confidence, "Marry me."
"What?" Daniel was a little stunned, "Regina, what happened?"
"What happened is I love you and I want to marry you." she spoke again bringing her face away from his chest.
"You have spoken to your mother about us then?" his face lit up with hope.
"No, no. She can never know Daniel." she explained. "That girl I saved was the King's daughter. And out of gratitude for saving her he proposed." her words were watery, "To me." a few tears slid down her cheeks.
"But-" Daniel tried.
"My mother accepted." she spoke, defeated. "The only way out is to run away." she looked around her as if planning an escape route at that very moment.
"Regina, what are you saying?" Daniel looked confused and hurt at the same time.
"We have to run away, leave this place forever Daniel, only then can we be together." her voice was resolute.
"But Regina, your life will be a far cry from what it is today, I'm just a stableboy-" he spoke in defeat.
"I don't care about any of that," she approached him, touching his face, "All I care about is you."
Daniel smiled at her and turned around, "Then, if we are to be married-" he picked something from inside a satchel and turned back to face her, "We must do it properly." He showed her a simple golden band.
"Yes!" she breathed out in utter happiness as he slipped the ring down her finger.
She pulled him into a kiss that had been waiting to happen, full of love and promise. A loud noise startled the couple who pulled apart just so Robin could see young Snow White staring at them, tears pooling inside her eyes. There was a beat and she ran away.
The scene shifted, young Snow was on the floor, outside, she had fallen, young Regina had managed to catch up on her.
"Snow! Are you alright?"
"No! I am not alright!" the girl whined with a watery voice. "Why were you kissing that man in the stables? You are to marry my father! You are to be my mother!"
"Snow, King Leopold, your father, is a good and generous man," she explained to the young one, her voice so utterly deprived of bitterness and malice whilst speaking of a man she would turn out to loathe, so Robin gathered. "But I do not love him."
Snow looked confused, "Why?"
Younger Regina chuckled and he felt his chest tighten, she was so different, "Love doesn't work like that dear" she smiled at the girl's expression of confusion and got a little closer, continuing, "True love is magic. The most powerful magic of all."
Her eyes shone telling the truth of her words and Robin had to wonder for the millionth time what had happened to her. How had she turned up the way she was?
"It creates happiness," she finished.
Little Snow understood, "And that man in the stables, you love him?"
"With all my heart."
"Then you must marry him," they held each other's hands and smiled, "I'll tell father right away," she made it to stand but Regina held her back.
"No, Snow."
"Surely he'll understand."
"Maybe, but other people won't." Young Regina sounded wary, "Like my mother, I know she won't understand."
"Is that why you were going to run away?" Young Snow asked her.
"Yes," she paused for a moment and looked the young girl in front of her right in the eye, "Snow, do you know what a secret is?" The girl nodded, "I need you to keep all that you saw and everything I've told you a secret. You can never tell anyone about this," she emphasized the next part, "specially my mother. Can you do that for me?"
The young girl paused for a minute and replied, "Yes, of course!"
They hugged and the scene changed again and they were back at the stables, young Regina and Daniel wore simple travel clothes and had a few bags with them. But their expressions were not of glee and hope but of spun on his heels to be met with the vision of Regina's mother staring daggers at the pair.
"You could've at least left a note." her voice was pure poison.
"You're impossible to talk to." Regina tried to explain to her mother, "Stop with the magic and listen to me. I want to be with Daniel."
"Oh, you don't know what you want." the older woman spoke in a mother-knows-best-tone, "But I do. I didn't make the sacrifices I did in life, to get you to the cusp of greatness, so that you could end up the wife of a stable boy."
"But it's my life." Regina argued, she was fiery, no longer afraid of her mother.
"You foolish girl." her mother replied as if talking to an infant, her voice changed when she continued, "It's mine. After what I had to do… The deals I had to make to get us out of poverty, to get us this life, and you just want to toss it away?"
"Stay strong, Regina." Daniel told her. Robin could tell he had been her rock.
"Your magic can't keep us apart. I love him." She defied her mother once more.
"And I love her." Daniel completed.
Her mother did not miss a beat, "And I love her, too."
"If you loved me, you wouldn't try to keep us apart." Regina argued and Robin had a feeling this was not going to end well.
