Robin's mind spent most of his first day on the job focused on the primary task of trying to figure out how to kill the Queen. He knew the best way to do that would be to get her alone, but he didn't know how he would accomplish that. From everything he heard from the other palace staff members, the Queen was always surrounded by guards, which, if Robin was being honest, was a wise move. From everything he had ever heard about her, the Queen had a lot of enemies- himself included. Without constant vigilance in the guard rotation around her, she would be dead much sooner, and the world would be much better off, he was sure.

When he was walking around the palace and the grounds, he made sure to take note of every passage he passed, the smaller the better. He would need to know every corridor and passage he could if he wanted to successfully pull off the task he had been set. He knew he would have to explore more on his own as well. After all, castles were always known for having a countless number of secret passages, and he wanted to know them all. After all, he had to to make sure his mission was successful.

His coworkers were interesting to deal with as well. The seven brothers were all very different, but they all shared the same short stature, and many of them didn't have much hair. Robin felt like a giant among them, which, if he was being honest, was a bit disconcerting. He wouldn't say anything about it though, of course. After all, he couldn't afford to jeopardize this position or he would risk losing his chance to be close to the queen- which was, of course, vital to his mission.

The saving graces that helped him deal with the seven very different brothers were one of them, Happy, and Graham and Ruby. While the former was perhaps a bit too chatty for his tastes, the latter two were always willing to lend a helping hand when he needed it. Graham also made a point of saying that he was one of the few in the queen's inner circle, a position that Robin knew he had to exploit. After all, judging by that day he had seen her in the orchards, the queen was a loner, so it was going to be difficult to get close to her.

"Does she usually go to the orchards frequently?" he asked Graham as they uprooted azaleas that were past their prime so they could be replaced by hydrangeas.

The other man nodded. "She loves apples, they're her favorite fruit. I'm sure that if it was up to her, there would be something that had apples as one of the ingredients at every meal. The king, though, despises them, so she rarely has that demand met. It's one of the many things that make her a bit foul-tempered with Granny, from what she and Ruby tell me."

Robin remained quiet for a moment, contemplating this new information. From the sound of it, the monarch visited the orchards as often as she could, and she was perhaps the only one to do so (though he imagined that it was a romantic rendezvous for any couples within the palace staff). It also sounded like the king was doing whatever he could to minimize the queen's negative impact on the outside world by not caving in to her demands, and for that, he was thankful. Not only was he protecting the kingdom from the atrocities his wife was capable of commiting, but he also was subtly letting the queen know that her reign of terror was coming to an end soon. He just had to bring about that end, and it sounded like the orchards would be the perfect location. After all, they were far enough away from the rest of the castle that no one would be able to hear her screams. Not that there would be any, of course. He was far more stealthy than that. Two arrows, that's all it would take, and she would no longer be a threat to the people of Misthaven.

For the next week, he found an excuse to be near the orchards as often as he could. He was only able to go at night after his shift, though, and to his dismay, he never saw the queen there. From what Granny and Ruby told him, there were always fancy dinners in the main banquet hall each night, the majority of which the queen was required to attend. He couldn't say he envied the other attendees- knowing what the queen had done, he was grateful that staff who weren't required to serve the meal were kept far away from the proceedings. He couldn't imagine what it would be like to be trying to enjoy a meal, only to have eyes constantly watching him. It certainly wasn't the type of environment he wanted to experience, and he definitely didn't want his son anywhere near it.

Roland. He missed his son desperately, and was grateful to Tuck for watching him. The friar did work in the castle when the occasion called for it, but mostly, he was the head of a small parish that also had dormitories where he would let Roland stay when Robin was in the middle of one of his jobs. His friend had never liked what Robin did for a living, stating that he was setting a bad example for his son, but Robin always argued that he would only ever accept the jobs that allowed him to eliminate those who were harming people in some way. His victims were thieves, and other scoundrels who committed all manner of other crimes against their fellow citizens. He wanted to teach his son that not everyone was good, and that people shouldn't get away with things that were detrimental to their fellow citizens. The exact nature of the way he received retribution, of course, he kept from his son. After all, his boy was young, and could only handle so much without getting scared.

He would get to see his son that afternoon, and he couldn't wait. His first day there, he had been told by John that since he had a son and the gardeners weren't needed on weekends except for formal events, he would be allowed to go home over the two days he had off.

