Chapter 4
Sweat dripped down her neck pooling in her collarbone briefly before meeting and being absorbed by the fabric of her dress. Robin was right. The forest could get dangerously cold once the sun set, but with the late afternoon sun beating brightly through the trees, and the vigorous pace with which they hiked through the woods, there was no fear of freezing now. They must have traveled a great distance, she thinks to herself, trying to gauge the time of day. She assumes they have been hiking through the thicket for a good three or four hours, and they most likely only have a couple hours of daylight left. The trip has been quiet, silent, bordering on peaceful if not for the almost tangible tension filling the air.
Regina struggles to keep pace with the now dull pain in her side. She realises she has not done anything quite so physical since those long days and nights in Neverland searching for Henry. The thought of her boy makes Regina feel heavy with disappointment, and she nibbles at the inside of her cheek as she lets her mind drift to him. She had only just found him, he had just remembered her, for once he had looked at her with joy and love filling his expression, but she was only blessed briefly before being separated from him once again.
With a shake of her head Regina tries to focus again on the men around her. Robin has his bow and a small dagger for defence, and many of his men have similar weaponry, but she knows from experience none of them are as accurate with their weapons as Robin is with that bow. If she is to escape, she will need to either remove herself from his presence hoping to put enough distance between them before he notices, or remove the weapon from him before attempting a get away. Neither of which seems likely considering her current exhaustion and the pain in her side. The aching had improved and she is able to move comfortably enough, but running and twisting through the dense trees is completely different.
As Regina ponders her options she hears the object of her thoughts speak, "we will camp here," Robin states to his men authoritatively, "we have some light left of the day to set up camp and eat before resting so we can head out early tomorrow for Snow White's last location." Robin finishes, turning his gaze to her, his lips pressed tight into a thin line. He does not seem very happy with the fact that he has to bring his men miles through the forest all for her, but he clearly thinks it is the honorable thing to do. If you can count on Robin for anything, even this past version of Robin, it is being honorable, she thinks suppressing a smirk at this revelation.
They settle into a clearing and make quick work of starting a fire, setting up a couple tents, and removing any required supplies from the horses before tying them to nearby trees. Regina stands awkwardly silently debating whether to help, that would seem odd she thinks, but it feels just as peculiar for her to stand here shifting her weight from foot to foot while stealing glances toward Roland. The little boy was dismounted from his horse along with one of Robin's men, though he still seems enthralled by the strong animal as he stares up at it pointing saying horsey, or at least what sounds kind of like horsey. Roland is even cuter as a little two year old than he is where she comes from-something she truly did not think possible.
The view brings her back to thoughts of Henry at that age. Just starting to string together some words, only pronouncing some syllables correctly. He was such a cute little boy and now he has grown into a handsome young man. She has to return to him and fix all of this. She refuses to miss out on any more of his life than she already has.
Just then she sees the boy taking a couple steps toward the horses. They seemed mild mannered on the trip, but he is a small boy, and no one else seems to be watching at the moment as now he is only a foot away from one of the animal's hind legs. Regina moves urgently with no other thought than removing the boy from harms way. The fire is crackling, now that the men have added several large logs she can feel the heat from the blaze, but her eyes remain locked on her destination, Roland.
She watches as the horse tenses, the fire is popping loudly now probably due to excess moisture in one of the many logs. Regina raises her hand nonchalantly, bringing her magic forth to quickly move Roland away from the animal, but nothing happens. Dammit, Regina thinks in frustration before remembering that her magic has been contained by Robin, his men, and some stupid root growing in this damned forest. She moves into a sprint just as Roland reaches for the horse.
"Roland, no!" her voice sounds foreign to her ears, she doesn't remember opening her mouth, but the boy does not hear her. His touch spooks the animal even further and Regina arrives just with enough time to give Roland a light shove while the horse kicks backward and whips its tail. Luckily she put enough distance between the boy and the horse to protect him, he remains untouched, but Regina is not so lucky herself as she feels the edge of a hoof make contact with her shoulder blade.
She releases a strangled groan as she falls to the dirt on her knees immediately scurrying along the ground to place some distance between her body and the horse. In the instant she reached Roland the camp had suddenly felt ten times smaller with men clamboring toward them checking Roland, and then looking at her in startled confusion. At some point Robin maneuvered his way through the crowd, and Regina can see him squeezing his son, trying to envelope the boy into his body as far as possible for protection. Then he looks her way as she lifts herself from the ground.