As if on cue the scene before him got blurry and confused, Robin blinked a few times as he could only hear her mother's voice, "This will make you happy?"
Robin heard a sob on the back of his head and knew it did not come from the scene he was watching, the world around him spun and then focussed again. He was still in the same place, Regina was hugging her mother and Daniel was now smiling.
"Thank you, mother." she spoke in all earnest.
Robin did not understand, had her mother simply… accepted? There was something wrong. The scene ahead of him was starting to tremble again and Robin had to focus in order to understand what was happening.
"Daniel. If you want to have a life together, a family…" her mother spoke again, her tone was gentle, but her words sounded empty, "Then, there's one important lesson I can impart on you. It's what it means to be a parent. You always have to do what's best for your children."
"Thank you. I understand. Because that's what you're doing now." Daniel replied, he was standing in front of her.
"Yes." she replied to him in a mere whisper, "It is."
Robin knew that this situation would not end well, remembered vaguely how Daniel's brother had mentioned ripped out hearts turned into dust but nothing could have prepared him for actually seeing it play out before his eyes. Her mother's expression went blank as she shoved her hand inside Daniel's chest - just as the Queen had done to him all those months before - and pulled out his heart, which, unlike Robin's, bore a light color of red, bright and pure.
He could register Regina's scream, "Mother!" as she rushed to the man's side whose body fell lifeless on the ground. "No! No! No, no, no." she weeped as her mother squeezed Daniel's heart until it turned into dust.
He was dead
Her anguish hit him hard, her heartbreak and the feeling of being completely and utterly lost. Robin remembered when she told him, He died because of me, because he loved me
He looked at the younger Regina who was in front of him as he shared her feelings of heartache and desperation - wondering if it was normal for a person to also feel what the other is feeling in this memory thing, he had a niggling feeling that it wasn't normal.
Her knees were on the hay covered floor, as she clutched the man she loved as if he was her life line. She kissed him on the lips three times whilst still sobbing. Probably thinking that true love's kiss would save the day.
It did not.
Nothing magical whatsoever happened.
When Marian had died, his true love had not been enough to save her, his and Regina's love were not enough to bring their loved ones back to life. Apparently the miraculous cure behind true love's kiss did want to grace either of them.
"Mother, why have you done this?" she asked her mother in between sobs, Robin could not look at her anymore, his chest was tight with anguish and sympathy.
"Love is weakness, Regina." her mother lectured her and Robin could not believe how heartless indeed that woman was, "It feels real now, but it's not."
"It is real! I loved him!" Regina shot back at her mother, screaming next, "I LOVE HIM!" she broke down in sobs.
"That's enough!" her mother commanded, "This is the beginning of your happy ending Regina. Now you will be Queen!" her eyes shone with greed and anticipation.
The world around him spun again and Robin was taken to another memory. At first the travel between memories had been quite smooth, but now something was off, the memories felt different, they felt more intense and the transition between them was starting to give Robin a headache.
He was indoors again, the same room he had seen her tiptoeing in the evening, but now it was daytime and Regina stood like a marble statue on a high bench as three maids embroidered a very expensive looking white dress. Snow White was watching her from afar with an air of serenity.
"Wow… You are most certainly the fairest of them all!" she stepped to speak to Regina.
"Thank you, dear." her words were police but empty, she was hollow inside.
"I know you and Daniel will be so happy together." Snow spoke in a dreamy voice.
"What?" Regina's voice gained a little bit of life.
"Well, I just knew your mother would let you marry him." The girl was smiling, proud, as if she had fed an entire village with only the goodness in her heart, "Once she knew how happy it'd make you, once she knew how much you love him. You have such a wonderful mother. She would do anything for your happiness."
As Snow spoke Robin could not help but watch Regina's reaction, her facial expressions turning from numb to pained and then for a split second he saw anger there. He himself began to share that anger as the pieces of this tale began to fit with one another.
But when she finally spoke, her voice was gentle, but a little nervous, as if dreading what the girl was about to say, "Snow… Did… Did you…tell her about me and Daniel?"
"Yes." The brat had no idea what she had done.
This time Regina's voice broke just a little, as she approached the girl, dismissing the three maids who worked on her dress, "But I…told you…very specifically not to."
