Robin woke slowly, wondering how he felt so groggy. Somehow, he was in his room, and he was surprised to find that Roland wasn't beside him. Did he really drink that much at the ball? He had always been responsible about the amount he drank ever since Little John had dragged him out of the depths of his despair over Marian long enough to help him live for Roland. That he had broken that streak now seemed unlikely.
Looking out of the bars covering a hole in the wall that served as windows in this part of the castle, he determined that it was still night. No wonder he still felt so tired. He rolled over and went back to sleep, hoping that he'd figure everything out in the morning.
"Uncle John, can I see Papa? Please? Mama said I could!"
"Shhh, Roland. We can go in and check on him, all right? But only if you're quiet."
"Yay!" Roland cheered in a loud whisper.
Hearing the whispers of his son and best friend made Robin chuckle. "Come in, both of you. You're as quiet as a herd of elephants."
The door opened and his best friend and son stepped inside. Roland immediately leaped on the bed and tackled him. "Papa! You're awake!"
"Of course, my boy," Robin said. He noticed that Little John was grinning from ear to ear. He sensed that something more was happening than he knew. "Why wouldn't I be?"
"Roland, why don't you see if some of your other uncles are awake?" Little John suggested. Clearly, what he had to say wasn't suitable for young ears.
Once he had scampered out of the room, Robin asked, "All right, what's going on here? The last thing I remember is the Wicked Witch showing up at the ball. And why does Roland think that Marian is still alive?"
Little John sighed. "So you don't remember anything at all, then."
Robin only cocked his head to the side in answer, and the man he considered his brother finally elaborated, "Zelena used a potion on you and a plant on Roland. He thinks that Regina is his mother, and you thought you were married to Regina. It was like you had selective amnesia. We suspect that that wasn't Zelena's original plan, but..."
"What?!" Robin exclaimed. "How did the great and terrible Evil Queen react to that?" Yes, he knew that she had a son of her own that she had had to leave behind in the Land Without Magic, but to take care of his son as if he was her own? Yes, she had always had a soft spot for his son and he for her, but he imagined that it was extremely difficult for her to care for the son of the man she hated.
John frowned. "Don't call her that."
Robin's eyebrows shot up so fast he thought they might fly off his forehead. Last time he checked, he was the one who had to try to convince his brothers that the Evil Queen was harmless, not the other way around. "It appears that a lot of things changed while I was under the influence of the potion. The Queen went along with the ruse, then?"
His friend nodded. "She's been taking care of Roland for the most part, with our help, of course. It's not something that everyone was happy about at first, but in the end…" He smiled. "I think it's safe to say that we all love her."
Interesting... "Is there anything else I should know about? Did you all decide to support Nottingham while I was out of commission?"
John slapped his forehead. "That's right, I forgot! There's a terrible disease going around called corona. Roland got it first, but as you can see, he's well now. No one else has gotten it that we know of, but it's only a matter of time. Regina came up with a cure, but of course, because it came from her, a lot of the others don't trust it. I had the cure as soon as I saw that it worked on Roland, and I'm sure Regina gave it to you too, so you're safe with me, and the rest of the men as well."
Robin fell back on the pillow behind him. It was almost too much to take in. However, there was one detail missing. "Why are you both acting like I've come back from the dead?"
John sighed. Apparently the past days- however long he had been under the witch's spell- had taken its toll. "Oh yeah, one last thing. Zelena put you under a sleeping curse."
"Then how am I awake?" Robin inquired slowly. Events were being thrown at him like balls, many of them impossible to believe. What he really needed was some of that coffee drink Granny had asked Regina to supply from the Land Without Magic and time to process everything.
"Regina," John said simply, that wide smile still plastered on his face.
Robin sighed. Apparently, the Queen had done more than just care for his son, and he wasn't sure how he felt about it. His parents had always feared magic and all who practiced it and taught him to do the same. He had always been wary of supernatural abilities, and the fact that so much of it had been used on both him and his son made him feel anxious. At the same time though, he was becoming more aware by the minute that there was more to the Evil Queen than met the eye. The two conflicting concepts were at war in his mind, and he just wanted to resume a sense of normalcy so he could begin to sort it all out.
As if in agreement, his stomach rumbled, and John laughed. "Come on, let's go get some breakfast. I can see you're conflicted, and some food should help you move toward feeling more like yourself again."
He was welcomed back at their usual table in the banquet hall by his brothers in much the same way that Roland and John had, with handshakes and claps on the back that left him with no doubts about whether or not the rest of the Merry Men missed him.