"You saved him. How...why would you do that?" Robin questions in bewilderment.
Regina innerly debates how she should respond before settling with the same truth/lie she had told him earlier. It is best to be consistent, she thinks.
"I already told you, I am NOT your Evil Queen!" Regina says the title with such disdain she surprises herself, "...of course I saved the boy! I saw he was in danger and I'm not a monster!"
Looking in Robin's eyes Regina reigns in her anger. She can see something there that she has yet to see from this Robin, and his gaze makes her uncomfortable. Still, she refuses to turn away, she refuses to show weakness. She straightens her spine in a show of strength, immediately wincing when the movement forces her to drop her shoulder and gasp in pain.
"You're injured." Robin states, standing directly in front of her placing his hands on her injured shoulder. How did he close the distance between them so quickly? Regina shrugs off his hands and regrets that decision instantly as well as she nearly falls to her knees again with the pain that shoots through her shoulder. Robin keeps his hands off of her, only hovering while he makes eye contact and speaks, "Let me tend to this milady. We have some herbs that can at the very least ease the pain."
His eyes have turned desperate. He wants to help her. He probably feels at fault in some way since she was injured protecting his son, and Robin never likes to leave a debt unpaid. The men have cleared somewhat and Roland is being carried off by Little John. He is staring at her with those dark beautiful eyes. Eyes that could trap her gaze for days if he wanted to do so-he smiles at her. That smile steals all her resolve, warms the wall of ice keeping her from Robin's touch. What harm is there in letting Robin tend to her shoulder. The better she feels the easier it will be for her to escape this camp.
Regina turns back to Robin and nods almost imperceptibly at his questioning gaze. His lips turn up into a sly grin instantly as he says, "good, come with me. All of our supplies are in the green tent."
She enters the tent cautiously feeling her body drag. She wonders if it is possible that gravity in this realm has a greater pull because she can't remember ever feeling so heavy and worn back in StoryBrooke, but she thinks it is more likely the heavy fatigue settling into her body. The inside of the tent is almost a replica of the one where she woke in the previous camp, minus the table and chairs. Instead there are two blankets sprawled on the ground, presumably to keep the supplies clean and dry. Piled on top of the blankets are the baskets and bags that had been removed from the horses.
Robin retrieves one of the many baskets and a blanket from the pile before returning to her side. Setting the basket down on the dirt he opens the blanket and places it on the ground as well. He kneels on the blanket searching through the basket, digging out pieces of fabric, some bundled herbs, a wooden bowl, and a few other items he must deem necessary for treating what she assumes is only a bruise. Then he stands in front of her, his toned body only inches from her, and she only now takes in how dark it is in the tent. The only illumination a small amount of light still filtering through from the evening sun. Her minds drifts to hurried kisses full of passion and promise before she mentally scolds herself, praying that the man in front of her cannot read her as well as 'her' Robin.
She is surprised when she looks at him, noticing a flush cover his cheeks, and she wonders if it is possible this Robin's thoughts had traveled a similar path. However, the next words he speaks, give her explanation for his embarrassment.
"Milady, you'll need to remove your...clothing, partially...if I am to tend to your injury...properly." Robin says with much discomfort.
Regina is second guessing her decision. Having Robin so close to her is difficult enough. How is she supposed to suppress her feelings for the man when she is literally bare in front of him. Robin noticing her trepidation is quick to reassure her.
"I will step outside for a moment. I would like to check on my son. You can get yourself...situated while I am gone." Robin does not allow her to answer before stepping from the tent.
Regina releases a heavy sigh of resignation and slips her peacoat from her shoulders. Examining herself she can see her clothing has not held up well to the hike through the forest, not that she expected it to. Her stockings are full of snags and holes and she can see where several light scratches have drawn blood from her legs. Her shoes are covered in a layer of dirt and mud, so she kicks them off and lets them lay on the ground while she sets her coat on the blanket Robin laid out. She removes her stockings with every intention of seeing to those injuries herself. The last thing she needs is for Robin to be smoothing away the dirt and blood from her legs, but the thought makes her body tingle. Looking down she is happy to see that at least her dress seems in good condition with the exception of being wrinkled and slightly damp with perspiration from the hike.