"I'm sorry." she apologized as if she had spilled juice on Regina and not caused the death of a person, "I just didn't want you to lose your mother. Like I've lost mine. Are you mad?"
For a moment, Robin was able to see the woman he knew in that young woman's eyes, the anger, the murderous rage, they had been born at that very moment. But then her face quickly shifted and she replied, "No. I'm not mad at all. You were just trying to help me." her tone was once again serene but Robin could tell it was fake, "However, I'm not marrying Daniel. This dress is for your father."
"But… I thought… You were in love." The girl replied, confused.
For a split second Robin felt a strong pain on his chest, and Regina replied, "So did I." Her tone was sweet but untrue. "But I was wrong. Daniel has run away. What I had with Daniel wasn't real." The scene started to tremble again and Robin could hear a loud intake of breath followed by a sob coming from someplace other than the scene before him.
Now his whole vision was blurry but he was able to make out Regina's words, her tone deep, now filled with anger and loathing "I should have let her die on that horse."
"Stop!" her voice sounded again, but it was not the memory Regina but the real one, "Make it-" her voice was watery and it seemed as if she was using a great deal of power to hold the spell.
Before Robin could think of anything he could do to help her, another scene formed itself before his eyes. She was riding again, fast and hard, and she spoke to the horse, "We're almost free!"
The scene blurred again, Robin could hear whispers on the back of his head, or was it her head?
Her voice sounded again, "I can't leave?" and the scene cleared out again. Regina was no longer on the horse but hanging midair trapped by several magical tree branches.
Her mother was there and gave her an evil smile, "Not alone. Not without the King. We've been through this. In two days, you'll be married – you'll be Queen. After that, you're free to go – whenever you're with the King. This is for your own good, Regina. The King thinks so too."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Regina spat at her mother, "I have the right to choose where I go and when."
"My dear, it was the King's idea that I should cast this spell." her mother gave her.
"I am pretty sure it wasn't the King's idea for you to use your dark magic to trap me."
"Well, when you put it like that-" her mother smiled a villainous smile, "He doesn't know about the magic, but he did ask me to make sure you were- What's the word that he used?" she pretended to think, "Ah, safe from harm before your wedding night."
"And this is your interpretation of 'safe from harm'? What is that even supposed to mean?" Regina questioned her mother, she took a deep breath, looking defeated, her voice changed when she spoke again, "Momma, I don't want to marry the King. I don't want this life!"
"You're just frightened of having all that power."
Everything went dark, Robin could not see a thing, only hear-
"I don't want power." Regina's voice sounded, "I want to be free."
For a moment everything was dark and dead silence filled Robin's ears. Then he heard her mother's voice again.
"Look at you with your whole life ahead of you." the world around him gained color and shape again as the scene cleared out before his eyes, "And it's going to be better than you can imagine. The King's not a strong man. The kingdom will be yours. Raise the tributes, form a personal guard, let everyone know where the new power lies, and you'll hold the hearts of your people in your hands." Robin was surprised by her words, because, give it or take, what her mother had told her to do was what Regina had done.
"Is that what you would do, Mother?" Regina asked, she was in her wedding dress again, only it was bigger, more rich and she looked absolutely miserable.
The world went blurry again, the image trembled and Robin could hear Regina's heavy breathing again, something was wrong and he had no idea how to get out of this memory.
"No-" he heard her from above his head, "Stop- Make it, stop" she was holding her breath.
His attention was drawn back to the memory when it cleared just enough so he could see Regina's expression of anger and frustration. She was being held by a spell, but she freed herself from it and with an ear piercing scream she fought back and pushed her mother with all the force she had. Her mother collided with a mirror, but instead of breaking it she was sucked by it, only then it shattered.
The next memory was quick but left a bitter taste in his mouth when he saw who she was talking to.
"B-But that's not what I asked, dearie." Rumpelstiltskin spoke in his ever so annoying tone, "How did it feel to use magic?"
"It doesn't matter. I-I'll never use it again." She looked a little unsure.
"Why not?"
"Because I loved it." She confessed.
The imp gave her a knowing smile, "You've discovered who you are. You could do so much now, if you let me show you how."
