A/N: This is my third entry for Inspired by OQ Week. This is based on February's manip in Jen's (starscythe) 2019 OQ Calendar.
Truth Revealed
Robin sulked on his couch, drinking his third beer of the night. He was definitely buzzed but found no solace as the sounds of New York City echoed outside his apartment—car alarms, horns honking, dogs barking and a fight from another apartment. Part of him knew he should just go to bed before he went through the entire six-pack he had bought along with dinner that night. Getting drunk wouldn't help anything-no amount of alcohol held the magical ability to fix everything in his life.
To magically transport him back to Storybrooke.
Him and Roland.
Robin leaned forward, rubbing his face as he thought of his son. His boy was sound asleep in the big bed in the next room, surrounded by several pillows so he didn't accidentally roll off it and hurt himself. There had been a few moments when Robin thought he had lost his son forever and he was grateful to have Roland with him once more, even if Marian was gone.
She had left him a few weeks ago, storming out after yet another argument. Even though he had deleted her number from his phone, it still hadn't been enough to convince Marian that he was dedicated to rebuilding their marriage and being a family again. She had wanted him to be the devoted husband she remembered, the one she had left before Emma and Hook had brought her back from the past. It was difficult for her to understand that he had lost her, that he had spent years mourning her and that he had moved on. That he had experienced some real and deep with Regina, something he couldn't just forget and turn away from. He needed time to grieve the loss of his relationship with her and time to get to know Marian again. Robin felt he needed to court her again but she just wanted him to jump all in again. He didn't understand the rush-when he left Storybrooke, he understood they would never be able to return. Even if they could break the curse on the town line, they couldn't break the ice curse on Marian and he wasn't going to abandon her to this strange world or keep her from Roland. Nor would he leave Roland. They then had all the time in the world to rebuild their marriage.
Or he thought they did. But after only a month in New York, thirty-something days of her insisting the only way he would move on and prove he was dedicated to her was by having sex with her, she gave up and declared their marriage over. She packed up two bags—one for her and one for Roland—and insisted she was going to live with a friend she had made. Robin begged her to stay for Roland's sake, that Robin was the only parent he had known and it wasn't fair for her to take him away from that. Marian though had bundled up their son and told him that if he wanted to be a family with Regina, it wouldn't include Roland and then left him alone.
Distraught over the loss of his son, he decided they both needed time to think things over. After a long night of doing just that, he accepted that his marriage was over and that he needed to find a way to convince Marian to co-parent peacefully. He tried to call her to tell her that he wasn't leaving New York, that he wanted to be Roland's father, but his calls kept going to voicemail, worrying him as he hoped she hadn't disappeared with Roland.
Robin went to the playground Roland loved the next two days, hoping Marian would take him there so they could talk things over. He knew he had hurt her but hoped she would see that staying together in what was essentially a sham of a marriage would hurt more in the long run. That she would agree to at least discuss a way for them to be parents together and maybe friends again one day. They both had think of what was best for Roland.
On the third day, a strange woman came with Roland. Robin tensed up as she approached with his son, a bag on her shoulder. He stepped closer and Roland smiled as he ran toward Robin, yelling: "Papa!"
"Roland!" Robin raced toward him, meeting him halfway and scooping him into his arms. He held him close, closing his eyes as he cupped his son's head. "Oh, my boy, I've missed you."
"I missed you too," Roland replied, sniffing.
The woman with him held out her hand. "My name is Betty. I work with Marian at the store."
"Nice to meet you," Robin said, shaking her hand. "How is she?"
"Mama's mean," Roland replied, scowling. "She keeps yelling at me and won't do anything she did when you were around."
Frowning, Robin set his son down. "Why don't you go play while I talk with Ms. Betty, okay?"
Roland nodded, running off to go down the slide. Turning back to Betty, Robin asked: "What is going on?"
Betty sighed, her shoulders slumping. "I don't know. It's like Marian has turned into a completely different person. She seems focused on getting revenge on someone named Regina and practically neglects Roland. She doesn't react like a normal mother. It's like he's nothing more than a nuisance and a pawn, not her child."
"And she yells at him?" Robin asked, unable to truly process what he was being told. None of it sounded like his Marian, who had been a devoted mother both in the Enchanted Forest and Storybrooke.
