What Hides in the Shadows
The Disappearance
It's cold. That's the first thing he notices. He can feel the chill right down to his bones, and his lungs ache with every shivering breath. His eyes open only to close again when the world around him starts to spin. He can't see anything through the haze surrounding him anyway - where is he?
Last night is coming back to him in flashes. He remembers Neal's mom making cookies for everyone and how they never got to finish the campaign they planned for months. He knows Eva and Nicholas left before him while he stopped to talk to Grace. He was scared on his way home, a looming feeling of dread that made him peddle faster and look over his shoulder every few seconds. Something was following him. Something dark. Did it get him? He remembers that he tried to fight, but the deadbolt on the door of the garage and his father's old crossbow must not have been enough to protect him.
"Will! Roland! Breakfast is ready. Hurry up before you miss the bus!"
The coffee isn't strong enough this morning. He's on his third cup and he still can't shake away the heaviness in his limbs from only getting a few hours of sleep. He needs to hire someone else to help around the shop. These late night inventory checks are just too much to do alone anymore. It's wearing him down. He needs more sleep, but instead he'll drink another cup of coffee and hope he doesn't have to battle surly teenagers today.
"Mornin', Rob'n." the greeting is garbled by Will's mouthful of toast. Sometimes, he swears 16-year-olds have the manners of wild boars.
"Chew first please, Will. Where's Roland?"
"Probably still asleep. I tried knocking but that kid could sleep through an earthquake. Knowing him, he was up late reading the newest Avengers."
Will's not wrong. His boy has always been a hard sleeper, a trait he certainly inherited from his mother. Marian used to sleep through every alarm in the morning. She would roll over and curl up next to him and continue snoring lightly. It used to lull him back into slumber even on his most restless nights. He hasn't slept through the night since he lost her.
There are moments in a person's life when everything changes, when the world just stops spinning and everything stands still. Robin can still remember the sound of Marian's heart monitor flat-lining. He can still feel the weight of his newborn in his arms as the nurses rushed past him and urgently moved him out of the way. The moment his world turned upside down is forever seared into his memory. He never expected it could happen again. But when he walks into Roland's room to find his bed empty and undisturbed, everything stops.
"Sir! Sir, you can't go in there! Sir, stop before I call security!"
What the hell? She hears a crash before her office door swings open with enough force that it hits the wall and bounces back.
"Madame Mayor, I'm so sorry. I tried to stop him. I'll call security."
Regina doesn't answer Belle and instead looks to the source of the commotion. Robin Locksley should not be in her office. If he thinks he can just storm in whenever he wants, he has another thing coming. She's made their boundaries very clear.
"Mr. Locksley, what is all of this about? You have 30 seconds to explain yourself before I allow Belle to call security."
"My son is missing."
"Oh." Oh. His statement gives her pause. Of all the things she expected him to say, that was nowhere on the list. She gives her secretary an encouraging nod. "It's alright, Belle, you can call off the dogs. Give us a moment alone, please." Fortunately, the girl is a model employee and does as she asks without question.
She knows Roland. He's been like a brother to Neal for years, two peas in the same pod since preschool. It's impossible not to be charmed by his sweet disposition and adorably deep dimples. He's a good kid and her pulse speeds up a bit at the idea that he may be in danger. It has her worrying after her nephew for a moment, itching to call her step-sister to check in on him. But still, why has Robin come to her?
"I'm sorry to hear that, Mr. Locksley. But why are you here? You should be at the sheriff's station."
"I've already been to see Nottingham. Your incompetent sheriff dismissed me, said that Roland was probably just out causing trouble. My son? He's never been in trouble a day in his life. And he wouldn't just not come home."
Her blood boils at the thought of her sheriff reacting so flippantly to a concerned citizen. But still, she has to consider every scenario. "Are you sure he didn't stay at a friend's house? Maybe he forgot to call."
"He wouldn't do that. He knows the rules. And in any case, I've already called Mary Margaret. He's not there." There's desperation in his eyes as he pleads with her, "I know what people think of me, okay. The crazy over-protective parent. I've gone 'mental' since I lost my wife, absolutely can't let go, so I must be overreacting. But I know my child and I know when something is wrong. Something is wrong."