Robin had thanked him profusely until John had held up a hand. "You may not want to thank me just yet. His Majesty wants to see you in the throne room this afternoon. Three o'clock sharp."

"What for?" Robin asked, growing a bit apprehensive. It couldn't be good if the king was drawing attention to him, right?

John shrugged. "I have no idea. I try my best not to ask questions when they're not absolutely necessary, and I would suggest you do the same. The king… let's just say that the less you ask questions, the better."

"Good to know," Robin murmured before hurrying from the room.

Due in part to the extensive maps he had made of the castle on his first day, he had no trouble making his way to the throne room quickly when the time came. He slowed down as he approached the door though. Should he knock? What if he was interrupting something? He couldn't imagine that the king would appreciate that, no matter how benevolent of a ruler he was.

"Trying to decide whether or not to go in?" One of the guards outside the door asked, raising an eyebrow. "You must be new here." The guard was a woman with flaming red hair with a bow slung across her back, and it reminded Robin that while some people may speak ill of the king, he had made enormous strides towards providing women with the rights that their male counterparts had, and the same opportunities as well.

Robin grinned, a bit sheepish. "Is it that obvious?"

"Well, yeah," the second guard said, crossing his arms. "Here's some advice. If he's waiting for you for any reason, don't hesitate. He doesn't like to be kept waiting."

Robin nodded as the guards stood aside, one of them opening the door, and he stepped inside.

The throne room, which he had never glimpsed because the doors were usually shut, was nothing short of enormous and opulent. Robin couldn't help staring at the walls around him, the tapestries on the walls depicting some of the heroic deeds of Leopold's ancestors. There were portraits too that appeared to go back centuries, judging by the manner of dress in each of them. If there was any room that spoke of the might of Leopold's reign, it was this one, and its effect was not lost on Robin.

"What are you doing just standing there?" the king barked. "Your mouth is hanging open like a fish. Well? Did you not learn how to speak? What do you want?"

Robin shook his head, still a bit dazed from the effect the room had on him. He had to snap out of it though, and fast, or he knew the king would find some way to punish him. He hoped that wouldn't be the case, considering everything he had ever heard about him, but given the words he had just heard and the way the king was looking at him, he couldn't imagine the conversation would go any other way. "I apologize, Your Majesty. I was just admiring the splendor around us. This is a rather impressive throne room." Imposing was more like it, with the black and red color scheme of the room and various battle scenes depicted around them, but he wasn't going to tell the king that. The more he respected him, the better, and he had a feeling that fear wouldn't get him far with the older man. "You sent for me to discuss a rather delicate matter involving Her Majesty." He waited. Would the king know what he was trying to say? With other people in the room, he didn't want anyone else knowing his mission.

"Ahh, yes," the king mused, sitting back on his throne. "I notice you haven't succeeded in your mission yet. Do so within the next week, or I shall find ways to make you pay for your negligence."

"A month," Robin bargained. "Your Majesty, I've barely had an opportunity to even get an idea of what methods to use. Perhaps it would be wise to make a schedule available to me so my task is easier?"

"Fine, fine," the king said with a wave of his hand. "One month. Do not disappoint me, or you will regret it."

"Of course," Robin acquiesced, bowing and hurrying from the room.

As he packed everything he needed for the weekend, he contemplated the king's words and the mission he had given him. His task certainly wasn't easy- and unless he had just been having a bad day, the king wasn't the benevolent monarch he had always heard about. Add to that the impression of the Queen he had gotten when he first set eyes on her, and he was starting to wonder if this mission was a mistake.

He needed to get all of this out of his head. He wanted to enjoy his weekend with his boy. No kings and assassinations, just him, Roland, and the great outdoors.

"PAPA!"

That was the shout he heard as his son launched himself at him. Robin opened his arms wide just in time, catching Roland before he could knock them both over and holding him close. He took a minute to inhale, smelling the sweet scent of Roland's baby shampoo mixed with the forest. It was a scent that Marian had loved on him, but he knew she wouldn't approve of the fact that he had made sure the same was true of their son. She had always had trouble getting Robin to take a moment to sit in front of the fire with her (unless that fire was outdoors, of course), and Robin had shared that same love of nature with his son. He had always thought it was important to teach his only child to love adventure, and Roland had taken those lessons to heart.