Another sigh escapes her lips because this dress has a high neck and back, and regardless of the fact that it is sleeveless there is no way for Robin to reach the injury to her shoulder blade unless she lowers the zipper and removes her arm from the dress. A task she is not even capable of at the moment with her injury. Just as she is mentally debating once more if allowing him to help her is the right choice she is interrupted by his voice.
"Milady, may I enter?" Robin asks from behind the tent entrance.
"Yes, come in." Regina says after a brief pause. As Robin enters the tent with a lantern illuminating his face she turns her back to him, walks to the far edge of the blanket and kneels. She is being ridiculous. Robin is a respectful man who would not dare touch her with any other intentions than tending to her wound. She will let him help her and that is final. With her decision made she speaks before any doubt can creep back into her mind.
"I need you to lower the zipper on my dress." She states hurriedly hoping he doesn't notice the way her voice wavers slightly.
"Zipper?" he questions while removing his boots before taking a cautious step onto the blanket. Her mouth slowly lifts at the corners into a small smile as she contains a chuckle.
"The binding of my dress..." she states while gesturing with her uninjured arm to the base of her neck, "there is a...metal thing," she says for lack of a better word, "that you pull downward."
She feels him settle behind her on his own knees and she takes a deep breath in anticipation of his hands touching her skin. She has been touched by 'her' Robin, by this man's future self, but they had yet to fully explore one another properly before she was pulled through the time portal. She had decided, after telling him of his tattoo, of soulmates, of her past, she would be with him. She fully intended on meeting him at her home after leaving the party at the diner and giving herself to him completely. Now, in her current predicament, she couldn't decide whether she was thankful or regretful that she had waited.
She is drawn from her thoughts by Robin pushing her hair aside along her shoulder, she shivers at the touch. Then, finding the zipper, he slowly lowers his hand revealing the skin of her back in its wake. He moves the zipper halfway down her back before he is halted by her voice.
"Why are you doing this? Why help the evil queen? Even if I did save Roland." Regina wonders even though she already knows the answer, she knows Robin and knows helping others comes naturally to him.
"Well, I thought you weren't the evil queen?" he says referring to her half lie, she can hear his smirk in his voice. He clearly still believes it is a complete falsehood, but he continues, "Everyone has a darkness in them. Some succumb to it completely, become evil, others," he pauses in contemplation, "others have people who help them through, help them back to the light, or are lucky enough to stumble out of the darkness themselves. You saved my son. Someone filled with only darkness would not have cared. Perhaps I see some light in you."
Regina does not respond, only stares ahead wondering how she could feel even more love for this man. She loves everything she knows of him, everything he has ever shown her in the future and now. Robin continues lowering the zipper until she can feel the coolness of the air seeping into the skin of her back. She brings her arm around her body and uses her hand to lower the strap covering her injured shoulder wishing she hadn't worn lace lingerie, but when she'd dressed she planned on sharing a romantic evening with her soulmate. This is not what she had in mind.
She hears Robin gasp and wonders if he is that shocked by her peculiar underclothes, but realizes it is her injury that concerns him as he puts light pressure against her skin that makes her cry out.
"It appears that the hoof of the horse has broken through your skin. Otherwise it seems the injury is not too serious. Just swelling and bruising. I will have to clean the skin that is broken and bandage it." She can hear him behind her, pouring some water into the bowl, untying the bundles of herbs, uncapping a flask.
He tentatively returns a hand to her skin before he warns her, "this will hurt," he states in a sympathetic tone just as he places something wet to her wound. She gasps and instinctively pulls away slightly before settling back toward him. She cringes and to her own embarrassment whimpers slightly while he disinfects her injury, feeling great relief when he finally lifts his hands from her and she can feel the coolness of his breath on her skin. He is blowing air lightly over her injury to sooth it and the sensation causes unwelcome ripples of pleasure to surge through her body.
It takes him hardly anytime at all to continue, smearing what feels like a salve against her shoulder before having her lift her arm slightly so he can place a wrap and bandage. Regina lets out a sigh of relief as he seems to have finished when she flinches at his touch being placed lower on her skin.
"What are you doing?" Regina questions loudly, turning, and risking a glance back toward him with her arms covering her very exposed body. The movement causes her to cringe yet again as she instantly realizes what he was touching. Her injured side is in clear view now with a deep bruise covering her skin.