Then again, he couldn't call her his anymore. And he wondered if he really knew her now that so much time had passed, at least for him.
Betty nodded sadly, holding out a bag. "She's out doing something today and so I took the chance that you would be here. I think Roland would be better with you."
"Oh," he said, surprised as he took the bag from her. "Thank you."
"I debated about this for some time," she admitted, glancing at Roland as he spun around on a merry-go-round with a few other children. "He kept asking for you, begging Marian to take him to you. Each time she kept snapping that he was never going to see you again, that you had abandoned him."
A lump formed in Robin's throat at the thought that Marian would've told Roland such vicious lies, would've tried to turn him against his own father. Though at the same time, he believed she didn't think she was lying. " It's a complicated situation."
She nodded. "I understand that. And I know it's none of my business. But I saw how many times you called her, I read a few of the text messages you sent and I realized the last thing you were doing was abandoning your son. She was keeping him from you and I didn't think that was fair. Especially given how little she seemed to care for him. It's almost like she's not even his mother."
That was an interesting tidbit that Robin filed away for later.
"Anyway, after seeing some of your messages and talking with Roland, I knew what I had to do," Betty finished.
He thanked her again, shouldering Roland's bag. Pausing, Robin asked: "What's going to happen to you once Marian realizes what you've done?"
She shrugged. "I honestly don't know. I'll deal with that but I know I've done what's best for Roland."
"Roland," Robin called. He waited as his son ran over, hugging his leg. Rubbing his back, Robin said: "Say goodbye to Ms. Betty."
Roland waved to the older woman. "Bye, Ms. Betty! Thank you for taking care of me and bringing me back to my Papa!"
"You're welcome, Roland," she said, smiling softly at him. "You be a good boy for him, okay?"
He promised he would be, still waving as Betty walked away. Roland then looked up at Robin, taking his hand. "Can we go home, Papa?"
"Yes, my boy," Robin said, turning to head out of the park. "Let's go home."
"Home to Storybrooke? And Regina? And Henry? And the Merry Men?" Roland asked, a hopeful and pleading look in his eyes.
Sighing, Robin knelt in front of his son and gently pulled him close. "You know Mama can't come to Storybrooke."
"I don't care," Roland replied, his lower lip trembling. "She doesn't act like a Mama now that you're not around. She yells at me and tells me she doesn't care if I eat or if I take a bath. She didn't want to hug me or tuck me in anymore. She got mean."
Every one of his son's words made Robin's heart break even more. He pulled Roland against him, hugging tightly. "I'm sorry, my boy. I don't know what happened."
"I want Regina," Roland said, clinging to Robin as he sobbed. "She was nice and acted like a mama, making sure I ate and took my baths and helping me dress and reading me books at night. Can't we go back to her? Please?"
Robin wanted Regina too. He just didn't know if they could get back to Storybrooke. Standing up, he took Roland's hand and decided to distract him. "Come on. Let's go get some ice cream."
They returned to their apartment after ice cream. Robin made them a light dinner before giving Roland a bath and putting him to bed. He then grabbed a beer and started contemplating their future for hours.
He still had no answers and felt the most depressed since leaving Storybrooke-and Regina.
Robin decided it was time to turn in. At least he could see her in his dreams.
After cleaning out his beer bottle and turning off the lights in the kitchen, he walked toward the bedroom. Despite it being a short trip, he found it interrupted when someone knocked on the door. He frowned, wondering who would be visiting him at this hour. Was it Marian? Had something happened?
He went to the door, looking out the little window that showed him outside the apartment. His heart skipped a beat and he sucked in air as he spotted the dark hair and brown eyes he had longed to see for almost two months. Hope sprang inside him. If she was here, that could only mean one thing...
Regina had come to take them home to Storybrooke.
Throwing open the door, relief spread through him as he breathed out: "Regina."
"Hello, Robin," she said, smiling gently at him. "It's good to see you."
"You too," he sighed, stepping aside so she could enter. "Come in."
As she passed him, a more citrussy scent engulfed him. He frowned, confused. Regina always smelled like vanilla with a hint of apple. It was seared into his memory and he had bought a vanilla candle just so he could smell her when he missed her too much. Why did she smell different? Had she changed her scent since he left? Would she do something like that in such a short amount of time?