As they ate, he tried to immerse himself in the conversation around him, but he kept stealing glances over at the woman many called the Evil Queen. She seemed as aloof as ever, her gaze fixed on an unknown point in the distance. Why had she decided to go along with the potion her sister had used on him? Was it just so she could break his heart? From what John had said, that hadn't been the case- and if it was, why had she woken him from the sleeping curse?
There were too many questions that could only be answered by one person: the Evil Queen herself. Or, as his men apparently now liked to call her, Regina. Which would mean having a one-on-one conversation with her, and he had no idea how that would go. The last time he had tried to do that, he was only granted her kindness because she had been doing it for his son.
At that moment, she left the table, and he figured that now was as good a time as any to talk to her. They were both invited to a strategy meeting with the Charmings and the rest of their friends after breakfast, and while it may not be wise to provoke her before they had to be around other people, it also would provide a finite end to their conversation, preventing it from getting too heated (he hoped). Roland still thought she was his mother, so they had to get along until he no longer believed that lie… Somehow.
Her long red skirts swept the floor as she glided down the corridor.
"Your Majesty!" he called. He had a feeling that he wouldn't be calling her that for much longer, judging by how John had spoken about her.
She turned, raising an eyebrow. "When did you get so respectful?"
He might regret his next words, but it needed to be said. "When I owe you a debt. John told me that you cared for Roland as your own, that you went along with what the witch did to us. That you saved me."
She nodded. "And?" He could see her foot tapping. Clearly she was inpatient and had other places to be- and in truth, so did he. Best to make this quick, then.
"Why did you do it?" he asked. "You could have easily ignored the effects of her actions and left us to fend for ourselves."
She frowned, and he could see the conflict in her eyes. Why was she debating about the answer to this seemingly simple question? Apparently, the answer would be more complex than he first thought. "Is it so hard to believe that I did all of it for your son?"
He was silent for a moment, completely dumbstruck. How could he have overlooked that possibility before? Of course she had done it for Roland- of course she had. Ever since he had found out that her son was lost to her, he had entrusted her with his own son so often that it had worried the others incessantly. The two of them shared a bond that he had once thought the Evil Queen incapable of forming with anyone, let alone someone who was his flesh and blood. It should have been natural to assume that she had gone along with the ramblings of their scrambled thoughts to make his son happy.
"I- of course not," he said now. "Thank you. From both of us."
She laughed bitterly. "I can't exactly say it was my pleasure. Will all of this finally convince you to stop addressing me by anything other than my title?"
He grinned. "Not a chance, milady." He enjoyed getting a rise out of her too much for that. Besides, he had always suspected that she enjoyed their banter, not to mention the different ways he addressed her, more than she would ever dare to admit.
She sighed. "Why did I expect anything less?"
"Truthfully? I don't know," he admitted. Before he lost his nerve, he asked, "How did you wake me from the sleeping curse?"
"Let's go to the meeting before I decide you don't need to be there," she decided, turning on her heel and walking toward the terrace where the prince and princess had decided to hold the council meeting that day.
He followed, still trying to puzzle out the woman before him.
They were left in an uncomfortable silence for not long before Snow and the others showed up. As she walked out to them, Robin noticed that the princess had the same ridiculously happy grin on her face that John had worn earlier, but he couldn't imagine why. Yes, they were friends and had shared views about many things, especially regarding the welfare of the people in the kingdom, but at the same time, he wasn't one of the dwarves that she trusted implicitly.
"All right, let's get this meeting started," Snow began. "First, I'd like to welcome back Robin, who through Regina's efforts was woken from the sleeping curse and is now back to normal."
A round of applause went around the table that had been moved to the terrace for the meeting, but Robin brushed it aside. He didn't do anything, really, just managed to not die at the hands of the witch. For all their differences, he could tell that Regina felt the same way. Neither one of them liked being the center of attention.
To his relief, she snapped, "Can we get back to business please? There's a witch out there with flying monkeys, and she needs to be stopped. Who knows what she'll try next."
"I was getting to it," the woman who was once her stepdaughter said, her unwavering patience evident in her tone. "Obviously, breaking into Rumple's castle didn't yield much information. All we know is that Zelena still has his dagger and is determined to ruin Regina's happiness-"
"Not that there is any," Robin heard her mutter, and despite his better judgement, the words sent a dart through his heart. It was so unfair that she had to leave her son behind. He had been trying for what seemed like forever to help her find something positive to live for, and there were times that he thought he had succeeded by letting her have as much time with his son as she wanted. However, apparently it hadn't been enough.
"Anyway," Snow quickly continued. "We need to find a way to find out her plans. Regina, is there any way you can spy on Zelena?'