"Why didn't you say something? That injury is not from the horse." He states while looking at her. He seems perplexed that she would have kept her injury hidden from him.
"I don't need your help," she states calmly feeling slightly foolish and looking downward, "I tried healing myself, but...I can't use my magic...remember?" She says sarcastically, meeting his eyes again and trying to change the subject.
"I could have helped with the pain milady." Robin replies calmly.
"So help now," Regina answers as if that is obvious.
Robin turns away from her and reaches for another small bowl filled with liquid and some bits of herbs and leaves. "Here," he says while handing her the bowl, "drink it."
"Ha," Regina looks at the bowl and then to Robin's face, "you're kidding." The smirk slowly leaves her lips as she sees he is completely serious.
"I am not," he assures her while taking her hand in his and setting the small bowl securely into her palm. She tries not to show how affected she is by his hand brushing against her own. "These herbs and plants will ease the pain. The broth will taste bitter, but it will help."
Regina looks down scowling. She stares at that bowl, in her hand, in Robin's hand, and gulps audibly. He drops his hand and she meets his eyes as she rises the bowl to her mouth and drinks. It is awful. Bitter does not describe how awful it tastes, but the disgusting brew is a welcome distraction to the feelings generated by Robin's touch.
She hands him the bowl not completely empty, but she can't stomach another drop. He takes it from her grasp and asks, "May I look at your other injury milady? I would like to be sure it does not need to be bandaged or treated." Regina tenses at his question, but relents. If she does not let him see the extent of her injury he will only worry himself with her. The last thing Regina needs is for him to be constantly eyeing her in concern when she is trying to escape. She turns her side to him again and hates that his touch causes her to jump. Hopefully he thinks she flinches due to apprehension rather than anticipation.
"There is a lot of bruising, but nothing seems out of place. I could have one of my men, our group's healer, take a look at it if you like?" Robin asks.
"No!" She responds quickly. "It will heal...and it doesn't even hurt anymore," she says hoping he doesn't see through the lie.
"Based on how you flinched when I first touched it I doubt that is true, but it is your choice." Robin states with a knowing grin. "Would you like me to...close your dress now?"
Regina does not answer with words. Instead turns her back to him again and slips her strap back up her arm. He takes the hint and zips her dress back up allowing his fingers to linger at her neck briefly. The sensation brings her such frustration. She had been hoping 'her' Robin would be unzipping this dress, would be touching her skin, would be peppering her body with kisses. She needs to get out of here. Being around this man is impossible, distracting. Him and his adorable son are too much like the man and boy she has come to love.
She can feel the absence of his presence as he lifts himself from the blanket and begins returning items to the basket. She turns herself toward him and watches as he finishes. He hands her another bowl containing water with some floating herbs along with a small rag and she looks up at him perplexed.
"I assume you'll want to tend to the rest yourself," he says glancing at her legs. She thinks she can see his eyes darken while he takes in her body, and the way he looks at her returns the tingling awareness she had felt earlier. Their eyes meet and he quickly looks away from her with another emotion filling his expression, guilt, shame.
"There is some clothing in that bag," he says gesturing toward the pile of supplies. His voice coming out with a low raspiness she isn't used to, at least not from 'this' Robin. "Make use of anything that will work for you. My men have made a stew, and you are welcome to come get a bowl when you are ready." He says turning to leave.
"Thank you," she says. She seems to be saying that a lot to him oddly enough since she is basically being held captive.
He halts his exit, but doesn't turn her way, "You're welcome," he responds. Taking another step before stopping and looking back at her with a look of confusion on his face, "how did you know my son?" he asks.
"What?" she questions puzzled by what he is asking.
"You said his name. You called him Roland. How did you know his name?" he clarifies. She scolds herself mentally, grasping for explanations.
"I heard one of your men address him in the woods," she states nonchalantly hoping he doesn't question her answer. He is still looking at her with a muddled expression. He appears to be searching his memories, trying to remember if he heard any of his men mention his son's name. She is not sure whether he believes her, but he does not question her again, simply turns and steps out of the tent. She lifts the soaked fabric from the bowl of water and begins to clean the dirt and blood from her legs.
She definitely needs to get out of here.