She unbuttoned her black coat and took it off, revealing a black dress underneath it. It hugged her curves, making his heart speed up as blood started to rush to one particular part of his body. Robin wanted nothing more than to carry her over to the couch and make love to her again, but there were too many questions swirling in his mind that he needed answered.
"I can't believe you're here," he said, stepping closer to her.
Regina smiled, meeting him and resting her hand against his chest. "I know. But I'm here."
"How?" he asked, amazed yet confused. "What about the curse on the town line?"
"I managed to create a potion that allowed me to cross it and return but there's only enough for me," she said, looking regretful and distraught.
Hope, though, filled him. "If it worked now, maybe you can make more and we can all return to Storybrooke. We can be together, Regina."
Something flashed in her eyes and though he couldn't identify it, it puzzled him. Especially when her smile flagged. "I don't know if it will work again or if I can make that much. And what about Marian? We still don't know how to break the Snow Queen's curse on her heart."
Robin's heart sank a bit knowing that he had to disappoint her. Before he left, she told him to move on and try to be a family with his wife. He promised he would give his relationship with Marian his all but he knew he had failed to that. Robin hated to disappoint her but he knew he had to tell her the truth.
"Marian and I are no longer together," he said. "She wanted her husband and I needed too much time to become him again. She left me a few days ago."
Her eyes softened. "Oh, Robin. I'm sorry."
Robin shook his head. "I should be sorry. I promised you I would try again with Marian and I failed. I just...I'll always love her but I couldn't fall back in love with her. I may be the thief but you're the one who stole my heart."
Something flashed in her eyes before Regina smiled. Pressing a hand to his cheek, she said: "That's okay. You passed my test."
"Your...test?" Confusion filled him and he tilted his head, frowning. "What do you mean?"
"I told you that to see if you would stay loyal to me. I knew we'd eventually be able to get you back," she said.
That didn't sound right to him and Robin backed away. "You tested me?"
She reached out and took his hands. "And you passed. We should celebrate."
Ignoring the strange feeling in the pit of his stomach, Robin asked: "And how do you propose we do that?"
"Let me show you," she replied, taking his hand. She led him to his couch, sitting down on it and encouraging him to kneel at her feet. She crossed her legs, smiling seductively at him. "Why don't you start there?"
He ran his hand down her leg, feeling the silky smooth skin. Reaching one of her heels, he gently pulled it off and began massaging her foot. Desire filled him as he looked up at her. "Start what exactly?"
"Do I need to spell it out for you?" she asked, sounding more annoyed than flirty. "You've slept amongst animals. If they can figure it out, surely you can too."
Robin hesitated. Nothing about this felt right and he pulled his hand away. "Regina? What's going on?"
"It's just been so long," she said, the annoyance melting away as she turned coy again. "I'm afraid I'm just impatient."
His gut feeling still told him something was wrong even though he couldn't figure out the reason why. Regina could be impatient, that was true. But would she still snap at him even then? He didn't think so.
She leaned forward, pressing her hand to his cheek. "I'm sorry. Can we just put it behind us and focus on the here and now?"
Ignoring his gut feeling, Robin nodded. He cupped her head and leaned down, pressing his lips to hers. It was the first time he had kissed her in months and he wanted to savor it.
Except it was all wrong.
Kissing Regina always set off a fire deep inside him that threatened to consume him. It burned in his veins and made him feel more alive than any heist ever had. Every part of him tingled and he didn't care if he never ate, drank or breathed again. He never wanted his lips to part from hers, never wanted her soft and curvy body to leave his arms. She filled his every thought, his every heartbeat, his very essence.
This kiss ignited none of it. Her lips even felt cold against his and seemed too overeager, like she was trying to overwhelm him into something. It reminded him of the few recent kisses he had shared with Marian.
He recoiled, for a moment wondering if he was really kissing Marian. But it was Regina standing there. So why didn't it feel right to kiss her?
She tilted her head. "Is something wrong, Robin?"
Unable to answer, Robin was relieved when someone pounded on his door. It then turned into confusion as he wondered who would be visiting him so late. He wondered if Marian had decided she wanted Roland back or somehow learned Regina was there. Or maybe something had happened to her and Betty was coming to tell her about it.