"Well, yes..." she said slowly.
"Perfect. Can you do that as soon as possible please? We need to know what she's planning."
"All right, I-" Regina began to agree, but Robin cut her off.
"How do we know that her method won't allow the witch to have even more insight about the comings and goings here? We can't afford that, not even to discover her plans."
"If I want to do it, what business is it of yours?" Regina snapped.
"Robin, Regina-"
David was interrupted by a screeching that Robin had become all too familiar with in recent weeks. A whole flock of flying monkeys was heading straight for them.
Just as he had the day he met most of the people around him, he quickly nocked an arrow, grateful for the foresight he had had to bring it. "Get down!"
The monkeys swooped toward them in unison, their movements so precise that it was like they had been programmed to do the same thing- and perhaps they had. He had no idea how these creatures had come to exist, but he did know that they were not native to this land. What kind of land was Oz that it had such creatures?
He saw one headed straight for the Queen while her back was turned, fending off another one of the beasts with one of the fireballs that he had come to learn were one of her specialties. He shot an arrow at its wing, and apparently he had hit just the right spot, because it careened away.
Apparently he hadn't been as alert as he thought though, because he felt talons seize the back of his shirt. He felt himself being lifted off the ground, only to come plummeting down to the stone below. As he fell, he felt something slowing his descent, and looked over to see Regina with her hands raised, a look of intense concentration on her face. As wary as he was about magic, he had to admit that it had its uses- without Regina, he suspected that he would have fallen to his death.
He landed on his leg and heard a sickening crunch as pain went shooting through it. He struggled to stand with his good leg, to get away from the battle raging around him, but the same monkey that had just injured him flew in again and grabbed him once more.
He saw that another had Regina by the back of her dress as well, and he could see her struggling. Given what he had just been through, he shouted, "Don't!" He didn't want her to go through what he just had. After all, she was the only one of them who had a chance of giving the witch a good fight.
She shot him an incredulous look that seemed to say What am I supposed to do, just let it take me? He understood her dilemma- after all, no one wanted to be at the mercy of her sister. However, he suspected that she had also forgotten who he was. Assuming that they were being brought to the same place, he could get out of any dungeon cell. While yes, it wasn't the ideal situation, there was no need to risk their lives that way. No matter what happened next,
The flight lasted only a short time. Before Robin had a chance to grow too tired of dangling at such a great distance from the ground, they were approaching Rumple's castle. Doors were opened for them and both winged creatures soared in, depositing Robin and his companion on the ground in front of the witch in what he remembered from weeks of studying the layout of the place was the Dark One's library.
They had been left on the floor, but both he and the Evil Queen stood immediately- or tried to, anyway. He refused to show this monster any sign of weakness, no matter what the cost. He did have to lean on the nearby chair, but he managed to stand upright with not too much effort, despite the fire raging through his leg.
The witch laughed. Apparently, he must be putting on a worse show than he thought.
Suddenly, he was frozen in place, unable to move. Glancing over, he saw that the same thing appeared to have happened to the Evil Queen.
"You didn't think I'd let you escape that easily, did you?" Zelena asked, smirking. "Oh no, we're going to have too much fun together. I can't let you leave before the party's even begun. Allow my friends to escort you to the room where you'll be staying for a very long time. Oh, I do hope you'll enjoy your stay with us!"
She clamped what seemed to be a black cuff on Regina's wrist, then they were carried down to a cell in the castle's dungeon. Only once they were trapped inside did the freezing spell Zelena had cast break. Robin's bad leg gave way, and he collapsed on the ground. He could hear movements on the other side of the cell suggesting that Regina was doing the same thing.
"All I want to do right now," he said, hoping that she was listening. "Is go home to my son. Do you know of any way to get out of these cells from the inside?" Belle had freed him once, but that had been from the other side of the cell.
"I doubt it. If I know Rumple, he'll have made sure that no one can get out of these cells," she muttered. "However, for once, I think we're in agreement, thief. It appears that we have a common enemy."
Prompts included in this entry: 2) Robin/Regina protecting each other from a flying monkey attack, 15) OQ as parents, 22) Work on any wip/ the next chapter of a fic you started, 24) back from the death, 26) fake dating, 27) enemies to lovers, 59) Roland gets sick, 106) oq get trapped together somewhere during the missing year, 131) Robin comes back to life, 138) reunion, 143) robin almost gets killed in the missing year and regina's the one to save him, 175) amnesia, 180) accidental love potion, 282) potions, 258) a common enemy, personal: next chapter. Hope you enjoyed this, let me know what you think!