Chapter 21

Six Days Ago…

"Regina, please open the door."

Robin stood outside of the closed door to the Mayor's office. When Emma had disappeared into a cloud of black smoke, she'd immediately run from them with the dagger in her hand. She spoke to no one…not even Henry. The Charmings had taken him home, leaving only Robin to stand at the door to her office. His hand rested against the wood of the door, listening for the sound of movement. There was nothing. Not even a breath or a cry. Pressing his forehead to the door, he closed his eyes and let out a small sigh.

"I wish you would let me in. I'll be here when you're ready," he said softly before pushing away and walking down the hall to exit. The cool night air hit his skin as he pushed the door open and stepped outside. Cool as it was, there was a chill in the air that wasn't caused by the weather. He continued walking, heading toward the forest where his camp was not too far away. The merry men had set up camp near Regina's home to make it easier for Robin to come and go as he pleased, which he greatly appreciated.

"Nice night," a voice said from the shadows under a nearby tree. He turned quickly, pulling an arrow from its sheath and his bow from his shoulder. A gust of force knocked the arrow to the ground with a clank, followed by a rough laugh.

"That was foolish, boy. I wouldn't recommend that you try that again," the hooded figure said as she stepped out of the darkness and into view. Robin squinted just a little to get a view of his approacher. Dark green hands slipped out of the cloak and pushed the hood back, revealing a matching face with dark eyes and a sardonic grin that stared through him.

"My name isn't boy. It's Robin Hood, and I never miss a shot. You'd do well to not mock me. Now, who the bloody hell are you?" He asked, his eyebrows furrowed in concern. His hand stayed tight around his bow, ready to pull another arrow as quickly as he could should the need present itself. If he were going to die today, he would die fighting. She only laughed and placed her hands on her waist, practically daring him to attempt firing an arrow into her body.

"My name is Nimue. You may know me as the first Dark One. I have a proposition for you, Robin Hood. One that I think you'll quite like. One that will give you everything your heart desires." Her words crept into his heart, forming a hope that he hadn't felt since Emma Swan had disappeared.

"Go on." Those two words caused a smile to widen across her face.

"As I'm sure you saw, true love's kiss ruined your happy ending a few hours ago. Sorry to say it, lover boy, but I'm afraid without me, you have no chance at being with your lovely Regina. However…I have a plan. One that will end with the Savior dead, you to play hero to your beloved."

"And what do you get in return?"

"Oh me?" Nimue's hands clasped together in front of her. "I'll have the Dark One's powers returned to me and I can return to my home, where I shall rule the lands in my immortality. Simple enough." She gave a dramatic shrug. "Quite frankly, I think you're getting more out of the bargain."

"If you think I'm foolish enough to help you gain the Dark One's powers, you're mistaken. How do I know that you're not just going to kill all of us or go back on your word?" Robin shook his head and dropped down quickly to pick up his arrow with the intention of leaving. As he rose from the ground, he felt a hand on his throat as Nimue shoved him against the trunk of a tree, hiding them both in darkness.

"How do you know I won't just kill you now for your insolence?!" She hissed in his face, practically nose-to-nose with him. Robin's eyes widened as he met her gaze, doing his best to tighten his jaw and keep the fear from his expression. They stayed like that for a few moments before she laughed, letting go of him and stepping back.

"You don't know, Hood. Alliances such as these aren't built on trust. They're built on self-interest, and as long as our interests align…then we can both win. I have no desire of staying in this tiny town and ruling over small town idiots. Not when I can return to lands such as, oh I don't know, Camelot, and rule over King Arthur as his round table knights. Besides, I'm going to be the one who's doing the difficult work." Robin adjusted his jacket and slipped away from the tree, but stayed in the shadows.

"So what would you want me to do, then?"

"I'm so glad you asked. It's simple. All you have to do is get the magic beans from the puppet maker and try to bring the Charmings and Regina together as much as you can. Keep them happy together without Emma, and I will take care of the rest."

"The puppet maker? Gepetto? How on earth do you expect me to get magic beans from him?" Nimue rolled her eyes.

"Kill him, Hood. If you don't, he'll know they're missing and he'll…spill the beans!" She cackled at her terrible joke, caring little if Robin joined her in the laugh. He didn't. The surprise of the job kept his amusement at bay. He was supposed to be a hero. Heroes didn't kill people for their own needs. As if she could read his thoughts, Nimue sighed dramatically.

"Believe it or not, heroes don't always get the girl. They don't always come out on top, and they don't all do the right thing. One murder will keep the town from handfuls of them. If I can't return to Camelot, then I'll have no choice but to rule here. Or, you can just let Regina help Emma find a cure for the darkness and be alone the rest of your life. The choice is yours." She turned to start walking away.

"Wait!" Robin said, his hand reaching out toward her. "I'll do it." Nimue turned to look over her shoulder with a smirk.

"Smart man. You have three days to complete the job. I'll come find you." Before Robin could respond, she was gone.

