Chapter Text
The Enchanted Forest
Robin was dazzled by the Queen’s smile, but it was hard, dangerous and… wrong. He didn’t know how to explain it, but he just knew that a smile from her with warmth and light would be even more dangerous, but in a far different way.
The words that accompanied her smile finally broke through his reverie and his initial joy that she had told him she had found something to live for rather than pricking herself with the poisoned hairpin and falling into an unwaking slumber. Did she just say that the reason she had to live was that she now had someone to destroy? He looked quickly around her castle boudoir to verify the object of her wrath hadn’t followed. He also needed to carefully think through his next words.
“Your Majesty… I don’t think vengeance is an appropriate reason to li….” Purple smoke filled his vision and then cleared to reveal the shocked faces of Prince Charming and Snow White standing in the castle’s courtyard with an army behind them. The smoke had barely cleared before the shock turned to amusement.
“Robin! I assume you in some way have antagonized the Queen?” Charming asked.
“So it would seem, your Highness,” Robin replied, slightly bemused. Snow White smiled sweetly. “And it would also seem she likes you.”
Robin frowned slightly. “I fail to see how banishing me mid-sentence implies affection.”
Snow’s smile broadened. “Well, you have your heart, you’re not dead, and she didn’t drop you in the middle of a freezing lake or a raging fire, “ she paused and her voice took on a sing-song tone. “She definitely likes you.”
She then flashed the brightest smile of all and headed into the castle. Although difficult to tell through the long skirts and cape she was wearing, Charming swore she was skipping. And why not? She had her home back and her new friend, Regina, had a love interest. Even if neither of the future lovebirds knew it yet. Charming knew the signs. After all, his relationship with Snow started with her robbing him (and clobbering him). Making a man disappear in a puff of smoke? Definitely the start to a new fairytale love story! Charming grinned mischievously at a still-confused Robin and headed after his lovely bride – but not, quite, skipping.
Storybrooke
Robin and Regina strolled along with Roland between them eating ice cream, enjoying the relief of the Wicked Witch’s defeat and the warmth of love and family. Robin stopped Regina at the gate of Granny’s while Roland ran up to the door. Regina looked up at him with that brilliant, warm, happy smile that transformed her face. He bent in to kiss her and he thought his heart would burst with his own happiness. He recalled the first time he’d seen her smile – that cold, hard smile – and that he had instinctively known that a smile from her heart would be so much more spectacular and dangerous.
The road between that first smile and this latest had been long and full of obstacles. At times, he thought he would never see it back in the Enchanted Forest this last year. The path to this smile was mirrored by her path to becoming truly good – that too had been beset by impediments. He was glad he had been there to see, what she would let him see, of both. It made her smile mean even more to him. All these thoughts ran through his mind as he kissed her in the chill Storybrooke air.
As he reluctantly broke away, he admitted to himself that he was hers. Utterly and completely. But he wouldn’t tell her yet. He wanted the moment that he did to be perfect, romantic, special -- befitting the Queen and Mayor. There would be time to plan the moment, and in the meantime he would savor the present with Regina and Roland, as well as share in Mary Margaret and David’s joy in naming their new son. He gave Regina a smile of his own and then turned with her to follow Roland into Granny’s.
The Enchanted Forest
Regina stormed out of the council chamber after yet another sharp, but witty, exchange with Robin – one that, in the middle, Snow could have sworn she heard Charming mutter, “get a room.”
“Milady, I know you believe the Queen carries an affection for me, but I really cannot see it,” Robin scoffs.
“Oh, she does. It’s just that you’ve seen her in moments of weakness and now she’s trying to deny that connection she made with you. She’ll make you suffer a lot, and then she’ll come round,” Snow said blithely, resting a hand on her baby bump.
“Absolutely,” Charming chimed in. “Look at Snow and I – all we had to endure from Regina was decades of cruelty, a curse or two, and a kill-on-sight order. But now we’re family and she loves us dearly.” Charming flashed Robin a huge grin.
Robin rolled his eyes. “You’re not helping, mate! I mean, your highness!” Charming clapped Robin on the shoulder. “I’m proud to have you call me ‘mate’ – you’re not just a fellow warrior, you’re my friend. I hope you don’t mind my teasing you in regard to Regina.”
“No, not at all. You’re actually being much kinder than I would if the positions were reversed. Just ask Little John.” Robin paused a moment, then spoke slowly. “It is becoming harder and harder to see the Queen as anything other than the “Evil” Queen, even though she hasn’t done anything evil since I’ve known her. She’s just been mean except for saving Roland and the day we first entered the castle, when she opened up to me, a little.”
Snow gazed at Robin intently and saw that he was serious and that this bothered him – that Regina wasn’t showing anyone anything but her ‘mean’ façade. “Robin, are you leaving Roland with Angelina when you go on patrol tonight?”