The scene trembled again. Colors mixed with each other as Robin's headache was building up to become a migraine. The colors were all blurred again and he could only hear voices.
"Regina, this is your duty." It was the King.
"I know, I'm just-" Her voice was weak and a little bit watery
"No more buts." The King's voice was resolute and commanding, not kind at all. Robin deadred to learn what exactly they had been talking about, "I am the King and you will do as I command."
When his vision cleared, he saw another memory, he could hear Regina's breathing faintly but constant now. He had to find a way out of this place.
"Where did you get it?" Young Snow White held a ring.
"Daniel gave it to me." Regina spoke and tried to take the ring from her.
"The stable boy? The one you were going to marry? The one who ran away?" She paused for a minute analysing the ring, "Well, in the end he was no good for you at all." she twisted her upper lip into a sneer, and then she smiled sweetly looking at Regina and finished, "Thank heavens you have married my father, now we can be a family."
The scenery around him changed to an indoor luxurious bedchamber, it was nighttime. Robin spun on his heels to look for Regina and when he found her his heart went cold as ice. She was still the younger version he had been seeing in the memories, two black knights held her by the upper arms and her hair was loose and there was little paint on her face. She wore a light blue nightgown and an expression of pure terror as she looked back at her husband.
Robin was frozen on the spot as he watched the scene he had seen in his dream unfold before his eyes.
"Here she is your majesty-" one of the guards spoke.
"Thank you Hackman-" the King had a satisfied smile on his lips, "-I'll take it from here."
The men let go of the very frightened looking Regina and left. Robin got a horrible feeling in his stomach, now, just like when he had first seen this in his dream, he wanted to punch the King square in the face.
The man in question approached Regina with leasuary steps, "Must you run from me wife?" he reached his destination and Robin could see a single tear run down her cheek. "Do you not know-" he placed his old hand on her barely covered shoulder and took some of her hair in his palm, bringing it to his face and taking a loud sniff, "-that it is your duty as Queen to please me?"
This time, there was no Marian figure to hold him back, so Robin let his anger get the best of him and tried to defend her, even though he knew it was hopeless, it was only a mere memory, the damage had already been done. But as he lunged himself unto the King something changed, the floor beneath him started to tremble and the scene before his eyes started to melt as he focused on Regina's sorrowful expression, tears running down her cheeks as the King's old hand ran down her arm.
Robin closed his eyes and screamed like never before, he felt his feet leave the floor for a second before colliding against a tree backfirst and falling on the forest floor. He took a deep breath before he started to move, the pain on his body unimportant, his eyes were frantic, looking for her.
She seemed to also have been thrown away from the silver basin, she was sitting on the ground a few feet away from him, back against another tree, eyes shut, brow creased in pain and exhaustion. Robin gathered all that was left of his strength to go to her.
"Regina," his voice called out as he reached her and got to his knees just beside her.
She took in a long breath but did not open her eyes, there was a huge uncomfortable silence and Robin did not know what to do or say. He was still digesting everything he had seen and learned.
Everything made so much sense now, why she hated Snow White so much. Why she despised the King. Why she was so fixated and resolute on her hunt for Snow White's head. But at the end of the day what got to him the most was the fact that she had not wanted the life she currently lived at all, she wanted to be free.
Apart from the fact that now he knew he had dreamed about something that had actually happened to her. How was that even possible?
"You were not supposed to see all that," her voice was grave and it brought Robin back to the here and now.
Robin did not know how to respond so he asked, "Are you hurt?"
She raised an unimpressed eyebrow and gave back, "Well, you've seen what I've had to endure. You know now I've been through worse. I'll be fine."
Robin swallowed, thinking they'd go back to square zero if he was not careful with his next words, he tried, "What happened to the memory basin, hum, thing? Did something go wrong?"
"Yes," she was looking down at her hands, "I went wrong." She huffed out a cynical laugh, "As I always do."
"What do you-" he started but she cut him.
"In order to perform this kind of magic, one has to be serene, in control of their emotions." She explained looking everywhere but at him, "At first I was-" she chose to meet his eye then, "But then I wasn't." her voice got smaller.