—

3 days later…

"W..Why, Robin? Why would you d-do this…?" Gepetto's raspy voice came out in hardly a whisper, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. His breath was ragged, already feeling his life starting to fade away. The betrayal in his dark eyes as he gazed upon Robin who stood only a few feet away from him.

"To protect the ones I love," he said firmly, lowering the bow once more. That's the lie he'd told himself when he fired the arrow into Gepetto's chest once he'd gotten his hands on the magic beans.

"Th..This isn't love. It's…cowardice…"

"What would you know of cowardice, old man? Sneaking your boy into a tree while the rest of us suffered?" He snarled, storming up to Gepetto just as the light started to leave his eyes. Gepetto was no longer looking in Robin's direction, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

"My…b-boy…Pinocch…" his son's name fell off of his lips and he reached his hand out to the air in front of him. With a final breath, his hand fell limp on the ground and he died with an expression of peace across his face. Robin stared at the man he knew and respected, hating that the last thing he said was out of anger. Even then, Robin couldn't help but to feel as if perhaps he was in a better place after all. He was with Pinocchio now. Maybe he gave the happy ending that he'd longed for.

Even as he tried to convince himself that he'd done a good thing, Robin knew better. Gepetto didn't deserve this, but he knew that if given the chance to do this again and put an end to Emma's hold on Regina's heart, he'd do it. Nimue had been right. One death could save the whole town, and the ends would justify the means. That's what he told himself as he carefully started to lift Gepetto's body from the ground. He had a house to clean and a body to bury. As a man of the woods, he felt confident in his ability to make this all disappear.

—

Current Day

"It's just not like Gepetto to go out on his own like this," Snow said, leaning against Charming as he placed an arm around her.

"I know, but it'll be alright. We'll find him," Charming said, kissing the top of her head. Regina stood by the window, her arms folded across her chest as she stared out into the darkness lost in her thoughts.

"I bet if we could find mom, we could convince her to help us," Henry said, seated at the dining room table. Regina turned at the sound of Henry's voice and gave a soft smile toward him, even though the sadness didn't leave her eyes. He was right. Emma could fix this. Emma could always fix everything, couldn't she? And how much had she taken that for granted?

"All right, everyone. Dinner is almost ready. Take a seat, and I'll bring the roast over," Robin said brightly with an energetic smile. Snow, Charming and Regina moved to the dining room table to take a seat with Henry. Regina put her arm around Henry's shoulders and gave him a small squeeze.

"I miss her, Mom," he said quietly and she felt the sting of tears at the corner of her eyes as she leaned over to press a reassuring kiss to his temple.

"I know, Sweetheart. Me too," Regina whispered, hugging him once more before Robin moved to the table with the large tray of food, setting it down before them. He made a silly ta-da gesture, still wearing the oven mitts for dramatic effect to draw a laugh or a smile from the group.

"Now before we eat, I'd like to propose a toast," he said, reaching for his glass and holding it up. "To this family. To love. To hope." Robin's eyes shifted to Regina as she, Charming and Snow lifted their glass. Henry, however, sat there motionless, watching him with suspicion. The problem with Henry was that he was never very good at hiding his feelings, and that tipped off people who wanted to do him harm to be more careful with their intentions around him. In return, Robin shot him a small wink and a smile before bringing his glass to his lips.

"Well said. Now let's eat. I'm starving," Charming replied, setting his glass down after a sip.

—

Emma stood in the shadows outside of the house, watching her family's attempt at the Norman Rockwell American family painting. It was disgusting to see her place in the family replaced so quickly with a man who smelled like a sweat and campfire. Her hands clenched down by her sides, balling into fists so tight that she could feel the breaking of her skin as her nails dug in and drew blood.

"How long are you going to torture yourself?" Nimue asked, leaning against the trunk of the tree. Emma turned her head to the side to look at Nimue from the corner of her eye, but she said nothing. With a dramatic sigh, Nimue pushed off and walked over, placing a hand on Emma's shoulder.

"Emma, look. I know you long to be a part of your family and take your place beside them, but we don't all get what we want. That's not our fate. You accepted that when you sacrificed yourself for Regina. She's happy. Now, let her be happy and do what you've set out to do. There's no reason to wallow in your pain and watch it from afar. They'll be happier without you now. They will understand your role in all of this. I mean, look at them. Do you honestly think if they wanted to save you, they would be sitting around a dinner table like a happy little family? Would you be if the tables were turned?" Emma took the words in and lowered her gaze to the ground.

"No. I wouldn't," she replied, barely audible.

"You wouldn't. So forget about them. Regina is in there with her true love, which means that the dagger has to be unprotected either at her house or in her vault. Let's go find it and finish this, once and for all. Release you from this burden and end it for good."

"I'll take the vault," Emma said after a moment's hesitation, looking for one more moment at the family she'd thought would someday be hers. Happy endings weren't a part of her fate. If she were being honest with herself, she'd admit that she had always known this for herself…even before she was the Savior. With a final sigh, she turned and walked away, heading toward the cemetery.

Nimue was right. It was time to put an end to all of this.