He seems so certain, but everything in her hopes that his instincts are off.
"How long has he been gone?"
"He wasn't in his room this morning. Will was supposed to be home by 10 last night to make sure he went to bed, but he picked up a shift. We didn't know he was gone until he didn't come down for breakfast."
"Will was watching him? As in the Will I caught picking pockets at the summer festival?"
She can see the irritation all over his face at that comment, but she's not wrong. Will has been a troubled child since the moment he arrived in Storybrooke two years ago.
"I know what people think of him, but he's a good kid. He's great with Roland; they're practically attached at the hip. He made a stupid decision last night, but he wouldn't hurt Roland. I'm sure of it."
"Sure enough to risk your son?"
"You're crossing a line, Regina."
She wants to correct him, to remind him that they're not on a first name's basis, to remind him of the professional distance that they agreed to keep. But behind the anger in his eyes, she can see the fear. He's a pain in the ass but he's not trying to rile her up this time. He's just a terrified parent. Despite the way this man drives her crazy, someone needs to be calm in this situation.
"Did you call all of his friends?"
"I've called everyone. I've called his friends, their parents, the school, all of my extended friends and family. Everyone."
He's running his fingers through his hair erratically, pulling on strands so hard that she thinks for a moment he'll cause a bald spot. She can practically feel his anxiety; it's palpable, radiating off of him in waves as he paces aimlessly in front of her. It makes every muscle in her body tighten, a familiar sense of dread that paralyzes her for a millisecond before she jumps into action.
"Robin."
He's still pacing, wearing a hole into her carpet, so she reaches out to stop him. He needs to focus.
"Robin, listen to me. When was the last time anyone saw Roland?"
He lets out a shuddering breath before he tells her "Roland left the Noland's house at 9 last night."
"Okay, I need you to go home and make a list of all the places Roland likes to go, anywhere he would feel safe. That's where we'll look first. It's still too early to officially consider him missing. So putting together search parties -"
"So you're telling me no one will look for him yet!?" He's seething. If looks could kill, she knows she'd be done for. But his outburst isn't going to help anything.
"Would you like to let me finish before your temper tantrum?"
He scowls for a moment but gives her an apologetic nod.
"As I was saying, for his age group, we would normally look at this situation as a potential run away first. But considering it's Roland, I'll see what I can do to arrange search parties a little earlier. It might be difficult though. We can't declare him missing yet, but the sheriff shouldn't have dismissed you. I'll make sure he knows that."
"Thank you, Regina." He heaves out a sigh before he looks to her and her breath catches for a moment at the intensity in his eyes." I… I know things haven't been great between us -"
"Robin, please don't." She doesn't want to talk about this now. She doesn't want to talk about this ever.
"You're right. Yeah, I'm sorry. You said we would never speak of it again. I'm not really following the rules am I?" He scratches at the back of his neck nervously. "I just… thank you."
"Anything for Roland. Just go home and make that list. Then call people that can help you check those places, and I'll see what I can do about getting together a search party." She also needs to call her useless sheriff and set him straight before she skins him alive. Some stupid decade old grudge is no reason to ignore a citizen in need.
"Okay." He deflates at that and runs his fingers through his messy hair one more time. "You're right. I need to get it together. He needs me to be calm."
"It's going to be fine, Robin. Roland will be fine." She pours every bit of confidence she doesn't feel into her words. This man needs hope right now, not the doubt that's slinking into her mind.
He almost looks bashful as he tells her, "I'm sorry for barging into your office. That was a shit thing to do. I know you don't want me crashing into your life."
"I'll let it slide. Just this once." She throws in a wink in an attempt to make him smile for just a moment. Unsurprisingly, it doesn't work. So with a sigh, she sends him away with a promise that she will do everything she can to help him. Then she grabs her car keys so she can drive to the sheriff's station and personally put the fear of god into that man.
"I love this picture of him."
He can hear Mulan speaking to him over the clicking sound of the staple gun, but he can barely process what she's saying. He's moving in a trance at this point, stapling poster after poster to every wooden surface in town. He's been staring at this same picture of it his boy for hours. Every time he catches sight of that dimpled smile, he wants to sob. Roland is alone somewhere, probably scared and cold, wondering when his papa is going to find him. He feels like a failure, the worst father alive. How could he have lost his son? How could I?"