Robin was confused by the sudden change in subject. Angelina was the elderly nurse, an old friend of Snow’s childhood nurse, who looked after the young children of the castle’s occupants as well as two children whose parents could not be found after the curse broke. She was a dedicated soul who insisted on being with the children all the time. She was also known for her kind deeds around the castle. Helping the wounded and sick. Doing mending. Always contributing baked goods for the poorest of the kingdom, although goodness knows how she had time. During the day, when there were a large number of children she had helpers, but in the evenings, she alone watched Roland and the two other children. Roland loved her, but he couldn’t seem to make up his mind whether to call her “’Gelina,” or “Gina.”
“Yes, I was going to. Why do you ask?”
“Drop him off a little early, and then come find me. Assign your patrol to someone else.”
Robin was still a bit confused but nodded his assent.
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It was just before dusk when Robin delivered Roland into Angelina’s old and gnarled hands. Roland shouted “Hello ‘Gelina!” then gave the matron’s leg a warm and fond hug before rushing off into the playroom to join the other children.
Robin thanked the elderly lady and immediately went in search of Snow.
“Milady – why are we secreted behind a tapestry watching the nursery door?” Robin asked a short while later.
“Shhh!” Snow hissed. “And why are we whispering?” he added in a low quiet voice.
“You’ll see. Now be quiet or you’ll scare her off and you won’t see!”
Robin sighed softly, but did Snow’s bidding. He soon heard the clack of high heels moving at a brisk pace down the corridor. The Queen. He knew the sound of that commanding stride. So adorable on one so petite. Adorable? The Queen? He reigned in his thoughts and admonished his brain for such thinking.
Regina rounded the bend of the corridor and stopped at the nursery door. After a quick look around her, she knocked. Angelina immediately stepped out, closing the door behind her.
“They’ve all had their dinners and are quite tired. Priscilla and Peter are a bit cranky as they’ve been squabbling all evening as only a brother and sister can. Roland’s a dear – he’s left them to it as if he knows he can’t solve it, but I’m sure it’s made him a bit cranky, too. I’ll be right next door in my room if you need me,” the old woman then did something even more surprising than her words – she put her weathered arms around the Queen’s neck and kissed her cheek.
“Thank you, Angelina, we’ll be fine – as always,” Regina smiled and kissed the old woman’s cheek in return. To Robin, it seemed as if this were a scene that had played out many times. After Angelina disappeared into her own room, Regina looked around again to ensure she wasn’t observed (obviously she hadn’t discovered that the tapestry had company behind it) and then enveloped herself in a cloud of purple smoke. Snow clutched Robin’s hand and hissed, “see!” There stood Angelina. Only, it wasn’t Angelina – it had to be that the Queen had performed a spell to make herself resemble Angelina. The Queen quietly opened the door and entered in her disguise. She was instantly greeted by three small voices yelling, “’Gina, ‘Gina! We’ve been waiting for you! ‘Gelina said you’d come!”
Robin looked at Snow in the dim light in utter confusion. “What?!?”
“Not here,” she whispers. “Let’s go to the library down the hall.”
As soon as they enter the library door, Robin starts questioning Snow. “Does that happen every night? Why is Regina watching the children? Why is she hiding that she watches the children? How do the children know that she’s not the same Angelina that takes care of them during the day? And why is Angelina so obviously fond of the Evil Queen? And for that, matter – ”
“She’s NOT Evil!”
“Of all my questions, THAT’S the part you decide to answer first?!?” Robin exclaims.
“Well, really, it answers all of your questions,” Snow replies. “Look, let’s sit down. The bun in my oven wants Mamma off her feet.”
Robin berates himself. “I’m terribly sorry, milady. I should have realized. I keep forgetting you’re pregnant. You’re barely showing.”
“Liar. But nice to hear.” Snow smiles as she eases herself and her expanding belly into a chair. “Pretty soon I won’t be able to hide behind the tapestry without it bulging and giving me away!”
“You hide there often?”
“Yes. I like seeing Regina do nice things, but I know it makes her uncomfortable, so I conceal myself whenever possible. The tapestry is a good hiding spot but she’s almost caught me at other times, in other parts of the castle,” Snow confided, amused by Robin’s perplexed expression.
“Other places? You mean she does more than this? No. Wait. Don’t answer that yet. Let’s start with the events this evening and my first questions.” Robin hadn’t settled into a chair yet, he was looking around the room searchingly. He needed a drink. His son’s nanny is a former mass murderer. Which answered one question – why the Queen didn’t want people to know about her baby-sitting role.
“In the cabinet under the window. There’s a pitcher of ale and a pitcher of water. Regina placed a spell on them so that the two pitchers are always full and always fresh. The water is for me. Would you mind pouring me some?”