There was a silence and Robin did not feel as if he should pester her with questions about what he had just seen in her memories. Some of them might have been blurry and in pieces but he got the message. If Snow White hadn't told her secret to her mother, things might have been a lot different.
"I see it now." Robin spoke after a while, his voice distant, his mind still on the young woman the imposing and terrifying Queen had once been.
"See what?" her voice was croaky.
"Why you hate her so." he gave her.
She gave him a look of surprise mixed with a tiny bit of glee, taking one long, deep breath and looking ahead, "She ruined my life." There was a pause in which they regarded each other, the next moment she was getting up, brushing off dirt and dried leaves from her lap. Robin stood as well, uncertain of what she would throw this way this time.
"I'm sorry-" he gave her, and she quickly spun on her heel to face him, looking confused, "-about Daniel."
Her face was expressionless for a second as she took in his words, then a tiny but sincere smile crept it's way into her lips, "You understand now why I need to avenge his death," Robin simply nodded in response
"She couldn't keep her mouth shut, that was all she had to do." She suddenly started to speak fast, "But no, she wanted to help me, she said." she huffed a laugh, "She didn't want to help me, she wanted me to be her mother, a substitute at least." she rolled her eyes, and turned to look him right in the eye, "But I did not choose to be a mother, I did not want to be a mother! I was seventeen!" Her voice broke a little, "She's a spoiled brat, who only thinks of herself. She took my life away from me, so now I'll take hers." Her eyes sparkled with anticipation, "She was selfish, she still is. Even now, on the run from me, she risks the lives of everyone who associates with her. She's always been a selfish little shit."
Robin did not know what exactly it was that had triggered his next moves and words. He was still a bit shell shocked about all that he had seen. Even more shocked to realize that just the night before he felt so much for her, and now those feelings had tripled. His chest was burning with compassion, anger, anticipation and something else he was afraid to name.
He got to his knees in front of her, the look of utter astonishment on her face as he did so was golden, he had to hold back a smirk and remember that what he was about to say was very serious.
He took one of her hands in his own and spoke, his voice firm and true, "I swear to you, Daniel's death will be avenged." he looked her dead in the eye, her own were wide at his words as he finished, "You have my word."
For a moment both of them held their breaths, eyes locked with each other, the weight of his words coming down on them. He was able to breathe again when he felt her squeeze his hand in hers.
She looked truthfully grateful, "Thank you." He felt her tug at his hand and took it as a sign to stand, they were closer than he had expected. The story her eyes shifted, thankfulness turning into defeat, "But in order to do that I need to catch her. I can't even do that. It seems as if the whole world is against me, even if they are not on her side."
"We'll figure something out, change our strategy somehow-"
"Would it work though?" their hands were still joined and Robin felt the buzz between them run free, "As much as it pains me to say, she has pretty powerful allies. The Blue Fairy is ancient, apart from the fact that there's more to her than meets the eye." she turned her head slightly to the side, looking beyond, "We need to find out what she's hiding. It doesn't make any sense that the Queen Fairy of Good would do what she did to Rapunzel." She was talking fast now, frantic almost, "We need to take her down, once we take her down, Snow won't have her protection anymore, she won't be able to hide for long, she-"
"Regina-" he interrupted her, placing his hands on her shoulders, "-breathe."
Her eyes were wide as she took a deep breath through her nose and exhaled through her mouth, "I don't know what to do." she sounded defeated again.
"Lucky for you, I do." Robin smirked at her.
"You do? You know how I can take down the Blue Fairy?" she asked, quite not believing him.
"Defeat the Blue Fairy? Of course not!" his hands left her shoulders, "But I know just how to make Snow White surrender to you, willingly, without a fight, and without the Blue Fairy."
"Go on," she encouraged him.
"As much as it pains me to say it, the idea came from your mother." Robin started, seeing her expression shift, he continued, "Forgive me, I know she's your mother, but she is quite awful." her lips twisted into a smirk that gave him confidence, "She said, 'love is weakness' and although I have my doubts about that being completely true, we can use it to our advantage."
"How?"
"Isn't it obvious? Using her love against her." he saw her face light up and smiled, "What was his name again?"
"David," the man's name came out sweetly. She was savoring this new opportunity, he could feel anxiety mixed with excitement emanating from her, "His name is David."