Regina glanced at the door before guiding his head so he was looking at her again. "Don't answer it," she cooed.
The pounding did not let up and he shook his head, backing toward it. "I'm sorry. It sounds urgent."
He turned and grabbed the knob, throwing the door open. Robin's heart stopped as he took in the people standing just outside his apartment. He noticed Emma holding the arm of an unfamiliar and angry-looking brunette before his eyes settled on a sight that should be impossible.
"Regina?" he asked, confused.
"Robin," she breathed, smiling as her eyes filled with tears. Her hair was down around her shoulders and she wore a dark coat over a purple dress. She looked very relieved to see him.
He stared at her, his mind unable to process what was happening. "How is this possible?"
"It's a long story that involves a magical scroll owned by the Snow Queen," she said, her voice strained as she no doubt fought her urge to cry. She threw her arms around him, holding him close. "I missed you so much."
Robin's arms folded around her and he breathed in her familiar vanilla and apple scent. This Regina felt right, felt like his soulmate. Holding her tighter, he said: "And I you."
He then thought of the Regina sitting in his living room and wondered how he would tell her. As he pulled back, he started to form some way to start that conversation when the other Regina did it for him. "Robin? Who is at the door?"
"You!" Regina exclaimed, pushing past him and entering the apartment. She glared at her twin, not surprised at all to find someone who looked just like her standing there. It confused him even more and he glanced back at Emma.
She sighed, jerking the brunette beside her forward. "It's a long story and it's probably best if we're all inside for it."
He nodded, ushering the two women inside his apartment. Robin then closed the door and faced them, frowning. "What's going on?"
"Clearly this woman is an imposter," the first Regina said, eyes wide. "She must be some villain come to hurt us, Robin."
"Oh, save it, Greenie," the second Regina snapped. "The jig is up."
A chill swept through Robin at the implication that one of them could be the Wicked Witch and he looked between the two Reginas before deciding it was best to address Emma. "I thought Zelena was dead," he said to her.
"She managed to survive," Emma replied, her eyes turning sad. "I'm sorry, Robin. It turns out we didn't bring Marian back from the past. It was Zelena, disguised as Marian."
"And now she's disguised herself as me," the second Regina added.
The first Regina frowned, looking confused and hurt as she met Robin's eyes. "You can't believe her, Robin. You know it's me, right?"
He stepped back, trying to process everything and realized it explained Marian's weird behavior since they arrived in New York. She wasn't Marian but Zelena, who was alive while his wife was still dead. It explained why something had felt off with Marian, how she sometimes forgot things, how she had turned cold to Roland after he had broken it off with her. Zelena wouldn't care about him or Roland, though he had to wonder why she had been so determined to make their marriage work.
"Robin," she said, voice sharper. "Say something."
"This is all...a lot," he said, dazed.
The second Regina gently rubbed his arm. "I know. And I'm so sorry. It isn't fair that you got pulled into our fight and that you got hurt by it. Disguising herself as Marian and giving you hope that your first love was back as well as letting Roland bond with someone he thought was his mother is all very low."
"It is," he replied, leaning closer to her. He was almost entirely certain she was his Regina, the real Regina, and the other was the imposter, her sister. There was one way to be absolutely certain though.
He cupped her cheek before sliding his hand into her hair as he leaned closer. She met him halfway, pressing her lips against his. Warmth spread through him as the fire reignited inside him and he felt the familiar tingle throughout his body. Kissing her felt like coming home and he never wanted to leave again.
This was Regina.
Breaking the kiss, he bumped her nose with his and she gave him a gentle kiss on the end of his. "Hello, love," he whispered.
"Hello," she whispered back. She slid her hands down his arms and took his hands in hers.
Regina's expression changed and she fixed a steely gaze on her lookalike. "Time to end this charade, Zelena."
"This isn't fair," the fake Regina whined, stomping her foot. "You always ruin everything!"
She then reached up and grabbed a charm hanging from a gold chain around her neck. Robin recognized it and anger surged through him. "The six-leaf clover of Oz."
"Yes," she said, her voice colder than Regina's. "You stole this from me once."