"Robin."
He shakes himself out of the moment to notice Mulan's hand over his, stopping him from driving another staple into the already hole-riddled poster. There must be a couple dozen staples there.
"Robin, maybe you should take a break. Regroup. You're going to wear yourself down." Mulan's voice would be soothing in any other circumstance. He looks up to see everyone staring at him, the weight of their pity dragging him down. But pity isn't going to bring his son home.
"I don't need a break. I need to find my boy."
They searched every place on Robin's list while Will printed out flyers and still nothing. They have less than an hour of daylight left and they're no closer to finding Roland that they were this morning. He can't sleep tonight knowing his son is still out there, still alone, still afraid. He knows his boy is alive; he can feel it in his bones. What must he be thinking?
"Robin, you can't wear yourself into the ground. You're no help to Roland if you can't even stand."
He knows John is right; deep down he knows that. But still, "He's so little, John. He's always been a head shorter than everyone else is his grade, always my little munchkin. I was so grateful when he found friends that would look out for him. But he doesn't have anyone right now. It's so cold and he's alone god knows where. I can't just leave him alone."
"You're not leaving him, Robin. You're doing everything you can. This isn't your fault. This isn't anyone's fault." John sighs and nods his head towards where Will is reloading a staple gun for Tuck, "And I think there's someone else that needs to know that too."
His heart sinks when he looks at Will. He was harsh this morning, harsher than he needed to be - yelling about curfew and responsibilities. He was panicking, and he took it out on a 16-year-old kid that's already been through enough. Roland isn't the only one that needs him right now.
"Will, can you come here for a moment? Let's take a walk."
He doesn't even look up, just grumbles that he's kind of busy at the moment, Uncle Robin.
"It's alright to take a break. Walk with me, please." He's not letting this go. He won't let this kid wallow in guilt for another minute.
Will can see that he's fighting a losing battle, and with all the reluctance of a put-out teen, he hands the stapler back to Tuck and follows after Robin.
They're at the edge of town, close enough to take a quick stroll into the woods. This area of the forest is where they camp every summer, where they roast marshmallows and tell ghost stories well into the night. It's a favorite place for the three of them, a place that brings comfort. They walk in silence until they find the old oak tree where he first taught Will how to shoot a bow.
"We still have a lot of posters to hang."
"We're running out of places to hang them anyway. You printed a lot." He's trying to make eye contact but Will won't budge.
"Yeah, I'm going to post them at the school too." He's mumbling, his voice so low Robin has to strain to hear him.
"Will, look at me." He waits for Will to hesitantly meet his eyes. "I'm sorry - about this morning. I was terrified and I took that out on you. I shouldn't have done that."
"You were right. I screwed up. I'm a screw up."
No. Robin's not going to let him feel this way. "Will, stop that."
"Why? You know it's true. Everywhere I go, bad things happen. First, my parents. Now, Roland. What's next?" He's frantic, his breath growing labored with every sentence. "You know, the kids at school are saying I did this. Maybe I did. Maybe he's missing because I'm here. Maybe I'm cursed. Mayb-"
Robin doesn't let him finish, just wraps him in a bone-crushing hug. He's hysterical, nearly hyperventilating in his panic. Robin just sits with him, shushing him softy while he sobs. What are they going to do?
It's been three days. The search parties have scoured every inch of the town without any sign of Roland. Everything is strange - unexplainable things are happening all over town. Robin refuses to give up hope. He can feel Roland; he's calling to him, trying to communicate, trying to find his way home. But perhaps, Robin really has lost his mind this time. There's a word on the tip of everyone's tongues, a word they dare not say in front of him. But in a moment, that word becomes a reality. They've found a body at the pier. It's Roland.
A/N: Wow, it's been a while. I hope this was worth the wait. Totally un-betaed because I'm an impatient hot mess. This chapter is for the absolutely lovely Laura-p-g. Part 1 of her Valentine's day gift. Enjoy the angst, boo! Also, if you're panicking at that cliff hanger, you probably haven't watched Stranger Things and I'm going to need you to go do that immediately. Happy reading everyone and remember to be gentle. Lord knows I'm still figuring out this writing fanifc thing.
Danelle