"I missed you!" his son moaned. He looked up at Robin, his eyes pleading. "Why did you have to stay away so long?"

Robin sighed. This was by far the most difficult of any job he ever took: being away from his son, no matter how short or long the time apart may be. In Roland's world, things changed on a daily basis, and his son was always learning new things. Robin had no desire to miss any of it, and loathed when his jobs took him from his son's side. He wouldn't have done it in this case if it hadn't sped up the process of getting the king what he wanted. Not that it had actually sped up anything, of course. He was no closer to finding a way to kill her than figuring out to make men fly unaided. "I have a job to do son, and then I'll be back home with you. You know that."

"But why is it taking so long?" Roland whined.

Robin sighed. His son's reaction now was starting to make him think that maybe Tuck was right. Granted, his son would be old enough for school sooner than he'd like to think about, but regardless, he didn't want to feel like he missed his son's entire childhood with these missions, and he already felt that way some days. Assassinating the queen, if he succeeded, would be quite the feat. After that, he needed to consider pursuing another career, one that didn't put his life in jeopardy. After all, Roland had already lost his mother. He didn't need to lose his father too.

He scooped up his son and held him close. "I promise, this is the last time I'll be gone like this. After this, I'll be around and we can play as much as you want." He meant what he said too. He had no idea what an assassin might be able to do for a living, but he would find out. Nothing was worth his son's unhappiness. This was the first time he had voiced it.

"Really?" Roland asked, and the amount of doubt he saw in his son's eyes broke Robin's heart.

"Really," Robin vowed. He didn't know how he would make it work, but he would make it happen.

But what of the assassins he worked with? Would they let him leave their numbers so easily, or would he be forced to endure some kind of comeuppance for what he had chosen to do? It was a question he didn't dare contemplate. Some of them- Alan and Much, even Will- he knew would have no problem with it and would understanding his reasons for leaving. After all, more often than not, they helped him care for Roland, so it would be no surprise to them that he was going to start putting his son first.

Nottingham, on the other hand, was a completely different story. Their leader showed no mercy, even among their ranks. He always defended his actions by saying that they shouldn't- couldn't- show any mercy to their targets or enemies, so they couldn't show compassion among themselves either. They would perfect the art much better that way, he claimed. He would never forgive Robin for leaving, would even come after him, perhaps. Leaving would possibly put Robin- and Roland- in exactly the kind of danger he was trying to keep his son away from.

But all of that could wait. Right now, he needed to get his son inside. The setting sun told him that it was much later than he had first thought it would be when he had been packing his bags earlier that afternoon. His exhaustion after the hard week of such constant manual labor and his aching bones told him that there were other reasons he should be considering becoming something other than the assassin he had been since Marian had died.

"Papa, come on! I want to show you what Tuck made me!"

At the sound of his son's excited plea, Robin roused himself from the web his thoughts had spun into and followed him inside. Tuck met him at the door. "Robin, it''s good to see you. I wasn't expecting you." He lowered his voice. "Is it done?"

Robin shook his head, the action answer enough to Tuck's question. He wanted Roland to know as little as possible about what he was doing, after all.

"I didn't think so," Tuck admitted. "I knew I would have heard otherwise."

"So what is this thing you need to show me that Tuck made you?" Robin asked Roland.

Roland's eyes lit up and he bounced a little. "I'll go get it! It's so cool!"

He scampered off, and once he was out of the room, Tuck said quietly, "He misses you terribly while you're gone, you know."

"I know," Robin agred softly. "And I"m working to fix it Tuck. I promised my son I would come home- and stay here- after this mission, and you know I never break my promises. It's just, this one particular assignment…"

"I know," Tuck assured him. "You want to avenge her. But Robin, remember that avenging Marian won't bring her back."

Thankfully, Robin was saved from answering that question by Roland running in and showing off the miniature treehouse Tuck had made him. Robin oohed and ahhed, but all the while, his mind was reeling from the impact of Tuck's words. Did he really want to kill the queen because he thought that would somehow lessen the pain of her death or bring her back? Or was he doing it for simple revenge, with no ulterior motives?

It didn't matter. All that mattered was that he had made a promise to his son that he would stop living this life, and he planned to hold himself to that promise.

But first, he was going to rid their world of the Queen once and for all.