That provided all the confirmation he needed for her identity. He watched as she twisted the pendant and the other Regina began to change. She grew several inches and her dark hair became red, falling in curls around her shoulders. Brown eyes became blue, anger burning in them as she fixated on the real Regina. "Happy now, sis?"
"Happy that Robin and Roland are now safe from you?" Regina countered, glowering at her sister. "Ecstatic."
Robin wrapped his arm around Regina, holding her close. Nausea overtook him as he realized who had really been caring for his son the past few months. "I can't believe I let you be so close to Roland," he said.
"Trust me, it was no picnic for me," she snapped. She let out a sound of disgust. "Having to pretend to care for that brat. 'Mama, cut my sandwich,' 'Mama, I want some milk,' 'Mama, I have to go to the bathroom.' Did you teach him nothing?"
"He's four, Zelena," Regina replied, sounding as disgusted as Robin felt.
Zelena rolled her eyes. "Whatever."
"I don't understand," Robin said, his head starting to hurt. "Why the charade? Why did you pretend to be my late wife?"
"I didn't realize who she was at first," Zelena replied. "I saw her with Emma and Hook, heard them talking about bringing her back to Storybrooke and saw my chance to get back so I could get my revenge against my sister. When I realized who she was, I knew I could then really make her life miserable."
A thought passed through Robin's mind and he frowned. "What about the ice spell? Was that real?"
"Yes," Regina replied. "She wouldn't have faked being unconscious without causing trouble for so long."
Zelena scowled. "That blasted Snow Queen certainly put a damper on my plans to ruin Regina's life. And then when I was finally thawed out, she's some big hero and it's clear you were going to walk away from your supposed wife to be with her. So I had to take matters into my own hands."
"The first ice curse was real," Regina told him, "but the second one wasn't."
He let out a shuddering breath, realizing the horrible truth. "She did it to separate us."
"No shit," Zelena snapped. "I told you-I wanted to make Regina suffer. Since it was clear you were going to choose her over your wife, that Snow Queen's curse finally proved useful. I broke her heart and separated her from her soulmate."
"Did you even consider a long term plan? Were you planning on being Marian for years if necessary? Or were you going to hurt Robin and Roland as soon as you didn't need them anymore? Did you think I wouldn't find a way to get them back?" Regina asked, sounding angry and confused.
Zelena smirked. "Oh, I counted on you doing just that."
Regina frowned in confusion. "Then what was your grand plan?"
"To make you really suffer," Zelena replied smugly.
"Well, that wasn't really vague," Emma muttered, rolling her eyes.
Regina's grip on Robin tightened. "You already took him from Storybrooke and made me think we would be separated forever. And left me with dreams that he had forgotten me and moved on with Marian. What else did you want to do to hurt me?"
Zelena smirked as her eyes raked over Robin. It hit him then and he felt sick to his stomach as he recalled what had spurred his argument with Marian as well as what had transpired before Regina and Emma showed up. She hadn't wanted to take things slow, to properly rebuild their relationship. Instead, she had kept insisting there was only one way to fix their marriage. "She wanted to have sex with me," he said, knowing what the consequences of that would've been.
"Ooh, is this some sort of soap opera plot where she's in love with her sister's boyfriend and hopes to get him all to herself by tricking him into getting her pregnant?" the unknown woman asked, smirking.
"I don't who you are but you're partially right. I am not in love with the forest hobo and my sister can have him for all I care," Zelena said dismissively. "I just want the baby."
Robin frowned. "You could get a baby from anyone. Why do you want mine?"
"For the pain it would cause," Zelena explained, sounding as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I give my sister's soulmate the one thing she can't. She gets to watch me walk around with his child for the rest of her life."
His confusion only grew and he glanced down at Regina. Pain and anger filled her eyes so he knew there was some truth to Zelena's words, even if he didn't understand exactly what it was. He just held her tighter as she snarled: "You bitch."
"Takes one to know one," Zelena snapped back.
Emma jumped in, grabbing the witch as she tried to lunge for Regina. "Okay, okay. I think it's best if I take Zelena and Lily back to the hotel room so I can keep an eye on both of them. You should stay here with Robin and Roland, Regina."
"Thank you," Regina said softly and Robin echoed her words. All he wanted to do was curl up in bed and hold her close for the first time in weeks.