Robin stared at her and then shook his head. “How did you know I was looking for something to drink? Are you a sorceress as well?”
“No – you were just doing the same thing Charming did when I brought him here after taking him to hide behind the tapestry.”
Robin walked back over to Snow with her water glass in one hand and a stout ale for himself in the other. He settled into a wing back chair after handing her the glass and sighed. “Before we discuss who knows, what is it that we know?”
“Regina impersonates Angelina so that she can do good things without suffering the suspicion, stares and surprise of others. It started not long after we got back to the Enchanted Forest and regained the castle. We had just discovered that Priscilla and Peter’s family were not to be found and we needed someone to take care of the two toddlers,” Snow related. Robin remembered the council meeting in which that topic had arisen.
“Yes, I remember that. Blue brought it up as well as the fact that there were a large number of single parents whose children also needed care while the parents worked,” Robin recalled. “The Queen was quite upset to hear that so many children were missing a parent and asked how that could be…” Robin trailed off remembering what happened next.
“And then Granny told Regina it was because Regina had killed their parents,” Snow added softly.
“Then Regina’s voice turned very hard and cold and she snapped something about finding a nanny so that single parents wouldn’t have an excuse to shirk their work. I remember thinking what an act it was, and how clearly Granny’s answer had shocked and hurt her. Her sharp tone was just a thin veil for her remorse and anger at herself,” Robin said.
“Oh, Robin. That’s what you and I and Charming saw, but the rest of the room saw just the Evil Queen being herself. And that’s what Regina saw in their eyes, too -- that she was the Evil Queen and always would be. How could she make amends if she wasn’t going to be seen as anything but evil?” Snow asked rhetorically. “I went to go see her after the meeting. There were tears streaming down her face and I thought she was going to throw me out of her room. Instead she asked me to help her. There had been a nursemaid when Regina was young that Cora, Regina's mother, sent away because she said she was making Regina soft. Regina never forgot her. She asked me to get a letter to her, Angelina, and ask her to come to the castle to take care of the children.”
“I thought you knew her yourself. Why didn’t Regina just send the letter?” Robin asked, puzzled. He seemed to be frequently puzzled these days.
“I didn’t know her. Regina and I just made that story up because we both knew that people would be suspicious of a nursemaid suggested by Regina – possibly to the extent of not even allowing their children to go to the nursery,” Snow explained. “Once Angelina arrived, Charming and I realized that while she was an amazing lady, that she was too elderly to take care of children all day and all evening, too. He and I told Regina that we would have to find someone to help in the evenings,” Snow said.
“Regina asked us to wait a few days and see how it went. Charming and I checked in frequently and Angelina seemed to be just as spry in the morning as she was in the evening. It was wonderful. And then I noticed on my visits that in the morning, the children called their nanny Angelina or ’Gelina and in the evening they called her ’Gina. They also acted differently. Lovingly, in both cases, but more familiarly in the evening. I thought it was because they were tired. Then one night, the person who looked like Angelina slipped up and called me ‘Snow.’ I pretended not to notice, played a little while longer with the children, excused myself, and ran to Regina’s rooms. She wasn’t there. That’s when I started watching the nursery from behind the tapestry and discovered that it was, indeed, Regina minding the children in the evenings. A not evil, but very nice, Regina,” Snow finished triumphantly.
Robin was stunned, but recovering. “And the children can somehow see that she’s Regina and not Angelina?” It seemed odd to say her name instead of the Queen, but it just slipped out.
“Yes, but from what I can tell, it’s only the very young children. The older ones can’t see through the disguise. I asked Priscilla one day when we were alone to describe Angelina and she called her the nice old wrinkly lady. When I asked her about ‘Gina, she told me that ‘Gina was beautiful and kind with long black hair and Priscilla wanted to be just like her when she grew up,” Snow said.
Robin chuckled. “There have been many times when Roland told me that ‘Gina was beautiful. I thought he was just a sweet dear boy who loves his nanny – in spite of her age!”
Snow laughed. “He IS a sweet dear boy and he does love his nanny, but she’s also beautiful and wouldn’t like the reference to her age!”
Robin’s heart felt light. The Queen wasn’t beyond redemption or reach. There was so much more he wanted to know from Snow. Such as whether all of Angelina’s renowned good deeds were hers, or really the Queen’s. He couldn’t wait to hear.
Storybrooke
Marian was alive and in his arms. Roland was hugging them both. It was amazing. A miracle. When he finally caught sight of someone outside their circle, it was David and Mary Margaret. Looking happy and yet terribly sad at the same time. And then the sadness in their eyes began breaking its way into his own heart. Distantly, he heard Marian explaining that she’d been imprisoned and that she been freed by Emma and barely escaped execution by the Evil Queen.
“Not evil,” Robin whispered softly, involuntarily, but Marian didn’t hear him.