In what seemed like a blink of his eyes, everyone was gone and Regina set her bag down by his bedroom door. She then collapsed onto his couch, rubbing her face before looking up at him with a pained expression. "You must really curse the day you met me."
He frowned. "Why would I do that?"
"Because I have brought nothing but misery into your life," she replied, sounding like she was fighting tears. "Your son was threatened for my heart, the woman you thought was your wife was frozen, you had to choose between your honor code and me..."
"I chose between my honor code and my heart," he told her. "I chose my heart and would do so again."
She continued as if he hadn't interrupted. "Then you had to leave Storybrooke and all your friends, come to a strange city, deal with a crumbling marriage as Roland tried to bond with a woman he thought was his mother, and then you learn it was all really my deranged sister using you to have a baby to get revenge on me! I'm a jinx. Or maybe all I've ever been able to do is hurt people."
"You are nothing of the sort!" He knelt before her and took her hand in one of his, determined to get through her wall of self-criticism. Robin reached out with his other hand, gently taking her by the chin and guiding her face until she was looking into his eyes. "My life is better for knowing you. You brought love back into my life. You love my son as your own and have trusted me with your son. Yes, the past few months haven't been the greatest, but all we've gone through has only strengthened my love for you and reminded me of what an amazing woman you are. I am blessed to love you, Regina Mills."
Tears filled her eyes and she leaned forward, stroking his beard. "I don't deserve you."
"Then we are evenly matched because I don't deserve you," he replied, raising her hand to his lips and pressing a soft kiss there. "I love you, Regina."
She gave him a soft smile as a tear rolled down her cheek. "I love you too."
He reached out, brushing away the tears that tried to fall. "Then let's put aside any talk about not deserving each other and just bask in each other's love."
Regina let out a little chuckle before leaning forward to kiss him. "That sounds like a wonderful idea," she whispered. "But there's a lot we need to talk. Namely, what my sister said about me not being able to give you a baby…"
It suddenly became clear to him and he shook his head, knowing they could discuss it at another time. He stood and pulled her up with him. "Another time, my love. For now, let's go to bed. It's been far too long since I've held you."
He grabbed her bag as they entered the bedroom. In the big bed, Roland slept soundly. Robin was glad the arguing outside hadn't woken him up and he let go of Regina's hand. "Let me set him up on the couch so we can have the bed to ourselves."
She bit her lip before shaking her head. "Leave him. I want to cuddle with both of my Hood boys."
"That sounds wonderful," Robin replied, pulling her in for a hug. A thought crossed his mind and he asked: "Do you need to call Henry?"
"No," she told him, pulling back. "I spoke to him before we got here and promised to call in the morning. Besides, he's staying with his grandparents. I'm pretty sure Mary Margaret would kill me if I woke Neal."
Robin chuckled, nodding. "Fair point. I nearly killed a few Merry Men when they woke Roland after I just got him to sleep when he was a baby. I was very happy when he started sleeping through the night."
She smiled. "I felt the same way with Henry."
"I missed this," he said, still holding her. "Us just talking and bonding."
"I missed you," she repeated, resting her hands on his arms as she leaned forward. She pressed her forehead to his. "Let's go to bed."
He nodded, letting her go so they could change. She slipped into the bathroom and he heard the water run as she went through her nightly routine-removing her makeup, cleaning her face, moisturizing her skin and then brushing her teeth. It was familiar and comforting as he waited for her to get so they could get into bed together.
Once she was done, she returned to the bedroom. They climbed into bed together and she settled in the middle as Roland rolled closer to her, still sound asleep. She wrapped her arms around him, gently running her fingers through his curls as Robin spooned her. He kissed her head. "Goodnight, sweetheart."
"Good night, Robin," she said, her voice sounding sleepy as she snuggled against him.
Robin sighed, closing his eyes as he felt sleep pull at him. For the first time in weeks, he felt at peaceful. Everything felt right in this world-even if the city was still too loud and too bright. He had Regina in his arms again and they could return to Storybrooke. While his heart hurt that Marian had never returned to them at all and so both he and Roland had to lose her all over again, he knew they would make it through the pain together with Regina's and Henry's help.
They were a family and he vowed that nothing would ever separate them again.